Harry froze at Dumbledore's words, his green eyes bulging behind his spectacles and a chill running down his spine.
"You mean… Snape took me to Voldemort at your command… and you want Voldemort to kill me?" Harry stumbled back, stammering in anger and fear.
"No, no one would want you to die, Harry," Dumbledore assured him. "In fact, all of the planning is to avoid this as much as possible!"
"But I'm dead now, aren't I?" Harry scowled at Dumbledore, who winked at him and said briskly, "That may not be true…"
Harry is so confused that he can't quite understand what Dumbledore is saying, but he does remember being hit by Voldemort's Killing Curse, and being unable to fight back because of his wand…
"As I recall, I should have explained why Lord Voldemort could not harm you," said Dumbledore, smiling.
"It's the Protection Charm?" This thought occurred to Harry at once, but his confusion did not lessen; he knew that the Protection Charm should have worn off by the time Lord Voldemort returned last year.
In an attempt to confirm this, Lord Voldemort tried to touch him and was not harmed.
Harry looked at Dumbledore in surprise, awaiting his reply.
"Ah, how shall I put it to you, Voldemort was clever enough to add your blood to his resurrection, thinking that it would break the spell, but he did not know that by doing so he had strengthened the protective spell and deepened the bond between you," Dumbledore said briskly.
"Then why did you ask Snape to give me to Voldemort?" Harry was still confused and kept asking questions.
Dumbledore was silent for a long time, trying to decide how to respond.
Harry did not rush him, but waited, and after what seemed like an eternity, Dumbledore finally came to his senses.
"Is it any wonder you were able to get inside Voldemort's head?" Dumbledore asked slowly, and then, as Harry was thinking about it, he pointed to a child with dark red skin and a wrinkled face. "Looking at him, what did you think of?"
"He's a bit like… Lord Voldemort?" Harry studied him for a moment, remembering the baby-like Dark Lord he had seen last year.
"It's part of Voldemort's soul," Dumbledore said bluntly, looking at Harry.
"Shortly after you were born, on the night that Lord Voldemort intended to kill you, the protective charm repelled the Killing Curse he had cast upon you, injuring his soul and causing some of it to detach from his primary soul and attach itself to the only living person in the room."
"His Horcrux attached itself to me … so I'm Voldemort's Horcrux, too?" Harry's brain seemed to have short-circuited, he could not believe it, but reason told him that Dumbledore was right, and only then could he explain his connection to Voldemort.
"It was, to be precise! But now your soul is whole, Harry, and he is all your own!" Dumbledore exclaimed happily.
"Voldemort couldn't kill me, so the Killing Curse was cast on that part of my soul?" Harry guessed.
"Yes!" Dumbledore nodded.
"And am I still alive?" Harry asked quickly.
"Of course!" Dumbledore confirmed. "However, if you have no memories of that world, you may move on…"
Dumbledore then looked off into the distance.
Harry followed Dumbledore's gaze, but could see nothing beyond the white fog.
Curiosity got the better of Harry, as he had little interest in the afterlife and had no intention of throwing himself into its embrace.
He was more interested in finding out why Snape was willing to risk so much to help him escape the Horcruxes.
This led Dumbledore to reveal the whole story, including the feud between Snape, Lily, and James more than ten years ago, as well as Snape's eavesdropping on the prophecy.
"I think he was willing to shelter you partly out of love for your mother and partly out of guilt… It was Snape who passed on the prophecy he had overheard to Lord Voldemort that caused the tragedy, and it was not the outcome he wanted — he killed the one person he loved most."
Dumbledore spoke with great emotion. He could understand Snape's feelings of guilt. After all, he had committed some misdeeds in his early years and ignored the deaths of too many people, which was one of the reasons he was willing to trust Snape.
Harry was silent for a long time, his feelings complicated. By rights, he should hate Snape so much that he might be able to snuggle up to his parents and enjoy a good childhood without their snitch.
However, considering that Snape had risked everything to lurk around Voldemort all these years, and had gone to great lengths to keep him alive, even daring to plot against him, Harry's hatred towards him abated.
Also, the deaths of James and Lily were not solely Snape's fault, as Voldemort's reign of terror was at the root of everything, and as members of the Order of the Phoenix, they were in constant danger.
And then there was Pettigrew Peter, without whom Voldemort would never have found the safe house.
"I'm sorry I have to keep this from you, Harry," Dumbledore apologized.
"You were right, Professor…" Harry shook his head. If he was Voldemort's Horcrux, then there was a good chance that Voldemort would know everything he knew.
If word got out, Snape would be in danger as a double agent…
As such, despite his anger at being played for a fool, Harry eventually relented.
Dumbledore's face lit up at Harry's understanding of his good intentions, but in the next moment, he looked behind Harry as if he had sensed something.
"It seems you'll have to go back soon, Harry. Severus is in some trouble and I'm afraid he needs your help."