Closed Spooky Inquiries

[Jasper Night]

Ever since Jasper had talked to Lily at the end of last year, he'd been curious about something. Lily had mentioned one of her cousins in Ravenclaw could tell the best scary stories, even saying they would scare Jasper. He couldn't just ignore a statement like that. No, for Jasper, that was a challenge. So he'd asked Lily for a few more details about the cousin, scoffing when he heard she was in the year below them. As if some first- no, second year girl could scare him. He had to prove to both himself and to Lily that that was utter nonsense. He'd asked Lily to point her out to him, and as he wandered through the school looking for something to do, he spotted the girl. Well, talking to her was something to do. He fell into step besides her and grinned at her. "You're Lily's cousin, right?" He asked, just to be sure he had the right girl.

 

[Emily Hastings]

Emily was unsure what she wanted to do with the new semester. She had gotten into a good study habit, but hadn't found a good way to remember what she'd studied. She could tell you anything about a Stephen King novel- but not a thing about charms or potions. She held a book to her chest, lost in thought as she walked. She was startled from her thoughts as an older boy fell in step next to her and spoke. She raised a brow critically at him. "You're probably looking for the other one. My sister Avaria is probably in the arts room." She answered simply before turning to go down the other hall. She wasn't sure who that boy was, or why he thought he could get away with looking that cute, but she wanted no part of it. Ava would handle him better.

 

[Jasper Night]

Jasper gave the younger girl what he hoped was an encouraging smile. He wondered if she was shy, or if he intimated her. He was older, and taller too. maybe she had even heard rumors about bullies in his year and house, though those would be Blake and Tyler. Jasper liked mischief, but he'd never hurt someone or laugh at them. Not unless they deserved it, of course. The girl raised an eyebrow at him and told him that he was probably looking for her sister. "No, I don't mean Avaria. You're Emily right? Lily mentioned you." He insisted. "She said you're good at telling scary stories, said they'd even scare me." He puffed up his chest. "Impossible, of course, but it made me curious." He looked at her again, frowning a bit. It was a bit hard to imagine this was the girl that could be so terrifying, apparently. "Or is there another one?" He asked uncertainly.

 

[Emily Hastings]

Emily looked to the boy as he brought up Lily. Lily had sent him? She listened as he went on and chuckled. "Alright, then you are looking for me. We do have a younger brother, but he's more into jump scares and sneaking up on people than true horror." She told him, a slight grin on her face. "You seem very sure that I can't scare you. That's good." She liked a challenge. She flipped her hair behind her shoulder. "I'll accept that challenge. So, why don't you tell me a little bit about what you like?" She inquired. If she could get a better feel on who he was, she would know where to start.

 

[Jasper Night]

Jasper was pleased he had the right girl after that. "You have a brother too? Lily has so many family members. I have a few cousins too, but I'm not very close to most of them." Two were actually in Emily's year, but he didn't know either Shale or Aegerine very well and didn't much like what he did know of them, so he would much rather not be associated with them. "Of course you can't scare me, you're not very scary. No offense." He told her, looking down at her with a smile. He was surprised when she asked him about himself. "Uh... I like Quidditch, I'm decent at it. I'm pretty funny if I say so myself, am good at pranks... I go to the forest a lot, it's not scary. I took Lily there the other day, and she felt perfectly safe with me." He said, even though he wasn't entirely sure if that was true. "Is that what you wanna know, or something else? If you're trying to get me to tell you my worst fears, I'll have to disappoint you. Nothing scares me." He boasted with a grin at her.

 

[Emily Hastings]

Emily gave him a small smile. "I'm sure Lily was just as surprised as you are. She's recently discovered three new cousins- myself included." She didn't ask who he was related to because she didn't particularly care. She couldn't help but laugh at his statement. "Oh, of course, I'm not. It's the stories that scare you. And my skill in telling them." She boasted a bit. She listened to his response before shaking her head. "I wasn't looking for your worst fears. I was just trying to figure you out. Pranks, Quidditch, going into the forest. That sounds like you like being in control, influencing those around you, and coming out on top but without directly being a jerk about it." She observed, almost instantly knowing what story she wanted to tell him. Of course, it was probably the story she would have chosen in the first place, but that wasn't the point.

 

[Jasper Night]

Jasper whistled. "Man, three new cousins is more than me. I have two cousins I never knew much about until last year, but they both hate me. And each other too." He shrugged. "Actually, I think one is in your dorm. Eggy- I mean, 'Aegerine'." He pulled a face at her name. "She's not a fan of me." He shrugged. "But that's okay, not everyone can like me. Only the smart people." He joked. He was curious to hear her boast about her skill in telling scary stories and he definitely wanted to hear one now. As she analyzed him, Jasper's eyebrows went up. "Oh. Wow. I guess that's sort of true. Thanks for not calling me a jerk, too." He said, smiling at her. "Do you have time to scare me now? Or do you need to wait until it's dark outside for the right atmosphere?"

