I do not own Harry Potter, the Wizarding World, or any canon characters.
A Taste of Magic
6th Course – Hollow Night
"I beg your pardon?" McGonagall gave Harry her full attention. When he had approached to ask her a question, she never thought he would ask that. "You wish to skip the Halloween Feast?"
"Yes Ma'am," he replied.
She looked at him closely. He did not look ill, at least to her, but he did seem to be withdrawn and subdued. "Are you sick or hurt?"
"No Ma'am."
"Is someone preventing you from wanting to go?"
"No Ma'am." Not now anyways.
She crossed her arms. "The Halloween Feast is a long-standing tradition. Students do not miss it unless they are sick or have committed some grave infraction. Since you are neither sick nor in trouble, I must ask why."
"I've never liked Halloween," Harry said at last. "I'd rather do something else, something I've done on Halloween for the last few years."
"And it cannot be done on any other day?"
"No Ma'am."
She tried to look stern yet understanding. "And you do not care to explain more?"
"Not if I have to. Ma'am."
She looked at him and while he did not look her back in the eye, he remained resolute. "I will speak with the Headmaster, but be prepared to attend the feast, Mister Potter. And he may ask for further clarification."
Harry sighed softly. "Yes Ma'am," he said quietly.
She watched him go, a troubled expression growing on her face.
-0-
"What did she say?" Lavender asked when Harry caught up to her.
"She wouldn't give me permission," Harry said. "Said she'll talk to the Headmaster, but be prepared to attend."
"Maybe it won't be so bad?" Lavender suggested.
"Maybe," he said but did not look convinced. He looked at her sheepishly. "I'm sorry. For not really explaining. It's hard to."
"It's okay," she replied and gently patted his arm. She noticed that he did not seem all that comfortable with things beyond an arm or shoulder pat. He was growing more comfortable with it however, something she was grateful for, and she tried her best to respect his feelings. "Explain when you feel comfortable to."
"Thanks," he said gratefully.
"Maybe you are feeling sick though," she said worriedly. Harry had looked under the weather the last few days. "Are you sure you don't want to go to the Infirmary?"
"I'm sure. I'm not sick. I just don't love Halloween," he said.
"You'll tell me if you are sick though, right?"
"I would," he said sincerely. "We're friends, right?"
She beamed at him. "We're friends," she said firmly.
-0-
"I can't wait for the feast tonight," Millicent said. "I always heard the Halloween Feast is a lot of fun." She looked at her friend. "What about you?"
"I heard it's fun," Pansy said without interest. "It'll be nice to do something different, I suppose."
Millicent looked up and down the Slytherin table, making sure everyone else was engrossed in their own conversations. "Hey, you okay?" she asked softly.
Pansy turned to look at her. "Yes, why?"
"Just checking. You've been quiet lately."
"I've been thinking," Pansy said quietly.
"I can tell, you don't talk when you think," Millicent teased. "What did you say when we were littler?"
"I can't think and talk at the same time," Pansy said and a ghost of a smile appeared. "I think you said that though."
"Possibly," Millicent giggled. Then she sobered. "It's good that Draco apologized for pushing you that night."
The ghost of the smile faded. "I suppose," Pansy said.
Millicent waited for Pansy to come to Draco's defense like she did so many times before, waited for her to vent and rant and complain. She waited and waited but Pansy did none of those things. "Share with the class?"
Pansy snorted. "My personal thoughts? Never."
"Share with family?"
"Depends on the family," Pansy said wryly.
"Share with me?"
Pansy looked at Millicent and her smile was there but only just. "Eventually."
"I'll take it. Don't get me wrong, you being quiet has been nice for me too. I get to think because I have trouble thinking when you're talking."
Pansy's smile got a little stronger. "Now I remember. That's what you said when we were littler."
"Sounds about right," Millicent laughed. She looked at Pansy's plate. "You've been eating a lot of banana muffins lately."
"Hmm, I've gotten a taste for one, for them," Pansy murmured. She looked across the Great Hall at the Gryffindor table.
