Shop Door
Title: Shop Door
Rating: PG
Summary: Like the wand, it’s not the wizard that picks the owl, but the owl that picks the wizard.
Pairing: None, it’s *gasp* Gen fic.
Fandom: Harry Potter
Feedback: Yes, please.
Disclaimer: Not mine, and the characters belong to J. K. Rowling. If they were mine, I’d be having them conjure Muggle money to pay my bills. Please, don’t sue.
Hedwig ruffled her feathers and held her beak high. She simply had to look as pretty as she could today.
The prospective owners should be arriving in the Owlery soon. She could already see the eager faces of the little boys and girls through the shop window from her perch.
With any luck, One Eye the shop owl hooted, she could pick her new owner out by this afternoon.
This was the moment Hedwig had been waiting for since the Owlery first acquired her, after all, and she wanted to make sure that the owner she selected was just the right little girl or boy for her.
Owls live a very long time, so selecting the right one was very important. Especially if your aim in life was to be as much of a pet as a mail carrier.
Hedwig flew across the shop and took her position between two tawny owls just as the first boy arrived with a very old witch.
This boy had a very round, but pleasant enough face. He looked around the shop at the other owls, his eyes darting nervously.
“Gran? Can’t I just have a…”
“Oh, Neville, we talked about this. An owl is a much more useful pet than a toad these days. You can use your owl to write to me all the time, and he’ll be able to deliver it on a daily basis.”
Several of the other owls hooted their protests at the mention of so much delivery work. Hedwig herself couldn’t help but blink in surprise.
“But Gran, there are owls at Hogwarts already for that. Can’t I have a toad like father instead? Please?”
The older witch looked at the round faced boy and sighed. “Oh, all right, Neville, you can have a toad instead. But you must remember not to lose this one.”
“OK Gran,” the round faced boy said as they went through the shop door again. Several of the owls breathed a sigh of relief.
Hedwig relaxed her position on her perch, looking around at the other owls in the Owlery. One Eye was busy going from perch to perch, giving a few of the younger owls and near hatchlings a pointer here and there on how to sell themselves once they’ve decided which person they wanted to take them home.
Hedwig heard the advice all before. She knew, even though the owl picks the owner, sometimes the owner might not have enough coins to bring them home right away.
Hedwig heard the door open again and straightened just in time to see a pale boy with a pointed face come in, followed by a long haired wizard with hair almost as white as her own feathers. They looked so much alike, clearly these two were father and son.
A shiver went up Hedwig’s spine. She didn’t think she’d like this wizard father, but couldn’t put her finger on why, although the boy didn’t seem so bad at first glance.
“Father, I really want to have a broomstick at school, not an owl,” the boy said. “Cant you make them let me bring my broom?”
The wizard rolled his eyes and barely looked at the owls, as if he had just entered a room full of common crows. “I’ve already tried, Draco. Fudge said that Dumbledore is quite adamant about first year rules, especially concerning brooms.”
The boy sniffed around smugly. “Can I hex him then?”
The wizard gave his son a look that was an odd mix of disapproval and admiration. “I don’t want you to show any evidence of your… tutoring, Draco. Have I made myself clear?”
Hedwig didn’t like this at all. She tried to move further back on her perch so they’d miss her.
The boy said nothing as he looked around the room at the owls. His grey eyes settled on Hedwig.
“How about that white one in the back, Father? Can I have that one?”
The wizard turned away from a black owl he was inspecting and approached, eyeing Hedwig up and down with a cold eye.
“A bit common for a Snowy owl, don’t you think?”
Several of the owls around Hedwig hooted in shock, and Hedwig suppressed an urge to peck the wizard’s eye out.
These two definitely won’t do as owners.
“I think she’s pretty,” the boy said, and reached out to touch her feathers.
Hedwig snapped her beak at his hand hard enough to draw a bit of blood and flew out of reach.
“Ouch, it bit me.”
“See what I mean, son? Too common and stupid to know she can’t do better than a Malfoy.”
The two selected a stuck up black owl that Hedwig never liked much and left. Hedwig spent much of the afternoon moping on a back perch, miserable.
The door opened again a few minutes later, allowing a nice but poor looking family of red headed wizards. While Hedwig thought she wouldn’t have minded being owned by the youngest boy, it was the oldest son the family was buying an owl for, and that boy seemed downright stuffy.
A few other families came and went as the day dragged on, and none of them seemed quite right for Hedwig. She was beginning to think she’d never find an owner at this rate.
It was beginning to get dark when the one that seemed the right fit finally came into the shop. He arrived with a beast of a man, much too big to be anything other than at least half giant. Several of the other owls cowered with fear at the sight of him, which was understandable.
Giants often feasted on owls in the wild.
