An active, character-driven Hogwarts experience set in the early 2000s. Unique items, plots, and features. Non-canon; this isn't Harry Potter's story, it's ours.
Nordstrom strode with purpose, out of place among the glittering brass pots and pans of the kitchens, her footsteps falling against the dark stone flooring and releasing a slapping echo up toward the high ceiling that seemed to urge the pressing matters of her morning along. Nyx had been waiting with increasing impatience, she felt, as she traipsed around the countertops, hoping to run into any house elf that knew their way around the overwhelming cookery.
"I need assistance in preparing a meal," she began aloud, holding out her recipe and waving it about, "Actually, we have a few meals that need to be made posthaste." She glanced toward the doorway, expecting to see Amara and Victoria arriving, as if on cue.
Finding the recipes was one task satisfied, but now, a fat lot of waiting ensued. Nyx had always been impatient with this sort of thing. She had always wished, and tried, in a hundred various ways, to avoid feeling this way—but to no avail. No matter how much she felt she prepared for something, anything at all, everyone and everything moved at a glacial pace in response. It's like the universe was testing her, trying to break her will. Good thing she was resilient.
Nyx could have it worse, of course. The idea of no help would be worse; navigating the kitchen alone, and even when it came to cleaning up and putting things away, that too would be worse without any elf help, but this was exactly the thing that put the Ravenclaw so ill at ease. There was a mountain of crappy circumstance resting on the house elves' shoulders, and Nordstrom's inability to do anything about it set her teeth on edge—or maybe she'd just begin anyway.
"I'm just going to start gathering things," Nyx griped, her tone no less scathing than the way she threw her textbooks down on the counter. Her brow furrowed slightly at her recipe as a frown caught her lips, "I need crab apples, onions, mushrooms, potatoes, and chicken?"
Her gaze flickered away once more, this time searching for and grabbing all the ingredients she needed to start preparing her stew. Her hands were agile and resolute, snatching everything as she found it. It wasn't long before she had all her key components, knowing she could wait to retrieve her additional oils and seasonings once she was done with the first step of her recipe.
She began with the crab apples, first washing them in a nearby sink then dumping them out onto the counter in front of her. Nyx sliced them into halves and peeled them, one after the other, removing their stems—but leaving the cores, recalling her grandmother saying they contributed lots of pectin, which could help with consistency. Even though she wasn't a cook, Nyx felt at ease, agreeing with Amara that this was strikingly similar to potion-making.
Dippy, not give much of a chance to respond in the proper manner, squeaked as he hurried over. At first, he was confused why she would need help preparing a meal when they could just make it for her, but Dippy recalled there may be some requests for students to cook something themselves as a task. He didn't understand it, but had to assume that was what was happening here.
But then Nyx just started grabbing ingredients, which several house-elves gasped and stared at. Some even tried to claim them back. Distressed, Dippy hurried forward to try and talk her down from such outrageous self-assistance.
'Please, you is not needing to get them. We is here to help,' Dippy said, all but pleading her not to just go around snatching things. There were far rounder onions, and much fresher mushrooms, after all.
It was of no use. Dippy shrunk back, staring in horror as he failed to do his job and help the student. A few other elves joined him, having had their workspaces intruded upon as well. They didn't know quite how to react. Nyx hadn't asked for any help, and just took what she pleased. Some decided to refuse to engage, annoyed by her rudeness. Others were upset to be so useless and not have anything to assist her with.
One thing was for sure though, they guarded the stoves and cooking spaces. If she tried to take over those, things could go badly wrong. Sooner or later, if Nyx liked it or not, she'd need their help and permission. It was a miracle she even found half the tools she needed.
Post by Amara Seabrook on Jun 1, 2022 23:09:45 GMT 10
Nyx had arrived ahead of them as Amara stayed behind a bit to reassure Vicky. And when she finally strolled into the kitchens...
Amara made a sound in her throat, and dipped her head back to stare at the ceiling for a moment. Why had she picked these two girls in particular to befriend? Why?
'Let them help before one of them cries and gets us in trouble,' Amara said to Nyx, shaking her head in disapproval. 'It's their life's job to serve us. And they know the best quality. Unless you know what you're doing?' She gave Nyx a side glance, suspecting (and partially hoping) Nyx was no expect chef either.
'You. What's your name?' Amara pointed at the one who'd usually greeted her when she came here, which wasn't all that often. 'I need pumpkins. Also... this stuff. If you'd be so kind?' She held out the parchment, not bothered to list it all off.
