I do not own Harry Potter, the Wizarding World, or any canon characters.
Note: Hello everyone, hope all are doing well.
I did not update yesterday and waited until today for a very silly but specific reason. Exactly one year ago today I posted the first chapter of The Family that Chooses You.
I can scarcely believe that it's been an entire year. When I realized it, I took a look and wanted to see what I accomplished this year. Turns out I wrote 6 one shots, completed 4 multichapter fics, and am currently keeping this one going strong. I wrote around 960,000 words.
Seeing it all laid out like that is incredibly humbling. I never thought I'd be able to really write like that for an extended time. Up until then, I only wrote small one shot stories on Reddit that weren't Harry Potter related at all. Then I did Dance of Dementors and completed it. I attempted a now abandoned idea and saw the prompt that would become Family and well, the rest you know.
I don't quite remember when the story really took off. The first few weeks and chapters, interest seemed light aside from some kind regulars, but I kept plugging away, wanting to see what I could come up with. Then one day, it seemed to just explode. I don't know how or why but all of a sudden people were reading and commenting and it was wonderful. Suddenly the fic went from a project to a story and I saw it through to the end. With that completed, I had the confidence to continue. I was notoriously bad at continuing stories before Dance and Family. I'm happy to say that I've managed to finish the other projects I've started since.
I am thankful for all of you. Your kind words and your attention, the time you set aside to join me on my stories, has been wonderful to me. You've provided me solace and encouragement through some genuinely difficult times for me. I've been able to focus on writing when I can to put aside some troubles and I am beyond grateful for your kindness.
So what is to come? Well I still have plenty to do for this never-ending meandering. I still have 7 chapters waiting after this to be posted. I aim to start my next long project soon and have an idea or two for a one shot. I really wanted to post this chapter today because I feel like this chapter really exemplifies what I want a good Family style chapter to feel like. I hope you all think so too.
I hope everyone is doing well. I hope you are able to stay warm and are able to be well. Take care and know that all I write is for you all to enjoy. You all do more than you know by reading and joining me on these journeys. I am happy you made me a part of your fanfiction family.
Take care. Thank you for reading. I appreciate you.
-0-0-0-
Extended Family
Chapter 66 – Favorite Food
Takes place after chapter 63
"Wow, Iris is not a fussy eater," Samantha said admiringly.
Iris sat in her high chair, waiting somewhat patiently to be fed. She had her mouth open and eagerly gobbled down the spoonful of mashed vegetables that Katie fed her.
"Thankfully not. She's a good girl," Katie praised and fed her another spoonful, smiling as Iris clapped.
"What kind of food is it?" Thomas asked.
"Harry makes it, lots of mashed things."
Samantha gave her son-in-law a big smile. "Of course he does."
Harry shrugged, face flushed from pleasure. "It's not that hard. Mash veg and fruit up. Or puree it. Not together of course. Spice it up a little but then I also spice up the rest of it more and that's what we're eating."
"We're eating baby food?" Lyla asked, pretending to be shocked.
"Yes, because you're a baby," Katie said. She growled when Lyla's napkin bounced off her head. "As you prove."
Samantha took the spoon and bowl from Katie and continued to feed Iris. "Please do feel to grow up you two."
"Do I have to grow up?" Dahlia asked.
"Eventually, but take your time," Samantha said and the others chuckled. "What's Rilly's favorite so far?"
"Mashed taters or mashed peas and carrots," Harry smiled.
"What a good girl, liking veg so early," Samantha cooed.
"I think she's like Dally honestly, anything Harry makes, she'll eat." Katie ate a big bite of steak.
"Did Daddy make my food too?"
"Of course I did," Harry said and served her more steak and mashed potatoes. "Still do of course."
Dahlia wiggled happily as she continued to plow through her plate.
"What's your favorite thing to eat?" Lyla asked her.
Dahlia sucked on her spoon thoughtfully. "Anything Daddy makes."
"Anything?" Thomas smiled. "You like everything he's made?"
"I don't like plain salad that much," Dahlia said after some thought.
"She really does eat almost everything Harry makes," Katie smiled. "Some things she absolutely devours of course and others she doesn't ask for seconds, but she's a good girl and eats her food and doesn't waste it." Katie chuckled. "You should have seen her when Harry made that spicy chili sauce that one time."
"I felt so bad," Harry sighed. "She's crying but continuing to eat. Slathering it on her rice."
"It tasted good," Dahlia insisted while the Bells howled with laughter. "It was just really hot."
"You don't have a favorite?" Lyla pressed.
"Well, I really like the beef stew Daddy makes. That might be my favorite favorite," Dahlia said at last. "I like Mummy's chicken and gravy too."
