After Transfiguration, Naomi headed to the library to study a little for finals, primarily to work on a ridiculously long Arithmancy proof and to try and read up on various documentation on wild cats and various reptiles: The Nine Lives of Curiosity: An Analysis and History on Felines; Scales, Claws, and Fangs: A Guide to Breeding Reptiles; and A Flambé: Creating Creature Diets and Training Temperaments. These three books were stacked to Naomi's side as she had her Arithmancy textbook opened in front of her while she scribbled away an equation on a piece of parchment, describing how personality formulas could be accurately manipulated to predict the behavior of a moving enchanted object. Some days Arithmancy really just blinded her with numbers.

Then, one of the textbooks to her side began inching off the top of the stack until it teetered off the edge of the table and began falling towards the floor. Without lifting her quill her eyes off her parchment, Naomi threw a foot out in the path of the book, letting it slide and balance against her instep before she gently let it silently and gently inch onto the floor.

That was the fifteenth time such a thing had happened to Naomi that day, and the Slytherin knew exactly why it was happening.

At the beginning of the week Naomi had wanted to see if she could get away with taking her CoMC creature for her finals to every class--specifically every on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday. It had resulted in several clever accidents that often ended with Naomi having a clear desk and a clever large-pawed camouflaged cat curled up in her lap.

And now the thing was trying to do the same thing in the library.

Naomi bent over and put the book back on top of her stack with a firm, "No," before she moved the stack of books to the other side of her Arithmancy assignment. She didn't pay any mind to the sounds of someone approaching as she tried to focus on making the creature behave as well as doing her assignment. However, apparently, the Saberfur reacted to the approaching figure with an awkward line of color lazily flicking over the table--its tail brushing against the table, if someone cared to notice it.

It was getting close to the end of the term, and finals loomed for the students. Despite the coming tests, the Professors still inundated them with work. At least, that was how Addison felt about the work. It seemed to be piling on all around her. For that matter, it seemed to have gotten worse after that Ancient Runes project, in her opinion. At either rate, she was determined to keep her grades up, and she was willing to put in the work for that grade. Quite frankly, she was determined to do well at Hogwarts.

After Transfiguration class, Addison made her way to the library. It was a familiar route, from every class that she had. Whenever she had free time, she liked to visit the library. It was usually quieter in there, especially when in comparison to the Common Room. But, she made a habit of visiting the library more often, especially when it was cold. Otherwise, she liked to relax outside and complete her work in the breeze that blows over the grounds. That was even more peaceful than the library, but either environment worked well for her.

As she walked, she already had a game plan in mind for what she wanted to do. First off, she would tackle Arithmancy. Ancient Runes was typically first on her list, but she already completed that work last night, so there was no need to even bother checking. Plus, she was rather fond of Arithmancy. Its reliance on numbers was rather intriguing. Frequently, it reminded her of the muggle math curriculum that she was missing to come study at Hogwarts. Of course, she was always able to find a way to maintain that educational connection. During her breaks from the school, she rather enjoyed studying the muggle information. It fascinated her, just as the Arithmency work managed to do as well.

Entering the library, Addison took a look around for anyone that she knew. It was always helpful to attempt the work with someone else, even if it was only for her to ask questions or to just talk to. After all, the social qualities helped too relieve the stress that the work seemed to accompany. She didn't really see anyone else that she knew, amongst the books, except for a certain Sytherin fourth year sitting by herself and working away. While looking, she caught sight of some kind of color shifting on the table. Not really paying attention to it, since it went away so quickly, she approached the table. "Hi Naomi, do you mind if I sit here?" she asked, gesturing to a seat where Naomi's items weren't piled up.

Naomi dropped her quill and curiously raised her gaze toward Addison. She let her eyes fall on the the seat, the empty spot on the table that accommodated the camouflaged cat, and then back on the Ravenclaw before her voice lilted a casual,"No."

She swept her hand over the spot, as if removing some sort of dust, but the gesture was merely to get the cat to move from the spot. Instead, it just stopped moving and turned its head towards Naomi, creating an uneven pattern and coloring in the table; then the pattern decorating the creature's covert profile realigned with the wood pattern of the table, letting Naomi be aware that it simply returned its stare towards Addison rather than move.

The Slytherin critically pursed her lips before she moved her hand back to her quill, poising it between her fingers and thumb, "How is your studying going on?" Naomi started on another stack of equations with a slow and meticulous rhythm, "I've picked up my Arithmancy proof from 'di other night, it's getting long--I guess I picked a rough topic," the witch then turned her head to the side and nodded her chin towards the Ravenclaw, "What is yours on?" Naomi slid her gaze back towards the cat, which was nearly impossible to make out on the table now, but when the witch finally did so she realized it had laid down, still watching the Ravenclaw.

