Research Undertaking PV Ruby Cazares Closed

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Ruby had an insatiable desire for knowledge and was incredibly curious. That led her to books, and she spent time every day in the library, even if it was just to quickly return some books and check more out. The library was a wonderful resource. It was full of information, and it was basically all laid out for her. To absorb that knowledge, she only had to read and occasionally take notes, but that wasn't a problem. She was a fast and dedicated reader, after all.

Ruby didn't know many people that she would actually call true, close friends, which meant that she didn't necessarily have to bother spending time with people. Of course, she knew the importance of social interaction, so she did occasionally go talk to others – to find out more about them, make acquaintances or possibly allies, whatever. Sometimes, she also just observed them. It helped her to learn more about humans in general and how they worked, and it was something that she found reasonably interesting. It could also be applied to her life immediately after she learned something new about it, and she could use that in her interactions with others.

Despite her reading, observations, drawing (yes, that was another thing she did daily), homework, and classes, Ruby still felt like she wasn't doing enough. She needed to have some fun. This time, it would possibly be regarding the exploration of more knowledge. She needed some hands-on things that she could learn for herself, through actions. Experiments, perhaps? She had done a lot of them in the past, but had a surprising lack of them here at Hogwarts so far. Where would she start, though? That question led her back to books, and therefore the library. There were many topics that interested her, but she would just have to pick one for now. Books were a perfect place in which to find a topic.

She walked into the library and over to the shelves, ready to search for titles that stood out. However, on her way, she passed someone that caught her eye. It was a boy with a stack of books near him, and the titles were things that she was rather interested in. They seemed like good books – ones that she would probably want to read soon. People with similar reading interests were people that she would perhaps like to talk with. If the boy was reading all of this, he probably wanted to learn, too. Did that mean that he was her kind of person? Would she be able to have an intelligent conversation with him? Was he like-minded?

She wasn't sure whether to interrupt him or not. After all, she knew how frustrating it could be when someone interrupted her own reading. But, if she didn't, she risked losing what could possibly be her only chance. So, she backtracked and stepped away from the shelves, walking over to the boy. He seemed like he had only just started, anyway. Perhaps he wouldn't mind as much… Nevertheless, Ruby had to admit that she was a little nervous. She didn't want to mess up too badly, and hoped that he wouldn't be annoyed at her. “Hello. Those are some good books you've chosen… are they for something?” Perhaps they could be for research or a project. Maybe they were for classes, she wasn't sure… people generally had a reason for doing things, though, and she was curious to see if his was similar to her own. Of course, that was assuming he'd be willing to respond…

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While Ruby spoke and right after she finished, she kept her eyes focused entirely on him, his face, and his body language. It might seem like she was just being polite and giving him her attention while they spoke, but she was searching. Searching for those little reactions that people had – a slight eyebrow raise, a twitch of the mouth, a tiny frown, something that gave away what they were feeling. Even when people didn't mean to give away what they thought and felt, these minuscule expressions that lasted for perhaps a fraction of a second could show a lot. She noticed his flicker of annoyance. Understandable, as she had disturbed him. She wouldn't particularly want to be interrupted during her reading and knowledge-gaining periods unless the person turned out to be someone that she thought she could actually become friends with down the line. Those people seemed increasingly rare for her.

She didn't know the Ravenclaw boy's opinion on these things, but she doubted that he would enjoy being interrupted when he had so clearly just started reading. Ruby was not unaware of this, and she had seen the slight annoyance appear, as well as the way he held himself, with his body language clearly stating that he was closed off. Nevertheless, she wasn't going to end the conversation here. Perhaps it was one of her characteristics – that she kept pushing, and pushing… and pushing. She was definitely a persistent girl, and maybe she pushed too much. She pushed the limits of what she was allowed/supposed to do. She pushed the limits of what she was supposed to be able to do. Sometimes, it affected others – ranging from mild annoyance with her to endangering their safety. It wasn't that she didn't know when to stop, no. It just came from that sense of curiosity, the need to explore and find out what she could and couldn't do, and what provoked reactions from different types of people.

