Reasons Why

Chapter Two

Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter, thank you very much.

WARNING: At the moment, I'm only on the first book, but I will be doing all seven. Which means, SPOILERS!

If you don't want to read a ridiculously long authors note, then don't. But it might answer any questions you have about this story. Maybe. It depends on wether or not you like reading/listening to rants.

A/N: You might have guessed, but I'm taking creative license during this story. I'm mostly focusing on the untold parts and people of the series, as some of you may have figured out. Which means, I'll mostly be using Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs the most with some less used Slytherins. I may skip big parts in the books (and yes, I am planning on doing all seven books) mostly because the parts have to do with Harry and his problems and there isn't a way for Basil and Jasmine to manipulate his situation. You might not have noticed, but they need to stay on school grounds. They can't leave the school and randomly mess with people.

Also, I will be focusing on both the good and bad sides of each house. I enjoyed reading the books, but I didn't like how J. K. Rowling made Gryffindors 'good' and Slytherins 'bad' while the other houses were just, there. My goal is to, while entertaining all of you readers, to show both the good and bad sides of each house. I believe it was Hagrid who said that there was never a witch or wizard who went bad who wasn't in Slytherin. Well, good for him, but what about the good witches and wizards? If all of them went bad, Slytherins would be ruling the world by now. It's a fact and all of you know that it's true. And I also doubt that only Slytherins went bad. It's just not possible. I bet that if Lord Voldemort had been in any other house, he still would have become Lord Voldemort.

Also, I hated how Ravenclaws and Hufflepuffs are pretty much ignored until Harry had a use for them. So, you don't know much about them. Except that Miss Cho has a gaggle of giggling girls with her at all times. Or Luna is 'crazy', but she's my favorite character anyway. Then again, I haven't read the books in a while and I'm writing this story as I read each book. So maybe I'm wrong. Thanks for reading my rant, if you were brave enough to do so.

"There, look."

"Where?"

"Next to the tall kid with red hair." Jasmine said helpfully as she walked past two second year Hufflepuffs. They nodded gratefully before they continued gossiping. She passed many students in the hallways to the Library.

'Did you see his face?'s and 'Did you see his scars?'s followed her the entire way until she walked into the solitude that was the Library. It felt like her home, considering that most of her life had been spent wandering the large place.

When inside her book, she had the ability to transport herself from book to book. So she'd pend hours upon hours reading various book on a variety of topics. In fact, if one looked hard enough, they could even find some muggle books, both non-fiction and fiction. And, when she first died, that's where she spent most of her time. But, as is normal if one is almost constantly reading, she had gone through every book in the library at least three times. And those are the long, boring ones that only a few people read here of there. Her favorites? Those have been read, at the very least, thirty times.

And she would have suffered from boredom, if it wasn't for the fact she had found a way to transport herself to different magical libraries around the world. She knew a majority of the spoken languages, and practically all of the of the written ones. That meant whenever Basil went to school and she had to entertain herself, sometimes she could be found halfway around the world, curled up in her imaginary chair reading a book.

Sure, she was the younger twin, but for the past who-knows-how-long, she had been doing Basil's homework. Most of the time it was just so he could focus on prodding people onto the right track, but sometimes, just sometimes, she wanted a feeling of normalcy. Which is why she sometimes had to force Basil to hand over his work.

Jasmine looked around for a bit before finding Basil at a table near the back. He was sprawled out on the table, snoring lightly. She couldn't help but giggle at him before prodding him awake. He jerked awake, his eyes darting around. He didn't calm down until it finally registered in his head where he was.

"Did I startle you?" Jasmine asked, tilting her head to the side. She knew that Basil couldn't resist it.

"What do you think?" He asked, raising an eyebrow. He had once seen a Malfoy do it. Since then, he had been practicing until it was perfect. At the moment, he was better than any current Malfoys. Good thing he doesn't run into them on a daily basis, isn't it?

"Yes?" Jasmine just smiled before sitting down. She placed her bag on the ground before digging through it. Basil jut watched in boredom until she pulled the book out. "Who gets the book?"

"You get the book on weekdays, I on weekends. If there is an event in which you need magic, either you'll stay near me or you can have the book." Basil sighed, completely bored. He had pulled out a quill and was playing with it.

"When did you figure all this out?" She asked, leaning forward enough to rest her elbows on the table.

"The second you asked." She looked up in shock when he said this. Since when was her brother a quick thinker? "I'm hungry." Basil stood with his bag and headed toward the doors.

