Chapter Summaries

Morris questioned Mundungus Fletcher about a map pointing to Nurmengard, then encountered Aberforth's longstanding hostility toward the suspected thief at the Hog's Head. After Mundungus fled, Morris found him at the Three Broomsticks with an antique dealer named Castor.

• Morris asked Mundungus whether his map pointed to Nurmengard and pressed him for what he knew about the prison.
• Mundungus claimed he had bought the map from a general goods merchant, though Morris suspected he had stolen it.
• Aberforth recognized Mundungus, accused him of being a thief, and drove him out of the Hog's Head.
• Aberforth questioned Morris about their conversation and Grindelwald, but Morris refused to explain before leaving.
• Morris found Mundungus at the Three Broomsticks, where Mundungus introduced him to his antique-dealing friend Castor.

Morris learned that Castor was a tomb robber before leaving for the Christmas holidays, then followed Mundungus Fletcher’s faulty parchment through the mountains of central Europe. He found Nurmengard and slipped inside after its locked door resisted his spells.

• Morris spoke with Mundungus Fletcher and learned that Castor specialized in robbing ancient wizarding tombs.
• Professor McGonagall warned Morris about Fletcher and reminded him not to use magic outside school during the holidays.
• Morris stayed aboard the Ship in a Bottle near Hogsmeade, then followed Fletcher’s parchment to the mountains of central Europe.
• Morris searched the mountains with the Bone Dragon until the parchment’s compass pointed toward a black stone tower marked “For the Greater Good.”
• Morris found Nurmengard, failed to open its sealed door with unlocking spells, and used Shadow Concealment to slip inside.

Morris visited Grindelwald in Nurmengard after a prophecy showed them meeting, hoping to learn about a strange place he called the Gap World. Grindelwald agreed to talk after Morris showed him a photograph of his younger self found in a house there.

• Morris climbed through Nurmengard’s empty cells and found Grindelwald in the top-floor room.
• Morris introduced himself, offered Grindelwald pear drops after learning he had lost his teeth, and asked whether he remembered a prophecy.
• Grindelwald recalled a vision of a boy emerging from the shadows with Christmas presents to stand before him.
• Morris showed Grindelwald a photograph of him as a young man, which he had found in a house in the Gap World.
• Grindelwald asked why Morris wanted to know about the place, then agreed to tell him about it.

Morris questioned Grindelwald about the Gap World, the Deathly Hallows, and the wooden cabin he had built there. After introducing himself and offering to do Grindelwald a favor, Morris vanished from the cell, leaving Grindelwald puzzled.

• Grindelwald explained that the Gap World lay between life and death and that the underworld was Death's domain.
• Grindelwald said the Elder Wand had once let him sense the world of the dead and find an entrance, but that ability had later disappeared.
• Grindelwald revealed that he had built a dwelling in the Gap World hoping his soul would remain there longer after death, though he had forgotten his original research goals.
• Morris introduced himself as Morris Black, a Hogwarts student, and said he had visited only to ask questions.
• Morris offered to do something for Grindelwald besides helping him escape, asked how he received food, and then vanished from the room.

Morris cooked hot pot and spoke with Grindelwald in Nurmengard before escaping when a guard arrived. Back in Britain, he checked on the sales of aura-concealing gems at Frick's shop, where he learned that Dumbledore was looking for him.

• Morris shared cola and conversation with Grindelwald, who told him that Death existed and that an entrance to the world of the dead lay in the Gap World.
• A guard entered Grindelwald's cell, so Morris used Fixed-Point Teleportation to escape before the guard could identify him.
• Morris returned to Britain and learned that Mundungus Fletcher was away on vacation.
• Morris visited Frick's shop to ask about aura-concealing gem sales and ate Frick's last two slices of bread.
• Frick told Morris that Dumbledore was outside looking for him.

Dumbledore confronted Morris about the break-in at Nurmengard, and Morris admitted he had gone there to speak with Grindelwald about the Realm Between Life and Death. Dumbledore revealed that he and Grindelwald had once researched it together, then asked Morris not to return to the prison.

