Mr. Owl
Location: Owlery
Date: Early October
Mentions: @Luka Egorov
Word count: 522
"Holy amount of stairs..." Aurora panted dramatically and wipes the sweats that are slowly beading on her forehead with her sleeves. It was a torture, climbing up all the way to the owlery. Even if she's a healthy, fit young kid, she hates climbing stairs as workouts.
In Hogwarts, owls are used as letter deliverers. They were said to be five times more effective than humans. They were also the only method of contacting with the outside world since Hogwarts didn't allow any usage of technology. The owlery was located at the highest level of West Tower, even higher than Ravenclaw's level. While she understands that owls needed certain conditions to live comfortably, she felt that climbing up thousands of staircase to send a message was ridiculous. But that's how it is for a long time, so she will just have to suck it up then.
It is evening, and usually sunsets could easily be seen in Hogwarts. However today, a heavy downpour occured out of nowhere. Her flying class even got cancelled due to the weather, worried it will cause unwanted accidents.
Finally, stepping to the top level, the circular stone room with open walls greeted her. School's, staff's and student's owls that resides in the room seems to be affected somehow by the weather. Most of them were chilling in their nest and taken cover from the mists that had drizzle in through the openings.
"Hm? what should i do now?" It is her first time at the owlery, she didn't sent out any letters to her mother since getting here. It was mostly due to her busy adjusting and also procrastinating. So, figuring that her mother might be worried from the lack of news, she decided to write a compilation of things that had happened all together. But now she was quite confused on what her next step should be.
Although now, what should she do? Does she just give the letter to any owl? Wait, can they even read the addresses?
She looked down at her neat letter, with a few stickers stuck on the envelope. The girl slowly approach an owl that was nearest to her "Uh.. hi mister, o-or miss..? I was wondering if you could send out my letter?" She awkwardly asked the bird.
The brown feathered owl gives a comical look to the girl before looking to the rain outside and then to the girl again. As if saying "Don't you see that storm outside? What the hell do you expect me to do?"
Aurora scratch her not itchy head before trying again. "Do i need to make a payment? I dont have any rats, but uh.. i have this.. lemon candy?" She pulls out a wrapped candy from her pocket and shows it to the owl.
"It's a bit sour for a bird tho- OW!" The girl yelped in surprise and retract her hand when the owl peck her hand. "Hey! What was that for?"
The girl sighed frustratedly. So i just came up here for nothing?
Last edited by Aurora Coleman on 25 Apr 2026, 18:27, edited 1 time in total.
i am a museum of everything i have loved.
Mr. Owl
Wordcount: 630
The rain beat hard against the weathered stones of the West Tower. It sounded loud and sloppy like a wild song masking the subdued, typical hoots of the owls. Luka was in a dark corner of the fourth level by a stone ledge. It however made the room open, with windows without glass designed to allow cold winds that boomed loads of wet mist and frosty air into the room.
Luka had just gone up the high spiral staircase. He had done it hundreds of times without thinking but still never understood why the founders picked this part to be the school's "post office". The highest tower, cold and breezy, always redolent of the crap of owls.
He had in his hand a letter for his family. The envelope was carefully folded and sealed with red wax, the crest of the Egorov family was emblazoned across its surface.
Luka waited that the storm might settle down a little. The school owls right where he was at be seemed equally miserable. Many were buried deep inside their nests, fluffed up with damp feathers and half closing their eyes in annoyance at the condition of the weather. Luka understood that feeling. He didn't want to be here either.
Later, he caught some movement on the level below.
A Gryffindor student stepped into the room, her short bobbed hair, clinging to her forehead as she sweated in little rivulets slowly washing down the stairs and through her uniform. In the shadows, Luka watched silently. He had seen her around in some classes, but they never talked.
Unfortunately, when she approached a big brown owl and started to speak to it, he raised an eyebrow.
That wasn't strange by itself. Several wizards conversed with their animals as if they were buddies. But the way she asked the owl engine to take her letter, made it sound unsure, as if talking to a disgruntled mailman.
And then she whipped out a lemon drop.