Amara was not fond of house-elves, by any means, but she saw no reason to abuse them either. They had to serve her, but she still appreciated them doing things for her and saving her the effort. They seemed to enjoy it.
She really wasn't that nervous about cooking now. Reassuring Vicky had also reassured herself, as of course they were surrounded by all these magical house-elves who would protect the kitchen should anything happen. A fire would be no big deal. She didn't trust them, after what Nyx said about getting roped into helping with lunch, but Amara was fine with the task for now.
She still wanted to get it over with, though. A part of her regretted giving Vicky her robe now, if it was at risk of catching fire, but she didn't take it back either. Amara had spares, and she didn't want Vicky getting cold.
'I do wonder if Lucas would eat anything I made,' she said aloud, thinking on Vicky's question from earlier. 'I mean, he should trust me enough by now, but also he's like the embodiment of self preservation. If he made me something, I don't know if I'd eat it?' Amara frowned. For some reason, it bothered her.
She was now going into this assuming it was for him. So it had to be perfect. And Amara needed to know if he would eat it. But only if it actually tasted good. Otherwise, it's back to Plan A of force-feeding someone to get the task over with.
Upon the elf's insistence, Nyx inhaled deep and long. After five frustrated seconds, she barked, "Are you here to help? I was looking for you, any of you, actually. I'm not going to wait around like a mug and twiddle my wand when I have things needing done. I'm fairly sure I'm just as capable in navi—" She abruptly stopped, her angry rant diffusing.
She sighed, and her frustrations redirected towards Amara. But her friend had a point. Why should Nyx exert more effort than she needed to, let alone stand and argue with a house elf? Her lips pursed together in silent defeat, but she would not be baited. Not anymore. A low growl issued from deep within her chest, and her hand flashed in a movement so fast that you could've missed it, as she threw down her utensils and cut the offended elves a look.
"Well, are you going to help me or not then?" Nyx conceded, her voice breaking into something much softer. Reaching for a towel, she began to dry her hands as a distraction, an effort to keep her temperament under control. "If you think I need better produce, swap them in for me. But leave the crab apples, I've already sliced and peeled those."
Nyx would do her best to work with the creatures, even though she disliked the idea. Any situation where she was forced to work with someone or something she didn't know rattled her to the bone. Nyx hated relying on others, depending on others, hated not being able to do what she wanted when she wanted it. Like now. She needed a pot of boiling water and something to mash her apples with. Dare she try to find and do it herself, the elves would probably cry.
"Fetch me a pot and bring some water to a boil for me," Nyx bossed some of the elves through defrosting eyes, "And I'll need something to mash these apples with, if you'd be so kind." Saving the rest of her breath, Nyx casually passed her recipe over to another elf.
Had she asked them nicely enough? Throughout her time at Hogwarts, leading people instead of bossing them around was and had been one of the toughest corners for Nordstrom to turn. It had always been a struggle, but she was learning. Nyx was far from perfect, although she'd never admit as such. She harrumphed beneath her breath, her temper softening around the edges, as she watched the elves scurry around, hopefully retrieving what was needed.
"Lucas is a boy. Boys eat everything," she replied to Amara. "Mathias can be particular, but I've seen Jaxen Ashworth scarf down a meal like some kind of rabid werewolf," she mused, a smile in her voice. "He'll eat it, Amara. If you prepared it, he'll love it."
Post by Victoria Vargas on Jun 2, 2022 3:58:04 GMT 10
Victoria had crept into the kitchens behind Amara, dragging her feet along and pushing her back against its stone walls without announcing her arrival. She kept her distance from everyone, her brown eyes watching the elves run around and cater to their needs. The large room felt infinitely smaller with all of them in there. Even though she was considerably far from Nyx, she could feel the tension and uneasiness from the Ravenclaw, and that only heightened Victoria's anxiety.
Her stomach immediately churned again, and tightened into a knot as fear brushed the edge of her mind. She opened her lips to say something, but words failed her, and instead observed Amara taking control of the situation, holding her parchment out for an eager elf to take.
'Is that all we have to do, Amara?' She hated the way her words trembled, finding it embarrassing. 'If we give them our recipe, they'll get us everything we need?'
She hadn't grown up with a house-elf to serve her. Victoria wasn't as privileged in the way that Amara was. But all wasn't lost, as her grandparents kept their household functioning on their own. They were simple people, humble, self-reliant and hard-working. Her parents were too, but they were flighty at best. It was one of the reasons Victoria and Nyx befriended one another first year. They were both primarily raised by a grandparent. It was a special bond they shared.
