I do not own Harry Potter, the Wizarding World, or any canon characters.
Side Dishes
52nd Course – Speaking With Words 19: The Seventh Year Part 7
As per tradition, takes place all over the timeline with the first instance starting at the 167th course of Taste, the day before the finale of the Rising Stars Competition.
Hedwig waved a wing as Harry left through the Floo. It was the day before the finale of the Rising Stars and he was going to the Cuisine Capitale to do his prep work for the next day, the allotted time for him and Celine to do so. Hedwig huffed softly. She could have gone with him but did not want to distract him, and she also knew she might not be able to resist messing with Celine due to her crimes against her chick.
"Hmm. Wish I could do something to help," she mused to herself. "Wait a second. There is something I can do!"
She flew through the halls of Hogwarts, an owl on a mission. A quick visit to the Uncommon Room to put on her harness and to grab a few things, and then she went to Gryffindor Tower. The portrait door swung open for her and she flew in, barking a thanks at the Fat Lady, the guardian of the tower. She saw her intended targets and landed daintily on the table in front of them.
"Hi Hedwig!" Mirabelle smiled.
"How are you?" Lyla asked.
"I'm well, thank you dearies. I need your help with something." Hedwig tugged out the rolled piece of the newspaper she tucked into her pouch and showed it to them, pecking it gently.
"Oh yeah, that's tomorrow," Mirabelle said, looking at the article about the finale. "Wish I could go but I know Harry will do great. He's awesome!" She blinked as Hedwig took the quill out of her pouch and waved at her, tickling her nose with the feather end. "Achoo! Excuse me. Oh! We should write some encouragement for Harry!"
"That's a great idea," Lyla smiled. She watched as Hedwig gently tugged her blonde hair over her white feathered one and blinked a few times. "Oh! Yeah, Katie would too, for sure! I'll scribble a note for you to take to her so she can write one too. I bet if you visit the other former students, they would too!"
"Brilliant!" Hedwig hooted. "Chick will be so happy and he'll feel even better about the contest and will do his best and cook that French Hen into a pot!"
-0-
Katie looked up, smiling at the white owl swooping in. "Hey there, good to see you," she smiled as Hedwig landed. "Did you bring me something from Harry?" Katie took the note that Hedwig handed her and read it, nibbling on the biscuit that Hedwig gave her too. "Oh that's a good idea! Yeah, I'll definitely write something. It's been so exciting reading about Harry competing in the Rising Stars. That's so huge."
She wrote out a note for Harry and smiled at a plump and pleased Hedwig. "Such a good owl," she praised.
"Thank you. I already knew that but it is good that others recognize it and praise me for it."
-0-
A bark made them look up and Angelina squinted against the sunlight. "Oh that's Hedwig. Did you order something from Harry?"
"I haven't asked recently. Since he's been competing in the contest," Alicia said. "I felt bad to add to his workload." She smiled as Hedwig landed. "I won't say no if something is offered though." Her smile grew as she and Angelina got a biscuit each from the owl.
"Oh yeah, let's write a note for him," Angelina smiled, reading the note that Hedwig showed them. "That's a great idea."
"How is he doing?" Alicia asked.
Hedwig puffed her chest out proudly. "He's doing well! Well, as well as one can when they're in the situation he is. But's he's the best and a wonderful chef and he's going to give that other girl a run for her feathers!"
"Glad to hear it," Angelina said, giving Alicia the quill. "Give him an extra nuzzle of encouragement for us, please."
"Never need another reason to nuzzle him but I will give him extra," Hedwig promised.
-0-
There were shouts of surprise as the locker room door flew open and Hedwig came flapping in. The players and people within stared at her and she stared boldly back. "What? Never seen an owl before? Mind your business!"
Oliver blinked when Hedwig landed on top of his locker. "Hey there," he said with a bemused smile. "What's up Hedwig?" He looked at the note she dangled in front of him. "Oh yeah! It's been so cool seeing him compete. Yeah, give me a second, I'll write him something."
After a moment, he tucked the note into her pouch with the quill. "Thanks! I'm looking forward to reading about him. Give him my best!"
