Disclaimer: See chapter one

XxX

"Your first question?" Snape asked.

Harry stared, bewildered, at his professor. Someone was actually going to explain things to him? "Uh..Well…I suppose…"

"Spit it out boy! I haven't got all night!"

"Fine! No need to be mean about it..Well…First things first, then. Why-"

"Oh for heaven's sake! This will take entirely too long if you continue to mumble like that! Fine, foolish boy, I'm going to talk, and you will listen. If, at the end of my narrative, you have any questions, you may ask them! Got it? Good."

Harry nodded mutely at Snape. Whatever.

"Fine. Now.." Snape paused.

"I thought you didn't have all night!" said Harry irritably.

"I am marshalling my thoughts! Patience is a virtue! Now. Albus Dumbledore, as you well know, is the greatest wizard of the century, perhaps of the millennium.

Such a great press of power upon one's consciousness is a heavy burden to bear. As a young man, Dumbledore controlled it easily. However..as he grew older..Well, you've seen how the old man dresses.

He…lost it. Very few know that Albus Dumbledore is hanging onto his sanity by a thread. A thread that is slowly but surely unraveling. Back when…the Dark Lord ruled..back when you were just a child-" he smirked, "Well, more childish—He had a bit of a firmer grip. But, not much firmer. For a while there…We—McGonagall, myself, and a few select others—had to..keep him away. For some reason, Dumbledore thought that he was …the Dark Lord."

Harry gaped. "What? You're telling me that Dumbledore-"

"Professor Dumbledore!" Snape barked. Harry thought it was nice to know that even in the midst of such a revelation, Snape was still sound enough of mind to correct him.

"Right. You're telling me that Professor Dumbledore thought he was Voldemort!"

Snape winced at the usage of the Dark Lord's name. "Yes, Potter, that is exactly what I just said. Excellent job."

Harry scowled but kept silent.

"What, nothing to say? I'm shocked!"

"Oh, can it! Would you just get on with the rest of the story, Snape!"

His professor frowned at him. "No patience. None at all."

"Well excuse me! There's just a Dark Lord and all his minions trying to kill me, and now I've got some insane old man telling me to lo-" Harry choked off. He had almost forgotten what Dumbledore had told him.

"To love said Dark Lord?" Snape's voice was maliciously amused. Harry made a faint squeaking noise.

"Could we please not talk about that!" he demanded.

"Hum. I suppose, since you asked so nicely. However, I don't see why how it's fair to leave all the explaining up to me. Damn old coot."

Harry realized something. "Hey!" he cried out, thoroughly surprised, "You're avoiding my questions!"

Snape snorted. "I most certainly am not! After all that I've faced, you think telling a little story frightens me!"

"Yes." said Harry simply. "Now, are you gonna buck up and face your fears, or are you going to hand me off to someone else?"

Snape scowled. "I'm not afraid." he muttered. Suddenly he straightened out, his back ram-rod straight. He breathed a deep sigh. Harry stared in confusion before realizing that Snape was preparing himself. Alright.. "Now then. To continue with the narrative that was so rudely interrupted." He glared pointedly at Harry.

"Hey! I didn't do anythi-" Harry frowned at Snape. "You're doing it again. You're avoiding it."

Snape looked mad that Harry had found him out so quickly. "Fine." he huffed. Snape was quiet for a while.

Harry coughed. "Uhm. Professor..? Maybe it would help if you..uh..Said it all quickly..? Or maybe just summarized…?"

Snape glared derisively at him before nodding. "Yes, that might be a good idea. So, because Dumbledore thought he was Voldemort, he had the urge to kill you. Well, none of us thought that he was doing so awfully. So, we left him alone for a while…" Snape trailed off. "That's when..He attacked Lily's house. He killed her. And your dog of a father, I might add."

Harry noticed that Snape didn't sound even remotely sad that his "dog of a father" had been killed. Though, he couldn't much blame him.

"So, that's why he killed your parents. Because he wanted to stop the prophecy."

