Draco felt helpless. All the duelling practise in the world couldn't stop what was about to happen. He was just a puppet in a much larger game. Even though he was sure he could disarm Snape now, it wasn't going to fix anything. For he was a puppet too, and Dumbledore was pulling the final string, tightening the noose around all their throats as they stared blankly into the empty future without him.