Title – The Price We Pay 9/12

Rating – PG-13/T

Disclaimer – I own none of this, it all belongs to Rowling. I just have the honor of using her creations in my story. No slash, sex or profanity!

Summary – Questions and Answers

A/N – Hey everyone! Well the first week of school wasn't too bad and I was able to find some time to write! So I present to you, the very patient reader, with Chapter 8! I'm sorry if it's kind of short, I thought you would want the next chapter no matter how long it is. Just two more chapters and an epilogue so stick with me! All reviews, questions, corrections and suggestions are welcome! Read and enjoy!

The Price We Pay

Chapter 8

A bright streak of red and gold swept passed his line of sight and landed next to him with a mournful chirp. He did not respond to the phoenix's presence until a slender beak nipped at his beard, causing him to look down. Fawkes cocked his head toward the floor and made a questioning noise. He noticed the tear rolling down the phoenix's face and knew what Fawkes was asking. With a small shake of his head he said,

"No my friend, I'm afraid your tears won't work this time."

And Dumbledore was afraid. Afraid of the misery that was going to break his heart. Afraid of the righteous anger still coursing through his veins. Afraid he had lost his boy forever. Afraid of the future. It was a feeling he did not feel often and it left him shaking horribly on his kitchen floor.

Drawing a shaky breath and blinking away his tears, Dumbledore returned his attention to the other figure on the floor and his eyes swelled with new tears. He swallowed around a sudden lump in his throat and forced himself to focus and not let panic consume him. It would not be wise to fall apart. He was certain there would be time for a personal breakdown later. Right now he was needed.

Dumbledore conjured up a warm blanket and carefully wrapped it around the still trembling Snape, pulling him slightly off the cold floor and cradling the raven head in his lap. Snape flinched again at his touch but was otherwise motionless and silent. Tears leaked out of unseeing black eyes and Dumbledore wiped them away. He dared not do anything else without the advice of Pomfrey however, and sat whispering soft assurances.

A few minutes, or even hours later, he was not aware of the passage of time at the moment, Dumbledore heard a series of frantic knocks on his front door and the very anxious voice of McGonagall called out,

"Albus! Let us in!"

Dumbledore wondered for a second why they did not just lower the wards themselves and enter; his former staff and members of the Order were welcome in his home and could come and go as they pleased. Frowning, he reached out to test the usually impenetrable wards of his home and gasped in surprise when he realized they were already broken. No one had apparently noticed the house was open and unprotected. He would ponder the mystery of how Lestrange managed to get past his protection charms later and without moving from his spot on the floor used his wand to lower the remaining wards. The door swung open, admitting a small group of extremely concerned wizards and witches.

McGonagall was the first to enter the kitchen, wand raised, eyes darting to all corners, searching for an attack. She gasped when she saw the scene before her and fell to her knees next to Dumbledore. Remus Lupin entered next, eyes widening as he stood over the body of Lestrange. Pomfrey came last, carrying her bag of medical supplies and stared sadly at Snape for a moment before kneeling beside them and scanning her patient with her wand. She frowned and avoided their gazes by opening her bag and pulling out various potions. Dumbledore remained on the floor, staring off into space as his fingers absently stroked black hair. McGonagall shared a look with Pomfrey and placed a hand on his shoulder,

"Albus, you need to let Poppy to her job. Let's get Severus off the floor and out of here before the Aurors come."

Dumbledore blinked and stared at the pair of witches for a moment before he nodded and rose to his feet, surrendering Snape to Pomfrey's ministrations. The nurse quickly levitated her patient and disappeared upstairs. The old wizard stood looking quite lost until McGonagall's kind voice brought him back,

"What happened here Albus? Is Lestrange dead?"

He turned and glared at the lifeless body of the Death Eater. His magic crackled dangerously for a moment before he regained control.

"I killed him." Said Dumbledore in a flat voice, "He was cursing Severus with the Cruciatus when I arrived and I acted to save him." He frowned suddenly and asked, "Where's Miel?"

A serious of loud squeaks came from the corner and Lupin stepped over the shards of a plate to release the house elf from her bonds. Miel instantly burst into tears and practically leaped into the safety of her master's arms. Dumbledore comforted the frightened elf and asked gently,

"What happened Miel?"

She gulped in great amounts of air and twisted her hands in her pillowcase, only speaking when she had calmed down enough to talk coherently,

"I be fixing lunch for master Sevrus when bad wizard appeared in kitchen. I's so surprised I dropped my plate! Before I's could warn master Sevrus bad wizard stuns me and throws me into corner! I couldn't do anythings to help! Miel is so sorry master Albus!"

