After leaving the wand shop, with his wand strapped to his wrist, he glanced briefly around before spotting the magical pet shop not far away.
Raising an eyebrow, he wondered if he could take animals with him, magical animals are very intelligent and could serve various purposes, like an owl that could be not only a messenger but also a scout.
He thought for a moment, and seeing that Kreacher hadn't appeared, he quickly walked to the other side of the street, entering the store with ease.
Inside, the musky scent of various different animals enveloped him, causing him to wrinkle his nose for a moment, but he quickly dismissed it, looking around.
The owls were the most visible, perched and flying around without much restriction, some as small as his hand, others so large they could easily lift a dog.
Rigel's eyes turned to the animals kept in the lower cages, rats, frogs, cats, and dogs, very common and generic.
There were also other, rarer types, a small falcon flew near the owl, a small capuchin monkey stole food from a crow that cawed in extreme anger, three Nifflers rolled around their cage fighting over a shiny coin, a prairie dog looked around with... wait, a Niffler?
Rigel's eyes turned directly to these little guys, his eyes gleaming slightly.
"Ah, you've got your eye on these little guys? But I'm sorry, kid, I can't sell you one of them. They're classified as XXX, which means they require a specialized license from the ministry. You need to get a license first to buy one." A bearded salesman approached, scratching his chin, looking at the Nifflers with visible irritation. "If I could, I'd really like to get rid of these little guys. They're a lot of trouble and very difficult to sell."
Rigel blinked, he thought he might be able to get a Niffler... sighing, he looked away, it was a pity, he didn't plan on trying to bribe the owner, this was a Ministry-licensed shop in Diagon Alley, not Knockturn Alley, the vendors here didn't have that much freedom and if they were discovered, the consequences would be severe.
But although Knockturn Alley wasn't as regulated, not because the law didn't apply there, but because the Aurors rarely intervened in that rat's nest, the shopkeepers still preferred Diagon Alley, after all, if someone disappears in Knockturn Alley, nobody really cares. To do business there, you have to bet your life.
Rigel considered for a moment going there to look for some rare creatures, but quickly gave up on the idea.
He looked around again and found a dark yellow snake with a red rhombus on its head and faint, blunt horns protruding from the back of its head pointing backward, it was quite small, only the length of two adult arms.
"Ah, this is a hybrid, it's basically a vine snake, but it has horned serpent blood, although it's only a remnant. It can't fly or become invisible like the horned serpent, but it possesses considerable intelligence, making it a very good pet. Its venom is also weak and doesn't harm wizards. It's only XX, so you can buy it directly." The man said, noticing that Rigel's eyes stopped on the snake.
Rigel blinked, looking at the snake with curiosity. The snake looked back at him, opened its mouth, and hissed softly. "Well, this little wizard seems very interesting, he has a very comfortable aura. I hope he chooses me..."
The snake approached the fence and wagged its head slightly, trying to get his attention. Snakes generally have terrible eyesight, but this one had magical ancestry, so it could see perfectly well.
"I'll take it." Rigel turned and spoke to the shop owner, who smiled immediately, snakes are very difficult to sell, he only sold one or two throughout the year.
If he were selling them for experiments, that would be fine, but he was selling licensed pets. If it were discovered that wizards used these animals for experiments, the wizards could face fines and even spend years keeping company with the Dementors in Azkaban.
The snake seemed very happy, swaying in its cage, it truly enjoyed Rigel's aura.
Rigel didn't bother buying food, Kreacher could feed him the rats he chased away every other day, or Rigel could let him hunt alone around the house, Kreacher would certainly enjoy that.
Minutes later, Rigel left the store with the snake coiled around his neck inside his shirt, it seemed to be absorbing his body heat, as if the snake still had cold blood.
The owner also advised that she should be allowed to sunbathe every day or left near the fireplace.
With a plop beside him, Kreacher had returned.