Disclaimer: J.K. owns it all

When Nightmares Are A Good Thing

Chapter 21: The Price of Tomorrow

Harry looked his friends in the eye while considering the best approach.

"What's going on, mate?" Ron asked, awe from Harry's previous magic trick still present in his voice.

"Harry!" Hermione exclaimed. "Wandless magic is nearly impossible! It's extremely rare!"

Ginny reached over and placed a hand over Hermione's mouth, causing the bushy-haired girl to give an undignified sputter of indignation.

He cast Ginny a thankful look before he turned to his trunk, deciding on his coarse of action, taking out the remaining supplies from Fred and George. Ron took in the bottle's identity with yet even more shock, when Harry set them down ion his desktop.

Taking a deep breath, Harry said, "I've been keeping a few secrets from you guys that you've got the right to know.

"No, really?" Ginny asked sarcastically. She smiled at Harry before rolling her eyes. Harry couldn't help but be glad that she was lightening the mood.

Hermione harrumphed when Ginny took her hand away t examine the bottles Harry had set down, along with Ron.

Ignoring the smiles both Weasleys were wearing, Harry took a seat in his desk chair.

'Here in a few minutes the won't be smiling so much over a bit of alcohol.' Harry thought to himself.

Without a further thought, Harry closed his eyes and concentrated on transfiguring the air in front of him into four shot glasses.

Hermione hurried over to inspect Harry's work.

"This is really good conjuration! How did you get so good? Before you've always been…well, rubbish at charms and transfiguration. How did you figure out that you could do wandless magic? And what about –"

"Hermione! Would you PLEASE let Harry tell his way? He'll tell us when he's ready, in his own way rather than just answering all of your questions."

That statement from Ron was just the reassurance that Harry needed to help him decide to go through with his plan.

Ron eagerly accepted the drink of Vodka that Harry offered him. Ginny took hers as well. Hermione, however, gave Harry a reprimanding look, as if she wanted to say something. Instead, she wrapped a very tense hand around her glass and stared at it angrily.

Harry was certain she was only upset that Ron had pointed out how wrong she had been to start spouting of questions. Harry had never thought of Hermione as a spoiled brat- cause after seeing the epitome of spoiled, Dudley, the rest of the world seemed like darling angels, but things within the three of them was usually based on Hermione's brains. Harry would get in trouble, Hermione would figure it out (having known all along that Harry was indeed in trouble) and Ron would fall in line. Things had been that way for sometime, only, as of late, things were changing. Harry was keeping secrets that Hermione had not suspected, Ron had matured, and Ginny was slowly becoming a regular.

A mental sigh heaved it's way though Harry mind as he knew that he would now have yet another thing he needed to discuss with his friends.

"Look, Hermione, I know you don't approve of alcohol as we're under aged, but you need to trust me on this. I have some shocking things t tell you. You're going to want that drink, if not now, then after I finish talking."

The three nodded their heads in agreement and each took a seat; Ron on the end of Harry's bed, leaning against one of the end posts. Hermione sat perched on one of the long sides of the bed, while Ginny took up a seat closest to Harry by sitting in front of him with her back leaning against the mattress and box springs.

Harry hastily suggested, "You might be cautious of the Vodka. It's a muggle drink that has one of the strongest alcohol percentage known. A first it kinda burns a little on the way down," before Ron could chug it.

The warning was served only as that. When Harry finished speaking, Ron lifted his glass to his lips and swallowed the contents, most likely aiming to prove how manly he was. The look on his face was enough to cause Harry and Ginny to erupt with laughter. Hermione cracked a grin and subconsciously held her own glass further away from her body.

"He did warn you," Ginny said as she downed her shot. While Ron's face was scrunched up, Ginny's showed no trace of evidence that she had just consumed a potent shot of alcohol.

"How were you able drink that!" Ron sputtered. "Merlin, that stuff burns!"

Harry responded by knocking back his glass and then refilling their empty glasses with another round. Ron's expression seemed to be frozen in place; his nose wrinkled, his mouth tightened into a sort of frown that one makes when eating something sour. It was too much for Harry to resist poking fun at.