One Eye hooted to the others that this half giant was gentler than most wizards from what he’d been told by the delivery owls.
Curious, Hedwig flew to a closer perch for a better look at the half giant. The half giant was a mass of curly dark hair and muscles, but was gentle enough with the tiny barn owl hatchling in his huge hand. The hatching was quaking visibly.
And that was when she saw him.
He was small, even by human standards, and quite thin for his age. His hair was black and messy, reminding Hedwig of a nest by the way it poked in several directions. And the he was holding a package of robes and books in his arms.
Clearly, he was a student about to embark on his first year at Hogwarts. Hedwig hooted curiously as the boy looked around the room.
“All right, Harry, there’s owls here of all shapes and sizes and colors. See this one in my hand? Good for short messages but not big packages, this one is.”
The hatchling was still shaking. The boy smiled and took the owl from the half giant carefully, moving it to a perch where the hatchling swooned.
“I think I’d like something bigger, thanks.”
“Well, then what you want is a barn owl. They can deliver anything of any size or shape,” the half giant said, point to the nearest barn owl.
Harry shrugged, looking around. “I don’t know. Really Hagrid, you don’t have to give me anything for my bir…”
He stopped the moment his eyes found Hedwig. She blinked, getting a good look at his face and noting the funny mark on his forehead. But his eyes were the same shade of green as the grass in the field where Hedwig first learned how to fly.
“She’s beautiful…” the boy said, making Hedwig shake her feathers in embarrassment.
“Ah yes, that’s a Snowy owl. Good delivery owls, and decent pets, those are.”
Hedwig flew off her perch and landed right on the boy’s shoulder for a better look. He felt thin, but his shoulder was just the right size to perch on without having to dig one’s talons into him.
The boy didn’t flinch. In fact, her reached up and gently stroked her feathers.
“Hello, my name’s Harry.”
He smelled of something earthy and nice and sweet, and his eyes really were a vivid shade of green. Hedwig hooted her approval, and the boy giggled softly.
This boy will definitely do for an owner.
“I think that one fancies you,” the half giant said. Turning to the shopkeeper, they paid in coins for her, and Hedwig hooted her goodbyes to the other owls as she was settled in her transport cage for the ride home.
That night in her new home for the first time, on the bed with the boy named Harry as he read a book with wizard names, Hedwig found a picture of a witch with the same name as her own, and pecked at the word in the book with her beak to show him how to say it.
Rating: PG
Summary: Like the wand, it’s not the wizard that picks the owl, but the owl that picks the wizard.
Pairing: None, it’s *gasp* Gen fic.
Fandom: Harry Potter
Feedback: Yes, please.
Disclaimer: Not mine, and the characters belong to J. K. Rowling. If they were mine, I’d be having them conjure Muggle money to pay my bills. Please, don’t sue.
Hedwig ruffled her feathers and held her beak high. She simply had to look as pretty as she could today.
The prospective owners should be arriving in the Owlery soon. She could already see the eager faces of the little boys and girls through the shop window from her perch.
With any luck, One Eye the shop owl hooted, she could pick her new owner out by this afternoon.
This was the moment Hedwig had been waiting for since the Owlery first acquired her, after all, and she wanted to make sure that the owner she selected was just the right little girl or boy for her.
Owls live a very long time, so selecting the right one was very important. Especially if your aim in life was to be as much of a pet as a mail carrier.
Hedwig flew across the shop and took her position between two tawny owls just as the first boy arrived with a very old witch.
This boy had a very round, but pleasant enough face. He looked around the shop at the other owls, his eyes darting nervously.
“Gran? Can’t I just have a…”
“Oh, Neville, we talked about this. An owl is a much more useful pet than a toad these days. You can use your owl to write to me all the time, and he’ll be able to deliver it on a daily basis.”
Several of the other owls hooted their protests at the mention of so much delivery work. Hedwig herself couldn’t help but blink in surprise.
“But Gran, there are owls at Hogwarts already for that. Can’t I have a toad like father instead? Please?”
The older witch looked at the round faced boy and sighed. “Oh, all right, Neville, you can have a toad instead. But you must remember not to lose this one.”
“OK Gran,” the round faced boy said as they went through the shop door again. Several of the owls breathed a sigh of relief.
Hedwig relaxed her position on her perch, looking around at the other owls in the Owlery. One Eye was busy going from perch to perch, giving a few of the younger owls and near hatchlings a pointer here and there on how to sell themselves once they’ve decided which person they wanted to take them home.
Hedwig heard the advice all before. She knew, even though the owl picks the owner, sometimes the owner might not have enough coins to bring them home right away.
Hedwig heard the door open again and straightened just in time to see a pale boy with a pointed face come in, followed by a long haired wizard with hair almost as white as her own feathers. They looked so much alike, clearly these two were father and son.