"A lemon drop? For an owl?" Luka almost laughed. He had to bite his cheek on the inside to keep a straight face. It was common sense in his world to know how to deal with magical creatures. Seeing this girl hoping to bribe a trained messenger owl with Muggle candy sort of felt like watching a cutesy but awkward scene unfold.
The owl had other ideas as it was basically telling her what it thought of its plans. The owl uttered a loud hoot and pecked at her hand.
"OW!"
The sound brought Luka back to reality A tinge of guilt sat in the centre of his chest. But he could no longer just stand by and watch. He had never been good at speaking to other men, but his father always said that it was the duty of a nobleman to assist anyone who called for help. "Responsibility", his father always said.
Luka peered around the stone pillar. His shoes made an almost soundless pat at the wet floor. And he remained a few paces back so as not to frighten.
"That won't eat it," he said, nodding toward the lemon drop still in her hand. His eyes roamed from the candy to her face, which was crimson with pain or embarrassment. "The owls here are trained to accept mail based on magical addresses, not... lemon drops."
He looked at her hand for the small peck in it. Although not serious, it had to've hurt. The owl was close by, calmly preening its feathers as if it had won the argument.
Luka winced a little. Feel guilty for interrupting all of a sudden. He briefly considered simply going.
"Are you... okay?" he asked more quietly. "That must have hurt. If you want the owl to cooperate, use dried flesh or good owl snacks."
Mr. Owl
word count: 400
mentions: @Luka Egorov
"Aurora frowned at the brown owl, recoiling her hand and rubbing the spot where it had pecked her. "The owls here are trained to accept mail based on magical addresses, not... lemon drops," . At the sound of a voice, she flinched in surprise, though she relaxed slightly upon seeing a boy standing nearby.
Her cheeks warmed as she realized someone had witnessed her embarassing antics. "Well... I didn't carry any of those in my pocket," she muttered while patting her pockets. Aurora studied the newcomer from beneath her bangs. Judging by his attire, he must be a Slytherin. He was striking, with pale, flawless skin, silky platinum hair, and delicate features that just worked perfectly together. His clothes bear no creases at all.
Woah, he looks like a princess, she thought. Compared to his pristine appearance, Aurora felt like a little troll, her hair was damp from sweat and the misty rain. She couldn't help but imagine a ridiculous scenario: if they were both in danger and a prince had to choose who to save, he’d surely pick the boy first and leave her behind.
The thought stung, slightly fueling her insecurity. Just a few days ago, a girl, a pureblood girl had made a biting comment about Aurora's messy hair. She even picks at her half-muggle background, saying how 'most muggles are dirty'. It had somehow sparks some self conciousness of how people sees and thinks of her.
"I'm fine!" she snapped, quickly smoothing her hair, feeling defensive all of a sudden. You see, Aurora wasn't a judgemental person, she usually wouldn't put a label on people she just met, but the incident a few days ago had attacked her self-esteem greatly. She had now consider almost all purebloods, especially Slytherins, to be jerks.
Her gaze flickered to the envelope in his hand, which was closed with an elegant wax seal. Her own letter to her mother looked childish in comparison, covered in doodles and stickers. He's a pureblood, too, she realized. He probably thinks I'm an idiot. They all do.
Stepping back, she straightened her back to mimic a confidence she didn't feel. "I-I can do it myself! I don't need your help." She cluthes the letter close to her chest, trying her best to hide it from his line of sight. "W-what? You think i don't know how to send out letters?"
Reducio
so sorry its a bit short!
i am a museum of everything i have loved.
Mr. Owl
Wordcount: 418
Luka blinked.
Instinctively, he took half a step back. His hands at his side went stiff, fingers twitching before settling again. It reminded him of the time he had stepped on Matryoshka's tail as a child and earned a furious scratch across his hand. It left him puzzled, hurt, and completely lost as to what had just happened.
A wave of bewilderment surged through him: "Did I say something wrong?"
