Chapter Summaries

William’s purchase of the Chudley Cannons stirred excitement, while Harry learned that Eileen Prince was Snape’s mother and that Snape and Lily had once been close friends. The revelations left Harry reeling as Snape fled Slughorn’s questions.

• Gwenog Jones’s remarks spread the news that Stark had bought the Chudley Cannons, and people admired William’s wealth and prospects.
• Harry was excited about William’s plans to bring him onto the team, while Ron felt isolated after Peeves spread a rumor about him and Harry.
• Harry asked Slughorn about Eileen Prince and showed him an old newspaper photograph.
• Slughorn recognized Eileen as a former student who had married a Muggle and later asked him to look after her son, Severus.
• Slughorn told Snape that Harry had improved at Potions, then recalled that Snape and Lily had been friends before Hogwarts.
• Snape denied Slughorn’s recollection and hurried away, while Slughorn told Harry that Lily and Snape had been best friends and that Snape had helped her.

Harry learned that the Half-Blood Prince was Snape and that Snape had been Lily’s childhood friend, leaving him to question his parents’ history and struggle with jealousy over Ginny and Dean. As he imagined James stealing Lily from Snape, Harry recognized that wanting to break up Ginny and Dean made him no different from the man he had condemned.

• Harry discovered that Eileen Prince had given the Potions book to Snape, revealing that Snape was the Half-Blood Prince.
• Harry recalled Lily defending Snape after James attacked him and reconsidered whether Lily and Snape had been childhood friends.
• Harry decided to ask Aunt Petunia at Christmas whether she knew Snape, then wondered if Snape and Lily had been childhood sweethearts whom James separated.
• Harry and Ron spotted Dean and Ginny kissing, and Harry felt a strong urge to break them up and pursue Ginny.
• Harry compared his desire to steal Ginny from Dean to his imagined version of James stealing Lily from Snape and sympathized with Snape.

Harry got caught between Ginny and Ron as Ginny confronted her brother over interfering in her relationship with Dean. At Slughorn’s party, Ron drank poisoned mead and collapsed, leaving Harry to try to save him.

• Ron interrupted Ginny and Dean, and Ginny angrily told him to stop meddling in her relationships.
• Ginny mocked Ron’s romantic failures until he raised his wand and fired a spell; Harry deflected it and stopped Ron from attacking her.
• Ginny stormed away after saying that Hermione and William planned to get engaged, leaving Harry and Ron stunned.
• Harry and Ron returned to Slughorn’s party, where Slughorn allowed Draco Malfoy to stay despite his sneaking in without an invitation.
• Slughorn served Ron a glass of oak-matured mead, and Ron drank it before collapsing in convulsions as Harry rushed to help him.

Ron was poisoned at Slughorn’s party, while Harry suspected Malfoy and Snape secretly tutored Draco in Occlumency. Snape panicked when Harry learned of his past with Lily, but Dumbledore refused to help him hide it, leaving Snape alone in the snow.

• Ron was poisoned at Slughorn’s party, and William, Slughorn, and Snape helped save him before Madam Pomfrey took him to the Hospital Wing.
• Harry stopped investigating Snape and Lily and began following Malfoy, while rumors spread that Snape wanted to become Draco’s father.
• Snape told Dumbledore that Draco was talented at Occlumency, and Dumbledore reminded him that teaching Draco fulfilled his vow to Narcissa.
• Snape said Harry might question Petunia about his relationship with Lily and asked Dumbledore to warn her or alter her memory.
• Dumbledore explained that Voldemort would not enter Harry’s mind and told Snape he could not prevent Harry from discovering the truth.
• Snape stood silently in the snow after Dumbledore said he had never considered Snape’s past with Lily something that had to remain secret.

Dumbledore asked Snape to kill Voldemort’s snake if Voldemort began keeping it hidden, and gave him a letter Lily had written to Sirius. Meanwhile, Ravenclaw won three Quidditch matches as the other teams struggled with inexperienced players, distracted stars, and team conflicts.