Millicent followed her gaze. "Did something happen with Potter? You've been looking at him more often these days."
"Not that much more," Pansy demurred and looked back at her plate.
"Okay," Millicent said and did not press further. "You'd tell me if he did something right? So I can go over and kick his arse for bothering my best friend?"
Pansy snorted again. "I'd tell you," she said.
"Because you're my best friend?"
"And because you're mine." Pansy fiddled with a handkerchief. "I'll tell you. Eventually. I promise."
"I know you will."
Pansy took a deep breath and shivered a little, physically pushing her thoughts and feelings around. Her smile was still small but it was a touch more open. "What kind of candy do you think there'll be tonight?"
Millicent relaxed a little. She knew Pansy was trying and was not completely past whatever was on her mind but seeing her try made her feel better.
-0-0-0-
"Ah, Mister Potter, a moment of your time."
Harry saw Dumbledore standing at one end of the hall. "Yes Sir." Waving goodbye to Lavender and Parvati, he walked over.
"Charms class? How was it?" Dumbledore asked genially.
"It was okay," Harry said. He frowned slightly. "Had a bit of an incident. Some of my Housemates weren't being kind to each other."
"Nothing too bad I hope," Dumbledore said, looking mildly concerned.
"I don't know to be honest," Harry said with a small shrug.
"Perhaps it will be fixed by the night's end. Which leads me to the reason I wanted to speak with you. Professor McGonagall told me you do not wish to partake in tonight's feast?"
"Yes Sir."
"And you are not ill?"
"No Sir."
Dumbledore looked down at Harry for long moments, saying nothing. He noticed how Harry looked away, how he fidgeted a little, how he looked withdrawn and weary. Suddenly, Dumbledore had a thought and he too looked incredibly tired. "Ah. Forgive me," he said softly. "It is the anniversary, for your parents."
Harry sighed and nodded. "Yes Sir."
"I was unaware you knew," Dumbledore said sheepishly.
"My aunt told me."
"She did?" Dumbledore was even more shocked by that.
"Yes Sir. She told me my parents died on Halloween." Harry bit his tongue to keep him from saying what else Petunia said to him in regards to his parents' death and the holiday. "I've never liked the day since when she told me and I'd rather not go to the feast if that's okay."
"Professor McGonagall mentioned you had something else you do instead?" Dumbledore asked gently.
Harry nodded. "I've done it for the last few years." He hesitated. "I'd like to use the clubroom stove if I could, please."
Dumbledore remained quiet, stroking his beard in thought. "I will ask Inky to keep an ear out for you."
Harry looked at Dumbledore directly, deeply surprised. "Really?"
"Really. Do you need anything else?"
"No Sir, I've prepared things for tonight. I really appreciate it."
Dumbledore smiled sadly at the small boy. "You are welcome." It was his turn to hesitate. "I was fortunate to have counted your parents as friends, Mister Potter. I would like to say, as empty as it sounds, that they would not have wanted you to feel so poorly about this day. That said, I know the heart will feel how it does and it requires time for things to change."
"You knew them?" Harry asked, his expression one of deepest yearning.
"I did. Taught them and remained friends with them after they graduated. Perhaps one day soon we can spend a bit of time together and I can tell you a few stories."
"I'd really like that," Harry whispered. "Aunt Petunia never told me anything about them." Well, nothing good about them.
Dumbledore's expression fell, as if he heard Harry's thoughts. "We will see when we can do that then. I would be happy to share my memories of them with you."
-0-
"You are giving him permission to skip the feast?" McGonagall gave him a strange look.
"I gave him permission, yes," Dumbledore said mildly.
"And he's going to be unaccompanied outside the common room?"
"One of the House Elves is going to be near and arrive at a moment's notice."
"Mister Potter can be trusted on his own near a stove," Flitwick said mildly. "He has proven himself and the castle is made of stone. It won't burn up."
McGonagall frowned at him, unamused. "I still think it is rather strange. What reason did he give you?"
Dumbledore looked at her. "He will not celebrate the day his parents died."