Addison nodded at Naomi's response, for her to sit at the seat. Setting her bag on the ground next to the seat, she didn't even notice that her fellow fourth year swept over the spot on the table. For that matter, she didn't even notice the uneven pattern and coloring in the table, focusing more on sitting down in the seat.

When she finally looked up, she offered the Slytherin girl a small smile before reaching into her bag to take out some Arithmancy materials. Considering her enjoyment in the class, she had already begun the proof necessary for the class. Understanding the fact that the proof would take a while to complete, she used a certain action that she didn't like to normally use: procrastination. She had put off the proof, wanting to finish manageable work that she knew wouldn't take her nearly as long.

Taking out an ink well and her quill, Addison was just about to continue on with her proof when Naomi asked her a question. Before immediately answering, she listened to how the other girl talked about her relatively complex topic. Knowing that answering the question with plenty of enthusiasm would naturally show off her nerdy personality, although it was part of her belief that everyone knew of her as a nerd, she didn't want to intentionally confirm that. Besides, she had bound to have confirmed that belief after her first year.

At any rate, she still couldn't resist the general joy that she expressed with most school work that she completed. Unlike most teenagers, she actually liked schoolwork. "Mine's going quite smoothly, but it's getting a bit on the longer side as well. Though, I may be writing too much. Um, mine's on expression[1], how about yours?" she asked, turning her attention to her Arithmancy proof and started to continue to write it.

1.	I am guessing this from this thread, unless you're thinking of a proof on a different topic.

Naomi gave a lazily pursed smile back towards Addison before she focused her eyes on the cat again. After it remained still for a few moments she let her gaze fell on Addison's paper. "Characterizing objects, mostly magical ones, and applying personality formulas to 'dem." Her hazel gaze flicked back to her parchment for a moment before she arched an eyebrow and looked towards the Ravenclaw again.

The dark-skinned witch then moved her gaze onto her parchment and dropped her pen nib onto the paper, "Expression?" the Slytherin's voice curiously lilted as her quill began to slowly scratch against the papyrus, "Dat a general topic or you got a specific use for it?"

A gentle rustling came from the floor and Naomi's gaze moved to the spot where her cat was--and, as far as she could tell, it wasn't there anymore. The witch then lowered her gaze towards the floor searching for the chameleon of a cat messing with something it shouldn't--then Naomi realized that there wasn't anything on the ground by Addison's feet, and the girl's bag wasn't on the table. It only took a moment for Naomi to what the cat had done.

"You set your bag on 'di ground, yeah?"

Addison nodded to Naomi's choice. It was certainly an interesting choice at that, but certainly one that sounded like it would require a relatively long proof for the class. That always seemed to be the point of these projects. They would always be long, and something for the students to research or look up individually. It would then all cumulate into a presentation at the end, usually. Just like with the Ancient Runes project just last month.

"Oh, right, yes. How the character numbers expresses one's personality traits after utilizing the number charts," she added to her Slytherin classmate. Addison sometimes had to remind herself to include all the details when explaining a situation. In this case, it was with her project. It was just that she wasn't always prepared to start discussing something, especially if she wasn't fully finished with her work yet.

Turning her gaze to her Arithmancy work, Addison continued her thought on the parchment, barely noticing Naomi searching for something. It wasn't until the other witch asked if she placed her bag on the ground. "Yeah, I put it down next to the chair," she recalled, looking down at the floor beside the chair. Apparently Naomi asked, since her bag was no where to be found. "At least, I thought that I put it on the ground," she frowned. Taking a quick gaze around the library, she looked back to Naomi. "I'm not hallucinating, right? I came here with my bag?" she asked, more for confirmation than anything else. Thankfully, she never really carried around anything of vast personal importance. Sure, her artwork was normally in her bag, but she had grown attached to her work. So, it was probably the most important work in her bag.

"No, no hallucination," Naomi lazily confirmed as she surveyed the room and clicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth, "But just as smart as one." She rolled her eyes and heaved a sigh, "Sherlock, get--" part of the floor at Naomi's feet then seemed to misalign and change colors as it leapt into the Slytherin's lap. Then it ruffled its scales and faded into view as a black cat creature.

Naomi wove her arms together, cleary not impressed as Sherlock flicked its spiny tail and gave a trill of a purr as it cast a wide-eye stare towards Addison. Naomi cast her gaze at the floor again--still no bag in sight. "Sometimes I t'ink I should've named him after a thief..." the cat seemed quite pleased with its rightly earned attention and curled up in the Slytherin's lap, "Sorry 'bout 'di bag--he's never hid anyt'ing in th' library, but it probably didn't get far."

The witch then pulled the creature from her lap and set it on the table again. Really though, Naomi was starting to think this final exam was a test of patience rather than one of creatures.

Naomi confirmed that Addison wasn't hallucinating, and she let out a sigh of relief. Indeed, she wasn't imagining things. That type of stuff didn't really happen to her, so she was worried that hallucinations may be starting. As Naomi continued about calling something smart as a hallucination, she gave Naomi a confused look, not really understanding what the Sytherin was talking about.

