Even now as he mounted his broomstick, he wasn't sure if he was doing the right thing. Later on he would realize that he had made the wrong choice, but by then he would be too far in with no means of escape. But how could he have chosen? Loyalty to his father, or the girl he loved. He was ONLY 17, his mind young and foolish, as he liked to think when he sat all alone in his cell.
As he flew, he kept asking the same question in his mind over and over again, which one? And during the journey, he made up his mind firmer in his decision than before.
Having reached his destination, the whomping willow, he realized why she had picked this place. This was where it had all started for them, and this was where it was going to end. When he landed he saw that she was already there. The moon made her hair stand out even more, if that was possible. She already knew what he was going to say, but she still wanted to hear the words from his mouth. He told her what he had decided, and she stood there her back ramrod straight and took it all in without a single tear. That was one of the many things he loved about her. She wasn't like a normal girl in many ways. Tears never graced her face and she had learned to stick up for herself.
He told the redhead that they WOULD see each other again, both knowing that this was not true. The next he would be seen in public was when he had a mask on his face, and a tattoo on his shoulder. At that point he vividly remembers her abruptly turning around and flying off. She did this without looking back, and all he could say was, "goodbye Ginny".
From that point on both tried forgetting the other. But little things can always trigger old memories, as these two learned over the years. The day he got his mark was the last day he ever cried. Not because of the pain, but because from this point on he couldn't turn back. Their loyalties lay with different people. His to the Dark Lord, and hers to The-Boy-Who-Lived. And when they met on the battlefield they fought just like any other Slytherin and Gryffindor, because in the end that is what they would always be.
[Throughout his years in Azkaban, people always asked what made him do what he did.
And though he always said that Voldemort was the right choice he knew deep down the real reason why he accepted the death mark. He was afraid of death. He felt like a coward in front of his dad, and couldn't bear dying for his beliefs. Many would say he was a coward, but he thought of himself as a martyr who lived.]