• Snape angrily confronted Dumbledore for refusing to write to Petunia, but Dumbledore reminded him of his oath to serve.
• Dumbledore asked Snape to kill Voldemort’s snake if Voldemort started protecting it, promising to explain the reason at the crucial moment.
• Dumbledore gave Snape Lily’s old letter to Sirius, and Snape tucked away the page bearing her signature and affectionate farewell.
• Ravenclaw won three matches before Christmas while Hufflepuff, Slytherin, and Gryffindor faced poor form or internal problems.
• Harry hoped Ron would return from the hospital and replace McLaggen as Keeper, but Ron began dating Lavender instead.
• Harry watched Ron and Lavender kiss everywhere and lamented that he was the only single one left.

As Rita's sensational biography of Tom Riddle spread through the wizarding world, Voldemort grew furious at its account of his past. At a Death Eater meeting, Snape reported that Hogwarts students would travel home by Floo, leaving no opportunity to attack them.

• Hagrid decorated the Great Hall for Christmas while students stayed inside to avoid the severe weather.
• Rita's reports portrayed Tom Riddle as Hepzibah Smith's kept man and claimed he had poisoned her with Burke's help, provoking Burke's anger and excitement among Hogwarts students.
• Voldemort read the reports and became enraged that someone had written his biography.
• Snape arrived at the Death Eater meeting, where he saw an unconscious person hanging upside down above the table.
• Snape told Voldemort that the Ministry had arranged Floo travel for the students and Dumbledore had canceled the express train, preventing an attack.
• Voldemort mocked Peter for failing to capture Slughorn during the previous attack and losing Inferi and Trolls to Stark.

At a Death Eater meeting, Voldemort learned that Xenophilius Lovegood planned to publish Rita Skeeter’s biography and ordered an attack on his family. He planned to use Luna’s death as a Christmas surprise for William Stark.

• Voldemort tortured his followers and questioned Narcissa about Draco’s absence and his assigned task.
• Voldemort asked Thorfinn Rowle about old Burke and Rita Skeeter, and Thorfinn reported that Rita was hiding in France.
• Thorfinn revealed that Xenophilius Lovegood would publish Rita’s biography and would return to Ottery St Catchpole for Christmas.
• Voldemort killed Betty Braithwaite, the Daily Prophet reporter who had interviewed Rita online.
• Voldemort ordered his followers to capture Xenophilius and kill his daughter Luna, intending Luna’s death to surprise William Stark.

William spent Christmas at home in Ottery St Catchpole with Gabrielle and friends, opening presents and catching the household’s troublemakers. The chapter left him enjoying his last Christmas before graduation while Anne, Luna, Ygritte, and Fire Kiss hung upside down over the river.

• Gabrielle woke William and told him that Hermione and Phoebe had gone shopping in London while she stayed behind.
• William and Gabrielle opened Christmas presents, including Rita’s scandalous biography of Voldemort, Sirius’s magical ship, Dumbledore’s watch, and Snape’s request that William keep Harry from going home.
• William found Mormont transformed into a Werewolf because his attempt to block moonlight with an alchemical item had failed.
• William caught Anne, Luna, Ygritte, and Fire Kiss stealing his koi, then hung them upside down with Levicorpus.
• William told Anne she would have to wait for Hermione or Phoebe to return before anyone let her down, and Gabrielle pointed out they were still hours away from finishing their shopping.

William spent Christmas Eve with his friends and family, making them grade his Ancient Runes homework and joining their cooking, snowball fight, and festivities. As the household settled into a peaceful evening, his map showed that the expected Death Eater Christmas performance squad had arrived.

• William handed Anne and the others his overdue Ancient Runes homework to grade while he watched the house through his map.
• Hermione and Phoebe returned with ingredients and began cooking, while William slipped away from their scolding and joined a snowball fight against the girls.
• William and his team surrendered after the others outnumbered them, and the girls left him to build snowmen while they soaked in the hot spring.
• The household shared a lavish Christmas dinner, then gathered for music and games as Phoebe sang and Hermione fell asleep against William.
• William spotted the Death Eater Christmas performance squad on his map and announced that they had arrived.

Three Death Eaters invaded Lovegood’s home to capture him and his daughter, kill Luna, and destroy copies of a book about Voldemort. The raid ended with Rowle activating a homemade Ravenclaw’s Diadem replica and electrocuting himself and Mulciber.

