A Bitter Silence (Version two of 'Silence is Music?')

4

I entered Eelop's and immediately spotted Ginny, who was staring intently at a white rabbit in the corner of the room. As I approached, it suddenly popped into a hat, a hat with pink tassels and red swirls. "I'm figuring out a way to fix it," she said, as the hat turned into the rabbit again.

I added my concentration, willpower is the best. And the white rabbit turned into a white top hat, we smiled, but the hat promptly transformed into a pink rabbit with tassels and swirls.

Oh well.

Ginny showed me a miniature hat she had in her hand, she tapped it three times with her finger, and it grew to the falcon hat she had bought in the shop, "for the twins!" she grinned, ooh, that one could be a Slytherin...

I walked to the back of the room, where there was a lot of ruffling of feathers and shrieks. And tried to pick an owl. Percy was getting a new one, I knew because Molly was at the counter with a boring grey screech owl. Percy standing next to her. Pompous Prefect Percy.

I stamped my foot three times, the signal for Gin to come over. And we look carefully at each owl.

There are so many different birds that we took a break halfway through and chatted to the store assistant, Chloe. She told us they had lots of injured birds in their sanctuary and showed us through to the back of the shop.

"We can't heal some of them, and the professionals won't come in, something about a mass mouse emergency in Belgium. I don't know much about healing, but these birds won't be able to survive the month without a powerful enough healer." The word powerful startled me, and I took out my wand and fingered it thoughtfully. Power, did she say, we had power, worth a try, I suppose...

No. You're underage Harmony.

We passed along two more dilapidated rows before coming to a halt before a grey cage. Inside was a beautiful Great Grey Owl. Her feathers ran from dappled grey to stormy blue, entrancing cream eyes drew me in, and I knew at once that she was the one for me. But I couldn't tear my eyes off her left wing, or rather, what's left of her left wing, only a stub remained, and something like that is fatal. Horrible,

Once again I fingered my wand. But this time the voice in my head didn't speak, That damn voice, at least it can speak.

I motioned for the price of the bird.

"Oh, she's not for sale, no, she's being put down on Tuesday.

No.

I signed a load of things to Gin and let her translate. Then I drew my wand from my robes, and they gasped at the beauty of it.

I motioned toward a mangled looking toad. And focused on what it would look like without the long, bone deep gash along it's face. I closed my eyes, counted to three, and opened them. A green mist was collecting over the toad, it thickened and swirled, diving in and out of the wound.

When the mist cleared, the toad's mangled mug looked a lot prettier than before. Even the warts had cleared up a bit.

I looked at the toad, then around at the cages, then at the Grey owl. My meaning was clear.

We walked around, only making minor mistakes. Three mice ended up with different colour legs, and a cats silky long tail was now curled like a spring.

But other than that, it was okay.

We walked back into the main shop, the owl, which we named Seraphina Yakira perched on my right shoulder. I hadn't tried to fix her wing, regrow it, I mean. But when we got home I could focus.

Ginny made me promise to give her Sera if I got something else.

We met up with the others at the leaky cauldron, counted our bags, and flooed to the burrow.

A grand feast was held, with Molly's best cooking and lots of news, the evening turned out to be the greatest. It was one of those days where I feel like I'm part of the family.

We had eleven days until the start of school, and We planned on making the most of it.

We read through all of my new school books, practised a few spells and such.(We being me and Ginn) . Brewed and stewed a load of potions and stuff, creating a few very interesting concoctions I will be using on the Twins. And generally did a whole load of stuff for everything.

On the seventh day, I resolved to try and regrow, or replace Sera's wing.

I took her deep into the woods behind our house, placed her gently on a knarled tree trunk, and pulled out my wand.