'I need all the things on this list.' Victoria offered her parchment to an unoccupied elf, her voice not as uneasy as before. 'Bring me everything I need for the first part, first.'
While she waited, Victoria circled one of the counters and walked to the sink. She didn't know if she was walking as slowly as she thought she was, or if it was just her brain slowly processing every move she made. Turning on the tap, she let the water run over her hands after soaping them. Hand washing was oddly calming, but also required for food handling, wasn't it?
'Are you two snogging yet?' she chimed in on the conversation, no filter on her mouth. It sometimes got Vicky in trouble, but she could be open with her friends, couldn't she? 'If Lucas is sticking his tongue in your mouth, I think he'd trust you enough to eat a piece of pumpkin bread.' She snorted, her face widening with a sly grin as she glanced at Amara.
Post by Amara Seabrook on Jun 3, 2022 19:04:30 GMT 10
Amara shot Nyx a skeptical look. 'I don't know. Lucas isn't just any boy. He practically invented self preservation. What if he thinks I'm mad at him?' She shrugged, still frowning at the thought of him not eating something she made him. 'It's just so not like me to go around handing out this sort of thing. Homemade, no less. Even he knows that's easier to hide potions in.'
She'd never been so frustrated at her reputation before, as much as it meant to her. Amara was ready to set out her ingredients, once the elves had fetched them as she presumed they would. She approached it the same as she would a potion, though she wasn't used to having to do something with it once things were all properly combined.
The idea of working with dough was terrifying, but now she thought about it her aunt had made her help with a few things in the kitchen once or twice when she was much younger. Oliver and Kaia helped too though, and they were much more practiced at it that Amara could let them do most of the work.
'Yeah, of course.' Amara glanced over at Vicky, confused for a moment. Oh, right. Not everyone had a personal house-elf at home. 'Just like that. Be nice to them, though.' She nodded, watching Vicky hand off her parchment. The last part was also implied to be for Nyx as well.
She needed to get to work on the bread or whatever. Amara made things hard on herself by searching for tools and bowls on her own, before relenting and asking the elves for directions. Why didn't they have a special student area for them to use? She supposed because this was servant stuff and they should not have to do any of this crap.
Blushing, Amara dropped a spoon in the sink at Vicky's question. 'Well, it's not like my mouth is poisoned.' She rolled her eyes at that logic. Kissing was shared, and no way was she risking herself being... why were they even comparing this?
She busied herself to avoid the question for a moment longer, then sighed. They were friends, right? Amara was certain this was the sort of weird stuff friends talked about, and maybe it wouldn't be so awful to have someone to confide in a bit.
'Yeah, okay. Sure.' Amara stared at the spoon in her hands, cheeks pink though her skin tone made it not too glaringly obvious should anyone else walk in. Inspired to shift herself out of the awkward moment, she shot Nyx a look. 'What about you? Are you and Mathias snogging yet?'
Those two had been together longer, by her count, so that was a safe bet. Lucas was a great kisser though, and she couldn't fight back a smile at the corner of her lips. Amara hoped they'd get to snog again. It was still so new, but exciting. And a bit weird, but she was willing to get used to it.
'I is Dippy,' the house elf squeaked when asked his name by Amara, who he instinctively took a step back from. At least she was letter him help. 'I is getting you pumpkins.' So relieved to be allowed to help,
Dippy rushed off to pile pumpkins in his arms (far more than she probably needed), and thus missed the rest of her instructions.
'Yes, yes. Fanrey is able to get these. I is doing it now,' said another elf, reaching for Amara's parchment -- and then Victoria's, when she too made the request. Fanrey eyed Nyx, then snapped her fingers to summon Nyx's own parchment without asking.
She then handed them off to Narby who, being the clever elf she was, attached the parchments to a wall above where the teenagers worked so everyone could easily read off of them when needed.
Pumpkin Bread Amara
Step 1: Boil pumpkins, then mash them.
Step 2: Combine mashed pumpkins, flour, spices, eggs, and honeywater. Set dough aside and covered to let it rise.
Step 3: Knead dough and place into a bread tin. Bake it, then let it cool before removing.
Meat Pastries Victoria
Step 1: Combine flour, sugar, apple cider, and butter into dough. Roll it out and line the small pastry tins with it. Save some for later.
Step 2: In a pot: cook raisins and chopped meat, garlic, mushrooms, rosemary, onions, and cheddar cheese.
Step 3: Add filling to pastry tins. Cover with leftover rolled pastry, then cook.