• Rowle argued with Mulciber about his family’s history and his unpaid Gringotts loan while Rabastan urged them to focus on their mission.
• The three Death Eaters entered Lovegood’s house, planned to destroy the books, and secretly pocketed copies of The Life and Lies of You-Know-Who.
• While the others searched for Lovegood and Luna, Rowle looked for valuables and found a labeled replica of Ravenclaw’s Diadem.
• Rowle put on the replica and pressed its Ravenclaw Cheering Charm button, causing him to convulse from an electric shock.
• Mulciber grabbed Rowle’s hand and was electrocuted as well.

William found three Death Eaters electrocuted by the modified replica of Ravenclaw’s Diadem and used the situation to set his defenses against the rest of the attackers. Mulciber led the surviving Death Eaters through William’s traps, only for the few who reached the cabins to face William’s captured former Death Eaters.

• William found Rowle and two other Death Eaters incapacitated by the electrified replica diadem, then put Mulciber under the Imperius Curse.
• Mulciber and Tyler Lockwood led the Death Eaters across the hidden bridge and into William’s cursed, plant-filled maze, where many vampires died.
• The survivors were attacked by stone knights with Gatling guns, but Lockwood organized a combined Shield Charm that destroyed the statues.
• Mulciber secretly threw a bomb into the group, killing and scattering more Death Eaters before the survivors pushed on toward the cabins.
• Lucius and William’s other captured Death Eaters emerged and charged at Lockwood’s group, hoping to earn reduced sentences and leave from labor reform.

William played cheat with the girls while a trap he had prepared for Malfoy’s group captured the attacking Death Eaters, prompting one to cast a Dark Mark distress signal. Voldemort arrived with reinforcements and began breaking through the shield around William’s home, but William emerged to confront him.

• William watched Malfoy lead the criminals into his trap, where his forces captured the Death Eaters and one of them sent up a Dark Mark for help.
• At the Burrow, the Weasleys realized the Dark Mark was a distress signal, and Arthur left with Fred and George to investigate while Molly kept Ginny and Ron home.
• Voldemort arrived with dozens of Death Eaters and attacked the magical shield around William’s property, eventually opening a gap.
• William emerged and met Voldemort’s blue spell with a red spell, stopping the Dark Lord’s attack.

William taunted Voldemort about his poisoned arm and the growing strength gap between them, provoking him to order an assault on William’s home. William held off the advancing Death Eaters, Trolls, and Orcs with powerful magic, ending the chapter as he sent a massive snowball rolling toward them.

• William mocked Voldemort’s sluggish reactions and offered him an antidote, while Voldemort realized the poison in his arm had not been fully cured.
• Voldemort worried that William’s strength was growing while his own was declining, and decided to accelerate his allies’ plans for a final battle in the summer.
• William taunted Voldemort with a copy of The Life and Lies of You-Know-Who and joked about making a film titled Memoirs of the Dark Lord.
• Voldemort exploded the book and ordered the Death Eaters, Trolls, and Orcs to charge William’s home.
• William stunned and ensnared several Death Eaters, used them to disrupt the charge, and knocked a group of Trolls to the ground.
• William transformed a rolling snowball into a huge Human Bullet Tank and sent it toward the fleeing Death Eaters.

William battled Voldemort while the Death Eaters crossed a bridge into his trap, then turned to destroy the Runespoor he suspected was Voldemort’s final Horcrux. Voldemort saved the snake, but William broke his wand and left its Horcrux status uncertain.

• Voldemort attacked William with fire and lightning while the Death Eaters crossed the bridge William had conjured; William then made it disappear, trapping them inside.
• William and Voldemort exchanged powerful spells as Aurors arrived, and Voldemort Apparated among them and attacked.
• William uncovered and attacked a Runespoor hidden underground, suspecting it was Voldemort’s final Horcrux.
• William severed one of the snake’s heads with a venom-coated Goblin sword, but heard no sign that a Horcrux had been destroyed.
• Voldemort pulled the snake away, and William struck Voldemort’s wand with his sword, snapping it in two.

William defeated Voldemort’s attack on his home, breaking Voldemort’s wand and helping repel his Death Eaters. After Voldemort escaped, William kept the captured Death Eaters and said he hoped to end the war and eliminate Tom that summer.

