I do not own Harry Potter, the Wizarding World, or any canon characters.
A Taste of Magic
107th Course – Welcome Respite
"Bloody idiots. I told them I would make them suffer if I found them messing with the train again!" Gates stalked around the train, hand reaching for the largest and sharpest knife he had in his harness. "I'm keeping something…this time." He stopped and looked up at the very large canine that was looking down at him. "You're not a kid, or at least, I hope you're not."
"Sorry!" Akin appeared with a few friends in tow. "Moriti! Behave yourself." He looked at Gates sheepishly. "I hope he did not damage anything."
"No, we've had some trouble with people trying to mess with us so I have a lot of protections and warding things on the train." Gates looked at the very large wild dog with mild apprehension. "Good…boy?" He snorted when Moriti gave him a look and nudged him with his snout.
"He's usually not," a girl from Uagadou muttered.
"Hey, come on Dembe," Akin protested. "Moriti is a good boy, when he wants to be." He turned back to Gates. "We were hoping to see if Harry was okay. He looked a little unwell after his duel and he disappeared shortly after the one his Headmaster had."
"I think he's alright," Gates said. "Lad's been through a bit but I'll go see if he's up for visitors. Kind of you to come."
"He is a good person," Akin said. "And Moriti insisted." He sighed when Moriti barked loudly. "As you can see."
"Lad does have a way with animals," Gates chuckled. "I'll go ask."
-0-
"Come in," Harry called sleepily. He grasped for his glasses and slipped them on when the door to his sleeping compartment opened.
"Sorry, were you still napping?" Pansy asked, looking apologetic.
"Sort of, but I'm up now. Is everything okay?" he asked, waking up more.
"Oh yes," Pansy said. "But I wanted to see if you would like to receive visitors. Akin and a few friends and Moriti? I think that's the dog's name. They came to see if you were well."
"That's kind of them," Harry said, touched. "Sure. Are they outside?"
"The Headmaster said they could come onto the train," Pansy said. "I'll let them know." She smiled. "It might take you a bit of time to get out of bed."
Harry looked down at Sunny lying over his chest and Crookshanks sprawled over his legs, feeling Hedwig shift beside his head. "Might be a bit," he smiled. In a surprisingly short time, surprisingly since Sunny and Crookshanks were comfortable and had fought Harry in moving, Harry walked into the sitting car with Hedwig on his head and the two kneazles walking beside him. When they saw Moriti though, they hissed and coiled around Harry, staring at the very large wild dog.
"It's okay, Moriti is nice," Harry assured them. He was nearly knocked over by the dog's enthusiastic greeting. Hedwig flapped her wings for balance and joined the kneazles in hissing at Moriti and the dog ignored them handily.
"How are you?" Akin asked.
"I'm okay, thank you for asking. I don't usually duel," Harry said.
"You do not?" Dembe looked surprised. "That was amazing spellwork and dueling skills."
"That was the finest fire whip I have seen," Ola, another boy from Uagadou, said. "And you can cast a Patronus?"
"I'm pretty good with the Patronus spell and that was the first time I was that successful with the Flame Whip," Harry said, sitting down. "My first time I freaked out and let the lash get away with me and almost set a table on fire."
There were a lot of chuckles at that. "I did not know you could combine a Patronus with things," Ola said.
"Me neither honestly," Harry said to more laughter.
"You were amazing," Millicent said to Akin. "You can really turn into a lion?"
Akin smiled. "Thank you and yes. Many students at Uagadou are what you call animagi. Transfiguration is a favored school magic at our school."
"I've always wondered about being an animagus," Parvati said. "Is it hard?"
"Yes," Akin said baldly. "But worth the effort I find."
"Of course you do, your form is a lion," Dembe snorted.
"That's partially why I haven't tried," Parvati said. "I'd be so sad if I turned into a pigeon or something. You don't get to choose your form, right?"
"No," Ola confirmed. "There is a large range of what people can transform into. Usually suits their nature."
"You probably don't have to worry about turning into a pigeon," Padma said. "Might turn into a donkey though."
"I'd kick you so hard if I did," Parvati said, kicking Padma.
