Author's Note: Thanks for all the reviews. One more chapter left guys, not counting this one...enjoy!

Summary: "...I am not your father. I will not act like your father. I do not care for you, Potter, and I will not be a parent to you..."

...Harry was more than ready to agree with that and nodded as he finished the drink he had been sipping at nervously.

It has been often said that a father and son can overcome anything, that family can overcome anything as long as there is love between them...but what if there isn't love but only hate? In a time of war most rely on their family and friends, but who can Harry rely on when he can't tell his friends that Severus Snape is his father? Especially with how curious they are of his secrets already. It isn't like he has Snape, anyway...to Snape he isn't more than just a burden after all, right? So in his time of need who can Harry turn to? Who can help him as he completes the task that was set on him?

Disclaimer: I own nothing, probably not even the plot considering how many times this plot has been done before...anywho on to the fic...

Chapter Thirty Four

Thickening the Plot

May 27, 1998

He touched her cheek, softly. His fingers brushed away a tear. She didn't move. She couldn't move. Her eyes closed of her own volition. He stepped as close to her as he dared, cupping her face, lifting her face, so he could see her clearly. He forged it into his memory so he could never forget it and sighed sadly.

"I'm sorry," he said softly. "I'm so sorry."

She didn't move an inch, didn't once give him the impression that she had heard him at all.

He pressed his forehead against hers in silent resignation. They said nothing, both of them knowing exactly what would happen after this moment.

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Ron groaned in pain, and tried to lift his wand to shoot out a spell out at the Death Eater that had thrown him against the wall. He had just barely said the incantation when a spell from the side hit the Death Eater and his wand flew out of his hand. Ron righted himself quickly and smiled in appreciation at Ginny who had been the one to disarm him. She turned away and quickly began to fight a stocky witch that had been previously ganging up on Luna with a man that appeared to be her brother.

Ron rubbed at his sore arm, which had hit the wall hard, and then he looked around. Bill and the twins were fighting two robed and masked death eaters that really seemed to hold their own against his three older brothers. Ron could see Tonks and Remus, fighting back to back, often times helping each other. Professor McGonagall was firing off spells from left to right at a tall, large blond wizard. Neville was shielding someone behind him, but Ron couldn't tell who it was, and it was someone that had been hurt. Ron noticed a few of the other teachers though some where no where to be found. A blond woman was fighting two death eaters by herself all the while looking around for someone. Ron had never seen her before, but from the way the Order members said nothing about her, he knew she had to be one of them. Hermione was standing somewhere near this woman, throwing hexes and spells were she could in the fight.

It was a few minutes later, while trying to help Ginny with the death eater that she had been fighting that Draco Malfoy came into the hall. Ron could only see red. Here was the person that had lead to this fighting. He had been the one that had allowed them in according to Ginny and Hermione who had been walking to the Room of Requirement when they saw Malfoy stepping out of the room, motioning to others to follow him.

Draco began to shoot out spells around him, helping his fellow Death Eaters as he went.

"Ron!" Hermione called out to him before she let out a small scream.

Ron turned to look at Hermione right before he was hit on the back and he fell to the ground, pain coursing through him, a few seconds later it stopped, but he could barely keep his eyes open. Exhaustion clouded him and then all he could see was black. He heard someone faintly calling his name and then there was nothing.

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Dumbledore's eyelids flickered. Harry's heart leapt.

"Water," Dumbledore croaked.

"Water," Harry said. "Yes," and reached for his wand and the goblet that had fallen to the ground throughout the entire commotion. "Aguamenti!" Harry shouted and filled the goblet to the brim with water and brought it to Dumbledore's lips, but it was empty.

Harry tried again twice, all the while Dumbledore groaned, but the water kept vanishing from the glass goblet.

"Sir, I'm trying," Harry said when his third attempt failed.

Dumbledore's breathing was fading and instinctively Harry knew what he had to use – the water from the lake. Voldemort must have planned it this way, and the moment Harry took the water the bodies in the water would attack, but he would be ready.

