Disclaimer: I do not own HP.  I repeat, I do NOT own HP.  But, of course, you lot know this, right?  If not, whack yourself repeatedly in the head with a blunt object until you do.

Chapter 5 – Carry Each Other

"Hey," said Dean that morning at breakfast, "who pulled the prank on the seventh years this morning?"

"What prank?" asked Ron.

Dean gaped at him and Seamus said, "You don't know?"

"No."

"Somebody charmed the seventh year boy's beds to turn them into snakes!"

"Snakes!" exclaimed Lavender from a few seats down.

"Yeah," confirmed Dean with a nod of his head.  "Colin told me about it this morning.  Wouldn't say who did it though."

"Maybe he didn't know," said Ginny.

Dean shrugged as Ron said, "What crazed person would play a prank on the twins?"

"Slytherins?" said Seamus.

"They couldn't have gotten in the dorm!" scolded Ginny.  "It had to have been someone in Gryffindor."

"Yeah.  But who?"

"Good morning, ladies and gents!"

Ethan flopped down into the empty seat beside Ginny and smiled brightly at the other Gryffindors.  He cheerfully said, "Hello!"

Ginny blinked at him for a few seconds then said, "You're especially cheery."

Ethan smiled furtively and Dean exclaimed, "You pulled that prank on the seventh years!"

"I had help," defended Ethan as he raked eggs onto his plate.

"Really?" said Ron in disbelief, resting his elbow on the table and his chin in his palm.  "Who?"

"Oh, he should be here in…"  Ethan looked at his watch.  "…a minute or so.  He's losing them."

"Losing who?" asked Seamus.

"The seventh years, of course," replied Ethan as though this answer was obvious and dug into his eggs.  Everyone else about stared at him then looked up as Harry ran into the Hall, his glasses slightly askew and his hair even more unruly than usual.  He slowed as he got past the doors and walked calmly over to the Gryffindor table, straightening his glasses as he sat down and reached for the pitcher of orange juice.

Dean's jaw dropped and he gasped, "Your Snape's partner in crime?"

Harry looked up innocently as he set the pitcher back down and said, "Me?" as he took a sip of orange juice.  "I'm no criminal."

"You did," breathed Ron.  "You turned my brother's into snakes."

Harry looked at Ethan, who mumbled around a mouthful of eggs, "On'y for 'ive minootes."

Ginny said, "Harry!  How could you?"

"Hey!"  defended Harry.  "They were brutal in Quidditch practice!"

"So you turned them into snakes?" gasped Seamus.

Harry grinned and said, "Snakes with hair."

"You're as bad as they are!" exclaimed Ginny.  She looked at Ethan and added, "The both of you!"

The two boys grinned and bowed from the waist up, saying, "Thank you, thank you."

"Where'd you lose them?" asked Ethan to Harry.

"On the first level of the dungeons.  There's a sort of dumbwaiter near Snape's classroom that if you get in it, will send you up to a matching one on the second floor."

"You mean there's more than one level of the dungeons?" hissed Seamus.

Ethan frowned mentally at that.  No student was supposed to know about the other dungeons levels.

Harry smiled and said, "Just one.  And you can't get to it anyway."

"Why not?" asked Parvati."

Harry looked at her and smirked as he hissed softly, "Spiders.  Lot's and lot's of spiders."

"Spiders!" cried Lavender, looking repulsed.

Ron turned a little gray at that and said, "Glad we don't have to go down there."

Harry laughed and looked at the other boy, saying, "Could be worse.  Could be acromantula's."

Ron glared at him and Harry added, "Hey, they could be."

"Not funny."

"Did I say it was?"

Ethan jabbed a few eggs with his fork and stuffed them in his mouth, chewing.  It seemed that Ron and Harry had come back on slightly friendly terms.  Not much though.

"You implied it!"

"I did nothing of the sort."

"Yes, you did!"

"Ron, I think you're overreacting."

"Overreacting?  Who's the one chumming with Snape's son?"

Harry's face clouded and he growled, "What does Ethan have to do with this?"

"Oh nothing," spat Ron.  "Except that he's now your best friend!"

