The Harry Potter Index

While Dumbledore was talking to Draco, even without a wand and in his weakened condition I believe Dumbledore could have easily have overpowered Draco (Dumbledore has shown several times he can do powerful stuff even without a wand, the greatest wizard ever versus a 16 year old boy), why didn't he take Draco out? Possible to give Draco an opputunity to change his mind, leave Voldemort? Maybe. He did say to Draco "It is my mercy, and not yours, that matters now."

I think it was also to delay Draco's actions to give Snape time to arrive, he was very insistant just before Draco's arrival for Harry to get Snape.
And then, Dumbledore was very polite to the Death Eaters. Was Dumbledore actually using his powers (weather magical or his sometimes enchantingly calming words) to buy time, to delay any action until Snape's arrival.

Snape, as soon as he heard about the attack (Draco did not trust him and did not let Snape know the details of his plans, he was not even warned by Voldemort or the other Death Eaters that they were coming, but he was ready as soon as Filch notified him), he went as fast as he could to get to the Tower, before Draco could act, or another Death Eater take action on Draco's failure.

And then Snape arrives, and Dumbledore pleads with him, "Severus ... please..." Dumbledore would never plead for his life, this was the bigest clue that I saw that said there was something fishy going on at the top of the Astronomy Tower. The only reasons I can think for Dumbledore to plead are
1) to make it look good for Voldemort (Dumbledore was afraid of his Death Eaters and afraid to die, Voldemort would have liked that but Dumbledore would never have given Tom Riddle that if it didn't fit into Dumbledore's plans), and
2) pleading for Snape to carry through with Dumbledore's plan even though it meant using the killing curse on Dumbledore as Dumbledore had planned. Remember, the killing curse needs a lot of intent behind it. If Snape said "Avada Kedavra" without the intent to kill, then it would not kill. The fake Mad-eye, young Barty Crouch, made that very clear when he demonstrated it in class, and Belletrix confirmed it near the fountain in the Ministry of Magic.

Dumbledore told Draco he knew what Draco was up to all year (trying to kill Dumbledore). He didn't know the details, especially how the Death Eaters were allowed access to Hogwarts, until Draco told him, important information he needed to prevent a recurrence so he spent extra time on getting that fro Draco. Earlier in the year Dumbledore hears from Harry what Harry overheard from Draco and the other Slytherines and what Harry overheard between Draco and Snape. Yet he allowed Draco and Snape to continue, and even insisted that Harry accept his trust in Snape and to leave Draco alone.

Plus, that night he had several Order of the Pheonix members patrolling Hogwarts, so he had a good idea what ever was being planned may happen that night.

He still walked (or flew) right into the trap on top of the Astronomy Tower, Dumbledore is smarter than that.

I think Snape informed Dumbledore before the school year started, probably even before Narcissa visited Snape at Spinner's End, about Draco's assignemnt from Voldemort. Although, he may have learned it from Narcissa that night by pretending he already knew. I'm guessing that he didn't know, and based on the conversation guessed at Voldemort's orders. But since he did not "know", it would be easy for him to obey the third part of the Unbreakable Vow, "to carry out the deed that the Dark Lord has ordered Draco to perform." Not specifically knowing, he was somewhat free to determine what this vow ment. Snape certainly did fulfill the rest of the 3 part Vow completely. Dumbledore then spent the year planning his own suppossed death, he just didn't know how, when or where.

Dumbledore dies at the top of the Astronomy Tower on page 569, Harry chases Snape through a battle all the way to and across the grounds, battles Snape, returns to Dumbledore's body, then is taken up to the Hospital wing, then some time later they hear the Pheonix song start on page 614, all that must have taken a long time. Then a short conversation with Prof McGonagall and the rest in the hopspital wing, then Hagrid comes in and says he's moved Dumbledore's body on page 624. Then the pheonix song of lament probably begins at about the same time Hagrid moves Dumbledore's body.

The reason this is important is because Fawkes would have known instantly when Dumbledore died but did not start his song until much later. I think this may be because Fawkes knew Dumbledore was still alive, but did not know he was to sing the lament until Dumbledore told him to, after Hagrid moved his supposedly dead body to someplace safe.

Add to this the timimg of the end of the Freezing Charm Dumbledore placed on Harry. Snape used the killing curse, Dumbledor's body flies up, then begins to fall. Snape then says to get out. Snape and Draco are probably the farthest from the door, they go down the stairs and through the door first, followed by Greyback, and two Death Eaters before realizing the Freezing Charm was released, then attacks the last Death Eater to leave, rushing immedialtely behind, but Snape and Draco already had a big lead. If Dumbledore died with the Snape's killing curse, and if the Freezing Charm would have ended with his death, wouldn't Harry have been free before Snape could leave the Tower, not wait until not just Snape and Draco, but also all but the last Death Eater was almost gone? Dumbledore kept the spell active even after he was supposedly dead.