"You don't mind that you lost the duel?" Ron asked.
Akin shrugged easily. "I would rather have won of course, but she got the better of me this day. If we duel another time, perhaps I will get the victory. One accepts losing if one expects to win. One should accept the loss as a lesson and learn from it."
"How hard is it doing everything wandlessly?" Susan asked.
"Very hard at first," Dembe said. "But they keep us training it and many of the easier spells you can do without a wand." She flicked her finger like a wand and the tip of her finger glowed with light, making the others applaud. "Many spells you cannot do without some sort of focus however, but the more you practice without a focus, the more likely you can do simple spells. Some will always have trouble though, and there is nothing wrong with that."
"He is what you call a firehead," Ola said, pointing at Akin.
"Like us?" Ginny asked, pointing at herself and Ron with ironic delight.
Ola laughed. "Not quite. Uh…hot head maybe, or one that likes to fight a lot. He is motivated to cast those kinds of spells without a focus."
"I want to join our mlinzi," Akin said, rolling his eyes. "What you call your Aurors. Many in my family serve that way."
They passed the time pleasantly, chatting about each other's school and how they viewed magic and the like. Then suddenly, a loud grinding sound filled the air and the Hogwarts contingent looked around with confusion.
Akin buried his face into his hand while Ola and Dembe snorted. "Moriti, show some manners."
"Was that your stomach?" Lavender gasped. Moriti had wandered about to visit with the other students but usually came back to Harry. He had been lying against Harry and he looked at Lavender with a wide-eyed doleful expression, looking sad and pitiful.
"Do not believe him," Akin said. He shook a finger at his dog. "He is well fed. He is also, how you say, a greedy stomach."
"Greedy-guts," Harry chuckled. "How about I make you something to eat. Would you like that?" He sputtered when Moriti licked his face eagerly.
"You cook?" Ola asked, looking surprised.
"Sure do," Harry said. He got up and the others followed him to the kitchen car. "It's one of my favorite things to do."
"They look surprised because only women cook usually," Dembe said flatly. "It is incredibly rare for men to do so, and only if it is an emergency."
"Some men think like that all over," Sue said wryly.
"What does Moriti like to eat?" Harry asked, pulling an apron on.
"What does he not eat is the usual question," Akin said. "And the answer to that is, very little."
"I have seen him chew on metal with enjoyment," Ola said.
Harry grinned at that. "Hmm, well, this will be good for everyone to enjoy." He put beef mince, chopped onions, carrots, and celery in a large pot and cooked it with tomato puree and beef stock, after cooking the solid ingredients some with a bit of flour and spices. As the beef mixture simmered and cooked, he pulled out large pans of already made mashed potato to warm up and mixed it with some shredded cheddar cheese. "Been meaning to use up all this mash I made the other day."
"Oooh, cottage pie!" Hermione said happily. "My favorite!"
When the beef filling was nice and thick and savory, Harry put them in large flat pans and covered them with the cheesy mashed potatoes. After making little peaks and troughs with a fork, he popped them in the oven and in a short while, the air was filled with comforting rich scents. The others exclaimed with delight when he pulled the pans out and the tops of the cottage pies were golden brown and the peaks were especially crisp.
"This is incredible!" Akin said after one bite. He fanned his mouth to cool it, and licked his lips eagerly. "Cottage pie?"
"Yup, one of our favorite British dishes. If you use lamb mince, it's called Shepherd's pie," Harry said. He smiled at Moriti eating his portion with messy enthusiasm.
"Could you write this recipe down for us?" Dembe asked. "We can make this at home. Perhaps without the cheese and what is this sauce?"
"Worcestershire sauce," Harry said with a laugh. "It's liquid flavor. Very necessary in some dishes. If you ever need some, let me know and I can try to get it to you."
"That is very kind of you," Akin smiled. "We should share something with you."
"Ooh how about luwombo?" Ola suggested.
"Fine, but you two are helping me, it's a lot of work," Dembe sniffed.
"I'll help," Harry said eagerly. "I don't know anything about it but if you don't mind telling me what to do, I'm more than happy to."
"Harry loves to cook and learn about different foods," Lavender smiled.