"If you'd rather have something not so strong, I think I can mix it with a gallon or two of pumpkin juice for you."

Ron simply glared at him before showing the room the bottom of his glass. Ginny shook her head as Ron had, yet again, made a face at the taste.

"Watch and learn, big brother."

By the fifth round, Harry could feel the effects beginning to have an influence on him. He glanced over at Hermione, who was glowering at the three drinking the alcohol.

With a deep breath, Harry began to tell his friends his inner most secrets.

"I won't tell you everything I'm hiding, but I will tell you most of it. I've got to sort though… that one on my own first.

"As close friends of The-Boy-Who-Lived there are certain things about my life that you should know, reasons as to why I am in danger which in turn puts you and your families at risk as well.

"My first secret is probably the biggest and most pressing one you're likely to ever hear," here Harry paused to look around. Hermione seemed much keener on listening to the conversation now that Harry was about to reveal the answer to the questions she had been bursting with earlier on.

He swallowed his sixth shot and continued on with his preamble leading up to something that would likely break his friends hearts. He only hoped that it didn't break their spirit as well.

"You all know that my parents were aware that Voldemort was after them, right?"

Ron nodded blankly saying, "Yeah, you told us that. We've known that since third year."

"Well have you ever wondered why Voldemort was after them, or how they knew to hide?"

This time Hermione spoke up, the first time since Ron had silenced her earlier.

"Yes, but I've not found anything when I researched it in the school library."

Harry shook his head. "No. You wouldn't, would you? I've been curious about it ever since I learned what really happened to my parents. I even asked Dumbledore about it in my first year. He told me that he couldn't answer, but turns out that he could but wouldn't tell me. I wondered about it until a few months ago hen he finally gave me the answer."

Hermione scooted out even further on the edge of his bed. Ron set his glass down on Harry's trunk while Ginny straightened up off of he leaning post.

"When I got back from the Department of Mysteries Dumbledore locked me in his office. He sat me down and told me that," here Harry looked away from his friend's faces. He took a deep breath. "The reason Voldemort was after my parents was because he intended to kill me. Before I was born, a prophecy was made. It was made by Professor Trelawny, actually, when Dumbledore was conducting a job interview with her at in a private room at the Hog's Head. The only problem was that the first part of the prophecy was overheard by an eavesdropper."

Hermione let out a small gasp as she began putting together some of the jigsaw pieces.

Thankfully, the eavesdropper didn't hear all of it, but just enough to scamper back to their his master and inform Voldemort of it."

Ginny stood up slowly and walked over to where Harry sat. She placed a comforting hand on his forearm.

"What did it say, Harry?" she whispered softly, asking for but not demanding an answer.

Harry looked up at Ginny as he spoke, the words of the prophecy flowing off of his tongue freely much like it did inside his head.

"THE ONE WITH THE POWER TO VANQUISH THE DARK LORD APPROACHES…BORN TO THOSE WHO HAVE THRICE DEFIED HIM, BORN AS THE SEVENTH MONTH DIES…AND THE DARK LORD WILL MARK HIM AS HIS EQUAL, BUT HE WILL HAVE POWER THE DARK LORD KNOWS NOT… AND EITHER MUST DIE AT THE HAND OF THE OTHER FOR NEITHER CAN LIVE WHILE THE OTHER SURVIVES…THE ONE WITH THE POWER TO VANQUISH THE DARK LORD WILL BE BORN AS THE SEVENTH MONTH DIES…"

Silence rang through the silent room as Ron, Hermione, and Ginny all processed the information that they had just been given. Ginny fell to her knees gently, eyes not leaving Harry's. Feeling for once as if he were the one who was well grounded rather than the vulnerable one, Harry reached for her hands, interlacing them with his own.

A chocking sound came from Hermione. Like many other times in his life, Harry was unsure of what to do.

