Rufus Scrimgeour addresses the Ministry, stating that the Ministry will always remain strong as Voldemort gets stronger. Severus Snape meets with Voldemort and the Death Eaters to inform them of Harry's departure from Privet Drive. Voldemort relieves Lucius Malfoy of his wand, as his own shares the same core as Harry's and therefore cannot be used to kill him.
The Order of the Phoenix arrive at Privet Drive and plan to move Harry to safety. Using Polyjuice Potion, they create multiple Harry decoys. Just as they enter the sky, they are ambushed by Death Eaters and Voldemort. Voldemort's borrowed wand fails to kill Harry. Many of the Order manage to land safely at The Burrow, however both Mad-Eye Moody and Hedwig are killed during the battle. Harry has a dream that night in which he sees Ollivander being tormented by Voldemort, who claims that the wand-maker had lied to him for having said that a different wand would succeed in killing Harry.
Days later, Minister Rufus Scrimgeour distributes items from Albus Dumbledore's will to Ron, Hermione and Harry. Dumbledore bequeathed Godric Gryffindor's sword to Harry, which Scrimgeour states is an important historical artefact and is therefore not Harry's property, but that it is also missing.
That evening, the wedding of Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour is disrupted by Death Eaters, causing the trio to disaparate to London. Eventually finding sanctuary at No. 12 Grimmauld Place, they discover that the "RAB" from the false Horcrux locket is Regulus Arcturus Black, Sirius' brother. From Kreacher, they learn that Mundungus Fletcher has stolen the real locket. Kreacher and Dobby apprehend Fletcher, who reveals that the locket is in the possession of Dolores Umbridge. Under the guise of Polyjuice Potion, the trio make their way to the Ministry where they succesfully retrieve the locket and escape to a forest.
Unable to destroy the Horcrux, they take turns wearing it in order to dilute the side effect of paranoid thoughts which the Horcrux emits. Ron, while wearing the locket, is overcome by suspicions that Harry and Hermione are forming a relationship and so he abandons them. Harry sees a vision of Voldemort interrogating Gregorovitch, a renowned wand-maker who claims that a teenage boy had once stolen the legendary Elder Wand from his shop. Voldemort then begins to search for the thief.
Harry and Hermione go to Godric's Hollow to revisit Harry's past and to find Bathilda Bagshot, a historian who may have the Sword of Gryffindor, which they believe will destroy Horcruxes as it is endowed with one of a Horcrux's weaknesses: basilisk venom. Unfortunately, they are cornered by Voldemort's snake, Nagini, and barely escape. Hermione identifies the mysterious thief seen in Harry's vision as Gellert Grindelwald.
