When the shop keeper had purchased her and brought her to his store, he had thought she would only be there for a day or two at the most.  She was a handsome creature, large and covered in snowy white feathers.  Surely some wealthy witch or wizard would want such a fine owl.  The day or two, however, had stretched into weeks, which stretched into more than two months.  Oh, she was given many compliments, but in the end she was always passed over.  Too showy, they said.  Stands out by a mile, they said.  It had become the general consensus that, if wizards were to keep themselves from being noticed by Muggles, then a great snowy owl would simply be too… well… too ostentatious.

Her price, which had been considerable, had been lowered time and time again.  Now she was priced at less than a common barn owl, and she was ashamed.  The shop keeper had even said that, if he didn't find a buyer for her soon, he would have to see her to the post office.  This frightened the young owl more than anything else; because every owl knew that the life of a Ministry Post Owl was one full of hard work and drudgery, eventually ending in an early death.  Better to be the pampered and beloved familiar of a single wizard, or even an entire wizarding family.  It was a far more comfortable life.

The tiny bell over the shop door jingled, and all the birds in their cages looked over expectantly.  A small, unassuming boy with untidy black hair and clothes large enough to fit someone more than twice his size had entered the shop, followed by a giant of a man who nearly had to bend in half to fit through the door and looked as though he could eat every one of them for breakfast and still be hungry.  The shop keeper smiled at them from behind the counter.  "Welcome!  How might I help you today?"

"The lad here is lookin' fer an' owl.  He's t'start school this year an' will be needin' one fer post an' such."  The large man clapped a shovel like hand on the child's shoulder, who flinched a little under the unexpected weight but stood his ground.  At his words, however, the many birds in the shop began to preen their feathers hopefully.  Not her, however.  She was so down trodden by being passed over so many times, that she simply didn't have the heart to build herself up again, only to be left behind yet another time.

"Of course!  An excellent choice, my boy."  The shop keeper grinned widely at the child.  "Cats are useful, I suppose, but only if you've a problem with mice, and toads went out of fashion years ago.  Now, an owl will take care of the mice as well as deliver your mail for you.  Mostly self sufficient, but a wizarding owl is also affectionate.  You'll be quite pleased, I assure you.  Now, let me show you some of my best birds."  

The shop keeper showed them dignified tawnies and unobtrusive barn owls.  He kept to the small or medium sized birds, apparently doubting if the slight child would be able to manage one of the larger ones.  After a time, he was speaking mostly to the large man who had come in with the boy, allowing the actually future owner to wander amongst the cages on his own.  The owls all puffed up their chests and tried to look impressive.  He smiled at each one, even petting one now and again if it moved close enough to the bars.  She didn't see this, however, since she was determined not to get her hopes up.  Perhaps that was why she was confused when she caught a whiff of the sickly sweet smell a creature gets when it hasn't eaten properly in some time, after the body starts to cannibalize itself to keep going.  It wasn't feeding time, and even if it were, the shop keeper would have never given them inferior food.

"Hello, and who might you be?"

The voice was soft and melodic, not yet touched by maturity.  She twisted her head back around and saw that the boy was standing at her cage, the fingers of one hand gripping the bars lightly.  He studied her from behind a pair of those silly lenses humans wore to make themselves look more owl-like, bright green eyes filled with curiosity.  She realized that this was where the scent was coming from.  No wonder the child was so small, from the smell of him he hadn't had a decent feeding in months. 

"Find somethin' ya like, Harry?"  The giant came lumbering over to where the boy stood peering down at her.  "Purty thing, but a bit showy.  A bird like that won't be able to go unnoticed."

The shop keeper sighed.  "Yes, that has been the trouble.  She's a lovely creature, but she stands out too much.  I haven't been able to find a buyer for her.  I thought perhaps some high ranking official or a matron wanting a bird to match her décor, but no one has been interested."

"So, no one wants you, either."  The boy smiled at her again, his other hand coming up to the other side of the cage.  She tilted her head, not wanting to believe that she was hearing kindness in his voice, directed towards her.  "I know how that feels."  She found herself edging along the wooden perch cautiously, moving towards him.

"Of course, she's far too showy for a first year student."  The shop keeper considered this, and then amended by saying, "At least not a boy.  A young girl might find her quite charming, in a story book sort of way."

She wanted to tell the boy that the shop keeper was wrong.  She was a perfectly fine owl for a first year student, even if it was a boy.  She was strong and loyal, and would be a good familiar.  Unable to speak to them in their own language, however, she settled for leaning forward and giving a shy, affectionate nibble to one of the fingertips sticking just inside her cage.  She thought she heard the boy laugh.

"She's perfect.  Hagrid, I want this one."

"You sure, Harry?"

Of course he was sure, she thought.  He needed her, needed someone to watch over him and keep him safe.  He needed her to make sure that he ate his meals so that his own body wasn't attacking itself any longer.  She would protect him and care for him, just as a good wizard owl should.  As if to confirm her beliefs, her wizard said, "I'm positive."  The giant called 'Hagrid' looked at her price, and then fished some coins out of his pockets, handing it to the shop keeper.  Her cage was taken down from its hook and she was handed over to her wizard, who was now smiling even more broadly. 

"What are ya gonna name her, Harry?" Hagrid asked as they left the shop.

"I don't know.  I'll have to think on it for a while.  Maybe I'll find a good name in one of my school books.  I can't very well call her 'Snowflake' or 'Snowball', she's too grand for that."

The giant chuckled as they walked down the street.  "That she is, Harry.  I'm sure the right name'll come to ya when you least expect it."  And it did a day or two later as he was reading through his school books.  They were in a home now, where her wizard lived with the most dreadful people.  At first they wanted him to get rid of her, which she had become rather indignant about.   However, they relented in the end.  She suspected it had something to do with the fear that Hagrid might show up again and become cross should they not let her stay.  So they were left alone while he read through his books until at one point he called to her.

"Here's something.  There's a witch in here who was named Hedwig, H-E-D-W-I-G.  That's rather pretty, but sort of strong at the same time."  He looked up at her, grinning.  "What do you think?  Do you feel like a Hedwig?"

She pondered this for a moment, mulling the name over inside her mind.  Hedwig, it had a nice sound to it.  She flapped her wings and gave an encouraging hoot.  He grinned all the more broadly in response.

"Right then.  Pleased to meet you, Hedwig," he held out a hand to her, and she lowered her head to nibble at his fingers lovingly.  "I'm Harry, Harry Potter.  I'm ever so glad to have met you."

She had a name of her very own now.  That was something only an owl with an owner had.  And what's more, she wasn't a post owl, but a personal owl.  She had a wizard, all of her very own, and that was the best she could have ever hoped for.