It's so Fluffy I'm gonna... Pet Finished

Ruka had always liked animals. Growing up already he had had a certain amount of respect for them and had found the concept of taking them out of their natural habitat to train them and keep them as pets somewhat insulting.

However, some things had made Ruka very aware that sometimes having an animal companion wasn't the worst thing, and as long as pets were taken good care of... Well, there were some animals that were even more likely to survive longer in captivity than they would in the wild, weren't there?

So once off the Hogwarts Express, Ruka had had one thing to ask of his family the second hugs were exchanged, and that was to stop by Diagon Alley to get an owl. He would have understood if his request had been denied; The Burnetts were sure to want to get home, they still had another train ride to Wales ahead of them, and Jack likely wasn't all that interested in spending his afternoon in a pet shop, but to Ruka's surprise his request was granted. Maybe it had been the way he had politely acknowledged that they didn't have to - "It's not urgent, I just thought, since we're already here..." - or the way he had flashed practiced puppy dog eyes at Mrs Burnett, but whatever it was, he soon found himself in the Magical Menagerie, holding onto his brother's wrist and occasionally squeezing it with excitement. He had expected Jack to wait outside - Maybe raid the bookshop in the meanwhile - but the younger boy had come along without protest and Ruka was grateful for the company.

Looking around the shop, Ruka eventually had no choice but to let go of Jack's wrist so he could really see the animals zooming around the place or simply lounging in their cages. His eyes first got caught on an elderly tabby cat curled up next to a shelf, and he was immediately drawn to it. Cats were adorable, elegant. If he didn't have a reason for wanting an Owl specifically, Ruka would have taken one without a doubt. He wondered, idly, if it would annoy Jack to have a cat occupying their room and losing hair on his pillow.

"How are you even supposed to choose one?" he asked in his brother's direction with a small frown on his face. So many animals, all of them special in their own way.

Without waiting for a response, Ruka moved towards a great snowy owl, tilting his head to the side. It was gorgeous, at least seemed like it was well behaved. He reached out a hand to try and pet its wings with a finger, but just as he wanted to, something small and grey landed on the back of his hand, digging sharp talons into his skin. "Ouch," he yelped, pulling his hand back instinctively, but the small bird didn't budge. It clung to his hand with a happy hoot, only moved a little to be able to perch more comfortably on his finger instead.

"What are-" Ruka blinked as he stared at the creature. There was nothing elegant about this one; It was small - small enough to fit in the palm of his hand probably - and its feathers looked more like puffy fur than anything else. It was... interesting. Ruka had always liked things that were different somehow. "Well, hello there," he told the small owl brightly. It seemed young, though Ruka was no expert in judging owl age. "Eager to get out of here, are you?" He grinned before turning to face his family and show off his new accidental companion. "I think I found one!" he exclaimed brightly as he made his way over to his parents with a bounce in his step.

So maybe this fluffy little thing wasn't exactly what he had come looking for, and maybe he wouldn't be able to make it carry large and heavy packages, but... it was so fluffy. Too fluffy. How was this thing even real?

The owl gave another hoot as it flapped its wings to position itself on Ruka's shoulder and nuzzle against his cheek. "Yeah," he decided with a smile. "That's the one."

With his parent's permission, Ruka would take his new owl and enough money to the counter.

|Word Count|
719

What animal do you wish to purchase?
Eastern Screech Owl
What do you want to name it?
Fuwafuwa Thanks, Kaz XP
Is this a boy or a girl?
Pwetty Girl
What is your pet's date of birth?
February 13th, 2021