"Don't leave me!" She hissed as she chased after him. She had left the book on the table, but it just transported itself into her hands.

Yes, the book. It was source of all her power, all of her magical ability. If she tried to preform any sort of magic without the book near her, her energy reserves would be tapped into. Those reserves were the only thing keeping her solid. But, despite her being able to preform magic when the book was with her, she still didn't have the practical side of magic down yet. She didn't come out of the book often enough in solid form to be able to do so. Though, even if she wasn't as far advanced as her brother, she was still better than most students. Once she started practicing, of course. After about one year, she'd be able to preform seventh year magic easily. It took a year mostly because she had to relearn a lot.

She fell into step with him. They were able to easily predict the way the other would move, making it a simple task to weave through the multitudes of students heading to the Great Hall without getting separated from one another.

It wasn't long before they made it the Great Hall. Basil had found many shortcuts through his years at Hogwarts. When entering, she took notice of the way the house tables were arranged. The night before, she had been too excited to really pay attention to any of it. The table closest to the doorway was Slytherin. She wasn't surprised to find that Malfoy was surrounded by a large group of people. Next were the Ravenclaws. Jasmine couldn't help but smile when she saw Morag saving her a seat. Then were the Hufflepuffs. She had to admit, they weren't bad people. In fact, Basil was originally a Hufflepuff. It was the first house he was ever sorted into.

She and Basil separated in order to go to their tables, Jasmine couldn't help but scowl to the last table, Gryffindor. They weren't bad, per se, but they weren't her favorite people in the world. It was probably their hero complex that annoyed her. Their obliviousness, their 'heroic actions'. It all made her sick. In all her years, she had yet to meet a Gryffindor who actually took things seriously. On the brighter side? The alienation Hermione faced made helping her easy. Though she did feel a pang in her heart for the girl. It's not easy being alone. She was probably a good example of that. Sure, she had her brother. But, for all those years he spent either sleeping or in school? She didn't get to see him. For years at a time they would rarely get a chance to talk. That's probably why she wanted to actually have a true friendship with Hermione. They both needed it.

Not saying that she didn't have a friendship with Morag, but the other girl was more of a way to pass time. She wouldn't be able to spend much time with Basil. And even if she was able to, he'd have his hands full with trying to bend stubborn Slytherins to his will. A very difficult and rigorous task. So Jasmine was, for the first time, going to enjoy her time here and make a few friends. Hell, maybe she'd be able to keep them, even if she'd never be able to see them after her seven years were up.

Jasmine moved quickly, giving Morag a smile as she sat down. Morag had pulled her shoulder length raven hair into a low ponytail, different from yesterday as she had left her hair loose. Jasmine, knowing she didn't have potions today, had left her own hair down from its usual braid. Considering she had taken a shower only a few minutes before she had met Basil, it was still a little damp but it curled beautifully.

"What classes do we have today?" Jasmine asked, grabbing some toast and jam.

"First we have Herbology with Hufflepuffs, then History of Magic with Slytherins, lunch, Charms with Gryffindors, and lastly, Transfiguration with Hufflepuffs." Morag recited easily. Jasmine regarded the other student with awe.

"Have the schedule memorized already? I'm impressed." Both girls looked up when a boy butted into their conversation. "Boot. Terry Boot."

"Jasmine Sullivan." Jasmine looked at him carefully, trying to remember if he had any purpose. That's not meant in a mean way, of course. Everyone has a purpose. But the question is, how much do his actions effect the best possible future? She couldn't remember ever seeing his picture in the book, nor could she bring up a memory of reading about him. Maybe he wasn't needed until later?

"Morag MacDougal."

After the pleasantries and summarized life stories, something which Jasmine skipped, the conversation easily turned over to classes. From keeping mostly quite and paying attention to what her two new 'friends' said, she learned little facts about them. Some things which may end up being helpful in later on.

She learned that Terry, Michael Corner, and Anthony Goldstein had become fast friends through late-night-male-bonding-time.

Morag was worried about the rumors of Professor Snape.

Terry loved the muggle candy called Pixie Stix.

Morag had a little brother who might be a Squib.

Terry found Hufflepuffs to be the most likable out of all the houses.

Morag liked Slytherins because they'd do anything to get what they wanted.

Both disliked Gryffindors because they'd rather mess around than take anything seriously.