How much would she push this one? That would depend on multiple things… There was always the option of actually leaving him alone and being nice and considerate, but that could be so boring. Besides, how could she learn that way? Perhaps Hengist saw the gleam in her eyes that spoke of intelligence and confidence and indicated a possible danger, but she could see the wariness in his. Eyes were so wonderfully expressive. They truly were a window to the soul, yet many people failed to make eye contact, and even when they did, they didn't maintain it for long. However, she had noticed when he met her eyes – the quick, possibly calculating look he gave her. Was he another analytical student? That could certainly be interesting...

She supposed that she should reply if she wanted this interaction to continue. She had definitely seen the not-so-subtle hint when he pointedly looked down at his book, but she wasn't quite done yet. “Do you have a love of learning, too, then, or are they merely for studying purposes so that you won't have to do as much in future years?” she asked. Her tone as she spoke was surprisingly genuine. She didn't want anything from him (yet), nor did she want to elicit a particular reaction. She had a real interest in his response, curious as to what type of person he was. Of course, if he ended the conversation or ended up getting annoyed with her, she wouldn't care and certainly wouldn't be losing any sleep over it. She was used to people hating her, but she couldn't find it in her to be bothered by that fact. It didn't matter much to her, anyway. She thought about her words for a moment and scanned the book's cover once more, then added with a smirk, “The content of these seems like it'd be good for use in experiments or to test out.” It was a bit of a risky comment, but nevertheless, she was still protected enough.

If he was a similar type of person to her, then perhaps her words would intrigue him. On the other hand, perhaps he'd want nothing to do with her because of it. If he went to a teacher, though, what proof did he have? That comment could hardly be used as evidence for her rule-breaking and desire to experiment with/test things. She also hadn't explicitly said that she would be the one to do it, nor had she said when she would do it. What if she did it as an adult? That would hardly be against the rules. Of course, her real intent was to read these books at some point and use the content in her experiments and future events, but he didn't know that for sure.

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"Do you have a love of learning, too, then, or are they merely for studying purposes so that you won't have to do as much in future years?"

"The content of these seems like it'd be good for use in experiments or to test out."

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Ruby waited. It would not appear that she was staring at him, it would not appear that she was watching for a response. She wasn't truly staring at him, merely observing subtly. It would only seem like she was paying attention. She had mastered this balance so that others wouldn't get uncomfortable because of it and wouldn't realize what she was doing – that she was actually constantly gathering information. The Slytherin easily picked up on his annoyance and that he was uninterested – it would be hard not to – and wondered if she should just leave him alone. She decided that she would if he continued to remain like this for a little longer, but otherwise she would act mostly the same way that she was now.

His first reply was still on the cold, sharp, short side, but he had yet to react to her comment about experimentation. To be fair, it was only an off-hand statement, something that she wasn't using as a tool to probe for answers and reactions. Sure, she was curious about how he'd react, but it hadn't been intended to push him. However, whether it was intentional or not, it had certainly caught the Ravenclaw's interest. He seemed wary, but definitely curious now. He was paying attention, had put his book down, and was no longer signifying that he was extremely closed off.

How interesting. Was he like-minded, then – a fellow experimenter – or had her comment just been slightly out of the ordinary? She had no way of knowing that he was also considering experimentation, as that part had been pure chance, but his books would be perfect for that. No, she still did not know that they were considering doing some of the same things. That didn't mean that she had missed the relative intensity of his reaction, though. Clearly, he had some connection to this topic, in one way or another…

His verbal response had caused her to have to hide a smile. She had most definitely gained his attention, but the question was what to do with it. She could come out and tell him the whole truth, including the fact that she did indeed experiment, or she could be more vague while still not lying. After a second or two had passed since his response, she shrugged. “I was the one who spoke about it, no need to get worked up. Yes, I suppose they could get in trouble, but it depends on the situation, if they can find loopholes easily, and if they get caught.” She let a smirk finally slip onto her face at this. There was no attempt to hide anything, no lying involved. He hadn't specified enough in his question, but she had responded to what he had provided her with. “Also, why would you be getting expelled? Are you the one experimenting in this entirely hypothetical situation?”