"I will!" Hedwig flew out of the locker room, kicking the door open once more and it swung wildly on its hinges.
"That owl kicks doors open," another Puddlemere United player said faintly.
"Never saw her do that before but honestly doesn't surprise me," Oliver chuckled. "He's a good kid. Figures that his owl is too."
-0-
Percy eventually felt that prickling sensation, the kind one gets when they are being watched, and he looked up from his work. He worked for the Department of International Co-operation and the office was well within the depths of the Ministry building. He looked around his small office before finally noticing Hedwig sitting on the basket where he put memos and interdepartmental messages. "Oh, hello there," he said, mildly surprised at seeing her.
"Hello," Hedwig hooted pleasantly.
"However did you get in here?" Percy asked. He smiled when Hedwig flapped her wings. "Of course, it's just, normally owls are stopped at the front and are brought in via escort."
"Normally, being the key word," Hedwig barked smugly. "I am Hedwig and I don't require an escort. Unless I want one to show my station and importance."
Percy read the note explaining Hedwig's presence and nodded. "Of course I will be happy to write one." He took out a sheet of parchment and began to write. "His performance has been a common point of conversation here at the Ministry. The majority of us are quite proud of him and wish him well."
He finished writing the note and tucked it into her pouch. "There we are. Thank you, Hedwig." He gave her another look when she adjusted his desk lamp.
"Thank me later!" she cheeped and flew away.
Percy was about to adjust it back before he looked at it again and after a moment, left it as it was, feeling vaguely better about it being that way. He smiled to himself and returned to his work with the smile remaining for a good long while.
-0-
"I'm home!" Cedric said, walking into the flat. He smiled at Cho before noticing the white owl sitting on the desk. "Oh hey, we have a visitor. Oh, isn't that Harry's owl?"
Cho smiled back and nodded. "Yup, Hedwig. She came by and is collecting notes for Harry. We're writing good luck wishes and things for him before his finale tomorrow."
"Oh right! The big cooking contest." Cedric walked over. "He's cool and it's really cool that he made it to the finale."
"It is," Cho agreed. "He's really nice. He and Sue are close friends and one time he made me mapo tofu to help cheer me up. It tasted really good. I thought Sue made it but she said he made it with her help but from Auntie Lin's recipe."
"Yeah, and he helped me during the TriWizard too." Cedric added to Cho's note and signed it underneath her signature. "Wish him luck for us!"
"Will do!" Hedwig bobbed her head and flapped out of the flat.
"Must be a lot of pressure," Cedric said with sympathy.
"Yeah, but I'm sure he'll do his best," Cho said confidently.
-0-
"Hurry up!" Amythyst hissed.
"You want me to hurry, or do you want me to do it right?" Flynt hissed back.
"Both!"
"How are you tying that? No wonder your roasts come out uneven," Hacker complained. "Give me the twine."
"I'll twine your gob shut, see how you like it," Flynt retorted.
"Oh please do, but you know, better," Salta said.
Hedwig sat on the table and munched on some fried caddok, shaking her head. "I've seen you lot work together and cook. How can you do that well but be terrible at other things?"
The Crew squabbled as they worked over something but immediately subsided when the door to the kitchen opened and Dee and Diglin walked in. Diglin took one look and sighed. "Alright, what are you idiots planning now?" he asked, voice weary.
"Just wrapping something," Flynt said evasively.
"Trying to wrap something," Salta said snidely.
"Give it here," Diglin said, holding his hand out.
"That's okay Chef, we can wrap it," Amythyst smiled. She wilted at his glare and sheepishly handed him an object that was mostly wrapped in leather.
"What the fuck is this?!" Diglin said loudly, unwrapping it and revealing a long knife. "Why are you trying to send him this?!"
"Gee, I wonder why a chef might need a knife," Hacker said softly looking away.
"Where did you get this?" Dee asked, taking the blade from Diglin. "The same scrap heap as the place you got that shoddy wrist knife? Are you paying good money for this?"
"That's not even a chef's knife!" Diglin said.
