«After one of the birds comes down from its perch and grants its feather to a wizard, Mister Wellington takes the feather, examines it and explains how to treat that exact feather and which personality that feather has. Then he registers the feather in the Feather Tome and gives it to its new owner.»
«Nymus, what am I supposed to do? No bird has granted me this feather. Ive had it since my birth. Wont I have any problems because of that?»
«I think there should not be any problems!» Nymus replied. «The feather can obey only one wizard. If it obeys you, then it does not have any other owners beside you. Just tell Mister Wellington that you have come to register a magic feather and it is all in the envelope.»
«Alright, Nymus! Then Im off!» William breathed out and headed towards the door on the far wall of the hall.
As he approached the door, he heard some sounds coming from inside. William opened the door and all but drowned in the cacophony of birds crying, whistling, warbling, singing, cawing, and chirping. He suddenly remembered the time hed been to a zoo with Mrs. Hoggart and was deafened by the noise coming from the bird cage. But compared to this racket, that noise was silence. William sighed, driving the memories off, made a step, and the door closed behind his back all by itself.
William made another step and looked around. This huge room seemed to be full of birds, from top to bottom. William had never seen so many birds in one place. Just then he made out a counter through this live wall of wings and feathers, which stood deeper into the room and resembled a giant nest. There was also another thing. Despite the floor being made of stone, there were full-scale trees, bushes, and flowers growing right through it, with a small swamp in one of the corners. William had no doubts it was real: there was a rotten smell coming from the small swamp, as well as frogs croaking. The birds were still flying chaotically around the room and those that stopped flying landed on almost any object in here: walls, the ceiling, windows, tree branches, and other places.
Somehow making his way to the «nest, William was surprised to find it empty. He decided that there was nobody in here apart from the birds and turned around to leave. But then a huge hawk appeared from nowhere and dashed right at him. William closed his eyes, but the hawk flew over his head with a cry and disappeared.
When William opened his eyes, he was surprised to find a grey-haired old man behind the counter, with a sharp face and an eagle-like nose. His grey hair fell to his shoulders and his yellow eyes with black pupils, just like that of the eagle, stared right at William.
«Welcome to the Feather Nest, young wizard!» he said in a shrill voice and then, suddenly irritated with the noise around there, made a deafening cry, much like an eagle. The noise instantly died out.
The old man gave William an expectant look.
«Good day, sir» he greeted the man, looking into the face of this strange master of magic feathers with a bit of fear.
«Wellington. Im at your service, young wizard! You have probably come here for a magic feather?»
Wellington walked around the counter, came up to William and, taking his hand, started examining it, not unlike a tailor who examines a clients figure.
«Sir, Mister Wellington,» William hurried to move his hand away, «Ive already got a magic feather.»
Mister Wellington returned behind the counter at once.
«Then why have you come here, young man?» he asked, puzzled.
«Id like to register my magic feather,» William replied.
«To register?» Wellington stared at Williams face. «I cant seem to remember you When have you been here before?»
«Never. Ive never been here. And Ive never been granted the feather.»
«Oh?» Mister Wellingtons face looked even more puzzled. «Then, may I ask you how you have received it?»
«Ive had it since my childhood. For a long time, I had no idea what it was for. But then they told me, and I want to study at the Preparatory Course. And, as I understand, I need to register the feather to do that.»
Mister Wellington was listening to him, as they say, with his mouth open, but he quickly overcame his shock and asked:
«May I take a look at the feather?»
William took the feather out of his pocket and placed it on Mister Wellingtons hand. Strangely enough, the feather didnt mind. Mister Wellington gave it a long and thorough examination, turning it over in his hands, and then he stated:
«White Raven!» He gave the feather another look. «A contourless atypical flyfeather. Quite unusual for a magic feather!»
«Why is that?» William asked, genuinely interested.
«Well, first of all, magic feathers usually appear in the steering part of the bird, that is, in the tail. And this feather» at this point Mister Wellington gave the feather another intent look as if checking himself, «it is, no doubt, from the birds wing!»
«Is it of any significance?» William asked.
«No, no. But its a curious fact. So curious that I cant personally remember a similar case,» Mister Wellington said. «Secondly, the fan part of the feather is quite fluffy, which means two things. First: this feather hasnt been used for a long time or its very new. And second: the bird that used to carry it lived on the swamps. Black spots on the fan part of the feather are a proof to that. They appear on birds that often dive into the water for food. But here comes the mystery,» at this point Mister Wellingtons voice dropped to a whisper: «White Ravens never dive for food. They steal it from smaller birds or eat carrion, like all ravens.»
«So, youre saying that this isnt a White Raven feather?»
«Im saying that this is a rather dangerous feather, young man!» Mister Wellington said. «Think well before using it. Reckless use of this magic feather and at this young age may lead to serious trouble.»
«Thank you, Ill keep that in mind,» William replied politely. «So, may I register it?»
Instead of answering, Mister Wellington opened a large book that lay on the counter beside him. He brought the feather close to his eyes to see the name written on it and froze. Then he said very quietly:
«Calhoun» Mister Wellingtons eyes went slowly up to look at William, then, just as slowly, dropped back to the inscription.
«Whats surprised you so much?» William asked.
But Mister Wellington, still silent, bent over the open book and started looking through it quickly.
The book itself deserved a special mention. Its feathered black cover seemed to be alive, and distant bird cries that were coming from its pages terrified William. Soon, Mister Wellington found the page he needed and pressed the tip of the feather to it. At the same moment, the book slammed shut on its own accord. Mister Wellington barely had time to lift the feather from the page in one quick movement. Then he looked up at William and said strictly:
«Your feather, young wizard! Under no circumstances it can be registered in this book!»
«But» William had no idea what was going on. «Why?»
«The registration record with the information about your feather»
«Whats wrong with it?»
«has been in the Feather Tome for a long time, which automatically excludes its second registration!»
«Whose name is it registered under?»
Mister Wellington opened the Feather Tome again on the required page, scanned the entries and found the one he needed.
«The name of the owner disappeared from the pages of the Feather Tome long time ago!» he said strictly.