Harry sat at the Slytherin table enjoying his breakfast on a rather lazy Saturday morning. No class, no quidditch practice. Just time to relax, and maybe figure out how to befriend the Weasley Twins. He had ask John Sonarous if he knew anything about them.
"The Weasley Twins? Only through reputation. They seem to avoid the older Slytherins and Ravenclaws." John said as he laid out on a couch in the Slytherin Common Room petting his rather large cat. "I figure it's because they don't want to piss us off. From what I've heard though is they spend more time in detention than any other students in the entire school."
Harry nodded and made some quick notes on scrap parchment he kept in his pocket. "So why do they spend so much time in detention? You'd think they'd avoid it feverishly. Do they enjoy it?" Harry asked curiously. This was the closest thing to useful information he'd gotten so far.
John shrugged. "No idea. Like I said, they tend to leave the older Slytherin and Ravenclaws alone. Why the sudden interest in the Weasleys? Planning on competing for Hogwarts most annoying?" John asked setting aside an empty plate with a smile but suddenly lost his smile. "I was joking, please don't try to be like them."
Harry shook his head. "Nothing like that. It's just." Harry felt apprehensive about telling someone his plan to turn the youngest Weasley to Slytherin. "If I told you, it would ruin." Harry said hoping he sounded coy. More likely he came off as unsure and immature.
John shrugged before gathering his things, saying his goodbyes and leaving the Great Hall. Harry watched as the Weasley Twins slowly entered the Great Hall and sat down at the Gryffindor Table. Harry did his best not to seen watching them but was not as subtle as he thought he was when Theodore sat down next to him.
"What's so interesting about the Weasleys?" Theodore asked reaching for the porridge. "Does this have anything to do with what you and Blaise are sneaking around about and what's got you getting friendly with Granger?" Theodore asked cutting an apple into his bowl.
Harry sighed. In the months he had known Theodore he had somehow forgotten how silently observant he was. He was usually seen not paying attention, but always listening. Always listening.
"You can't say anything to Draco or Pansy, they'd just ruin it." Harry said in a sharp whisper. Theodore nodded and began eating his breakfast. Harry ran his hand through his hair in frustration. He hadn't planned on telling anyone else.
Harry quickly ran through the entire plan all the while Theodore continued to eat his breakfast.
Harry finally finished with a deep sigh and caught his breath. "That's about it." Harry said feeling a little defeated that someone had figured it out. "Please don't tell anyone."
Theodore ndded and swallowed the last of his porridge. "I won't." Theodore said quietly. "But you need to work on being more devious." Theodore smiled. "I think it's a great idea. Ronald is a total prat and needs to be taken down a peg. This does that and gives us another Slytherin."
Over the course of the morning Harry gave Theodore a more detailed accounting of his plan and it's ins and outs. By Lunch Harry had left the Great Hall having had been there for two meals, his backside was rather sore and he needed to stretch his legs.
"What a morning." Harry said to himself under his breath.
Having nothing more to do until supper, Harry began wondering and exploring the castle. Hogwarts was so massive that one could spend all seven years exploring it and not finding everything.
As Harry approached the third floor corridor he noticed a pair of flame headed twins. They seemed to be examining the door to the corridor from the moving stairs. Harry instantly knew what they were doing. To a pair of trouble makers like the Weasley twins, having anything forbidden simply invites investigation and challenge.
They hadn't noticed Harry and continued to simply wave their wands on and around the doorway. Obviously they weren't as so bold to simply enter the third floor corridor. It was obvious that they were using examination spells Harry didn't know about as they diligently scanned their wands around the door.
"Anything Fred?"
"Nothing yet George."
"Could it simply be there's nothing to find?"
"That would be a most fortuitous turn of an event brother. Though I doubt a man as wise and crafty as Dumbledore would leave such a thing unenchanted."
"But what if my dear brother that this first doorway, being without enchantment is the first protection, meant to confuse and astound by not having any magics affixed to it?"
"That would be quite the conundrum. You'd either believe there to be nothing and continue through it, second guessing if there was or wasn't something there."
"Or you'd go through triggering something you didn't know was there and end up in a predicament still."
Harry stood silently. Confused and unable to find words as he watched perhaps to most peculiar pair of brother he'd ever known. He simply watched as they wordlessly continued working on the doorway.
After a few more moments both the twins seemed to notice their audience and had to double take as they noticed whom exactly was watching them.
"Ahh!" - "Ohh!" They both exclaimed simultaneously. They both sprung to full standing height brushing off their knees of dust. They looked to each other with confused looks as they seemingly were very unsure of Harry.
"Afternoon." Harry said pleasantly. "Find anything interesting or should we just go on through?"
Harry was playing a very dangerous game. He'd keep the twins off guard and unsure of him in order to gain their amusement. As neither Twin said anything as he approached the door Harry simply opened the door and stepped through. He found himself in a very decrepit hallway. No windows, few torches, and an abundance of Dust and Cobwebs. "Huh." Harry said jokingly.
The twins quickly followed suit and entered. "I don't see what all the fuss was about guys. It just seems like an extremely unused hallway leading to nowhere." Harry said looking around. Just as he was about to leave did he notice that there was in fact a door that the third floor corridor lead to.