"This is just confusing," Dee said with professional disgust. "It's like a machete, but the balance is terrible. The tang feels short. And what is this on the hilt? Useless ornamentation? You'll cut your own wrist with it! Seriously, where are you finding this crap?!"
"We only just got the idea to send him another one when Hedwig came," Flynt said. "And I didn't have a lot of time to find a decent one. This was more of a laugh anyways and it'll still be good for self-defense and all."
"I can rough shape a better dirk or short sword in about an hour from a piece of plain metal," Dee said.
"Harry doesn't need a sword or a dirk or a falchion or a machete or any other kind of blade that is not technically a chef knife!" Diglin said loudly. "Not right now and not for this!"
"You'd send him back there without self-defense?!" Amythyst cried and the Crew made sounds of disgust.
"He has a bloody ironnut mallet," Diglin retorted sharply. "And two wrist-knives. We can outfit him proper blades after the finale."
Dee tucked Emmie's drawing and their letter into Hedwig's pouch. "You might as well go before we do try to send something less than appropriate," she sighed.
"I don't mind waiting," Hedwig said. "I'm fine with Chick getting more things! Means I can borrow them too if I need to."
-0-
Despite her pouch being full of notes and things now, she flew back to Hogwarts without noticeable difficulty. She hummed to herself, feeling satisfied. "He's going to be so happy," she thought. "Oh I should stop by the Hogsmeade Post Office."
The Hogsmeade Post Office was as it sounded, a place for all the post to be collected and held for the residents of Hogsmeade and for Hogwarts. Personal owls would of course deliver mail and things directly to owner and recipient but other letters and packages would be sent there to be held and other post owls would then deliver them, or the person's personal owl would come by. It was a nice little building with plenty of roosts and perches arranged outside.
She swooped down and landed on her favorite roost outside. She barked loudly. "Hello! I'm here to see if Chick has post!"
"Hello!" A witch poked her head out of the window and saw Hedwig. She smiled and disappeared for a moment, before coming out with more letters. "I have a few things for Harry! Good timing, they just arrived."
"I'm glad I thought of my plan. Look at all these!" Hedwig wiggled happily as the post witch tucked the letters into her pouch. "Thank you!" She bobbed her head and flapped off, flying back to the castle.
-0-
Harry sat down with a sigh of relief, feeling tired. He had worked solidly for all those hours in the prep kitchen at the Cuisine Capitale and had just got back to the castle. He had changed clothes in his dorm room and wandered to the Uncommon Room, finding it surprisingly empty. Classes were more or less done with though the students were still at the school for another few days.
He was not alone for long, however. After sitting for just a few moments, the window opened and Hedwig flapped in. She barked loudly and happily at him, fluttering down and landing on his stomach. She fluffed up and looked up at him proudly, thrusting her chest out at him. "Hiiiii Chick! I bring many happy things!"
"Hi girl," he greeted happily, petting her head and undoing the harness from around her back. "Brought me some mail?" He opened the pouch and pulled out a few envelopes. "Wow, who are these all from?!"
"Open them and find out!"
He opened the first one and smiled at it, very happy to see it. It was from Akin, Dembe, Ola, and Moriti. They wished him luck for the finale and they had sent him a carved wooden rod as a good luck charm. Moriti had donated one of his teeth, magical wild dogs could regrow them so Harry had no reason to feel bad, and it was bound to the rod with a woven cord. It was beautiful, dark wood and well-shaped and Harry adored it.
His smile remained strong as he opened the second letter. Sota, Tsumugi, and Chiyo wished him well and good luck. They included two origami trickster foxes, one made from bright red paper and the other with white and red paper, each with a pawprint pressed upon them. They also included a small silk bag that held a slim slate etched with Japanese characters. It was an omamori, a good luck charm, with a prayer for chefs written upon it and blessed at one of their shrines.
Emmie sent him a drawing of him wearing his uniform and on a very large star that was shooting across the sky. Dee and Diglin would be going to the arena tomorrow to support him as well and the rest of the Crew and the StoneHearts included well wishes in their letter. The Crew had tried to include another knife in the letter but it was confiscated by Dee due to poor workmanship and that it was very large.