Harry's expression turned pained at that.  He looked at Ron for a long moment then got up and left.  Hermione tried to talk to him as she came in but Harry ignored her, going on past.  She looked towards the Gryffindor table and frowned at Ron before turning and taking off after him.

"Why don't you go after him, Snape?" snarled Ron to Ethan, turning violently on the 'boy'.

Ethan looked up at Ron with a dark glimmer in his eyes.  He felt extremely pissed off by this boy's attitude towards his best friend.  At his normal age, he would have simply blown it off.  At fifteen, he could see how truly trivial the argument was.

"Why don't you?" said Ethan, glaring at Ron.  "I, personally, would rather finish my breakfast."

Ron snorted and turned back to his own plate, which caused Ethan to shake his head and mutter, "Idiot."

"What was that?" snapped Ron.

"I said you were an idiot.  It's a little bit stupid to have a fight with your friends simply because they wish to be friends with someone you don't like, yet only don't like because you don't like their father."  Ethan shook his head again and continued, "I would not be as stupid as to push myself away from my friends, who are possibly the most loyal in the entire world."

Ron gaped at him for a long moment then snapped, "Shut up, Snape!"

Ethan sighed.  Beside him, Ginny leaned over and whispered, "He's always been stubborn.  He'll figure out what an idiot he's been soon enough."

"You're sure?" asked Ethan.

Ginny laughed and said, "Hey, I'm his sister.  I should know!"

"Good point."

"But don't you think we should go after Harry?"

"Hermione's probably already talking to him," said Ethan, stabbing at his last bit of egg.  "No worries."

* * * *

"Harry, wait up!"

Hermione raced down the corridor after Harry's retreating form, which didn't even slow down when she'd called.

"Harry!  Harry, stop!"

The dark-haired boy halted and Hermione dashed up to him, standing in front of him and looking up at his face.

"Ron's an ass."

Harry looked at her for a long moment, his expression blank, and then he began to laugh.  Hermione blinked and said, "What?"

"That's the first time I've heard you curse!"

Hermione smiled and said, "Ethan must be rubbing off on me."

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah."

"So, Ron's an ass."

"Biggest one in the school.  Well, besides Malfoy."

"Who ranks as the biggest ass in Hogwarts history."

"Right."

The two stood there smiling at each other for a moment then Harry asked, "What are we going to do about Ron?"

"He'll come around," assured Hermione.  "He always does."

"But this is Snape's son we're talking about.  And you know how much Ron hates Snape."

"I thought you did too."

Harry shook his head slightly and said, "Not really.  He's a git, sure, but it could be worse."

Hermione arched her eyebrows.

"Really?"

"Yep."

"How so?"

Harry grinned and quipped, "Could be Voldemort."

Hermione shivered and moaned, "Oh, there's a horrid thought!"

"Yeah.  I can just hear his greeting on the first day.  'Welcome to Torture 101.  Please scream when you need assistance.'"

Hermione laughed at that and Harry grinned.  He stuffed his hands in his pockets and said, "Maybe we should get going.  Defense is about to start."

"POTTER!"

The two fifth years looked down the corridor and saw the twins, Lee, and Samuel coming up out of the dungeons.

"Oh bugger," said Harry.  He looked at Hermione and sighed.  "You think they'll ever give up?"

"Not until they catch you," replied Hermione.  She looked towards the four and added, "You'd better run."

"Good idea…oh fudge – Ethan!"

Ethan had just walked out of the Great Hall, a half-eaten piece of toast in one hand.  At the sound of Harry's voice, he looked towards the other boy and Hermione and stared at them.  When Hermione pointed behind him, he turned his head and dropped the toast.

"Hello, Snapikins," said Fred, smiling mischievously.

"Oh shit," said Ethan and made a mad scramble towards Harry and Hermione.  Harry went wide-eyed and grabbed Hermione's arm.

"Run!"

The three of them raced down hall after hall, their pursuers only a few feet behind them.

"You two just had to drag me into this, didn't you?" shrieked Hermione as they charged up a staircase.

