First of all, I have to admit that I am not a native speaker, so there might be a few mistakes, but if you write me a message to tell me of them, I will correct them as soon as possible.
Disclaimer: All characters belong to JK Rowling, and I don't earn my money with these stories.
This story was mostly written during the National Novel Writing Month 2021.
How to be a post owl
Once upon a time, there was a tiny owl. He lived in a forest near London, but he didn't know that he was English or what 'London' and 'English' even meant. The tiny owl had a good life; most of the day he and his two siblings would wait for their parents to bring them something to eat, mostly mice or worms, already chewed, of course. The tiny owl had a brother and a sister and though they sometimes bickered when their parents were gone, the tiny owl was happy to be with them and they loved to play together. The owl family lived in a tree hole, the nest was warm and soft with much moss and cotton that their parents had found somewhere. Life was good and peaceful, but one day would change the tiny owl's life forever…
It happened on a beautiful warm spring day that the tiny owl was bored. His parents were out in the forest collecting more food and his sibling were asleep. So the tiny owl slowly crept to the edge of the nest and peeked outside into the wide world. It was his first time looking so closely at the surroundings of his home and he was instantly amazed by everything: the leaves were lime green and slowly shaking in the wind, the sun shone through them and illuminated the trees in an almost magical light. There! A squirrel hopped from branch to branch, stopping only shortly to nibble at a hazelnut. The tiny owl's eyes widened with every new object or animal they detected. After a while, he looked downstairs into the grass that was growing around the tree. And there were some red dots that the owl couldn't identify. Curious about these interesting new somethings, he leaned over the edge of the nest and a bit more – until he suddenly lost his footage and fell out of the nest. He screeched in fright and automatically spread his wings and suddenly he wasn't falling so fast anymore. The landing on the forest floor was still hard but the soft grass and moss softened the blow. Slowly, the tiny owl's heartbeat slowed down but when he looked up at his home tree, he started to get scared again. The tree was so high and the nest unreachable for him.
For a moment he was completely lost and desperate but then a butterfly crossed his way and curious and playful as the tiny owl was, he followed the flying insect. He hopped through the high grass and found out that the red dots were flowers and soon he forgot about everything else. After a while, however, he lost sight of the butterfly and found himself alone once more.
He tried to find his way back to his tree, but every direction looked the same to him. Finally, he decided to go one way and started to hop, hoping desperately that he would find his way back soon. He already missed his family. But then the grass and flowers stopped, and he stood on a sandy path.
I've not been here before, he thought and tried not to cry. The more he looked around, the more he fell into panic and desperation. How was he supposed to find his way back? What would he eat? Where would he sleep? What should he do if something dangerous happened? Would he ever see his family again? The tiny owl's thoughts got more dramatic by the second and he hopped and looked around onto the sandy path until he suddenly heard something new. It sounded like something heavy was coming his way and crunched the sand under their feet.
The tiny owl looked around in order to find a hiding spot, but it was too late: two huge, strange beings stood in front of him. These were Mr and Mrs Eeylops, a friendly old couple who were just doing a Sunday afternoon stroll through the forest. Of course, the tiny owl had never seen a human before, nor did he even know what that was, only that his parents had told him to be careful around them. Suddenly the strange animals started to speak but the owl didn't understand a word.
"Look, my love," Mrs Eeylops stopped in her tracks and pointed carefully at the owlet in front of them.
"Oh, yes," her husband replied. "It's a small scops owl."
The owl in question quickly hid behind a tuft of grass.
"Why is it all alone?" Mrs Eeylops wondered and looked around, searching for the nest.
"Let me speak to him," Mr Eeylops suggested and suddenly he changed his appearance: gone was the old man with the white beard and smiling face. In his stead a huge eagle owl stood on the path in front of the tiny owl. "Hello," the eagle owl greeted softly. "I am Mr Eeylops. You don't have to be afraid of me."
The tiny owl slowly put his head around the grass and looked at the eagle owl.
"Come here, little one," Mr Eeylops continued reassuringly. "I want to help you."
Slowly the tiny owl crept forwards, further encouraged by the eagle owl's calm words. Finally, he stood in front of the strange owl.