He knew the Gabriel would be there tomorrow as well, so seeing something from him was a pleasant surprise. It was a small metal case that held a small silver plate, something too little to be used to hold food at all. The inner surface was polished to a mirror's shine and when Harry saw his reflection within, he knew what the message entailed and he felt touched by the gesture.
Leomattok had sent him a letter saying that he and Rocko would be attending the finale as well and that they had faith in Harry while wishing him luck. Rocko had sent him a tiny vial full of fine ash and Leomattok had sent a new handkerchief and Harry enjoyed having both, smiling while imagining Leomattok's look at his friend for sending the ash.
The last few were true surprises for him. Angelina, Alicia, Cedric, Oliver, Percy, Katie, Cho, and other fellow and past students sent him simple messages with them all congratulating Harry and wishing him luck for the finale. That they were all happy for him, proud of him, and were cheering him on.
Harry looked down at Hedwig who was fluffed up on his stomach. "I'm pretty lucky, aren't I?" he asked and she nodded. "I've got a lot of good people in my life," he said wonderingly. He smiled as she nibbled on his fingers and he ran his fingers through her feathers, making her coo happily.
"Yes you do and about damn time! You deserve all the love and attention."
"Hey, there you are!" The door opened and Lavender walked in. "Come on!"
"Where are we going?" Harry asked, rising to his feet and holding Hedwig in his arms, following Lavender as she threaded her arm through his.
"We're having a Good Luck Party at the Hog's Head!" Lavender said excitedly. "We've been preparing for you to come back and I came to see when you were coming back."
"Lead the way," Harry said, smile wide and heart full.
-0-
"They look nice and relaxed," Susan commented, looking at the adults who were laughing.
"I don't know how," Parvati said. "I'm not competing or doing anything here and I feel like I'm under pressure."
"There's less people than the Showcase but it feels so much heavier," Hermione agreed.
"How was he doing? I didn't get a chance to talk to him before we came over," Sue asked.
"He looked nervous but felt ready," Pansy said, playing with a handkerchief in her hands. "More or less."
"More nervous and ready or less nervous and ready?" Millicent asked.
"Yes," Pansy said, smiling at Millicent's snort and eyeroll. "That's what he said to me."
Lavender petted Hedwig who enjoyed the attention. "He knows what to do and what's at stake," Lavender said. "He's going to do great."
Hedwig nodded in agreement. "He will! He's the best chef and he's going to make all the tasty food!"
"Will it be enough?" Padma fretted.
"It will be enough for Harry," Luna said.
"I wish we knew what the twist was," Fleur sighed. "I fear it will be something very bad."
"Well, out of anyone, Harry would be the best to handle it so we just gotta believe in him," Millicent said stoutly. The others nodded in agreement.
"I still wish we coulda wore like matching jerseys or had a banner or flags or something," Parvati said.
"Me too, but I guess it's not that kind of competition," Sue smiled.
Lavender looked at the handkerchief in Pansy's hands. "Is that the one Harry made all those years ago?"
Pansy looked at it and smiled. "It is," Pansy said. "I have taken very good care of it. I brought it for luck."
Lavender smiled too, tucking her arm into Pansy's. "With all of our positive energy, there's no way he's going to lose!"
-0-
"Where's Harry?" Edwina asked worried, trying to look past the cheering throng of people filling the middle.
"There he is!" Dora said, pointing.
Harry had ducked out of the spotlights as soon as he could and weaved his way through the crowd. None had stopped him, intent on getting to Celine. He made his way through the initial press of people and walked over to his friends and family, his smile putting them at ease. As he got closer, he held up the small compass in his hand. "Helped me get through the crowd," he said, coughing when Dora was the first to hug him, squeezing him with considerable strength.
"Great job Harry," Sirius praised, hugging him. "You did amazing!"
"Thanks!" Harry said, looking content.
"Are you okay?" Perenelle asked.
"I'm great," Harry said easily. "I mean, it would've been awesome to win, but I did the best I could, and she deserved the win. I didn't win today, but I can win another day." He hugged her back, enjoying the warmth of her embrace and the smiles and presence of the others around him.
"Besides, just because I didn't win, doesn't mean I lost, right?" he asked.