"Does that mean…you?" Ron asked, his voice completely devoid of humor. In fact, the only other time Harry could ever remember Ron being this deadly serious, this sincere, was in their first year when he had explained to Harry why he had to sacrifice himself in the chess match.

"Yes, it does." Harry said. He looked away from Ginny's moistening eyes. He couldn't cry. There were too many rules and reasons why he couldn't, though he was getting dangerously close. "'BORN TO THOSE WHO HAVE THRICE DEFIED HIM, BORN AS THE SEVENTH MONTH DIES…' That could have applied to two children. Neville Longbottom and I both had parents in the Order who had defied him three times. Neville and I were both born at the end of July."

A loud clunking sound next to his ear demanded his attention. Hermione had apparently stood up from the bed and slammed her empty shot glass down on Harry's desk, her eyes begging for a refill. He gave her a lopsided grin, despite the circumstanced, as he complied.

"Okay," said Ron who was staring blankly at the wall opposite him.

Ginny whispered softly, "So the prophecy states that there was a child about to be born who would be able to defeat You-Know-Who?"

"Yes," Harry answered calmly.

"And then it says the child's parents are going to be in the Order?

Harry shook his head. "No, only that the child's parents would defy him three times."

"Right, like there's much difference…" Ron muttered darkly, tearing his eyes away from the wall in order to stare at the floor.

Hermione coughed and a hand flew to her throat after she set down her second empty shot.

Ginny shifted her knees a bit before saying, "Next it said that the prophecy child would be born at the end of July and that they would have power the Dark lord didn't know about…"

Again Harry let them know that their summery was correct, but did not add anything to it. He didn't want to push them to the conclusion faster than their brains would allow them to comprehend.

It was Hermione who summed up the rest of it, showing all the bravery Harry knew she possessed as she accepted the truth of the matter. The truth that Harry himself had taken most of the summer to face.

" 'EITHER MUST DIE AT THE HAND OF THE OTHER FOR NEITHER CAN LIVE WHILE THE OTHER SURVIVES'…Harry, that means you kill Voldemort once and for all or he'll kill you!"

Harry nodded grimly at her, "Yes, Hermione. That's the gist of it all."

Numb was the only way Harry knew to describe what he was feeling as he watched his friends learn of his fateful impending death.

Tears trickled out the corners of Ginny's brown eyes. Harry attempted to keep from looking directly into her eyes, but she gently released one of his hands to reach up and hold his head in place so that he had no choice but to look at the salty droplets running down her cheeks.

A sob came from Hermione as she sank to the floor from her standing position.

What were you supposed to do in a situation like that? Harry couldn't help wondering if women were drawn to him when they needed to cry. He was saved from wondering what to do as he instantly found his arms full of his very own crying red head. It seemed that Ginny too was weeping so strongly that she had taken it upon herself seek the comfort that he was supposed to know to provide.

Though he now knew what to do, Harry still felt a bit unsure of himself. He caught sight of Hermione though Ginny's red hair. Ron, looking pale and quite sick to be frank, gave Harry a helpless look as he nodded in Hermione's direction. Harry raised his eyebrows at him. When Ron still didn't get the message, Harry tentatively placed his hands on either side of Ginny's surprisingly tiny waist. Whether Ron caught on or not, Harry didn't get to immediately find out. As soon as he had put his hand on Ginny's sides, she burrowed her face into the crook of his neck, tightening his arms about him. Red tint was all he could see as he sat there, arms around Ron's baby sister who was reaching up off of a kneeling position on the ground to hug him. The spot on his collar was Ginny's eyes were closely pressed was getting damper by the minute.

Out of all the knowledge Harry had accumulated and out of all the experience from his past adventures, he had nothing that helped him feel more secure in his current actions with the youngest Weasley.

He rubbed her back in an awkward fashion while letting her hug him securely in a very "Weasley" way. As sad as the situation was, Harry couldn't help but feel a hint of pleasure at seeing his friends so saddened by the news of the prophecy. Harry had expected some despondency from them, but it seemed he had underestimated just how upset the three of them would be.