The room fell completely silent. Even the fire in the hearth seemed to diminish in volume.
"Oh." McGonagall looked down, ashamed. "How did I not think of that?"
"Because we had the luxury of memory to ease the pain of absence. We remember the good times while not thinking of the bad," Dumbledore said gently. "Harry does not have even that. I have suggested to him that we can try and find time to share some stories with him."
"That is a good idea," Flitwick said softly. "I'm sorry to say I never thought of it myself."
"One would think that his guardians would have told him a few things," Sprout said.
Dumbledore and McGonagall shared a look, hers a touch severe and his a touch resigned. "I had hopes. Regardless of that, we can try and fill in the blanks as it were."
Snape narrowed his eyes at them when he noticed the shared look, but said nothing more.
-0-
"Are you in trouble?" Lavender asked when Harry found her in the common room.
"No, at least I hope not." Harry smiled weakly. "Dumbledore gave me permission to skip the feast."
"Oh that's good, right?"
He nodded. "It's what I want."
"Okay, that's good then." Lavender gave him an encouraging smile.
Harry then noticed the looks on her and Parvati's face. "I'm sorry, did I interrupt something?"
The two girls looked at each other. "Uhm, sort of? Not really?" Parvati said uncertainly. "I was telling Lavender that I heard Granger crying in the bathroom. Not in the dormitory one, but one out in the castle."
"Oh." Harry looked out the portrait door.
"Yeah," Parvati said sheepishly. "I gotta go see Padma about something. I'll see you at the feast Lavender. See you after Harry." With a wave she left the common room.
"Is she crying about what Ron and Seamus said in Charms?" Harry asked.
"I think so," Lavender sighed. "It was rude of them to say that but she does act all swotty and snooty about class and homework." She turned to look at Harry. "What's that look for?"
"I just know how it feels," he replied, "hiding in the bathroom and being upset."
"Oh?"
He nodded glumly.
Lavender looked down at her lap. "I guess I do too."
"When you said you knew how I felt to be picked on?" Harry asked softly, looking at his friend. "When it was about something you couldn't control?"
She looked at him in surprise. "You remembered?"
He nodded again, shyly this time. "'Course I do. You're my friend."
She beamed at him. "Thank you." Her smile faded a little. "Yeah, it was…when I was really little, I didn't have a lot of clothes. Some girls noticed I wore the same things a lot and they teased me terribly." Her eyes popped open when she felt Harry pat her arm. It was the first time he made that kind of gesture on his own.
"I know what that's like," he said and she believed him. "I grew up wearing hand-me-downs from my cousin and they never fit me either."
"Did the other kids treat you badly too?" she asked.
"Uhm, more in the sense they didn't treat me at all, good or bad. My cousin made sure I never had friends really for a long time. Or made sure no one was friendly with me."
She scowled. "That's really wrong." She huffed. "At least I had a couple of friends that helped me feel better." She patted him back and was glad to see him accept it willingly without any change in expression. "I'm sorry."
"Thank you," he said quietly. "It's okay now though. I have you and Parvati and Padma and Hedwig as friends now. I always wanted friends and now I do."
"I'm your first friend?" she asked, equal parts happy and saddened by that tidbit of information.
"My first human friend," he said with a small smile. "I met Hedwig before you, you see."
Lavender laughed. "That's fine. I don't want to fight with Hedwig." They sat in companionable silence for long moments, letting the ambient sounds of the common room wash over and around them.
"Can…can I ask you something?" he asked finally.
"Of course."
"Could you…go talk to her?"
Lavender winced. "Oh, I don't know about that. I mean, I don't like that she's upset too but she's a bit…unpleasant. We don't really get along."
"Sorry, I just, you're right of course," he said hurriedly. "That's asking a lot and I'm really sorry."
"Why do you want me to go talk to her?" she asked.
"Because I don't like hearing people cry," he said. "And you're really nice and it's easy to talk to you and I think she'd appreciate it."
"Oh." Lavender felt very flattered and warm in that moment though she was a little reluctant still.
