As they stand on the steps of Gringotts, Hagrid asks, "Well, what else do you need, Dante?"
Dante looks at his list. "Well, from this list, the only things I might need would be an owl and.. a wand." he replied.
"Okay, Dante. I have a few things to get. Can you manage without me?"
"I think I can."
Hagrid says, "Yeah, I'm sure you will do fine. Let your pet find you and Ollivander knows his wands, so you can trust him. See you soon, Dante." Hagrid says as he walks off down a side alley.
Hmm, a pet... Dante thinks as he looks around. He sees a few shops in the distance and walks off in that direction.
{Meanwhile}
As Juni and her mother look at the clothes inside a store, Juni takes a black camisole with a brown jacket off the rack. She appears very excited. "Look mother! What about these? ..And maybe if we paired them with these pants?" she says as she points at a pair of green pants then a pair of black boots. "And maybe these boots?"
"I think that'd be nice, Juni." her mother says as she thinks to herself, My dear daughter... You're surely growing up fast... I only hope they can keep you safe..."Juni, are there any other jackets in a different color?"
"Umm.." Juni looks at the rack. "Yep! A blue one, a gray one, and a black one." she said with a smile.
"There's different pants and boots, too."
It had taken a short while, but, after consideration over what clothes she should get, with the addition of two dresses, Juni and her mother finish up with their clothes shopping and decide to go to Eeylops Owl Emporium to get Juni's pet owl. It had already been established that she'd get an owl because of where on the way to Diagon Alley, Juni kept trying to tell her parents about how she hoped to get an owl that she could love and take care of. She also hoped to name it Soren.
{Meanwhile}
Shaiya continues to watch over Dante from the rooftops, trying to be quiet. A shop suddenly plays an appropriate song by coincidence, which makes her smile with amusement.
{Later; inside Eeylops Owl Emporium}
Juni walks into the shop and sees a couple of employees having a hard time with a truly pretty owl. It was white as fresh snow and had golden tips on the feathers on its wings. Juni couldn't help but to think about how beautiful it appeared to be.
At this time, Dante walks inside the shop and hears a screeching sound. He looks ahead to see an owl which was fighting its captors as a lone girl walks up to the scene ahead. Dante, upon a closer look, noticed the girl wasn't human. I wonder what she is... he thought then soon found himself unable to look away. He didn't know if it was because of the scene ahead of him, or if it had something to do with her. I'll admit one thing: She may not be human, but she looks.. nice...
The owl breaks free from its captors as it spreads its wings and eventually lands on the girl's shoulders.
She walks over to a woman Dante could easily tell was her mother. "Mother, I think I found my owl.. and I think he likes me!" she said with an excited tone to her cheery voice.
"That's nice, Juni. Now you just need to get its supplies." her mother replied.
Juni walks up to the counter. "Mr. Shopkeeper, how much for this beautiful owl and its supplies?"
The shopkeeper looks at her then the owl, and after a few calculations replies, "Seventy galleons, miss."
Juni's mother gives him the seventy galleons and says, "Here you are. Seventy galleons."
The shopkeeper hands Juni the supplies, including a cage for the owl. "Have a nice day, ladies. It's been a pleasure doing business with you."
"Thanks and you, too, Mr. Shopkeeper." she says then looks at the owl. "I'll call you Soren." Juni said happily to the owl.
After the excitement dies down, Dante quickly goes back to walking around the shop. An employee soon approaches him.
"So, how can I help you?" asks one of the employees. "Looking for an owl?"
"Yes." Dante replied.
"Well, we have quite a selection. Barn, Screech, Tawny, and a few other breeds of owls." the employee said as he pointed at each owl, including one as white as freshly fallen snow.
"They look nice, but how will I know which is the right one for me?"
"Well, I'm sure it will find you."
"What's that one?" Dante asked, pointing toward a dark corner of the shop at a cage holding a black owl.
"Oh, him? He's been here for a little while. People have tried to take him, but he just refuses to go with anyone."
"I see..." Dante said as he walked over to the owl's cage and puts his hand on it. Suddenly, the owl turns and looks at him, as if staring into his soul. The owl hops down off his perch and walks over to the cage door.
"Strange..." says the owner, "I've never seen him act this way." As the owner opens the cage, the owl flies up to Dante's shoulder. "Well, I think he finally found his master."
Dante feels a connection to him that seems strange, as if the owl had been waiting for him and him alone.
"Well, he's not a cheap one, though a breed I've never seen before. I feel he's bonded with you, so I will go cheaper on the price."
Dante looks at the shopkeeper. "How much, then?" he asks.
"Hmm..." He ponders for a time, then answers, "Well, I have a special set of supplies you'll need to take care of him with, so it'll come to about one hundred eighty galleons."