Eventually Ginny's sobs lessened though she was obviously still leaking tears; the ever-growing wet spot against Harry's neck was evidence enough. She loosened her death hold on him but did not release him, staying pressed up against him with their arms around each other. Feeling a bit more at ease, Harry looked over at Hermione to see Ron having almost the same exact problem he had had moments ago. Hermione had taken to leaning against Ron, who had apparently sat down beside her on the floor. He was stiffly giving her was Harry was sure Ron thought were gentle pats on the back. Instead it rather looked as if Ron were whacking Hermione on the back as if to help rid her of an imaginary case of the hiccups.

Harry cleared his throat. He felt Ginny turn her face slightly upward so that she could gaze up at him a bit better.

"I know this is a lot to put on you but-"

Harry! This isn't about us. It's about you. Honestly!" Hermione sniffed. "You've got a prophecy predicting that only you can save the world from the most evil dark wizard ever known, and you're worried about how we're doing."

After having said that, Hermione stood upward and joined Ginny in the hug

"I'm here for you, Harry. No matter what I'm going to be with you the whole way through."

Something in the way Hermione had said her last sentence had triggered a button on Harry's conscience. He backed away from both girls shaking his head.

"No. No, you can't. It's me, only me. My prophecy, my job. You'll be killed if you try to hang around me like that," Harry said firmly.

"Bloody hell, mate!" Ron snapped angrily as he stood from the floor and walked over to stand with Hermione and Ginny, who had placed her hands on her hips in a stiff stance indicating her temper was flaring up.

"You can't fight him alone. Remember our past adventures? You may have had the biggest most important part- the dirty work- but you didn't do it alone. I don't doubt that you couldn't find a way to do it alone because I know you, but don't you DARE try and take away me and Hermione's right to make up our own minds in this thing. If I want to stand next to you while you fight to the death and get myself killed… then it's my call. You've got choice and so do I!"

What Ron was saying made sense. If Ron, his best friend, were the prophecy boy and he were the best friend? Well, then he, Harry, would want to do everything possible to help his friend come out on top, wouldn't he? Dumbly, Harry only nodded while privately resolving to figure out some other way to keep Ron, Hermione, and Ginny from being so closely involved with his impending battle.

Hermione handed his shot glass, filled to the brim with clearish-liquid. The four teenagers gave each an important look before they all threw back their drinks in a silent but meaningful toast. Not sure as to what his three friends were toasting to, he was drinking with thoughts of his friends surviving the war.

"Look, I wish that was all I needed to explain but there's a little bit more to tell," Harry said.

Hermione grimaced as she set her tumbler down. "We're listening."

"Well," Harry began. "When I found out about the prophecy it was basically the end of the year. After I got off the train Remus, Moody, Tonks, and Mr. Weasley threatened the Dursleys into being a bit nicer towards me.

"While I was there I decided that I needed to learn more than I knew then so…"

He glanced over at Ron… "I owled the Twins with some money and a book list. They did me a favor by sending me the books as well as a few other items that I needed."

Ron said nothing about Harry asking his brothers for a favor but he did ask about what other items the Twins got for him.

"Well…I uh…needed some cigarettes-"

"What?" Hermione shrieked. Immediately she clapped her hands over her mouth.

"It's alright. I put up a silencing ward around the room. Anyways, I needed cigarettes because I was going to use them to make a trade with Dudley."

"You shouldn't give him tobacco products! They're bad for your health!" Hermione exclaimed, clearly scandalized by the idea of it all.

Harry held a hand up to stall any impending arguments.

" 'Mione, I totally agree with you. Cigarettes are disgusting in everyway but Dudley is becoming addicted to them. They were the only thing that I could think of that I could obtain that Dudley might possibly be swayed into the deal that I wanted to make.

"Before I bribed him into the deal, I had Fred and George cast some charms on them so that they weren't harmful. No smell, no further addicting nicotine, no tobacco stains… Basically Diddy Diddy Dum Dums is smoking nothing but paper that he thinks makes him look cool.