"A boy who wants to help? How nice," Dembe said with a bright smile while Ola and Akin groaned.
"He's taken," Parvati whispered loudly and nodded emphatically at Lavender who scowled at her friend.
Dembe laughed. "Of course! We will return soon with the ingredients." She and the other two from Uagadou left but came back soon with a large basket.
"These look interesting," Harry said, looking at the ingredients with unconcealed enthusiasm.
"It was once a royal dish," Ola said. "Now it is also a household dish, especially during special occasions."
Dembe showed Harry how to cut the chicken up and they cooked it in a pan with tomatoes, onions, mushrooms, peanuts, dried and smoked fish, and some seasonings. When the mixture was smooth and simmered, they put portions of it onto pieces of prepared banana leaves that they washed and cut into large squares. They then tied each packet up with string and put them into a steamer to steam.
"You would also steam the plantains but that takes a long time, so we brought ones already steamed," Dembe explained. "These we mash and season to eat with the luwombo."
"Those look like zongzi," Sue said. "We have a rice dish we wrap in leaves to steam too." She smiled at Harry. "Yes, we can make it when we get home."
"We also make things to eat with chapati," Ola said. "Which I think is similar to your roti?"
"Oh yeah, some people call it that too," Padma and Parvati nodded.
After some time, the air was rich with a meaty scent that was slightly earthy as well. They took the leaf packets out and unwrapped them. Harry admired the bubbling mixture within. "It smells so nice," he said. "Tangy with tomato. The peanuts are nice and rich. And the banana leaves are really fragrant!" He ate a spoonful of the luwombo and then the starchy and smooth mashed plantains. "Wow! This tastes really good!"
"You can also steam mashed green banana," Akin said, enjoying Harry's happy look. "That is called matooke. That is a very popular Ugandan food."
"This is really good," Tracey said, eating the mashed plantains mixed with the luwombo. "Is this common?"
"Not as common because of the effort," Dembe said. "But common enough. Mashed plantains and matooke are the usual side dishes. This is a Ugandan dish, close to where our school is. But there are so many people from all over Africa and even Arabia, so lots of different food you might imagine."
They took their time eating with Harry and Dembe and Akin talking about different foods. Harry wrote out the recipe for cottage pie and a few other common favored foods on his floating notebook and tore out the parchment for Dembe. He also wrote the recipe luwombo and matooke as well as a few other ones she suggested.
"Thank you for the treat," Harry said as Akin, Moriti, Dembe, and Ola were leaving.
"Thank you for yours," Akin said warmly. "We will have to try and stay in touch when this is all over." He and his friends waved and after a final lick from Moriti, they left the train.
"Uagadou sounds really cool," Parvati said after they left. "I'd love to visit but not to attend. Hogwarts is big enough to walk around all day. I don't think I'd want to walk around a mountain."
"We have it a little easier," Daphne smiled. "Our common rooms are closer to the Great Hall and the classrooms."
"At least we get some exercise walking to the towers," Neville smiled.
"We get a little bit now from walking to the Uncommon Room," Susan said.
"That was really nice of them to come see you," Luna said brightly. "And share their culture with us."
"They're really nice," Harry agreed. He looked down with surprise at something before smiling a little. "I bet we're about to get a visit from Tsumugi and the Mahoutokoro students next."
"What makes you say that?" Millicent asked.
Harry knelt down and scooped up Azuki who looked very comfortable in his arms. "Oh, just a hunch," he said with a smile.
-0-
"You are being especially troublesome," Tsumugi scolded. She sighed when Azuki turned her back and flicked her tail dismissively at her.
"That's really familiar," Parvati, Millicent, and Hermione said together.
"You have trickster foxes too?" Tsumugi asked. "I did not know there were any outside Japan."
"No, the whole mooning you and flicking their tail thing," Millicent clarified. "Our petlings do it too."
"Some make it a whole thing," Parvati said, glowering as Hedwig danced from side to side and mooned her with expressive rear wagging and tail feather wiggling.
"Oh that is familiar," Tsumugi giggled. She introduced her friends, Chiyo and Sota, to everyone with Harry returning the favor. "And how are you feeling? You looked a little odd after your duel, hope that is not rude to say."