Then again, almost everything they said about Gryffindors was biased. Many of the older Ravenclaws had grudges against Gryffindors for some reason or another. Mostly it was because they were ridiculed for liking classes and following rules.

For the past six years, Ravenclaws had been a close second to Slytherins, the winners of the past six years, in the battle for the House Cup. Why? They did what they were told and they did it well. The only reason Slytherins tended to win was because they either cheated or the Ravenclaws decided their efforts would be better put to use in something more entertaining.

Like secretly sabotaging the Gryffindor brooms in either a practice session or during an actual match against either Slytherin or Hufflepuff. Which had happened quite often in the past few years. The surprising thing? They have never been caught. Never. Which probably earned them at least a little respect from the snakes.

Shaking her head a little, Jasmine forced herself out of her daze. She had subconsciously taken note of everything the two had said. Now, she needed a distraction. She had plenty of time to let her mind wander, now was not the time.

"I don't know about you, but I want to head out early. We might get lost." She gave them one of her disarming smiles once there was a lull in the conversation. She had perfected it over the years, so almost everyone would fall under the spell. Ha! A spell that required no magic easily took down two intelligent people, both magic wielders.

"Yeah. That's a good idea. I'll grab Michael and Anthony and we'll all go." She nodded, smile still in place. She looked over at Morag, and her smile quickly turned into a smirk. It looked like the other girl was crushing on Terry. Not that she could blame her. He was good looking, she supposed. But in a boyish way. Jasmine, who had gone through puberty multiple times in the past centuries, had quickly discovered what she liked in a man. Sadly, she wouldn't date the mature, dependable types she liked until two things happened. First, she needed to hit puberty so it wouldn't be weird or awkward. Second, she actually needed to find a mature, dependable guy.

The last one she had had been years ago. Several decades if she remembered correctly. And Tom had been such a nice fellow, despite the fact he wanted to take over the Wizarding World for some stupid reason she couldn't be bothered to remember.

Then again, she did have a part in that. Setting it up so he went to the orphanage, making his life miserable, randomly dumping him. All in a day's work. And yes, she did plan his life so he would one day have a flash of inspiration and decide that he wanted to be known as Lord Voldemort. Though, it did take a long time before he trusted her enough to date her. But, he isn't one of the greatest Dark Lords for nothing. Their dating was done in secret. Why? The excuse was because neither wanted Basil to find out, hunt poor Tommy down, and then, quite horridly, kill him with his all time favorite curse, Atrox Somnium.

Basil had invented it himself, but she didn't tell Tom. Oh no, then he'd know something was up. It took time, practice, and patience to invent a spell, curse, charm, jinx, whatever. So if a fourth year boy invented a spell, not a good thing to let a future Dark Lord know. But, everyone knew from early on that no messed with Basil's sister, or they'd be cursed into nothingness.

The sad thing was, Tom actually was a nice guy. If she had been human and he wasn't supposed to become a Dark Lord, she would have totally started planning their wedding and the names of their children. Besides, he wasn't that bad looking. Now, though? Ugly.

Strange thing? If her dear Tommy, and yes, she did play many practical jokes on him before dating him, didn't become Mister Voldie, all wizards and witches would be turned into ducks. No joke. She had no idea in hell how that was possible, but it was. If Tommy didn't try and take over the world, like all good villains, everyone would become a duck. Or maybe it was Canadian geese? She couldn't be bothered to remember.

Jasmine automatically got out of her chair and followed the others. As she began to move, she forced her thoughts away so she'd be able to look at Basil. The twin seemed to be having an intense conversation with the boy sitting across from him. She wished Basil the best of luck before mentally planning how to approach Hermione.

Basil, once he and his sister separated, he began to feel more at ease. Very strange and unusual, but true. It probably had to do with the fact that he normally went to school when she wasn't around. If she wasn't around, she was safe. A fact that was normal in his life. Besides, he had given her a list of his favorite spells that he had invented himself. And those spells could get her out of many predicaments. Hell, he had probably made those spells just so she wouldn't get into as much trouble with other students. But, with so many memories in his head, couldn't pull up the exact reason why he had created the spells. Hm. Maybe he was just bored?

Jasmine was a happy and free soul, and most of the time didn't realize the consequences of her actions. She was intelligent enough that to guess her way out of most situations, but that knowledge had only come with time. She had died young because she didn't know what she was doing. Basil had even told her that going into the forest would idiotic. There is a reason why the Forbidden Forest is off-limits. But, of course, she had to run off and get herself almost killed, didn't she? She wouldn't be Jasmine if she didn't plan. Or think.