Miel burst into tears again and wept into Dumbledore's shoulder. He rocked the shaking elf for a minute then looked up to Lupin.

"Can you take care of her Remus? Perhaps find out how Lestrange managed to get through my wards in the first place?"

Lupin nodded and taking the distraught elf in his arms went outside where it would be easier to track the spells Lestrange had used to enter. As soon as the werewolf and elf had slipped outside a great commotion came from the entryway.

"Headmaster!" Came the voice of Harry Potter and the young man entered the kitchen a second later, followed closely by several Aurors. They all had their wands drawn and spread out around the crowded kitchen. His green eyes widened as he exclaimed,

"Merlin's beard is that Rabastan Lestrange! What happened?"

Dumbledore gave a small, weary smile as he put his own wand away. He bent down and retrieved Snape's wand from under a table. He handled it carefully, fresh tears welling in his eyes as he realized Snape never had the chance to use his new wand. All this time he had been helping Snape heal and relearn the skills necessary for a full recovery and what had happened? He had failed to protect his charge, had failed to keep his promise to keep Severus safe and that was a tough blow for Dumbledore's already grief-stricken heart to take.

Seeing the elder wizard was about to have a breakdown of his own, McGonagall quickly took charge of the situation. There were now Aurors throughout the house and she knew Dumbledore needed peace and quiet. They would sort everything out later. One short Auror in particular was giving orders to the others and looking at Dumbledore with a hungry gleam in his eye. McGonagall stepped into his line of sight and said in her iciest tone,

"What is your name?"

The Auror in question stopped and regarded her with a look of annoyance.

"Reginald White, I am the Auror in charge of this case and I have a few questions to ask of Mr. Dumbledore and Mr. Snape. If we could just,"

"No, Mr. White." Interrupted McGonagall, "You may continue your investigation of the house and wards, but any questioning of Albus or Severus will wait until I say otherwise."

White sputtered and turned an unpleasant shade of red, eyes narrowing in anger.

"That is unacceptable! The Minister will want to know what happened here today and since we cannot question that Malfoy spawn we must have answers from someone else!"

McGonagall pinned the Auror in a heated glare and repeated,

"You will wait until I give you permission to question the inhabitants of this house or I assure you Mr. White, the consequences will not be pretty."

The wizard and witch stared coldly at each other until a very welcome voice interrupted,

"Enough! Reginald your presence is required at Malfoy Manor. I will lead things here."

They turned to see Kingsley Shacklebolt approach and the stately wizard was not going take no for an answer. White fumed silently and finally sneered at them before storming out of the house, taking half the Aurors with him. Shacklebolt watched them leave with a look of contempt then turned and smiled kindly at McGonagall,

"Take Albus upstairs, he looks like he's going to collapse. We can piece things together without having to disturb him or Severus."

"Thank you Kingsley. I don't know how much longer I could have tolerated that man without reaching for my wand."

"Half the Auror department had been tempted to hex him at times, but he gets the job done. I'll handle things down here."

Shacklebolt went to discuss the ward situation with Lupin, who had returned in the middle of the argument, leaving McGonagall and Harry to tend to the older wizard. Fawkes landed then on Dumbledore's shoulder, cooing reassuringly and he reached up a hand to stroke the phoenix's feathers, finding some measure of peace. In the midst of the general chaos Miel had also appeared, looking much better now, and told them,

"I's have tea sets out for master Albus and professors upstairs."

They led the silent Dumbledore up the stairs and he paused next to Snape's closed door, hanging his head sadly. With a deep sigh he knocked softly on the door and waited anxiously until Pomfrey opened it and peered out at them. Her gaze was solemn and she said nothing to ease the fear in their hearts. Finally, she opened the door all the way and said,

"Just Albus for now. I'll find you when it's all right for more people to see Severus."

McGonagall and Harry nodded, stepping away and allowing Dumbledore to enter the bedroom.

The dark curtains had been drawn and the only light came from several candles Pomfrey had lit next to the bed. The dim light only served to highlight the pale and bruised features of the figure curled up asleep under warm covers.

Snape looked bad, but not as bad as they had originally thought. Lestrange had obviously beaten him; breaking his nose and cracking a few ribs. The rest of the external injuries were only dark purple bruises that marred the pale face and torso. Pomfrey had reset Snape's nose and bound his ribs and her potions were already having an effect. As Dumbledore stared the bruises began to fade to a sickly yellow greenish colour.

But it was the effects of the cruciatus curse that they were worried about. Snape trembled even in sleep and his limbs would twitch violently every so often. They could only see how his mind was affected when he woke up, which Pomfrey assured them would not be for a few days while Snape's body healed from the sudden shock.