Then, Addison saw the creature. It was some type of black cat in Naomi's lap, that Naomi had called Sherlock. Indeed, she should have known. She had seen a few creatures in the Ravenclaw Common Room and dorms recently, as her roommates had that same project that Naomi had. Before the creatures were fully trained and understood by the students, they would always cause so much havoc.

"It's fine. I'll need to think of a place he could have hid it..." Addison trailed off. From what she could remember of her family's dog hiding things, he would always hide things in darker places. Figuring that a cat would do the same, including a magical cat, she decided that it would be best to try the darker spaces in the library. "Um, Naomi, does ... Sherlock have any predictable behavior or favorite hiding spaces?" she asked. At the very least, the questions should help her understand the likely places where her bag could be located.

Despite how relaxing it was to know Addison didn't mind this predicament, Naomi remained indifferent and just shrugged herself up from her seat as she scooped Sherlock up into her arms. "Not really," she responded to the Ravenclaw's question.

The creature's scaly tail wrapped around her arm as she turned towards Addison, "But he gets weird when you come near to one of his spots." She positioned Sherlock so that its heavy paws rested against her shoulder.

"So, if I can keep hold of him," she pressed her hand against the creature's back and nodded her head towards one of the bookshelves. "And we pay him enough mind, we should be able to find it."

Naomi's green eyes then fell towards her homework before falling on Addison, hopefilly their homework would be fine while they went on a hunt for Addisons belongings.

"Oh," Addison responded simply at Naomi's answer. Considering the fact that Sherlock was Naomi's project, she had to naturally assume that the Slytherin knew everything about Sherlock. Of course, this was a magical creature. Since she wasn't taking Care of Magical Creatures, she really had nothing to base her thoughts on, anyway.

Then, Naomi told her that Sherlock acted differently when you went near of his hiding places. While it wasn't a lot of information, it was certainly something to go on. Addison nodded to what Naomi said. "Ok then, my bag must be somewhere in here. He wasn't gone for long, right? So, it couldn't be too far away, she commented, more for reassuring herself with reasoning. Addison couldn't help to shift her eyes over to her essay. She felt bad that she wasn't working on it, and even worse now that Naomi wasn't working on her own. Hopefully her bag could be found quickly so she could get back to work. She would have been far less reasonable if her work went missing or was damaged. Being the perfectionist that she was, she wanted her work to be in top shape.

"Alright, I guess we should start looking then..." Addison trailed off. After glancing over at Naomi, she started to walk over to a nearby bookshelf.

Naomi could only hug Sherlock in a firm embrace as she gave Addison a helpless shrug. She knew how to handle the creature, certainly, but the creature also knew how to handle her—which was often Naomi’s problem. Maybe if Bai Li taught her a little bit of legilimency, she could have some inkling, at least, of what the creature was thinking about.

“Nah,” she said in response to the bag not being far away, “He probably got t’rough a few shelves ‘fore he came back,” she ran her fingers along the creature’s ‘fur’ before she traded a dissatisfied glance with it, “He’s fast, but not ‘dat fast.”

The Slytherin followed Addison over to the bookshelf, but Sherlock only busies himself with his paw and rubbed its cheek against Naomi’s shoulder.

“I’d start playing wit’ ‘di bookshelf,” she ran the toe of her boot along some books on the lowest shelf, “he doesn’t seem concerned enough yet.”

She then tapped her foot against a few more books: one creaked, one rattled, and one slid out and traded places with another book—which caused Sherlock’s ears to stand up, before he looked at the books and calmed down again.

“Hmm, false alarm.”

Taking a glance at Sherlock in Naomi's arms, Addison nodded to what the Slytherin said to her. "Right." Naturally, she had no idea about the creature's movements. For that matter, she never even noticed Sherlock before Naomi spoke of her missing bag. Perhaps Sherlock was what was causing the strange shifting of colors and movement before. Clearly, not taking Care of Magical Creatures had its disadvantages. Nevertheless, that was her choice not to do so anyway. She rather enjoyed the electives that she was taking: Ancient Runes and Arithmancy. Quite frankly, she was very willing to continue all of her classes past her OWL year, assuming that she scored well on all of the exams.

"Ok. I guess that would help," she agreed with Naomi's assistance of physically touching the books. The creature appeared to be a very good hider. What they needed now was a very good finder. But, touching the books would certainly help the given situation. The Slytherin ran her foot against the lowest bookshelf, which caused a false alarm from Sherlock.

Looking at Sherlock briefly, the Ravenclaw ran her fingers against the spines of the books on the shelf above the one Naomi touched just moments ago. A few creeks, and a very low shriek came from the books that she touched. Turning her head ever so slightly, she eyed Sherlock to see his reaction.