Harry turned around to meet the furious and red face of his twin sister. He gave her an unconvincing smile, trying to hide the cage behind his cloak.
"Harry, you just came out of Knockturn Alley! If mum and dad knew what you were doing-" Harry cut her off.
"If mum and dad knew what I was doing but they don't." Harry gave her a cheeky grin. Mara's face turned redder and Harry winced.
Not wanting his sister to start a scene or tell his parents, He showed her the cage he had hidden behind his back. He tried to block it from the view of several curious onlookers.
Mara's face melted into pity as soon as she saw the state of the poor bird. "What happened to it?" She muttered.
Harry got a good look at the bird, now that he wasn't running on adrenaline.
The bird's feathers were molten away, leaving only a few dirty colored feathers clinging to its pink skin. The bird was about the size of Harry's hand and it was covered in dirt and grime. Its gold eyes stared up at them with fear as it cowered in the corner of its cage.
"I found it in a shady pet shop, I was going to tell dad about it but I couldn't leave her there." Harry lamented.
Mara looked up sharply. "Her? It's a girl?"
Harry floundered as he thought to answer her. "I don't know, it was a guess. " It was the truth. He didn't need to tell her that for some mysterious reason he was pretty sure it was a girl.
Mara looked conflicted as she stared at the bird. She seemed to make a decision before giving a loud sigh and pulling an old leather wallet out of her cloak. She held it out to him.
"It's the emergency portkey. I'll tell mum and dad what happened but when we get home, don't expect them to be happy with you." Mara warned him.
"Thanks, Sis." Harry nodded, taking the wallet from her hand while juggling the cage with the other. He raised the leather to his lips and whispered "Potter Manor"
There was a sudden pull and Mara's face swirled out of focus until there was nothing but colors. He steadied himself in the sudden weightlessness until he felt solid ground connect with his feet. He stumbled but righted himself as he looked around his surroundings to see the foyer of Potter Manor.
It was grand as always, marble flooring and a large staircase leading to the rest of the house. Remembering why he was here, he looked at the bird to make sure it was okay before yelling out "Tilly!"
/
Mara hurried back to her parents, having left them at Madam Malkins for extra robes when she felt a pull in her. She stopped in the middle of the ally, a confused look upon her face as she turned to where it was pulling her.
Frowning, she saw one of the various pet shops on the street. This one seemed to specialize in cats, she supposed by the large cages of cats in and out of the building.
"Mara!" She looked forward just as her father's hand came clamping on her shoulder, making her wince at the sudden tightness.
The hand immediately let go and Mara looked up into her father's eyes and saw the worry in them.
Before either he or her mother could say anything, she interrupted "I saw Harry. I gave him the portkey to get home, he found this sick bird and it needed help so I helped." It came pouring out as soon as she opened her mouth and Mara once again cursed her inability to lie to her parents.
Lily and James looked concerned but seemed to have let the matter go after a few words. Mara couldn't seem to pay attention, her focus on the pull she felt to the shop and though she didn't mean to, her eyes kept traveling to it.
"Am I assuming you want a cat, Mara?" Her father's amused voice broke through her trance. She gave him a sheepish grin. "Sorry, I just feel like I should be in there."
James and Lily exchanged a look Mara couldn't interpret but they both smiled at her as James gestured her to go into the shop.
Mara's pull only tripled with every step she took inside.
Different cages full of different colored cats lined the walls. Some cages were open and various cats roamed through the store, staring at her lazily as she passed. She walked past the white counter where a man stood petting a tabby colored cat, feeling a pull to the back of the store.
Hurrying as the pull only got stronger; she moved her eyes across the various cages. Tabby cats, orange tiger, blue Russian, Persians, all kinds of cats stared at her until it seemed her entire world stopped.
A small kitten sat poised in one of the cages on the far right. It stared into Mara's eyes as if waiting for something. Giving a happy smile, Mara headed to the cage where the kitten immediately stood up and rubbed against the cage, letting Mara see its unique color.
It looked like a mini tiger but white with black stripes, its paws were black and she could see faint black spots on its pelt. Giving it a smile she let her hand touch the cage and the kitten rubbed against her hand, giving a loud purring sound.
Giggling, she turned to the man who was still petting the cat which lay on the counter. The man looked up at her and gave her a smile as he moved around the counter to help her.
"I see you made a connection then?" The man gave her a smile as Mara nodded. He took a look at the kitten which patiently waited in her cage, her tail flickering behind her.
He gave it an odd look before shrugging and opened the cage. The small bundle of black and white fur jumped out of the cage, landing on Mara, who managed to upright herself, holding onto the cat and herself.
She laughed as she made sure she had her balance as the kitten purred in her arms. She held out her hand for the kitten to sniff but it butted its head against her hand. Laughing, she stroked the kitten that only seemed to purr louder.
"Well, it seems she likes you! I'll give you a discount, Miss Potter." She looked up at him in shock as he winked down at her, pointing his finger to her forehead.