"The deal was he had to allow me in the tool shed once a day. Each week that I had use of the tool shed daily, I would supply him with a pack of cigarettes. It was worth it too. I actually miss the shed."

Harry continued on before anyone else could say anything in reply.

"I had Fred and George send me some books, which I've already read, and I began learning some new spells and hexes- you know, storing them away for later use. My original idea was to just say the spell and use a hand motion to practice saying it out loud and all but… well, to make a long story short I accidentally did wandless magic. At first I thought I'd be expelled but no owl came from the Ministry."

"Wonder why," Ron wondered aloud.

"Well," Hermione said thoughtfully. ""f the Ministry sent you an owl when Dobby used that hover charm inside the house it proved that they were able to know when magic was performed inside the house. When you used your wand outside the house they were able to detect your patronus charm. Perhaps there's something different about wandless magic that makes it indistinguishable."

"Like what? Obviously I didn't use a wand to do wandless magic. Maybe it's because without a wand they have no way of tracing it?" Harry suggested.

Hermione frowned. "That's plausible, but if it's true then why did they detect Dobby?"

"Better yet," Ginny chimed in. "Why did the Ministry think it was your spell?"

This caused a bout of silence as the four of them pondered what the answer could be. Eventually Hermione vowed to read a book about Ministry laws and methods as well as attempting to find some more literature on House Elves, this time the focus would be on their magical capacities and limitations to humans.

"So you can do wandless magic? That's really impressive," Ginny said with a small smile on her tear stained face.

"Yeah, well I… uhh have been using it ever since. Like I said, I've got loads of spells to show you guys when we get back to school."

"Well, in honor of allowing ourselves a night to be normal teenagers, I propose we have another drink." Ron said in mock imitation of proper formality.

"Now wait just a minute, Ron. Harry said he had secrets to tell us. I think you should wait until he's done before we go and make prats out of ourselves," Hermione chastised.

Ron's face flushed brightly but he nodded, looking to Harry in astonishing patience.

Thinking hard, Harry shook his head.

"No, that's okay. That's all I had to say anyway," he lied.

His relationship to Dumbledore and McGonagall was very confusion to him, so confusing in fact that he was unsure of what to say to his friends. Also, he would be rather embarrassed to tell his friends that his grandparents didn't love him enough as a baby to keep him and raise him up nor did they love him enough now to reveal their relations.

An hour later found the four of them collapsed on the floor together in a heap.

Ron laughed gaily and pointed at Hermione, lying on her back and tilting her head back to look at Harry upside-down.

"-but there's no wood!" Ron exclaimed in a girly voice whilst wringing his hands in mock worry.

Harry couldn't help but crack up, giggling incoherently at the memory.

Ginny, who hadn't yet been to Hogwarts for the trio's first year adventure (including the famous "Hermione-defeats-the Devil's-Snare-with-her-amazing-firewood" episode) laughed along with the boys despite the small fact that she had no clue as to what she was laughing at.

The girl in question had swallowed enough alcohol to keep her drunk till morning so it was no big shock when she cackled madly at the joke that was being poked at her.

"Yeah," she giggled. "Remember the time we almost got killed by the Devil's Snare?" She repeated, laughing uncontrollably at the joke she told, even though it was a different version of what Ron's said not seconds ago.

The smallest redhead added, "What about the time when we ate the library in the chocolate?"

Again, despite the fact that some of the four weren't physically present for that particular "remember when?", everyone laughed reminiscently, completely ignorant that Ginny's words had run together and some even wound up on opposite sides of the sentence. What she had said did not inspire thoughts of chocolate Easter eggs that Harry and Ginny had eaten in the library while they spoke about Harry contacting Sirius through the fire in Umbridge's office.

Harry was half-leaning on Ron, half-lying on the ground convulsing with a laughing fit. He quickly sat up, straighter than Hermione did when attempting to make her raised hand reach the professor's eye. The pleasant haze that had come with the alcohol dissipated as vigilance found it's way back into Harry's body.