"Hello, little one," Mr Eeylops said. "Where is your family?"
"I think I have lost them," replied the tiny owl in a sad voice and told the eagle owl what had happened.
"Oh dear," replied the bigger owl. "Do you have any idea in which direction your home could be?"
The tiny owl looked around, but every tree or flower looked the same; there was no way to distinguish any direction or anything he could remember, so he shook his head.
"Don't worry," Mr Eeylops tried to comfort him. "Let me have a look and you wait here with my wife, alright?"
The tiny owl looked at the woman, who had sat down on a tree stump nearby, with wary eyes.
"She is very friendly," Mr Eeylops added when he saw the owl's gaze. "I believe she might even have a cookie for you." Then he spread his wings and started to fly gracefully through the woods.
The tiny owl stared after him until he was gone in the sea of green leaves. He dearly hoped that the nice eagle owl could find his family and bring him home. And he wished that one day he also might fly this gracefully through the air.
Suddenly the 'wife' made a sound, a strange noise that the tiny owl had never heard before and he peered quickly at her, ready to hide behind the grass once more if she did something scary or dangerous. But Mrs Eeylops merely sat on the tree stump, a bag of owl treats in her left hand and one of the cookies in her right one, offering it to the owlet. "Here, little one, come here, this is for you. I'm sure you'll like it."
The tiny owl didn't understand a word the 'wife' was saying but her tone was friendly, and the crunching of the bag made him curious, so slowly he stepped forwards, always ready to run away and hide if necessary. Further and further, he crept towards the human until he smelled the thing that was in her hand: it smelled delicious, even better than chewed mice! With that smell in his nose, he made his way to the treat quicker and before he had realised it, he already stood in front of Mrs Eeylops, nibbling at the cookie and enjoying the taste more than anything in the world while the old lady smiled.
When the cookie had been eaten, Mr Eeylops returned and landed in front of the tiny owl. "I'm sorry," he said, "I couldn't find your family."
There the tiny owl's heart sank and the taste in his mouth felt sour. If owls could cry, he would have at that moment. Instead, he asked desperately: "But I don't know how to live without my family! Where do I get some food? Where will I sleep? And who will cuddle with me?"
"Don't worry, little one," said Mr Eeylops friendly. "You can stay with me and my wife for as long as you want to. You know, many other owls already live with us."
The tiny owl was scared to leave his forest and what would await him in the world of the humans, but he was also curious to meet the other owls and didn't know where else to go this night, so he nodded.
It was easier for Mr Eeylops to turn back into his human form to transport the tiny owl in his warm hands.
The owl was curious as they left his forest and he saw houses and streets for the first time. He wanted to ask Mr Eeylops about everything he saw but he knew he could only speak to the man in his eagle owl form. He wanted to know if houses were as comfortable as nests and if all humans could change into owls. After a while, however, he must have fallen asleep, for the next thing he knew was that they entered such a house and stood inside it. The tiny owl found it strange not to live in a tree, and there was no moss or soft grass on the floor, just wooden planks.
Mr Eeylops took him to a room upstairs where other owls sat on wooden beams and stared at the new owl. The man put the tiny owl onto the platform in the middle of the room which was scattered with hay and some droppings and transformed into the eagle owl.
"Good evening, everyone," he said, and the other owls hooted back. "I've brought someone new today. This little one got lost in the forest and has never had contact with humans or our world before, so please be patient and kind with him."
A snowy owl flew towards them and landed in front of the tiny owl. "Hi, I'm Snowy," she said. "Welcome to Eeylops Owl Emporium."
The tiny owl didn't know what that was but was glad someone spoke to him in a friendly way.
"Come here," a large barn owl said. "You must be hungry," and the owls showed the tiny owl where he could eat and sleep.
Soon, Mr Eeylops bid them farewell with the words: "You're in good wings here." He transformed back into his human form and went downstairs.
While the tiny owl ate something, he asked the older owls many questions and they were kind and patient enough to answer them all. He learned that he was currently in London, the capital (which is a large city, which is a place where many humans live) of the United Kingdom (a country where even more humans live). Right now, he was in Eeylops Owl Emporium, a shop in Diagon Alley which sold post owls.
