A/N: Ok, this is my first fanfic that I've ever done so please be gentle but opinionated with your reviews. After getting a couple e-mails, I'm now going to try and update this every Monday and Thursday instead of just once a week, but I stillmake no guarantees about my timeliness.

Disclaimer: All the characters, places, objects, etc. from books 1-6 (and maybe some stuff before them) belong solely to J.K. Rowling.

The rest of the stuff in this story is out of my own mind and any resemblance to anything in book 7 when it comes out is purely coincidental.

Summery: With what lies ahead of Harry, he gathers as much help as he can to aide in his quest to defeat Voldemort. Will Harry succeed? Will love come into his life?

Chapter 4

Steam hissed from the engine and the wheels began to turn as the Hogwarts Express departed from Hogsmede Station for King's Cross. On board the train, the four friends headed into an empty compartment where they stowed their trunks and sat down. Harry and Ginny with Hedwig and Arnold the Pygmy Puff on one side, and Ron and Hermione with Crookshanks and Pigwidgeon across from them.

"So," said Ginny looking around the compartment, "is anyone going to let me in on what you guys know?"

"Hold on," Harry started, "Muffliato! There we go. What?" he added when he saw the look on Hermione's face.

"I won't deny the usefulness of some of the things Snape wrote in that book Harry. But I'm still not entirely comfortable knowing that that book, and its spells, belonged to a death eater," Hermione responded.

"Well I don't have the book anymore if it makes you feel any better. Anyways," he turned to Ginny and began to explain what he knew about the horcruxes, how Voldemort's soul was divided into seven different places, and how Ginny had actually acquired the first horcrux.

"So that wasn't just the memory of Tom Riddle in that diary? It was a part of Voldemort's soul?" Ginny asked.

"Yes," Harry answered her, "and I was able to destroy it with that fang from the basilisk. And last summer, Dumbledore managed to find and destroy another one of the horcruxes. A ring that was Salazar Slytherin's and had belonged to members of Voldemort's family. The night that the death eaters came to the school, the two of us went after what we thought to be the third horcrux, a locket of Slytherin's. But after getting to it and traveling back to Hogsmede, I discovered that the locket I was now in possession of," as he said this he pulled out the locket to show Ginny, "was actually a fake. One of his death eaters apparently turned on him and destroyed the original locket. This note was inside."

Harry handed the note to Ginny who read it over a couple times, "R.A.B.? Who's R.A.B.?" she asked.

"Wish we knew," said Ron.

"We have some ideas, but nothing even remotely solid," added Hermione.

"Rosalind Antigone Bungs and Rupert 'Axebanger' Brookstanton," Ron listed off.

"They were both notable wizards, but neither were death eaters."

"R.A.B…. hmmm…" Ginny muttered while thinking to herself, "well, any idea on the other horcruxes?"

"Well there were the diary and the ring, so that leaves five others. One of the five being Voldemort himself," said Harry.

"What about the locket?" Ron asked.

"We cannot assume R.A.B. actually destroyed it. They could have died before they managed to destroy it, or worse, Voldemort could have gotten his hands on it and has it hidden somewhere else now," Harry responded, "The other horcruxes, Dumbledore and I narrowed down to a cup that had belonged to Helga Hufflepuff, something that had belonged to either Godric Gryffindor or Rowena Ravenclaw, and Voldemort's pet snake."

"You mean that monster that tried to kill dad when he was guarding the Department of Mysteries?" Ginny inquired.

"Yeah, that very one."

The rest of the trip was rather quiet, except for Pigwidgeon's constant hooting that was muffled by Ron's robes, and the commotion that surrounded the game of Wizards Chess that Harry and Ron were engaged in as Ginny and Hermione watched.

"Ah…" said Ron as he saw an open opportunity, "Knight to H-3. Checkmate Harry," Ron grinned as he triumphantly beat Harry for what seemed to be the millionth time, "Don't worry mate, you'll get the better of me one of these days. Why not try against someone more equal to your skill level."

"You know Harry," Ginny said with a slight grin, "Crookshanks looks like he wants to play."

Ron, Hermione, and Ginny all laughed. Then Harry looked over to Ginny, "Oh ha… ha… ha… Gin," he said very sarcastically.

As the train pulled into King's Cross Station, the four friends finalized their plans for the summer.

"Ok, so your birthday is the 31st of July and the wedding is for a week later on the 7th of August," said Ron listing the dates off, "So how about we come by your aunt and uncle's place and get you on the 31st, you and I do our Apparition test on the 3rd, do all the wedding stuff on the 7th, and then head out the next day?"

"Sounds alright," said Harry, and Hermione nodded in agreement.

"Not entirely," interjected Ginny.

"What do you mean?" Ron asked.

"How exactly do you plan on telling mum and dad that we're leaving school to follow Harry around?"

"Oh, yeah. Mum's going to have kittens if I skip my N.E.W.T.s. She still hasn't forgiven Fred and George for skipping theirs."

"Look," Harry started, "just wait until I get there and let me help you tell them. Who knows, it might lessen the blow a bit. I mean Hermione and I will be missing our N.E.W.T.s as well."

"And besides, you guys will have us there for support," added Hermione.

"Thanks," said Ginny.

"Yeah, you guys really are great friends," added Ron as he leaned over and kissed Hermione.

As the train slowed to a stop, the group joined the mass exodus off of the train. They gathered on the platform and were ushered in small groups through the barrier to the main station. After passing through the barrier Harry, Ron, Ginny, and Hermione were met by an entourage of people. The entire Weasley family (minus Percy), Lupin, Tonks, Moody, and several other members of the order.

"Oh there you are," said Mrs. Weasley through her tears, "I've missed you all so much."

"Mum, it's only been a few days," strained Ron as his mother pulled him into a very constricting hug.

"I know, I know dear. But it's felt like ages."

The greeting and hugging continued all around for a little longer, when suddenly, "Ahem… ahem," someone coughed in a very Umbridge-like way.

Harry turned to look at the source of this sound and found himself looking right at the face of his uncle, Vernon Dursley.

"If you are quite finished, we would like to get a move on," Vernon said rather timidly as he vividly remembered what the order had told him one year ago in that very station about how he should treat Harry.

Mrs. Weasley scowled in his direction. But before she could say what was on her mind, Harry stepped in, "It's alright Mrs. Weasley. I should be going, I need to talk to them anyways. I'll see you later, for the wedding."

"You do that," said Mr. Weasley, "and Harry. Thanks again for everything you've done for this family."

"I'll see you in a few weeks," said Ginny as she ran up to Harry and kissed him goodbye, "take care of yourself."

"I will," replied Harry. A somewhat shocked Mrs. Weasley stood still with her jaw open at what she just saw her baby girl do.

"Mum, I'll fill you in, in a bit," Ron told her when he saw the look on her face, "just let them be for now."

Harry waved back to Hermione, the Weasleys, and the order members as he walked over to where his aunt, uncle, and cousin were waiting.

"Well," snorted Uncle Vernon, "are you quite ready now?"

"Sure," Harry replied, "but I do need to talk to you when we get back to Privet Drive."

And with that, the Dursleys followed Harry out of the station and proceeded back to number four Privet Drive for the last time.

Please let me know what you think and leave me a little review. And I will try to update this Monday.