During the Wintermark Term, Blake breaks into the Black Keep at night to search the Drakharrow archives. Neville the fluffin, who has secretly followed him, squeezes behind a bookshelf and Blake discovers a hidden latch near the ground, revealing a secret passage. Inside, Blake finds Viktor’s private diary. The diary reveals the true history of the Dragon Wars: Dragons rebelled against their highblood masters, who had used a dark ritual called “soul-binding” to enslave riders and dragons. After dragons dwindled, the highbloods systematically exterminated the rider bloodline to prevent another uprising and erased this truth from history. Blake has always accepted the myth that riders died out with dragons because of their mysterious bond. Blake realizes Viktor plans to use soul-binding on Medra and leaves, determined to warn them.

In the library during a snowstorm, Medra sees a silver wolf on the cliffs and wonders if it is the same one from the ambush. Her thoughts are interrupted by the sound of Professor Hassan angrily searching for her. Kage appears and pulls Medra into a hidden alcove to hide, but they trip and fall, landing in a compromising position. Blake arrives, growls at Kage to get his hands off Medra, then lunges forward and attacks him in a jealous rage.