"What is post?" the tiny owl asked.
"Humans like to write letters," Snowy explained. "They write words on paper and send them to each other. In the magical world we owls deliver this post."
The tiny owl's eyes grew larger. Being a post owl sounded wonderful. But he still had so many questions. "What is magic?"
"That is something Mr Eeylops should show you tomorrow since only humans can do magic." Then Snowy looked at him with her big yellow eyes. "I forgot to ask you if you have a name."
The tiny owl shook his head.
"That's okay," Snowy said, "even better actually because if you want to be a post owl, a human might buy you and they often want to give you a name. That's why we all are named after our species, for now. I'm Snowy because I'm a snowy owl, and that's over there is Barny because he's a barn owl, and next to him is Burry because she is a burrowing owl and so on. And since you are a scops owl, we could call you Scopy. Would you like that?"
The tiny owl never had a name, so he was proud to have any, no matter which. "Yes," he cried joyfully. "I'm Scopy now."
When it was time to sleep, the tiny owl – Scopy – got sad again.
"What's wrong?" Snowy asked.
"I miss my family," Scopy said. "I want to cuddle with them. I have never been alone before."
"But you're not alone," Snowy said. "You have all of us. We're your family now. Come here, you can stay with me." And she opened her large wing and the tiny owl quickly hopped closer and into her soft side. It was comfortable and warm, and he could imagine being home.
"Thank you," he said already sleepy.
"You're welcome, little one," Snowy said with a smile in her voice.
The next morning Mr Eeylops came to speak with the tiny owl in his eagle owl form.
"Can all humans transform into owls?" Scopy asked at once.
Mr Eeylops chuckled. "No, not everyone. You see, I'm an Animagus which means that I can transform into an animal, in my case an eagle owl. But there aren't many witches or wizards with that ability, and they all have a different animal. I know a lady who can transform into a cat."
"Why did you become an owl?"
"They have always been my favourite animals and so it just happened. Now then. I'd like to show you Diagon Alley and the wizarding world. Therefore, it's best if I am my human self which means that we can't talk. So remember your questions and I will answer them later. But don't worry, I will teach you the human language soon." Mr Eeylops transformed back into a smiling old man and held his hand out for the tiny owl who hopped onto his palm excitedly.
Together they went downstairs where Mrs Eeylops stood behind a counter and talked with other humans while all around them many owls sat in cages.
Mr Eeylops carried the tiny owl out of the shop and into the street he had called Diagon Alley.
Scopy made wide eyes. The streets were full of people and things. There were so many things that he was sure he couldn't detect everything. He saw different sorts of food and long sticks with branches and black nests without moss and most people wore long clothes and a wooden branch in their hands.
Mr Eeylops carried him further down the street and up again, then they went back into the shop and upstairs to the other owls. There, the old man put the tiny owl back on the table in the middle and got one of those strange branches out of his pocket. He then said a word the tiny owl couldn't understand and in the next moment red sparks came out of it, and then a small ball came flying out of the corner and right into Mr Eeylops' hand.
The tiny owl was astounded and waited impatiently for the man to transform into an eagle owl so he could ask all his questions. When Mr Eeylops had done so, he started at once.
"That was amazing! Who are all these people? What were all these things? And what did you do in just there?"
The eagle owl chuckled and with great patience explained all the tiny owl's questions and more. Thereby, Scopy learned about the wizarding world and magic, and he found it wonderful. He never wanted to leave this world again.
"I'm sure the others have told you about post owls?" Mr Eeylops asked and Scopy nodded with bright eyes.
"Can I be one, too?"
"Hmm," made Mr Eeylops. "I'm not sure. You might be a bit too small to fly long distance and deliver parcels."
"Can I at least try?"
"Of course, but don't be disappointed if it's not working out."
"Okay."
"First you should grow and learn how to fly and you need to learn the human language, otherwise you won't understand where to and to whom to bring the letters."
The tiny owl was eager to learn to understand all these witches and wizards and learn more about this world. So every day he and other younger owls were taught by Mr Eeylops the language of the humans which he called English.
Over the next few months, Scopy quickly learned this English and soon he could understand most of Mr Eeylops' words when he wasn't in his eagle owl form.
