Samantha's Bakery

"Well, if it's not too much trouble, could you please take these four eggs and beat them?" the pale eyed girl answered her companion's first question and then stopped to ponder her second one.

She herself had wondered why her housemate had left so abruptly but had put it down to one of those boy things. But now that Irene mentioned it...

"He hasn't told me anything," Samantha replied truthfully.

Hilary had been wandering around the seventh floor when something caught her attention. The most amazing smell seemed to be coming from the Room of Requirement. She followed the smell around the corner and stepped into the room, mesmerized by the incredible scents.

She saw a girl in the room, ingredients surrounding her. She instantly felt bad for interrupting her.

"I'm so sorry," she said, moving to leave the room. "I'll...I'll just leave."

"Oh... h-hello," Samantha looked up, frightened. A girl stood at the doorway, judging by her robes, she was a Ravenclaw. Samantha hoped she hadn't upset the girl somehow.

"I... uh..." she trailed off, not knowing what to say. She really hoped the girl wouldn't go to the professors, though, she wasn't doing anything wring, was she?

She noticed that the girl looked a bit nervous when she noticed her in the room. It was almost like she was waiting for her to do something.

"I'm not going to get you in trouble," she said, quickly. "I just smelled something amazing and wanted to see what it was." She smiled at the girl. "I won't rat you out if you don't rat me out."

"Oh," the dark haired girl sighed in relief. "T-thanks," she added. The girl seemed to be telling the truth and Samantha was grateful for that.

"W-we're making Quiche... and there's a bit of cheesecake left if you'd like some..." she offered meekly. Too late, she realized the girl might hate cheesecake, or was allergic to it. Or she might just not want to eat anything offered by Samantha.

"Sure," Hilary said, eagerly accepting the offered cheesecake. If it tasted anything near as good as it smelled... And it did. Better than any cheesecake than she had ever had before.

"This is amazing!" she said. "Why do you bake up here though? Wouldn't it be easier to go down to the kitchens?"

"I-I tried, but the elves wouldn't let me. They just kept saying they'd make me whatever I wanted," the Slytherin admitted quietly. "That's why when I read about this room... I came up here and changed it into a kitchen," she finished. She really hoped the girl wouldn't think her weird for wishing up a kitchen of all things. She was well aware girls her age weren't into baking and the fear of being scorned was always at the back of her mind.

Hilary laughed at the thought of trying to bake with the elves around. "Yeah, I know what you mean," she said. "A friend of mine and I went down to just ask them a question, and they kept asking if we wanted something, no matter how many times we said no."

She looked around for a sink or somewhere she could put her - now empty - plate. She realized that she had never introduced herself. "I'm Hilary, by the way."

"Nice to meet you," the girl replied shyly. "I'm Samantha," she added.

She noticed the girl looking for a sink to put away her plate. "Oh, are you sure you wouldn't like something else. I've got some chocolate wands left too," she offered.

She dropped her gaze, hoping the girl won't think her too forwards or chatty or... Social skills really weren't her thing.

"I think I'm fine for now," she said, with a smile. "But I'll definitely be coming back next time I get a craving for baked goods. That cheesecake was better than most of what the elves in the kitchen make."

"So, she said, after a couple of moments of awkward silence. She vaguely remembered seeing Samantha in their second defence lesson. "Have you started working on your defence essay yet?"

"Y-yes," the girl replied. In truth, she had finished it as soon as class had ended but that was the last thing this girl needed to know. "D-did you find it difficult," she questioned, hoping the girl wouldn't be offended. If she needed help, Samantha was more than willing. She might not be brave or outgoing but homework came easily to her.

"Not too difficult," she said, thinking of the half finished essay sitting on her bed. "Mostly, I'm just trying to word it so that I have a solid argument for each of the uses I came up with. Professor Hunt seems to find every little detail you've overlooked, and I'm trying to not leave any holes in my arguments."

She watched as the girl moved around the counter, adding things to her mixing bowl. "I would offer to help," she said, carefully. "But I'm scared of ruining what you're making. I'm hopeless in the kitchen."

"You don't need to worry about that," said Samantha hastily, blushing at the other girl's offer. "I really don't mind and Irene's here to help me," she continued.

"And you're most welcome to drop by anytime... if you want something sweet, or anything really. Do you have a dessert you prefer, I can make it for you."

