"What do you mean 'we have to leave early'?" Ron asked as him and Harry were walking up to the Gryffindor common room. "Where are we going to go?"
"We have to leave!" replied Harry. "We have to destroy the next Horcrux, maybe even the last. Dumbledore told me there were six total, but most of them were destroyed. We may find out if the next one is the last."
"Password?" asked the Fat Lady.
"Dribbling dots," replied Harry.
The Fat Lady allowed the picture to swing open, and Harry and Ron climbed through the passageway and into the common room.
"Where are we going to go, Harry?" Ron asked in the bare common room.
Harry thought for a moment. Where were they going to go? He tried to think about all the places Dumbledore had shown him the year before, but nothing was popping into his mind.
Suddenly, a piece of parchment flew out of the fireplace, and Harry snatched it. He read aloud:
"'Dear Harry, don't think about the places Dumbledore told you last year. Voldemort has hidden all his Horcruxes in different areas because he somehow knew you were out to destroy them.'
"'Dumbledore only allowed me to give you one clue. I suppose he wants to challenge your strength. Look through the forest, look through the trees. You'll eventually find something no one else sees. That's the hint. I hope you decipher it.'
"Yes, I know it's strange I'm writing to you, since I am dead, but the clues will come forward. My baby is already dead, so there is no use in attempting to save it. You were right; I shouldn't have gone into the Chamber. It just put death right into my hands, but I am sorry for it, and I know I should not have done it. Viktor is about as depressed as ever, but I hope he will calm down, and try to settle down.'
"'Also, Sirius said he was sorry he hadn't written to you yet, and is planning on doing so. I hope you complete the journey and figure out everything. Good luck. Love, Hermione.'"
Harry stood there, staring down at the letter. That was Hermione's handwriting, and it brought some sort of lightness into the event that had occurred in the previous hours, but Harry knew she was gone forever. He had to face it; he would never see her again. One small teardrop fell onto the parchment. He set it down on a table near him, and looked at Ron.
Harry sighed. "Anyway, we should...try to figure out the hint."
He saw Ron had a complete look of depression engraved on his face, and tried to choose his words wisely.
Ginny walked down from the girls' dormitories and up to Harry. She looked just as depressed as Ron, and hugged Harry tightly. Harry hugged her in return just as tightly. They had to love each other, through all of the darkness, no matter what, for that was the one power Dumbledore had told Harry he had that was not magic: love.
The hug ceased, and Ginny muttered to Harry, "I want to go with you."
"What?" Harry asked.
"I was listening at the top of the stairs," she said softly. "You can't go on such a difficult journey by yourselves. That puts more of a risk for death. If one dies, then the other must move on by themselves!"
"Ginny, you could die!" said Harry defensively.
"So could you," she replied.
Harry had no choice. She was right; he couldn't go on with the journey with only two people. He created a compromise.
"Okay," he said, "you can come with."
Ginny kissed Harry sweetly on the lips.
Ron looked up, with teary red eyes, but said, "So, what does the hint exactly mean?"
"You two are slow sometimes," Ginny said, getting out of the depressing mood. "The forest! What else could it be?"
Ron and Harry gave each other puzzled looks.
"The forbidden forest!" exclaimed Ginny.
"Why in the bloody hell would he have a Horcrux in there?" Ron retorted.
"I don't know," Harry replied. "It's strange. Nothing in the forbidden forest has anything to do with Voldemort's past...but there's nowhere else it could be."
"We need to go," Ginny said. "Now!"
The three rushed out of the common room and to the grand staircase. They didn't care if the stairs moved; they rushed as fast as they could.
At the bottom, they passed Lavendar Brown, who said, "Ron! Can I have a word with you?" But Ron, just like the other two, ignored it.
The three rushed into the front hall, where the two golden doors that marked the entrance to Hogwars were. They rushed past everyone imaginable. Luna Lovegood, "Why so fast, Harry?", and as they rushed past her, she called to them, "Watch out for those Nargles!"
The three ran out of the large doors. A thought suddenly wiped across Harry; that could be the final time he walked through those doors. He ignored the thought, and rushed through the grounds toward the forbidden forest.
The rushed past Hagrid's hut, and into the dark, gloomy forbidden forest. They stopped at the entrance to it.
"Where do we go now?" Ginny asked.
Harry looked around, but had no clue where one of Voldemort's Horcruxes could possibly be in this enormously large forest.
"We'll have to cover the entire forest," he replied.
"The entire forest?" asked a surprised Ron. "Do you know how long that will take?"
"A few weeks," replied Harry. "Maybe months, but we need to defeat Voldemort. It has to happen."
The three agreed on taking a left first, and headed through the dark grounds of the forbidden forest. Harry looked left and right and all around him, but found nothing. He swore he occasionally saw a large, orange, round object, but he thought he was imagining because of all the craziness that had happened that day.
The sunset brought almost complete blackness into the forest. The cold winter air was brutal, but at least there was no snow.
"We'll have to set camp," said Ginny.
Ginny pulled something out of her pocket, and right in the center of a clearing in the forest appeared the tent they had used at the Quidditch World Cup. Harry walked into it, and it had the same house-like architecture as it did three years ago.
Later that night, Ginny sent a blocking spell so no one would be able to find them, and volunteered to wait up and watch for any strange movements or people nearing the tent.
Harry felt like he could not fall asleep, but eventually did.
"No!" exclaimed a girl. "You can't do this!"
"You disobeyed me!" yelled a raspy voiced man. "You disobeyed our lord's commands! It is what you deserve!"
"I don't want to follow it!" yelled the girl in return.
"Don't — call — the — great — Tumas — an — it!" the man exclaimed. "He is a wonderful, powerful, wise man!"
"He's a wretched evil man!" retorted the girl. "Just like the dark lord!"
"He wishes to be more wise than the dark lord, and have better power!"
"Those two will never compete with good! Evil will never prevail!"
"So you choose to be brutally abused. Okay."
"NOOO! PLEASE!"
A sharp noise was heard.
Suddenly, Harry opened his eyes, and was breathing heavily. He looked around, and saw the tent pitch black. There were figures moving outside.
"Don't see anyone here," said a dark voiced one.
"Okay," said another one. "Let's move on."
The shadowy figures moved away, and Harry fell into a deep sleep once more, his scar hurting the worst it had ever hurt.