He also stayed close friends with Snowy who was like a big sister to him. He could always come to her with questions or when he missed his family and needed comfort. He also grew every day and soon he wasn't an owlet anymore and it was time for him to learn how to fly.
For this, Mrs Eeylops went with him into the backyard of the shop where a small tree stood. She put him on a high branch and told him to spread his wings, fall down, flap them and try to fly.
Scopy looked down scared, but Mrs Eeylops told him she would catch him if he didn't make it, and he trusted the kind, old lady. The first few times he fell without doing much against it, then he started to glide more than fall, and after many days of training, he suddenly flew. He couldn't believe it when Mrs Eeylops cheered when he managed to control his fall and even get higher into the air. He soon had to stop because it was quite exhausting, but it worked, it finally worked. Now he really could start becoming a post owl.
In the height of summer, however, something dreadful happened. One evening when the tiny owl returned from another flight training with Mrs Eeylops, Snowy wasn't where she usually sat.
"Where's Snowy?" Scopy asked the other owls.
"She was bought," Barny explained and flew to the tiny owl.
"Bought? What does that mean?"
"It means a human has paid Mr Eeylops money so that he can use Snowy as his post owl."
"So, she is gone?" Scopy asked sadly.
"Yes," Barny replied. "This can happen to all of us sooner or later, but it is something we look forward to. A bond between an owl and their human is often very special and they become family to us."
That night, Scopy was sad and alone. Normally when he missed his family, Snowy would comfort him but now that he missed Snowy no one was there for him. He never had made any other friends because he liked Snowy best and had a lot to do with learning English and flying, and now he was scared to make another friend. What if they left him too? The next few days he was cheerless until Barny told him: "You know, there aren't many post owls in England. I'm sure if you become one too, you'll meet Snowy again sooner than later."
This gave the tiny owl new motivation and for the next year and a half he gave his everything. He trained his flying ability and tried to get more strength into his wings and claws.
After a while, Mr Eeylops gave him a letter to carry around in his beak or claw. At first, it was really difficult because it felt unnatural and Scopy kept dropping the letter. But eventually, he figured it out and they moved on to small parcels which was worse. Even the small parcels were too heavy for him, and he needed all his strength to merely lift them from the ground. It took him many months of training until he was able to fly with a small parcel, but when he succeeded, the tiny owl was ecstatic. Mr Eeylops, however, was still sceptical.
"I don't know," he would say but Scopy really wanted to be a post owl, so the kind man compromised. "You can be a minor post owl which means that you can't carry too much."
This was alright with Scopy.
Then one day it was time for his final test. Mr Eeylops had prepared a letter and a very small parcel. "I want you to bring these to my sister," was all he said.
It was Scopy's task to figure out the rest. He took the letter in his beak and let the parcel be tied to his left foot and flew away. It was the first time he left Diagon Alley since Mr Eeylops had found him. But owls have a natural sense of orientation, Mr Eeylops had said.
Scopy flew to the nearest tree to have a look at the address on the letter. He carefully read the words and knew where that was. He had to learn the British map and now he flew south, away from London and to a small town near a river. He tried to remember the way because Mr Eeylops had told him that humans often sent a letter to only the same few persons.
Scopy found the right cottage soon and swooped through the open kitchen window.
Adria Eeylops sat at her kitchen table and ate lunch, so Scopy flew in front of her.
"Oh, hello little one," Adria greeted. "What do you have for me?"
Proudly Scopy dropped the letter and presented the parcel.
Adria read the letter and opened the parcel and was delighted. "Thank you," she said and got a bowl of water and some owl treats. "My brother tells me this was your test flight. Well done."
Scopy hooted happily but was exhausted and drank some sips.
Adria continued reading while gently petting the tiny owl. "He also tells me not to give you a letter back since that would be too much for you. So you just rest until you want to fly home, okay?"
Scopy rested for a while until he felt better and flew home.
Home. That word resonated in him and when he flew over the forest near London, he remembered that he once had asked Mr Eeylops where he was from. The old man had taken out the map and shown him a forest.
"Here," he had said. "This is where I found you."
