Always in the Last Place You Look PV Finished

Melissa walked out to the grounds, getting some fresh air. Kato trotted beside her. Her little kitten had her head high and flicked her tail every now and then. Mel stopped and sat down. Stroking her cat's fur. "Well aren't you a little cutie pie," she said. Kato purred and rolled onto her back, hoping to get a belly rub. Melissa laughed and said,"Awww" I don't know how I would get through this school year without Kato- she thought. She honestly didn't know. Life would be so different without her little fluffy friend. Thank god her father let her buy a pet.

Melissa was enjoying the peacefulness and played with Kato until she heard a girl shouting. They were shouting about something. No, whoever was shouting wasn't mad or anything but there was something else in her voice. There was fear...and worry in their voice. Someone must've lost their pet or something, Melissa thought. I would probably feel the same if I lost Kato... When she turned around to find whoever was shouting, Kato dashed away, tripping on her little paws every few steps. "KATO! Where are you going?" Mel shouted in disbelief. Her little kitten had never run off before.

@Katrina Walker & @Aoife Lovett

The grounds of Hogwarts castle were vast and she had the subtle feeling that she'd be into her fifth year by the time she'd seen all of it. Her robes trailed behind her as she explored taking in the large rickety wooden bridge that crossed the ravine beside the castle. She continued onward looking off toward the lake and the edge of the forbidden forest. As well as the relatively old looking hut that sat on the forest's edge that looked like it hadn't seen many occupants in a long while besides perhaps the occasional wild creature that might seek shelter within. As she continued across the grounds she felt something tug upon the back of her robes.

For the moment she didn't give it much thought she primarily wrote it up to her robes getting snagged on a twig or something. But as she continued onward she blinked as she felt something weighing down heavier upon her robes. Turning around she looked around only to see nothing behind her. "Wha' the?" She raised a brow as she looked around crossing her arms a brow raised questioningly. Perhaps it was a ghost? As she felt another tug upon her robes she whirled around once more trying to catch a glimpse of whatever spectral creature might be seeking to pester her. "Alrigh' Oo's there?" She said.

"Meow"

She blinked as she heard the soft meow of a cat. "Wait..." She undid the front of her robes and slipped them off her shoulders holding it out before her to find a small cat clinging to the back of her robes staring up at her innocently as it kept its claws buried into the fabric. "Well than...Who are you li'l fella~" She said with a soft smile as she gathered her robes up into her arms into a small bundle for the cat to rest in. "Are ye lost?" She said looking over the cat for a collar or some sort of identifying tag. "Maybe yer a stray?" She said concern bleeding into her expression. She hummed looking around for a moment trying to see if anyone was looking for this poor lost kitty.

It wasn't long though before yet another cat came bounding up to her sweeping between her legs nearly knocking her off her feet. "Wha' the!?" She twisted around to watch the cat as it continued onward looking down at her new friend. "Yer li'l friends are all over the place today aren' ye?" She said.

Katrina was frantic now. Boomerang always came racing whenever she called. She had trained him since he was hardly walking to come when she called. There had been several occasions when Boomerang had come from seemly across the other side of the castle. Was he really that far away? What was keeping him?

The third year felt tears creeping across her vision. No, she wouldn't cry. She had been so good keeping a hold of her emotions. She was not going to cry. No. No. Despite her inward chastises, Katrina felt a drop of warm liquid run a path down her cheek. She was crying, over her cat. Katrina had been so good to not cry over things, but it felt like all of her work had been for nothing as the tears rolled.

Katrina eventually sunk to the ground. She pulled her knees up to her chest and took a few deep breaths. It was going to be okay. It was all going to be okay. She was going to find Boomerang. Boomerang was going to be okay. It was all going to be okay.

There was a voice, someone calling? Katrina was just so sad. She couldn't quite hear it. Katrina stood up again and raised her hand up to her face to block the sun. She couldn't see anything yet, but she was sure there was something out there.