Apple Stew Nyx
Step 1: Peel and slice crab apples.
Step 2: In a pot: slowly cook mashed apples, smoked paprika, olive oil, black pepper, and thyme -- with chopped onions, mushrooms, potatoes, and chicken.
Step 3: Scoop or pour stew into a serving pot. House-elves can enchant it (plus bowls / spoons) to levitate and follow you until dismissed. They will vanish, returning things to the kitchen.
Narby then coordinated the efforts, assigning two elves to Nyx -- both who were reluctant, as they did not enjoy being bossed around. Nyx needed to change her tune before the elves decided she wasn't worth the trouble.
They at least brought her the pots she wanted, and something to mash the apples with, then various other things she asked for but were in no eager rush to please her. The teary-eyed look she got from a bystander elf implied he thought Nyx could probably mash those apples with her words alone.
Dippy brought Amara the pumpkins, then got everything else she needed -- under instruction from Fanrey. While Fanrey herself fulfilled Victoria's instructions, and Narby oversaw the whole situation to check everything went as smoothly as it could and the teenagers got everything they needed to get started.
'You is needing this?' Fanrey shyly offered an apron to Victoria. And only Victoria, apparently. She then climbed onto the counter, out of the way of the workspace, to closely watch the girl's actions. Fanrey hugged a bottle of apple cider, as if it was precious and she wanted to secure it until Victoria needed it.
Dippy loudly dragged a stool over to Nyx, and climbed onto it to curiously watch her work and await any further instruction. Whereas no one bothered to get in Amara's way, knowing from past experience and well aware that she was used to brewing Potions. They did linger though, anticipating being called upon.
Post by Amara Seabrook on Jun 5, 2022 21:33:22 GMT 10
Finally having everything she needed, Amara rolled up her sleeves and prepared to get started. The first instruction was to boil the pumpkins, and she was already stumped. How did one boil something without a cauldron? She assumed it was the same principal, but was there a certain pot or...?
It took a while, and some guidance from the house elves, for Amara to get the water and pot ready over heat. She eyed the pumpkins.
'These ingredients are worst than Potions,' she complained. 'They don't specify enough of the details.' She glared at the pumpkins, then reached for a knife. The whole thing wouldn't fit in the pot, so she assumed it would have to be cut into smaller pieces.
Hopefully there wasn't a particular method to it, as she just removed the skin then chopped it into smaller chunks. Amara put them into the boiling pot, wary of the steam but still using more potion-making methods of adding them carefully and with a bit of a rhythm to keep things balanced.
Now she just had to wait for them to soften, for the mashing stage. Sighing, she rested her elbows on the counter a safe distance away, watching the progress as if that might make it go faster.
'Should we see the History of Magic stuff to the end?' Amara asked the others, with a sense of dread. 'After completing this ridiculous task, I mean. I imagine there's more. It can't be worse than this, surely. I'd hoped we'd be reading stuff or having a pop quiz or something.'
Nyx took hold of the brassy pot and the rest of her ingredients, and offered the elves a slight nod of gratitude, before beginning to arrange her things on the counter in a way she believed to be efficient. Yes, she still wasn't fond of the idea of working alongside the house-elves, but if they stayed quiet and assisted her when she needed them, perhaps it wouldn't be too bad.
She giggled at the question that left Victoria, a slight smirk about Nyx's lips as her eyes flickered to Amara. It had all been but confirmed that Amara and Lucas were an item, but the way they looked at one another had always been a bit obvious to the Ravenclaw. They weren't exactly the most subtle pairing, were they? Still smirking, Nyx returned to her preparations, her hands working to mash her apples with her supplied tool, before starting to chop her onions.
"Oh, um," Nyx replied to Amara without quite meaning to, her tone light with shock, and immediately she lit up like a beacon, her cheeks flushing a deep red that stretched its heat all the way up to her hair. Mortified, she looked away from her friends, shifting her eyes to her boiling pot of water as her lips compressed into a thin line. She was aware that her heart was beating faster, flooding her with a sense of urgency. She was going to have to say something better than that, and very quickly, at that, but the thought alone was rather terrifying.
It was a question Nyx sometimes asked herself, in fact. Why they hadn't kissed yet, despite being together for many months—but in Mathias' defense, he was old-fashioned. To date, they'd only gone as far as holding each other's hand, hugging one another, and sharing sweet pecks on the cheek. Regardless of the reason, Nyx believed it wouldn't be what her friends expected.
