Winning Entry

Harry Potter and the Final Horcrux by Kirstyn

He couldn't believe it. He was finally here. Harry looked around at what was to be his new home for a while. He was standing in the entrance of none other than Godric's Hollow, the place he had vowed to return to.
Harry put a rucksack containing a few items down on a nice, grassy part of the ground, and proceeded to walk amongst the rows of headstones that occupied a sizeable portion of the hollow. The stones were uniform in shape, size, and color; the only thing that distinguished one from the other was the tiny name inscribed upon it. Harry knew only two of the nearly one hundred people that were concealed by the earth of the hollow--his parents.
After a few minutes of wandering, Harry came across his parents' graves. They were exceptionally close to each other, since they were a married couple. Harry stared blankly at the stones for a brief moment, then sank to his knees, embraced the stones in his arms, and wept. However, these tears were mainly ones of joy--Harry had finally seen his parents again. True, they were dead, but it gave Harry an unprecedented sense of peace nonetheless.
His mind at ease and his heart content, Harry rose from the ground and started to think about the daunting task at hand--finding the last four Horcruxes. As if on cue, Harry noticed a gleaming, gold cup behind his mother's gravestone. It was emblazoned with a dark blue "H."
"Hufflepuff's cup! One of the four remaining Horcruxes!" exclaimed Harry, skeptic as to whether or not he should believe his eyes.
He approached the cup with great care, unsure of how to dispose of it. Wondering if his ability to love would come to his aid once again, Harry gingerly touched the cup. Suddenly, the cup trembled and glowed red-hot. It smoked, and then without warning, collapsed into a pile of ashes. A light breeze blew past Harry, sweeping the ashes into the distance.
As Harry's eyes followed the ashes, he noticed a snake resting behind his father's gravestone. Harry assumed that it was none other than Nagini. Harry looked the snake in the eye with a calm, kind gaze. Nagini quickly shriveled up and vanished. Harry wondered why he had suddenly stumbled upon these Horcruxes and why it was so easy to get rid of them.
"Well," Harry thought to himself, "that leaves the locket and the unknown object." Remembering the note inside the false locket stating that the real one was soon to be disposed of, Harry realized that now he was on the hunt for only one Horcrux.
"But what could it be?" he wondered aloud.
"I'm not sure, but I'm here to help you find out," said a voice from behind him. It sounded oddly familiar.
Harry whirled around and saw Dumbledore standing near his rucksack.
"Professor!" exclaimed Harry. "But you-- I thought-- How could--" sputtered Harry.
"Harry," said Dumbledore, a small smile on his lips, "you honestly thought I was dead?"
"But...how?" was all Harry could manage to say.
"Do not worry about that, Harry," said Dumbledore. "Magic can work in quite powerful--and mysterious--ways. Let us rest now, for tomorrow we shall start to look for the final Horcrux.
With that, Dumbledore proceeded to conjure a tent resembling those provided at the Quidditch Cup--it looked normal on the outside, but was extremely roomy and lavish on the inside. Harry grabbed his rucksack and followed Dumbledore into the tent.
They both sat down at the kitchen table. Harry began to pull some slightly stale crackers from his rucksack, but Dumbledore motioned for him to stop. Taking a second look at the table, Harry saw that there was a plate of steak and mashed potatoes in front of him, and Dumbledore had one, too.
"Oh, I almost forgot!" cried Dumbledore. He pointed his wand at the middle of the table, muttered something Harry couldn't quite make out, and two bottles of butterbeer appeared on the table. Harry and Dumbledore each took one.
"So Harry, please tell me, how did you manage to find and destroy those two Horcruxes?" said Dumbledore, taking a swig of his butterbeer.
"I... I'm not quite sure, sir," began Harry. "I remembered what you said about my power to love, so I touched the cup and looked at the snake, and then they simply destroyed themselves."
"Hmm, I see," said Dumbledore, a bit puzzled. "I don't understand why Voldemort would simply leave two Horcruxes lying out in the open, though. And if they had been here a while, I surely would've seen them before. I go here quite often, you see; I find this place quite relaxing."