He rushed to the lake and quickly filled the goblet with the water from within, he then brought it to Dumbledore, tipping the goblet, clumsily over his face, and then Harry felt something icy come to rest on his arm. He looked down and almost screamed when he saw the slimy, white hand. He quickly tried to get its grip off his arm, but he couldn't pull it off. Grabbing his wand, Harry thought of only fire, and managed to mutter the spell. The hand let him go quickly and reeled backward. Harry backed away from the water, as far as he could go.

Dumbledore had stood up, and though he looked tired and as if he were about to collapse, and he was leaning against the basin, he too raised his wand. Harry looked at him worriedly and wanted to ask if he would be okay, but the white dead bodies were crawling out of the water. Harry found he couldn't help but be reminded of the muggle movies about zombies that were meant to scare people – he had thought they were stupid whenever he saw Dudley watching them with his friends, just something that shouldn't be scary at all compared to Voldemort and so many other things that were much worse.

The Inferi, Harry remembered that was their name – they had covered them in Defense Against the Dark Arts a few weeks before – walked towards them, dead, and ready to attack them.

Dumbledore waved his wand, as if finally coming to a conclusion on what they had to do. Harry barely registered that what Dumbledore had done was summon the locket from the basin. Harry turned back to looking at the Inferi and realized they were closer. He searched for a spell, quickly, and within moments had one at the tip of his tongue. He made a slashing, circling motion with his wand and a ring of fire surrounded them, closing them in, not allowing them to get closer.

"Ah, thank you, Harry," Dumbledore said in his almost faint voice. And then after slipping the Horcrux into his robes, he waved his wand as well. For a second the flames flew higher, before settling themselves back into the creation that Harry had made, not changing much at all.

Harry looked at Dumbledore questioningly, and at once noticed that Dumbledore was not as well as he had appeared at first. He looked almost as pale as the Inferi, and seemed to almost wobble where he stood. However, as he looked around, he seemed to gain some strength, and with faltering steps, led Harry to the boat. Dumbledore staggered a little as he attempted to climb into the boat, while the fire still kept the Inferi at bay. Harry followed, and quickly helped Dumbledore, before getting himself in as well. The boat began to move as soon as they were both safely jammed inside.

Reaching the bank, in Harry's perspective, took longer than it had taken for them to leave it and arrive in the middle of the lake, especially with Harry noticing the bodies floating in the water, though they did nothing to them while they were inside the boat and the ring of fire followed them – Harry assumed that was what Dumbledore had done to Harry's fire, made it keep them in the middle of it and safe from the bodies.

Dumbledore waved his wand and let the fire fall from around them as soon as Harry had helped him out of the boat, and this time none of the bodies came back out of the water to attack them. Harry grateful for that, focused on Dumbledore who looked as if he could barely support himself, as he leaned against the cavern wall.

"I am weak…." He said.

"Don't worry, sir," Harry said as once, his anxious about Dumbledore's extreme pallor and by his air of exhaustion. "Don't worry, I'll get us back….Lean on me, sir…."

Harry pulled Dumbledore's arm around his shoulders, and guided the headmaster back around the lake, bearing most of the weight.

Dumbledore mumbled something, and Harry though he did not hear it, did not ask for him to repeat it, wanting the Headmaster to retain all the strength he had left.

"The archway," Dumbledore muttered. "…sealed itself…where…knife…"

"Never mind that, now," Harry told Dumbledore, and reached for his wand in his pocket, he pointed it, at his left hand and muttered the same spell that he had used on Draco.

Since using the spell on Draco, Harry had done some research, and had found that it had been only his extreme amount of power that had led to all the cuts, but that really, the spell when used properly could simply produce a cut of a required size.

"Where?" Harry asked.

Dumbledore motioned to the exact spot on the wall where the opening had previously been.

Harry pressed his hand against it, and then pointed his wand at his hand again, glad to have learned how to also heal cuts from that spell with Remus' book on healing.