• Dumbledore visited Frick's shop and asked Morris whether he had anything to do with the Nurmengard break-in.
• Morris admitted that he had entered Nurmengard to talk with Grindelwald.
• Morris explained that he wanted to learn about the Realm Between Life and Death, which Grindelwald had studied when he was young.
• Dumbledore said he and Grindelwald had once researched the Realm Between Life and Death together but had failed.
• Dumbledore asked Morris not to return to Nurmengard and said he might strengthen its security.

Morris heard how Frick had once been injured while teaching Defence Against the Dark Arts, then hosted Arthur Weasley and the twins in Frick’s shop. After the Weasleys warned him about werewolf attacks, Frick discovered another theft in his storeroom, and Morris suspected the thief might be someone Frick knew.

• Frick told Morris that Dumbledore had asked him twice to teach Defence Against the Dark Arts, and that he had retired after being seriously injured in his first lesson.
• Fred, George, and Arthur Weasley visited Morris at Frick’s shop, where the twins considered opening a joke shop in Knockturn Alley.
• Arthur warned Morris that werewolves had carried out three serious attacks nearby and that the Aurors were focused on catching Sirius Black.
• After the Weasleys left, Frick announced that someone had robbed his storeroom again despite its three magical locks.
• Morris suggested that the skilled thief might be someone Frick knew.

Morris returned to Hogwarts aboard his Ship in a Bottle, prompting Professor McGonagall to impose a tracking badge and a ban on taking it off school grounds. During her inspection of the ship, she found a grave bearing Morris’s name and learned he called it the ship’s security guard.

• Frick told Morris that the thief had stolen half of Morris’s aura-concealing gems, and Morris demanded that Frick replace them.
• Morris sailed his Ship in a Bottle back to Hogwarts, where the Giant Squid repeatedly tried and failed to climb onto it.
• Professor McGonagall questioned Morris about how he had passed the Dementors and learned that his ship could fly as high as a Muggle airplane.
• Professor McGonagall gave Morris a tracking badge on Dumbledore’s orders and told him he could not take the ship out of school before summer.
• Professor McGonagall inspected the ship for Sirius Black and found a grave marked with Morris’s name, which Morris identified as the ship’s security guard.

Morris showed Professor McGonagall his skeleton Champion and asked her to test its defenses; she defeated it by levitating it beyond its reach. Back at Hogwarts, Professor McGonagall brought Morris to her office to test his Transfiguration skills, and he began thinking about becoming an Animagus.

• Morris revealed Champion to Professor McGonagall and invited her to test the skeleton's defenses after they inspected the ship.
• Professor McGonagall disarmed Champion with Expelliarmus, but Champion recovered his sword and pushed through her Impediment Jinx.
• Professor McGonagall levitated Champion to the ceiling, defeating him and prompting Morris to consider improving his resistance to magic.
• Morris and Professor McGonagall returned to Hogwarts, where she took him to her office to assess his Transfiguration proficiency.
• Morris followed Professor McGonagall into her office and thought of the Animagus magic.

Morris demonstrated his Transfiguration skill to Professor McGonagall and asked how to become an Animagus. After reading her notes, he postponed the difficult undertaking, while the new school term began with Sirius Black still at large.

• Morris transformed a chair into an ostrich, and Professor McGonagall praised the near-flawless result.
• Morris asked Professor McGonagall about becoming an Animagus, and she agreed to explain the process only if he attempted it under her supervision.
• Professor McGonagall gave Morris her old Animagus notebook, and he read through the demanding procedure.
• Morris decided to postpone learning to become an Animagus, and Professor McGonagall warned him to tell her before attempting it.
• The second half of the Hogwarts school year began, and Morris remained disappointed that the Ministry had not caught Sirius Black.

Morris overheard Draco Malfoy asking Snape for help with dueling so he could beat Morris, and he invited Draco to challenge him while threatening him with his Basilisk. Later, Morris explored the Gap World and wondered whether it contained an entrance to the world of the dead, but his portal ran out of energy and sent him back to Hogwarts.

