Chapter Summaries

Merlin Mei woke up in his original body at Hogwarts in 1971, bound to a romance game whose forced choices he could not avoid. After choosing Gryffindor and provoking Sirius, he agreed to explore the Forbidden Forest with James, unlocking James's evening-adventure storyline.

• Merlin Mei recalled his repeated lives in the Harry Potter world and how his attempts to change the plot had failed, before the Romance System restored his original identity.
• On the Hogwarts train, the system forced Merlin to choose an option, and he picked going to sleep after Snape and Lily left the compartment.
• James asked Merlin which house he wanted, and Merlin declared he would join Gryffindor, irritating Sirius and lowering Sirius's affection.
• Merlin invited James to explore the Forbidden Forest that night, and James eagerly agreed while Remus watched and Sirius grew hostile.
• After the train ride, Merlin teased Sirius about acting like a jealous husband, further lowering Sirius's affection to negative ten.
• The system announced that Merlin had unlocked James's evening-adventure storyline and earned the Love at first sight achievement.

Merlin was sorted into Gryffindor and befriended Lily while James and Sirius reacted with jealousy to his choices. After Lily took Merlin to find Snape, the group headed to the Gryffindor common room, where James tried to impress Lily and she rejected him.

• Peter was sorted into Slytherin, Lily and James were sorted into Gryffindor, and Merlin was sorted into Gryffindor as well.
• Merlin ignored the system’s romantic options and sat beside Lily, introducing himself and earning her gratitude while James’s affection fell.
• Sirius was sorted into Gryffindor, and Merlin joked with James about going to the Forbidden Forest, causing Sirius’s affection to drop.
• Lily asked Merlin to accompany her to find Snape, and Merlin went with her despite the system’s options; Sirius’s and James’s affection fell.
• Lily defended Snape on the way to the common room, while James offered Lily help with Transfiguration and she brushed him off.

Merlin and James set out to explore the Forbidden Forest but were caught after James misunderstood her directions, so they planned to explore Hogwarts’s secret passages instead. After James went to bed, Sirius wondered whether Merlin resembled someone from the Black family.

• Merlin agreed to sneak out with James, while Sirius grew jealous and returned to the dormitory.
• Merlin led James through Hogwarts’s secret passages and explained that she wanted to explore the castle; James warmed to her and agreed they shared that goal.
• Mrs. Norris spotted Merlin and James, but James ran in the wrong direction and ran straight into Filch.
• Professor McGonagall brought Merlin and James back to the common room and took five points from each of them for roaming at night.
• Merlin and James decided to explore Hogwarts’s secret passages instead, and James asked her to call him James rather than Potter.
• After James went to bed, Sirius thought Merlin’s hair, eyes, and features resembled those of the Black family.

Lin began her first day of classes by provoking Sirius and navigating romance-event choices, while building a close friendship with Lily. The chapter ended with Lin and Sirius tangled together on the classroom floor after Sirius fell on her and got his leg stuck.

• Lin used a Shrinking Charm on Sirius and escaped with Lily, then mocked him after he received a Howler from Mrs. Walburga.
• Lin led Lily and Snape to Transfiguration, where she chose to ignore Sirius and go to sleep when the system offered her choices.
• Lily successfully turned her match into a needle, and Lin shared bread with her during class.
• Lin transfigured her own match into a needle after Sirius accused her of being unable to perform the spell, and Sirius lost more affection for her.
• Sirius fell into Lin after James and Remus tried to restrain him, and Professor McGonagall deducted points from him for disrupting class and bullying a classmate.
• Sirius and Lin struggled to get up from the tangled desks, and Sirius admitted that his leg was stuck.

Merlin and Sirius were sent to the Hospital Wing after breaking their legs, where their insults escalated into a fight that left Sirius with a broken arm and both of them barred from Flying Class. A fragment of Merlin’s past revealed how repeated deaths and failed attempts to protect others had hardened her into someone determined to change the story at any cost.