Damn werewolves. If another gets anywhere near his sister, Basil would be sure to kill it without a moments hesitation. Werewolves may be dangerous, but they've got nothing on Basil. He's been around longer than anyone in this entire school, including the ghosts. He's seen and experienced more than anyone could ever hope to achieve.

Then again, sometimes he did believe it to be a curse, more than a gift.

"What are you thinking of?" Basil looked up when the question was asked. Zabini was looking at him, an indifferent mask carefully in place. But he could easily see the curiosity in the other boy's eyes. They weren't exactly friends, but they weren't enemies either. They were simply two boys who accepted the other's presence because they didn't want to be completely alone. They pretended to be friends for both protection and their own selfish needs. Basil needed Zabini in order to control Malfoy. Zabini wanted to find out why the twins had been sent to Hogwarts. It was a well-known fact that Sullivans, while not rich, were extremely good with magic. It was also well known that Sullivans are taught at a young age to not depend on anyone but themselves. So the fact that a Sullivan family kept two children together is very unusual. And very interesting.

"Why?" Basil asked right on back, wishing that he had the book. He wanted, no, needed to know of the other boy would be a danger to him.

"You were frowning." Basil raised his eyebrow at the answer. Since when did Zabini care if he frowned? "And you were growling." Ah, that's why Zabini was interested. Basil knew he had a pretty decent mask, and rarely did he actually show what he was feeling. The only times it broke was when he was with Jasmine or he was feeling extreme emotion.

"I was remembering the past." Basil shrugged before quickly eating his breakfast before standing up. "See you in class." He quickly moved out of the Great Hall, catching sight of Jasmine before she turned a corner with several people surrounding her. Basil glanced around before heading to the Headmaster's office.

Once reaching the gargoyle that protected the office, Basil just grinned at the statue as it asked for the password.

"You know I don't have it, but you are going to let me in, right?" Basil couldn't help but smirk. Yes, it broke his mask. But, man. It felt good threatening something again. Those seven years of sleep always left him feeling very violent. You see, normally Basil waited until he figured out the password. He'd just hang around until somebody said it. Then all he'd do is walk right on up and talk to Dumbledore. But it was important. He didn't have the time to wait.

"No." The gargoyle just smirked back. What could this little kid do?

"Fine then." Basil pulled out his wand, pointing it right at the gargoyle. It was a eleven inch ivy with a core of unicorn hair. Very, and I mean very, good for inducing illusions. "Silencio. Atrox Somnium."

At first, the gargoyle was fairly amused that the kid would use a silencing charm. It didn't recognize the other spell, but that was soon the farthest thing from his mind. Despite being a statue, it could move, and did so often. But now, it's entire body was frozen solid, and could only as it's worst nightmares played before its very eyes.

Basil smirk became a full-fledged grin as he watched the statue struggling. It was times like these when he wished that he could hear the screams. Sadly, if he took of the charm, people would want to know what was happening. And Basil couldn't have that.

"You know, you don't have to do this. All you have to do is let me go by, and I'll remove the curse. However, if you tell anyone, I'll have to come back and never remove it. Understand?" Basil whispered in a fake, sympathetic voice. In reality, all he wanted to do is see something bleed, die. Thinking about werewolves didn't exactly help keep himself calm, and he was completely ready to destroy something. Anything. Anyone.

But, he watched in amusement as the gargoyle nodded and jumped to the side, letting Basil pass. He lifted both spells from the fidgeting gargoyle. Though Basil was a little disappointed. Just a tad. He had to lower the strength of the curse so the gargoyle could hear him. Otherwise, the gargoyle wouldn't have known that a spell had been cast, and would have been stuck within the illusion until Basil got tired of watching. And once it was over, the gargoyle still wouldn't have let Basil past. But, at the moment, Basil was just glad he had gotten to the Headmaster's office.

He knocked on the door before entering. He ignored everything in the room, except Dumbledore. He had to stay focussed. If he went crazy, all of their work would be undone. No good would come from that.

"I need to stay calm, Jasmine needs to stay happy." Basil said quickly, his wand still clenched in his left hand. Him, being an idiot, had let his mind wander into the past. Which then made him irritable. Scratch that. It made him almost uncontrollably angry and violent, if his enjoyment in the pain of the gargoyle was any indication.

