Recaps

Ron failed to borrow Harry's Firebolt from Ginny, then spotted a chance to use a first-year's Nimbus 2200 at the Gryffindor Quidditch tryouts. He took the broom and headed onto the pitch, while William and Hermione watched.

• Ron arrived at the pitch with an old Cleansweep Seven after learning that Harry had lent his Firebolt to Ginny.
• Ron demanded the Firebolt from Ginny, but she refused and told him to ask Harry directly.
• Ron saw William talking with Hermione and noticed two first-year Gryffindors asking William to teach them to fly.
• Hermione challenged Monica and her friend for bringing a Nimbus 2200, since first years were not allowed to bring brooms.
• Ron took Monica's Nimbus 2200 and headed to the center of the pitch to use it for the tryouts.

Ron borrowed a younger student’s Nimbus 2200 and joined the Gryffindor Keeper tryouts, where Harry considered Cormac McLaggen a strong rival. After Lavender cheered Ron on, he felt confident on the new broom, but it went out of control and carried him out of sight.

• Ron took the younger girls’ broomstick to the Quidditch pitch and met Cormac McLaggen, who announced that he wanted to try out for Keeper.
• Harry watched the candidates and saw McLaggen save five shots in a row, while Ron grew nervous as the crowd gathered.
• Lavender Brown cheered for Ron, encouraging him as he mounted the Nimbus 2200 for his turn.
• Ginny sent a tricky shot toward the goal, but Ron’s broom kept climbing and then spun wildly out of control.
• Ron and the Nimbus 2200 vanished from the pitch as Harry called after him.

Ron was injured when a tampered Nimbus 2200 went out of control, and William and Hermione concluded that Malfoy had arranged the attack. As Dumbledore tried to reach Malfoy through Snape, William wondered whether Malfoy was the third traitor foretold by Trelawney.

• Ron crashed into the Forbidden Forest, where Hagrid rescued him from the Acromantulas and took him to the Hospital Wing.
• Ron's injury kept him off the Quidditch team, while Lavender visited him and Ginny enjoyed having her brother out of her way.
• Hermione found no curse on the wrecked Nimbus 2200, and William reasoned that its control mechanism had been removed before it entered the school.
• William suspected Malfoy had targeted him with the broomstick, while Hermione worried that Malfoy might endanger other students.
• William told Hermione that Dumbledore had Snape making contact with Malfoy, then recalled Trelawney's prophecy and considered Malfoy the possible third traitor.

William realized he had skipped Divination for weeks and went with Cho to make up the numbers, where he found Professor Trelawney arguing with Firenze over prophecy. Trelawney drew a Death card and warned of trees being cut down, a man imprisoned, and danger closing in on Dumbledore.

• William realized he had missed several Divination classes, leaving Cho as Trelawney’s only other student.
• William and Cho found students gathered outside Classroom Eleven, where Trelawney and Firenze were arguing about divination and prophecies.
• Trelawney berated Firenze as a fraud until he angrily left the classroom.
• Trelawney told William that Dumbledore had dismissed her warnings and drew a Death card predicting cut-down trees, an imprisoned man, and danger approaching Dumbledore.

William and Cho visited Trelawney for a lesson in fire divination, where Trelawney predicted a devastating blaze. Her spilled sherry ignited and quickly set the Divination Classroom on fire, leaving William and Cho facing the disaster.

• William and Cho accompanied Trelawney to the North Tower after Trelawney gave Dumbledore a grim tarot reading.
• Sir Cadogan confronted William about his promised match with a Black family lady, and Cho volunteered to arrange a meeting between their portraits.
• Trelawney began teaching William and Cho fire divination, and William recorded her prediction of a fire threatening the school.
• Trelawney dropped sherry into the fire basin, igniting spilled liquor and setting off a crate of sherry.
• Trelawney tried to douse the flames with more liquor as the fire spread through the classroom, and Cho woke to find the room ablaze.

After Trelawney’s Divination Classroom exploded, students started a rumor that it hid her gold and ransacked the ruins. As Hogwarts finally allowed a Hogsmeade trip, Harry studied the Half-Blood Prince’s book and wondered if the Prince might be his father.