A shiver went up Hedwig’s spine. She didn’t think she’d like this wizard father, but couldn’t put her finger on why, although the boy didn’t seem so bad at first glance.
“Father, I really want to have a broomstick at school, not an owl,” the boy said. “Cant you make them let me bring my broom?”
The wizard rolled his eyes and barely looked at the owls, as if he had just entered a room full of common crows. “I’ve already tried, Draco. Fudge said that Dumbledore is quite adamant about first year rules, especially concerning brooms.”
The boy sniffed around smugly. “Can I hex him then?”
The wizard gave his son a look that was an odd mix of disapproval and admiration. “I don’t want you to show any evidence of your… tutoring, Draco. Have I made myself clear?”
Hedwig didn’t like this at all. She tried to move further back on her perch so they’d miss her.
The boy said nothing as he looked around the room at the owls. His grey eyes settled on Hedwig.
“How about that white one in the back, Father? Can I have that one?”
The wizard turned away from a black owl he was inspecting and approached, eyeing Hedwig up and down with a cold eye.
“A bit common for a Snowy owl, don’t you think?”
Several of the owls around Hedwig hooted in shock, and Hedwig suppressed an urge to peck the wizard’s eye out.
These two definitely won’t do as owners.
“I think she’s pretty,” the boy said, and reached out to touch her feathers.
Hedwig snapped her beak at his hand hard enough to draw a bit of blood and flew out of reach.
“Ouch, it bit me.”
“See what I mean, son? Too common and stupid to know she can’t do better than a Malfoy.”
The two selected a stuck up black owl that Hedwig never liked much and left. Hedwig spent much of the afternoon moping on a back perch, miserable.
The door opened again a few minutes later, allowing a nice but poor looking family of red headed wizards. While Hedwig thought she wouldn’t have minded being owned by the youngest boy, it was the oldest son the family was buying an owl for, and that boy seemed downright stuffy.
A few other families came and went as the day dragged on, and none of them seemed quite right for Hedwig. She was beginning to think she’d never find an owner at this rate.
It was beginning to get dark when the one that seemed the right fit finally came into the shop. He arrived with a beast of a man, much too big to be anything other than at least half giant. Several of the other owls cowered with fear at the sight of him, which was understandable.
Giants often feasted on owls in the wild.
One Eye hooted to the others that this half giant was gentler than most wizards from what he’d been told by the delivery owls.
Curious, Hedwig flew to a closer perch for a better look at the half giant. The half giant was a mass of curly dark hair and muscles, but was gentle enough with the tiny barn owl hatchling in his huge hand. The hatching was quaking visibly.
And that was when she saw him.
He was small, even by human standards, and quite thin for his age. His hair was black and messy, reminding Hedwig of a nest by the way it poked in several directions. And the he was holding a package of robes and books in his arms.
Clearly, he was a student about to embark on his first year at Hogwarts. Hedwig hooted curiously as the boy looked around the room.
“All right, Harry, there’s owls here of all shapes and sizes and colors. See this one in my hand? Good for short messages but not big packages, this one is.”
The hatchling was still shaking. The boy smiled and took the owl from the half giant carefully, moving it to a perch where the hatchling swooned.
“I think I’d like something bigger, thanks.”
“Well, then what you want is a barn owl. They can deliver anything of any size or shape,” the half giant said, point to the nearest barn owl.
Harry shrugged, looking around. “I don’t know. Really Hagrid, you don’t have to give me anything for my bir…”
He stopped the moment his eyes found Hedwig. She blinked, getting a good look at his face and noting the funny mark on his forehead. But his eyes were the same shade of green as the grass in the field where Hedwig first learned how to fly.
“She’s beautiful…” the boy said, making Hedwig shake her feathers in embarrassment.
“Ah yes, that’s a Snowy owl. Good delivery owls, and decent pets, those are.”
Hedwig flew off her perch and landed right on the boy’s shoulder for a better look. He felt thin, but his shoulder was just the right size to perch on without having to dig one’s talons into him.
The boy didn’t flinch. In fact, her reached up and gently stroked her feathers.
“Hello, my name’s Harry.”
He smelled of something earthy and nice and sweet, and his eyes really were a vivid shade of green. Hedwig hooted her approval, and the boy giggled softly.
This boy will definitely do for an owner.
“I think that one fancies you,” the half giant said. Turning to the shopkeeper, they paid in coins for her, and Hedwig hooted her goodbyes to the other owls as she was settled in her transport cage for the ride home.
That night in her new home for the first time, on the bed with the boy named Harry as he read a book with wizard names, Hedwig found a picture of a witch with the same name as her own, and pecked at the word in the book with her beak to show him how to say it.