"I'm doing well, thank you," Harry said with a smile. "Yeah, I normally don't like dueling and that got a little personal. My opponent, Draco from Sanguis, we have a bit of a history."
"Strife between?" Sota asked. "Uh…how you say, bad blood?"
"Something like that," Harry said wryly.
"He had no honor," Chiyo sniffed. "That was a bad spell. Very poor taste."
"You do not know the half of it," Blaise snorted. "Draco 'wait until my father hears of this' Malfoy has many things but honor isn't among them."
"Ah, much bad blood," Sota nodded with complete and utter understanding. "For some, shame is the only language they speak."
"Oh I like that," Daphne said. "And true."
"You duel very well," Chiyo said to Harry. "And that you can summon spirit guardians is very impressive. It is difficult, even for our adults."
"I'm lucky I practiced that spell a lot," Harry said gratefully.
"And they are your owl companion?" Tsumugi asked, looking at Hedwig who fluffed up happily. "That speaks of much trust and companionship."
"She's the best," Harry said happily and Hedwig cheeped lovingly.
"I wanted to ask, do you guys use fans as your foci for magic?" Hermione asked.
"I do, but not all," Tsumugi said. She took her fan out and showed them. "It is like how you Europeans use wands. They are made with magical materials we are close to. And we use them when we do magic." She showed them her bracelet. "My bracelet is made of the same materials."
Chiyo showed them her amulet and ring and Sota showed his different style fan, one that was not a folding one. "They are made to suit our natures," Sota said. "Some have things like your wands, but again, it depends on the person."
"You don't get them when you are little and grow with them?" Padma asked.
"We go to Mahoutokoro when we are very little and we learn what materials we can do magic with easiest," Chiyo explained. "Then we learn on practice things made of the same material. As we get more experienced with controlling magic, we meet with the crafters and they make the objects that best suit us. Some eventually have different objects for different situations."
"That's so cool," Millicent said. "That paper thing you did was super neat."
"Thank you!" Tsumugi smiled. "Ofuda, the paper talismans, are a big part of our spirituality and our magic. Like all magic, some are good with it, some are not."
"You do everything with your wands?" Chiyo asked, looking at Hermione's with great interest.
"Yup. Some can do things wandlessly, not as much as the Uagadou students apparently," she said.
"Ah yes, that is very hard to do," Sota nodded.
After some time chatting, Azuki leapt onto Harry's lap and started nosing in his robes. "Azuki!" Tsumugi gasped. "Do not go looking for food like that!" She groaned when Azuki looked up at Harry, blinking with overlarge eyes full of emotion. "Do not believe her, the little liar."
Harry laughed. "Moriti did that too, they visited earlier. Are you hungry?" He smiled when Azuki yipped and nodded, nibbling on his hand. "What can she eat?"
"Pretty much anything," Tsumugi said. "She will turn her head if she does not want it. She can wait until we go back to our castle."
"She can wait here," Harry said, putting her on the table and tying his apron on again. "I can make something. Are you guys hungry too?"
"Oh, you cook?" Chiyo asked with surprise.
"It's his favorite thing," Pansy smiled. "Do only women cook in your culture?"
"Not at all. Sota's family runs a very popular eating place," Chiyo said and Sota nodded proudly. "In fact, women cooking a specific type of food is looked down on, but thankfully that is a very old way of thinking."
"Really?" Lavender frowned; an expression shared by the others.
Sota nodded. "The old masters of sushi say women cannot make sushi." He rolled his eyes. "Say their hands are too warm, ruins rice and fish."
"You don't have that problem," Blaise said lightly, winking at Daphne.
"I can make you have that problem," Daphne growled.
"Tsumugi is terrible cook," Chiyo giggled, laughing with Sota while Tsumugi looked at them sourly. "Boils the miso and does other many bad things."
"I am not good at it! I am allowed to be not good at things considering what I am good at!" Tsumugi said crossly. "Do not agree with them!" she cried as Azuki nodded sagely in agreement.
"What are you good at?" Chiyo asked innocently.