• Professor McGonagall discovered that Merlin and Sirius had broken their legs and sent them to the Hospital Wing.
• Merlin mocked Sirius about his Black family and his Sorting, causing his affection to fall as their argument grew more hostile.
• Sirius shoved Merlin to the floor and grabbed her by the neck, but Merlin twisted his arm and worsened his injury.
• Madam Pomfrey treated their injuries, forbade them from attending Flying Class, and warned Sirius she would report his behavior to Professor McGonagall.
• A fragment showed Merlin’s past loops, her repeated failures to save her friends, and her decision to protect everyone and change the ending, even against their wishes.

After Sirius admitted to strangling Merlin, Lily fought him and James later apologized on his behalf. Merlin reassured James that she still considered him a friend, and Sirius learned she had kept his private business confidential before James invited her for a nighttime stroll.

• James and Lily visited Merlin in the Hospital Wing, where Remus noticed the marks on her neck and Sirius admitted he had caused them.
• Lily attacked Sirius, and James tried to hold her back until Madam Pomfrey and Professor McGonagall arrived; Sirius lost twenty points for attacking a fellow student.
• Merlin told Lily that Sirius's private business was his choice to share, and Lily forgave her after asking her to speak up if she was hurt.
• James apologized to Merlin on Sirius's behalf, and she told James that Sirius's actions would not change their friendship.
• James told Sirius that Merlin had protected his privacy, then relayed her invitation to take a nighttime stroll with him.

Merlin tried to keep James and Snape from clashing, but Sirius’s jealousy and a Potions prank led to both boys being hospitalized. Sirius realized Merlin had distracted James to protect Snape and wondered whether she liked him.

• Merlin joked with James and tried to distract him when he seemed ready to confront Snape, but Sirius’s anger toward her grew.
• In Potions Class, Sirius and James caused Snape’s potion to explode, leaving Snape covered in boils; James was also injured, and both were sent to the Hospital Wing.
• Sirius reflected that he had wanted to tell Merlin not to flirt with others and recognized that his feelings sounded jealous.
• Sirius realized Merlin had distracted James to protect Snape, then saw her covering her face and wondered if she was crying because she liked Snape.

Merlin chatted with Remus about werewolves in the library, then fell asleep against his shoulder while he told her he hoped she would call him Remus. Sirius found them together and shook Merlin awake, prompting another drop in his affection; Merlin mistook the moment for a nightmare.

• Merlin chose to sleep in the library, found Remus studying, and apologized for accidentally calling him by his first name.
• Merlin told Remus about werewolf stories from ordinary human society, and Madam Pince threw them out for talking.
• Merlin continued telling Remus stories beneath a tree, then fell asleep against his shoulder as he reflected on how safe he felt with her.
• Sirius arrived to tell Remus that James might be discharged from the hospital, saw Merlin asleep against Remus, and shook her awake.
• Merlin heard Sirius's affection decrease, woke to find him glaring, and wondered if she was still dreaming.

After Merlin mistook a younger Sirius for a dream and touched his hair, their awkward encounter deepened the tension between them. Merlin refused James’s invitation to watch Quidditch practice with Sirius, leaving James and Sirius to go together while Merlin spent time with Lily and Severus.

• Merlin mistook Sirius for a dream, ruffled his hair, and fell into Remus’s arms after Sirius shoved his hand away.
• James told the others about Snape’s mishap in Potions, but noticed Sirius brooding, Remus blushing, and Merlin asleep.
• James decided to help Merlin and Sirius reconcile by inviting them both to watch Quidditch practice.
• Merlin refused to go with Sirius, saying she would have gone with James and Remus instead, and James left the dining hall with Sirius.
• Lily agreed with Merlin’s complaints about James, and Merlin agreed to meet her and Severus in the library.

Merlin had spent the full moon working on potions to help Remus, but his weak magic nearly made him collapse while brewing a Wit-Sharpening Potion. James and Sirius followed him to his secret room, and after learning why, Merlin punched Sirius for invading his privacy.

• Merlin had spent the days before the full moon researching Remus’s condition and found a secret room where he could brew potions.
• Merlin tried making a Wit-Sharpening Potion, but the effort drained his magic and James caught him before he fell into the cauldron.
• Merlin hugged James to thank him, and James was surprised by the gesture.
• James admitted that he had followed Merlin to find out what he was doing, while Sirius said they had suspected him of dealing with Dark Magic or dark wizards.
• Merlin punched Sirius after Sirius dismissed their intrusion as a precaution.