"We've just, like—" she began to say, but stopped herself. Her voice felt very small, and in exasperation or perhaps embarrassment she raised a hand to her forehead, half hiding behind the shield of her palm. Luckily there was a bead of sweat for her to wipe away, so she didn't look too silly. But she didn't know how to reply to Amara without earning disbelief, but logic could not diminish the strong sense of fear that threatened her when she went to answer.
"No, we haven't snogged," Nyx said in something of a strangled tone, still hiding behind her hand. The admission made her cringe, but it was better than letting the silence hang. Letting out a little huff of air she ran her fingers up through her platinum hair, smoothing it back away from her cheek as she began carefully dropping her ingredients into her ready pot. In went her mashed apples, chopped onions, mushrooms, potatoes, and chicken, one after the other.
Pride bruised and insecurities agitated, she was perhaps a bit broody as she began to stir her ingredients together. She exchanged a glance with Dippy, silently pointing at the seasonings she needed passed to her. When he'd realized and done so, Nyx added some thyme to her stew, and a touch of smoked paprika, then tasted it gingerly. It was almost done, but not quite. She took another look at the recipe the elves posted above her station, and gave it another read.
There'd been a wrinkle in her brow and then a furrow, a look of focus she often wore, especially when trying to fit the pieces of some complicated information together — and this particular recipe indeed felt complicated, as foreign as if it had been recorded in some ancient language and left for her to figure out from assumption. It wasn't as technical as she would've liked. Amara appeared to share the same thought, and Nyx agreed about the lack of details.
"We've started, so we may as well see the rest of it through," she replied reluctantly, adding olive oil to her stew and grinding in some black pepper. "We can only hope things don't get more preposterous than they already are. However, given that we're dealing with a Hufflepuff graduate, we probably shouldn't get our hopes up, should we?"
Post by Victoria Vargas on Jun 8, 2022 5:09:14 GMT 10
A small, scoffing laugh left Victoria's mouth over her friends' revelations. She figured Amara and Lucas had hit first base, but Nyx and Mathias hadn't yet? If she remembered it right, hadn't they been together far longer? Victoria supposed it wasn't too shocking the more she considered the Ravenclaw's drawn out response. Nyx did act more prudish and conservative than her and Amara. And it wasn't necessarily a bad thing, just an observation she'd made a while ago.
She turned to Fanrey and tossed her head to sweep her brown hair over her shoulder, her gaze settling on the elf for a moment before speaking. 'Probably a good idea. I wouldn't want to burn a hole in this robe, right Amara?' Again, she laughed, but nervously, shooting a look at her roommate before slipping the kitchen apron over her head and tying it around her back.
After one lingering look at her friends' progress that tapered off in the briefest apprehensive curl of her lip, she turned her attention back to the parchment hanging on the wall above her. As her chocolate eyes skimmed the familiar scrawl of Nyx's writing, her jaw tightened. Her eyes rolled and turned toward the ceiling before she'd even finished reading the recipe. Her hands trembled slightly and she quickly let them fall behind the counter so that no watchful eyes would see.
'Here goes nothing.' She sighed, an eyebrow arched, as her tongue moistened her lips. She started by combining flour and sugar in a bowl, folding them into one another with her hands, and made a big mess in the process. It looked like it was getting everywhere, but she continued and reached for the bottle of apple cider in Fanrey's hands. Backing a way a tad, she let the elf help her measure out the cider, before dropping some butter into the bowl along with it.
'This is going to taste bloody awful. I have no idea what I'm doing.' Victoria felt eyes on her, like a weight on her back or a shadow overhead. It was like sandpaper against a raw nerve. She paused her mixing and rolling the dough out, to swallow the knot in her throat before she turned her gaze back toward her friends with a serious question written all over her face.
'How are we supposed to hand these out anyway? Can't I just leave my pastries in the common room or something?' She continued her rolling, surprised at how much she already had on the counter. 'It's not like Archerose is going to know who ate our stuff, right?'
Pain and fear boiled under her skin over her own question, threatening to spill out and burn the dough she had spent time rolling out. Victoria prided herself on being in control, though, or at least appearing to be in control. She pushed her tongue against the roof of her mouth and drew in a deep breath as she examined her dough for a moment, then began to line her small pastry tins with it, making sure to save some for later. With that, she was done with her first step.
'Fanrey, can you help me with the stove?' Victoria asked, nervousness ebbing its way to her face. 'I need to cook raisins and chopped meat, garlic, mushrooms, rosemary, onions, and cheddar cheese. That's a bit much, isn't it?' She pulled a face, her nose wrinkling up.
