Harry woke up and ran out of his cupboard. He was so excited about carving with his new wood! The possibilities were endless. Since the Basswood is soft and the most expensive, Harry would save it for an easy but high-stakes project when he has a bit more practice. The Balsa was a better price and still pretty soft. Harry decided to go to the backyard, just because he could. He walked outside and stared at the sky. He was happy about being free but he knew that it would eventually come to an end. He had more freedom than usual because of this new magic and since he didn't have to worry about school. He was currently on a break but it wasn't going to be forever. Harry was pretty sure that school was going to interfere with his wood carving.

"Meow"

Harry's thoughts were driven in a new direction at this interruption. It was one of Ms. Figg's cats! Her cats went everywhere and most of the people in the neighborhood ignored them because of it. They slipped into neighbors' yards and watched everyone while being ignored by those they watched. Last year, the neighbors tried to unite and get Ms. Figg to control her cats or keep them indoors but when they tried to capture the neighborhood cats nothing worked. The cats were smart and somehow avoided the people and their traps. One neighbor even called animal control but nothing worked. Harry respected the cats a lot. Nobody wanted them either but they didn't let it bother them.

The Balsa would be perfect for a cat. They have smooth silhouettes and minimal detail. Balsa wood was good for carving but it wasn't ideal for anything too detailed. Harry wasn't sure why that was true, but he figured that he would find out when he tried it out himself.

Harry ran inside and grabbed his tools. He grabbed a snack bar from his collection and brought everything outside. He then sat in the garden. It wasn't too sunny that it would cook him and it was either to clean everything up afterward.

He had his knife in one hand and in the other was his block. Harry had a little outline on his wood block for his bird; however, for the cat, Harry thought it might be better to try a bit of freehand. The cat's shape would require a lot of whittling down before he bothered with details. The only thing Harry was apprehensive about was that his cat would look ridiculously tiny compared to a real cat. Perhaps, it was better to call it a kitten because nobody would believe it was a cat. It might even be mistaken for a toy with how small it'll be.

When he carved the bird, he carved its wings laying flat against its body but when it came to life it had wings that worked. So Harry figured that he doesn't have to add all of the details for them to be there. He just had to have a strong enough thought in his head about it working. The cat that Harry was going to carve was going to look like it was laying down. It would be the easiest shape to carve while still being a cat. Harry was going to start with a round shape. The cat's head will be resting in a tight curl. His tail will be curled around his body with only little bits of his paws sticking through.

He began by rounding the corners off so it was more of an oval. The edges were easier to round out if he began with the middle of the rectangle and it also gave him a better grip. The carving was getting easier with more practice but Harry kept trying new things so he wasn't fully comfortable with any specific technique. He switched between the different knives just trying new angles and grips. Harry had to be careful with putting just the right amount of pressure so he doesn't carve too deep. The wood was so different compared to the stick that he had!

The sun was shining and the cat was laying down and staring calmly at the birds. These cats are well fed and so they often just find a place to rest. Harry wanted his cat to be as calm as the cats in the neighborhood. Harry wasn't sure what he would do if the cat that he carved was super energetic. He supposes that one of the reasons he wants to carve the cat is to have someone to sit with and just relax. His bird was perfect for adventures but not every day was an adventure. His cat would be with him in his cupboard and they could curl up together.

The shape of the cat was getting more clear but Harry wasn't ready to focus on the finer details. He put the cat aside and pulled his notebook towards him. Harry knew that he needed to start documenting his process. He was going to keep track of what he made, what wood he made it from, and the final result. Maybe even add a picture of what it looked like. Harry was not allowed to be good at school nor was he allowed to do anything out of school so this felt a bit awkward for him. He started filling his notebook and thinking about what he was going to do. He opened a new page to write ideas down and he realized that he was going to have to prioritize because there were just too many!

Of course, Harry wasn't oblivious to his obstacles either. He would need to find a long-term solution to hiding his creations, find a safe time and place to regularly whittle, and make sure that he could keep his tools safe. None of these were easy but all of them were important. He was able to get the Dursleys out of the house for this weekend but he wasn't sure how to do it regularly enough. Sitting in the backyard was freeing but it wasn't something that Harry could regularly count on.

Harry filled out his notebook and went inside. Maybe it was time to get help from someone else, but who?