"Thank you, flower," Katie said and kissed her forehead.
"What's your favorite meal?" Dahlia asked, looking around the table.
Katie smiled fondly. "Growing up, Sunday chicken roasts were my favorite."
"Same here," Lyla said. "We used to fight over the yorkies."
"You still do," Harry chuckled.
"I love a good pizza," Thomas said. He laughed. "I love bad pizzas too. I just love pizza."
"I adore a good pie. Ham, chicken, fish, doesn't matter. Give me some flaky pastry and a hot savory filling with a bit of gravy and I'm happy," Samantha said. Her eyes lit up when Harry put a slice in front of her. "Really?!"
"He saves you a slice whenever he makes one," Katie smiled.
"You're my favorite son," Samantha said, hugging him.
"He's your only son," Lyla snickered.
"Doesn't diminish the fact that he's my favorite," Samantha said, relishing the bite of chicken pie.
"What's your favorite dish, Daddy?" Dahlia asked.
Harry's smile diminished slightly. "Hmm, I can't think of one really. Treacle tart is my favorite dessert pretty much, but I don't have a favorite dish to eat."
"Why not?"
Harry noticed the looks that everyone else was giving him. "Oh well, I…I guess I never found something that I really liked to eat when I was little," he said slowly, choosing his words. "I feel like your favorite dishes come from when you were little and I guess I never found it."
"Oh, I'm sorry," Dahlia said dispiritedly.
Harry pulled her onto his lap and hugged her. "Don't be sorry. There's lots of things I love to eat with everyone. I love eating stew with you and butter chicken with Auntie Dora and Nana Andi and Grandpa Ted. And roasts and pies with everyone here."
"Okay." Dahlia perked up a little but her mind was racing, her attention slightly divided. She and Harry missed the looks the Bells and Katie were giving each other, at the way Katie ferociously chewed her steak and Samantha's hand shook a little as she cut her pie.
"That just means we can spend time trying to figure out a dish now for Harry," Thomas said smoothly, smiling at Dahlia. "Won't that be nice?"
"Yeah…that will be!" Dahlia said, eyes brightening.
"I'm sorry," Lyla said later. Dahlia was writing on some paper while lying on the floor of the sitting room while Iris was sleeping off her dinner beside her.
"No reason to be," Harry said and hugged her.
"You really don't have one?" Thomas asked quietly.
Harry shook his head. "Actually, I can still remember the first few moments I was able to just eat without worrying about it being taken away or it not being good to eat. Hagrid got me a hamburger the day he took me to Diagon. I can still remember him looking at me funny-like when I asked if the whole thing was for me."
His eyes lost focus slightly. "Then all the candy I ate on the Hogwarts Express, first time I had that much." He smiled at Lyla, "Express candy really is different, isn't it?"
She nodded a little tearily.
"But the feast, the first welcoming feast, that was the first time I had so much to eat. That was the first time I had treacle tart too. I only saw the…them…eat it and seen it on the telly and thought it looked nice." His smile was very small but there. "I was glad it tasted as good as it looked."
He winced and looked up at them. "Sorry for ruining the-"
Samantha pulled him to her and squeezed him hard. "You've done nothing. Don't you apologize."
He melted into her embrace. "Thank you." He smiled weakly at Katie. "I'm getting a little better."
She hugged him with her mother. "You've gotten a lot better," she praised softly.
-0-
"Mummy?"
"Yes flower?" Katie looked down and smiled at Dahlia.
"Can we have a Dally day tomorrow?"
"Of course. What would you like to do?" She followed Dahlia around the corner, away from her parents and sister laughing with her husband.
Dahlia gave her the piece of paper she was writing on earlier. Katie smiled as she saw the pictures of foods that Dahlia had drawn. "I was thinking of things that Daddy likes to eat and I remember seeing him like. Do you think we can make him something that might be his favorite?"
Katie's heart melted. "I think that's a wonderful idea and I'm sure we could do that."
"Do you think Grandma Sammy would want to help us?"
"I bet she would." Katie stopped for a moment and smiled. "In fact, I think we can make a game of it."
"But this is serious!"
"I know, I'm sorry. I mean, we can make it a Village thing. I bet others want to try and make something tasty for Daddy. Between all of us, I bet we can find something great."
"Oh! Like when you made the fishie noodles and the gravy?!"
"Yes, exactly! What do you think?"
"I think that'd be fun!" Dahlia exclaimed.
"That's my good girl. I'll let everyone know and…" Katie drifted off for a moment before smiling once more, "we can have a party this Saturday and it'll be extra special."
Dahlia nodded. "It's okay if Daddy picks someone else's food as a favorite though, right? Because he should have a favorite?"