Victoria started to chop her meat into fine pieces, not really knowing what was best for the pastries. She nodded in agreement with Amara and Nyx about the recipes not being specific enough, as a look of stress and concern flashed across her face. She couldn't even tell whether her cut of meat was tough or tender, leaving her to guess what cooking method seemed best. But she continued preparations anyway, chopping the rest of her ingredients that needed it.
'Can't we just pay the house-elves to finish for us?' Victoria whined in response, eyes lidded, lips pouting. 'I know they do this for free, but we'd be paying them to keep quiet.' She carried her chopped ingredients to the stove, then dropped them into her pot.
Post by Amara Seabrook on Jun 10, 2022 12:42:37 GMT 10
Amara refused to be defeated by servant work. She managed to boil the pumpkin to what she could only assume was perfection. She then mashed them, which proved rather satisfying and she daydreamed it was Jacob's brain matter, except there probably wasn't enough in his thick skull to warrant that amount.
Next was combining everything, in which her Potion-making instincts kicked in again. Amara set everything in order first; the mashed pumpkin -- then the flour, various spices the elves handed her, eggs, and the seemingly precious honeywater. She combined them one by one in a large bowl, intently focused on her task though no oblivious to conversation around her.
She set it aside, and covered it with whatever clean cloth another elf handed her. It was supposed to rise somehow, and she had to resist checking on it constantly.
'Tell me when this is ready for the next step,' Amara instructed a house-elf, pointing to the covered bowl.
Sighing in relief, as there would only be one step left after this, she turned her attention back to Nyx and Vicky. Her friends. It was such a strange concept, but quickly growing on her.
'Everyone has their own pace.' Amara shrugged, not thinking much of it now that Nyx and Mathias hadn't snogged yet despite being together longer than them. 'Lucas and I have known each other a long time. We're pretty comfortable with each other and I already know he's a good kisser.' Her cheeks were still a bit red with this topic, but was determined to act like it was no big deal.
'It's hardly surprising a Hufflepuff would make a task involving food, but how much worse could it get?' Amara shuddered. She wasn't convinced this cooking crap was, in fact, as bad as it could get.
Vicky had some trouble with her task, so she wandered over to observe (from a safe range) as a show of moral support. She shrugged her lack of concern over the robe. Sure, it was the respectful thing for Vicky to take good care of it while she borrowed it, but Amara wasn't particularly attached to it and it was the easiest thing in the world to just get another one. Sometimes she wondered how more pitiful students, like the Twiggs lot, managed -- since their robes appeared secondhand at best.
'He probably doesn't check, no.' Amara considered Vicky's tempting ideas. 'But we can't risk it. What if he does, then we have to do this all over again? Or we get a poor mark because of it? No, better to get this nonsense over with exactly as instructed. Well, with a few creative liberties, I'm sure.'
Amara smirked, clearly having had a moment of brilliance.
'We have class soon, right?' She glanced at Vicky then Nyx. 'So, we could share it then. Not that I want people to know we spend the morning in the bloody kitchens like servants, but if we hand the food out then -- well, there's no escape. Sooner or later, someone will eat them or we'll make them. The fact it's a class setting might give them some sense of safety.'
Not that she cared, but it was something to consider. Not that they did have any ill intentions for once, but if this went well it also opened a level of safety that may come in handy for the future too.
'Not to mention, we'd have a whole 5th year class of witnesses,' Amara added, rather pleased with herself. 'Our classmates are easily manipulated, anyway. Our reputation might take a hit, but they might also be foolish enough to think we're doing this as a nice gesture. Who knows what other benefits that may have?'
She said it as if she knew exactly how to take further advantage of precisely that.
Things were going well for all three students, surprisingly enough considering their uncertainty and minimal experience. The house-elves helped when they could, handing them things and checking nothing was about to become a disaster zone. Narby was especially focused on ensuring such.
'The dough has risen,' Dippy told Amara, as pre request. 'Is is ready.'
It was clear they'd reached the stage where heat and stoves were needed, which clearly made some of the elves nervous. Nevertheless, Fanrey and others prepared everything and made sure the temperatures were prefect for each individual student's task.
Amara still had a few things to do, but the stove was ready for baking as soon as she got to it. Victoria not only had a stove ready, but they elves had taken over the task of preparing the pot too as if it would ensure higher chance of success. Boiling water was no small matter, especially for someone so inexperienced. At least Amara was well-versed in Potions.