Dumbledore smiled at him. "What do you believe should happen?" His eyes twinkled in merriment. Basil just frowned.

"I don't know or care. I have a feeling that I'll blow something up if I don't get control of myself. Jasmine, once she sees me, is going to freak out as well." Basil closed his eyes as he pocketed his wand. If he kept it in his hand any longer, he really would blow something up.

"I suggest that you keep your mind focussed on what needs to happen, and you won't fail."

Basil soaked in the advice before turning and walking out the door. Right before he left he said his equivalent of a farewell.

"Prepare a will." And with that, the older twin was gone. Dumbledore's eyes sparkled, somehow, after years of knowing the twins, understanding what the slightly cryptic message meant.

The rest of the week flew by, the twins easily loosing themselves in the way of Hogwarts. Before they knew it, Friday was there. And an interesting Friday it was going to be at that.

Basil was waiting in one of the secret passage ways he knew Jasmine was going to take. He had to talk to her today. Once she reached him, they continued side-by-side down to the Great Hall.

"I have double potions today. I've gotten close enough to Zabini to manipulate him a bit. You have to start with Granger." Basil glanced at his sister while he was speaking. His lips twitched slightly when he caught her rolling her eyes.

"Stop ordering me around!" She whined loudly. They were early to breakfast, as usual, so there weren't many people there to stare at them. She hated how her brother thought so little of her. "You can't control me. I can do this myself!" Jasmine pouted, trying to get Basil to see it her way. It didn't work.

It was hard, but Basil had to try in order to keep his face blank. It was probably easier than it should have been, considering all homicidal urges had been taken care of earlier in the week. Let's just say, he had visited the Gargoyle later that same night with a fully powered curse. "You listening to me has gotten our jobs done. If you don't hurry, your window of opportunity will close and you'll have to work even harder to correct your mistakes."

"I hate it when you do that! I'm able to keep myself out of trouble just fine!"

"What about that problem with the giant spiders?"

"I was young, inexperienced."

"The enchanted light fixtures?"

"So not my fault my wand randomly decided to enchant things."

"The zombie rats?"

"They were not zombies! They were accidentally reanimated dead rats, okay?"

"The 'accidentally' hatched basilisk?"

"How was I supposed to know that a toad hatching a chicken egg would make a basilisk? It was for a research project!"

"Trying to hide a basilisk?"

"Not my fault it was trying to poison me!"

"Having to learn parseltongue in order to control said basilisk?"

"Okay, not my brightest idea. Considering I still don't know how to speak it."

"Giving said basilisk to Professor Slytherin so he could kill all muggle-borns?"

"Fine! You happy now? I'll go gain Hermione's trust." Jasmine crossed her arms, frowning. "Meanie-pants."

"Very." He said, ignoring Jasmine's pathetic attempt at an insult. Once within the Great Hall, the two separated, Jasmine stomping off in order to join her small group of friends in Ravenclaw. Basil silently chuckled at the sight.

Before he knew it, he was quickly making his way through the dungeons. Zabini was at his side, wondering how the other student knew his way around so well. It had been a week and if Zabini wasn't with Basil, there was a very good chance he wouldn't make it to his class on time.

Neither spoke, as was the usual for them. They both found it useless to gossip, chat for no reason, or brag. And that's why, despite the fact they were both using each other, they had become decent friends. Of course, neither would spill their deepest, darkest secrets. But they weren't as indifferent as they pretended to be. It's a well known fact that most people can't survive well without other people around. It's also a shocking fact that Slytherins are actually people. Therefore, most Slytherins need another human being to talk to, otherwise they face complete and utter insanity.

The two Slytherins were one of the first people there, Granger being the first. She sat near the front, alone. She had turned when the turn entered the classroom, and Basil couldn't help but give her a small smile. It was quick, almost nonexistent, but he knew she had caught it. The surprised look on her face gave it away.

The two Slytherins quickly made their way to the very back of the classroom. It was more of Basil's idea of where to sit, really. He wanted to be able to see everyone. And that is so much easier the farther back one sits. If Zabini had any complaints on where they were sitting, he said nothing.

It wasn't long before students started filing in. The Gryffindors were shivering and complaining about the cold. The dungeons, as they were underground, are much colder then the rest of the castle. Slytherins are probably the only ones not affected by the cold, since they live even farther down in the dungeons. In fact, if someone was actually able to ask Slytherins what their favorite season was without either being laughed at, insulted, or attacked, they would either say winter or autumn.

