Chapter Summaries

William settled into his new house with Hermione and Anne, enjoying its comforts and preparing to study and live with them over the summer. The chapter ended as he began breakfast and promised Hermione a Transfiguration lesson, while their shared life was just beginning.

• William showed Hermione and Anne around the renovated house, and they argued over whose room was better while he played his new game.
• William woke late to Bobocha demanding breakfast, then fed the cat and began cooking for Hermione and Anne.
• Hermione came downstairs, watched William cook with magic, and wondered whether staying at his house counted as living together.
• Hermione offered to cook the next day, and William told her to wash up before their planned Transfiguration lesson and to wake Anne.

William checked Anne’s difficult homework while Hermione helped explain her mistakes, and the two girls traded barbs as he teased them about Hogwarts. A magical doorbell alerted them to a girl riding a unicorn outside the gate, where they watched the pair play in the river.

• William reviewed Anne’s homework, correcting her answers about a sleeping potion and Bezoar while Hermione supplied the right explanations.
• William warned Anne that Snape would target her in class, and Hermione joked that Anne would be sorted into Azkaban.
• Anne and Hermione argued over writing space, then joined William and Bobocha in a staring match.
• Magical wind chimes alerted William to a visitor, and a mirror showed a blond girl riding a young unicorn near the gate.
• The girl tried to coax the unicorn into the river with a carrot, but the unicorn jumped in first, splashed her, and soon ran happily across the water.
• William, Hermione, and Anne watched from the bank and wondered why the girl and unicorn had not used the nearby wooden bridge.

William, Hermione, and Anne met Luna Lovegood, who visited their new home with crêpes and introduced them to her unicorn. Anne and Hermione went with Luna to see newborn unicorns while William stayed behind.

• Luna asked whether William and the girls were related to the Witch of Thorns, and William explained that Olenna Redwyne had moved to the Sunset Red Senior Community.
• Luna introduced herself and recognized William from the newspaper, then defended the Crumple-Horned Snorkack and praised The Quibbler.
• Luna brought the new neighbors homemade crêpes, and William gave her a box of Häagen-Dazs in return.
• Luna invited Anne and Hermione to visit a herd of unicorns and see three newborn foals, and William let them go without him.
• Luna said unicorns disliked male wizards because they had Wrackspurts in their heads, leaving William offended.

Hermione practiced cooking at William’s house, producing disastrous meals that William and Bobocha struggled to endure. After breakfast, William trained Hermione to improve her spellcasting accuracy, leaving her to practice hitting balloons.

• Luna made visiting William’s house a habit, while Hermione became determined to learn cooking.
• Hermione prepared an overly sweet chicken soup and a charred corn sausage, and Bobocha pretended to collapse after tasting the sausage.
• William reassured Hermione about her cooking and ate part of her marmalade sandwich to comfort her.
• William took Hermione to the basement and taught her to improve her spellcasting proficiency and accuracy.
• Hermione missed the balloons with her spell, and William told her that combat skill required constant practice.

William trained Hermione in combat and told her that a thunderstorm was expected soon, allowing him to begin his Animagus transformation. Anne arrived with her Hogwarts acceptance letter, whose bizarrely modern wording showed that Dumbledore had adopted William’s suggestions.

• William gave Hermione potions to restore her magic, then trained her in combat until he Apparated behind her and warned her not to ignore what was behind her.
• William read a letter from Nicolas and told Hermione that he planned to leave soon to begin his Animagus transformation because rainy weather had arrived.
• Hermione agreed to stay with William during the transformation and call his name if he lost his mind.
• Anne rushed in with her Hogwarts acceptance letter after playing hide-and-seek at the Lovegoods’ house and hiding inside their chimney.
• William read Anne’s unusually modern-sounding acceptance letter, and he laughed at Dumbledore’s changes.

William prepared to complete his Animagus transformation and took Hermione to the Forbidden Forest to wait for a thunderstorm. As the storm began, he promised to help Hermione learn the transformation too.

