April 6th, 1895 - High Street/Whizzhards

This was the first time Sloane had been charged with a hatchling of any kind. The responsibility extended past the zoo itself and so she currently had a small great eared nightjar nestled into the hood of her cloak, his little head poking out as he tucked himself under her ear in the crook of her neck. Mrs. Miller had acquired him sometime yesterday evening and had called Sloane down to the aviary first thing this morning. The jouvenile was strong, gotten as an illegal import from India and confiscated after someone was dumb enough to flaunt him at a party. Too young to be away from full time care, something the man who had bought him was too idiotic to understand, the nightjar had wound up in the care of the zoo and subsequently as Sloane's newest charge.

Fortunately he seemed quite capable, though he required constant feeding and according to Mrs. Miller had imprinted in some fashion on Sloane. So whether she liked it or not, he was hers for the foreseeable future until he could be housed at the aviary. Truth be told, Sloane didn't mind. Having something to focus on these days was good for her, even if it was a wiggly, loud little foreign bird in her ear. His little baby cheep, followed up by the characteristic double-chirp he was still mastering. "Yes, I know." She cooed as she ran a finger over his head, between his little ear tufts. She was supposed to name him, but was still coming up short. "How about Bram? Nimbus? Bernard?" She listed off as she made her way down the High Street, seemingly talking to herself.

"I wonder if anyone in the bookshop will mind if I bring you in with me, I need a new journal, mine is full." Her very neatly-kept field journal, better than any notes she'd ever taken at Hogwarts, was already full to the brim on every page. Ned would be so proud. "I guess we're about to find out." She said as she pulled open the door to the bookstore.

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Nightjars are often called the "dragon bird," feel free to mistake him for that!

  

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Adventure Awaits!

Dahlia's eyes were heavy from Mari's cries last night, her back ached from her pregnancy, and her feet were swollen from standing up on them since this morning. Yet here she was looking for a book to send Millie. Truthfully she had merely needed a moment away from home. It felt strange to need a moment away from the home she'd built with Quin. Back with her sisters there had always been the need to escape for a moment (even into the kitchen) to catch a breathe from her family. And yet here it was again. She was resisting going to help Quin at the shop, he'd been very attentive to the pregnancy and she didn't want to overworry him, but there was also the matter of his shop assistant whom Dahlia could not shake the feeling rather disliked her. So here she was.

The bell of the shop chimed and Dahlia looked up. Her gaze fell upon Calla's best friend and she grinned. That was until she saw a dragon peek out from dangerously close to Sloane's.

An unbidden shriek escaped her lips as she both leapt away, a protective hand encircling her womb, and tried to job forward, another hand reaching for Sloane ending up instead jumping straight in the air. "Sloane!" She tried to warn the younger girl, "A dragon!" A small one, her mind registered, but still, Dahlia wasn't about to worry about the size of the creature when they'd only just gotten Sloane back. A dragon of any variety that close to dear Sloane's neck simply wouldn't do.

  

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Pretties by Bee <3

Maybe she ought to have stayed outside. Sloane winced when Dahlia saw her and her features instantly changed, the following screech made Sloane grimace and her nightjar slink back into her hood.

Hands up in surrender, she slipped fully into the bookstore and approached Dahlia quickly. No matter how tense things were in her friendship with Calla lately, she couldn't discount the rest of the Potts sisters who had always treated her like one of them. Not having any sisters had never seemed to matter when they were always there. "He's just a bird, I promise," Sloane assured Dahlia with a rushed whisper.

She took a moment to coax her charge from his hiding spot, (she really needed to name him), and held him out for Dahlia to see closer. "See? Feathers, these are just little tufts." He had most of his adult feathers, just a few spots of fluffy baby down left.

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Adventure Awaits!

"A bird?" Dahlia's hand fluttered over her rapidly beating heart. Eying the creature that Sloane brought further she tried to think calmly about this. The baby kicked against her stomach reminding her that it wasn't just Sloane and herself she had to worry about. Being overstressed about anything wasn't good for the baby.

"A bird." She repeated. Staring down into Sloane's hand. Truly, when one didn't think it was a bird the creature was adorable. So adorable it made her want to cry at the soft downy feathers peeking around it. "He's rather.... adorable." Dahlia found herself hesitantly admitting, almost surprised herself as the words came out of her mouth.

  

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Pretties by Bee <3

Sloane felt guilty for having startled Dahlia. It probably wasn't good for her in her condition, of which Sloane was now realizing was farther along than she'd remembered. Hadn't Dahlia just had a baby like a year ago? Never mind, she didn't want to think about it.

"Isn't he?" Sloane thought he was adorable, but right about now, her best friends were a tree-obsessed, macabre-poem-loving acromantula and a braindead emu, so her definition of cute or adorable might be a little askew. "He is a great eared nightjar. We just acquired him yesterday in a seizure for illegal transport. He needs some more intense care, so he's staying with me." The nightjar made his characteristic eerie sort of chirp and Sloane chuckled.

"I still need to name him." She added, thinking she ought to do that sooner rather than later.

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Adventure Awaits!

What Calla and Sloane both found in creatures such as this Dahlia didn't truly understand, but in her sleep deprived maternal mind she could almost (almost) see the appeal so she nodded her agreement.

"A nightjar? I've never heard of them. Perhaps a name that highlights that? Perhaps something to do with the moon or stars? Orion?" Dahlia's mind had recently been upon names so it wasn't too much of a stretch to consider one for a bird too.

  

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Pretties by Bee <3

"I was thinking something night-related." Perhaps she would have to go to the library and find a book on names, or sift through her old astronomy text books. Dahlia seemed to be thinking along the same lines. "Constellations is a good idea." A list would be helpful. Perhaps there was something here in the bookstore she could leaf through.

"Is there a book for that in here? Naming things?" Surely there had to be something? She didn't need to purchase anything but her new field journal, but she supposed she could poke through a couple of books to see if she found anything suitable.

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Adventure Awaits!

"If there isn't then I'm sure there would be one on astronomy. I can't see a magical bookstore not having one. Would you like me to help?" Dahlia wouldn't mind, she felt oddly invested now. And now that she was aware it was a bird instead of a dragon she felt much more enthusiastic about the whole thing.

  

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Pretties by Bee <3

Duh, that made far more sense. A book on constellations would be a much better resource. "Good idea." She chuckled sheepishly. "I'll look after I get a new field journal." It was hard to believe that she'd filled one almost in its entirety already. The more work she did at the zoo and the more creatures that needed their help, the more things she had entered and it was crazy to think she already had so much knowledge. One day, when she had more mastery in the craft, she would rearrange them into something more useful, a resource that she could organize and hold onto for years to come.

"Thanks," she added as they headed into the store.

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Adventure Awaits!