Golden Girl; 𝓕𝓻𝓮𝓭 𝓦𝓮𝓪𝓼𝓵𝓮𝔂

Summer, 1991: Monty

The two went on as the day grew warmer, Sebastian watching with an amused grin as Bambi excitedly wandered through the crowded alley. They stopped once to grab lunch at the little tea shop around the corner before continuing, Sebastian allowing his daughter to peek into any interesting-looking shops that caught her eye.

"I think that's everything," Bambi said, after Sebastian crossed off the final items on the list, a handful of potions ingredients. "I never want to go in there again," She scrunched her nose up, remembering the horrible smell, like rotting cabbage and mildew.

Sebastian laughed heartily, "Oh, just you wait, you'll get used to all those smells once you start more advanced potions." He checked Bambi's carpet bag to make sure they had in fact grabbed everything they needed. "One cauldron, spell books, transfiguration... you have a scale there- Ah, Bambi, I think you're missing something."

Bambi's eyes shot up from the checklist, "No, we have everything written down right here," She said very matter-of-factly. "We already double-checked before we grabbed the potion ingredients- and you made sure to get all the right ones."

"It's not potion ingredients you need," Sebastian said, taking Bambi's hand and leading her over to the nearby shop named the "Magical Menagerie".

Bambi gave her father a puzzled expression, "What would I need here?" She asked as they stepped inside. Her eyes scanned the stuffed walls full of animal cages. The smell, she decided, wasn't nearly as bad as the Apothecary.

"Well, your upcoming birthday will be right after you get to school. I thought you might like to pick out one of your birthday presents early." He explained, motioning his hand out to the cages of animals. "Something to keep you company since I won't be able to celebrate with you."

Bambi gasped, "Really?" Her face lit up, "I can choose any of these animals?"

"Within reason, dear," Sebastian chuckled, "The letter said you could choose a toad, owl, rat... or a cat."

Bambi looked all around the store, wanting to look inside every cage before making her decision. She first looked at the sleek black rats. Some had long peachy tails and pink noses, others completely inky jet black. She didn't mind the rats, but it wouldn't have been her first choice.

Sebastian seemed to agree, crinkling his nose slightly at the rodents. He had been bitten by one in India when Bambi was 8, and had a nasty infection for a few weeks, even with one of his healing potions.

Next, they looked at the toads. They came in many different colors, from a dark swampy green to a dirt-colored tan. They all croaked, all slimy and fat. Some had warts covering their entire bodies!

"Ah, here we go Bambi!" Sebastian grinned widely at the toads, reaching in to pick one up. "I had a toad while I was in Hogwarts, his name was Bartholomew. Why don't we pick you out a nice fat toad? They're wonderful pets." He held the brownish-red toad in his hand, caressing it affectionately.

"I don't think so," Bambi said with a faint smile. It seemed Sebastian could also see that her smile was faltering, so he sighed and set the toad back inside the enclosure.

"What about an owl? They're nice and practical. You could send letters to anyone you wanted." Sebastian showed her the room filled with owls of all different sorts. Great big horned owls with prestigious looking eyes, and tiny little owls who looked more like stuffed animals.

"Yeah, but I like using Gerald too much. He might get jealous if I came home with a new owl... besides, the school has owls we can use during the school year."

Sebastian nodded, it was true, Gerald didn't like other owls much. "Well, Bambi, you have to make a decision eventually. We've seen about everything."

"What about the cats?" Bambi looked at him hopefully.

Sebastian frowned, "A cat?" He sighed, "Bambi you know how I feel about those creatures... they'll walk all over your papers and smudge your ink. They'd probably scratch up all your homework too- I don't think it's a good idea-"

But Bambi was already sticking her fingers through the first cage full of little tabby cats. She cooed at them.

Sebastian walked over uncomfortably, peering into the cage.

The kittens hissed at him.

"See?" Sebastian gave Bambi a look but she pretended not to notice.

Bambi spent a long time at each cat's kennel. She picked up each one, waiting to see which she'd have a connection with.

She pet white long-furred cats, jet-black cats, a giant tortoiseshell cat, and many variations of different tabbies.

"Funny-looking things, aren't these ones?" Sebastian was looking into an enclosure with several skinny cats with awkward lanky limbs. They had long faces and giant ears, reminding Bambi a bit of a house elf.

"Oriental shorthair," Bambi read the small information card above these cages, "It says that this breed makes an excellent familiar. They tend to have more magical traits they can take on than other breeds due to their long ancestry of special breeding."

"Hmm," Sebastian said, "They look like they've been hit by one too many taffy charms if anything."

Bambi was squatting down, peering inside the bottom corner enclosure. Inside was a lone chocolate brown kitten curled up in a ball. When Bambi opened the door, he lifted his head, to show off two gigantic ears sticking up, even more so accentuated by long tufts of fur on the tips. He seemed to be the most disproportional cat of his breed with a very long narrow muzzle, two orb-like lime green eyes, and legs that seemed to be, plainly, too long for his body. He had a warm pinkish-brown nose and long black whiskers.

When Bambi lifted him up, he stretched out and began a low-contented purr.

"You had to go find the oddest one here, didn't you?" Sebastian raised his eyebrows, a bit impressed that she even spotted this cat where its cage was.

It almost seemed like they were hiding him on purpose, as, when the store salesperson came over wondering if the two needed help, mentioned, "Oh, he isn't very well up to breed standards. Means he may be a bit more of a risk with his magical behavior."

"I think he's wonderful." Bambi pet the kitten who snuggled comfortably on her shoulder. "I'll name him Montgomery, call him Monty for short."

Monty seemed to like this name, he peered up at her with his large almond eyes and purred louder.

"Alright, alright," Sebastian was trying hard to hide his dislike for cats for the sake of his daughter. "What sorts of things will he need?" He asked the store saleswoman, a lady with round black glasses.

"Plenty of fresh food, you'll want some toys, a bed, and a litter box." She explained. "We have some really lovely self-cleaning pans this way if you follow me,"

Sebastian Hargroves, to say the least, spent way more money than he intended to that day. He fully believed that Bambi would want a toad, just as he did. They were so simple and didn't need anything at all other than a warm rock and some mealworms... But cats? Oh boy, cats were a whole other story.

So, with a cat carrier in one hand, and her carpetbag in the other, Bambi Hargroves stepped out of the store, (her father left to carry the armfuls of additional cat-related things), to the nearest fireplace to travel back to the hotel where they would be staying until she left for school.