Disclaimer: I do not own the characters or ideas created in the preceeding Harry Potter novels. Anything you don't recognize in this version of events was most likely made up by me. The story was originally written by J.K. Rowling. This disclaimer goes for my entire story. So please don't steal it.

1. Godric's Hollow

Harry Potter was sitting in a comfy chair by a fireplace, with his eyes closed. He had just arrived at Godric's Hollow, which was the home where his parents had stayed, while they were in hiding from Lord Voldemort. They knew he was coming after them, but he wouldn't have found them if it hadn't been for Peter Pettigrew. Peter was a close friend of James Potter, Harry's father. He was the Potter's Secret Keeper, and he betrayed them. He told Voldemort where to find them, and he killed them. But when he reached Harry, who was just a baby at the time, he was unable to kill him. No one knew why. But when he tried, the spell rebounded upon himself; he was barely alive after that, and now it was his turn to go into hiding. He had regained his body three years ago, and has since been trying to kill Harry. For a few months though, Voldemort had been mysteriously quiet. Harry decided to himself, that the prophecy would be fulfilled this year. Hundreds of miles away, someone else was deciding the very same thing.

Harry was surprised to learn that Godric's Hollow had been repaired by someone unknown, as if they were expecting him to return, for it had been completely destroyed by Voldemort sixteen years ago. Harry had already visited his parent's graves, but couldn't bear to go back.

He opened his eyes; many thoughts were running through his mind. It was very difficult for Harry to believe Dumbledore was dead. Every time he thought about it, he felt like he was in a dream.

How can he really be dead? He's all I have. Harry had turned seventeen three days prior. He then journeyed to Godric's Hollow from the Dursley's house. It felt like a nice home here, but somehow, Harry felt strangely empty inside. He felt so alone in the world, even though he had only been away from his friends for a few weeks.

Friends.

That's what he needed: his friends. Ron and Hermione had been very quiet on the Hogwarts Express, when departing the castle to go home. Well, everyone was. This thought triggered even more thoughts: Draco Malfoy, Snape, Horcruxes.

Wait a minute... Snape!

How could he have forgotten? Harry had been constantly replaying the events of that horrible night that was mere weeks ago. Snape had used the killing curse on Dumbledore.

Malfoy had tried to kill Dumbledore, but couldn't do it, even when he had a perfect opportunity. But what Harry had just remembered was, Snape was the Half-Blood Prince. The thought had completely vanished from his mind until now.

How could it have been Snape? I never trusted him, but Dumbledore always did. I took the Half-Blood Prince's ideas... and advice. How can it have been Snape? This triggered yet another thought. He vaguely recalled a moment similar to this. Right after the fake Mad-Eye Moody had told Harry that it was he who had put Harry's name in the Goblet of Fire, Harry had said, "How could it have been Moody?" Then Dumbledore had said, "This is not Alastor Moody." Maybe it wasn't actually Snape who killed Dumbledore.

Harry thought hard to remember everything Dumbledore had said. But it must have been Snape, who else could it have been? Harry dismissed this idea, but thought that there could be more to what happened than meets the eye. Oh, I wish Ron and Hermione were here. I really want to talk to them. Harry closed his eyes again, and drifted off to sleep.

He woke early at the sound of knocking on his front door. He hurried over to the window and peered outside. He couldn't quite tell who it was. Clutching his wand behind his back, he opened the door tentatively, expecting the worst. To his great relief, it actually was Ron and Hermione, and they were accompanied by Ron's younger sister: Ginny. Harry's stomach lurched. Last year at school, they had both become closer than friends. Harry had to admit, he was in love with Ginny, and she would probably say the same, seeing as though she had kissed him in front of Ron.

"Hi! What are you guys doing here? I'm so glad to see you." The words tumbled out of Harry's mouth. The emptiness inside him seemed to vanish completely.

"Harry, I'm so glad to see you too!" said Hermione, giving him a big hug.

"We've been really worried about you Harry," said Ron. "For a while there, nobody knew where you went. We checked Grimmauld Place first, just to make sure, but there are ways of figuring these things out," he said. Then he gave Harry a big hug. Harry was so happy to see his best friends.