Harry saw the conflict on her face. He took a deep breath. "I'm not telling you this to guilt you but I trust you. I'm not going to the feast because my parents died on Halloween," he said in a rush. He pressed on, wincing at the look of horror on Lavender's face. "When I was little, I wanted to go Trick or Treating like my cousin and my aunt told me that my parents died on Halloween and if I wanted to dress up and eat candy on the day they died, that'd be a strange way to remember them."
"What?!" Lavender nearly shrieked, covering her mouth with her hands when Harry gave her a panicked look and people in the common room turned to stare at her outburst. She waited for everyone else to look away before she took her hands away. "What?!" she hissed. "That's. I. What?! How could she say that to you?!"
Harry shrugged weakly. "Ever since, I never liked Halloween all that much."
"I don't blame you. I'm so sorry," she said mournfully.
"Please don't let that keep you from enjoying the feast though," he said. "That's why I didn't want to tell you before. I didn't want to ruin it for you."
"You didn't. I understand. I just…that's so wrong." She dabbed at her eyes, using the handkerchief Harry made for her.
"I've upset you," Harry groaned.
"I'm upset for you," she corrected. "There's a difference. Or so Daddy tells me. That's what he says for things like this." She realized what she said and looked even more horrified. "Oh God, you just told me your parents died today and I'm talking about my dad, I am so so sorry-
"It's okay," Harry interrupted. "Really, it is. I didn't tell you that to guilt you or anything, but, just that I trust you. I…never told anyone that before. But you're really nice to me and a great listener and you shared something very private with me so I wanted to do the same."
He looked at her directly. "I won't push you to talk to her if you don't want to. I don't want to pressure you. Whatever you want to do." He patted her shoulder this time.
She felt a little better. "I guess I can go try and talk to her but I'm doing it for you."
"Thank you," he said gratefully, smiling a little. "I'll give you something too after."
"Because I'm talking to her for you?" she asked cheekily.
"Because you're my friend and you're doing something for me," he said sincerely.
"You're my friend too," she replied just as sincerely.
-0-
Hermione continued to sob. She had lost track of time, hiding in the bathroom. All she knew was that she ran to the bathroom after Charms class, wanting to be alone in her misery. The stress from being in a completely new and different environment, being away from her mother and father, keeping up with her studies was eating away at her. Being yelled at by Seamus and hearing what Ron said after pushed her to the breaking point and she ran away in tears.
She looked up when she heard someone say her name. "Wh-what?" she said, trying to stifle the sobs and failing.
"Hermione, it's Lavender. Are you okay?"
Hermione sniffled and scrubbed at her eyes. "I-I'm f-fine," she lied. "L-Leave me a-alone!" She looked at Lavender with astonishment when Lavender walked into the bathroom and saw Hermione tucked away in the corner, hiding behind the sink.
"You don't look fine," Lavender said apologetically.
Her already tenuous façade crumbled and her tears ran once more. "F-Fine! I'm not! Are you h-here to laugh at me too?!"
Lavender walked over and sat against the wall beside Hermione. "No, I'm not."
"Then what are you doing here?"
"Talking to you. What Seamus and Ron said was really rude. They shouldn't have said it."
Hermione stared at her. "Why didn't you say that sooner?"
Lavender shrugged. "I don't like talking to Seamus, he's annoying. And he and Ron are friends. But I could have said something sooner and I'm kinda sorry I didn't."
"Only 'kinda'?"
Lavender winced. "Well, I, uh, goodness this is going to be rude too, but you do get kinda snooty about school stuff Hermione."
Hermione glared at her. "It's because we're in school and we're here to learn!"
"I know that but you really are intense about it," Lavender said, holding her hands up in a peaceful gesture. "Like, super intense about it."
"That's not a bad thing!" Hermione protested.
"Not saying it is! But it's hard to talk to you sometimes! You get things so fast and are really smart and when Parvati and I don't get it, you get this attitude about it." She flushed at Hermione's angry look. "Sorry, said it'd be rude too."
"What are you even doing here then," Hermione spat. "If that's how you feel, you can leave me alone!" She started crying again. "Just like you and Parvati have all this time."
