Chapter 3: The journey begins
When Harry woke up the next morning, he stayed in his bed for a while, thinking that what he had done to his relatives had been wrong. He should have just left without hurting them. But what was done was done, and now his most pressing matter was the Horcruxes and their locations.
Harry got dressed, threw some owl treats to Hedwig and went downstairs. He drank a hot mug of coffee and left the bar to Diagon Alley.
He walked for a while, watching anxious people walking from shop to shop buying all kinds of protective items for their families, this made him want to end Voldemort's life even more than he had wanted. It wasn't only Voldemort he wanted to kill, he also wanted Snape dead. He sat on the windowsill of a little shop and remembered everything Dumbledore had told him. Hufflepuff's cup, Voldemort's snake and something that belonged to either Ravenclaw or Gryffindor where the places where Dumbledore thought the remaining Horcruxes were.
Harry thought hard to remember something he had heard or something he had seen that would give him a clue as to where one of them could be, and then he remembered the graveyard where Voldemort had returned, and the big house that stood on top of a small hill behind the graveyard.
"Riddles' manor" He gasped.
How come he hadn't thought about it before, that was the place where Voldemort's father had lived, and it was also the place where he had been re-born. It had to be a very special place for Voldemort, so it was bound to be the place where one of the Horcruxes was.
He would go there in a couple of days, but before he had to get ready to face the challenges he would be presented there. Harry was now more powerful than ever before, it seemed that the death of Dumbledore and Harry's thirst to avenge him had given him new determination. Like the ministry had once tried to teach the Hogwarts students, Harry had been practicing wand movements and studying new spells and charms, but he had never actually used them, this had only been like this because back then he was still an under-age wizard.
But that was the past; he could practice all the spells he wanted now. He could now transfigure himself into animals or other things (although only if he had his wand), he could perform amazing protective spells and knew very powerful offensive spells. And after two long days of hard training in some woods where he apparated every morning and afternoon, Harry decided he was ready to face his challenge.
Harry woke up the day he was setting out to Riddle's House feeling very uneasy about what he was going to do, but his determination was still as strong as ever and he was going to do it. Before he left he scribbled two notes; one for Tom the bartender which said that he would be coming back at latest tomorrow afternoon, and another one which he addressed to Ron, which said:
Dear Ron
I think I've found the place where one of the Horcruxes is hidden! I'm going to retrieve it today, and you mustn't tell anyone; especially Hermione because she would panic if she knew. I hope I'll manage to get it and live to tell the story, and I wanted to ask you to only tell Lupin, Mad-eye and your parents about the Horcruxes if I die, because someone must keep on looking for them if that happens.
Hope you're all right; wish me luck.
Harry
Harry then rolled up the letter and tied to her leg.
"Please make sure he gets this Hedwig, and stay with Ron until I contact you okay?" He said to her as if this was the last time they would see each other. She squeezed his arm gently and then flew out of the open window.
Hoping that everything would be all right and concentrating hard in the graveyard, Harry once again turned and vanished from the spot.
Is it any good? R&R!