Chapter 6
Right now, Harry, Fred, George, and Lee are waiting for Hermione and Ron to pass through the entrance near the Great Hall. Lee walked in on them while they were planning their prank. Well, Harry was just letting them bounce ideas off of him to help. He did more listening then actually planning because he knew that if he planned anything then it would backfire so badly. He was still shaken up about the Dementor on the train but he was more focused on the prank they were about to do that he didn't have time to think about it. They were armed with Dungbombs and Lee had a certain spell that he wouldn't tell Harry he was going to use on the two. Only thing was Harry had to call out to them. He was starting to feel terrible about it but the twins kept hinting him about last year. Harry was at war with himself and instead of watching for Ron and Hermione, he turned and sat down against the banister. "What's wrong Harry?" Fred asked him, being the first notice. Harry shrugged.
"I'm starting to feel guilty."
"But there's nothing you need to feel guilty about, they deserve this." George said scowling a bit. Harry knew it wasn't at him but at the memory of what the two did. Harry sighed.
"I know, but I just can't help it. It's in my nature, I guess." Harry said shrugging.
"Okay, Harry. I'll call out their names." Fred offered. Harry smiled.
"Thanks Fred."
"Anything, little brother." Then he, George, and Lee turned to look over the banister leaving Harry to feel shocked. Did Fred just intentionally call him 'little brother'? Harry felt like a huge chunk of his heart fill itself in; like there was a hole there that he wasn't aware of. Harry also felt warm at Fred calling him little brother. He felt like he had a family. Well, with those two anyways. He didn't feel very close to Mr. and Mrs. Weasley but that, he assumed, was going to take some time because he was around their children more than the two themselves. Harry finally turned around just in time to see the twins throw the Dungbombs and Lee to mutter the spell. There were two screams: one feminine and one masculine. When everything settled, Ron and Hermione both had their own pairs of antlers and little cotton tails. Harry snickered as Hermione shrieked and she and Ron ran off to the Hospital Wing as everyone laughed.
"Feel any better?" Lee asked.
"No, not really. I share room with Ron." Harry muttered. He almost forgot about that. He wasn't looking forward to going to bed tonight. He knew Ron and Hermione would be back and antler-less and tail-less in the middle of dinner.
"You can sleep in our room if you want." Fred said shrugging.
"Aren't there two more people sleeping in your room?"
"No, they asked McGonagall to move out as soon as we started pranking them in their sleep." George said rolling his eyes.
"They were harmless pranks." Lee said rolling his eyes too. Harry smiled.
"I'd like that."
"Great! Now all we have to do is let McGonagall know." Fred and George said grinning.
"We can ask her before the end of dinner." Harry said shrugging. He knew that there wasn't going to be any time after and right now McGonagall was about to bring the new first years in. "We should probably go into the Great Hall."
"Good idea." The four of them made their way into the Great Hall and took a seat. Fred and George sat on either side of Harry so that Ron and Hermione couldn't sit next to him. Lee sat across from the three and Angelina and Katie sat on either side of him with Alicia sitting next to Fred. Apparently, the three Chasers could sense that there was trouble.
"Everything okay with Ron and Hermione, Harry?" Katie asked curiously. Harry shrugged.
"Not exactly but it's nothing I can't handle." He didn't plan on telling them about what Ron did. It was uncomfortable enough that he told Fred and George and look at the result of that. She shared a worried look with Angelina and Alicia. Harry felt happy that they cared about him. The closest thing he's ever had to a family was his Quidditch team right here. Oliver, Fred, and George were the big brothers he never had and Alicia, Katie, and Angelina were the big sisters he never had. They of course never went down the trap door with him and faced all of those obstacles or found out about the spiders and where they led off too last year but they were still there for him with his normal problems. Maybe he'll drag them all on an adventure this year. He mused. They probably wouldn't have liked it. Well Fred, George, and Lee might.
"Harry's gonna come and sleep in our room and we're going to talk to McGonagall about it." Lee informed the three Chasers.
"I had a feeling since you guys pranked Ron and Hermione." Angelina said shaking her head.
"What? You would think they deserved it too if you knew what they did." Fred said glowering at his plate.