• A fire and secondary explosion destroyed Trelawney’s Divination Classroom, leaving her mentally exhausted in the hospital wing.
• McGonagall promised Trelawney her salary and turned the classroom cleanup into work for gossiping students.
• A rumor claimed Trelawney had hidden her gold in the classroom, prompting students to search the wreckage.
• After students protested the prolonged lockdown, Dumbledore allowed the first Hogsmeade trip of term.
• Filch inspected students as William and Hermione waited to leave, while Harry tried to impress Cho and studied Advanced Potion-Making.
• Harry recognized spells in the Half-Blood Prince’s book that he had seen his father use and wondered if the Prince was his dad.

Harry struggled with his feelings for both Cho and Ginny, while William and Hermione visited Hogsmeade and William encountered Slughorn. The chapter ended with William at Akali's Mystery Shop, where he had come to meet someone.

• Ginny delivered Dumbledore's note to Harry and declined his invitation to Hogsmeade because she was going with Dean.
• Harry admitted to himself that he had feelings for Ginny as well as Cho, then told Ron he liked two girls who both had boyfriends.
• William and Hermione saw Hogsmeade's shops promoting Akali products and other deals, including a crowded couples' milk tea special.
• Slughorn intercepted William and pressed him to attend a dinner party, but William said he would be away over Halloween.
• William and Hermione entered Akali's Mystery Shop, where Cedric spoke with Cho and students bought prank products; William had come there to meet someone.

William summoned Rita to write a biography of Tom Riddle, supplying her with firsthand sources and demanding a manuscript before Christmas. Rita accepted for a higher fee and left eager to begin, planning to call the book “The Life and Lies of Tom Riddle!”

• William met Rita in his shop’s secret room, where she asked who he wanted her to spy on.
• William told Rita to write a biography of Tom Riddle, whom Hermione identified as Voldemort.
• Rita protested that writing about the Dark Lord was dangerous, then demanded more pay and accepted the assignment.
• William promised to provide detailed information and interviews with Tom’s former teachers, and required the manuscript before Christmas.
• Rita left as a beetle, having chosen the title “The Life and Lies of Tom Riddle!”

William planned to expose Voldemort’s ordinary origins to undermine Pure-blood supremacy, then encountered Katie Bell after a cursed package attacked her. Hermione began working to break the curse before it killed Katie.

• William arranged for Rita to write Tom’s autobiography and planned to have Old Lovegood publish it.
• William and Hermione left the Akali Shop in worsening snow and met Hagrid, who asked whether the Elixir of Life could help Aragog.
• Harry hurried to William and reported that Katie Bell had been cursed after opening a package.
• William recognized a black bracelet from Borgin and Burkes in the package and restrained Katie when she attacked him.
• Hermione determined that the curse had penetrated deeply and agreed to try to save Katie.

Hermione extracted most of the curse from Katie, saving her life, and she was taken to the hospital wing for further examination. In Professor McGonagall’s office, Leanne explained how Katie had received the package, while Snape blamed Dumbledore for putting students in danger.

• Hermione carefully extracted the curse from Katie using seven crystal balls, and William destroyed the cursed residue with purple flames.
• Hermione told William that Katie’s curse was mostly cleared, and William carried the exhausted Hermione and Katie to the Thestral carriage.
• Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall met the group at the school entrance, and Madam Pomfrey took Katie to the hospital wing.
• Professor McGonagall brought William, Hermione, Leanne, and Snape to her office, where Leanne explained that Katie had received the package at the Three Broomsticks and accidentally opened it during an argument.
• Snape sneered that Dumbledore’s naïveté had nearly gotten another student killed, and William privately admired Snape’s concern for student safety.

William considered Dumbledore’s intelligence both his greatest strength and his greatest flaw, while Snape blamed him for letting Draco Malfoy endanger students. After Katie’s curse drew suspicion toward Malfoy and his possible accomplices, attention shifted to the opening Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Slytherin.