Katie's heart broke a little, making her feel sad and proud of her daughter. "Yes, that's very mature of you. I'm proud of you, star flower."
Dahlia blushed happily. "It's for Daddy."
Katie lifted her up and kissed her before carrying her back to her family, heart warm and content.
-0-
As luck would have it the next morning, Harry left to run an errand for them and Katie made a few calls through the mirror. People came to the Potter home soon after and gathered in the kitchen. "So, who's up for another cooking competition?"
"Ooh, it's been a bit since we had one, I'm for it," Angelina said.
"Despite no one winning the last one and Harry winning the first one despite not being in it technically," Alicia snorted.
"This one is for Daddy," Dahlia said firmly.
"Oh?" Hermione asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Everyone has a favorite dish, right?" Dahlia asked.
"Sure, I love cottage pie," Hermione said.
"Shepherd's pie for me," Angelina said.
"I adore Coq au Vin," Fleur said.
"Hmm, I like a good steak," Alicia said.
"Whatever Harry makes," Luna said with a bright smile. "But if I have to be picky, an omelet."
"Beef wellington or salmon en croute," Daphne said.
"Well Daddy doesn't have one," Dahlia said, her expression souring. "He said that he couldn't find one when he was little."
The witches looked at each other, knowing what went unsaid.
"So we're going to try and make something he would call his favorite," Dahlia said. "And have a party on Saturday!"
"I think that's a beautiful idea," Alicia said thickly, dabbing her eyes.
"Why don't you show Hailey and Hadley your drawing so we can all start on even footing," Katie said to her. "And then we can make a copy for Auntie Hermione, Daphne, Luna, and Fleur." She watched and smiled as the three little girls dashed into the sitting room. "She drew some things she's seen Harry like," she said softly, watching them run off.
"What brought this about?" Daphne asked quietly.
"Last night, Lyla asked her what her favorite meal was and she was asking all of us," Katie sighed. "When she asked Harry…he said that he thought favorite meals were usually from something you find as a kid and he didn't find something when he was a kid."
"And if that isn't the most polite way to phrase what he went through," Angelina hissed.
Hermione sniffled. "I actually asked him that once, towards the end of our seventh year. He told me that he had favorite things he liked to eat with people, but he didn't have one of his own. I hated it then and I hate it now."
"Does Harry still have belongings from when he was still with them?" Fleur asked all of a sudden. "He had numerous cast-offs they 'gave' him, yes?"
"I don't think so," Katie said. "Mum took Harry shopping with MumAndi once and they replaced his entire wardrobe and burned everything old and scattered the ashes. Why?"
"We could have traced their whereabouts with them," Fleur said peevishly.
"Damn, missed opportunity," Alicia muttered.
"He's still holding us to that promise to not do anything to them without permission," Katie said with a small wry smile.
Fleur made an angry hand gesture that made the others smile. "Fine," she huffed. "Why are we waiting for this Saturday for the party, may I ask?"
Katie sighed softly again. "Apparently one of the very first times that Harry remembered having a good meal was the welcoming feast his first year."
"And the date would be this Saturday," Hermione sniffled again.
Fleur looked pained. "Dare I ask the other times?"
"Gorging on candy on the Express on the way to school. He said Express candy really is different."
Alicia and Angelina wiped their eyes at that.
"And…Hagrid took Harry to get his school things and got him a burger and he asked Hagrid if the whole thing was for him," Katie whispered. "Said that made Hagrid look at him funny."
The window that Luna stood beside cracked audibly and the normally kind face she had was twisted and hard. She took a deep breath and tapped the window with her wand, repairing it. "I'm sorry," she said in a clipped voice.
Katie hugged her. "Don't be."
Fleur blinked rapidly, her eyes slowly turning from amber to blue. "Well then. I will plan to do my best to make something delicious this weekend."
Angelina coughed. "Yeah, we usually practice during the week and bring it all at the end and see what happens." She smiled softly. "Usually turns out as a big tie honestly. We all win sort of thing."
"Dahlia already said it's okay if someone else wins instead of me and her," Katie said proudly and sadly. "Because it'll be for Harry."
"I love that girl," Hermione sighed.
"Kind and loving, just like her parents," Daphne smiled.
Silence fell over them, and they listened to the happy chatter from the girls in the sitting room, warming them.
"Isn't this when you say it's too sincere and someone should ruin it?" Angelina teased Alicia.
"Well I wasn't going to ruin the moment, you brute," Alicia snorted.
"We can do some light trash talking," Luna suggested.
Fleur smiled. "Well, I mean, you all could concede right now. As we learned during our picnic during the Tournament, French food is far finer than your plain English fare."