Now Scopy was flying over that exact forest and suddenly the urge to find his family overwhelmed him and he descended to the trees. He vaguely remembered the forest with its green trees and red flowers, its squirrels and birds, and how the sunbeams reached the ground.
He flew through the branches and called for his family. He was sure that if they were near, they would call back.
"Hello?" he called. "Mum? Dad?"
Suddenly an owl hooted back and Scopy was sure that it was his mother. He called her again and followed her voice until he found a tree that seemed familiar. And there she sat on the thick branch in front of his old nest. His mother.
He was so happy to see her again, he almost crashed into her, and she too was overjoyed and nibbled his beak affectionately.
"Where have you been all this time?" she asked, and the tiny owl told his story.
When his father came home, he too was happy to have his son back, and the tiny owl started to tell the story from the beginning. His parents were glad that he had had a good home these last years but were sceptical that he wanted to live and work in the human world.
"Are humans nice enough to treat an owl well?" his father asked.
"Not all of them," Scopy replied, "but the most, especially wizards and witches bond with owls and treat them better than pets, more like friends. And it's a lot of fun. You never know where a letter will take you."
"As long as you're happy," his mother smiled.
The tiny owl stayed for a while longer and asked after his siblings (who had their own families now nearby), but when twilight began, he needed to return to Diagon Alley.
"Mr Eeylops will surely wonder where I have been," he said. "But I promise to visit soon again, now that I know where you are."
His parents bid him farewell and Scopy hadn't felt this happy in a long while.
When he flew over Diagon Alley and towards the Owl Emporium, Mr Eeylops was already waiting for him in the yard.
"There you are!" he said and waved.
Scopy landed on the branch in front of him and Mr Eeylops transformed into an eagle owl.
"I was worried it might have been too much for you," Mr Eeylops said.
Scopy reassured him that he had managed and delivered greetings from Adria. "I found my family again," he then exclaimed happily, and Mr Eeylops smiled.
"That's wonderful. So, this whole day was a success."
Scopy nodded. The best day of his life. He only wished that Snowy was here to share it with him.
"Now you have a choice," Mr Eeylops then said and sounded serious. "Do you want to return to your family and live in the forest, or do you want to stay and become available to be bought as a post owl?"
Scopy didn't have to think about it. "I want to be a post owl."
"Very well," Mr Eeylops smiled. "And don't worry: if you ever encounter a human who isn't nice to you, you can always come back here, and we'll take care of you."
"Thank you. For everything."
"Of course, little one."
So from the next day on, Scopy spent time in the front of the shop where potential buyers could see him. But when after a few weeks still no one wanted him, he became sad.
"Don't worry," Mrs Eeylops said when she saw the tiny owl so low and petted his head. "It can take time until the perfect person comes for you. I must admit, most people want a larger owl that can carry more. But don't worry, I'm sure someone will come into the store who needs exactly you and you will become the best of friends."
So every day Scopy hoped, but every day he fell asleep disappointed, dreaming of his life as a post owl.
Until one day.
"I need a small owl for a cheap price," a man with blonde hair and startling blue eyes said to Mr Eeylops.
Scopy hooted in delight. This was his chance.
"Of course," Mr Eeylops told the man and led him to the tiny owl. "What about this scops owl?"
The man scrutinised Scopy who showed him his best side. "Hmm," he pondered. "He seems too little to carry any letter."
"He is a minor post owl which means that he also doesn't cost as much as other owls, but I can assure you that he is very capable of carrying letters and small parcels."
Scopy hooted to confirm Mr Eeylops' words.
"He seems eager," the man smiled.
"Oh yes. He will be most loyal to his owner."
"Very well, I'll take him."
Those were magic words for Scopy and he flew around the shop in excitement, then landed on the man's shoulder and nibbled at his ear affectionately which made the man laugh while he paid Mr Eeylops a few coins.
"Goodbye, little one," Mr Eeylops said and petted the tiny owl. "I'm sure we'll meet again."
Scopy hooted his goodbye and then the man left the shop with his new owl. They left Diagon Alley and walked for a while before the man stood in front of a row of boring-looking houses next to a park.