After a bruising fight, Merlin, James, and Sirius returned to the Gryffindor Common Room, where James quickly acted as if they were friends again. Remus reflected on the injuries he suffered during his full-moon transformation, then watched James and Merlin leave for class together as Sirius dragged James away.

• Merlin, James, and Sirius returned to the Gryffindor Common Room battered from their fight, and James called it a spar between classmates.
• Merlin shared his wakefulness potion with James, who drank from the bottle before passing it to Sirius and joked that his used belongings would someday sell for a fortune.
• Remus recalled how his full-moon transformations drove him to destroy things and injure himself, and how he had spent the night in the Shrieking Shack.
• Remus saw Merlin reassure Evans that he had handled the fight, while James insisted he had not fought back and had punched Sirius by accident.
• Sirius dragged James away by the hair, and James waved goodbye to Merlin before leaving for class.

James began treating Merlin like a friend, and Merlin accepted while insisting she and Sirius still would not get along. James decided he could bring their group together, while Sirius watched their new friendship with suspicion.

• James partnered with Merlin in Herbology, sat beside her in Charms, and gave her Pumpkin Juice, prompting Sirius to react jealously and the trio to lose thirty points after a fight.
• During Astronomy, Merlin asked James why he had suddenly changed toward her, and James said he had realized they had much in common and could be friends.
• Merlin told James that she and Sirius would still be enemies because Sirius had started picking on her.
• James declared that he and Merlin were friends, then imagined bringing Merlin, Sirius, and Remus together as a close group.
• Professor Sinistra reminded James and Merlin to pay attention in class, and they resumed bickering over observing the Milky Way and recording their notes.

The narrator reflected on the changed dynamics among James, Lily, Snape, and Sirius, then tricked James into approaching Remus so they could slip out into the rain. At the Owlery, they encountered Narcissa leaving after arguing with Sirius, and Sirius confronted the narrator about knowing so much about him and the Black family.

• The narrator and Sirius traded insults and paper notes in the library while James watched and continued picking on Snape.
• After rain interrupted James's hopes of watching Quidditch practice, the narrator urged him to welcome Remus and escaped the common room.
• The narrator walked through the rain to the Owlery and overheard Narcissa calling Sirius a disgrace for associating with Mudbloods.
• Narcissa left after noticing the narrator, and Sirius emerged from the Owlery and asked whether the narrator had crawled out of the Black Lake.
• As the narrator prepared to leave, Sirius asked why they seemed to know so much about him and the Black family.

Merlin chose to tell Sirius she liked him after the Romance System forced her to answer why she knew so much about him, and Sirius left after calling her insufferable. Sirius’s monologue revealed that he had fallen in love with Merlin at first sight, despite hating her resemblance to the Black family.

• The Romance System triggered a Sirius romance event and gave Merlin three choices, then started a countdown.
• Merlin told Sirius she liked him, and his affection score dropped by 20.
• Sirius stayed silent before walking toward Merlin, calling her insufferable, and leaving into the rain.
• Sirius’s monologue revealed that he noticed Merlin on the train and fell in love with her when he first saw her face.
• Sirius recalled rejecting Slytherin at the Sorting and admitted to himself that he liked Merlin, though he refused to accept it.

Merlin took James, Sirius, and Remus to see the Mirror of Erised, where each of them saw a deepest desire. Sirius refused to reveal what appeared in his reflection, leaving the group still uncertain after they returned to the common room.

• James complained that Merlin had avoided listening to him talk about Quidditch, so Merlin suggested a nighttime trip to find a magic mirror.
• James invited Sirius, then recruited Remus to join the excursion, and Merlin chose to walk beside Remus under James's Invisibility Cloak.
• The group reached the Mirror of Erised, where James saw himself winning the Quidditch World Cup and Remus reacted uneasily to his reflection.
• Merlin saw their home in twenty-first-century China, while Sirius remained horrified and would not explain what he had seen.
• Sirius dismissed Merlin and James's guesses, and the group returned to the common room without learning his deepest desire.