"Ooh, will you make a jamb-on burr and some knee cozy salad?" Luna asked with a soft smile.
"I need to get a baguette and hit baby bird with it," Alicia laughed. Their laughter was light and it chased away the shadows that the bad memories had collected.
-0-
"Ah, hello Luna," Andromeda said warmly, stepping out of Tonks' Floo. "I was wondering why Dora asked me to visit."
"Luna asked me to ask you to come," Tonks said.
"How may I help you dear?" Andromeda asked kindly.
Luna blinked a few times. "I…I would like to ask you to help me cook something."
Andromeda and Tonks looked at each other. "I would be happy to but why not ask Harry?" Andromeda asked.
"Because it is a surprise for him. We are doing one of our cooking competitions and this time, we are trying to make something that he would call a favorite meal."
"What does that mean?" Tonks asked, frowning.
Luna frowned too. "He doesn't have a favorite meal. He never had the opportunity to have one when he was young. Dally asked him and that's what he said."
"And that is perhaps the kindest way to phrase that," Andromeda hissed.
"That's what Angelina said." Luna sighed. "So we are trying to make something that he would like and since I didn't want to spoil the surprise with him, I was hoping you would be able to help me."
"I would love to," Andromeda said firmly.
"Me too, I'll be labor and taster," Tonks said.
"Do you have any ideas?" Andromeda asked.
"Not really. I…don't have many memories of things my mother cooked for me at all and my father doesn't cook…at all." Luna held up a piece of paper. "These are things Dally has seen Harry like."
The two older women smiled at the drawings. "Well, there are not any Black recipes per se. Most of the women did not cook and left it to the House Elf and while I'm sure Kreacher would share some, they would be more Pure-Blood society driven."
"Stuffy and fancy and people pretend to like it because it looks it," Tonks explained, "and not because it tastes good 'cause it doesn't."
"But I have learned how to cook and Ted's mother was kind to share recipes with me. I imagine we can find something homey for Harry," Andromeda said, growing more enthusiastic.
"Thank you," Luna said gratefully.
"Thank you for asking," Andromeda said warmly. "Let us make something delicious for our boy, yes?"
"Oh, another question if I may."
"Of course."
Luna's eyes hardened and the women blinked at the expression. "Did you by chance save anything of the things that you burned of Harry's? His old things?"
"No, we did not." Andromeda's eyes burned. "Samantha and I reluctantly scattered the ashes to…prevent us from tracing the origin of them as per his wishes."
"Drat," Luna muttered.
"You are a good friend to him," Andromeda praised, hugging Luna gently.
"He's my best friend and my older brother," Luna whispered, hugging Andromeda back.
-0-
"Hi Mum."
"Hello Hermione." Jean poured out a second cup of tea. "How are things?"
"Oh great, thank you." Hermione sat and took a sip. "Would you like to help me on a cooking task again?"
"Oooh another village competition? Yes! I'd love to. I love these things. What's the theme this time?" Jean clapped her hands and her glee was open.
"We're making dishes for Harry to see if he can find a favorite one."
Jean blinked. "As in, he does not have one as it is?" She frowned at Hermione's head shake. "I'm not going to like the reasoning, am I?"
"No more than I do," Hermione sighed. "He thinks favorite dishes come from childhood-"
"-and he never had a proper one, much less an acceptable one," Jean finished, sighing just as deeply.
"Apparently Dahlia was asking and Harry told her he never found it." Hermione took a moody sip of her tea. She shook her head and softened. "So Dally had a great idea of making a dish for him to be his favorite and Katie decided to make it a village fun thing."
"I love that girl," Jean sighed, a much softer sound than the one she made a few moments ago.
"That's what I said," Hermione giggled.
"Right, I'm joining in on this one properly. Let's go through the family cookbook and we can figure something out."
Hermione smiled. "I was hoping you would."
"Of course. This will be fun for you and I to do and we get to give our boy something good to eat."
-0-
"Hey something smells good," George said. He took a step into the kitchen and burst out laughing.
Angelina snorted at him. "Yeah, a bit of a mess."
"I'm used to them. Are we having floured babies for supper?" He grinned at Alex and Abby in their bassinet, slightly flour dusted and wiggling and giggling.
"Tempting but no," Angelina laughed. "Turn my back and they upset the bag. I got most of it off but they didn't seem keen on licking it up so I sort of left them like that for pictures and what not. Adorable menaces they are."
"Look Daddy!" Hailey cried. She held up a plate of hand pies. "I helped make these!"
"She sure did!" Angelina said proudly. "Quite the helper. Good at kneading too surprisingly."