"Er." said Harry. "But…If Dumble-Professor Dumbledore, was the one who tried to kill me-"

"Fool!" spat Snape. "Did I ever say that the old man tried to kill you! He would have, of course, but by the time his wand was raised against you, the Dark Lord had arrived. He was very mad about what Dumbledore had done." Snape shuddered minutely, as though remembering his lord's displeasure. "It was the Dark Lord who cast the Killing Curse upon you. Though…it was not aimed at you. He was trying to kill Dumbledore, but he was distracted and instead hit you…So, Potter, any questions?"

Harry thought about it. "No..I don't think so. Wait! I went to the Hospital Wing to see Madam Pomfrey, and I think she was under the Imperious!"

Snape gaped for a moment. "Poppy..? Oh no. If she's been put under, then there's no telling how many he's gotten to."

"Who got to her..? Dumble-Professor Dumbledore?"

"Of course! This school is no longer safe for you, Potter. You must leave immediately." He stood up and stalked around the room.

"What! Where am I supposed to go! I don't even have any of my stuff!"

"Stuff? Stuff! Your life is in danger, and you're wondering what you're going to do about your stuff! There is no time! You must leave now!"

"What about you? Are you coming with!"

"No, I can't go! I must stay here."

"Well…Where am I going to go? The Dursley's won't let me stay with them the whole school year!"

"Fool! You won't be going to stay with those incompetent Muggles! He was the one to put the wards up to protect you there, he can pull them down! No, you must go to the safest place possible."

"But…I thought that was Hogwarts.."

"Of course not! You must go somewhere he would never think to look."

"Wait a second…when you say he, are you talking about Voldemort, or Dumbledore?"

Snape made an inarticulate noise. "Dumbledore is perhaps the most unsafe person to be around at the moment! You're going to stay with the Dark Lord."

Harry stared. "Excuse me! He's trying to kill me!"

"And Dumbledore isn't?"

"I don't know! He hasn't yet!"

Snape sighed. "Boy, you are perhaps the stupidest person I have yet met. The Dark Lord has been in hiding for years. Although when he was younger he enjoyed maiming and killing and such, as he's grown older he has..mellowed out..a bit."

"But, then-Don't be ridiculous! Who has been trying to kill me for all these years!"

"Have you not been listening to a thing I've said! Dumbledore! Although he has his—brief—moments of lucidity, for the most part he roams between his belief that he is the Dark Lord, and the insanity that is the Dumbledore we know. He's discovered some sort of spell—none of us are quite sure what it is—and he now takes on a guise that he fancies looks like the Dark Lord." Snape coughed derisively. "The real lord..well..he looks..a bit more..attractive, I suppose you would say." Snape coughed again. "But Dumbledore, masquerading as the Dark Lord, has been terrorizing wizardkind for the better part of six years."

"But" interrupted Harry, "What about the Death Eaters?"

"Ah yes," breathed Snape. "Most of them have no idea that they are serving the Headmaster of Hogwarts. Only the real Dark Lords highest-ranking minions know. And they serve as spies for him."

"Are you-"

"Why of course! And Lucious Malfoy, obviously. The others, I'm not particularly sure of. The last in-person meeting was years ago. We only communicate with the Dark Lord in times of dire need. I believe this would register as a time of dire need. We need to get you out of here now. Dumbledore could come down here at any mome-"

Snape was interrupted by a sharp knocking on the door. "Severus? Are you in there? I need to talk to you about our resident hero. Mr. Potter was rather startled by the news, and I'm afraid he may do something irrational."

Harry froze when the headmaster's benign tones reached his ears.

Snape silently glided towards a large armoire. He pulled out a small piece of dark cloth, muttered a quick spell over it and moved back to Harry. "When you touch this," he whispered into Harry's ear, "It will portkey you directly to the Dark Lord. Hopefully I will be able to arrive soon after. Then I will try to explain the rest to you. If-" he broke off and took a breath, "If I am not able to…come..then someone else will explain it to you.

I know that we haven't gotten along, but..Good luck, Potter." He held out the cloth.

Harry stared at his professor. "Thank you professor, for everything. Good luck.."

And then he reached out and plucked the portkey from Snapes hand.