Mara almost panicked as she brushed her bangs over her forehead to cover it better. Her cheeks glowed bright red as she hoped her scar wasn't visible anymore.
The Kitten leaned upwards and rubbed its head against her cheek and Mara laughed. Stopping for a moment, she realized the pull she was feeling was gone.
Giving the kitten an odd look, she headed to the counter to pay for her new friend.
/
"Is it okay?" Harry asked worriedly as Tilly the house elf gave the small bird a look over. Tilly was quite small and old for a house elf and she smiled at Master Harry's worry.
"Worry not, Master Harry. It is in no danger. Mistress Lily can brew a potion to fix it right up." Tilly answered a smile on her face as she watched Harry's face relax.
"That's good. I'll clean her up, Tilly. Thanks." Harry grabbed the cage and headed to the upstairs bathroom, hurrying but being careful not to shake the cage too much.
Shutting the door behind him, he carefully set the small cage on the countertop before running the faucet for warm water. He grabbed a hand cloth from the cabinet and dipped it into the water.
He took a deep breath as the small bird burrowed further into it the cage. Unsure how to clean it without it freaking out, he opened the door to the cage.
"Hi, there." Harry kept his voice low to not scare it further. It gave a low chirping sound but kept its eyes on him.
Harry tried giving it what he thought was a reassuring smile. "I need to clean your feathers, so they can grow properly. I promise I won't hurt you."
Slowly he reached a hand through the door. When the bird gave a loud shriek, he let his arm pause on the bottom of the cage.
The bird seemed to calm down and Harry moved his arm until he was able to touch her. He gently lifted a finger and stroked it down her back.
After a few tense moments, the bird seemed to calm down as it stared at him with golden eyes. It tilted its head as its muscles seemed to relax a bit.
He gave it a gentle smile and reached his hand around the small bird and pulled her out of the cage, careful of her tender feathers.
The bird fit in the palm of his hand but its eyes never left his. He gave it a smile. "That a girl."
He lifted the rag and carefully began to give it careful strokes, trying to get rid of the dirt and grime.
Harry grimaced at the now black towel and set the clean bird back into the cage.
She looked a lot better and he could see her feathers were golden without all the dirt but she was still missing a lot of her feathers.
Harry shut the cage door before a loud banging noise came from downstairs. Startled, he checked on the bird that was alert at the noise and back to cowering in her corner. He sighed and headed downstairs.
He couldn't help but feel like he was marching into a funeral as he headed down the stairs and saw the look on his mums face. Mara shuffled behind her, guiltily looking at the ground.
He sighed, knowing that Mara could never keep a secret.
He cringed preparing for a lecture before his mum gave a loud sigh. He raised an eyebrow as she stared at him. "Mara told me about the bird. Tilly said it would need a replenishing potion. I should have it ready in about an hour. But you can talk to your father about how you found a bird in such bad shape as I have a pretty good guess already." With those words, Lily headed down the hallway to go prepare the potion.
Mara cringed for him as they both turned to James, whose face was unreadable. Harry gave a sigh. This was not going to end well.
/
Mara happily munched on a chocolate frog as she placed her new belongings in her room. The small kitten followed her everywhere much to her surprise and delight. She couldn't help but already feel connected to the small feline. As she finished packing her trunk with her new books, she smiled at the kitten who sat patiently at her feet. "Well, now that that's finished, what should I name you?" she asked, her face lighting up in a smile.
The kitten flicked her tail. "What about Breena?" Mara asked. "It was the name of a Charms Mistress a long time ago."
'Acceptable.'
Mara grinned. "That's Great! I'm glad you like it so I'll call you Breena from now on. Anyway, are you hungry? Dad should be back from the ministry soon. He was reporting the shop harry found that bird." She moved towards the door before her smile dropped.
She spun around to face the kitten, who hadn't moved. "Did you just speak to me?"
The feline and girl stared at each other for several heartbeats before Mara let out a nervous laugh. "That's crazy. I must be imagining things. Cat's can't speak." Mara shook her head to clear her thoughts.
The kitten stared back at her and Mara turned to leave again but a voice rung out. 'While this is certainly amusing, I do have reason to speak to you, human.'
Mara spun around and stared at the cat with wide eyes. There were several heartbeats.
'Well?'
Mara let out a scream. "HARRY!"
/
Harry supposed being grounded was the best he could hope for after the stunt he pulled. Still, he managed to save an innocent bird and hopefully get that shop taken down and the man arrested. It could be worse.
He glanced at the cage in the corner. Luckily, his parents had thought to buy food and treats for the bird as Harry had left in a rush. She hadn't moved in a while, sleeping in the cage though she was no longer hiding in the bottom corner and instead was asleep on the porch. He hoped to get her a better cage before they went to Hogwarts.
He sighed again and looked down at his book. 'Familiar Bonds' was interesting to read though he had already read it twice. Going by the book, Familiars and Pets are different things. While a simple owl may be a companion or pet, Familiars are harder to come by. True Familiars were very rare and a different kind of bond.