George kissed her cheek and picked one up and bit into it, fanning his mouth after he did. "Ooh hot!" He chewed it, huffing and puffing to cool it. "Hey that tastes great! What is it? A pasty?"
"Sort of a mix of a pasty and a hand pie," Angelina said. "Mum had this great recipe growing up and they never could decide if it was a hand pie, a pasty, or an empanada so they just called it a Johnson pie. I showed your mum the recipe and she made a recommendation and here it is. It's got pork mince, mushroom, and onion with some spices."
"I like it! Good job!" He smiled as Hailey proudly and carefully rolled out another layer of dough, her tongue stuck out in concentration.
"We're trying a few different fillings too," Angelina said as she watched proudly too.
"So who are we trying to beat this time?" George asked, munching on the pie.
"No one really," Angelina said quietly.
"Oh?"
"Yeah, we're trying to find Rabbit a favorite meal," she said softly.
George nodded, understanding. "Ah, well that's good. No wonder Hailey is into the process this time."
"Anything for her Papa Harry," Angelina smiled softly.
"Are hand pies a meal?" George asked, biting into a second one.
"If you eat enough of them," Angelina laughed. "A decent lunch at the least and if you have enough, you can snack on them all day."
"Fair enough," George smiled. "Whose idea was hand pies?"
"Hailey's. She loves the ones Mum makes and likes your Mum's pasties and she thinks Harry makes good ones too so she figured he'd like them."
"I'm sure he will," George said, reaching for a third. He yelped when Hailey smacked his hand with a wooden spoon.
"Bun, these are tests," Angelina laughed uproariously. "We'll make plenty for Papa Harry."
"Oh right. Sorry Daddy." Hailey kissed his hand and put a pie in it.
"Did Mum teach her how to spoon wallop? That felt like a Mum wallop," George said, shaking his head.
"Grandmum Molly said it's all in the wrist," Hailey said and waved the spoon.
"I need to call Mum and ask her what she's teaching you," George muttered while Angelina howled with laughter.
-0-
Oliver settled Melanie in her high chair and sat down beside her at the table. "Wow, look at all this," he said admiringly.
"We are debating which will be our best offering," Alicia explained and dished up portions for him and Melanie.
"They all smell and look great." Oliver grinned. "All fish, huh?"
"Well, I have noticed that we do eat more fish ever since you took up fishing as a more steady hobby," Alicia smiled. "But Harry seems to enjoy seafood so Hadley and I decided on these last few contenders."
"That's a tasty fish pie," Oliver praised as he bit into it. "Flaky pastry, good flavor, mmm that's Mum's gravy?"
"Yeah and I helped make the dough and gravy!" Hadley said proudly.
"Delicious," Oliver said and kissed her cheek. "It's savory and filling." He bit into the second offering, enjoying the taste and feel of the crunchy batter. "And fish and chips are always tasty."
"Mummy wouldn't let me fry them," Hadley said mulishly.
"Because it's a bit dangerous for you right now," Oliver said gently but firmly.
Hadley sighed.
"She was sure you'd let her," Alicia snorted.
"No, I reserve my what you call my 'more dubious decisions' when it comes to flying," Oliver smiled. "Gosh, that's a nice bite of fish. Nice and crunchy and not oily at all."
"Hadley did an excellent job of seasoning the fish and the chips," Alicia smiled and the little girl wiggled from praise.
"I have to say, it's hard to choose a winner from them. What do you think, Melanie?" Oliver chuckled at the messy way Melanie ate her pie and fish and chips. "Seems like she's having trouble deciding too."
"So are we," Alicia admitted. "Both have merit."
"Hmm. How about you make the fish and chips but the veg and gravy filling in the pie, you can make that on the side? Like a veg mash and gravy. Gives you something to dunk the fish in."
"Oh, I like that idea," Alicia said. "We can certainly try that tomorrow."
"I think it will be good," Hadley said as she slathered a bit of the pie gravy on her fried fish and munched on it.
Oliver did the same and nodded. "Me too." He smiled as he watched his daughters enjoy their dinner. "You look like you had a good day."
Alicia smiled softly. "I may not like the original circumstances, but bonding with Hadley like this is wonderful. I never cooked at all when I was younger and it's nice to be able to do this with Hadley and hopefully Melanie and I will find something to bond over too."
"I'm sure you will," Oliver said warmly. "Hopefully she'll love fishing too and you'll have to join us."
Alicia rolled her eyes. "I better start looking for cute fishing clothes then."
-0-
"Is she eating a sugar quill?"
Tracy shook her head no as she held Heather.
Daphne sighed. "Are you nonverbally answering because you have the majority of the sugar quill in your mouth?" Her sigh deepened when Tracy nodded. "Allow me to rephrase my question, is she eating a part of a sugar quill?"