• William cut off one of the Runespoor’s heads and broke Voldemort’s wand, while Voldemort realized the snake had survived as a Horcrux.
• Voldemort saw a second Dark Mark signaling that another group of Death Eaters had been wiped out, then fled after William stopped his surprise return attack.
• William told Kingsley that he could take the dead Death Eaters but not the living captives, and Kingsley agreed.
• William, Kingsley, and Mr. Weasley entered the guarded area and found Lucius disciplining captive Pure-blood wizards.
• William said he hoped to end the war and eliminate Tom that summer, while Lucius regretted that he had not become the third-generation Dark Lord.

After Stark’s victory over Voldemort’s Christmas attack, the Wizarding World celebrated until Voldemort struck the Ministry and killed seven respected wizards. William then began preparing to make a Philosopher’s Stone with Nicolas Flamel, who revealed that Lily Evans had been his previous chosen apprentice.

• Newspapers reported that Stark and the Aurors had defeated more than five hundred Death Eaters, and William was promoted three ranks to captain.
• Voldemort attacked the Ministry of Magic’s Wizengamot with Giant Inferi and killed seven wizards.
• Bones released the delayed wizard census data to soften the public reaction to the attack.
• William focused on making a Philosopher’s Stone, and Nicolas Flamel visited him with the materials and knowledge they needed.
• Nicolas explained that making a Philosopher’s Stone cost the maker lifespan and said that Lily Evans had been his previous chosen apprentice.

William followed Nicolas into his riverside laboratory and completed the final stage of making a Philosopher’s Stone. The stone succeeded, and William felt its magic nourishing his body as the chapter ended.

• William and Nicolas descended to the hidden laboratory while Nicolas explained that he had trained Lily Evans in Potions and Alchemy and taught her the protective charm she used to save Harry.
• William and Nicolas entered the laboratory, where William prepared the materials and followed Nicolas’s notes to begin the final procedure.
• William heated the ingredients, cast thirteen spells, and gave his blood to supply the required life force.
• Nicolas confirmed that the procedure had succeeded and revealed the newly made Philosopher’s Stone.
• William drank Nicolas’s restorative potion, grasped the stone, and felt its powerful magic flow through him.

Harry left Privet Drive to investigate Snape’s connection to Lily and found his maternal grandparents’ abandoned home and the derelict Spinner’s End. Snape pulled Harry inside in alarm, warning that someone dangerous was there too.

• Harry packed his belongings and overheard Petunia tell Vernon that she had known Snape as a boy who lived near her and was close to Lily.
• Harry enlisted Mundungus to Apparate him to Cokeworth by threatening to tell Sirius about Mundungus’s thefts from Grimmauld Place.
• Harry explored his maternal grandparents’ abandoned house and found Lily’s room unusually clean.
• Harry flew to Spinner’s End and found the last house on the dark street lit from within.
• Snape opened the door, dragged Harry inside, and warned him that Harry was in danger because someone else was there.

Harry was caught by Snape inside Snape’s house after visiting Lily’s old room and asking about her belongings. Snape hid him when Wormtail arrived, then threatened Wormtail with a dangerous assignment at Hogwarts.

• Snape dragged Harry into his study and demanded to know how he had found the house.
• Harry told Snape he had visited Lily’s room and asked who had cleaned it and taken her belongings.
• Snape sensed someone approaching, hid Harry behind a concealed door, and told him to stay out of sight.
• Wormtail forced his way into the study, and Snape rebuked him for wandering around the house without permission.
• Snape threatened to send Wormtail undercover at Hogwarts, then ordered him to leave.

Harry entered Snape’s Pensieve and watched the memory of young Severus meeting Lily Evans and becoming her friend. As Lily took Snape’s hand, the real Snape caught Harry watching.

• Harry hid in Snape’s room and, despite his misgivings, looked into the Pensieve.
• Harry landed in a tree in Snape’s memory and saw the young Snape watching Lily through a window.
• Snape tried to impress Lily with magic, but Lily questioned his behavior and accused him of throwing an apple at Petunia’s room.
• Petunia hit Snape with a bag, causing him to fall from the tree, and Lily jumped down to check on him.
• Snape told Lily he wanted to be friends, and Lily accepted him as her friend.
• Snape appeared behind Harry and angrily demanded to know whether he was enjoying the show.