The Show Begins

Under a star-strewn night sky, Harry dragged Dumbledore onto the nearest giant boulder and helped him stand up.

Dumbledore was soaked through and shivering, his entire weight still resting on Harry.

Harry focused with all his might, every thought fixed on his destination: Hogsmeade village.

He closed his eyes, gripped Dumbledore's arm tightly, and stepped into that terrible crushing sensation.

Before he even opened his eyes, he knew they had succeeded, because the sea breeze and salty smell had vanished.

He and Dumbledore stood on a pitch-black road in Hogsmeade village, shivering as water dripped from their clothes.

For a moment, Harry thought he saw more Inferi crawling out from beside some of the shops and closing in on him step by step. But when he blinked, there was no sign of anything moving.

Everything was silent. The night was deeply dark, with only a few streetlamps and several lit windows upstairs in sight.

"We made it, Professor!"

Harry realized that his chest was burning with pain. "We made it! We got the Horcrux!"

Dumbledore swayed and crashed into him.

At first, Harry thought his Apparition had been too clumsy and made Dumbledore lose his balance. Then he saw Dumbledore's face. Under the light of a distant streetlamp, it was paler and more lifeless than ever.

"Sir, are you all right?"

"Not as well as I used to be," Dumbledore said weakly. His strength had been completely drained, as evidenced by the twitching corner of his mouth. "That potion... was hardly a health drink..."

To Harry's great horror, Dumbledore suddenly collapsed to the ground.

"Sir—it's all right, sir, you'll be better soon, don't worry—"

He looked around anxiously, trying to find someone to help, but there was not a soul in sight. He only knew that he had to find