"Yes!" yelled Harry and Ethan as they headed for another staircase that was starting to move.  Hermione saw it and paled.

"NO!"

"YES!" said Harry and Ethan, grabbing her arms.  They pulled her up the stairs and on a count of three, leapt across.  Hermione let out a shriek as they landed then punched both of them in the stomach when they released her, scowling at the both of them.

"Ow…" moaned Harry, bending over, as Ethan just grimaced, arms wrapped around his middle.

"Thanks," said the dark haired boy after a moment, two green streaked locks of hair falling over his dark eyes as he looked at Hermione.  "I really needed that."

Hermione smiled in a mock sweet way, her head tilted slightly to the side.  "Your welcome," she said in a singsong voice.

"I think we should go," mumbled Harry painfully.  He nodded down at the twins, who were looking for another staircase that went up to the level they were on.

Ethan nodded and said, "Yeah.  Where's this door go?"

Hermione turned to look at the door that was behind them and blanched.  After a moment she said, "It's the third floor corridor."

Ethan blinked and almost said, "So it is."  But he caught himself, remembering that Ethan had never been to Hogwarts before and could not possibly know where the third floor corridor was.

"So it is," said Harry, straightening painfully (Ethan couldn't help but chuckle softly as the boy repeated his words).  He looked back at the twins, Lee, and Stephen and pushed the door open.  As the three of them went inside, he said jokingly, "Well, at least we won't die a very painful death if we get caught."

Hermione frowned at Harry while Ethan perfected a look of ignorance.

"That's not funny," said Hermione darkly.

"Really?" quipped Harry, grinning cheekily.  "I thought it was."

"It wasn't.  Was it, Ethan?"

Ethan smiled apologetically and said, "Unfortunately I have no idea what either of you are talking about and can have no opinion."

"Silly, Mione," admonished Harry, shaking his head at the girl.

Hermione glared at him and snapped, "Harry, if you don't stop that, I'm going to hex you."

"No!" gasped Harry in pseudo horror.  He dropped to his knees, hands lifted and clasped together, and cried, "Please, oh great Hermione, do not hex me for I am only a poor little Gryffindor."

Ethan let out a snort of laughter at that, earning a glare from Hermione, who did not look amused.  Or, on second glance, did.  The corner of her mouth was twitching.  She then looked at her watch and let out an ear-piercing shriek.

"We're late!"

"Joy," said Harry and Ethan in unison.  Hermione glared at them but it was only half-hearted as she was worried about them losing points for being late to class.

"Well," said Harry as they went down the corridor in search of a door that was not being watched by the seventh year boys, "at least we'll have the joy of knowing that the twins, Lee, and Stephen missed their first class too."

Hermione turned a fierce glare upon him and Ethan chuckled.

"I don't think that was quite the right thing to say, Harry."

"Oh?" said Harry, turning away from Hermione's glare, his voice filled with sarcasm.  "Y'think?"

"I know," corrected Ethan.

"Here's a door," said Hermione, interrupting Harry's response.  She opened it and stepped out onto the landing, immediately letting out a moan.  "Oh no…  We're all the way up on the seventh floor!"

"And that's one corridor," murmured Harry, pausing the doorway to look back into the third floor corridor.  "This castle keeps getting stranger and stranger…"

"We're late!" shrieked Hermione again, attempting to tear out her hair.

"Firstly," said Ethan, stepping up behind the girl and grabbing her wrists, "calm down.  Secondly, leave your hair alone, its perfect as is.  Thirdly, calm down."

Hermione glared at him over her shoulder but she did calm down.  From behind Ethan, Harry applauded.

"Okay," said Ethan, releasing Hermione and moving over to the banister to peer down.  "Oh bugger…"

"What?" asked Harry, joining him.

"Look down."

Hermione came to stand inbetween the two boys and looked down as well.  She gasped, "No staircases come up here!"

Abruptly the door slammed shut and Harry grabbed the handle, giving it a tug.  "Locked," he said.  He looked at his companions and continued, "Looks like we're stuck up here for a while."

Ethan sighed and leaned on the banister while Hermione sank to the floor, muttering about her school record being completely ruined.