Harry continued leading Dumbledore, crossing the outer cave with him. He helped him into the water, and tried to support him as much as he could in the water, worried by Dumbledore's silence. "It's going to alright, sir," he muttered. "We're nearly there….I can apparate us both back….Don't worry…."

"I'm not worried, Harry," Dumbledore said, his voice a little stronger despite the freezing water. "I am with you."

Harry felt something akin to warmth spread across his chest, even though he could also feel shivers coursing through his body at the cold feel of the water. Dumbledore's words had meant so much to him – that he was trusted so much, that Dumbledore had so much faith in him surprised Harry more than anything.

It Harry another five minutes to get them out of the cave, and then they were once more out under the now starry sky. He managed to get them onto the nearest boulder. Sodden and shivering, Dumbledore's weight still upon him, Harry concentrated harder than he had ever done before upon his destination – Hogsmeade. He gripped Dumbledore's arm, and closed his eyes and then turned on the spot. Once again the terrible feeling of being compressed came over them and then moments later it was gone and they were standing in the same spot where Dumbledore had taken them before apparating them onto the boulder. The smell of the salty sea was gone, and for a moment Harry just looked around the empty calm street and allowed himself a sigh of relief. They had gotten out of there, and now it was only a matter of getting to Hogwarts. Surely Dumbledore could make it till then, and then after that, they would be okay.

Dumbledore slumped against Harry suddenly, as if all the exhaustion from the potion and from the very ordeal they had just gone through had finally managed to completely settle on him, and he groaned slightly.

"Severus," he croaked, while looking at Harry in such a pleading manner. "I need…need Severus."

"Alright," Harry said, softly, "but we have to get to the castle. Sir, can you walk?"

Dumbledore didn't answer for a small moment, and then, "No. Not at the moment." He shivered slightly, and Harry realized at once that their robes were still wet. He waved his wand over Dumbledore first and then himself, making sure that they were perfectly dry and warm. Dumbledore seemed to take some comfort from that.

Harry pulled Dumbledore up to his feet and once more supported his weight, helping him walk out of the little alley way and towards the streets of Hogsmeade, no longer worried about meeting anyone, but rather about getting the headmaster back to the school, where he could be looked after by his father or Madame Pomfrey.

They had walked only a few feet out on the main street, when Madame Rosmerta came running towards them.

"Oh, dear!" she cried. "What's happened? What's wrong with him?"

"He's hurt," Harry said. "I need to get him back to the school and—"

"What?" She asked with surprise. "Get back up to the school?" She seemed as if she wanted to protest the very idea of their going back up the school. Harry thought she was acting rather strangely for the barmaid that was usually forthcoming with news. "You can't go up there! You don't realize – haven't you seen?"

"What's happened?" Harry asked in a hurry. Dumbledore looked up at her also quite interested. It was to him, that she addressed the answer.

"Oh, well," Madame Rosmerta whispered, wide eyed, "why, the Dark Mark, Albus, it was seen floating above the castle – probably still is, I imagine."

Dread flooded Harry at the sound of her answer, and he turned to where the castle stood, and there it was, hanging in the sky above the school: the blazing green skull with a serpent tongue, the mark Death Eaters left behind whenever they had entered a building…whenever they had murdered….

Upon looking a the mark Dumbledore seemed to have regained his strength and he pulled himself up to full height, through he staggered a little and he set a hand on Harry's shoulder to steady himself he looked as if he was resigned to something – the eminent death of a student, Harry decided.

"We need to return to the castle at once," Dumbledore said, not really talking to anyone but himself, and then he turned to Madame Rosmerta. "Brooms," he told her, "we'll need transport."

"I've got a couple behind the bar," she said, looking very frightened. "Shall I run and fetch—"

"No, no need," Dumbledore said, "Harry can do it."

Harry raised his wand at once and using his practiced nonverbal use of the spell, waved it. A second later they heard a bang. The front door of the pub opened and two brooms shot out into the street and raced each other to Harry's side, where they stopped dead, quivering slightly at waist height.

