Harry knew that the best way to learn secrets was to be too useful not to know them. And so, he found himself aiding the Twins, as a willing servant. He needed to know how they got these potions and other concoctions into people's food.
Plus, they were quite a bit more entertaining than Ron, and being around them didn't set off people's "NotGryffindor" bells like being around Percy, or Granger, or Longbottom.
So this was how he was standing, with wisps of green flame in a bucket, waiting to toss it down on the first person to descend the leftmost staircase in the castle. (How there was even a leftmost staircase was an open question).
It was Seamus, and he looked up, as those green flames blazed yellow - his natural fire inclination warding him from the detrimental effects of the liquid. "Good one Harry," He called genially, as he headed down the stairs.
That was the thing about Seamus, he truly didn't mind getting pranked. Oh, he might get a bit more watchful, but it was never about avoiding them. What a big hearted kid.
As Harry headed down to breakfast (how many days had he been here? he was starting to lose track. Maybe if he switched to months...), Ron wanted to talk with him about the upcoming Quiddich game - to wish him luck, sure, but also to give him tactical advice. Tomorrow he would play, and he kind of wanted to tell Ron that Ollie knew better tactics anyway. But Potter bit his tongue, sure that Ron would take offense. And, as he didn't plan on continuing his association with the Twins past when he got what he needed, he still needed Ron to like him. Had he really overheard Ron referring to Harry as his best friend?
Harry's mind still boggled at the thought of Ron Weasley as a friend, and not just because Harry wasn't used to having friends.
[a/n: Coming back to the bookplot briefly. Then we'll get back to Harry's plot, and ... well, maybe Snape will show up (Snape's current plots are longrunning things). Leave a review?]