Dante turns up his bag and pours out galleons along with other rare coins and gems. "So.. is this enough?" he asked as the shopkeeper is shocked by how much came out from the bag.
Juni was also shocked as she thought, Holy cows and guacamoles and chiles and Taihitis! How the crap can he carry so much in such a small bag?
"Dante, I can't leave you alone for five minutes, can I?" Hagrid says as he walks in and starts shifting through the pile and putting up what Dante didn't need. "Some blokes will rob you blind."
The shop owner looked at Hagrid and said, "I run a respectable business. You know that, Hagrid."
"I know that. I'm just saying.. what if he went into a less reputable place and did that?"
"Ah, yes. I see your point, Hagrid. Well, it will be one hundred eighty galleons for the owl and all that he needs." After he was given the money, he said, "Okay. This should be enough, then."
"What a steal, though. Are you sure about the price?"
"Yes. I am hesitant to part with it, but he has clearly chosen his master."
"That's true." Hagrid said as the owner personally helps Dante with the stuff and getting it all sorted in his bag.
"Well, that's done, so all that's left to get is your wand, Dante."
At that moment, Juni's mother walks over to Hagrid. "Excuse me, Hagrid? Do you mind if I have a word with you?"
Hagrid turns around. "Yes, what can I do you for, madam?" he asks with an eyebrow raised a tiny bit.
Hagrid and the woman walked over a few steps past Dante.
After looking back to make sure Juni was occupied at the moment, she turns back to Hagrid. "I just received word that the protective precautions are in place... Please Hagrid, look after her well, for neither her father nor I would know what we'd do if something happened to her..." she said.
"I'll do my best to keep her safe. Of that, you have my word." says Hagrid.
Just then, Juni walks over to them. "Who's this, mother, a friend of yours? If so, then he's the tallest friend of yours I have ever seen. In fact, he's as tall as the giant peach in our garden!"
Hagrid and Juni's mother laughed, then she said, "This is Hagrid, the groundskeeper and teacher of Care of Magical Creatures at Hogwarts."
"Wow! I bet the animals respect him, too! I like animals. They're so much fun!" Juni replied in a happy tone.
"You have to respect the animals if you want them to respect you always. Remember that, Juni." says Hagrid.
"Mother always said to respect nature." Juni eagerly replied.
"Your mother is a smart woman, and very attuned to nature."
"Yep!" Juni said with a smile.
Juni's father enters the shop and walks up to the three of them. "Ah, here you are. Almost done, then?
"Yes," says Juni's mother, "I was just introducing Hagrid to Juni."
They see supplies behind him.
Juni looked at her father. "Father, did you know Hagrid is as tall as our largest peach?" she asked, still surprised.
"Hahaha. Yes, he is quite tall." her father replied.
"Part giant, actually." says Hagrid, surprising Juni.
"Dante, come over here." Hagrid says.
Dante walks over after putting the last bit of owl treats into his bag. His owl was sitting on his shoulder.
"This is Dante. He will be attending Hogwarts along with Juni this year." Hagrid said as soon as Dante stood beside him.
"Yay! A fellow student!" Juni says then reaches out a hand. "Hi hi, Dante! It's very nice to meet you. I'm Juni. Let's have as much fun as we can in school, okay?" she says with a cheery tone.
"Nice to meet you, Juni. I hope we have fun in school, also." Dante replied. As they shook hands, he couldn't help but to feel nervous. Even though it could be wrong of him to do so, he began to think he felt a strange sensation in his chest. If he had felt it, then he didn't understand what it was or why he felt that sensation.
"That's a handsome owl you have there, Dante." Juni's mother says this with a kind smile. "What breed
is it?" she asks.
"I don't know. He just said he's never seen one like it."
"Well, he is handsome."
"Thanks."
"You're very welcome."
Juni's father noticed a twinge of nervousness in Dante's voice. "What is your family name, Dante?" he asked once he had the chance.
"Oh, the boy was-" Hagrid said before Dante cut him off.
"I was raised in an orphanage. I was never given a last name or middle name. The letter the person left with me said 'Dante'. That's all I know."
"And a fine name, it is." said Hagrid.
Juni's father looks at Hagrid and after walking next to him, whispers to Hagrid, "Look after our little girl... She is, as I hate to admit, sometimes rather too naive for her own good, after all... If anything happens to her-"
Hagrid cuts him off by saying, "Haha, don't worry bout a thing. All will be well and remain well with Juni. You have my word."
After both Dante and Juni looked at their lists, they soon realized that they each had only a wand left to get. They walk out of the shop and head toward Ollivander's Wand Shop as Juni chimes in a singsong type voice, "Off to Ollivanders! Let's go!"
Her comment and the way she said it caused Dante to think, Well, got to love her enthusiasm... as he placed on his head right while they all shared a laugh.
(To be continued.)
