Darkness Shadows Light

CHAPTER FIFTEEN - TELL ME WHAT YOU NEED AND I\'LL TELL YOU HOW TO GET ALONG WITHOUT IT

\'Well that was unexpected,\' said Harry as they walked back to Gryffindor Tower after their discussion wDumbDumbledore.

\'That\'s an understatement!\' exclaimed Ron. \'I can\'t believe we\'re going along with this.\'

\'Well Dumbledore didn\'t exactly give us a lot of choice. Honestly this day just gets worse and worse,\' replied Harry glumly. Ron looked at him sympathetically.
\'So do you want to talk about what Snape said, I guess it wasn\'t what you wanted to hear?\' Ron asked.

Harry looked around and saw there were several other students in hearing range.
\'I\'ll tell you about it when we get back to my room,\' Harry said cautiously. Ron nodded in understanding and they walked in silence until they were in Harry\'s room and he had cast a silencing spell.

\'Do you want me to go?\' Sirius asked, having changed back to human form. \'If you want to talk about Snape in private.\'

\'No, it\'s okay,\' reassured Harry. \'You might as well hear what he said.\'

Trying to keep his voice as unemotional as possible, he told them of their brief encounter. When he had finished, there was a moment of silence, before he found himself enveloped in a hug. What surprised him was it was Ron rather than Sirius, though he accepted the comfort gratefully.

\'Thanks,\' he said quietly. \'I think I needed that.\'

Sirius watched the two of them with a thoughtful expression on his face, but kept the bizarre idea that had sprung to his mind to himself. Things were complicated enough. Instead he responded to what Harry had told him Snape has said.

\'I hate to say this, but I think Snape is right,\' he finally said. \'It *is* too dangerous for you to keep on seeing him at the moment. I\'m not just talking about the risk it puts Snape at, but the fact that - no offence Ron - this baby probably seems a lot less of a threat being a Weasley than being a S. I. I\'m sure you\'re a very good wizard Ron, but Snape is very powerful, much as I hate to admit it, and I don\'t think either side would be too pleased if they found out.\'

Harry looked at his godfather doubtfully.

\'Are you saying that my own side might see this baby as a threat?\'

\'It\'s a possibility,\' Sirius said gravely. \'The history is there for anyone who can be bothered to look.\'

Ron stood between them frowning.

\'What the hell are you two talking about?\' he asked. \'Why would our side think this kid could be a threat? I got the impression that it will be pretty powerful, but surely they should be pleased about that.\'

Sirius looked at Harry in disbelief.

\'You haven\'t told him, have you?\' Harry, white-faced, shook his head. \'Well I think it\'s about time you did.\' Sirius said firmly. \'I\'ll leave you to it.\' And with that he headed off to his own room.

Ron looked at Harry expectantly. Slowly, and with much hesitation, Harry explained about Grindelwald and Morgana. Afterwards Ron just stared until he broke the silence with;

\'Why didn\'t you tell me before?\' That he was hurt that Harry had not confided this part to him was palpable in his tone.

\'At first I didn\'t know and then when Severus told me I didn\'t really believe it and by the time I accepted it as a possibility I didn\'t really want to discuss it. Besides...I didn\'t want to give you a reason to hate me...\'

\'I could never hate you,\' said Ron in choked voice. \'It\'s not like you wanted this to happen or that you have a choice whether this child is good or bad.\'
Harry looked hopeful.

\'Do...do you think you could forgive me for not telling you before?\'

\'Of course! Anyway I don\'t believe for one moment that this kid will be like those other two, not with you as a father.\'

\'Thank you,\' said Harry quietly, overwhelmed by how understanding Ron was being. \'You know, I\'m not sure what I would have done without you these past couple of months.\'

\'That\'s what\'s friends are for,\' said Ron solemnly, before his face broke into a smile as he thought of something. \'Of course, maybe I should say fiancé now!\'

Harry couldn\'t help a small smile even as he said. \'I can\'t believe you can joke about that! This isn\'t exactly going to help you and Hermione.\'

Once again Ron frowned.

\'Me and Hermione? Jeez Harry, you really ought to pay attention to what\'s going on around you. I know you\'ve got a lot on your mind but surely you noticed that Hermione\'s not been around so much the past couple of weeks?\'

\'I thought she was in the library,\' replied Harry, puzzled.

\'More like the greenhouses! She\'s been dating Justin Finch-Fletchley for the past two weeks.\'

\'Oh Ron! I\'m so sorry...\' Harry said in dismay.

\'Don\'t be,\' Ron assured him. \'Hermione and I had a long talk about a month ago and we realised that we were good friends, but that\'s it.\'

\'You never said!\' exclaimed Harry. Slightly put out that his two best friends had kept this from him.

\'We all keep secrets,\' Ron said mildly, but pointedly.

\'Point taken,\' Harry replied with a smile. \'But can we both promise to not keep secrets from each other any more.\'

\'Agreed,\' said Ron.

They gravely shook hands on it.

\'So what were all those letters about this morning?\' asked Ron brightly, trying to lighten the mood.

\'Do you know, I forgot all about them.\' Harry had just dumped them in his room after breakfast and with all that had happened, not given them another thought. He went over to the sack of mail and tipped the letters over his bed. He and Ron then spent the best part of an hour sorting through them.

\'Well that makes twelve marriage proposals, eight from men, four from women; five death threats, two for you, three for me; and nine couples wanting to adopt the baby. Not bad going for one day! Makes you wonder what tomorrow\'s going to bring.\' finished Harry with a grin.

\'I can\'t believe you found those bizarre letters so funny,\' said Ron.

\'Frankly it\'s either laugh or cry and I really don\'t want to start on the second option...I\'m not sure I\'d be able to stop.\' From the look on his face, Ron knew he was telling nothing but the plain truth.

\'Yeah, it\'s been a rough day,\' agreed Ron. \'And now I need to do my homework. Do you want to go to the library?\'

\'No, I think I\'ll stay here. I think I need a nap before I start on my homework.\' Harry couldn\'t prevent a huge yawn.

\'Sure,\' said Ron good-naturedly. \'I guess I\'ll see you later...or tomorrow.\'

\'Yep,\' said Harry sleepily, laying down on his bed and closing his eyes.

Ron looked for a moment before quietly closing the door...