"Beating you in Quidditch and dueling to start," Tsumugi growled.
"Now that's familiar," Lavender, Padma, and Millicent said, looking at the two close friends.
"I don't think I like your insinuation," Pansy sniffed, glaring at Millicent.
"Me neither," Parvati sniffed.
Harry chuckled as he opened the iceboxes and looked within. "How does fish and chips sound? It's one of our most popular dishes."
"You eat fish with potato chips?" Chiyo asked with interest.
"We call our fries chips," Lavender smiled. "It's so good."
"That would be wonderful," Tsumugi said with a big smile. "Sota, let us get some things. We cannot expect our hosts to provide without us contributing."
"Of course. What do you like to eat?" Sota asked.
"I love trying new things," Harry said eagerly. "Especially if I can learn about them."
"Then wait before you cook, I like to learn too," Sota said just as eagerly. He, Chiyo, and Tsumugi left the train while Harry took out the ingredients. They returned swiftly with several baskets and then stood beside Harry while he got to work. Potatoes were peeled swiftly and sliced into long thick shapes. The cod fillets were cleaned and sliced too. He then took out some dried peas and put them in water to boil with some salt and baking soda.
Hermione narrowed her eyes as Harry made a batter with flour, sparkling water, cornstarch, salt, pepper, and a liquid he was pouring into the batter from his flask that he took out of the portable icebox. "Harry! Is that beer?!"
"It's for the batter! It's important!" Harry said defensively while the others laughed. "I don't drink it!"
"About time you started flouting that," Blaise snorted.
"I just said I don't drink it! I keep it in the icebox and only use it for cooking!"
"I thought Sirius said to not use it as a flask," Pansy giggled.
"And I'm not," Harry sniffed. "I have never drunk from it. I am using it with the intent that it was given, as a vessel for holding cooking liquids."
"Splendid loopholing," Daphne praised.
"It's the truth!"
"Which makes it better," Tracey smiled.
Harry dredged the fish in the batter and fried them in hot oil until the fish was cooked through and the batter golden brown. He twice fried the chips so they would have a soft and fluffy interior with a crispy exterior. By then, the peas were broken down and he mashed them with a little butter and cream with more salt and pepper. He put them in a large bowl and they looked bright green and pleasantly lumpy. Everyone admired the food when it was done and they ate eagerly and happily. Azuki chomped on her fish with enthusiasm, shared by the kneazles and the owl.
"This is very good," Sota said, licking his lips. "It is similar to our tempura. We fry vegetables and fish in a very similar batter."
"Malt vinegar makes it really pop," Neville said, handing the bottle over.
"That is nice," Chiyo agreed. "We do like ketchup too. I like this green stuff too!"
"Mushy peas," Harry said. "They're a traditional side in a lot of pubs and chip shops."
After doing full justice to the good food, the Mahoutokoro students opened their baskets, putting the ingredients out. "We will make karaage, onigiri, tamagoyaki, and gomaae," Sota said. "They are the most popular things my family makes. We have a bento shop."
"What's bento?" Luna asked.
"That is our word for lunch," Tsumugi explained. "Many people bring lunch from home but there are some stores that serve that for people to buy. A usual lunch has rice or noodles with two small side dishes with it."
Sota looked at Harry with approval as he and Harry started preparing the ingredients together with Harry following Sota's instructions eagerly. "You are very good. I mean, I saw you make the fish and chips so I knew you were, but you are really good."
"Thanks! I've worked in some different kitchens and I love to learn," Harry said as he cut up the chicken thighs into small pieces. They marinated the chicken in soy sauce, mirin, sake, salt, grated ginger, and grated garlic.
"He works in the Hog's Head, a tavern," Ron said. "And he works with Gringotts in their kitchen."
"Really?" Chiyo looked impressed. "Our Gringotts is quite private."
"Ours is too, usually," Daphne said. "But one of our professors has close ties with the bank and introduced Harry to them."
"They're not as bad as people say they are," Harry said. He was toasting sesame seeds on the hob and then grinding them in a special ridged ceramic mortar. "They're really nice." He missed the eye rolling from Neville and Daphne and the amused and confused looks from Chiyo, Sota, and Tsumugi.
