Why so Interested in Dusty Books? Private

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Ruby had a strong desire for knowledge – a love of learning – and because of this, she was often in the library. Libraries were a home to her, with shelves and stacks full of information of all kinds. The Hogwarts library was no exception, and its size did not daunt her but instead made her pleased. She reckoned that by the end of her time here, she would probably have finished most if not all of the books in here. After all, she was in the library every day – even if it was to just return the books from the day or two before and to get out new ones – and she went through them at a surprising rate.

Her eyes darted across the words on the pages of the current one that she was reading, and a stack of books lay perfectly positioned on the table in front of her, lined up precisely with the edge of it. It was non-fiction, something that would directly help her in her quest for knowledge. The content was much more advanced than her year, but she saw no value in sticking to age-based things when she could learn more than that. She had already completed her homework for as far ahead as they had been assigned, and although she didn't particularly need to study, she had done some of it and reviewed the year's content last week.

She broke her concentration for a moment to cast a glance at the closest window. She could just about see the sun's position when she craned her neck, and from there she could estimate the time, given that the sunset in Scotland around this time of year was close to 10 pm. That meant that it was probably around 8:10, nearing 8:15. The hours had gone by quickly, but not in a frustrating way – they didn't feel like they had just disappeared, as the young Slytherin had learned to maximize her time. Her gaze briefly traveled around the room as she checked to see if much had changed – which it hadn't. She was analytical, calculating, and observant, so she generally paid close attention to her surroundings and gleaned every bit of information she could from conversations that she overheard and appearances. No one here had particularly caught her eye or gained her interest, but that could possibly change if she talked to one of them. She wouldn't refuse a conversation if it was brought to her, but today and right now she wasn't particularly seeking one and didn't feel like approaching people.

By now, her eyes and attention had been brought back to her book, but before long she heard footsteps of a person approaching her. They were not ones she recognized – she knew the sound and pattern of the footsteps of anyone that she spent much time around or of people that had caught her interest. She wondered who it was and what they wanted, and she had considered not looking up, but realized that it could have been a professor. However, she saw no reason why a professor would be coming up to her, and even if they had, they wouldn't have been so hurried – which was what the footsteps had indicated. The person that now stood near her would have had to run, jog, or walk rather quickly in order to make that sound, and a professor would likely not be doing that. She finished her paragraph quickly and glanced at the page number so that if she had to be interrupted, then she would at least be at a good stopping place. The person started speaking and Ruby finally dragged her gaze up.

Her eyes flicked over what she now saw was a female student, in a barely noticeable, very quick way. It would have been hard for the girl to spot, even if she had been paying close attention. Ruby met the girl's eyes now, and she would appear to be listening and devoting her attention to the stranger, but she was privately analyzing what she had just seen. The girl's house, Gryffindor, was obvious based on the crest on her robes. From the way she had acted and spoken, and the words she had said, Ruby reckoned that some or all of the following traits applied – friendly, outgoing, amiable, possibly eager to please, confident, and possibly uncaring about appearance. She was slightly impressed and pleased to see that her fellow student stood up straight. Ruby's own back was perfectly straight at almost all times, but that seemed to be a bit of a rarity among many others their age.

However, the girl's clothes were a mess compared to Ruby's. The Slytherin had been raised to look pristine and immaculate at all times, with not a thread, fold, or hair out of place, whereas this girl looked like her hair hadn't even been brushed and her robes were messy and on the large side. When the Gryffindor had spoken, Ruby began picking apart her accent. Scottish, but with influence from something else, too. Northern English, perhaps, she thought as she recalled the general sound of each regional accent. Interesting. Scottish heritage, then? Had she lived in Scotland for the majority of her life? Although the English was certainly noticeable and played a key part in it, the Scottish was quite dominant. Then again, it was very a distinct thing in general, whether someone had been there for their whole life or only a few years. There was also her name – Kamryn – a variation of a Scottish name itself.

Only a few seconds had passed since Kamryn had spoken, but Ruby decided that enough analyses were complete for now that she could at least respond. Her piercing, cold, blue gaze still met the Gryffindor's eyes, and it showed a mild curiosity directed towards the student who had walked up to her. “Hello. I'm Ruby Cazares. No, I'm not studying for the Charms test – I did that a while ago. Are you having trouble with it?” Ruby spoke in a neutral tone – it wasn't unfriendly, but it was still far from friendly or revealing much emotion in general. Ruby's question at the end was not necessarily an offer to help – merely something that would elicit a response and help her to learn a bit more about Kamryn's strengths and possible study habits. Ruby needed to know if she had competition, right?

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