• William reflected that Dumbledore’s confidence and willingness to trust his own judgment could lead him to make serious mistakes.
• Snape faulted Dumbledore for allowing Malfoy to continue his dangerous plans, and William agreed that the students’ safety had not been adequately protected.
• William summoned a House-elf to watch Malfoy, avoiding Dobby because he could not keep secrets from Harry.
• Hermione had driven most of Katie’s curse from her, but Katie remained in the Hospital Wing, while students speculated about attacks on Gryffindor Quidditch players.
• Harry accused Malfoy of cursing Katie, and William realized Malfoy might have used a helper or someone under the Imperius Curse.
• The school began its first Quidditch match of the year, with Gryffindor facing Slytherin.

Harry chose Dean as Gryffindor’s temporary Chaser after Katie’s injury, while Ron and Seamus resented being passed over. As Gryffindor faced Slytherin in the opening match, Malfoy secretly watched from the castle and broke down over the impossible task the Dark Lord had given him, until someone addressed him.

• Harry learned Katie would miss at least nine to ten weeks and selected Dean as her replacement, angering Ron and Seamus.
• Slytherin Chaser Vaisey was injured, and Malfoy took sick leave ahead of the opening match.
• Zacharias Smith mocked Ron and Malfoy while commentating, and McGonagall decided he was unsuitable for the role.
• Madam Hooch started the match as the players took to the air.
• Malfoy secretly watched the game and cried as he thought about being forced to kill Dumbledore and Stark.
• A familiar voice touched Malfoy’s left arm and told him that even as a Golden Snitch, he could not escape being caught.

William Stark confronted Draco Malfoy as Draco tried to enter the Room of Requirement to find a way to kill him and Dumbledore, then pressured him to reconsider whom the Malfoy family served by invoking Lucius. Meanwhile, Gryffindor defeated Slytherin in a chaotic Quidditch match despite Harry losing the Snitch.

• Draco arrived at the Room of Requirement intending to search for dangerous objects, but William restrained him after Goyle and Crabbe were incapacitated.
• William accused Draco of using the Imperius Curse on Madam Rosmerta and arranging for Katie to receive a cursed bracelet, then revealed he knew Draco had used a magical coin to communicate with Rosmerta.
• William told Draco that Lucius was alive and working under his supervision, and urged Draco to decide whether the Malfoy family should serve Voldemort or William.
• After Draco left, Hermione emerged from hiding and asked whether Voldemort might learn of their conversation; William said Draco's Occlumency talent would protect him.
• Gryffindor won the match despite Harry's distraction and McLaggen's constant interference, while Ginny brought down the commentator's stand with a deliberate broom crash.

William led Ravenclaw to a victory over Gryffindor before leaving Hogwarts to negotiate for the Chudley Cannons and avoid Slughorn. Meanwhile, Tom Riddle prepared to escape from Appalachia Wizarding Prison, where he had won over the guards despite the warden’s plans to silence him.

• William skipped Ravenclaw’s match against Hufflepuff, then played against Gryffindor and scored nine goals before leaving the field after twenty minutes.
• Gryffindor’s players, including Harry and McLaggen, were blamed for the loss, while Ron hoped their poor performances would distract everyone from his own mistakes.
• William continued negotiating to buy the Chudley Cannons after learning that the Europe Quidditch League was about to be announced.
• William left Hogwarts under the pretext of negotiating for the club, hoping to stay away from Slughorn and avoid Halloween trouble.
• Warden Magellan grew frustrated after Tom Riddle resisted interrogation and misled the Aurors, and he planned to have Tom’s tongue cut out.
• Tom sat in his prison cell surrounded by guards who had become his devoted listeners, and he smiled as he prepared to break out.

Tom incited the underpaid wizard guards to rebel against Muggles, then led a prison uprising and killed the warden. He revealed that he had entered the prison to claim the Prehistoric Mysteries left there by Slytherin.

• Tom told the wizard guards that Muggles and Scourers were responsible for wizards’ poverty and persecution.
• A Horned Serpent brought Tom a wand, and he urged the guards to use magic to seize Muggle wealth and living space.
• Tom rallied the guards to free the prisoners and fight for wizard freedom, then blasted open a cell door.
• Magellan heard the prison alarm and went to investigate, but Tom and the Horned Serpent killed him.
• Tom revealed that he had deliberately been imprisoned to obtain the Prehistoric Mysteries left behind by Slytherin.