"What did they do?" Alicia asked surprised.
"It's up to Harry if he wants you to know." George said shrugging. Harry bit his lower lip. He wanted them to understand but he'd feel just completely embarrassed if he told them. Katie smiled.
"It's okay Harry. If you don't want to tell us, then you don't have to." Alicia and Angelina nodded in agreement causing Harry to smile.
"Thanks."
"Anytime, Harry." The three said smiling. Harry was right in guessing when Hermione and Ron would be back. Harry was halfway through his second plate of food (this seemed to concern the twins a bit because he ate as if he hadn't ate in a long time). They didn't make eye contact with anyone and ignored the whispers and small bouts of laughter that were sent their way. They sat at the very end of the Gryffindor table where there were less people. Hermione looked hurt and Ron looked angry but Harry wasn't going to let that get to him. They deserved it, didn't they? Harry knew that it wasn't right the way the twins handled it. He probably should've just sucked it up and went and talked to the two. Maybe he still could but not this week. He wanted to give Ron time to cool off. He knew just how explosive Ron's anger was and the thought of it slightly scared Harry, though he wouldn't admit it; at least not to the three Chasers and Lee. He would probably admit it to the twins in his own time as he never was one who had to rely on others. He always had to take care of himself and make sure he survived at the Dursleys. Sadly it was survival at the fittest for him. If he chose to, he could've let the Dursleys just finish him off. There were a few times where Uncle Vernon seemed to take the beatings a little too far for his uncle's liking because that meant Harry would have to be taken to the hospital. Of course though, they never took him to the hospital. No matter how close to death he was.
Harry was surprised he hadn't died a long time ago before he even started going to Hogwarts. Harry mentally shook himself. He needed to stop thinking about that. The twins will notice that he's been brooding about something and will want to know what that something is. He hoped he caught himself in time. He really didn't want to tell them about the Dursleys. He could only imagine what their reactions would be to that after their reactions to what Ron did. Harry was sure they would go as far as prank them with something permanent. He didn't want them to get sent to Azkaban for it. Yes, it was better that they don't know about it. What would Sirius do? Harry almost paled at the thought. Sirius would actually commit the murder he was accused of. No, Sirius couldn't know either! Suddenly Snape crossed Harry's mind for the first time in a long time. What would Snape have to say about that? Would he be indifferent to it? No, he's not that heartless. He'd probably tell Dumbledore. Harry thought bitterly. He didn't want Dumbledore to know anything; even about the beatings. Harry knew that if Dumbledore knew, then it was going to go down two ways. One: Dumbledore is still going to send Harry back to the Dursleys every summer. Two: He's going to keep an eye out for anyone who decides to try and keep Harry from going back and still force Harry to go back to the Dursleys. Harry didn't know when he'd gain so much distrust for the old headmaster but he had to agree with himself on the matter. There was no way around it. Dumbledore could absolutely not know about this.
As it was getting closer to the end of the feast, Fred and George made their way up to Professor McGonagall and from the look on her face, she was not expecting it. She pulled the two into a room from behind the high table. Five to ten minutes later, the three came back. Fred and George looked grim but happy and McGonagall looked like she was going to have a heart attack. Did they tell her about Ron? He kind of hoped not. He was sure she would try to get Madam Pomfrey to look at him but Harry wasn't planning on letting her. She'll find out about the Dursleys and she'll ask questions for sure. She'll know that the bruising and scars aren't magical. Harry took back his earlier thought. He hoped they didn't tell McGonagall. When the twins sat down, they whispered, "We'll tell you in a bit. After they dismiss us, follow us." Harry nodded feeling uneasy.
"So what did she say?" Lee asked curiously.
"That Harry can sleep in our room for the whole year." Fred and George said grinning.