"It's not like we were trying to leave you alone," Lavender said hurriedly. "But you're more interested in school stuff and we aren't as much. We tried to include you at first but you didn't seem to care about what we did either."
"Of course I'm interested in school stuff, it's magic! Magic is incredible and everyone seems to not care about it or take it for granted!"
"Parvati's whole family are magicals so she's used to it, she grew up with it. There was a time I didn't really know about magic but I learned about it earlier on and got used to it too. So you're right, we might take it for granted some."
Hermione looked away, falling silent.
"We did try to include you," Lavender repeated.
"I'm not that interested in make-up or clothes or those things," Hermione muttered.
"That's fine, but like we aren't as interested in school stuff so it was hard to talk to you." Still hard if I'm being honest, she thought.
Hermione sighed and deflated. "That's…fair." She wiped her eyes again. "I was only trying to help."
"That's good but you might want to be a little more…nice about it?" Lavender suggested.
Hermione snorted and regretted doing that. Lavender reached into a pocket and fished out a handkerchief for Hermione to use, but not the one Harry made. "Thank you," Hermione said quietly as she wiped her face. "I'll clean it before giving it back."
"Thank you," Lavender said awkwardly.
"Why did you come talk to me then?" Hermione asked, looking at her directly.
Lavender took a deep breath. "Honestly? Harry asked me to. He heard that you were crying in here and asked me to talk to you."
"Why would he care?" Hermione asked, perplexed.
"Because he said he knew what it was like, to hide and be upset by being treated badly by others," Lavender said with a frown. The frown melted a little. "And he reminded me that I knew what it was like too so I came to chat with you."
"Oh. That was nice of him," Hermione said softly. "And you," she added awkwardly. Her confusion returned. "Why would he know that though? I've read about him."
Lavender looked at her questioningly. "You've read about him?"
"There's stuff written about him, the Boy-Who-Lived," Hermione explained.
"Oh, that's weird." Lavender thought about what Harry told her earlier. "I don't know if that stuff is all that accurate about him."
"Oh." Hermione wiped her face again, her sniffling subsiding. "You said you know what it's like too?"
"I do."
"Oh."
"Mmhmm."
The silence was soft and less awkward.
"Thank you," Hermione whispered.
"You're welcome," Lavender whispered.
-0-
Harry assembled everything on the preparation table. After classes had finished, he dropped his things off and went to the clubroom to be alone. It was a lot easier being alone in the past. People ignored him during the day and the Dursleys always left him alone after an early dinner so they could eagerly go to their own plans. All the interactions he had today were a little more tiring, with him mustering up more energy to try and appear normal.
Whatever his version was normal anyways.
Being alone next to the stove in the clubroom was almost soothing to him. Sure, it was not the kitchen at the Dursleys but it was familiar enough to feel like a return to routine and tradition. He felt more at ease. He knew what was to come would be slightly tougher on him but for the moment, he was back in his element.
A week prior, he had begun making preparations for this day, hoping he would have the opportunity to do what he wanted. It had been tradition the last few years and being able to do it even while in a completely different environment helped him feel better.
He settled the pot on the stove and waited for it to come to temperature. As it did, he finished preparing the last of the ingredients: beef was chopped and set aside, potatoes and carrots and onion peeled and diced, spices measured.
He browned the beef chunks and set them aside. He added the onion to cook in some butter, scraping up the fond left on the bottom of the pot with beef broth once the onions took some color. He did not use wine, the traditional deglazing liquid. He did not think he would be allowed any here. The meat and potatoes and carrots went in with the spices and he brought it to a boil before turning the heat down to let it simmer.
For the next hour and a half or so, he stirred occasionally and the air took on a savory and meaty smell, one that was both comforting to him as well as melancholic. He did his homework while the stew simmered and thickened and deepened in both flavor and texture. The lamp in the room flared into brightness when the sun sank fully behind the horizon, plunging the grounds into darkness. Other lamps on the walls lit themselves, adding illumination.