William disguised as Professor Targaryen taught Ancient Runes at Ilvermorny before attending its Halloween Feast and the Sorting of young survivors of the New York Obscurus incident. The feast was interrupted by news of a mass prison breakout approaching the school, and Headmaster Eulalie Hicks ordered an evacuation and the activation of Ilvermorny's defenses.

• William arrived at Ilvermorny with Hermione and discovered that Babbling had rearranged her schedule so he would teach her Ancient Runes classes all day.
• William watched Lucas Picquery be sorted into Horned Serpent House after both Horned Serpent and Thunderbird chose him.
• A Pukwudgie entered the Great Hall and warned that prisoners had broken out of Appalachia Wizarding Prison and were heading toward Ilvermorny.
• The students panicked as pumpkins burst, and Headmaster Eulalie Hicks ordered the heads of house to take students to their dormitories while the other teachers activated the school's defenses.

William met Hermione and Professor Babbling after Tom escaped from prison, then helped Babbling steal Ilvermorny’s wooden house statues. Their attempt to sort William awakened the Horned Serpent, and the chapter ended with the school discovering that the statue had vanished.

• William followed a call on his Safety Watch to a women's bathroom, where Hermione and Professor Babbling told him that Tom had broken out of prison.
• Babbling sent Hermione to help defend the school in William's appearance and told William that they would steal the wooden house statues.
• William and Babbling entered the empty Great Hall, where William released his magic and all four house statues responded to him.
• At Babbling's direction, William chose Horned Serpent House and touched the jewel on its forehead while Babbling spoke Parseltongue.
• Headmaster Eulalie Hicks rushed into the Great Hall after hearing the sorting cries and found three statues toppled and the Horned Serpent missing.

Babbling told William how Isolt Sayre made a Horned Serpent wood carving that could lead them to the Snakewood’s roots, where Slytherin’s Wand lay. As they set off to find the Horned Serpent, Babbling revealed that Tom had gone to a false location to seek Slytherin’s Prehistoric Mysteries.

• Babbling recounted how Isolt Sayre dreamed of a Horned Serpent, found it by a stream, and made a powerful wand from its horn.
• Babbling explained that Isolt had made the Horned Serpent wood carving to locate the serpent, which could lead them to the roots of the dead Snakewood and Slytherin’s Wand.
• William agreed they needed the wand before Tom could claim it, since it could end the Horcrux bond between Tom and Voldemort.
• As the wood carving swam toward a great river, William asked why they were searching that night instead of stopping Tom at Appalachia Prison.
• Babbling revealed that Appalachia Prison held no Prehistoric Mysteries and that Tom had gone to the wrong place.

William and Babbling found the Snakewood cave beneath a river, where a giant Horned Serpent guarded the roots. As they retreated, a Pukwudgie confronted the serpent, and Babbling revealed that the centuries-old creature was Isolt Sayre’s godfather, also named William.

• William and Babbling followed the Horned Serpent through a deep river and into a cave filled with Horned Serpent skeletons and gems.
• They followed the passage to a vast chamber covered in Snakewood roots, where they found a statue of Slytherin and a giant sleeping Horned Serpent.
• The Horned Serpent woke, but Babbling pulled William aside before a Pukwudgie appeared and confronted the serpent.
• Babbling led William away and explained that the Pukwudgie had followed the missing sorting carving, which he had helped Isolt Sayre make.
• Babbling told William that the Pukwudgie was Isolt Sayre’s godfather and shared his name.

William and Professor Babbling uncovered the competing factions seeking the Snakewood and returned to Hogwarts after Tom’s planned attack on Ilvermorny was stopped. William then learned that a tiger had attacked students during Hogwarts’s Halloween Feast.

• William concluded that the Horned Serpent, Tom, his own group with Babbling, and the Pukwudgie William were all competing over the Snakewood.
• Babbling tossed the house-sorting carvings aside after they returned to Ilvermorny, and the arriving Aurors prevented Tom from attacking the school.
• William met Tom as Targaryen and learned that Tom had not found the power of the Prehistoric Mysteries, though William remained puzzled about Appalachia Prison and a Slytherin statue in the cave.
• William spent the night at Ilvermorny with Hermione, then returned to Hogwarts through the Vanishing Cabinet the next day.
• William learned that a three-striped tiger had broken into Hogwarts during the Halloween Feast, smashed a Great Hall window, and injured students before professors subdued it.