• Morris saw Draco Malfoy practicing dueling with Snape, who urged him to be patient and focus on strengthening his foundations.
• Draco asked Snape how good Morris was at dueling and said he wanted to beat him, but Snape suggested he try surpassing Morris academically instead.
• Morris revealed he had overheard them and invited Draco to challenge him, warning that his Basilisk could bite Draco's arm off if he caused trouble behind Morris's back.
• After returning to his dormitory, Morris entered the Gap World and wandered farther than before, wondering if it held an entrance to the world of the dead.
• Morris returned to his dormitory when the portal ran out of energy and realized he needed to find a way to make it last longer.

Morris received an incomplete prophecy from Trelawney warning him to be careful and fight a powerful enemy, then spent two weeks improving the Gate of Two Realms. He entered the Gap World to search for the world of the dead that Grindelwald had mentioned, but found only familiar wasteland.

• During Divination, Trelawney unconsciously prophesied that Morris would face a powerful enemy, but she stopped after saying, “Right...” and fell asleep.
• Morris decided that Trelawney could not explain the prophecy and considered asking Grindelwald about it later, once Nurmengard was less heavily guarded.
• Over the next two weeks, Morris modified the Gate of Two Realms so it lasted more than five times as long, though further improvements would make it unstable and use more Gap Energy Crystals.
• Morris entered the Gap World through the magic circle and set out to find the world of the dead that Grindelwald had described.
• Morris walked farther than ever before, but the grayish-white wasteland around him remained familiar.

Morris returned from the Gap World after leaving a message on a strange sign and began considering how to use a Firebolt as a model for making brooms. He discovered a new spell in the Book of the Mage that let him draw magic power from his undead creatures, and prepared to test it with Guantou.

• Morris found a sign in the desert carved with the words "Been here," added "I've been here too," and returned to his dormitory as the portal expired.
• At breakfast, Morris heard that Cho Chang would be Ravenclaw's Seeker and learned that Harry Potter had a Firebolt, prompting him to consider buying one to study.
• Morris skipped his first class and sent Frick a letter asking him to find a way to buy a Firebolt.
• Morris discovered the Magic Power Link spell in the Book of the Mage and established a channel connecting his mental power to Guantou.
• Morris told Guantou they would test the spell, eager to draw on the undead creature's magic power.

Morris tested using magical links to draw magic from his undead creatures, then spent time with the Explorers aboard the Ship in a Bottle. The chapter ended as Neville eagerly prepared to share something about his Meditation practice.

• Morris used Guantou's magic to summon five and a half skeleton grunts, then stopped when Guantou became exhausted.
• Morris established magical links with nearly all his undead creatures and realized they could replenish his magic during combat.
• Morris, Neville, Fred, and George relaxed aboard the Ship in a Bottle while Morris asked about the twins' Portable Swamp invention.
• Guantou emerged and meditated, prompting Neville, Fred, and George to marvel that a cat could learn the practice.
• Fred and George reported that Meditation made spellcasting feel smoother, and Neville raised his hand excitedly to speak.

Morris demonstrated his self-created Sound Transmission Technique to Neville, Fred, and George, then taught them how to use it. Neville mastered it first, while Morris told the twins they needed more Meditation and better control over their Mental Power.

• Neville told Morris that daily Meditation had strengthened his spells, and he demonstrated a powerful Blasting Curse by destroying a chair Morris had Transfigured into a rock.
• Morris used Reparo to restore the chair, then introduced the Sound Transmission Technique and showed the three boys how it let them communicate through Mental Power without speaking.
• Morris taught the spell for two and a half hours, after which Neville successfully transmitted a message to him.
• Fred and George had not yet managed the technique, so Morris explained that they needed more Meditation and stronger control of their Mental Power.
• Fred and George realized the technique could help them coordinate their pranks, though Morris did not know that was what they had in mind.

Morris sent his converted Dementor to lure three supposed wild Dementors into his Ship in a Bottle, but discovered that Draco, Flint, and Crabbe had been pretending to be Dementors to frighten Harry. The starving creature attacked Draco before Morris ordered it to stop.

