- Harry, Hermione, and Ron arrive in Hogsmeade, and some kind of screechy alarm goes off when they arrive. They seek cover quickly, but it's hard to find a place to hide. Suddenly, they hear a voice inviting them inside a building.
- Ron and Hermione are shocked: The person who invited them in looked like Dumbledore.
- The kids look around the house where they have taken refuge. There's a picture of a lady, and a mirror with one shard missing that shows Harry in it. We're guessing that has something to do with that magic shard of glass Harry's been carrying around.
- Suddenly, their host appears, and Harry realizes that he's Aberforth, Dumbledore's brother.
- It's his face Harry's been seeing in that mirror fragment, and Aberforth has clearly been using the mirror to keep an eye on Harry.
- Aberforth seems to think that the battle against Voldemort is over, but Harry isn't hearing that. He says that Dumbledore has given him a mission, and confides that he's hunting Horcruxes.
- Aberforth scoffs at his brother's tendency to send others into danger, and at Harry's decision to trust Dumbledore in pursuing the mission.
- However, Harry isn't backing down: He wants to get into Hogwarts to finish the job.
- Aberforth turns to the painting of the woman on the wall and tells her, "You know what to do." She disappears into the back of the painting.
- Hermione asks Aberforth about the girl in the painting. We learn that she is Aberforth and Dumbledore's sister, Ariana.
- Aberforth excuses himself, and Ariana (within the painting) returns. Suddenly, Neville appears from behind the painting.