"Oh Harry," said Ginny, "are you alright? You should come back to the Burrow, everyone's anxious to see you." She gave Harry an exceptionally big hug. Ron's ears went pink; he knew how much Harry and Ginny liked each other.

"Come in, come in," Harry said. A warm feeling came over him. He felt almost normal again. He had been feeling strangely ever since Dumbledore died. But he was in Godric's Hollow. This is where he wanted to be. He knew someday it would feel more like home. All he needed was someone to be with... He looked over at Ginny. She was talking about how beautiful the small house was, and that she wished she could live in a cool house like this. "Maybe you will," Harry said under his breath as he passed her, to get to the small kitchen. She went pink, and her mouth opened slightly. Oh no! I didn't know she could hear me! Harry felt heat rise to his face. Ginny quickly regained herself as Ron walked by, but Harry could have sworn she looked delighted at the thought.

"Well, this is a neat house," said Hermione.

"Yeah," said Ron, "Do you have any food? It took a while to get here... and we haven't eaten for quite some time. Finished all the chocolate frogs... We couldn't Apparate, because Ginny hasn't got her license." They all walked into the sitting room, which was decorated in red and gold, to honor Godric Gryffindor. Hermione conjured up a platter of sandwiches.

"Thanks," Harry said to her. "I'll go get some butterbeer from the kitchen," he said.

"I'll help you," said Hermione. Harry gave her a puzzled look. Apparently she wanted to talk about something. They walked in and Harry inquired as to what she was on about. "Well," she said, turning slightly pink, "I was wondering if you could... Never mind," she said hurriedly. "Here, I'll help you with the drinks."

"What's going on Hermione?" Harry said suspiciously.

"Nothing... I just thought... Never mind." Harry wondered what on earth would make Hermione act like this. Oh well, he told himself. If she wants to tell me, fine. But I can't force it out of her. They each sat down by the warm fireplace, and passed the butterbeer around.

"Harry," said Ron, from a stern look Hermione had given him, "we were wondering if we could talk about whats been going on lately." Harry knew this was coming, and he had the inkling that this conversation had been preplanned. Hermione spoke next.

"What Ron's trying to say Harry, is that we want to talk about what happened with you and Dumbledore, before Snape ..." she trailed off. Harry could feel the same strange feeling like he was in a dream. He still couldn't believe Dumbledore was actually dead.

"Harry," said Ginny, "we want to talk about what exactly happened. Not when, he, died, but what happened with the Horcrux."

"We had to tell Ginny about it, and you know she's trustworthy," said Ron. Harry felt slightly numb talking about what happened.

"So you didn't get a Horcrux that night?" Hermione asked in a rather small voice. It seemed as though they were expecting Harry to explode with anger, but no sound came from his throat when he tried to talk.

"We all know this is hard for you Harry. We would feel the same way if it was us," Ginny said gently. Harry pulled himself together.

"Well, as you know, we didn't get the Horcrux. It was a fake one. It had a note inside saying that the person had found out Voldemort's secret, took the real Horcrux, and intended to destroy it. It was signed R.A.B. I have no idea who that could be." They discussed different angles about the Horcrux, but didn't come to any conclusions. But then, Ron said something that actually did make Harry explode with anger inside. He mentioned Snape. But Hermione, who could detect trouble in an instant, noticed that Harry became suddenly quiet. She had probably come to the conclusion that this was his new way of exploding.

"Look Harry, you can't just turn your back on the subject. That's like taking the cowards way out." This statement made Harry remember something right after Dumbledore's murder. He told the others this.

"Snape got so mad when I called him a coward. Just as we were leaving the Hogwart's grounds, before he could Disapparate, he told me to keep my mouth shut, and my mind closed. Was he trying to give me advice?"

They talked about practically everything Harry had been thinking about.

"Well," said Ron, as he leaned back in a big, comfy, red chair, "mum and dad were going to come and get us. They should be along any time." They had all finished their drinks, and were just starting to get tired when they heard a knock on the door. Harry got up and answered it. Sure enough, it was Mr. and Mrs. Weasley.

