The final book begins with
Voldemort and his
Death Eaters at the home of
Lucius Malfoy. They are beginning to plan out how to kill Harry Potter before he can be hidden again. After borrowing Lucius's wand, Voldemort kills his captive,
Professor Charity Burbage, teacher of Muggle Studies at Hogwarts, for teaching the subject and suggesting that the end of pureblooded wizards was a good thing.
Harry, meanwhile, is getting ready for his trip and reading two obituaries of
Albus Dumbledore, a sympathetic one and an unsympathetic one; it is revealed that Dumbledore’s father, Percival, supposedly hated non-wizards and had killed several Muggles, and had died in
Azkaban for his crimes. It is also hinted that Dumbledore was responsible for the death of his young sister
Ariana, and that he was at one time a Wizard supremacist.
Harry regrets not having asked Dumbledore more about his past, but this is soon forgotten as he is leaving his home that night. He convinces his aunt Petunia, uncle Vernon, and cousin Dudley that they need to leave as well to avoid being captured by the
Death Eaters, and eventually they leave escorted by a pair of wizards, though not before Dudley admits that he cares about Harry.
Soon thereafter the
Order of the Phoenix arrive with a plan to sneak Harry away from his house without Voldemort capturing him.
Ron Weasley,
Hermione Granger, the
Weasley twins,
Fleur Delacour, and
Mundungus Fletcher take a
polyjuice potion to make themselves look like Harry, and each departs with a different member of the Order of the Phoenix. Harry departs with Hagrid and, after being chased by Death Eaters and
Voldemort, narrowly escapes to the Burrow. There, the casualties are counted:
Hedwig, Harry’s owl, was struck by a killing curse;
George Weasley lost an ear;
Mad-Eye Moody was killed by Voldemort himself. Harry later has a vision regarding his escape; his wand had reacted with Voldemort’s borrowed wand, destroying it, and he has a vision of Voldemort questioning Ollivander, the wand maker, about why it happened.
A few days later, the
Minister of Magic arrives at the Weasley residence to give Harry, Ron, and Hermione what Dumbledore had willed to them: to Ron, a Deluminator (known as a "put-outer" in previous books), with the power to douse all the lights in a room; to Hermione, a book of wizard-culture children’s stories; and to Harry,
Godric Gryffindor’s sword and the first snitch Harry had ever caught. The sword, however, was withheld because, the minister claimed, it was not Dumbledore's to give. The three try to discover the purpose of the objects being given to them, but are unable to figure it out before the wedding between
Fleur Delacour and
Bill Weasley the next day.
Harry disguises himself for the wedding, but during the wedding they all receive a message; Voldemort has taken over the
Ministry of Magic. Harry, Ron, and Hermione all flee the wedding, first fleeing to a Muggle café.
Though they think themselves safe for the moment, two Death Eaters find them almost immediately and attack them. Harry, Ron, and Hermione manage to defeat the Death Eaters, but thinking themselves in danger in public, flee to 12 Grimmauld Place,
Sirius Black’s home, where they hide themselves.
The group realizes that Regulus Arcturus Black was the R.A.B. from the amulet Harry found with
Dumbledore, and begin searching the house for the
Horcrux.
Kreacher, after a bit of persuasion, tells the trio that he had helped Regulus in assisting Voldemort to place the locket horcrux in the cave. After Regulus became disenchanted, however, he ordered him to return to the cave such that he could substitute a fake locket for the real one, however, he is killed in the process.
Eventually they realize that
Mundungus Fletcher stole the amulet and send Kreacher to find Fletcher and bring back the amulet. Kreacher finds Fletcher, but he has already given the amulet away to
Dolores Umbridge.
After a month of spying on the Ministry of Magic, the trio try to infiltrate it in order to retrieve the Horcrux from Dolores Umbridge. They ambush three wizards and use polyjuice potion to impersonate them.
They discover the Ministry of Magic has changed considerably; Muggle-born wizards and witches are being rounded up openly and the Ministry itself is persecuting muggle-borns and confiscating their wands.
The three discover Mad-Eye Moody’s eye has been taken by Umbridge, so they take it; they then knock out Umbridge and take the horcrux from her, freeing a number of muggle-born wizards and witches in the process and encouraging them to flee the country. However, in the process their hiding place is discovered, Ron is injured, and they are forced to flee to the countryside, moving from place to place, never staying anywhere too long.
After several months of moving around they overhear a conversation wherein it is revealed that Godric Griffindor’s sword is actually a fake, and someone did something with the real sword. Harry hears this and is heartened, and after questioning the portrait of Phineas Black, he discovers that the sword had last been used by Dumbledore to destroy another Horcrux, the Gaunt’s ring.
Ron is discouraged, feeling that with the sword now necessary as well, and out of reach, their quest is getting hopeless. Ron gets in an argument with Harry and leaves, leaving Harry and Hermione together; it is later revealed that he relented almost at once but was unable to find them thanks to the protection spells Hermione had laid. The two are greatly saddened and fear never seeing Ron again, but eventually realize they have to go to
Godric's Hollow on the off-chance Dumbledore left the sword there for them.