"Guys, I think I ought to take you back to your rooms. Someone's just tripped the ward I cast on the stairs."

"Tripped?" Ron asked stupidly. "That's an odd word."

"Whatever," Harry muttered as he stood up.

The second ward was set off indicating that the broacher was one floor below them. For the first time ever, Harry was thankful that the Noble House of Black had hallways that took forever to walk through.

There wasn't much time left before whoever was coming up the steps caught up to them- Harry privately suspected it was Weasley. It just made the most sense. After dinner the three of them had disappeared not to be seen again. It was now dark outside so it made sense that Mrs. Weasley would come to see that the four of them were in their beds or at least in their rooms. The latter would be hard to do if three out of four couldn't even talk straight.

Walking them to their rooms was no longer an option anymore. Not only were Ron, Hermione, and Ginny's rooms located on the second floor along with the approaching person, but Harry's room was up on the third floor. A split-second decision was made. Harry grabbed hold of both Hermione and Ginny's upper arms. It would look very bad indeed if the two girls were caught inebriated, after dark, and in his bedroom along with Ron. Reputations were something that Harry understood well, though for far different reason.

Apperating, in theory, sounded simple enough; just concentrate very hard on where you want to go and imagine yourself magically being there. There was a pressing matter that required it so Harry hoped with all he possessed that nothing would go wrong in his first attempt.

Screwing up his face in concentration, Harry pictured the girl's room in his mind and envisioned him and the girls just being there.

With a 'pop!' ing sound, the three teens found themselves instantly inside Hermione and Ginny's bedroom. If he hadn't have still been bordering downright smashed, Harry would have been in shock that he had not only successfully apparated on the first try but he managed to take two passengers with him on the first attempt. Instead, he was marveling at the seamless way he had gone from standing in his own room to being one floor below in another room, instantly! POP! Just like that!

"Whoa!" Ginny exclaimed, bringing Harry out of his own thoughts.

Both Hermione and Ginny looked trashed. Their faces gave it all away. Neither one was in any condition to speak with whatever adult it might be approaching.

"Get in bed!" Harry hissed as both girls giggled at something invisible to Harry.

Impatient, Harry ripped back the covers on the respective beds and pushed each girl as gently as he could towards one. He yanked both duvets up to the their chins.

A footstep sounded in the hallway. Harry's stomach gave a lurch. Before he apparated out, he cast a silencing charm on the room in hopes that the adult would not step inside past the charm and hear the drunken giggles being produced.

The sight that met his eyes when he successfully apparated back into his bedroom was laughable, but Harry's heart was still threatening to pound right through his chest so he had little problem reframing.

Heaving Ron up by the arms was no small task as Ron was a very tall and healthy boy. It was an especially difficult task when said best friend half asleep and wanting nothing more than to stay sprawled against the ground.

Ron's mouth snapped closed as he squinted at Harry. The empty bottle Ron was clutching clattered to the floor with a loud clunk.

"C' mon, Ron-"

"Hey…th' rhymed!"

"Whoever it was will have already checked on Hermione and Ginny by now."

"Oh, well we're all outta booze so Mum'll have ta get 'er own!"

Harry snorted as he apparated them to Ron's room where he repeated the same precautions that he had taken at the girl's room.

"Go to sleep, Ron" Harry said when Ron was under his bedspread.

"Thanks, mate." Ron slurred back in a whispered kind of yawn. I'm sorry you're the one. You don't have to be the one if you don't want. You can be anyone you want."

Harry closed his eyes. "I know, Ron"

Finally Harry was back in his own room, hoping that neither Ron, Hermione, or Ginny got themselves caught drunk.

He vanished the evidence and cleaned the room with a scouring charm so that no alcohol, be it drops spilt or empty containers were left. It should have been easy to sleep but thoughts and events from the past few hours kept playing inside his head. Though he had told his friend's something horrible that would change their lives and not for the better, he had really enjoyed being with them. Of course everything came with a price and Harry was not looking for to paying for it with the headache he was sure to have tomorrow.