Everything was ready for Nyx as well, with some heightened supervision. On one hand, it may seem a bit offensive the lack of faith the elves had in the three girls -- heightening their supervision and being ready to jump in if needed. But their intentions were purely one of caution, and in awareness that they were not particularly skilled or experienced in this matter. Despite each doing very well and the food looking how it should at these stages.
The elves managed the stoves and open flames whenever needed. All that was left now was for the students to each do the final stage and their tasks would be complete.
It felt like a race against time now, although there wasn't much Nyx could do about waiting for her stew to cook. Her lips tightened into a thin line, she exhaled, and slowly stirred her stew with her wooden spoon. She listened to her friends as they spoke about methods in which to hand out their prepared meals. But everything was in one ear and out the other for Nyx while she hunched over the stove, watching as her apple stew began to dimple, thick and creamy.
"I agree with Amara," she said absent-mindedly, her focus torn between conversation and cooking. "It's one of the only times where we'll have everyone together all at once and have our exchanges supervised by Rivera, which could earn us some brownie points with her. And if our classmates don't eat our food, we'll make them—or else."
She mused, shaking her head and trying to focus on her task at hand. Nyx grabbed a ladle and gave another spin on the mixture she had been slowly cooking. She took a scoop of the stew and checked the consistency of the ingredients. Everything looked soft and well-cooked but not only that, luscious notes of crisp crab apples enhanced the aroma of her concoction, bringing a small, proud smile to her face. Had Nyx Nordstrom actually cooked her stew to perfection?
Nyx might have quickly disguised how impressed she was by her ability to make something, but the Ravenclaw had it on her face, clear as day for just a moment. She swallowed the laugh that tickled her throat, but she couldn't entirely suppress the satisfied smirk that came with it.
"Could you please enchant my serving pot, and those bowls and spoons, to follow me," Nyx asked one of the elves, a finger pointing toward the dishes. "I'd like to serve my stew before class and that'll be easier than carrying everything like some sort of lackey," she scoffed. "Could you imagine if I spilled my stew all over my robes?"
She pulled a face, her smirk evaporating and her jaw tightening as her focus returned to the cooling stove. Heat was no more, allowing her to safely pour and scoop her stew into the pot supplied to her. Steaming hot vapor billowed from the transfer, as her concoction slid into its new brass vessel. Giving it another stir, she got a whiff of the many seasonings and vegetables, all blending together beautifully with the mashed apple and chicken. It smelled delicious.
"Are you two ready to head to class?" she asked, all while giving her counter space a quick, yet thorough, clean. "I want to get there early so I can be done with all these floating dishes," Nyx added, glaring at the bowls and spoons as they hovered a close distance to her.
After a long moment of waiting, of watching her friends finish up their meals and swallowing her impatient frustration at how unhurried she felt they were, Nyx found her smile again. Confident, composed, politely-business like, she turned her attention towards the door, her feet carrying her away from the cookery. With a quick stride, Nordstrom exited the kitchens, her serving pot levitating at her side and the clinks and clangs of serving dishes following her to Charms.
Last Edit: Jun 10, 2022 22:34:22 GMT 10 by Deleted: This is Nyx's exit from the thread.
Post by Victoria Vargas on Jun 10, 2022 23:44:10 GMT 10
Victoria's tongue clicked against the roof of her mouth and she glanced at her cooking pot. It was like time was moving slow, yet everything was happening within the span of a few minutes. Regardless, she slumped against the counter as she waited for her food to cook, her fingertips flitting restlessly against its surface. Every now and then, Victoria lackadaisically swirled her ingredients with a spoon, eying her filling with forced concentration. It was almost done.
'Remind me to get married to someone wealthy or with exceptional cooking skills.' She huffed a little, then stood up. 'I'm just trying to be like you two when I grow up.' Victoria laughed quietly, but there was no bitterness there. Frustrating as it was, she would overcome this and it would be a good story to tell one day when she had money and skills of her own. A story of strength, adversity and perseverance — it wasn't really that deep, but it was to her.
A meat smell began to waft ahead of her and fired her stomach. It smelled.. good? Victoria reached too eagerly to take hold of the pot, her eyes widening in surprise. It smelled decent and the meat looked juicy and cooked through, at least from where Victoria stood. She wasn't a professional chef, not by any means, but what she made looked safe, and maybe tasty?
'Is it just me or does this actually smell good?' She raised a spoonful to her nose and sniffed, revealing an intoxicated look. Victoria never imagined that she could make something that looked and smelled as appetizing. The thought of the meat smell staining Amara's robes crossed her mind, but she was too proud to care and breathed in the aroma one more time.
