The Battle of Hogwarts

Professor McGonagall prepares the students still attending Hogwarts for the great battle before them. She says that those who are seventeen years old may stay and fight if they wish; the younger students must evacuate.

Suddenly everyone hears Voldemort’s voice demanding Harry in return for not harming anyone at Hogwarts. Even though a few Slytherin students agree to turn Harry over, Professor McGonagall and the rest of Hogwarts refuse.

In Harry’s search for the lost diadem, Nearly Headless Nick reminds Harry about the Grey Lady, the ghost of Ravenclaw. The Grey Lady avoids Harry purposefully until he desperately insists on talking with her. Although very reluctant to give the details, the Grey Lady finally tells her story.

The Grey Lady was also known as Helena Ravenclaw. In an attempt to become as clever as her mom Rowena, Helena stole the tiara with the diadem and ran away. When Rowena Ravenclaw longed to see her daughter again, she asked the Bloody Baron to bring her back. When Helena refused, the Boody Baron killed Helena and then himself. Meanwhile, the diadem remained hidden among the trees in Albania: that is where Helena escaped and hid it.

Harry guesses the rest of the story. Tom Riddle also got the story out of the Grey Lady. He then found the diadem in Albania, made it a Horcrux, and returned it to Hogwarts. As Harry rushes off to try to find it again, he begins to put the pieces of the puzzle together. He remembers the statue of Ravenclaw at Luna’s dad’s house as well as the statue in the Ravenclaw common room. Suddenly, Harry realizes that there is a similar one in the Room of Requirement: “that of an ugly old warlock, onto whose head Harry himself had placed a wig and a battered old tiara.” Harry has an epiphany that this exact tiara contains the lost diadem.

On his way, Harry runs into Hermione and Ron, who have been gathering basilisk fangs to destroy the remaining Horcruxes. They had destroyed already the Hufflepuff cup they stole from Gringotts. The three friends run quickly to the Room of Requirement to find the diadem. When Ron suggests that they should warn the House Elves, Hermione finally gives in and “running at Ron, flung [her arms] around his neck and kissed him full on the mouth.”

Getting back to their mission, Harry is bombarded by Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle in the Room of Requirement. In their duel, Crabbe unleashes a spell that gets out of control, turning the room into an inferno. Harry, Ron, and Hermione save Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle from the room of fire.

As they are leaving, “the devouring flames were flung into the air, as the creatures of the cursed fire cast the high in celebration. . . . The diadem seemed to fall in slow motion, turning and glittering as it dropped . . . and then he had it, caught it around his wrist.”

Harry has the diadem, one of the final Horcruxes. Further, the fire that Crabbe used was “Fiendfyre,” one of the few substances that can destroy a Horcrux. Nagini the snake is the only Horcrux left.

As everyone at Hogwarts continues to battle Death Eaters and anyone else on Voldemort’s side, an explosion rocks the castle. The blast kills Fred Weasley.