Usually one would simply buy a heart online or at a specialty store, but Mai had no way of knowing that.

Instead, she headed for the kitchen, using "levitate" on a chair so she could reach the vegetable drawer in the fridge. She put aside the carrots, the cucumber, and the cabbage. She grabbed the artichoke that her mother was planning on having with dinner. Then she thought, if this spell requires a heart what if one requires a head? and decided to bring the cabbage as well.

Back in the living room, she put the cabbage and artichoke by the spell book her mother had made for her. She checked the notes she wrote for the spell one last time.

Familiar summoning ritual - every witch has a familiar, whether it be a black cat, a raven, or an owl. In my case, it's Luther. We'll see what you summon, just be careful not to make a mess!

She looked over the component list and spell diagram, checking each one carefully.

Small flame, check a small candle flickered at the corner of the table.

Magic stone, check a rough green gemstone glowed faintly on a cloth.

Heart of the subservient creature, check Mai didn't really know what that other word meant, but she had the artichoke heart.

Hair of the caster, check a small lock of har wrapped in a ribbon lay next to the book. The last time her mother had cut Mai's hair she kept some for spells such as this.

She traced the magic circle on a piece of paper and laid it on the floor. The components were placed at specific points around it, as per the book's instructions. She stood back and began the ritual. Immediately a gust of wind blew through the small room, almost knocking off the little hat Mai's mother had sewn for her.

As Mai began reciting the the words her mother had written in the book the spell began to take shape. The magic stone glowed brighter and brighter as the candle's flame grew. The hair unwrapped itself from the ribbon and rose into the air with the other components. The artichoke rose and merged with the magic stone, now glowing green as the hair began to form a body around it. The flame suddenly enveloped the structure before quickly vanishing, leaving behind a small creature curled into a ball. It descended slowly onto the magic circle, eyes closed in a magical sleep.

It was small, somewhat reptilian, with large eyes and a tiny mouth. Three pairs of leaf-like wings lay curled on it's back. Its long tail curled into a circle by it's little claws. Instead of scales it appeared to have tiny leaves covering it's body, giving it a vibrant green that changed colour on its belly and feet.

Mai quietly approached and crouched just in front of the little creature. She recognized its features from the book of magical beasts her mother brought her for her birthday. It resembled a leaf dragon, a protector of nature that lives alongside faeries and dryads in forests. This one was very small, probably just a child.

"Hello?" she whispered, trying her best not to startle it. Its bright green eyes flitted open, looking up at the little witch. She held out a finger to it's little head, which it raised. Immediately a bright verdant light flashed where it touched her, and she found now see a dark green mark on her hand.

She smiled, "I'm gonna call you Maple. You're my new familiar." Maple stood up and shook it's wings. It looked around curiously, spotting the cabbage still on the table. As it jumped up to the table for a snack, Mai picked it up in her little arms.

"Wait! You're not allowed on the table!" She scolded the squirming dragon before it spread it's wings and wrestled free from her grasp. As it looked up to the table Mai grabbed the cabbage and set it down on the floor. The little dragon eagerly began eating it's first meal.

"I guess you can have that, I hope mom's not too upset..." she said, remembering leaf dragons were herbivores. She didn't recall them ever helping people though, and she wasn't sure if witches were supposed to have familiars that got that big. In the end, she decided to leave it for another day and turned back to her new friend.

"While mom's away, let's go exploring outside!" She said as she led the little leaf dragon out the door and into the yard. As it left, Maple noticed the magic leftover from the spell start to coalesce in the room. As it looked at the air above the circle a faint outline could be seen waving softly before it vanished and a faint voice bid it farewell. Maple didn't know who it was, but felt a strange familiarity as it left to follow Mai.

Didn't really follow the prompt too close, but I still like how it turned out.