• William explained that he had completed the Animagus potion preparations and buried the vial in the Forbidden Forest, where Fluffy guarded it.
• William and Hermione each drank a little Felix Felicis and Apparated to a valley in the Forbidden Forest before dawn.
• William fed Fluffy and settled with Hermione to wait for the storm, while discussing Animagi and whether William would register with the Ministry.
• William told Hermione she was talented and offered to help her learn to transform into an Animagus.
• Lightning flashed and thunder rumbled as the long-awaited storm arrived.

William successfully transformed into a giant Steller's sea eagle, briefly lost control, and recovered after hearing Hermione call to him. He carried Hermione above Hogwarts and through the storm clouds to watch the sunrise.

• William drank the Animagus potion and began a slow transformation as Hermione watched.
• William became a giant Steller's sea eagle and rampaged through the valley, crushing Fluffy's bowl and doghouse.
• Hermione confronted William and called him back to his senses; he apologized and invited her to watch the sunrise.
• William carried Hermione to a Hogwarts spire, where Fawkes recognized him and was struck by lightning while flying nearby.
• William flew through the storm clouds with Hermione and reached a golden sea of clouds illuminated by dawn.

After completing his Animagus transformation, William told Professor McGonagall, who congratulated him and proposed that he write a paper for Transfiguration Today. William then visited Cedric and the Weasley twins, where an old story about the twins nearly making Ron an Unbreakable Vow came to light.

• William wrote to Professor McGonagall about becoming an Animagus, and she congratulated him and suggested he submit a paper to Transfiguration Today.
• At the end of July, William took Hermione and Anne to visit Cedric, and Cho joined them.
• The twins invited William's family to the Burrow, where Fred and George described how they had tried to make Ron swear an Unbreakable Vow when he was five.
• Fred revealed that the twins had wanted Ron to stay single for life, and William understood why Mrs. Weasley had beaten them.
• William teased Fred about Lisa and threatened to tell Angelina, while George failed to notice Fred's interest in her.

William visited the Burrow with Fred and George, examined the Weasley family clock, and heard about the twins’ growing joke-product business. He learned that Anne had taught Ginny yoga, while the twins discussed their plans and their family’s finances.

• Fred changed the subject when George nearly learned that he liked Angelina, then said Hermione and Anne were on their way to the Burrow.
• William admired the Weasley family clock and said it gave him ideas for upgrading his map.
• Fred and George complained about their mother’s daily Celestina Warbeck broadcasts.
• William found Ginny practicing yoga that Anne had taught her, and Ginny hurried downstairs to find Anne.
• Fred and George showed William their product orders and discussed whether to open a shop in Diagon Alley.
• George explained that the twins sent money home to help cover the family’s expenses, leaving Mrs. Weasley little reason to object to their business.

Anne, Hermione, and Ginny drove the garden gnomes out of the Weasley yard while Fred, George, William, and Ron watched. At the Burrow, the family discussed Percy’s strange mood and Mr. Weasley’s exhausting work before William inspected Arthur’s magically expanded Ford Anglia with the twins.

• Two gnomes flew through a window and hit Fred, who tossed them back outside.
• Anne used a net on a stick to launch gnomes across the garden as she, Hermione, and Ginny cleared them out.
• Percy complained about the noise, then awkwardly greeted Anne, Hermione, and William before closing his window.
• George said Percy had earned twelve O.W.L. certificates but was acting strangely, and William suspected Percy had lost money betting on Quidditch.
• Arthur said he would work through the night on raids, and Fred and George offered to cover Ginny’s school expenses.
• William inspected Arthur’s magically expanded Ford Anglia with the twins, and Ron praised its space before William teased him about his van mentality.

William inspected and repaired the Weasley family’s enchanted car, then persuaded Ron and the twins not to use it to retrieve Harry until Mr. Weasley could accompany them. Later, William received an invitation from Gilderoy Lockhart and discussed his Order of Merlin with Hermione as they watched the sunset.