Snape, much like Professor Flitwick, started class by doing roll call. Snape had decided to say some snappy remark about Harry. It didn't take long before Snape started his riveting speech about potions. Basil liked the Potions class fine, but he enjoyed Charms and Transfiguration much more. He preferred classes where he could get ideas for new spells. Jasmine, on the other hand, adored Potions. She had never really excelled in classes where obvious magic was needed.

"You are here to learn the subtle science and exact art of potion-making. As there is little foolish wand-waving here, many of you will hardly believe that this is magic. I don't expect you will really understand the beauty of the softly simmering cauldron with its shimmering fumes, the delicate power of liquids that creep through human veins, bewitching the mind, ensnaring the senses… I can teach you how to bottle fame, brew glory, even stopper death – if you aren't as big a bunch of dunderheads I usually have to teach." Snape was one of the few teachers that could actually keep a class quiet for long periods of time. His voice was barely louder than a whisper, but it was easily heard in the room. There was something about Professor Snape that kept the students quiet. Maybe the waves of killing intent that rolled off his body?

Basil couldn't help but smirk when he saw Potter's confused look when Snape began quizzing him on potion ingredients. The only reason he knew what they were was because Jasmine had drilled it in to his head one night during the summer.

What would you get if you added powered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood? The Draught of Living Death.

Where would you look if you wanted a bezoar? It's a stone from the stomach of a goat. It can cure most poisons.

What's the difference between monkshood and wolfsbane? None. They're the same plant.

Basil's eyes crinkled in interest when Snape answered his own questions. And Basil was right. If only the Professor had called on him, then maybe something more interesting would have happened.

After that episode, the class was fairly dull, besides the time when Longbottom melted his cauldron. Both he and Zabini had to hold back laughter when boils started popping up all over. But besides that, the class was uneventful.

Basil didn't bother waiting for Zabini. The other boy had told Basil earlier that he'd be heading down to the dungeons right after class. Basil, knowing that his sister had gotten out of Herbology an hour earlier, headed up to the Library to meet her. Actually, he wasn't going to meet her there. He was going to stand behind some bookshelves and spy on her. Just to make sure she did as she was told. Basil shook his head in annoyance. Really, those seven years in Gryffindor had rotted her brain. And made her much more defiant than she used to be.

Entering the Library silently, he moved quickly along the bookcases until he found Jasmine doodling on a piece of parchment. Staying hidden, he watched his sister. She had an entire week to figure out what she was going to do. Now it was time to see if it was even possible for her to come up with a plan.

Not long after Basil settled in, Hermione entered the Library.

Jasmine looked up when she felt a small tingle at the nape of her neck. She spotted Hermione moving to one of the many studying tables. That tingle, she had figured out early on, alerted her when a target either enters or leaves a room. The intensity of the tingle completely depends on the person and their personality.

Hermione's tingle was gentle and could easily be confused for a soft breeze. It was, strangely enough, calming. Ron's was quick, and somewhat painful. It's sort of like getting stung by a bee, it hurts, but then it's gone. Harry's was that pins and needles feeling. You know, that strange feeling that you feel when a limb falls asleep? That was Harry's. And then there was the Draco Tingle, as Jasmine had so lovingly dubbed it. It was this annoying itch that would not go away no matter how many times she scratched at it. And it would just stay there for several minutes until it got bored of tormenting her. She'd be lying if she said she didn't try and avoid Draco as much a possible.

Once the other girl had settled in, Jasmine gathered up her things and moved over towards her. Sitting down a across from Hermione, Jasmine flashed her a quick smile.

"Hello. I'm Jasmine Sullivan!" Once again, Jasmine made use of her disarming smile. It seemed to put the other girl at ease a little. She was still jumpy though. Jasmine made a quick mental note to not make any sudden movements.

"Hermione Granger." She looked back down at her book. Jasmine recognized the book easily. Hogwarts: A History had always been one of her favorites.

"I know. I heard that you're the best in Transfiguration. For our year, of course. I wanted to ask for your advice on the essay she gave us last class." Jasmine caught the look Hermione was about to give her, so she hurried on to finish her train of thought. "I don't want to copy, I swear! Since our essay was on the basics of Transfiguration, I wanted to branch out a bit and talk about possible reasons why some people grasp the concepts on Transfiguration better than others. You're good, and I wanted to ask about what you do in class and compare it to several students I've asked."