Irene expertly cracked all of the eggs, she had been cracking eggs since she was young while her mother mixed up pancake batter. The brunette began beating the eggs, silently watching the interaction between Hilary and Samantha. It seemed that Samantha, like Irene herself, was shy. She was thrilled that Samantha had welcomed her into the kitchen.
"Oh, sorry," Irene blushed, "I didn't introduce myself, I'm Irene." She observed Hilary, the girl appeared to be a Ravenclaw, Irene wondered if she knew Will.

Hilary shifted her weight uncomfortably. She didn't like the idea of Samantha doing anything special for her anymore than she liked the idea of the elves doing it. "I'll definitely keep that in mind," she said, smiling.

"Hi Irene," she said, turning to face the other girl, who had stayed silent during her and Samantha's conversation so far. "It's nice to meet you."

"Oh... okay," Samantha replied, gazed firmly fixed at the counter. Noting that Irene was nearly done with the eggs, she started on the onions. Her aunt had been extremely specific about how they needed to be chopped than minced and Samantha knew the precise measuring was too much to ask of anyone so she had chosen to do that herself.

Besides, onions would usually make anyone's eyes tear but she was too used to being in a kitchen.

"So," Irene chatted, "what do you want me to do now?" The cheesecake was looking very inviting, she decided to try a piece again. This time, she didn't allow the memories flood over her. The cheesecake was delicious, she realized. She quickly emptied her plate and then washed it and put it on the silver drying rack.

"Well, I'd ask you to shred the cheese but... it has to be really, really fine," the girl bit her lip as she watched Irene clean her cake dish. The girl was neat in the kitchen, Samantha was pleased to note.

"If you don't mind, of course..." the Slytherin added. "Once the cheese is done, we'll be ready to put the whole thing to bake."

"No problem," Irene smiled, easily locating the cheese and a grater. The tool she wanted was a micro-plane, which she used all the time at home. The kitchen supplied the grater for her, it was silver with a black rubber handle and, she realized, an exact replica of the one she had at home. She shredded the cheese with practiced ease.
"Good enough?" She asked her companion.

"Oh... that's really well done... My aunt would have approved and that's saying something," the Slytherin complimented. Then realized she might have said too much.

Taking the cheese, she finished arranging everything into the pastry. "Looks like we're finally done," she said entering the Quiche into the oven. "Now it just has to bake."

"Thanks," Irene grinned, she didn't know about this mysterious aunt of Samantha, aside from the fact that the girl seemed to be very nervous when she spoke of her. She wondered if she sounded that way when she talked about her dad. "Anything else you want to make?" She asked.

"Oh, I'm sure you must be tired by now, Irene. And it's getting a little late," Samantha replied. The girl had been helping her for the larger part of the day and while the Slyhterin appreciated it, she knew the girl needed her rest.

Besides, once the girl left, she could get started on the chocolate chips cookies for her.

"We can regroup tomorrow afternoon after classes," she offered. "That is, if you want to..?"

"Oh," Irene suddenly felt a wave of exhaustion engulf her, stifling a yawn, she murmured, "yeah, I am pretty tired." She hoped Samantha wouldn't mind, but there was nothing she wanted more than to stumble into her dorm and crash into bed.
(A/N: Irene's author is going on vacation for 3 weeks, she will have internet access frequently, but don't always count on her posting promptly. She apologizes for the inconvenience.)

"Good night," Samantha bid the Gryffindor and watched as she staggered out the door, no doubt worn out from her day. Once the young witch was safely out of the kitchen, Samantha took out her Quill and made the necessary changes on her baking list.

Samantha's Baking Projects:

• New York Style Cheesecake -- Done
  
• Quiche -- Done
  
• Chocolate Chip Cookies / 2 dozen

Once the list was modified and pinned back up, she went to the counter to clean up the aftermath of their cooking endeavors. The Quiche would be ready in a little while. To pass the time, she picked up a worn out book with slightly yellow pages.

Mrs. Drake's coking diary.

Opening it to where she'd left of, the dark haired girl started reading.

Raven shifted nervously outside the bakery door. He didn't know if he should go in, but he still felt really bad for hurting Sam. Especially since he did it on purpose. And they had been getting along well too. Biting the inside of his cheek, he let out his breath and knocked on the door before coming in. He gave an anxious wave when he saw Sam reading a book.