"Rosmerta, please send a message to the Ministry," Dumbledore instructed as he mounted the broom nearest him and motioned for Harry to do the same with the other. "It might be that nobody within Hogwarts has yet realized anything is wrong….Harry, put on your invisibility cloak."

Harry nodded, and threw the cloak over himself before mounting the broom. Madame Rosmerta had already rushed back inside her pub when Harry and Dumbledore kicked off from the ground and rose up into the air. Harry kept shooting worried looks at Dumbledore who looked as if he was alright, but who Harry knew was certainly far from being in a good condition, but the sight of the Dark Mark seemed to have acted upon Dumbledore as a stimulant: He was bent low over his broom, eyes fixed upon the mark, his long silver hair and beard flying behind him on the night air. And Harry too looked ahead at the skull floating high above the school, and fear swelled inside him like a venomous bubble, compressing his lungs, driving all other discomfort from his mind….Who could have been killed? Surely none of the students…but, he hoped it wasn't a teacher either. He shook his head. He shouldn't think about it.

"The wards, Harry," Dumbledore mumbled barely loud enough for Harry to hear him, and Harry was surprised that Dumbledore was trusting him with yet something else.

Harry nodded, and began to mutter the incantations that would allow them to fly into the school, glad that Snape had taught him how and had keyed him to all the wards so that it was easier for him to do this.

"Thank you, Harry," Dumbledore said once they flew over the boundary wall into the grounds.

The Dark Mark was glittering directly above the Astronomy Tower, the highest of the castle. Harry wondered if that meant the death had happened there. He and Dumbledore flew directly to the Astronomy Tower, and landed. Dumbledore, Harry noticed, was no longer staggering, but still looked too tired to be up and about, and worried about someone having died at the hands of Death Eaters, but the tower, Harry noticed at once, was empty – deserted. There was no sign of a struggle, of a fight to the death, of even a body.

"What does it mean?" Harry asked Dumbledore, looking at the green skull with its serpent's tongue glinting evilly about them. "Is it the real Mark?"

Dumbledore didn't answer, and Harry turned to him at once. He was clutching his chest with his now blackened hand. When had the glamour fallen? Harry hadn't noticed it disappear – was Dumbledore too weak to keep it up around his hand?

"Go and wake your father, bring him here, Harry, I…I'll wait here. Tell him what's happened on the way here. Do nothing else, speak to nobody else, and don't remove your cloak."

Harry wanted to protest, to ask Dumbledore to find some other way of communicating with Snape so that Harry didn't have to talk to him, or fetch him for that matter, but he knew that he couldn't do that, when it was clear that Dumbledore needed the attention of the Potions Master.

Harry nodded, almost sullenly, and then hurried to the door and to the spiral staircase, but his hand had only just closed upon the iron ring of the door when he heard running footsteps on the other side. He looked around at Dumbledore, who gestured him to retreat with a slow motion of his hand. Harry backed away, drawing his wand, ready for whoever it was, and hoping that it was someone from the Order, or a teacher that had noticed their arrival.

The door burst open and somebody erupted through it, looking around the room. In the dim light from the mark, Harry recognized the blond hair that he had seen in only two people. He could not tell whether this was the father or he son, but he knew it wasn't good whichever one it was. Harry waited, wand pointed at him, hoping that whichever Malfoy was standing before him, was there to inquire as to Dumbledore's health rather than because he had been the cause of the Dark Mark.

Dumbledore, upon seeing whoever it was, waved his wand, not at the figure but towards Harry, and he felt himself stiffening. He couldn't move. He barely heard Malfoy shout Expelliarmus out, but he saw Dumbledore's wand fly out of his hand. Harry felt dread settle on him, and then Dumbledore spoke

"Good evening, Draco," Dumbledore said, his voice not quite as faint as before, though Harry could hear the undertones of his weakness.

Author's Note: I can already see all of your minds turning through all of this and wondering exactly what I'm planning. I mean that first scene alone...and now they're in the tower...

I'll probably update sometime between now and Friday, possibly Thursday. Questions are of course welcome, and please review. One more chapter left.

-Erika