He tasted the stew and nodded with approval. It was savory and had a depth of flavor. The meat was tender but not toothsome. The potatoes and carrots were soft but not mushy or crumbly. It tasted just like it should. He ladled out a bowl and set it in front of him. Inky had thoughtfully brought bread and butter for him and while she was busy, she told him to not hesitate if he needed her.
He could still remember the first time he did this. One of the few pleasant memories he had of cooking with Petunia was her telling him that beef stew was Lily's favorite. He went through a phase of cooking it a lot until Petunia and Vernon made him stop, saying they were tired of it.
While he did make it less, he got into the habit of making it on Halloween, to feel some kind of closeness with the family he lost. When he learned of the Japanese tradition of making food offerings to passed loved ones in class, it took on a special meaning to him and he did so. Petunia saw him do it the first time and punished him severely but it did not deter him in the future, he just became circumspect about it.
"Hi Mum, hi Dad," he whispered out loud to the empty room.
He waited for an answer that never came.
"I'm at school now, but I was lucky enough to be able to cook tonight," he went on. "I was really worried that I wouldn't be able to. I'd hate to break our tradition but good thing I didn't. Wouldn't have felt right to me.
"School is going well. I was really surprised by magic and being a wizard. But when I learned you two were magicals too it really made me happy. I felt like we had more in common." He snorted softly. "Well, aside from being parents and child. But I'm told that I look a lot like you Dad and have your eyes Mum so that's really cool too.
"Oh and Headmaster Dumbledore said he knew you two. Said he counted you as friends. He also said he'd tell me stories about you two so I'm really looking forward to that. And that you flew a lot Dad and you played Quidditch. I love flying too! It's so much fun."
A smile grew on his lips. "Maybe we're more alike than I thought!" He turned wistful. "I hope you and I share stuff too Mum. Hopefully I'll learn more about you and can find out."
He closed his eyes. "I miss you."
He started to eat. The taste of the stew was rich and familiar. A little different due to the absence of wine that the Dursleys had allowed him to use, but not egregiously different. Just like before, however, the taste of the stew became slightly saltier as he ate.
Just like before, he ignored the tears that ran down his face as he ate the stew. He chewed slowly, drawing the bowl of stew out, making it last as long as he could.
-0-
The Great Hall was filled with noise. The floating candles were replaced by floating jack-o'-lanterns: grinning orange gourds floating and dancing lights giving their smiles and eyes more character. Violins and cellos played themselves, their strings sang melodies that made the skin crawl and the spine shiver. The ghosts flew here and there, regaling students with stories that made them gasp and shriek and laugh.
Lavender was enjoying the fun but she found herself wishing that Harry was there. Hermione had come to the feast with her and while she still looked and acted a little subdued, she was there. Lavender had a quick whispered conversation with Parvati and the other girl was nice to Hermione, something that Hermione was thankful for.
"Where's Potter?" Seamus asked, looking around. "I thought you said he liked candy since he bought a bunch and ate it on the Express."
Ron shrugged. "I don't know."
"I'm not surprised," Hermione said softly. She colored when people looked at her. "Why he isn't here."
"Yeah? Why?" Seamus asked.
She pointedly looked away from him. "I'm just a know-it-all, aren't I?" That made Seamus and Ron turn red and the others giggle and chuckle.
"Because it's Halloween," Neville said quietly.
"Yeah? Obviously," Seamus snorted.
"Oh no," Parvati gasped. She looked stricken. "No wonder he looked upset today. I didn't think about it."
"What do you mean?" Dean asked.
"His parents died on Halloween," Parvati said very quietly. A pall fell over the table. The first year Gryffindor students looked at each, save for Hermione and Lavender and Neville.
"He wouldn't want us not to enjoy the feast," Lavender said, trying to sound bright despite not feeling it. "Well, he told me that but he probably wouldn't want you others to not enjoy it so yeah." After another moment of quiet, they went back to eating and the atmosphere of the feast washed over them once more.
"Did he tell you?" Parvati whispered.
Lavender nodded, a little glum. "Earlier."