"Just a little one," Tracy mumbled. "The Pediatric Healer said she could have a little one every day!"
"When she refuses to nap later from being soused with sugar, you get to deal with her," Daphne said, shaking her head.
"It's her favorite candy. You can't expect me to not give her some of her favorite candy," Tracy said. She kissed a giggling Heather.
"I suppose not," Daphne smiled and leaned in to kiss her daughter too. "She is a bit sticky now from the candy."
"Nothing a bit of a clean won't fix." Tracy gently wiped Heather's cheeks with a wet cloth. She then secured Heather in the carrier across her chest and held her daughter secure while Heather bounced up and down, kicking slightly. "Any ideas yet?"
Daphne shook her head. "I was hoping to see something inspirational here." She and Tracy and Heather had gone to Skye market to shop and look for something. The two women had discussed their favorite dishes and thought about what Harry might like.
"I think he would like a wellington, beef or salmon," Tracy said.
"Perhaps, but I want to put my best forward and I do not feel confident in making those yet," Daphne said.
"Look at you though, wanting to actually cook and get better at it," Tracy said, her smile equally proud and teasing.
Daphne snorted. "Yes well, it is satisfying being able to cook some things and watching Heather enjoy bits of it. Making the noodles and fish and the gravy was a lot of fun."
"Sure was. I'm not complaining about this either." Tracy looked up and down the stalls. "Hmm, you really take what you like for granted, don't you? Hard to imagine me not loving a certain dish, much less trying to figure one out for someone."
"Yes, which makes this task that much more important," Daphne said sadly.
Tracy stopped, nose up and sniffing the air. "Hey, now that's an idea. How about a burger?"
"Hmm. What makes you suggest that?"
"Well, from what Katie said about Harry and burgers," Tracy frowned a little at the story, "it sounds like Harry has a potential soft spot for one. And that's what your favorite meals are, right? Something that brings some comfort or a feeling of comfort?"
"That is a good idea," Daphne said slowly, thinking. "I fear that we may be bringing up unwelcome feelings however."
"True, but maybe we can make it a good one. And you know, remember when we had burgers together in school that last year?"
"Yes," Daphne said dryly, "when you mocked me by thinking I would eat one with a fork and knife."
"Exactly! It'll be good to revisit a fun memory like that while trying to make up for the sadder one."
Daphne smiled and kissed Tracy sweetly on the lips. "Since when did you get so introspective?"
"Since having Heather," Tracy said honestly. "Have to think about that sort of thing now. Plus you know, it's Harry. He's our best friend."
"He is." Daphne kissed her again. "Very well, I like your idea. Let us get the materials for it."
"Oh and we need more sugar quills."
"Heather already had her one!"
"For me!"
-0-
"Maman, I am more than certain that it is illegal to do that," Fleur sighed.
"Hiring a private investigator is completely legal," Apolline sniffed.
"Not when you hire one that is unscrupulous for the sole purpose of finding Muggles and harming them!"
"Perish the thought! The investigator will not be doing the harming." Apolline made a dismissive hand gesture. "We can claim that they represent a threat to your wellbeing at the Barony."
"They are Muggles. What possible threat could they prove to me?" Fleur asked, offended.
"Emotionally I mean," Apolline said, giving Fleur a look.
"Oh, well, that still would not work," Fleur said lamely. "No judicial body in either government would accept that."
"Very well. I will work on the idea some more before pursuing it." Apolline flipped the pages in her book a little vigorously. "Ah there, I think this will work."
"Cassoulet?"
"Harry told me he tried making it at his home in Grimmauld before coming to visit that summer many years ago. I told him I would teach him our family recipe but never got around to it. I think this would be a good time for it. It is a very filling and heart-soothing dish."
Fleur smiled softly. "I agree. Then yes, let's make it."
"I'm quite glad you have a place there now and we have the international Floo," Apolline said. "Now we get to join in on the fun like this."
"Me too. It is so nice living there. I feel at peace when I am there."
"Good. Then let us work extra hard to thank the man that made it all possible."
-0-
"Dally, a watched pot doesn't boil," Katie smiled.
"Yes it does. I've watched lots of pots and they boil," Dahlia argued, staring at the pot.
"It's an expression," Samantha laughed. "To teach patience and moderation."
"Oh, that's silly."
"Most expressions are." Samantha retied the apron strings behind Dahlia's back. "That smells really good though."
"Right, Chef Dally gets the first taste." Katie dipped up some of the stew in a ladle and blew on it to cool before offering it to her daughter. She smiled as Dahlia sipped it, smacking her lips. "Well? What do you think?"
