Chapter 1: The Final Ride

Harry Potter stared at Hogwarts for the last time as he got on the Hogwarts Express. After finding a compartment to themselves, Harry, Ron, Hermione, Ginny, Neville and Luna sat down all rather quiet. Harry looked at Hogwarts. His home for the last six years. The only place where he felt comfortable. The place where it had all started for him. He had first faced Voldemort here. The train started to move and slowly Hogwarts castle started to slide out of view.

He remembered his first year when he had met Ron on the Hogwarts Express and how he and Ron hated Hermione at first. He remembered accusing Severus Snape of being evil. He remembered Dumbledore telling Harry in the hospital wing that death was but the next great adventure.

How in his second year he was rescued from the Dursleys by his best friend; Ron and how they flew the Ford Anglia to Hogwarts. Their encounter with Aragog and how Harry defeated Riddle and the Basilisk by the help of Fawkes and the sorting hat down in the chamber of secrets.

He remembered himself entering his third year. How he was so scared of the Dementors, how Lupin taught him the Patronus charm and how he felt when he found out the truth about Sirius and that he was his godfather.

His fourth year. When for the first time, he and Ron had a fallout because Ron had accused him of entering the Tri-Wizard Tournament. He remembered the fake Moody telling him that he would make a great Auruor and from that point onwards the way he felt about Cho. He smiled in spite of himself when he remembered that Ron had asked out his future sister-in-law; Fleur to the Yule Ball. He remembered facing Voldemort in the graveyard and how he had seen his parents.

His fifth year; the on going battles with Umbridge. How he felt sorry for Sirius seeing him locked up and not being able to do anything for the Order. He remembered occlumency with Snape and remembered more clearly than ever Ron saying "Well maybe Snape isn't trying to help Harry. Maybe he's actually trying to open Harry's mind a bit wider. Make it easier for You-Know-Who". He clearly remembered the D.A meetings, his first kiss with Cho Chang and of course Fred and George's grand exit from Hogwarts.

He remembered his sixth and final year as clearly as ever. His doubts about Malfoy from the beginning and Ron and Hermione remaining skeptical about the fact that he was a Death Eater. He remembered his brilliance in potions because of the half blood prince. And, smiling to himself he remembered his first kiss with Ginny.

It seemed as though it was just yesterday that him and Ron were on the Hogwarts Express for the first time traveling to Hogwarts positively agog. Everything had changed during this time period. Ron's rat who he tried turning yellow was actually Peter Pettigrew who had betrayed Harry's parents. The boy who came with his friends and tried to bully Harry and Ron was now somewhere with Severus Snape. The annoying girl with bushy hair was now one of Harry's best friends and the round faced crying boy who came looking for his toad had matured so much and Harry's first wizard from his collection of Famous Witches And Wizards Cards was now dead.

"Harry?"

Harry looked around and saw everyone staring at him. He realized that his eyes were prickling with tears.

"What's wrong?" Hermione asked

"Nothing" lied Harry wiping his eyes with his sleeve. "So what did you guys do after the funeral?"

Ron, Luna, Neville, Ginny and Hermione were nowhere to be seen after the funeral, so Harry decided to go visit Hagrid to say goodbye. But Hagrid was crying so much he did not seem to hear Harry.

"Oh we were up on the seventh floor telling McGonagall and all the other Ministry people where the Room Of Requirement was. Scrimgeour and a couple of Aurours went through the vanishing cabinet to arrest Borgin" Neville replied.

"Oh yes. Father told me that the ministry was looking for an excuse to arrest him especially after they were tipped off that he bought and illegally kept three snunckle-boartrackers in his garden last year" piped up Luna.

Harry ignored this last comment and closed his eyes, his hand wrapped around the fake horcrux in his pocket remembering everything that had happened in the past week. Everything had changed; He would never come back to Hogwarts, Albus Dumbledore was dead. He now had no one to look up to, no-one to venerate, no-one to protect him. He now had to embark on a dark and dangerous journey without the world's greatest wizard. He felt boiling anger erupt inside him as he thought about Snape. How Dumbledore had trusted him. How he had given Snape a second chance, and how Snape had killed Dumbledore so mercilessly. Harry wondered where Snape and Malfoy were now.

A thousand miles away, in a dark room lit dimly by flickering candles, Severus Snape along with a dozen other hooded figures stood in front of Lord Voldemort.

"The first task is complete" Voldemort said, his long pallid fingers twirling his wand. "Here's what I want you to do next……"