Furry and Feathered Friends (Aurelia & Nora)

Grateful for her day out with William last week, Aurelia felt like such a dolt for forgetting entirely about Sammy. The odd little bird had broken his cage while wrestling around with the kittens last month, and had patiently waited for a new one. Truthfully, the redhead knew he preferred nestling in with his furry friends, but once she left for school, she new she needed a carrier for him.

Her father had offered to bring her for a short trip, since he needed to visit the owner anyway. As a rather well known carer for magical and muggle creatures, Rowan was always a welcome sight in pet shops such as this. As Aurelia wandered around the shop, browsing a bit before narrowing her search to what she really needed, she could hear the familiar voices floating through the relatively empty space.

A silly little squeak sounded from a rack near the rear of the shop. It didn't sound distressed or anything, Aurelia just couldn't quite place what was making it. Wandering over, she spotted an amazingly colored cat, about a year or two old. Obviously out of the kitten phase, but still active as all get out.

A smile lit her face as Aurelia leaned over to pet the Siamese through her bars. Purring up a storm, the little darling let out another squeak. Apparently, that was just how it sounded. "Well, you're just about the cutest thing ever, aren't you?" A few head bumps turned into a full on tongue bath as she assumed there was some sweet or other having left a bit of sugar on her fingers. Giggling softly, the young teen knew she couldn't take her new friend home. But one can always dream!

As Aurelia continued to stroke the cat through the bars, making sure to scratch behind her ears, her mind wandered back to Sammy. The owlet was growing into his own, but she was a bit worried how he would handle being away from home this summer. He'd been her only pet consistently at the house until her mother got the kittens, and she wondered how much he would miss them. She did suppose they'd be able to play when she wrote home, so it shouldn't be too terrible.

Having turned so introspective, the redhead hadn't heard another person show up until a squeal popped out right next to her. Her nerves jumping at the unexpected sound, Aurelia's hand had automatically jerked up and out, catching on the cage bars a bit. Shaking it at her side, she tried to hide the discomfort, especially once she noticed how innocently excited the girl was.

A soft giggle escaped her at the girl's words. "She is pretty cute. I'm sure she'd love to go to a good home." While Aurelia was already fond of the small Siamese, she was used to loving animals but seeing them leave. It had been hard when she was younger and didn't understand why they couldn't just keep all the sick and wounded animals that came through her parents' clinic. But they thought her that every animal has a home out there somewhere. And if they kept them all, they wouldn't be able to care for each as well as they deserved.

How that her hand had stopped throbbing softly, she extended it. "I'm Aurelia. I've seen you around Hogwarts, right?" The blonde looked familiar, but she didn't think they'd had classes together.

Nora nodded at the words, started to say something, and then frowned. "Wait. Do you think she'll be okay with three dogs, a kneazle, and a horse? Well, he's still tiny, so a pony, really, but he's still a horse, isn't he?" She bent forward to stroke the cat, grinning at how soft the fur was.

"Well," she added, almost as an afterthought "That's not all we have at home. I mean, Danny has a cat -- he's my older brother. Danny, I mean, not the cat. Lulu -- that's the cat -- gets along fine with the dogs and everything, so it should be okay, right? I mean, they're really nice dogs and they don't bite or chase Kitty or anything, and Kitty is the closest to a cat. Oh, Kitty is my kneazle, by the way."

Stopping only to take a breath, she gave the cat another scratch behind the ears and said, "I think I'll name you Meow."

Turning slightly, she noted the hard and sighed inwardly. What did the girl have to go and make it formal for? Nora much preferred things to be casual, to chat with people without much of a fuss or an issue. Oh, she knew how to do things properly -- of course she did; she was a Pureblood, after all, no matter the ADHD or not -- but she didn't enjoy it.

But a hand held out was a hand held out and Nora stopped petting the cat, straightened, and turned to face Aurelia, a perfected polite smile on her face. "Hello Aurelia. It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm Nora, although you may use Eleonora -- my full name -- if you prefer. I wouldn't, but that's entirely up to you, of course." It wasn't exactly how her tutors had taught her, but where was the fun in doing everything by the books?

Taking the hand, she gave it a gentle shake that lasted for exactly two seconds and retracted her hand, keeping her smile small enough that it wasn't obviously faked but large enough for it to be noticed.


[[OOC: Let it be officially known that I facepalmed too many times writing this. Oh Nora, you precious little creature. <3 ]]