"I like it! It tastes like stew and your gravy."
Katie dipped up some more and drank a bit before handing it to her mother. "Mmmm, yeah that's great! A nice chicken stew really warms you up."
"Good flavors there. Rich but not oily. Adding the fond from the roast chicken was a great idea." Samantha sprinkled a bit more black pepper into it and stirred it. "Why did you decide on dumplings instead of noodles?"
"Auntie Dora calls me Dumpling," Dahlia said. "And Mummy said the dumplings soak up more of the stew."
"They do, a good choice," Samantha praised, her smile growing when Dahlia beamed with pleasure. "This is really good." She handed the ladle to Lyla.
Lyla sipped and fanned her mouth. "Oooh hot! Yeah that tastes great! Oh the yorkies are done. Let's dip 'em." She popped a Yorkshire pudding out of the tin and tore it in pieces, handing them to the other three. They dipped the pastry in and ate them, making noises of pleasure and satisfaction.
"That's a treat. Almost like a roast but not quite," Samantha said.
"Yeah, good idea all of us," Lyla said.
"Grandpa!" Dahlia yelled. "Come and taste!"
Thomas came in eagerly. "All set?" He accepted a ladle of the stew and sipped appreciatively, dipping a piece of a pudding in. "Now that's delicious! Well done!" He licked his lips. "Mmmm, it's a lot like your gravy."
"Gravy isn't a soup or a stew!" Lyla shouted.
"You're just mad that I won our last argument," Thomas said smugly.
"Siccing the girls on me doesn't mean you won!"
-0-
"I'm coming, I'm coming," Harry laughed as he was pulled eagerly along by Dahlia, Hadley, and Hailey. He stopped when they led him to the Triangle, eyes open wide with shock.
A large wooden table was there with benches, reminiscent of the tables and seats in the great hall at Hogwarts. Candles floated in the air, giving off light like fireflies against the night sky. The table had plates of food down its length and smiling faces stood around it and sat at it.
"What's all this?" he asked, awed at the sight.
"Well, this is another cooking competition, one our daughter came up with," Katie said. "She wanted to help you find a favorite dish and we decided to have it today because it's the time of the Welcome Feast."
"You all did this for me?" Harry asked quietly, eyes stinging.
"We did," Angelina said softly. "Happily too. It was fun and we wanted to."
He wiped his eyes. "Thank you," he said huskily. "I…don't know what to say."
"Just be happy and eat," Alicia said. "Come on then."
Harry sat in the middle and the girls crowded around him with everyone else taking their places. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly, basking in the warm atmosphere. "This all looks incredible! What do we have?"
"Andromeda and Tonks and I made a frittata," Luna said and cut him a large slice. "It is egg and onion and potato and bacon. Omelets are my favorite and Tonks and Andromeda told me you made them breakfast when you first met them. So we decided to do this and it is very nice."
"We made lasagna," Hermione said proudly. "Made the sauce from scratch and made a bechamel sauce. We used to make it a lot before I left for Hogwarts and we always tried to make it once every summer at least for break."
"Here are our hamburgers," Daphne said. "I have come to really enjoy them since you introduced them to us. Linette at Skye Market was kind to give us some suggestions and this is our favorite. It has cheese and bacon as well as a fried egg."
"You finally get to try our family cassoulet," Fleur smiled, pushing a large heavy clay dish forward and taking the lid off. "Duck confit and plenty of hearty root vegetables and beans. Perfect with bread and I did bring an extra one for Alicia to use to belabor you." Everyone laughed at that.
"Mummy and I made fish and chips with mashed potatoes and gravy on the side!" Hadley said and with her mother's help, pushed their dish forward.
"We made hand pies!" Hailey made a small pile of them on a plate. "They're from Grandma Molly and Nanna Layla recipes and Mummy's! These have pork and these have beef."
"And we made chicken stew! It's like your stew but with chicken and Mummy's gravy and it comes with yorkies," Dahlia said proudly.
"Gosh, this all looks and smells incredible, thank you." Harry smiled happily at everyone. "Let's all dig in!"
"Mmm, this is great," Tonks said, taking a big bite out of the lasagna. "Cheesy, meaty, pasta-y, what's not to love? I kinda like the bechamel sauce more than the ricotta cheese."
"Not traditional with the sauce but I like the taste of the sauce a bit more. The mozzarella was always cheese enough for me," Hermione said. "I love the burgers. Putting bacon and an egg on is a bit messy but it's really good."
"Thank you," Daphne said, smiling proudly. "We were beside ourselves when Linette suggested it. Goodness, this frittata is delicious."