• William examined the Weasleys’ car, found its flying mechanism was based on a Cleansweep Seven, and agreed to stabilize its faulty invisibility charm with Ancient Runes.
• Ron explained that Harry had not replied to his letters, and William said Hermione’s letters were protected by a magical ring on her owl.
• Ron and the twins planned to drive to Harry’s house, but William warned that the trip could endanger Mr. Weasley’s job and that Apparition might get Harry blamed for underage magic.
• William repaired the car’s invisibility device, and the group tested it by flying over deserted hills.
• William received an invitation from Lockhart to attend his new book launch in Diagon Alley.
• Hermione praised William’s Order of Merlin, Second Class, as more impressive than Lockhart’s Third Class while they relaxed together in the courtyard.

Mr. Weasley took Harry from the Dursleys, and Harry told William, Hermione, Fred, and George about Dobby’s warning. The group suspected Dobby had been sent to keep Harry from Hogwarts, while a later debate about House-elves ended with William arguing that change had to be fought for from below.

• Mr. Weasley persuaded the Dursleys to let him take Harry away, despite Uncle Dursley blaming Harry for ruining his business prospects.
• Harry told William, Fred, George, Hermione, and Ron about Dobby’s warning and how Dobby had punished himself whenever he tried to reveal his master’s plans.
• Fred and George suspected someone had sent Dobby to stop Harry returning to Hogwarts, and William suggested asking the House-elves in the Hogwarts Kitchens to identify Dobby’s master.
• Hermione questioned how House-elves were treated, and William explained that the House-elves at Hogwarts were content while Nicolas had spent centuries changing the attitudes of those at his manor.
• Hermione proposed advocating for better treatment of House-elves, but William said that power had to be actively fought for by those below.

William explained why House-elf slavery persisted and why the Ministry had rejected an abolition appeal, then encouraged Hermione to consider leading reform. He left convinced that Hermione could become Minister for Magic with his support, while Hermione asked what he had been thinking about after he messed up her hair.

• William told Hermione that the Ministry had rejected a British appeal against House-elf slavery in 1973 because it wanted to keep Pure-blood families from supporting Voldemort.
• William argued that House-elves would need to fight for their rights, though he thought reform would be more likely after Voldemort's return and defeat.
• William decided Hermione could lead House-elf reform and become Minister for Magic, with his influence providing her political support.
• William imagined Hermione as Britain's Minister for Magic and himself as chairman of a European Magical Union.
• Hermione asked William what he was thinking after he messed up her hair, and William said he had been thinking about how to solve the House-elf problem.

William took Hermione and Anne to Diagon Alley to prepare for the school term, where Anne received her wand from Ollivander. After the three finished shopping and ate ice cream, William went to collect an item he had ordered from Borgin and Burkes.

• Hermione decided to approach the Hogwarts house-elves about improving their conditions and planned to send Dumbledore suggestions.
• William took Hermione and Anne to Diagon Alley, and Anne traveled there first with Floo Powder.
• At Ollivander's, Anne chose an eleven-inch cedar wand with a Thunderbird tail feather core from Frank, Mr. Scamander's pet.
• William took the girls to buy potions and robes, then sat with them at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour.
• After finishing his ice cream, William left to collect his order from Borgin and Burkes.

William bargained with Borgin over a broken safety clock and sold him a repaired Sneakoscope for a large profit. He left after Borgin invited him to work at the shop, just as Lucius Malfoy and Draco entered.

• William visited Borgin and Burkes to buy a broken safety clock Borgin had found in Paris.
• William exposed the clock’s flaws and bargained Borgin down from two thousand Galleons to eighty.
• William offered Borgin a repaired Sneakoscope, and they agreed on a price of two thousand Galleons.
• Borgin asked who had taught William Alchemy and invited him to become an apprentice after graduation; William said he would consider it.
• William gathered his things to leave as Lucius Malfoy and Draco entered the shop.