"No, you didn't lose at all," Rita said, hugging him mightily.
"I don't think I lost either," Harry said, hugging Lavender and smiling when Hedwig landed on his shoulder and cooed at him, nuzzling him.
"That's my Chick!" she cooed proudly. "You did your best, you won on your own terms, and you showed the world how amazing you are!"
As he stood there among those closest to him, with even more waiting back home, secure in himself and basking in the love and warmth that his friends and family were wearing openly for him, Harry felt very secure. He was content with what happened. Proud of what he put out and accomplished.
No, he had not lost anything at all.
-0-
"Tired of all the interviews?" Nicolas asked kindly, smiling down at Harry.
"Is it that obvious?" Harry asked with a sheepish smile. He had just finished another one and taken more pictures with other people and was starting to feel the impact of the finale hitting him. The adrenaline of the event was waning and the sheer relief at being done with it was also fading, making him grow more tired as time passed.
"Only to those who know," Nicolas said. "Come, let us leave. You have endured enough and have given them plenty of your time."
"I agree," Hedwig hooted, settling back down on Harry's shoulder and pressing her body against his face. "Let's get out of here."
"Oh hey, Mister Potter, wait!"
Harry and his friends stopped and turned as Anthony was walking up to him. However he was physically pushed aside and Akari slid in front of him.
"Mister Potter," she said with a smile, ignoring Anthony who glared daggers at her back. "I was wondering if you would be interested in doing a stage with me."
"With you?!" Harry gasped, all fatigue forgotten. "Really?!"
"Hey! I was going to ask him first!" Anthony complained. "Until you shoved me out of the way!"
"Yes, I did do that," Akari said. "See it as payback for what you did to me last time."
"I didn't push you then," Anthony growled. "Mister Potter, don't listen to her. You should come to America and work for me for a bit."
"You want me too?!" Harry gasped loudly. "Why?!"
Anthony and Akari both snorted at the same time and shared an irritated look with each other. "Because I like your style," Anthony said. "You got the heart and the mindset; all you need is some more skill and you'd get it with me. Plus you'll get to come to America and see what we're about. New York City has all the food in the world there."
"In Japan, you will find your skills to be especially honed and you have some familiarity from your friends you made from Mahotoukoro," Akari said.
Gabriel cleared his throat loudly and gave a cool look at Anthony and Akari who easily ignored him. "Harry will be working with me," he said loudly. "It is time I formally take him as an apprentice and teach him properly and in a professional capacity."
"Do you think you're being intimidating?" Anthony asked blandly. "Because you're not. Louis tells me you're not one to be scared of."
Louis smiled at Gabriel's glare. "What, it is true."
"Wow, you're being fought over," Pansy gasped.
"Don't say a word," Lavender hissed at a suddenly giggly Parvati.
"I am sure we can arrange things where Harry can spend equal time with all of you," Perenelle interjected, giving the chefs a look. "All of you can provide vastly different and equally valuable skills to be taught, yes? Why stymie Harry's future prospects by limiting experiences with only one of you?" She looked at Gabriel who coughed and looked away.
"That'd be amazing, and I promise to work my best," Harry said excitedly.
The others smiled at his obvious enthusiasm.
"Not a doubt," Anthony said.
"I believe we can do that just fine," Akari said. "And host you at our restaurants and find accommodations for you."
"And for me," Hedwig barked. "If you think I'm letting Chick go into the world without me, you better think again! He gets into too much trouble without me and I'd be lonely without him. So there."
-0-0-0-
mike3308 - He did and she did eventually.
odonnellzoo99 - Hedwig has the best nicknames and joke poaching will always be funny. One of my favorite running jokes. Disturbing or awesome? Hedwig breathing fire. Both probably.
Hands Off MY Wolfie - Hedwig has very expressive eyes and facial features for perfect reactions and non-verbal communication. Thanks for reading.
Lucy Elizabeth Dawson - One of my favorite scenes in the original story. It was so silly and hilarious.
alix33 - Hedwig is Harry's attack owl for sure.
DOOOOOM Lord of Waffles - She is his persona of personality for sure.