"A wonderful idea by Luna," Andromeda smiled. "Our first attempt was a bit of a disaster. It fell apart when we tried to flip it but we got the handle of it and I am going to make it often too. It is quite good in the morning as well, cold even."
"This blows my attempt at a cassoulet out of the water," Harry said. "It's really heavy but in a good way. Really satisfying."
"The recette has been in the family for a long time," Fleur smiled. "We made the duck confit ourselves as well."
"It takes some time, but like most things, is worth the effort," Apolline said. "Another family once accused mine of stealing the recette and it ended up in the dueling circle. We won of course and we did not steal it."
"Oh bun," Angelina sighed, "don't mix everything in a bowl like that."
"Why? It tastes good," Hailey said.
"Hadley doesn't do that, she prefers everything separate," Alicia chuckled. "Mixes things at her whim only."
"If that isn't a reflection of you two," Fred muttered. He shoved two hand pies in his mouth when the two mothers glared at him. "Really tasty pies," he said a little thickly through his full mouth. "I can taste some of Mum's influence but it's also its own thing."
"Mum and your mum were really nice in helping me," Angelina smiled. "I like our new Johnson-Weasley pies."
"I love this gravy on the fish and chips. I normally just want a dash of vinegar on mine and some ketchup on my chips." Katie dipped the fried fish into the gravy. "I bet this would be delicious as a pie."
"It started off as one," Alicia laughed. "But then we decided to do fish and chips with a mash and gravy side to pull it all together and glad we did."
"Do you like the stew, Daddy?" Dahlia asked.
Harry hugged her tightly. "It's incredible! You really combined my stew with Mummy's gravy. So good."
Dahlia hugged him back tightly. "Auntie Lyly taught me how to make yorkies too!"
"The dumplings were her idea too," Samantha smiled.
"So good," Harry praised her.
They eventually stopped eating, full and content. Harry felt warm and comfortable, utterly at peace. "I really hope you don't expect me to pick a winner because I honestly don't know how. They were all so good."
"I hoped we'd find you a favorite though," Dahlia said a little downcast.
"A favorite dish brings comfort and feeling cared for," Andromeda said. "I do not think any of us failed to do that for your father tonight."
"Well sometimes you want a certain thing to eat, and sometimes you want something else. Doesn't mean you didn't like the former at all," Hermione offered. "Like sometimes you want chocolate ice cream and sometimes you want vanilla, but you love both, right?"
"That makes sense," Dahlia mused.
Luna began to giggle and everyone turned to look at her. "Well, it's just, we sort of made different dishes for different meals. Frittata for breakfast, burgers and fish and chips for lunch, hand pies for any meal and snacking, lasagna and stew and cassoulet for dinner and supper. Harry can have a favorite dish no matter what time of day."
"Works for me," Harry smiled and the little girls applauded happily. "You lot didn't plan that?"
"Not in the slightest," Alicia laughed. "Normally I'd be a bit miffed at the whole 'everyone' wins once more thing but in this case, yet again, works just right. One of these days though, someone will win."
Angelina happily took a sheaf of parchment that Hermione duplicated for everyone. "I'm fine with all of us winning right now. Never thought I'd have a recipe book of my own but I'm certainly not complaining about making one now."
Fleur accepted a cup of coffee from Harry. "Is it usually like this?"
"Doing something fun together? We usually come up with something every so often," Harry smiled.
"I am glad I live here then," Fleur said.
"We're glad too," Harry said. He hugged her back.
"How are you feeling?" she asked softly.
"Incredible. I never thought the other day would bring this day about and it's…really nice knowing how much everyone cares. I mean, I know, but seeing it like this, it really makes me feel safe and happy." Harry sighed softly, looking around at everyone chatting and laughing.
"You are loved my dear friend, and we will always be happy to show you," Fleur said firmly and sincerely. His smile made her feel incredibly warm and content.
"How are you feeling? Did you enjoy your first group thing here?"
"I have never thought I could be so accepted and enjoy myself so freely," she said softly. "I have never been this comfortable outside of my family home or when visiting relatives. I am blessed to be here."
"We're blessed to have you," he said, and hugged her, resting an arm around her shoulders.
"Thank you, friend of my soul," she said after a comfortable silence. "Thank you for being my friend and accepting me and my family and friends."
"Thank you for being a part of my family," he replied and smiled when she hugged him.
-0-0-0-
DOOOOOOM Lord of Waffles - Poor Harry. The things he learns the hard way. Hilariously.
alix33 - Tanya is a proper adult I think. Shelia is not quite proper but more than the others.
Imaginer.012 - I really wanted the new team to feel like different people and not just rehashed versions of the best team, we know who the best team are. I wish you a very Merry and Happy Holidays and you are a gem and loved and valued.