After the killing curse from Snape, "For a split second, he seemed to hang suspended beneath the shining skull, and then he fell slowly backward..." Maybe he fall slowly because he was helped, either by himself or by Snape, so he would not have a killing crash when he landed.

When Harry saw Dumbledore's body, "but for the strange angle of his arms and legs, he might have been sleeping." Or pretending, or under a sleeping spell, to make it look real. Who actually checked to see if he was dead. It appears that only Hagrid actually handled Dumbledor's body when he "M-moved him." Either he didn't notice, or was actually able to keep it secret that Dumbledor was not dead (this obviuosly would be difficult for Hagrid to hide such happy emotions, but he could handle for a short time if needed and requested by Dumbledore).

And during the funeral, it was only Hagrid again who carried Dumbledore's body "wrapped in purple velvet" so no one actually saw Dubbledore's body go into the tomb.

While Potter is trying to attack Snape as Snape is fleeing and blocking all of Potter's curses, Snape says, "Blocked again and again and again until you learn to keep your mouth shut and your mind closed, Potter!"

Snape was deflecting Potter's curses so easily because by using Legilimency to see Potter thinking the spell even before Potter cast it. I think this was one last Occlumency lesson for Potter, even though he missed it again, just like much of everything else Snape tried to teach Potter. If Snape can use Legilimency like this against Potter, how much better would Voldemort be. This was again a lesson for Potter that he needs Occlumency to defeat Voldemort. Snape was again trying to help Potter in his own twisted way.

First.

He had guessed about the 6 Horcruxes, and this was pretty much confirmed by Slughorn's corrected memory obtained by Harry. So far he had found one even before Slughorn's confirmation (the ring), guessed that Riddle's diary was one, had some information on some others but not where they were. He was looking for them with little success, except finally the locket and his guess about Nagini. That left at least 2 Horcruxes in an unknown location and guessing that one was the Huffelpuff cup. But, before the school year started when he was told about Draco's assignment by Snape, he was unsure of how many Horcruxes where were, but may have guessed at 6 but missing Slughorn's true memory he was unsure. That left at least 4, if his guess about Slughorn's tampered memory was correct, when he found out about Draco's orders from Voldemort. Not knowing how many Horcruxes was vital. Since he already was aware of two, and Harry's comments about Voldemort going further then any wizard had ever gone before indicated certianly more then one, he needed to know how many more. He also needed to know how to find them, Voldemort could not be defeated until, as he later confirmed, all 6 were destroyed. Voldemort would not tell any but his most faithful servants about them, but probably not reveal the location to even them (but how did RAB find out about the locket). If Dumbledore could not find them on his own, he needed someone to get the information from Voldemort, he needed a most faithful servent to get the information from Voldemort, the only one who Dumbledore was sure knew about all of the Horcruxes. Dumbledore needed Snape to become that most faithful servant. He needed Draco's plan to succeed, with Snape getting the top glory, proving to Voldemort Snape's loyalty.

Second.

If he could convice Voldemort that he was truly dead and out of the way, Voldemort may get over confident, start making mistakes because he beleived he'd already won, and it was just a matter of time to finish removing the rest of the minor opposition.

In chapter 25 (pages 544 and 545), Snape was the servant of Voldemort that overheard the prophecy from Trelawney. He was caught (by Aberforth?), and was still there after the full prophecy was give (she was herself again when the door opened), he must of heard the entire prophecy. This is slightly different from Dembledore's description at the end of OotP, where he tells Harry "the eavesdropper was detected only a short way through the prophecy and thrown from the building." When I originally read this, it didn't sound right, the prophecy wasn't that long, it would be difficult not to hear the entire thing. Was Dumbledore's plans, with Snape and later involving Harry, already starting then. Dumbledore immediately hired Trelawney to bring her into the protection of Hogwarts. Somehow Dumbledore got Snape to join Dumbledore, who gave him instructions to give Voldemort only the first half of the prophecy to see who Voldemort would choose. Voldemort choose Harry, filling that requirement of the prophecy without Voldemort knowing he was doing so. Dumbledore did not expect the Potter's to die because of the Fidelius Charm, not knowing Wormtail would later betray the Potter's. The fact that Voldemort did kill James and Lily, and as we all know failed to kill Harry marking him with the scar, actually fulfilled the prophcey even more fully than Dumbledore had planed. Snape's proof of loyalty to Dumbledore was first, delivering only the first half of the prophecy to Voldemort, and second telling Dumbledore who Voldemort choose so the Potter's could go into hiding and protect Harry.

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