Chapter 190: Snape’s Well-Intentioned Efforts
Just like the Niffler, who could always snatch shiny objects without a sound, owls seemed to possess the same stealthy skill.
On Christmas morning, Kyle opened his eyes to find a small mountain of presents piled up by his bed. It was almost comical how he hadn't noticed all those gifts being delivered.
Rubbing his eyes, Kyle muttered to himself, "Ratton, do you owls have some sort of secret ability...?"
Ratton, who was perched on the wooden shelf with his eyes closed, lifted a wing and gave a weak hoot. Although most of Kyle's Christmas gifts were delivered through the owl post office, he had sent Ratton with the gifts he wanted to give his family, friends, and professors.
It was just that Kyle had a few too many friends.
Ratton had flown almost nonstop all night to deliver the gifts on time, only just returning. He was so tired he could barely keep his wings up and had no patience for Kyle's idle musings.
"Sorry, it's been a rough day for you," Kyle said apologetically as he approached Ratton, pouring an owl tonic from a bottle into his bowl and adding a small piece of marinated dragon liver.
Dragon liver was a top-tier pet treat compared to Murtlap-dried rat, but it was extremely expensive. A tiny piece, about the size of a Felix Felicis bottle, cost sixteen Sickles. It was practically daylight robbery.
The piece of dragon liver Kyle had prepared was a Christmas gift for Ratton, costing a full ten Galleons. Truthfully, Kyle himself had never eaten anything so extravagant.
Ratton took a few bites of the dragon liver, drank some tonic, and finally began to feel a bit more energized.
Satisfied, Kyle returned to his bed and began unwrapping his own presents, most of which were sweets and chocolates—an even bigger stash than he'd received last year.