Even Draco, who usually addressed Snape like some sort of honorary uncle, lost his tongue in the horror of being apprehended. Perhaps, Harry thought, as the Potions Master marched them across the darkening grounds, into the castle and down to the dungeons, perhaps Draco realises that, this time, even Snape couldn't turn a blind eye. Not with Harry as a witness to Draco's wrongdoing. Out of bounds, (almost) out of hours and spying on the Headmaster to boot. They'd be lucky if they were not both expelled.

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It was only when the boys had been deposited, slightly roughly, in the two chairs in front of Snape's study desk that Draco started to speak.

"I was following Harry..."

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"LIAR!"

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"I was, you're always going out of bounds, Potter, Professor Snape has caught you a hundred times. He's not going to believe you..."

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"You..!"

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"That IS ENOUGH!" Snape snapped. Draco's smug smile at Harry faded as he realised the Potions Master was glaring at both of them.

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"I should report your espionage directly to the Headmaster. Whomever was following whom, you both entered the Forbidden Forest, which even dunderhead first years know is forbidden, eavesdropped on what was clearly a private conversation and neither of you alerted the Headmaster to your presence, nor, I expect, would have you. Whomever followed the Headmaster, both of you are in serious trouble."

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Draco licked his lips, now slightly nervous "My father is a school governor... he needs to know if..." Draco's voice faded to a whisper under Snape's glare.

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For what seemed like a century, Snape looked at the two boys. Finally he spoke.

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"I should report you both to the Headmaster, however that would result in a level of... publicity that I think it pertinent to avoid.

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I could, of course, merely forbid you, on pain of pain, to mention what you had seen, perhaps offering the understanding that, were you both to forget this evenings' events, so would I. However, neither of you are capable of discretion and, even if you intended to keep such a promise, the information would not be secure due to your particular circumstances.

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Obliviate, is, of course, an option. However the spell can damage young minds and is, indeed, treated as an unforgivable..."

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"What's an unforgivable" Harry asked, before he could stop himself.

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"You're as bad as a muggle, Potter, there's the Killing Curse, Avada Kedavra, the torture curse, Crucio, and then there's the control curse, Imperio. Although Imperio shouldn't really be an unforgiveable per se, because..."

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"You know much too much about curses for a second year, Draco, and this would reflect very badly on Lucius if you were to be overheard by the wrong sort of people."

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Draco opened his mouth to protest, then shut it again.

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"As I said, due to your clear inability to be discrete, the best course of action would be to obliviate you. However, even obliviated memories can be obtained through torture..."

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"Who'd torture me?!" Draco exclaimed

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"Any number of people, if they received the slightest whisper that you had witnessed two of the worlds most powerful wizards in conversation!"

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"Two? You mean Dumbledore and that blond guy?"

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"Yes, even the Dark Lord acknowledged Dumbledore to be his greatest threat and avoided confrontation."

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Draco looked sullen "But the blond guy, he was nothing, he didn't even do any magic. He was probably just a pet Dumbledore transfigured because he's nuts."

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Snape pinched the bridge of his nose "Mr Malfoy, I have, from your earliest youth, attempted to teach you logic. I know, having overseen your education, that you know the following facts: 1. animals cannot be successfully transfigured into other animals; their mentality remains the same- a fox transfigured into a rabbit will still attempt to hunt rabbits, a bird transfigured into a human will be unable to converse. 2. animagi of normal wizards and witches invariably take the shape of edge creatures. 3. Phoenixes are one of the most powerfully magical creatures known to wizardkind. What does that tell you about the wizard who changes into a phoenix!?"

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"That he was powerful, I guess?"

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"Even Merlin himself could only manage a unicorn." Snape snorted "And, with his strong German accent and the use of the word Mu... the M word!"

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"Mudblood?" Draco looked perplexed.

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"Do not use that term! As I was saying, anyone of your father's acquaintance would have deduced who he was. I am surprised you did not recognise him from your chocolate frog cards!"