The man mumbled something and suddenly a new house appeared in between the others. A secret house! Scopy was impressed and knew that this was why he wanted to stay in the wizarding world: he loved magic.
When they had entered the house and the man had closed the door behind them, he took out his wand and changed his appearance. The short blonde hair changed into long black curls and the startling blue eyes into warm grey ones.
"So little one," the man said, now with a deeper voice. "I'm sorry for that little deception. Don't worry, I did nothing wrong. I'm Sirius, by the way, and though I'd love to have you for my own owl, you're a present for someone." The man – Sirius – then entered a living room that looked as if no one had lived here in many years, took a piece of parchment, and started writing a letter.
Meanwhile, Scopy flew around the room and looked at everything. He was so excited. Now he was a real post owl and soon he would meet his owner and hopefully become dear friends with them.
"Finished," Sirius said after a while and put the letter into an envelope.
Scopy's eyes widened because the envelope was rather large, but he knew he could do it. He could do anything if he only wanted it enough!
Sirius gave the letter to Scopy and opened a window. "Okay, little one. This letter is for Harry Potter."
Scopy knew that name. He was one of the most important persons in the wizarding world. Mr Eeylops had shown him the boy's face when he had explained to him a bit of the wizarding history. "He normally lives at Hogwarts, but right now he is on his way home for the summer and should be in the Hogwarts Express. Can you find that?"
Mr Eeylops had told Scopy about Hogwarts and its Express train and where it ran, so he nodded.
"Good owl," Sirius smiled and petted him. "Now go and have fun at your new life."
And Scopy flew out of the window and to the north of London. He soon found the train tracks and followed them further north. Sooner or later, he would find the train, and truly after half an hour, a red train with smoke came into view.
Scopy flew even faster though the envelope started to become very heavy in his beak, but he wanted his first real delivery to be perfect.
He flew next to the many windows of the train and looked for Harry Potter who with his round glasses and black hair was easy to spot. When he found him, he tried to get his attention by scratching with his claws against the window, but it wasn't easy in the train wind.
Finally, the boy noticed him, opened the window, and took him inside.
Scopy delivered his letter and flew around happily. "I did it," he hooted.
"Scopy?" a familiar voice suddenly asked and when he looked around, he found its owner.
"Snowy!" the tiny owl shouted and flew to his old friend who currently sat in an owl cage. "What are you doing here?"
"You won't believe it but I'm Harry Potter's owl now."
"Wow! That's great, Snowy."
"Oh, I'm called Hedwig now."
"That's a nice name."
Scopy flew around again happily when he noticed a cat on the train seat. There was also a girl with long brown bushy hair and a boy with freckles and orange hair. It was this boy who offered his palm for Scopy to land on and then held him gently so the cat wouldn't try and eat him.
Scopy liked the boy instantly.
Meanwhile, Harry Potter started reading Sirius' letter. When he read. "I have some doubts about the owl's reliability," Scopy wanted to scoff in anger, but luckily the sentence continued: "but he is the best I could find, and he did seem eager for the job," and Scopy was happy again and hooted and nibbled at the boy's finger. The end of the letter told them that Scopy was for a 'Ron' who apparently was the boy on whose palm he sat. Scopy looked up at him expectantly. Would the boy be happy about him or find him too small?
Instead of reacting either way, the boy – Ron – put him closer to the cat for sniffing.
"Definitely an owl?" Ron asked the cat which Scopy didn't understand. Of course, he was an owl! But the cat purred, and Ron was happy. "That's good enough for me," he said. "He's mine." And he grinned at Scopy and the tiny owl was sure they would become the best of friends.
In the following summer, Scopy got to know Ron's family including the very old but very kind family owl Errol, and Ron's sister Ginny gave him the name Pig though he had no idea why. Ron apparently didn't like it as much as Scopy and changed his name to Pigwidgeon, again no idea why, but he liked his new name very much. And in the following years, he spent a wonderful time at the Burrow where Ron and his family lived and at Hogwarts where Ron was most of the time and where Hedwig waited for him. Every now and then Pig visited his family but most of the time he spent at Hogwarts. He even got to see Sirius again and met many other owls, some even from Mr Eeylops' shop.
And life as a post owl was perfect.
THE END.