Lily told Lin that Snape had begun associating with Slytherins who wanted to study Dark Magic, and Lin struggled with the knowledge that her attempts to change the future had repeatedly failed. The chapter ended with Lin falling asleep beside the Whomping Willow after questioning whether changing the journey mattered when the ending seemed fixed.

• Lily asked Lin why she and Sirius had not spoken for nearly half a month, while James also wondered what had happened between them.
• Lily took Lin to the Astronomy Tower and explained that Snape had made friends in Slytherin who seemed interested in Dark Magic.
• Lin remembered her failed efforts in past loops to keep Snape from joining the Death Eaters and to prevent Lily and Snape from falling out.
• When Lily asked what she should do, Lin’s suppressed emotions surged before the system rolled them back.
• Lin walked Lily to her dormitory, then wandered outside and sat beside the Whomping Willow, where she eventually fell asleep.

Remus found Merlin sick after she had slept outside overnight and helped her back to the common room. After Merlin went to the Hospital Wing, Lily visited and comforted her, and Merlin promised that she wanted to protect Lily and make her happy.

• Remus found Merlin cold and barely awake beneath a tree, then helped her back to the Gryffindor Common Room.
• James asked Remus about his marks, but Remus said his troubles were private.
• Sirius confronted Remus about worrying over Merlin, then Merlin walked into Sirius and collapsed against him.
• Merlin woke in the Hospital Wing after Madam Pomfrey treated her fever with Pepperup Potion.
• Lily brought Merlin pudding and gently scolded her for worrying about Lily and sleeping outside.
• Merlin told Lily she wanted to protect her and make her happy, and Lily thanked her for caring.

While recovering in the Hospital Wing, Lin watched James’s clumsy attempts to court Lily worsen their friendship, then avoided him and focused on helping Remus. The chapter ended with James secretly appearing in the library to apologize, after Lin had assumed she was too tired to trust her own eyes.

• James invited Lin and Lily to watch Quidditch practice, but Lily told him to leave the Hospital Wing after he pressed her to come without Lin.
• James kept trying to talk to Lin over the following days, while she avoided him and warned Snape that his Dark Magic could get him killed.
• Lin decided to focus on easing Remus’s suffering and began planning something for Halloween, though brewing advanced potions left her exhausted.
• James secretly appeared beneath his Invisibility Cloak in the library and showed Lin a board reading “Merlin, I'm sorry.”
• Lin dismissed the sight of James as a dream and decided to skip her nightly excursion and go to bed early.

Merlin accepted James’s apology after he admitted he had neglected her while she was ill, then kept her distance from him around Lily while they talked during nighttime outings. James gathered Merlin, Sirius, and Remus to plan a Halloween activity and choose a group name, leaving Sirius still hostile toward Merlin and his darkening meter at 3%.

• Merlin went to leave the dormitory and James stopped her to apologize for doubting their friendship and ignoring her illness; she forgave him after hearing Remus had pointed out his mistake.
• James hugged Merlin and celebrated that she had accepted his apology, then she reflected that his personality would be difficult to change.
• Merlin and James talked frequently during nighttime outings, causing Sirius’s favorability toward Merlin to drop as James tried to reassure her that Sirius would come around.
• James gathered Merlin, Sirius, and Remus to discuss a Halloween plan and a name for their group, while Sirius suggested getting rid of Merlin and Remus proposed doing nothing.
• Merlin, Sirius, and Remus suggested names, and James proposed checking the library for ideas; Sirius’s darkening meter was shown at 3%.

During the Halloween Feast, the narrator chose Remus in a forced romance event, then found Peter alone and trembling in the corridor after someone splashed Pumpkin Juice on him. The chapter ended as the narrator recognized Peter and tried to approach him.

• James complained that the narrator and Sirius had distracted him from planning Halloween, then reacted dramatically when he learned the narrator had prepared a prank without him.
• The narrator teased Sirius during the feast, and Sirius's affection fell by five points after the narrator mocked how little he seemed to eat.
• The Romance System activated a Halloween event and presented five companions; the narrator chose Remus to give James and Lily a chance to spend time together.
• The narrator left the feast and found a hunched, trembling student with Pumpkin Juice on his robes in the corridor.
• The narrator offered to help, and the student nervously refused before the narrator recognized him as Peter.