Her next step was when it got tricky, and also very messy. Victoria added her cooked filling to her pastry tins, scooping from her pot with a spoon. At first, she wanted to simply pour it in, but could've sworn she saw two house-elves begin to wildly panic from the corner of her eye.
Paying attention to her filling, she spread it carefully and evenly, making sure to cover each pastry tin with a reasonable amount. After all, she wanted every bite of her pastries to be just as delicious as they smelled. Then when the tins looked filled, Victoria briefly glanced at her recipe and began to grab at the pastry she set aside earlier. Using her hands, she created long, thin pieces of dough and draped them over her tins, making sure to attach them on either side.
'The oven is on, right?' She looked at the elves, not really knowing. 'It looks like it? I'm just going to slide these on the center rack and let them bake, okay?' Victoria was cautious with her movements, carrying her tins to the oven and sliding them into the heat.
She flung the oven shut and collapsed against the counter, overjoyed that she was about done, and overwhelmed by the sweat gathering beneath the glistening strands of her brown hair. The towel with which she wiped her forehead was already dirty from use that it left tiny white specks of flour scattered across her face. She swiped at her cheek, but it only spread more of the flour remains, causing her to whine in annoyance. It took minutes of scrubbing to get rid of it.
'My pastries are done!' Victoria squealed when the timer sounded, yanking open the oven to grab her tins with a protective mitten. 'I'm ready to get out here and get these eaten.' She dropped her pastries on the counter, giving them a moment to cool as she cleaned up.
Victoria collected her tins after a moment, trying to juggle them in her arms as she followed Nyx to the doorway. There were only a few, so it wasn't too difficult for her to carry — but the load was definitely larger than that of a Quaffle. She turned to search for Amara and motioned at her roommate with a nod of her head, wanting them all to leave the kitchens as soon as possible.
Post by Amara Seabrook on Jun 10, 2022 23:49:24 GMT 10
Amara returned to her dough situation once the elf alerted her, and spent a moment just glaring at it before consulting the instructions again. What the heck was kneading? Oh, she saw her aunt do that once or twice. Confident she had the general idea, she got to work while the others talked.
Convinced it was good enough, she shoved it into a bread tin and handed it off to be baked.
She nodded at Nyx's reply about the food-sharing tactics, smirking a bit as it was always a pleasure to have someone agree with her. Especially someone whose existence she actually valued.
'They'd probably look bad anyway, if they don't accept,' she added. 'I mean, Professor Rivera is right there and they can't have the decency to accept our gift? Works even further in our favor.' Not that she considered these a gift in any sense, and would make no effort to offer it to anyone she hated like Langford or Thatcher, but still.
She chuckled at Vicky's comment. 'I'm not sure cooking skills is why I'm with Lucas,' Amara said, unaware she'd slipped up on mentioning him while on the topic of marriage. Not that she made a habit of dating anyone who didn't get that consideration anyway, given how she was raised.
The wealthy part she frowned at, and went quiet. He was so adamant on earning as much money as he could before graduation that she knew there was something up with that. It wasn't any concern to her anyway though, given the Seabrook fortune would soon be all hers -- and it was more than enough to live her whole life comfortably.
By the time Nyx was pouring stew, Amara's bread was done. She took it out to cool, wand in hand as she had to really fight to resist trying a cooling charm even though logic determined it might not be a good idea. Her mother always said baking wasn't something you could rush if you want it to be at its best.
'That does smell good. Kind of amazing, actually,' Amara said, glancing at Nyx and Vicky's results. She wasn't about to lie to them by hiding her note of surprise, but was supportive and pleased with their progress. Her own bread looked perfect too, though a tad darker on the top than intended.
Well, that was the house-elf's fault, not hers...
'Just need to slice this,' she said, removing the cooled bread from its tin.
She still preferred Potions, by a long shot, but felt a swell of pride that she had made this. And it smelled great too. She sliced it, showing efficiency and skill with a knife. Sliced and stored in a cloth for safe-keeping, Amara picked a piece off to try. She surprised herself in how good it was, though pumpkin bread wasn't something she had often enough to compare anyway.
'Okay, I'm ready.' Amara checked with Nyx, then Vicky. 'Your assistance was satisfactory,' she added to the house-elves, unsure how else to praise them. She wasn't willing to admit aloud that she and her friends probably only had as much success with their task because of their help.
02 | 
19 | 
20
February
