"Welcome." A witch wearing a checkered apron hurried out from behind the counter.
Her gaze lingered briefly on Harold before shifting to Morris. "Are you here to prepare for Hogwarts? We have many owls suitable for new students."
The shop echoed with the hooting of owls and the fluttering of wings.
"Yes," Morris's attention was immediately drawn to the owls. "I'd like to look around myself."
"Feel free to call me if you have any questions." The witch nodded knowingly and retreated behind the counter, giving Morris plenty of space.
"I'll wait for you by the door. I'm allergic to birds," Harold said.
Morris nodded and walked alone toward the owl section, slowly passing between the neatly arranged perches.
Since he was choosing a mail carrier, it should definitely be as strong as possible.
The owls seemed to know they were merchandise being selected, and began tilting their heads curiously at the approaching customer.
There were other customers in the shop selecting pets, including several children around Morris's age—presumably also Hogwarts freshmen.
"Oh, I'm sorry."
A girl concentrating on selecting an owl accidentally bumped into Morris's shoulder.
"It's fine."
Morris replied casually, his gaze fixed on a snow-white owl.
It was a snowy owl.
Compared to the other owls, it was noticeably larger and appeared more alert.
'Looks very suitable,' Morris thought.
"Um... hello, are you also a new Hogwarts student?"
Morris turned his head to find the girl who had bumped into him trying to make conversation.
"Mm." He responded indifferently, then continued focusing on the snowy owl.
"..."
Seeing that Morris had no intention of continuing the conversation, the girl pursed her lips somewhat disappointedly and turned toward another row of shelves.
At this moment, the shop assistant seemed to realize Morris's intention to purchase the snowy owl and approached him.
"How are you finding it? This snowy owl is very healthy," she asked with a smile.
"I'll take this one... wait, isn't that owl a bit strange?"
Morris had been about to decide immediately, but a cage behind caught his attention.
Inside was a pitch-black owl.
Its feathers were disheveled, its eyes were dull, forming a stark contrast with the other lively owls.
The assistant followed Morris's gaze and sighed softly. "That's an eagle owl, though it's rare to see one this black."
"Is it sick?" Morris asked.
"Well, perhaps." The assistant spoke vaguely. "It doesn't have much time left. Look at the others instead."
No wonder.
Morris could smell a faint trace of death from this owl.
"If I wanted to buy it, how much would it cost?" Morris asked.
The assistant was obviously taken aback, and surprised. "Do you really want to buy it?"
"How much?" Morris repeated.
"I'll be honest with you, sir," the assistant lowered her voice. "This owl was cursed by a dark wizard. It only has two days to live. We're keeping it here just to make its final moments comfortable."
"Mm, that's fine." Morris said. "Perhaps my uncle can find a way to cure it."
In fact, even if it died, it didn't matter. Morris could find a way to make it alive—he just needed to transform it into an undead creature.
Hearing Morris's words, the assistant suddenly became flustered.
She steadied herself and explained, "Sir, even in this owl's condition, we can't give you any discount. Those are the rules."
By now, Morris had already reached his hand into the cage.
The eagle owl weakly lifted its head and gently touched his fingers with its beak.
"Fine, I'll take it," Morris said decisively.
The assistant hesitated for a moment before finally nodding. "Since you insist... ten Galleons. This price includes the cage and a month's supply of owl food."
She brought over an exquisite birdcage and carefully transferred the eagle owl into it.
The weak owl fluttered its wings slightly as it entered the new cage, then became still, as if it had fallen asleep.
"Good luck," the assistant said softly as she handed the cage to Morris.
When Morris finished paying and returned to the entrance, he saw Harold conversing with two strangers.
"Oh, Morris, you're back." Harold introduced them. "These are Mr. and Mrs. Granger. Their daughter is also a new Hogwarts student."
The couple smiled kindly at Morris.
Morris guessed they had probably approached Harold because of his Muggle attire.
After all, there weren't many people wearing suits in Diagon Alley.
"Hello," Morris greeted politely.
Mr. Granger's attention was drawn to the eagle owl in the cage Morris was holding.
"Your owl looks very nice," he said.
"Yes, very nice," Morris said honestly. "Though it only has two days to live."
Mr. Granger apparently hadn't expected this response and couldn't help showing a puzzled expression. "Why?"
"Because I'm going to make yakitori with it."
"?"
Mr. Granger opened his mouth, wanting to speak but stopped short.
"It's getting late, we should go. Goodbye, Mr. Granger."
"Uh... goodbye."
Morris pulled Harold away from the pet shop quickly.
Afterward, Mr. Granger walked out with a dubious attitude and looked at the sign again.
That's right, this was a pet shop, not a grocery store.
...
"Why the rush?" Harold asked, puzzled, after they had left the pet shop far behind.
"Talking to strangers is dangerous," Morris answered without turning his head.
Harold froze for a moment, then nodded helplessly.
'Well, you're the wizard, you're right.'
But he couldn't shake the feeling that his and Morris's roles had been reversed.
"Is this the owl you bought?" Harold changed the subject, and focused on the cage in Morris's hand. "It doesn't look very lively."
"It's dying," Morris said casually. "Actually, I wasn't lying earlier. It really only has two days to live."
"You're not really going to make yakitori with it, are you?" Harold was horrified.
Morris stopped walking and looked at him with an expression that said "are you stupid?"
Harold laughed awkwardly.
As they continued forward, Morris explained, "Even if it dies, it doesn't matter. I can bring it back to life."
Harold's eyes widened; his voice was trembling. "Is that possible? To resurrect a dead creature?"
"More or less," Morris answered calmly. "Have you ever seen a zombie movie?"
This sudden question left Harold momentarily speechless.
Images of those shambling undead floated through his mind, and his face immediately paled. "You're not planning to... turn it into one of those things, are you?"
Morris didn't answer directly, only gently shook the birdcage. "Don't worry, it will be much more elegant than that."
Harold didn't know what to say for a moment.
Wizards were truly terrifying.
He carefully thought back.
Well, he shouldn't have offended wizards anywhere.