William found Harry hiding in Borgin and Burkes and explained the danger of the Vanishing Cabinet before taking him out of Knockturn Alley. After reuniting with Hermione and Anne in Diagon Alley, Harry learned that reporting the Malfoys’ suspicious visit to Mr. Weasley was unlikely to accomplish much.

• William waited in Borgin and Burkes while Lucius Malfoy took Draco and Borgin into the back room, then called Harry out of the Vanishing Cabinet.
• William demonstrated that the Vanishing Cabinet could transport objects elsewhere and explained the Hand of Glory to Harry.
• William cleaned Harry up, warned him about Knockturn Alley, and drove off a dark witch who approached them.
• William took Harry to Diagon Alley, where they joined Hermione and Anne at Florean Fortescue’s Ice Cream Parlour.
• Harry suggested telling Mr. Weasley about the Malfoys, but William explained that the Ministry had been unable to search Malfoy Manor thoroughly.

William explained that he planned to turn a safety clock into a magical smartwatch, then bought Anne and Hermione Nimbus 2001 brooms as birthday presents. Hermione accepted hers after William said she would help him brew Potions, while Anne began planning summer Quidditch matches.

• William showed Hermione the broken safety clock he had bought and described his plan to add location and communication functions to a wristwatch.
• Anne admired a Nimbus 2001 in a shop window and reminded William that he owed her a birthday present and money from her investment in his shop.
• William agreed to buy Anne a broom and revealed that he had ordered a second one for Hermione.
• Hermione initially refused the expensive gift, but William said she would help him brew Potions for free, and she eagerly agreed.
• Anne imagined summer broom matches with their friends, while Hermione felt happy but wished she could help William for a lifetime.

William bought Divination books at Flourish and Blotts and met Luna and Lovegood before Lockhart’s book launch. When Malfoy and Mr. Weasley started fighting outside, William rushed over to break it up and take sides.

• William bought The Predictions of Tycho Dodonus after finding a cryptic prophecy in it.
• William met Luna and Lovegood in the bookshop, where Luna called Lockhart an idiot and Lovegood complained about not being invited to the launch.
• Lockhart greeted William and tried to persuade him to appear with him, while William sabotaged a reporter’s camera to prevent a staged photograph.
• Lockhart invited Lovegood to photograph him, and Lovegood followed him away.
• Malfoy and Mr. Weasley fought outside, and William rushed over to intervene and take sides.

Dumbledore chatted with the Sorting Hat and Professor McGonagall about school finances and William’s packed timetable. McGonagall then questioned Dumbledore’s decision to hire Lockhart as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor.

• Dumbledore spoke with Anne through a mirror while the Sorting Hat complained that he had ignored its lyrics.
• The Sorting Hat asked whether Dumbledore had visited Grindelwald at Nurmengard, but Dumbledore said he had not.
• Professor McGonagall brought Dumbledore a list of seventeen students seeking financial aid, and Dumbledore proposed increasing the fund.
• Professor McGonagall asked whether William should receive a Time-Turner to manage all twelve subjects, but Dumbledore said William could choose his classes and take the exams.
• Professor McGonagall asked why Dumbledore planned to hire Lockhart as the new Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor, noting his disruptive behavior as a student.

Dumbledore explained to McGonagall that Lockhart had stolen the stories in his books, but that he lacked proof and hoped the school would expose him. On the train back to Hogwarts, William and his friends argued over Lockhart before William spotted a Quibbler caricature linking him to Rita Skeeter.

• Dumbledore told McGonagall that Lockhart had copied stories from other wizards and that he had no proof of the fraud.
• Before the holidays ended, William cast protective spells around the house and made himself its Secret Keeper.
• Roy drove William and Anne to the station, where they met Hermione and boarded the train together.
• William, Anne, and Hermione joined Luna in a compartment, and William gave her the house's address so she could find it again.
• Cho and Cedric argued about whether Lockhart would be a good professor, while William and Hermione were caught between them.
• William picked up Luna's Quibbler and saw a caricature asking whether Lockhart was a man or a woman and hinting at a secret with Rita Skeeter.