 

[Emily Hastings]

Emily chuckled at his words. That was interesting news indeed. Maybe this was the school for secret families. She paused as he mentioned Aegerine. "Aegerine is my friend." She stated firmly. Did that mean she shouldn't talk to Jasper now? She didn't know the friend rules. She could ask later. Emily smiled a little at his surprise. "You can't be too much of a jerk if Lily likes you. She's a cinnamon roll." She shrugged. "The boy she slapped? He was a jerk." She pulled a face. She thought about his question. "Yeah, waiting for night is better. I know a good spot. Why don't you meet me in the student lounge after dinner? I know a good place we can go." She nodded decisively.

 

[Jasper Night]

Jasper raised his hands defensively as Emily said Aegerine was her friend. "Right, okay. No making fun of her then." He said, giving her a winning smile. "But... we're family, so it's fine. You know? But it's no wonder she's your friend, I bet she's all into the scary story stuff too." Honestly, Eggy scared Jasper a bit. She was definitely someone who he shouldn't mess with, but Jasper also wanted to poke fun at his younger cousins. What else was the point of cousins? "She is pretty much a cinnamon roll." He agreed. "But I got her to go into the forest with me. So maybe I'm a bad influence on her." He teased. But the teasing smile fell from his face a moment later. "Wait, who did Lily slap?" Jasper hadn't heard this news yet. He was so distracted by this that it took him a moment to realize Emily was making plans. "Right, student lounge after dinner. I'll be there." He told her. "If it's the forest, I'll warn you that it doesn't scare me."

 

[Emily Hastings]

Emily shrugged as Jasper said family was meant to tease each other. "You would like our little brother Arthur then. He's very mischevious. He died Avaria's hair pink and hid a toad in her bag." She shook her head. "He hasn't gotten me yet." Maybe he was afraid too. Who knew? She shook her head as he asked who Lily slapped. "I'm not surprised she didn't tell you." She chuckled. "She accidentally smacked into that one boy- Tyler I think. Not the quidditch one but his lackey. I found him bullying her and being a jerk. She was trying not to cry. I told her to go see Elliot- he always makes her feel better." Emily couldn't help but smirk. "But as she walked by him he called Elliot pathetic. She twirled right around and slapped him right across the face." She laughed. "It was glorious. She didn't even stutter when she told him off for it." She shook her head. Jasper agreed then and she smiled wider. "Who said anything about the forest?" She smirked.

 

[Jasper Night]

Jasper laughed at the antics of Emily's little brother. "He sounds fun, though those are pretty basic pranks. Maybe I should teach him my ways." He pondered. The story of Lily slapping Tyler was honestly a little hard to believe, and he looked at Emily with narrowed eyes. "You're sure that was Lily? Slapping Tyler of all people?" He asked, trying and failing to imagine it. He could believe her defending Elliot, she was practically glued to his side, but slapping Tyler was something else. Emily implied they weren't going to the forest, and Jasper shrugged. "I'm just saying... but what is scarier at Hogwarts than the forest?" It was by far the most forbidden and dangerous place on the grounds, right?

 

[Emily Hastings]

Emily shook her head. "Teach him what you want, just know he'll turn it around on you." She warned. She might not have known her little brother long but she knew that much. She laughed at his response. "I don't know who was more shocked. Tyler, me, or Lily." She grinned. "He was so surprised he couldn't even retaliate. I don't trust him to leave it at that though," She grimaced but shook her head. Lily could handle it. "I wouldn't believe it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes, either." She told him. "But I watched her do it." She couldn't help the grin that spread across her face. "Going to the most obvious place for scary stories is how you get caught. And are on guard." She told him with a wink. "Just meet me tonight. You'll see."

 

[Jasper Night]

It was hard to believe Emily about Lily, though he didn't see why she would lie. True or not, Jasper was definitely going to tell his friends about it. Hopefully the story would spread a bit and embarrass Tyler. But when she said she didn't trust him to leave it at that, Jasper nodded. "I wouldn't either. He's sneaky." He said, frowning. "I hope he doesn't hurt Lily." He mumbled as he thought it over. He scoffed when she said that going to the most obvious place would get him caught. He didn't bring up how he had been caught in the forest more than once. "But the forest is cool. Totally worth it." But he couldn't help being curious about this scary place, so he nodded. "Fine. I'll see you tonight." He said, intrigued.