For The Baking Errand

Nell wasn't used to having an owl come to her kitchen on Sunday afternoon Actually, it's never happened before. When Nell made her way downstairs, she saw that her parents had already gone to work and her siblings were still asleep. She was used to the routine, and there was nothing much she could do about it. Her parents worked in hospitals, so they rarely had any days off. Despite the hard work, they loved their jobs. If Nell had seen an owl in her kitchen before going to Hogwarts, she may have screamed. But now she was used to it. She was used to magic and a completely different way of life.

Nell yawned and took the letter from the owl. Its contents were a short message instructing Nell to bake something for - Gargott? It seemed that he had a role at Hogwarts, but Nell just could not recognize his name. With that Nell sighed. She loved to bake, but only when she had inspiration and of course, motivation. And right now, after a short 4 hour sleep, she did not have either of those things. But, she had to do it, right. The owl stared at her. "You staying?" she said in a hushed voice. The owl flapped its wings in reply. "Alright then," Nell replied, turning around.

The young girl always baked on her own, since she felt more confident that way. She reached up to a cabinet containing baking trays and paused. She wasn't even sure what to make! Nell made her way over to a kitchen stool and brainstormed. She could make cookies, a pie, a cake, cupcakes... After a few minutes, Nell narrowed the list down. She decided on a pie, but not the flavor. It could be cherry, chocolate, blueberry... And then Nell decided on cherry. Cherry pie it is.

She stood back up again and grabbed the appropriate pan for the job. She quietly placed it on the counter and made her way over to get a bowl, utensils, and her special recipe book. Nell always used the same recipe book when it came to baking. It had so many glorious recipes that went on and on. Nell could never get enough of them. Before going to Hogwarts, Nell would always be in the kitchen baking up a storm. When tea time came around, Nell would have cookies, muffins, cupcakes, a cake, a pie - you name it - set with the tea. And, then she would repeat the next day for the whole batch of cookies would be gone in a day.

Nell opened the book to the part 'Pies' and flipped through until she found 'Cherry Pie.' Bingo, A smile grew on her face as she read through all the ingredients. Wonderful! She had everything she possibly needed! She glanced over at the owl who was cleaning their feathers. She laughed softly and continued her recipe.

Alright, first ingredient was 960 ML 4 cups of tart cherries. Next was 240 ML 1 cup of granulated sugar. She continued gathering all her ingredients and then referred back to her oh so very trusty recipe. Nell followed it carefully not wanting to mess up. Now it was time to gently weave the dough on top. She took deep breaths as her slender fingers moved nimbly with the delicate dough. And at last, it was done! Now she had to wait a full hour before it was done baking.

She placed the pie in the oven set her timer. She smiled with delight at the owl who sat still, watching the farmlands beyond the Zoldak household. Nell really hoped that this 'Gargott' would enjoy her pie. She was confident though. She hadn't met one person who absolutely despised her treats. They either loved it, or appreciated it. It was one or the other.

And at last the timer rung out with an ear piercing ring ring ring! She ran over and stopped it, not wanting to awake her siblings. Actually, she wouldn't care if she woke them up but she decided to be a nice sister today. Nell opened the oven carefully and peeked at the pie. It looked...the same? Uncooked? She checked the oven only to see it was off. Really? She had forgotten to turn the oven on! With that, she rushed and turned on the oven, along with resetting the timer.

And ye again, a long painful 50 minutes went by. In reality, it felt shorter since Nell was outside the whole time. When she ran inside, a smile grew across her pale face. The pie was a golden brown and it's looked delicious. Nell wanted to eat it, but it was for Gargott. She cooled the pit for a little then put it into a quaint little box. The pie wasn't huge, just the right size. She tied a red ribbon onto it and gave it to the owl. She quickly wrote on the box 'Cherry Pie for Gargott.' "Off to Gargott you go!" she whispered to the owl with a smile.