Arriving in Godric's Hollow, the two first visit the memorial to Harry’s family, then the graveyard, where both Harry and Dumbledore’s families are buried. After laying a wreath on Harry’s parents’ grave, they encounter the old woman
Bathilda Bagshot, an old family friend of Dumbledore’s who authored The History of Magic.
Thinking she may have been entrusted with the sword, they follow her to her house, where they find a picture of the dark wizard Grindelwald, Bagshot’s relative and once, long ago, Dumbledore’s childhood friend. However, it is actually a trap; “Bagshot” is actually Nagini, Voldemort’s snake familiar, and Harry and Hermione only narrowly escape from Voldemort, accidentally destroying Harry’s wand in the process.
On the run for a few more days, eventually a doe
patronus appears on the edge of their camp and leads Harry to Godric Griffindor’s sword, hidden in a frozen forest pool. Harry strips down and dives down after the sword but the locket Horcrux on his neck tries to strangle Harry.
Ron returns in time to save Harry from drowning, pulling the sword out of the pool in the process. The two then destroy the Horcrux with the sword and return to camp. Ron was able to find Harry with the aid of Dumbledore's gift. He reveals that Voldemort's name has been "made taboo": anybody saying it can be traced, which is how they were found out earlier (in the café and at Grimmauld Place).
Hermione is furious that Ron had left despite her pleas, and takes some time to mollify. She has meantime discovered their next step: to speak to
Xenophilius Lovegood and ask him about
Grindelwald's mark, a symbol which has shown up time and again during their journey.
At Lovegood’s home, Harry, Ron, and Hermione are told an old wizard story about three brothers who bested death, and each had received a magical item for it – an unbeatable wand (called the
Elder Wand), a stone which could bring back the dead (the Resurrection Stone), and an Invisibility Cloak that "could hide the wearer from Death itself" and never failed with age. Lovegood tells them that the three items are collectively represented by Grindelwald's mark, and called the "Deathly Hallows", since whoever owns all three sacred items is the Master of Death. Harry believes that his own cloak is the legendary Invisibility Cloak, and is very excited.
They discover, though that Lovegood has betrayed them to the Ministry;
Luna, his daughter, has been taken captive and he believes that giving them Harry Potter will win her freedom. The trio barely escape from the Death Eaters sent to fetch them, but Harry is emboldened and believes that they need to collect all the Deathly Hallows to defeat Voldemort.
A few weeks later, the three are still no closer to finding the Deathly Hallows or more Horcruxes. They finally manage to tune into a rogue wizard radio broadcast, run by people they know which gives news on what is really happening. However, Harry accidentally says Voldemort’s name and Voldemort’s followers find Harry, Ron, and Hermione and capture them, taking them to
Lucius Malfoy’s home.
There, Hermione is tortured and interrogated by
Bellatrix Lestrange to find how she acquired Godric Griffindor’s sword, believing it to have been stolen from her vault, while Harry and Ron are imprisoned in the basement with Dean Thomas, Griphook the goblin,
Ollivander the wand maker, and
Luna Lovegood. Harry asks the broken fragment of mirror he has for help and
Dobby appears to help him, freeing them. Dobby saves Dean and Ollivander, but they have made too much noise and
Wormtail is sent to check on the prisoners.
Harry and Ron attack him, and Wormtail resists, losing his wand to Ron but strangling Harry with his artificial hand. Harry calls in the debt of life that Wormtail owes him, and Wormtail hesitates -- but Wormtail’s artificial hand, made by Voldemort, immediately strangles Wormtail to death instead for the mercy he’s shown.
Ron and Harry, helpless to aid him, rush upstairs to save Hermione with the help of Dobby. They escape as Voldemort is close to arriving, but Dobby is slain by Bellatrix Lestrange as they flee.
After burying Dobby, Harry and his friends begin planning anew. Harry questions Ollivander about the Elder Wand, and chooses not to try and prevent Voldemort from acquiring it from the tomb of its last owner, Dumbledore. Instead, he questions Griphook about how to break into
Gringott’s, and in exchange offers him the goblin-made sword of Godric Griffindor.
After extensive planning, the group goes to Gringott’s to see if they can find one of the horcruxes in the Lestrange vault; Hermione poses as Bellatrix Lestrange, Ron is disguised, and Griphook and Harry go in under the Invisibility Cloak. They manage to penetrate the traps and find the horcrux, Hufflepuff’s cup, but Griphook betrays their presence and flees with the sword. Harry, Ron, and Hermione narrowly escape on the back of a captive dragon. Griffindor's sword is kept by Griphook.
From the alarms at Gringott's, Voldemort discovers at long last that they are seeking out his horcruxes. Voldemort has also successfully stolen the
Elder Wand that he believes will allow him to defeat anyone, including Harry, in a duel.
Harry has a vision shortly after the escape; he can see through Voldemort’s eyes and hear his thoughts. Voldemort lists off all the locations of the horcruxes, realizing now they are being sought after and destroyed.
