The air in Diagon Alley was crisp, cold, and riddled with indescribable smells. It was the Spinks family's second day shopping in London, and the day that Addie would be getting her very own pet for Hogwarts. She had decided on a kitten, to remind her of the street cats back home in Tenby.
As the family approached the Magical Menagerie, Adeline was delighted to see another young student exiting the shop with a beautiful Snowy Owl. What a beautiful creature... the girl thought to herself, excitement taking over as she realized that she would have that same ear to ear smile in just a few moments.
The family entered the little shop, and were instantly bombarded with a symphony of sounds. Cooing owls, mewing cats, the deep rumbles of toads... it was quite charming, really. Adeline's mother gave her a reassuring pat on the back, before leaning in to say "You only get to pick once, Ad. Choose your new friend carefully." Adeline rolled her eyes, but ultimately was thankful for her mothers advice.
She began her search at the cats of course. As she approached them, a beautiful Bengal peaked her interest. She approached the kitten, offering her hand for it to sniff... but to her surprise, it seemed frankly uninterested. She sighed, wiggling her fingers a bit. Still no response. Oh well. She thought to herself, and turned to the rest of the cats. They were all perfect in their own ways; but something wasn't right.
Why didn't she feel that spark? That unexplainable chemistry between a pet and their person that Adeline had enjoyed over the years with her kneazle, Renfro. I wish I could just bring Renfro. the young girl solemnly sighed.
As Adeline turned from the cats, a strange sense of defeat washed over her. That feeling only lasted a couple seconds, as it was interrupted by a strange sound. A deep wrooo wrooo sound that Adeline thought must have been a toad. Her eyes darted to where the sound came from, but to her surprise, she was staring at something entirely un-toad like.
It was an owl. Not just any owl, however. This owl was tiny, no larger than 25cm, and it stared through Adeline with large, golden eyes. The little owl hopped to the front of it's cage and repeated it's call, beckoning the girl forward.
Adeline chuckled stepping forward. She quickly realized that, just like her, this owl loved shiny things. Her many charm bracelets had caught it's attention from across the room, and it just had to have a closer look. Addie read the ornate tag on the birds cage This was a Morepork Owl, an owl Adeline had never heard of. She poked her finger into the cage, and was pleasantly surprised when the tiny creature came and hopped on her finger, it's large eyes peering into hers.
Adeline smiled at the ball of feathers perched on her hand. "Well... you are no cat." the girl chuckled to herself "But how about we call you Kitty?" The owl blinked slowly, and Addie took that as the response she needed.
This little owl was most definitely her match.