"I thought you said you never made this before," Sota frowned a little later.
"I haven't," Harry said.
"Then how are you so good at making this?" Sota asked. "You only just watched me make it right before you." He gave Harry a look as the other boy rolled the thin egg in the special tomagoyaki pan with a spatula with some degree of skill. They poured small amounts of beaten and seasoned egg into the rectangular pan and as it set, gently rolled it up making many layers.
"Harry picks up cooking things really well," Sue said wryly. "It's one of his talents and it's impressive and frustrating."
"It took me many months to approach that level of skill," Sota complained as Harry took out a very neatly rolled omelette.
"You're a really good teacher," Harry said brightly.
"No he isn't," Tsumugi and Chiyo said while Azuki yipped.
Sue nodded with sympathy at Sota's incredulous indignation. "You should've seen me when I saw him rolling out dumpling wrappers and making them. It took me a long time to get that good too and he picked it up in minutes."
"Harry's magic is delicious," Luna smiled.
Soon they were finished. The pieces of chicken were dredged in potato starch and flour and twice fried, making fried chicken bites that were fragrant, crispy, and juicy. The ground sesame seeds were made into a paste with some sugar and soy sauce and then lightly boiled and blanched green beans were dressed in them. The rice was finished and Sota, Chiyo, and Tsumugi showed Harry how to make small triangles with it that some of the other Hogwarts students tried too. Nori seaweed was sliced into strips and wrapped around the base of the onigiri rice balls.
"That was faster than usual," Tsumugi said with a smile.
"Harry is very good," Sota said with approval.
They dug into the food hungrily, despite having eaten many things already.
"Okay, this is delicious," Parvati said. "This might be the best fried chicken I've ever had!"
"Mmm, this sesame dressing is so good," Lavender said. "It's sweet and nutty!"
"You can use the gomaae dressing with any green vegetable," Sota said proudly.
"Oh I really like this rolled egg omelette," Pansy said. "It's a little sweet but so nice."
"It depends on the family how sweet they make it," Chiyo said. "Some like it very sweet, others not at all."
"I like these rice balls, even if they're a little plain," Millicent said. "That's not rude, is it?"
Sota laughed. "No it is not. There are many that you put a filling in. Some like just plain rice because the sides have stronger flavors." He smiled mischievously and reached into the basket and pulled a small jar out. "This is a very traditional ingredient, if you want to try."
"They're not going to like that," Tsumugi scolded.
"They can try it," Sota said.
"I'll try it," Millicent said. She took the small wrinkled pink object from Sota and put it on her onigiri and ate it with one bite. Her face twisted and her lips puckered and she coughed a little.
"Are you okay?" Neville asked worriedly, giving her a cup of water.
"That is so sour!" Millicent said after drinking water. "What is that?!"
"Umeboshi," Sota laughed. "Pickled plums. They are very traditional preserved food. Good for your health and the sourness makes it good with rice and fatty things."
Everyone from Hogwarts tried the little plums, some splitting them with others, and their reactions were mixed with some adoring them and others decidedly not.
"Good thing we did not bring natto," Tsumugi shuddered. "That is not for everyone."
In a remarkably short time, all the food was eaten, with the pets having their full share of course. Harry and Sota talked about a lot of foods and they exchanged written recipes as well. "Thank you for coming," Harry said as the three from Mahoutokoro prepared to leave. "This was so cool and good."
"Thank you for having us," Tsumugi smiled. "Sota is very happy. He rarely gets to talk about cooking and food with people our age that are not already in the business."
"Harry doesn't either," Hermione smiled.
"Besides, we will be the final presenting two," Tsumugi said. "I will look forward to your presentation."
"Same," Harry smiled. He and the others waved goodbye, after a final lick and nuzzle from Azuki.
"That was so nice," Lavender said when they settled down in the main sitting compartment. "Learned so much about Uagadou and Mahoutokoro."
"The world sure is big," Tracey remarked.
"Are you okay?" Padma asked Harry.
Harry sighed a little. "I'm feeling a lot better, thank you. Just, well, a lot happened the last…day."