"I visualize what I want it to become in my head. And I actually concentrate. Most people in my class can't even to be bothered to do that." Hermione looked a little sad as she said that. Maybe being excluded was hurting her more than it was helping the cause? Jasmine promised herself that she'd talk to Basil about it, to see if it was possible to speed up Hermione's friendship problems and make things better.

"Thanks! Do you mind if I work here? I might have more questions the longer I work…" It wasn't hard getting Hermione to agree in letting Jasmine sit there. They worked quietly, only breaking the silence for questions. They ended up working past lunch and Jasmine was surprised when she saw the time.

"I've got to go. I've DADA now." Jasmine stood and repacked her belongings. They bid each other farewell, but, right before she raced off, she said one last thing. "You've should've been a Ravenclaw. Even though you aren't, I hope we can be friends." Jasmine moved so fast after that, you'd have thought something horrid was chasing her.

She frowned once she made it out of the Library, easily falling into step with Basil who, as far as she knew, had been standing there the entire time.

"Friends?"

"Can you just wait a second? I'm tried, bored, and hungry. I actually had to take my time doing homework today, instead of flying through it. You know how painful that is? And on top of that, I'm hungry! I skipped lunch because you, and now I have to go to a joke of a class! I learned more defense spells hanging around with Tommy than I do with an actual teacher!"

Basil had pulled out a sandwich during her rant and was eating it. "You want any?" His question was answered when said sandwich was stolen and devoured in a matter of seconds. "And will you refrain from calling him that nickname? You aren't dating him anymore."

"Of course I wouldn't be dating him now. Not only is he old, he's ugly. Very, very ugly. But he's still my Tommy."

"You two broke up."

"He wanted to take over the world. I wanted to settle down and have children."

"You can't get married and you can't have kids."

"Crush my dreams, why don't you?"

"It's the truth."

"Well, he's my Tommy and you can't stop that!"

"I'll curse him to death."

"No you can't! If you do, then another Dark Lord will take over."

"He can't be as bad as Voldemort."

"You're right. He's worse."

"That's impossible. We chose this path because, despite all the death, killing, and absolute misery, it was harder to get any worse than this. And this was the best possible future."

"You're right. The worst, which will happen if Tommy is killed by the wrong person, is Dark Lord Ronald."

Basil tried to hide a snort. "You're joking, right?"

"No, I'm not! If Tommy is killed by the wrong person, Ron goes crazy and becomes the next Dark Lord. Harry will be his most devoted follower, and since most people will do whatever Harry says, taking over the world will be easy!"

"Since when did your dreams get so vivid?"

"And then, Harry will decide that he wants to be the Ultimate Ruler, so he'll off Dark Lord Ronald and become just that, Ultimate Ruler Harry!"

"Sounds lovely." Now it was obvious that Basil had stopped paying attention to Jasmine, despite the fact she was still ranting.

"And then, completely pissed off, Draco offs Harry during a majestic battle and becomes Supreme Master Malfoy. And then, he enslaves the entire human race for the rest of time."

"Amazing."

"And that's why you can't kill Tommy. And and the whole soul thing."

"Fine. I won't kill him. I'll just torture him a bit."

"You can't do that either, if you do-"

"Hey, look. Your classroom. I bet whatever you were going to tell me has to do with ultimate destruction, so I'll wait for that enchanting story about what will happen to the world if I do something idiotic with bated breath." Basil gave a small wave. "Bye, now."

"I hate your sarcasm. Mark my words, if Tommy didn't hate me right now, I'd send him after you. And why aren't you going to class? We have this class together!"

"Not possible, as he was only using you to get to me." Basil smirked as he walked down the hallway. He knew it'd take a few seconds before Jasmine would realize what he said. But when she did, it's be hilarious. "And I'm skipping. I don't feel too good."

"Shut up, Basil! Tommy is not GAY!" She screamed at him, despite the fact people paused to stare at them. "You're so not sick! You just don't want to spend time with me! Is that right? You're such a horrible person! I bet you're just jealous that Tommy likes me more than you!"

Ah. Sometimes, revenge could be sweet. Very sweet indeed. And yes, he's horribly jealous that Lord Voldemort likes his sister more than himself. Cue sarcasm, please. Besides, he needed to go find Zabini and see if he would have a partner in crime while skipping class. Besides, it wasn't as if Professor What's-His-Name would care. He'd be too busy stuttering, anyway.