"His exposure to the cruciatus curse was limited, a minute at the most. But his mind was still healing from all he endured previously. This might set him back several weeks or it could leave him with permanent damage, I can't be sure until he wakes." Pomfrey explained as Dumbledore sat on the edge of the bed and stroked Snape's hair. Snape leaned ever so slightly towards his gentle touch and Dumbledore was pleased to note Snape did not flinch or try to get away.

Miel silently appeared at their knees, holding out a cup of tea for her master. Dumbledore took the cup, nodding his thanks and missing the shared look between the nurse and house elf. They waited patiently as the older wizard's eyes slowly slipped closed and his breathing evened out in slumber. Pomfrey used her wand to levitate the suddenly sleeping Dumbledore into the bed tucked the covers around them both. Fawkes perched on the headboard and began singing a soothing song, trying to heal his wizards his own special way. The nurse smiled at the phoenix and house elf and said,

"Thank you Miel. We would have never gotten him to rest if you hadn't put that sleeping draught in his tea. He can be quite stubborn when it comes to Severus."

Miel smiled sadly and settled herself at the foot of the bed, determined to guard her sleeping Masters. She had recovered quickly from her part of the attack and would not leave them for any reason now.

"They needs their rests Madame. I watch them now."

Packing her supplies away Pomfrey quietly left the room and met the concerned gazes of the three Hogwarts Professors. Sighing, she briefly outlined Snape's situation and after a quick look back at the closed door of the bedroom said,

"They're both sleeping now. I have to return to Hogwarts and check on Draco, but someone should stay here for the night."

McGonagall instantly volunteered, putting Lupin and Harry in charge of things at the school for a few days. She was not about to leave her friends unprotected and even though Lupin and the Aurors had repaired the broken wards, the Headmistress wanted to be here personally in case something happened. They headed back downstairs where they found Shacklebolt herding the last of the Aurors out the front door. The body of Lestrange had been taken away and the Aurors had sufficiently investigated every last magical inch of the house. Shacklebolt promised to keep the prying eyes of the Ministry away and told McGonagall to convey his sympathies to Dumbledore.

Lupin and Harry left shortly thereafter and Pomfrey went back to Hogwarts after leaving some last minute instructions with McGonagall.

All was now silent and dark except for the rays of the setting sun peeking through the curtained windows. Someone passing by would never have guessed that the little house overlooking the cove had seen blood, pain and death in the span of a few minutes. The house would never be the same again.

- & -

Someone was crying. Dumbledore pushed up through the layers of sleep and felt a momentary flash of anger at being tricked in the first place before his mind registered the reason for his waking and he snapped wide awake. He heard the soft sounds of someone weeping and looked down.

Snape was curled next to him, head pressed into his chest and hands holding tight to his robes. He was shaking and crying and Dumbledore quickly realized Snape was trapped in a nightmare. Sitting up against the pillows he pulled Snape fully into his arms and began a slow rocking motion, murmuring soft words in his ear, trying to break the nightmare's hold.

There was a short moan followed by a series of very quiet whimpers that almost broke Dumbledore's heart. He pulled the blankets tighter around them and whispered,

"Shh, Severus. It's all right. You're just having a nightmare. It's ok."

Eventually Snape quieted down and went limp in his arms save for the occasional twitching of limbs. Dumbledore sang some old lullabies until he was sure the nightmare was over and Snape had fallen back asleep. Knowing sleep would be elusive for a while, the elder wizard rubbed soothing circles on Snape's back, keeping him calm with his touch.

"I'm sorry I wasn't there for you my boy. I promised to keep you safe and I failed. I can only hope you can forgive me and come back to us, to me." His voice broke and he gazed at the pale moonlight sneaking past the curtains. Snape shifted slightly and one hand reached up to grasp his beard, a gesture Dumbledore recognized from the early days of Snape's recovery that made him smile every time. "I love you so much Severus and I need you here with me. Please be all right. I don't know what I would do without you."

Dumbledore sat like that into the early hours of the morning, thinking, hoping and praying to all deities, magical and muggle for the future of his child. When he finally slipped back to sleep he did not notice the content smile playing on the lips of the precious life in his arms.

TBC

Sappy huh? I'm sorry, I know this wasn't much of a conclusion to my cliffhanger but I'll have the next part posted within a week or two. I also have a few plot bunnies hopping around my head, a Snape-childhood fic and a Snape-in-Azkaban fic that I am very eager to get started on once I finish this. I've also got a short prequel to 'The Price We Pay' planned if anyone's interested. As always let me know what you think!