"You really shouldn't feel bad about your duel," Blaise said. "You stood your ground against Draco who well deserved it."
"I just…I don't like feeling that way," Harry said slowly. "I was so angry and afraid from the spell and I literally lashed out."
"That spell is disgusting," Daphne said, making an ugly face. "Mother told me about it. It barely skirts the borders of propriety. How it is not considered Dark is a mystery to me."
"You fought for yourself and your friends and family," Parvati said encouragingly. "You were awesome, bro."
"None of us see you any differently," Lavender said, hugging him and leaning against him. "Not even a bit."
"If anything, I'm deeply envious," Millicent said. "I've wanted to whip him for ages."
Harry looked at Pansy who smiled warmly at him and hugged him too. "Don't worry," she said. "There is no question who I consider the villain in this and there is never a choice between you two. You have proven who you are time and again." She sighed a little. "So has he actually."
Harry felt much better. "Thanks everyone," he said.
They sat there in comfortable silence for a few moments.
"Anyone want to play some exploding snap?" Sue said after a while.
"Uh, perhaps not around them," Blaise said nervously when Sunny glared at him.
"How about some chess?" Ron offered. Soon he and Blaise were engaged in a fierce game that the others watched on while others sat and chatted. Harry's improved feeling of warmth and care continued as he slowly dozed off, lying against Lavender and with Hedwig on his shoulder pressed against his face and Sunny and Crookshanks sharing his lap.
-0-0-0-
AshokaTheGreat - Thank you. I wanted to try and seed the story with little hints and tidbits leading up to this to reward people who read it again. I like to think I succeeded. I'm really happy that you agree that Harry would act that way in this story. I wanted to tread the line between his good heart and his 'forgiving people' thing, and wanted it to feel real and plausible while being satisfying. Thank you for the kind words.
odonnellzoo99 - I really enjoyed this duel too, because I tried to pay homage to the duel in the Ministry while making it its own thing. And Fawkes letting loose too and kicking the snake while also using his voice to paralyze Voldemort for a bit. I've been enjoying the idea that his singing his like different instruments based on the feeling and the message. Also, needed some Drake levity and him being upset over the rug felt right.
DOOOOOOM Lord of Waffles - Glad you enjoyed it. Thank you so much.
Kaya - Thank you so much. Glad you liked it.
Hands Off MY Wolfie - I'm glad you got that. I wanted the last few scenes to be related leading up to the crescendo encounter and show why they happened and how they worked together for the end result. Harry raising his hand to ask a question made me laugh a lot. Thanks for reading.
alix33 - He won it with style.
TheSphynx - Yeah, I wanted the prophecy to still feel impactful because Voldemort still set it going. It didn't feel right to not address it some way. And I wanted Harry to make the decision intelligently.
whiskeylovingbibliophile - Thank you very much. That was a goal for this fic. Competent adults doing adult things, kids doing kids things, and making something cozy and fun out of it all.
poka - Maybe I got a little tired of writing the beginning of the duel. I wrote the last few chapters back-to-back. Also I guess I could have felt slightly stymied in the sense I was trying to pay homage to the Ministry duel some. I wanted Voldemort's end to feel visceral here while seeding the story with a few hints along the way. But I always had envisioned his end to be him literally tearing himself apart, a last-ditch panicked effort from Quirrell trying to gain some sort of agency at the last moment.
Yeah, I knew Harry had to have 'the final word' to fulfill the prophecy, but like how prophecy can be up to interpretation, Voldemort was still ultimately his own demise. But Harry had a role and it does not undercut what the others did or oversell his involvement. It was a tricky line to follow but I'm really happy with how it came out. And yeah, I thought that was a fun Ariana line. I hope your days are kinder to you soon.
DarkRavie - Thank you,
1529 - Sometimes the sheer amount of characters is a bit tough to balance but I'm glad that comes across that this is a team fic, and not just focused on a sole person. Everyone plays an important role and I wanted the wizarding world to feel like a world. I was hoping to capture the sheer scope that the canon stories hint at, and let us feel like we are seeing a bigger part of it and how people interact and matter.