"Poor Harry. We'll try to cheer him up tomorrow," Parvati said.
Lavender smiled a little. "That'll be nice. We still have club this week too."
Parvati nodded. She looked across the hall for a moment. "Say, have you noticed Parkinson looks over at us more lately?"
"Actually I have." Lavender peeked across the hall and watched Pansy talking to Millicent, noticing how Pansy glanced over at the Gryffindor table. "I wonder why. Probably trying to think of other rude things to say." She munched on a biscuit. "Hmm. Now that I think about it, she hasn't been all that rude to us in class for a bit. Not like the beginning of the year."
"You think so too? I thought I was so used to it I started noticing it less," Parvati said and the girls snickered. "I wonder what's going on."
"Who knows," Lavender said.
-0-
Lavender had hoped Harry would be in the common room when the Gryffindors returned to the tower but he was not. She thought about waiting or going to his dormitory but decided against it. When she walked into the dormitory that she and Parvati and Hermione shared, she noticed something sitting on her nightstand.
She lifted the metal cloche and she saw a small mug of stew there. It was still somehow warm and she breathed deep of the sudden release of savory meat and vegetables. Despite eating her fill at the feast, her stomach grumbled a little, wanting more.
A scrap of parchment sat beneath the mug and she pulled it out to read it.
Lavender,
Inky delivered this for me. She said she will keep it warm for you too.
Thank you for everything. You're the best.
Your friend,
Harry.
With a wide smile she put the cloche back on over it, hoping that it would stay warm. She hurriedly got ready for bed and once she was, she pulled the curtains closed around her and held the still warm mug in her hands. The first bite of the stew filled her with warmth. The meat fell apart between her teeth and the vegetables were soft but still had their form. The savory broth was rich and hearty and comforting.
"Mmm," she hummed happily.
She finished every single bite and drop of the beef stew and as she fell asleep, she thought of how happy she was that Harry was her friend. Her eyelids closed and she slept peacefully, warm and content.
-0-0-0-
odonnellzoo99 - It's someone else's turn for 'the look'. Gosh, that sounds like an amazing trip. My experiences with curry are all self-taught through recipes but am pretty happy with the one I found for butter chicken, though there was a fun one for what I call curryflower, cauliflower curry. It has chunky peanut butter in it.
plums - That's fine if you don't like it. But please keep in mind that I am going for a long fic that will include 7 years worth of story. There will be lots of changes and things, and what is introduced now will hopefully provide good character growth and change in the future. Will it actually? I don't know, we will find out by the story's end. I don't 'need' drama and I'm not trying to do anything without a purpose. If you 'cannot stand' it, then that's fine. Thank you for your time.
guest - Professor Flitwick is a lot of fun to write for and I look forward to exploring him later and if you have read my other works, I use Inky a lot. For some reason, I like that name for a House Elf and she is a lot of fun too.
DOOOOOOM Lord of Waffles - You can bet on that. You're wrong, but continue to bet away if you like.
kaya - thank you, glad you enjoyed it.
carlos29 - Thank you so much for the kind words. While I don't have everything written and planned out, I do work hard on trying to develop good characters and hopefully make things feel real and make sense.
alix33 - Is Hedwig vain or is she acting as due to her magnificence?
SvenHPotterFan - I grew up working in my mother's sandwich shop for as long as I could remember. I did not cook much at home by that point, but I could make a bunch of sandwiches and other things by late middle school and I could make every dish we served by high school. Probably what sort of made me like food so much. Eventually I got more into cooking our home cooking and learned a good amount from her.
Nebresh - Thank you.
poka - I love rice with curry, same with Naan. I didn't include rice yet because I want to introduce different foods as they feel right and thought it would be easier for them to get the other things first to make butter chicken and roti. Especially since roti is really easy to make. I definitely recommend you looking for a recipe. It's very different compared to naan but still delightful. Thank you for the kind words. If you read my other main story, I am trying for a slightly different take on the way the Dursleys treated him. Still very poorly, but in a way that makes sense in this setting.