• Morris noticed three black shapes near the Quidditch Pitch and released his converted Dementor to lure them into the Ship in a Bottle.
• Draco, Flint, Crabbe, and Goyle rehearsed their plan to disguise themselves as Dementors and scare Harry during the Quidditch match.
• Goyle spotted the real Dementor approaching, and Draco and the others realized their disguise had drawn an actual Dementor to them.
• The starving Dementor lunged at Draco, but Morris arrived and stopped it before it could touch him.

Morris captured a Dementor that had frightened Draco and his companions, then learned Sirius Black had broken into the Gryffindor dormitory and apparently searched for Harry. The school increased security, while Morris received the Firebolt he had ordered at the end of February.

• Morris ordered the Dementor into his containment circle and left Draco, Flint, Crabbe, and Goyle safe; Draco abandoned his plan to frighten Harry.
• Harry outflew Ravenclaw Seeker Cho Chang on his Firebolt during the Quidditch match.
• Morris received Frick's letter saying the Firebolt had been ordered and would arrive the next month.
• Kyle told Morris that Sirius Black had entered the Gryffindor dormitory with a knife and torn Ron Weasley's bed curtains, then escaped.
• Kyle explained that Neville had lost the password slip, allowing Sirius into the common room, and professors, Filch, and ghosts began patrolling Hogwarts.
• Morris encountered Fudge in a corridor, and at the end of February he received his Firebolt.

Morris asked Professor McGonagall to demonstrate her Animagus transformation so he could study it as he prepared to become an Animagus himself. After speaking with Hermione about the strain of using her Time-Turner, he vanished from the corridor, leaving her baffled.

• Morris continued brewing Wolfsbane Potion for Lupin and examined the Firebolt Frick had ordered for him, but he could not reassemble it after taking it apart.
• Morris visited Professor McGonagall and persuaded her to demonstrate her Animagus transformation again.
• Morris sensed that the transformation's magical fluctuations were faintly contained, giving him a new insight into the magic.
• Morris practiced keeping a Mandrake leaf under his tongue, but he swallowed it again while speaking with Hermione.
• Hermione told Morris that using her Time-Turner was exhausting and considered dropping some electives, but Morris's suggestion to skip classes and take the exams did not suit her.
• Hermione watched Morris disappear around a corridor corner, then found the corridor empty when she followed.

Morris returned to the Ship in a Bottle while Guantou gathered Hogwarts cats and accepted Sirius Black as a new subordinate. After sharing pet food with the animals, Guantou headed to the Black Lake, and Sirius secretly followed.

• Morris returned to the Ship in a Bottle, put away the Mandrake leaf, and called for Guantou.
• Guantou assembled six cats, including Mrs. Norris and Crookshanks, outside the castle.
• Sirius approached Guantou in his black dog form, and Crookshanks explained that he wanted to join Guantou’s group.
• Guantou accepted Sirius, produced pet food from an enlarged pouch, and led the cats in a feast.
• Guantou left the cats when Yanhua summoned it and went to the Black Lake, while Sirius followed and watched from behind a tree.

Sirius, hiding in his Animagus form, approached Morris’s Ship in a Bottle in hopes of searching it for Peter, but Morris recognized that he was an Animagus. Morris began guessing which Hogwarts professor he was, leaving Sirius’s disguise in danger.

• A giant glass bottle containing a wooden ship rose from the lake and settled on shore as Sirius watched in shock.
• Yanhua caught Guantou and hoisted him upside down, then Morris ordered Yanhua to let him down.
• Sirius came out from behind a tree and approached Morris, hoping to gain access to the Ship in a Bottle to search for Peter.
• Guantou asked Morris to turn Sirius into an undead creature, and Morris asked the black dog whether he would mind dying.
• Morris used his mental power to identify Sirius as an Animagus, and Sirius pretended to be a male professor.
• Morris began guessing which male Hogwarts professor Sirius might be, considering Lupin, Flitwick, and Hagrid.