was snape really loyal to dumbledore?

I read it like this: Dumbledore knows he is already dying from the potion and wants his death to serve the greatest possible purpose. His death by Snape's hand saves Draco from becoming a killer, and permanently cements Snape's position as a loyal Death Eater; leading to Voldemort's probable downfall in the seventh book through his misjudged dependence on Snape.

I read the revulsion and hatred on Snape's face as he looks at Dumbledore before killing him as revulsion for the deed itself, and hatred for Dumbledore for placing him in this terrible position; branded forever as the murderer of the greatest Wizard of his time, and further entrenched as the pawn in the game between good and evil.

Dumbledore must have known of Draco's orders to kill him from Snape himself - and probably also of the Unbreakable Vow. The sad inevitability of Snape's path strikes me really strongly. I wonder if he took the vow because he really cared for Narcissa and Draco and wanted to have some part to play in events that wasn't dictated to him by Dumbledore or Voldemort? In the event it doesn't matter why he did it, his actions played straight into the hands of destiny.

Dumbledore asks Harry to fetch Severus rather than Madam Pomfrey when he knows he is dying. Dumbledore is ruthless; in one night he convinces Harry to force feed him a deadly potion, and then asks Snape to finish him off - resulting in Snape rather than Harry or Draco becoming his killer.

For me this also explains the lovely simplicity of Dumbledore's final words to Snape. Both accomplished at Legilimency; Snape would have no trouble seeing what Dumbledore required of him, and Dumbledore no trouble seeing how much Snape's heart rebelled against it, hence the quiet "please."

Dumbledore is in terrible pain and already fading into death; but being the one to end his life is Severus' terrible fate.

dylan.