Harry suddenly had an idea.
"Professor, could a spell have been placed upon those Horcruxes which would allow only the creator to see them?"
Dumbledore's eyes got wide, and his face took on a solemn expression.
"Why yes, I believe there is. And since you're Voldemort's equal, to a certain extent, then you could see them, too..." his voice traveled off. "Harry," he said, a tone of urgency in his voice, "your final confrontation with Voldemort is approaching. He planted those Horcruxes there because he knew you would eventually come here. He knows you're here now, Harry...we will be seeing him soon. Eat and go to bed, Harry. Now." And so the two of them quickly finished their dinners in silence, and proceeded to go to bed.
The next day, Harry woke to find Dumbledore conjuring breakfast. Harry sat across from Dumbledore at the table.
"Eat, Harry, you will need your strength. We need to find that last Horcrux as soon as we can, and we must be prepared to encounter anything," said Dumbledore.
Harry obeyed, and they soon finished their meal. Dumbledore rose from the table and cautiously stepped outside of the tent. Harry followed, his wand in hand.
"Now Harry," began Dumbledore, "it is usually not best to split up, but in the interest of time, I believe we must. I will search this part of the hollow, and you will search the part near the graves. Do you understand?"
Harry nodded.
"Good. Call me over if you find anything that looks even remotely interesting."
Harry walked over to the graves, looking behind each one in the hopes that he might find something. After nearly an hour, his search had proved to be fruitless.
"I can't find it anywhere, Professor," called Harry.
Dumbledore walked over to where Harry was standing, his face grim.
"Well, I'm afraid I have," said Dumbledore. "Neither can live while the other survives. And the last Horcrux is most likely something belonging to Gryffindor or Ravenclaw. And think... ...You are a member of Gryffindor House, so one could say that you 'belong' to Gryffindor."
"So you're saying that I... I'm the last Horcrux?..." Harry asked.
Dumbledore looked away, and Harry saw a few tears trickle down his face
"All I know about that night is that your parents were killed. I know scant details about what exactly happened to you that night. So yes, Harry, I believe you are--"
"YES, HE IS!" hissed a voice nearby. Voldemort suddenly appeared in front of them. "So, if you plan to finish me off, Albus, the boy has to go first!"
Harry, not at all sure of what he was saying, willfully succumbed.
"Go ahead, Professor," he said wistfully. "Do it. I know it's for the better."
Dumbledore looked at him, a bewildered expression upon his face. Reluctantly, and with fresh tears in his eyes, he drew out his wand.
"AVADA KEDAVRA!!!!!!" cried Dumbledore. Harry saw a blinding flash of green-yellow light, and then everything went black.
After what seemed like hours, Harry opened his eyes at last.
"So, this is Heaven?" he said groggily.
"No, silly!" replied a plump, jolly woman in a nurse's uniform. You're in St. Mungo's and you're making a splendid recovery, if I do say so myself."
Harry looked around the room, which happened to be filled with people. Ron, Hermione, Hagrid... so many faces were staring back at him, he didn't know what to do or say.
"Allow me to explain," said Hermione. "There's this type of magic that I just started to read about. If someone has died, another person can transfer their life to the body. That's what Dumbledore did for you. He gave his life for you. Or rather, to you."
"Vol--" Harry began.
"Gone," said Ron. "Totally and entirely gone."
Harry looked around the room again. His friends, the Order, Hogwarts staff, his parents...
Harry jolted when he saw his parents. His mother smiled warmly and approached Harry's bed, his father following.
"When the Dark Lord was killed, his victims returned to life," said his mother quietly.
Although he was a bit sorry for Dumbledore, Harry was overcome with joy for having his parents back. Once again, he looked at everyone in the room, this time with a smile on his face and a tear in his eye. Today was the start of a new life for him. A happier, more satisfying life, where he would never again suffer pain because of his scar.
~*THE END*~