William and Hermione returned to Hogwarts to find Rita Skeeter’s interview announcing her upcoming biography of Voldemort dominating the wizarding world. The interview teased scandalous claims about Voldemort’s school years, romances, work, and family, leaving readers eager for the book’s release at Christmas.

• William and Hermione returned from Ilvermorny and found Hogwarts students reading Rita Skeeter’s interview in the Daily Prophet.
• William read the article announcing Rita’s biography, The Life and Lies of You-Know-Who, and admired her promotional skill.
• Rita told Betty Braithwaite that William supported her and joked about her friendship with Hermione and their relationship.
• Rita claimed Hagrid had been close to Voldemort at Hogwarts and hinted that the two fell out over Moaning Myrtle’s death.
• Rita teased claims about Voldemort’s wealthy Hufflepuff-descended employer at Borgin and Burkes and his parents, promising further revelations in the biography.

William watched Rita Skeeter’s interview stir excitement about her forthcoming book on Voldemort, while Snape and Professor Slughorn worried that it might reveal their past connections to him. Slughorn asked William to arrange another interview with Rita and invited him and Hermione to a party, giving William a chance to press him for his memory about Horcruxes.

• Rita Skeeter’s interview about Voldemort drew widespread attention, while Snape worried that her book might mention him.
• Slughorn became distracted during Potions Class and repeatedly made mistakes while teaching William and the other students how to brew a Regeneration Potion.
• Slughorn told William that Rita had interviewed him and asked William to help arrange a follow-up conversation so he could repair his reputation.
• William offered to arrange a remote interview through a Two-Way Mirror, and Slughorn invited William and Hermione to a party.
• William agreed to attend, intending to use Slughorn’s unease to persuade him to hand over his memory about Horcruxes.

Slughorn’s grand party caused a frenzy at Hogwarts as students sought invitations, while William and Harry struggled with the attention and their plans. Harry ultimately invited Ron, who eagerly accepted, and planned to ask Slughorn about the Half-Blood Prince at the party.

• Slughorn planned a grand party with famous guests, prompting students to buy and sell fake invitations and crowd William in hopes of attending with him.
• William assessed Professor Burbage’s experiment to turn cooked eggs raw, but girls interrupting the lesson led Burbage to demand six young hens as compensation.
• Harry considered inviting Cho or Ginny, but Cho planned to attend with Cedric and Ginny planned to go with Dean.
• During Herbology, Harry told Ron about Dumbledore’s memories of young Voldemort and said he hoped to ask Slughorn about the Half-Blood Prince at the party.
• Ron mocked the party until Harry revealed he had planned to invite him, and Ron eagerly accepted.

William returned to the Chamber of Secrets to investigate a suspicion about Tom’s account of Slytherin’s legacy, then left for Slughorn’s party with Hermione, Anne, and Luna. The chapter ended with William still thinking about the deception he believed he had uncovered.

• William revisited the Chamber of Secrets, intending to take its emeralds and inspect Slytherin’s statue.
• William recalled the matching statue at Ilvermorny and his conversation with Babbling, then concluded that Tom had deceived him.
• William returned to his office and found Anne and Luna waiting while Hermione got dressed for Slughorn’s party.
• Luna claimed Rufus Scrimgeour was a vampire and prepared to wear garlic to the party.
• Hermione emerged in a formal dress, and William left for the party with her while Anne linked arms with Luna.

William arrived at Slughorn’s party with Hermione and Anne, drawing attention from the guests and becoming the center of the gathering. Gwenog Jones reconnected with him and asked to join the Chudley Cannons, offering to bring her talents to Scotland.

• William refused requests from girls outside the Entrance Hall to bring them into the party, and Parvati explained that she had returned to Hogwarts because conditions in India were worse.
• At the party, Slughorn introduced Harry to Holyhead Harpies captain Gwenog Jones while Ron tried to get her attention.
• Slughorn welcomed William, Hermione, and Anne, and the guests gathered around William because of his reputation.
• Gwenog greeted William, who recalled knowing her from the time loop and later friendly exchanges.
• Gwenog asked William about buying the Chudley Cannons and said she would transfer if he rebuilt the team around her.