He had only spoken of an owl's native behavior. A self-evident truth. Owls don't eat lemon drops. What on earth could be offensive about that? But clearly, the girl in front of him did not see it that way. Her grip tightened on the letter. His eyes were drawn there without permission. It was covered in rainbow-colored stickers and random, childish scribbles. The words on it felt warmer somehow, more real than his own cold envelope.
"I... I wasn't calling you stupid." His voice was husky with embarrassment, so low it might be devoured by the sound of rain. He had never excelled in dealing with people who had that kind of robust, straightforward energy. "I guess I thought, well... that owl looks a bit too peeved."
To show he meant no harm, Luka faced the stone perches. He walked up to another eagle owl that was perched silently in the nearby shadows. He moved with slow, deliberate motions, like someone who had done this many times before. A tiny leather cord hung from its leg, and he carefully tied his letter to it. Then he withdrew from his pocket a small dried lump of meat, which he proffered to the owl. The owl snatched the treat, flapped its enormous wings a couple of times, then disappeared through the window into the storm-blanketed whiteness, carrying his letter home.
As the owl flew off, Luka gave a small sigh of relief. He turned and saw the red peck mark still blushing on the girl's hand. Instead of walking away, he fished into his pocket, pulled out a tiny cloth bag and nudged it along the stone ledge toward her. The bag slid over, stopping inches from her hand, which trembling from the cold or possibly outrage.
"There are seeds and dried meat for owls in there," Luka said, using as steady a voice as possible. "On a day with this kind of disgusting weather, you ought to feed it before you shove the letter in. Otherwise, no matter how much you try to coax it, it won't go anywhere."
Btw, Matryoshka is actually Luka's cat he had before coming to Hogwarts
Mr. Owl
word count: 512
mentions: @Luka Egorov
Aurora raised a skeptical eyebrow at the small bag. For a fleeting second, she considered bolting and sending the letter another day, but she knew her own mind; she’d only forget again. And her mother would be worried sick if she didn't hear from her only daughter.
With a hesitant flick, she opened the bag to find a stash of dried meat and seeds. Her hand shivered slightly from the chilly wind. Glancing back at the boy for some courage, she approached the same owl once more. The owl looked at her with narrowed, calculating eyes, though it doesn't react aggresively like before.
She looked at her letter, then tentatively began tying it to the owl’s leg. "Please, Mr. Owl, send this to Tammy Coleman," she whispered, her voice barely audible over the wind. "My Ma must be worried." She fished a chunk of dried meat from the bag as an offering.
At the sight of the treat, a far cry from the useless lemon drops, the owl snatched it from her palm. With a sudden flurry of feathers, it took off into rainstorm. Aurora’s brow furrowed. Will the letter not soak in the rain? Ma might not be able to read it then..
She looked over her shoulder. The boy was still there, looking nervous, as if he expected a scolding for his help. A pang of guilt hit her, he was clearly just trying to be kind. However, this feeling of embarrasment of how unkempt she looked compared to this pretty boy was overwhelming.
Avoiding his gaze, she trudged back toward him. "Here. Thanks... or whatever," she muttered, shoving the bag at him. "For the record, I do know how to do it myself." She cringes slightly at her arrogant words. What is wrong with me?
Aurora takes one look at the boy again. Damn it, he's so perfect. I should go now before i make myself a fool again. "Alright. I'll go now." Turning on her heels, she make her way swiftly to the exit.
But it seems that her luck was laughing right at her face when she slipped on a puddle. She let out a sharp cry as she went down. To make matters worse, her hand landed with a sickening squelch directly into a pile of owl droppings. "Ew! Oh, come on, what did i ever do to deserve this!" She whispered yell to no one in particular, as if it wasn't her fault she fell in the first place.
This might be the first time her face become so red, tears starts to prickle at the corner of her eyes. That from embarrasment and the pain that throbs slightly from her knees. Ignoring the sting, she scrambled to her feet.
"If you tell anyone about this, I—I’ll find you!" she barked. Find him and do what? She didn't wait for an answer. Wiping her eyes with her sleeves and frantically scraping her hand against a stone wall, she bolted into the rain, leaving the "pretty boy" far behind.
i am a museum of everything i have loved.