Violet had made the long trek up to the Owlery, supposedly to mail a letter home to her family, but really to look for her ever mischievous, constantly truant pet magpie, Machiavelli. He was always leaving the sanctuary for unauthorized pets and creatures and causing mischief if Violet didn't keep a sharp eye out for him.

When she reached the top, she stopped abruptly. The new Slytherin boy, Caeson Hawkins, was already here. The very intriguing new Slytherin boy. She'd been wanting to have a chance to talk with him (preferably without his sister, Aria, around, but now that she had the chance, Violet suddenly felt awkward and was at a loss to say. But she was here now, and she had to say something.

"Oh....hi," she began (brilliantly--is that the best an aspiring writer can come up with, Violet?) "You didn't happen to see a black and white bird mucking about up here, did you?" Well, people used their pet dogs as an excuse to meet people, or so Violet had heard--so why not a magpie? He might as well be of some use for a change.