Credit Where It's Due Pet

#000000 - Gabriella speaking
#020085 - Adrian (Gabby's dad) speaking
#00b88a - Nina (Gabby's mum) speaking
#f40156 - Ernest Witticker (shopkeeper) speaking

31st August, 2021

"It's ok," said Gabriella, quickly. "I have enough money... and I was wanting to do this before, but I forgot..." The Haworths shuffled down Diagon Alley in search of the pet shop, the Magical Menagerie.
"Sweetheart, you haven't really told us much about this summer camp yet,"
"It was fun," said Gabriella. "I told you that much. I made some new friends. There's this girl called Winter I really like. I chatted with Gia. I built a shelter, swam in the lake, played some games... you know, it was... it was a summer camp, right?"
"Yes, Gabriella, it was a summer camp," said her father, irritably. "And bad things always happen at a summer camp. I've been a teenager too, you know-"
"Adrian!"
"What?"
"You can't just say things like-"
"Here it is," interrupted Gabriella, pushing open the door to the store. In fact, some bad things had happened at camp, but nothing huge, nothing terrible, and definitely nothing she would want to tell her parents about. "I accidentally signed up for a game of Spin the Bottle?" "I was having a huge fight with my enemy when this random third-year came over and started shipping us together?" No thanks. Overall the camp had just been a good distraction from... well... life, really. As, hopefully, would be this toad she was about to buy. Julie, her Muggle therapist, had said that pets could be a good distraction, and was she allowed to take pets to her boarding school? Gabriella had replied that yes, she was allowed, and although she was sure Julie had meant a puppy or something, a toad would work just as well. You had to give credit where it was due, toads were cute.

Gabriella pushed open the door and she and her parents walked in. It was - there was really no other word for it - a menagerie. Owls squawked and pooped from branches positioned haphazardly on the walls; cats crept across the ground and stared at Gabby with innocent, begging eyes; rats squeaked in cages; toads croaked. It was a mess, but the Ravenclaw wouldn't call it dirty, as such. Just wild.
"Hello!" said a voice. Gabriella jumped; she hadn't noticed the shopkeeper, a tall old man whose checked shirt blended in rather nicely with the background. "What are you all looking for today?"
"I'd like a toad, please," said Gabriella, timidly.
"What type of toad?"
"What types do you have?"

The old shopkeeper led the Haworths to an area of the shop filled almost to bursting with toads. To someone else, this sight may have been alarming, but the kind-hearted Ravenclaw just found them all immensely cute. "These types!" grinned the man.

For the normally indecisive Gabby, it didn't take very long to find the toad she really wanted. A small, fat, green toad with smooth skin, lying asleep on a shelf. He looked peaceful - well, every animal looked peaceful when they were asleep, didn't they - and Gabriella just felt he would make the perfect companion. "Can I take him?" asked Gabriella, pointing to the toad and then glancing up at her parents to make sure she had their approval. Her dad smiled and her mum raised her eyebrows in a way that meant, good choice.
"Of course," said the shopkeeper, scooping up the toad. "He's a male, three years old. They have a life expectancy of ten to twelve years though, these common toads, so he should keep you company for a long while yet." Gabriella took the toad from his palms and he opened one eye, lazily. His back was so smooth, his skin so shiny... it was instant love.
"What are you going to call him, Gabs?" asked her mother.
"I think I'll call him Aster," she said. "I don't know why. It's not really a toad-ish name, is it?"
"It's a perfect name."

The shopkeeper smiles. "He'll be five galleons, please," he said. Gabriella handed over the money.
"Thank you," she grinned.
"Thank you." Toad cupped, still asleep, in palms, Gabriella made for the door with her parents. "Have a good term!"

Word count: 713

What animal do you wish to purchase? Common Toad
What do you want to name it? Aster
Is this a boy or a girl? Boy
What is your pet's date of birth? 18th June 2018