Voldemort inadvertently reveals that the unknown Horcrux, which Harry suspects to be a relic of the founder of Ravenclaw, is safe within Hogwarts. Harry realizes that if they want to get the Horcrux within Hogwarts, they need to do so immediately, before Voldemort finds his other horcruxes missing, and the trio immediately head to
Hogsmeade to find a way to sneak into their old school.
At Hogsmeade, Harry and friends are cornered by Death Eaters and saved by
Aberforth Dumbledore. Aberforth opens a secret passageway to Hogwarts, where
Neville Longbottom greets them.
The
Second Battle of Hogwarts ensues soon afterward after Voldemort realizes his other Horcruxes are no longer functional, and Harry is separated from Ron and Hermione in the confusion. Harry discovers the Ravenclaw Horcrux is none other than
Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem and that it is hidden in the
Room of Requirement. After meeting back up with Ron and Hermione, he discovers they were able to enter the
Chamber of Secrets and retrieve fangs from the remains of the Basilisk, which Hermione used to dispatch
Helga Hufflepuff's Cup.
After saving Draco Malfoy's life, Harry finds
Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem in the
Room of Requirement, and it is destroyed. Harry, Hermione and Ron go to the Shrieking Shack, where they see Voldemort order
Nagini, who is now encased inside a protective, bubble-like cage, to kill
Snape, believing this will transfer the
Elder Wand's power to him.
As he dies, Snape gives up memories to Harry, which reveal that Snape was on Dumbledore's side, motivated by his lifelong love of Lily Potter. Snape was asked by Dumbledore to kill him if the situation demands it; the curse placed on the horcrux ring had limited Dumbledore's life, regardless.
Harry also learns from these memories that Dumbledore believes Harry is a horcrux, and that Voldemort cannot be killed until Harry himself is killed by Voldemort. Now resigned to his fate, Harry tells Neville to kill Nagini the snake (the other remaining horcrux) at all costs, then sacrifices himself to Voldemort, not fighting back, and is seemingly killed.
However, Harry awakens and meets the deceased
Albus Dumbledore in what appears to be a deserted
Kings Cross station. Here, it is explained he cannot be killed by Voldemort whilst Voldemort lives, since he used Harry's blood to recreate his body, and Lily's protection binds the two. He appears to be in a near-death state in which he can speak to Dumbledore, and can still choose to die or to go on living.
He also discovers that the part of Voldemort's soul he had had inside himself has been separated by the attempted murder and is represented in his vision by a flayed naked child, whimpering in agony.
He also discovers Dumbledore himself had sought the Hallows, with Grindlewald, for less than noble reasons - resulting in the death of his sister Ariana from neglect. In Dumbledore's opinion, only Harry is worthy of possessing the Hallows. Harry is given the choice of dying or of returning to try and stop Voldemort, which he decides to do.
Back in the forest, on Voldemort's orders, Hagrid carries Harry (seemingly dead) back to Hogwarts. Voldemort challenges Hogwarts to surrender, but is faced down by Neville. Voldemort proceeds to torture Neville with the
Sorting Hat -- at that moment, the
centaurs attack.
In the confusion, Harry covers himself with the invisibility cloak and Nagini, the last horcrux, is killed by Neville using Gryffindor's sword pulled from the Sorting Hat.
In the ensuing battle, Bellatrix is killed by Molly Weasley and Harry reveals himself to prevent Voldemort from killing her in retaliation.
Coming face to face with Voldemort in the Great Hall, Harry is seemingly faced with impossible odds - with Voldemort possessing the Elder Wand and having killed its previous master Snape, he cannot be beaten in a duel. However, Harry gambles correctly that Draco Malfoy was the true previous master of the Elder Wand, not Snape. Since Harry has since Disarmed Malfoy, the mastership of the wand has passed to Harry, not Voldemort. Harry also attempts to save Voldemort from himself by trying to get
Tom Riddle to feel remorse for his actions, warning him of the fate that awaits him if he is unwilling to feel remorse for his evil acts. This shocks Riddle more than anything Harry has said to him up to this point.
Harry explains all of this to Voldemort, who chooses not to believe him. Voldemort attacks in his usual way instead.
When Voldemort strikes Harry with the killing curse from the Elder Wand, opposed by a disarmament curse from Harry, the killing curse rebounds on Voldemort. Harry's theory had been correct. Voldemort, bereft of all his horcruxes, dies.
Harry is now master of all three Deathly Hallows, but chooses to deliberately lose the Stone of Resurrection and hopes to inactivate the Elder Wand as well. Dumbledore's portrait applauds his decision.
In the story's epilogue, taking place 19 years (
2017) after the Battle of Hogwarts, Harry and
Ginny Weasley have three children named James, Albus Severus, and Lily, Neville Longbottom is the Herbology professor at Hogwarts, and Ron and Hermione have two children named Rose and Hugo. Draco Malfoy is married (we don't know who), and has a boy named Scorpius.
They all meet at King's Cross, about to send their children to Hogwarts at the beginning of term. Lupin and Tonks' son Teddy is revealed to be in love with Fleur and Bill's daughter Victoire.
It is revealed that Harry's scar has not hurt since the Dark Lord's defeat, and there, the story ends.
