Harry reacted instinctively.

"Expelliarmus!"

The Elder Wand flew from Draco's hand and landed at Harry's feet. He hesitated a moment before picking it up.

"It's all yours, Harry. I didn't want it. It was a mistake, I swear," said Draco quickly.

"Now is not the time, Draco," said Snape.

Draco vanished as quickly he'd entered the room.

"Try the wand again, Potter," said Snape.

Harry waved the wand.

"Lumos."

The tip of the wand glowed brilliantly.

"Nox."

Harry put the wand back in its box and closed it, then looked Snape in the eyes."

"So the Elder Wand works for me. That's not what all this was about, is it?"

"That you must learn for yourself," said Snape, sounding as though this discussion was over, but Harry was not satisfied.

"You tortured me. What the fuck kind of sick lesson was that?" Harry yelled.

"One that you needed to learn," said Snape. "Now come. I'll show you to your room."

Harry decided to give up asking questions for the moment. If he could get Draco alone, he could probably get answers out of him. He followed Snape out into another long hallway. Though this one was light beige and normal-looking, Harry still felt uneasy. He inched over as close to the wall as he could without attracting Snape's attention.

Snape led him into a plain room that contained only a bed, wardrobe, desk and a door that presumably led to a bathroom. The walls were painted light blue and the room was decorated to match.

"I'll have your trunk brought in. Mealtimes are at eight, noon, and six. Do not be late," said Snape and abruptly left, shutting the door hard behind him.

He hadn't bothered to tell Harry the time. Strangely, that was all he could think of as he walked around touching the things in the room. Snape was probably watching him and laughing at him at that very moment. Stupid Potter doesn't even know how to ask or use magic to find out the time. Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Harry ignored the bed and sat down in a corner. He pulled his knees up to his chest, his eyes darting around the room. He didn't trust Snape. How did he know whether everything Snape ha just told him as a lie or not? He'd lied to everyone for years and presumably still lied to Voldemort. He couldn't believe anything that came out of Snape –or Draco's—mouth.

Harry leaned his head against the wall and closed his eyes briefly. This was just another way to fuck with him and like with the visions, he would find a way to fight it. Hell, this whole thing could be a vision. Who knew what kind of crazy potions Snape could come up with, and he had had ample time to feed them to Harry. Or maybe the potion he'd been given earlier hadn't really been a Calming Draught, but a suggestion potion or something like that. Something that would make him more likely to believe the ridiculous story Snape had tried to feed him.

Sure, the so-called Elder Wan hadn't worked until he'd "won" it from Draco, but that could have been a spell too. His cloak might have just been charmed really well and good care taken of it. The ring, however, he couldn't explain, but then again, he hadn't tried it. Snape had in fact told him not to try it.

Harry glanced at the box that still held the ring. If it worked, it would prove part of Snape's story true, but it wouldn't prove the whole story. Harry couldn't believe that Dumbledore had wanted to kill himself and had made Snape help him. That wasn't possible. He'd always thought of Dumbledore as invincible, and that he'd been killed so easily, as easily as any other man, was too hard to believe. He had to know the truth.

Harry picked up the box and opened it. The gold of the ring sparkled slightly inviting him to pick it up. He felt strange, as though he was underwater, and couldn't hear or see properly. Harry reached out slowly with his right hand and hovered over the ring for a moment before descending and picking it up.

Harry immediately felt a shock like electricity run through his body. He tried to drop the ring, but his hand refused to open. His eyes slipped closed and he slumped sideways, unconscious before his head touched the floor.

A/N: My apologies for the delay. I realized today that I'm an idiot, and had both this chapter and eleven already written and ready to go. This was a short one, but it had a good spot to stop, and chapter eleven will be up shortly. Enjoy!