@Aoife Lovett @Melissa Carson

Melissa ran as fast as she could, chasing Kato. Her little kitten was actually faster than she thought. After a while of chasing, she slowed down. Mel was too tired from all of her classes while her kitty was full of energy. Melissa walked around, looking for any sign of Kato. She almost missed it but because she was walking, she found her little cat. It had run over to another girl who was also in Ravenclaw. Mel approached the girl and said, "Hi! So sorry that my cat came to you. She's always getting into mischief-" Then, she saw another cat. It was a ginger one. "Is this your cat?" she asked. The girl shook her head.

If it's not hers, then...it's the other girl's cat! Melissa thought. Then, as loud as she possibly could, she yelled, "We found your cat!" to whoever was looking for it earlier. Mel just hoped that the girl heard. If not, then she would have to ask everyone if the cat belonged to them. She then faced the other girl and said, "My name is Melissa by the way." As she picked up her cat, she added, "This is Kato by the way."

@Katrina Walker & @Aoife Lovett

Always in the Last Place You Look

Aoife looked up from the ginger cat cradled in her arms and blinked as she felt the other cat that had dashed between her feet earlier brush up against her ankle. She didn't know when it had happened but it seemed clear that she was now some sort of epicenter of lost cats. As the girl approached it became clear that the kitten currently curling around her ankles. She offered the girl a small smile "Ah dinnae worry 'bout it. Compared tae other surprises I could 'ave had today? This one ain' so bad." She said as she gently ran a hand over the ginger cat cradled in her arms and nodding down at the cat resting at her feet. As the other girl asked if the cat in her arms was hers she shook her head. "No I wish I had a li'l sweetie like this one 'ere but he isn' mine." She said.

In the next moments however she was immediately startled as the girl in front of her suddenly called out rather loudly to someone she couldn't see. Her eyes widened for a moment as the girl called out about having found someone else's cat. She was quiet for a moment waiting for the girl to address her again. She glanced down at the cat resting on her robes and shrugged "Guess we found yer mum or da' haven't we?" She asked receiving a soft meow in response. Finally, as the girl introduced herself she smiled "Nice tae meet ye Melissa. Names Aoife." She said as the girl drew closer to pick up her cat. "An' nice tae meet ye too Kato." She said smiling at the cat.

@Melissa Carson
@Katrina Walker

Katrina wiped away the tears and was thankful that she hadn't been full on sobbing. There was no trace of her pathetic crying session. Back to being emotionless. Back to being in control of what others thought of her. Back to being who she wanted to be.

"We found your cat!"

Katrina's heart skipped a beat. Was that for her? Had someone else lost a cat? Nonetheless, Katrina was sprinting towards the noise. She crested a rather large hill and was rewarded with the sight of a small orange fluff of a feline that was, indeed Boomerang. And two other girls and a cat. Katrina raced down the hill as fast as she possible could, a unusual grin on her face.

"Boomerang!" Katrina practically squealed his name. Katrina clicked her tongue and he bounded out of the girl's arms and raced right into Katrina's outstretched ones. He began purring furiously and rubbed himself against her collarbone. His fur was a bit matted and his paws a bit muddy, but Katrina didn't mind. Boomerang was in her arms and that was all that mattered.

Oh yeah. There were other people there. Katrina hid a soft blush and returned to reality. Boomerang pounced out of her arms and began rubbing against the other girl's [Aoife] legs. There was another kitten there and two girls. "Thank you so much for finding Boomerang, I don't know what I would have done if I had lost him," Katrina waited a beat, "Oh, and my name is Katrina and he is Boomerang," Katrina pointed to her small orange fluff.

@Aoife Lovett @Melissa Carson

Melissa looked up after picking up Kato and saw a girl running towards her and Aoife. When she was pretty close, she clicked her tongue and the little orange cat flew out of Aoife's hands. So this is the cat's owner... she thought. The girl then introduced herself and said her name was Katrina. "No problem Katrina! Honestly, I also wouldn't know what to do if I lost my little kitten," Mel said. She would be devastated, to be honest. "My name is Melissa. Mel for short and this little furball is Kato." she then said, stroking Kato's fur. Kato was purring softly in her arms.