"Either of you know anything bout that?" Harry said motioning to the door at the end of the corridor. Harry took out his wand, suddenly reminded of Dumbledore's warning at the beginning of the year.
To their credit Fred and George snapped out of their confused and befuddled state and began inspecting the new door just as they had the last. "Beyond a simple locking charm." "Nothing all that special here, none the less we can find." They said as they inspected the very old doorway.
"Well, at the very least we now know what is in the third floor corridor. The mystery of where it goes, remains a mystery." Harry said as he turned to leave but was faced with something particularly odd, which was something considering the last 20 minutes. "A cat?"
"A cat?" The twins said confused as they turned around to look at said cat. "Oh no. That's Mrs. Norris." The twins were looking a little off put now and seemed to be looking for an escape that wasn't the way they came.
Harry was still confused. "Who's Mrs. Norris?" He asked picking up on the twins' worry.
"Mrs. Norris is Filch's cat." "Part kneazle that one is." "Filch won't be far behind." They explained. No sooner had they explained was there the jingling of keys heard rushing up the stairs.
"Oh we're done in for sure." "Mum will ring our ears for this one." "Oh and what will McGonagall do this time after that last bout with the shrinking charms?" The twins were obviously wallowing in their defeat when Harry spoke up.
"What about the door?" He said motioning to the door they had been inspecting just a moment ago. They both stopped in their panicking and looked at the door.
"Is it on the map?" "I don't know." "The map changes from time to time." "Do you have it?" "No, I thought we left it… secure!"
Harry was losing patience. "Guys! The door, now!" He said as loudly as he could whisper. He stepped back as the twins took their wands and pointed it at the latch.
"Alohomora!" Said the twin simultaneously. There was a click and the latch visibly moved to the open position. The last thing Harry saw as they closed the door behind them was Filch's shadow in the doorway.
They all slumped down against the door and relaxed. "That was close." Harry said putting his head between his knees. On either side of him the twins started snickering. Harry smiled and looked up. There was a trap door in front of them. "Huh." just as he had seen the trap door did he notice the massive paw dragging on the ground behind the trap door.
Harry slowly looked up and saw a massive 3 headed dog. Each head was asleep and one was even drooling. "We, need to leave, now." Harry said as quietly as he could. He stood up very slowly, back pressed against the door. He nudged both the twins as he stood. Finally they took notice of the gigantic three headed dog.
Slowly did the twins take notice of the massive animal in the room with them. Their abrupt entrance had taken its time, but one of the heads started to stir. It gradually took notice of them and brought itself to full alertness. It's awakeness seem contagious as the head next to it started to stir, and then the one next to that.
"Door, door, door" Harry muttered angrily as he was shoving the twins. All three heads seem to take collective notice of Harry, Fred and George. It was obvious that the consensus was anger. As all three heads started to snarl and bare their fangs.
No sooner did the door open and Harry pushed the twins through did the beast lunge at them. It all seem to happen in a blur for Harry. Falling through the doorway, looking up and seeing the middle head charging directly at him, and finally him getting up and slamming the door shut and making sure the lock was in the lock position once more.
There was a massive thud against the door as Harry crawled away backward. As soon as Harry felt confident that the door would hold, he allowed himself to relax and collapsed. He didn't care if Filch found him. He had escaped that massive killer dog and any detention would be worth it. He looked over to the twins and found them in a similar state.
"Fred?" George said looking at the dark, cobweb covered ceiling.
"Yes George?" Fred replied doing the exact same.
"I'd say that this is one of those situation Dad talks about. Risk, not being worth the reward, and such." George said pulling himself together in a sitting position. "Though, I am a bit put off that we wasted all that time at the bloody doorway. Trap spells, what a laugh. We clearly need to work on our sensory charms and anti-charms."
Fred nodded and stood up. He offered his brother and hand up and brought his brother to his gaze. "Too right you are George. We really need to brush up on detection spells and the like. We'll be writing to Bill about this" Fred said brushing himself off.
George nodded and starting brushing himself off as well. "Indeed. Though I think we'll leave out the bits about the killer three headed monster canine and the, uninvited guest." George said motioning to Harry.
Harry just furrowed his brow. "If it wasn't for me you two would still be in the hallway waving your wands at nothing." Harry said before remembering that he needed them to like him. "I also saved your lives getting away from that, beast." Harry said forcing a smile.
The twins seemed to share a glance of an unspoken exchange. "Now, I'd like nothing more than to forget this ever happened." Harry said mimicking their jovial inflections. "Now, I say we congratulate ourselves and each others for not winding up dead, and be on our way." Harry offered a hand to each of the twins.
Suspiciously they both took Harry's hand and shook. "Right, well, I've got anywhere else to be right now." Harry said as he waited for the stairs to come back around letting him return to the ground floor.
Fred and George approached the stairs leading further up. "Uhm, Potter. Thanks for that." Fred said rubbing the back of his neck. "Not only would we still be in the hall."
"We might have also ended up dead!" George said. "You're not nearly as bad as Ron says. Guess the little prat is telling tales again."
The twins seemed to have another unspoken exchange. "See you round Potter. Keep your nose out of trouble, that's our trouble, y'ah hear?" They said in unison and took off running up flights of stairs.
Harry shook his head and smiled. He'd done it. He'd gotten in good with the Weasley Twins. "Yeah, and all it took was saving their lives."