"Cool!" He said grinning. Harry wondered if Lee knew what Ron did. No, if he did he wouldn't have been confused when the twins asked him to use that spell on Ron and Hermione; he was especially confused about Hermione. Harry didn't blame him because Hermione was one of the nicest people he knew but it disappointed him that she would stick up for Ron like that and for Ron to continue to say that he didn't mean it to the twins just made it much worse for Harry. Harry felt someone staring at him and looked up to see three of his professors looking at him: Snape, McGonagall, and Remus. Snape was looking thoughtful, McGonagall looked worried and concerned, and Remus looked like he was lost in his thoughts. Harry wondered if it had to do with the fact that he looked so much like his father that Remus was remembering the times they had here at Hogwarts. That might be the case. Harry was actually excited for DATDA. He wanted to really get more familiar with Remus and he hoped that he could form a bit of a bond with him and Sirius both so that he'd feel more comfortable with sharing his thoughts and as much as it embarrassed him to admit it, emotions. Harry hated to feel like he was being a burden to anyone but he was learning that not everyone thinks of him as one; just the Dursleys. So after the first eleven years of feeling like one, especially after meeting the Weasleys, Harry was working on trying not to feel like one. So far he's been successful when he's not around the Dursleys; although it has been a bit harder with Snape but Harry hoped that would change now that Snape had been a bit nicer to him.
Harry still wasn't sure what he thought about Snape knowing about Ron. He almost nearly forgot that Snape knew. Does Dumbledore know? Obviously he didn't tell McGonagall and that got Harry wondering about Snape again. Harry really needed to stop going in circles. Soon they were dismissed and Harry followed the twins to wherever they wanted to take Harry o talk. Harry followed them all the way up to the seventh floor but instead of taking the normal way to the dorms, they went a different way, causing Harry to become curious. He didn't ask them about it though because he was anxious about what they told McGonagall. Soon they were in an empty hall where the only decoration was a painting of trolls learning ballet. "What are you two doing?" Harry finally asked as the two started pacing the opposite wall.
"You'll see Harry if you'll be patient." The two said grinning and causing Harry to blush a bit. He was just curious. The two snickered and finally after the third round of pacing, a bit set of double doors appeared. "Welcome Harry, to the Room of Requirements!" The twins said as soon as they walked into the room. Harry was just shocked to silence. The room was so big but it looked exactly like the Gryffindor common room. The three of them took a seat around the fireplace that had a fire already lit.
"Harry, are you okay, mate?" Fred asked after a moment of silence.
"You were pretty quiet during dinner." George said frowning. Harry shrugged.
"I was just thinking about things..."
"Ah, so you were brooding,"
"Completely understandable." The twins said nodding and grinning. Harry stuck his tongue out at the two.
"Anyways, what did you tell McGonagall? You told her about what Ron did, didn't you?"
"Sorry Harry." George said sincerely. "You know how McGonagall is. She won't say ya' or nay if you don't give her a good explanation."
"Yeah, we're really sorry. We tried but she was going to say no." Fred said sadly. Harry nodded, not sure how to feel about this.
"You're not angry with us, are you?" George asked hesitantly. It was odd to hear from the prankster, that's for sure.
"No, I just don't want her to tell Dumbledore or anyone else for that matter. It's bad enough that Snape already knows."
"Snape knows!?" They asked shocked. Harry shrugged.
"I told him when I went down with him and Dumbledore to get Ginny last year. I'm still shocked over it."
"So why don't you want Dumbledore to know about what Ron did?"
"Because it's really none of his business and," Harry hesitated.
"What?" Fred asked worriedly.
"I feel like he could turn around and use it against me in the future."
"How?" Harry shrugged.
"I don't know; it's just a feeling..."
"Well, it's up to McGonagall whether or not she's going to tell him, I suppose." George said frowning. "We're sorry Harry." Harry smiled.
"It's okay, you guys. You're right about McGonagall." He said thinking back to when he, Ron, and Hermione told her about the Philosophers' Stone.
"Great, let's get back to the common room then." The two said standing up.
"How are we to get in without the password?"
"It's Fortuna Major, we asked Percy." The two said shrugging.
"Bet he thought it was suspicious coming from you two." Harry said grinning. They grinned back.
"He did at first, but seemed to think it was better to just tell us." Fred said grinning as the three of them made their way back to the common room. Harry didn't see Ron or Hermione as they walked in and assumed they were already in bed. Harry followed the twins up to their dorm (now Harry's new dorm) and wasn't surprised to see that his trunk was already in there. Lee greeted them and soon the four of them were in their pajamas and passed out in their beds.