After a while of stroking, her little kitten jumped out of her hands and landed gracefully on the ground. "Oh Kato...don't run off again okay?" Melissa said. She had enough chasing already. Kato didn't run though. Instead, she trotted over to Boomerang and licked him. They seemed to be getting along as they sniffed each other and purred. It was a really cute sight. "I guess they really like each other," Mel said to Katrina as their little cats chased each other's tails. They chased each other around and around but then, Kato flopped onto her belly. "Aww," Melissa said as she bent down and picked up the gray cat.

@Katrina Walker & @Aoife Lovett

"O-Oh!" Aoife blinked as the little orange cat cradled in her arms hopped out of them as another girl appeared. Just from the expression of relief upon her face Aoife could sort of tell that this was likely the cat's owner. As the girl called out the cat's name and the cat eagerly bounded up to her Aoife couldn't help but smile at the reunion she witnessed in front of her. Though part of her also felt somewhat saddened at having to part with Boomerang. No doubt if anyone had failed to claim them she wouldn't have any issue taking the little feline in herself. Sure she might have to work at convincing her parents to allow her to keep them but she figured she picked up enough cunning from Moira to pull it off.

But watching Boomerang rub up against his owner so affectionately and witnessing the girl's relief at finding her beloved pet overshadowed any regrets she might have had. As the girl Katrina she'd come to learn as she introduced herself spoke up to thank her Aoife offered a soft warm smile in return. "Well a' wouldnae' say I found 'im. Seems more like he ended up findin' me if anythin'." She said with a small shrug of her shoulders smiling as Boomerang hopped out of Katrina's arms to approach once more rubbing himself against her legs. She knelt down to softly rub the kitten behind the ears. "Isn' tha' right Boomerang?" She cooed smiling at the cat before pulling herself back up.

She watched as Boomerang bounded off once more this time not going far as he began to play with the cat belonging to Melissa, Kato if she remembered the little kittens name correctly. She smiled as she watched the two felines run about swiping at one another's tails playfully and chasing one another across the grass. It took her a few moments to realize that this entire time introductions had been made by everyone around her even for the cats. Yet she'd failed to give one of her own. "A-Ah 'ow rude o'me I never got 'round tae introducin' mahself. Aoife a pleasure to be meetin' the both of ye."

@Melissa Carson
@Katrina Walker

Katrina was glad that it seemed that her crying session had gone down in secret. Again, Katrina thanked herself for the amount of effort she put into perfecting her body language and facial expressions. A bonus of knowing how to tame her emotions is knowing how to read others. It came in handy often enough, at least for her it was.

The girl that Boomerang had taken to be his professional attention giver mentioned that Boomerang likely found her. It seemed Boomerang had a life outside of trailing Katrina. Perhaps he had just been out exploring. Or had made a new friend. Katrina decided to investigate all of this later.

The girl who owned the other cat introduced herself as Melissa or Mel for short. Her kitten named Kato. The other girl who Boomerang liked introduced herself as Aoife. Katrina catalogued the names in her mind and nodded to each.

Boomerang pounced off and began chasing Kato's tail. They tussled for a bit before Boomerang stopped and began licking Kato. Just as Kato flopped on his back, Boomerang began licking himself. A little 'aww' escaped Katrina and a smile pulled at her lip. She didn't have too much time to appreciate all of his cute antics.

As soon as she began to relax, a loud gong interrupted the talking, "GONG". Katrina jumped with shock as the loud noise echoed through the hills. "Uh, oh, only ten minutes of lunch left, we'd better head back,"

Katrina crouched down and clicked her tongue calling Boomerang into her arms. She walked off, slowly at first in case the girls wanted to join her. She still had enough time to reread today's work for Potions.

Katrina Walker Exits Thread