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Snape sighed heavily "Ms Granger and or your father, Draco, would be able to tell you who the man in the clearing was within minutes. Indeed, it would not take them above five minutes to produce a photograph for verification. And then you would have made a dangerous enemy. Two dangerous enemies, in fact, but whereas Dumbledore may have very pressing, albeit altruistic reasons to remain outside Azkaban, he has limits. He would not kill you, he would not kill your friends, families or anyone who had the misfortune to hear or overhear the merest detail as to what had happened in the clearing. Gellert Grindelwald, on the other hand, had apparently evaded justice for over a century and, I suspect, would go to any lengths to protect Professor Dumbledore." Snape suddenly looked tired "You do not know what a terrible position in which you have placed yourselves. On one side, the Dark Lord, on the other... on the other two of the most powerful wizards, light and dark, since Merlin himself."

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Harry's eyes widened "Grindelwald... Didn't Dumbledore... the chocolate frog card."

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"Yes, in the forties, Grindelwald was on his way to conquering Europe. Not just the UK, Europe. No one could stop him; he was hyperintelligent, brave, powerful, exceptionally charismatic and supported by a group of wizards and witches who loved him as a brother. Most foes who attempted to approach him disappeared or were turned before they got within a hundred miles of Grindelwald. Only the most powerful- or, more usually, those who Grindelwald wished to question, ever saw the man and, well, those he could not turn he killed. Grindelwald, for all his charm, fought to the death.

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And then Dumbledore simply apperated into a little town in Germany where, unbeknownst to the world, Grindelwald was staying, fought a long, visually magnificent and technically skilled duel, took Grindelwald's wand and then walked the most dangerous wizard for several hundred years to the door of the tallest tower of the prison Grindelwald, himself, had built and turned the key."

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Harry and Draco looked at each other. Even without everything that happened in the clearing, the bare facts sounded at least a bit suspicious.

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"I had always wondered how Dumbledore had known exactly where Grindelwald was and the accounts of the battle were, well, more in tune with a flashy, showcase duel between two old duelling masters rather than a battle to the death. A lot of lights, self-transfiguration, and clever charms, rather than hexes or curses. And it ended after Grindlewald was disarmed, despite the fact that they both knew wandless magic... And Grindelwald's followers did nothing, just watched him being taken to prison."

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Harry looked at his normally taciturn teacher in surprise. The man seemed half-talking to himself.

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"So, do you think it was a... some sort of setup?" Draco asked.

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"Of course. They must have known each other, Dumbledore and Grindelwald were around the same age, pureblood and exceptionally gifted. Perhaps when they had studied for their Masteries..." Snape sighed "In any case, they had been... important to one another but had parted ways. Had stayed out of each other’s way because they did not wish to harm one another. Then there came a time when Dumbledore could stand aside no longer, not just the Ministry of Magic but the governments across Europe were begging him to help. Dumbledore must have let Grindelwald know that he was coming and Grindelwald must have decided to... hand in his wand."

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"But that's crazy!" exclaimed Draco

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"No." Harry said thoughtfully "It's not, he must have really loved Dumbledore, not enough to change his views but too much to hurt him."

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"But Dumbledore was his enemy!"

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"Maybe, but you wouldn't hurt your dad, even if he was your enemy." Harry said, cunningly.

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"Daddy would never be my enemy!"

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"What if you fell in love with a muggleborn and he wanted to kill her?"

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"I would never..."

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"Quiet." Snape snapped. "Draco, you could fall in love with a muggleborn, Potter, you underestimate Mr Malfoy, Draco's father would simply invent pureblood parents for the girl and spread the story she was adopted by muggles."

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Draco looked very much like a fish, with his mouth opening and closing in shock. Harry took advantage of the silence "Why didn't he just surrender, then?"

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"I imagine that there was some need to hush up their acquaintance. Now" Snape looked at the two boys "You know who the other man was, why it is a very bad idea to give anyone any indication of what you know and enough of the history to mean that you do not need to independently research the facts. I imagine both of you will be able to get away with reading general books on dark arts history but no specific investigations, do you understand me?"

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Both boys nodded.

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"Now, I must ask you both to make an unbreakable vow."