“Let’s get you an animal, too!” They exited the shop and turned left down the road. “Personally, I’m a cat person. But, you can also have an owl, a toad, or a rat at Hogwarts. Owls can send messages and deliver mail for you, so they are useful. Rats are also very smart if you would like a smaller animal. They can send messages, but only to places they can actually run to and from. They’re also prey for a lot of animals, so I’d be careful owning a rat. I’m partial to cats myself. To be honest, they don’t really do anything useful except catch rats, but I do love their company.”
Duchess hadn’t thought about having a pet. Her parents never let her have a pet at home. They always said they would be the ones who ended up feeding it and cleaning up after it. “I can have my own pet? It’s just for me? Like mine?”
“If you want. I, personally, think it’s a good idea. If you have an owl, we have an owlery for them to stay in if you don’t want it in your room. They can also get their food there. They really are hunters, so if you get an owl, I would let him out at night to explore and hunt nightly.
“A toad is useful depending on which kind you get. Some have glads that secrete potion ingredients, so you won’t have to buy them at the shop continually. The one thing we don’t allow is for you to sell the ingredients. You may share them, give them away, but you can’t sell them.”
Without thinking of the costs, she immediately piped up,
“Can I get all of them?” While Duchess has been quiet and polite this whole time, she really isn’t so shy around Hermione anymore. She grew up wanting very little and her parents had the financial resources to help her live a well-rounded life. Hermione looked down at Duchess surprised at the request.
“You can have two. Please note that you have limited space. You have a trunk by the bed in your dorm, and one wardrobe. Those aren’t exactly places to keep animals.” Duchess hadn’t thought about her dorm or sleeping arrangements. Would it be a tiny closet like the college dorm she once visited when her cousin started college? She was a little disappointed but still happily replied,
“Okay! I want an owl and a cat! The owl can send letters for me, the cat can keep me company and catch rats, too! Maybe I should get two cats so they’re not lonely when I’m in class…” Duchess started ranting as she became more excited,
In the end, Hermione would purchase the owl as a gift for Duchess, and her parents purchased her a cat.