"Oh hello Harry dear," Mrs. Weasley said warmly as she embraced Harry in a big hug.

This brought back memories of the good old days when he was in his second year at Hogwart's. Back then he didn't have much to think about, except how happy he was at the Burrow. Now, days were dark. It was not a surprise to find a familiar name in the obituaries. The weather was chilly, and the sky was gray.

It had been like this for some time; not your typical summer. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley lingered only for some time before deciding it was time to head home. It was not hard for Harry to gather all his things, because he didn't have much."Best hurry," said Mr. Weasley, "We don't want to travel at night. Right dangerous." He was right. But even now, it was foolish to travel alone. There were several disappearances everyday, mentioned in the Daily Prophet.

People were accustomed to this, but it was always hard to open the newspaper, and see the name of a friend, and know you would never see them again. All you could do was hope for the best. Death Eaters were hardly ever seen, but the Dark Mark was hovering over everything. No matter where you turned, there it was; in every corner.

So many people were murdered. To the Death Eater's, it was just a sport. Muggle's definitely knew something was going on. Several had to get their memories modified, because they had claimed to see a mad man, who looked like a snake, and was as skinny as a skeleton. This, of course, was Voldemort.

"Now, Ginny, Harry, you two will be doing side Apparition. That's where you hold on to someone's arm. Here Harry, you take mine," Mr. Weasley said, as he got ready for the Apparition.

"Ginny, you can come with me," Mrs. Weasley said, beckoning to her daughter. Harry had traveled by side Apparition before, but he wasn't anxious to do it again. The first time, he was with Dumbledore, going to see Horace Slughorn.

"Ready?" Harry gripped Mr. Weasley's arm very tightly, and felt the familiar sensation of his lungs being squeezed. Everything went black, and he could hardly breathe. He thought he was going to die, even though he had done this before. Next second, he was breathing fresh air, and was very relieved to find he was looking at the Burrow. Harry panted slightly, and saw Ginny doing the same. Apparition seemed very strange to Harry. Ron had his face screwed up in concentration, but then he realized he was home.

"Wow! I did it! Last time I lost an eyebrow, just like when I tried to get my license. I just got my license a few days ago. Usually they wouldn't let me try again till next year, but with dad at the Ministry and all..." Ron kept on talking, but it took him a while to realize no one was paying attention. Everyone filed inside the cozy little home, and were greeted by the smell of something delicious being cooked.

"Quick, quick. Everyone inside," said Mr. Weasley, looking anxiously over his shoulder as he closed the front door. Just as Harry had anticipated, Fleur was the one cooking dinner. She came into view, with her long, silvery, hair swishing behind her.

"Oh! 'Arry! It is so good to see you again!" she said, as she swooped down to give him a kiss. Ginny wore a grotesque, disgusted face. Hermione just rolled her eyes. Bill was sitting in a corner of the kitchen, and Harry saw that his face still had numerous scars, and a plate of steak was on the table in front of him.

"Hi there Harry," he said. It looked as though he was still in pain, for he winced at every movement.

"Well, have you heard about the wedding?" he asked Harry. When he shook his head, Bill went on.

"I think we'll have to postpone it a year or so. No one wants to come. It's too dangerous to travel. Dark days," he sighed.

"This is the best.. uh... dessert.. thing I've ever had Fleur," said Mr. Weasley. "What is..." he trailed off from a ferocious look Mrs. Weasley had given him.

Harry had to admit, it was a pretty good dessert, even though he didn't know what exactly it was. He was extremely full and content, and thought it best to get a good nights sleep. He didn't look like the only person exhausted.

"Why don't you four go off to bed," said Mrs. Weasley, "we have some traveling to do tomorrow." Unlike the usual sleeping arrangements, everyone got their own bedroom. Harry got Fred and George's old bedroom, Hermione got Percy's, and Fleur had been staying in Charlie's. None of these Weasley brothers currently resided at the Burrow. As soon as Harry's head touched the pillow, he was asleep.