She was now getting more direct. He could lie to her if he wanted, but she'd probably notice, and even if she didn't, it wasn't a big deal. His body language would probably still tell her something. The sarcasm she had used when saying "entirely hypothetical" was a bit riskier than her other comments on her part, but he would remain without any evidence to use against her. What would he say if he tried to report her to someone – "I think she used sarcasm when we were talking about somewhat hypothetical situations"? That wouldn't exactly condemn her. Her statements had been worded in a way that she hadn't given much away about herself, and he would have nothing confirming any negative or rule-breaking suspicions regarding her. The phrasing of a sentence could be everything, and she made sure to use it to her advantage as much as she could.

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“I was the one who spoke about it, no need to get worked up. Yes, I suppose they could get in trouble, but it depends on the situation, if they can find loopholes easily, and if they get caught. Also, why would you be getting expelled? Are you the one experimenting in this entirely hypothetical situation?”

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Despite all the somewhat false formality and indirectness, Ruby could feel that they were both starting to relax a bit. She was pleased that he had at least seemed to pick up on what she had said and the way she had said it – connecting the dots to figure out that she did, in fact, have a tendency to occasionally break the rules, but she could almost always talk her way out of it if someone caught her, or just not get caught in the first place. Perhaps he knew that about her, but she was not unduly worried. He still didn't have proof, and he had revealed that he might be partaking in similar activities, too.

Ruby had no intention of turning him in if she found out anything else. After all, what would be the point of that? What would she gain? Unless she had concrete evidence, it wouldn't be much. Besides, she had no motivation to do that. She didn't dislike him – in fact, maybe he could be a potential friend down the line. Maybe they could experiment together. She didn't really do that with anyone else, except maybe with three of her cousins – one in particular. Even then, she did it by herself most of the time, away from others so that she could maintain high levels of focus and concentration without being disturbed or accidentally hurting anyone. Maybe she could make an exception for someone intelligent. Someone different to many others…

There was still his response, lingering in the air between them. “Perhaps I have thought about it in-depth, but thinking is different from acting. Thinking can hardly get one in trouble around here, is that not true? Last time I checked, that wasn't rule-breaking. Why are you mentioning forbidden actions? What kind are you thinking of?” Of course, she did do more than just think about these things. She acted on them. However, since he had not asked about that or mentioned that, she wouldn't reveal that bit of information… at least, not yet.

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“Perhaps I have thought about it in-depth, but thinking is different from acting. Thinking can hardly get one in trouble around here, is that not true? Last time I checked, that wasn't rule-breaking. Why are you mentioning forbidden actions? What kind are you thinking of?”

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Finally, someone who seemed to understand. He was certainly interesting and like-minded enough that she would likely be able to have some fun with him if they ever bonded. Besides, who else did she know apart from her Ravenclaw cousin and herself that liked both experimenting and learning this much? Finding someone like this and becoming friends with them was certainly a very interesting and attractive prospect.

When he pointed out that only forbidden actions needed loopholes, Ruby nodded and smirked. “Good point, but it is also possible to enjoy finding loopholes simply for the sake of it, or just in case it's ever needed.” He answered her question about what type of actions he was thinking of, and in doing so confirmed the notion that he did, in fact, do something at least somewhat similar to what she did. His comment after that just strengthened this, and Ruby knew for sure that he was the type of person that she would enjoy being around. I like him.

His apparent disregard of both rules and safety was… different to most, to say the least. He had seemed very gleeful at the prospect of harm and danger, and she wasn't sure whether to be extremely concerned or whether his words were merely said to be dramatic. Noticing the look in his eyes, she concluded that he was most definitely insane and absolutely out of his mind, and so she then proceeded to promptly reply with a laugh, “Sign me up.” After all, not all insanity was bad. Besides, was this truly insanity?

He suggested dropping the act and Ruby nodded. “I agree.” She also now finally had something to call him – a name. Hengist. She took the hand that he extended, giving a firm, proper handshake. She grinned, her eyes sparkling with happiness, excitement, and mischief. “It's a pleasure to meet you.” She paused for a moment to think about his name. “Hengist? Are you named after Hengist of Hengist and Horsa, the Anglo-Saxon rulers? Cool name nevertheless, I'm afraid mine isn't nearly as interesting. It's Ruby Cazares. As for your question,” she smirked, “there's a lot that I've thought up. I've done some of it, planned out some other things.” She lowered her voice to say the next bit. “I might do an experiment with making little flamethrowers soon, amongst other things. What kind of experiments do you do? I personally do most kinds, really…”

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