One of the ways the book says to tell the difference is by the aura the familiar gives out.
There was a sudden chirp from across the room and Harry looked up suddenly. The bird was staring at him and Harry blinked.
It chirped again and his chest burst into warmth at the sound. He raised an eyebrow. That was new. He looked back down at his book again only for a mental picture of his book to pop into his brain.
He jumped at the sensation of a presence in his mind, like a link.
He looked at the bird, confused until another picture popped into his mind, the word of Aura from the book.
"Aura?"
The bird gave a happy trill and deciding to roll with it, He asked: "Your name is Aura?"
As the bird trilled again, he took a moment to look at the bird. It was looking much better after the potion and some of its feathers had started to grow back, golden like the others.
"All right then, your names Aura." He acknowledged. Before he could figure out exactly how the bird had communicated to him, he heard his sister's scream.
"HARRY!"
Nearly jumping out of his skin at the loud scream, he became alarmed as he looked at his door and heard the pounding of running feet down the hallway.
The door came flying open, slamming against the wall behind it and He could see his sister, breathing heavily, and panic on her face.
She panted out "The cat talked."
Not quite expecting that, he raised an eyebrow. "The cat talked?" He wasn't aware they had a cat.
Surely enough, behind her feet was a small black and white cat that looked like a kitten. He supposed they must have gotten it in Diagon Alley.
Harry felt a bit creeped out as it stared at him with its amber eyes.
"Harry, I swear it talked to me!" Mara insisted as she jumped onto his bed, sitting on the corner.
The cat moved into the room and headed to the desk where the cage was perched.
"Hey!" He yelled, preparing to jump up to move the cat as it jumped onto the desk and stared into the cage.
The cat simply glanced at him before looking at the bird. Harry exchanged a look with Mara. He wasn't sure that was normal cat behavior.
The cat turned to them after a moment before its tail flickered behind it.
'I am Breena.'
Harry jumped at the sound of a high pitched voice in his head. It definitely sounded female and by the way Mara jumped as well, looking panicked, she heard it too. "See I told you!" Mara yelled.
Mara and Harry stared at the cat wide-eyed before it got tired of it and flicked its tail impatiently.
'I am not something to be stared at.'
Mara was the first to speak. "Sorry, but I've never met a talking cat before."
The cat seemed genuinely surprised by this. 'Humans must be stupider than I thought. I can only communicate to you through our bond.'
Mara gave a confused look to Harry who shrugged just as confused as she was. "Bond?" She directed the question to the cat.
It stared at them for a moment, irritation clear in its gaze before giving a sigh. 'I believe you humans refer to such as thing as a Familiar Bond. I am the girls.'
Harry's eyes lit up. He looked down at the book in his head, which was suspiciously convenient. "Oh, that's why you can communicate. Only those with Familiar Bonds are able to communicate."
Mara looked confused. "But if you're my familiar, why can harry hear you?"
The Familiar, Breena's ear twitched. 'You have a bond, so you can communicate with those of other bonds.' At Mara's lost look, Harry explained to her.
"She's saying that it's like a frequency that only those with Familiars can hear. Familiars hear each other and can share the frequency with others with Familiars. So If I had a familiar and you had a familiar, we could hear each other's Familiars."
Mara nodded, understanding but Harry looked back at the cat. "I don't have a familiar though."
Breena flickered her tail, annoyance showing. 'Did you think you found the Phoenix by chance?'
Understanding flashed across his face as he looked at Aura, who sat on the swing in the cage, staring at them.
"That's why I felt that pull towards her." He surmised. Aura gave a happy chirp. "But why can't she speak?"
'She is too young. She will learn in time.'
That's when it finally registered what Breena had said. "Wait a minute, Phoenix?"
Breena made an annoyed mew as her tail lashed behind her, glancing at the bird, who had given an indignant chirp. 'Yes, I believe she is a rarer variant.'
As Harry looked at the bird in awe, who now had a proud look on her face, Mara turned to the cat. "What are you?"
Breena gave them a proud look. 'I am from the proud lineage of Snow Tigers and one of the descendants of Dawon, the sacred tiger."
Mara raised an eyebrow. "I've haven't heard of those before."
Breena's fur riled up and she hissed. 'We are a strong and proud lineage dating back before you humans even existed!'
"Sorry, I didn't know," mara soothed her familiar. Breena gave a huff, turning away from them.
Mara gave a loud sigh and Harry turned to her, concerned.
She looked up at him, frowning. "Harry, this is bad."
Giving her a questioning look as she fell back on the bed, lying on her back.
"If the press finds out, they're going to think I'm the next Merlin."
Harry laughed and Mara directed her last question at him.
"Are we allowed to take them to Hogwarts?"
Harry nodded. "They passed a law a long time ago forbidding Familiars being kept away from their Bonds, even at school. We just have to inform the headmaster."
They both paled as they heard the door open and the voice of their mother call out.
"Familiars?"