"Your breakfast, Master Harry Potter." Kreacher croaked out as he laid out a large spread on the kitchen table.
It seems like today will be a French-style spread; as steaming hot basket of croissants with strawberry, grape, and peach jams laid about. Pain Perdu (French toast) right off the stove were stacked up high together in a heap on a large platter with butter, berries, and syrup topping it all off.
Sweet Pain aux raisins were set to the side for later. Coffee, tea, orange juice, apple juice, milk, and Oeufs cocotte were served up for drinks. An edible flower vast fruit basket was set right in the middle of the table with fresh picking of strawberries, cherries, grapes, watermelon, pineapple, kiwi, and other sliced up fruits.
It seems like Kreacher has outdone himself just like always. Before Harry had no idea that the old house-elf was an exquisite chef. After that incident in the hallway, Kreacher has been making him breakfast, lunch, and dinner ever since.
At first, Harry thought that the little bugger was trying to get back at him by poisoning him, but as soon as he saw Sirius helping himself to the food, he knew that could not be true. A house-elf could never harm its master intentionally, the magic binding it stops that automatically from happening.
"Master," Kreacher called out in his hoarse voice, "Would you wish to move to the family's main dining hall or even its side hall? The terrace would also be lovely today as the sun is about to rise over the horizon."
"It is alright, Kreacher," Harry said with a wave as he sat himself at the kitchen table.
"But Master," Kreacher croacked, "This lowly place isn't fit for you, this table is simply the preparation table for large feast and parties."
"I don't mind." Harry said with a shrug while he filled his plate with food and took a few bites from the fruit basket. Harry knew that this house was very large and quite easy to get lost in; there were endless hallways that stretched continuously, numerous different rooms with a variety of purposes some practical and others quite strange. There were also windows in this house that look out nowhere and everywhere, stairs that went up forever, leading off to an infinite amount of floors. Harry knew that there was some sort of expansion magic at work that continued to grow the house.
Just as Kreacher was about to citate from another angle, Sirius walked into the kitchen. "Hey pup." the older wizard called out between a yawn as he poured himself some coffee.
"Hey" Harry replied through a mouthful of the wonderful Pain Perdu as syrup stained his lips.
Right when Sirius was about to grab himself some food, Kreacher moved in and slapped the older wizard's hand away. "The breakfast is for Master Harry Potter, not for you—you're a dishonor of the family!"
"Ow, come on," Sirius shouted as he waved his hands in the air, "Are we going to have this argument every single damn morning, you miserable sod? Anyway, am I your master or is it my godson?!"
"Kreacher," Harry called out, before this argument got out of hand "Let my godfather eat, please."
Turning to face the young wizard the old house elf nodded his head in assent and replied, "Of course Master Harry Potter, you are too kind to this shame of House Black," the house elf pocked ridicule at Sirius to which the older wizard growled in a threatening stance.
Somehow ignoring the hardened wizard who was barring his teeth at him, the house-elf inquired, "Is there anything else you would need?"
"No," Harry said with a shake of his head, "This spread is perfect like always, thank you Kreacher."
"You are most welcome Master." the house elf replied as he bowed low then disappeared in a puff of black misty ash.
"How did you do it?" Sirius asked in a mild tone as he once again reached for the food and started piling it on his plate.
"I do not know," Harry replied honestly. He really had no idea how he got the house-elf to be so obedient and dutiful towards him. "Maybe I earned its respect by not insulting it at every turn, and showing it a bit of kindness," Harry remarked as he gave Sirius a pointed look.
Snorting out loud at Harry's observation, Sirius uttered, "The only thing that creature respects is power and fear, you can forget all that good of heart and nonsense."
As Sirius delivered those words he thought about the hallway incident and he did show a bit of power, accidental it might be and Kreacher was fearful of him, he could clearly see it in his eyes. So is that why the old house elf was so obedient towards him, he showed it its place?
Harry did not even want to think under those lines, thus shaking off Sirius's words, Harry put it behind him and tried to get back to brighter stuff. "Well whatever it is, Kreacher does make an excellent spread, and you did say he is fixing up the house and turning the old Wards back on."
"I guess your right," Sirius stated with a nod as he took a bit of his croissant, "And I also think that I can be kinder to Kreacher."
"Good," Harry said with a nod, at least something morally uplifting was coming from all this.
Losing his appetite as those dark thoughts plagued him, Harry got up and said to Sirius, "Well I am going to hit the stacks."
"Are you not going to finish up?" Sirius posed as he pointed to Harry's half incomplete plate.
"Yea, I'm kind of full already so I'll just be leaving."
"Okay," Sirius said with a shrug taking his words at face value.
-------------------------
Today Harry was reading about the Wizarding families ranking in Magical Britain. Just because a House has the title of Most Noble and Ancient House does not mean they are of equal ranking. It seems like Magical Britain use the same nobility ranking as regular Britain and that did make sense since Wizarding families have hereditary titles under great old Britain.
As Harry was getting to know about the structure that Wizarding families have in place, a rasping voice interrupted his reading.
"Master Harry Potter, Sir," Kreacher called out.
Turning to face the house elf who had a platter in his hand, Harry addressed him, "Yes, Kreacher?"
"I brought over some light snacks for Master Harry Potter while he is doing his reading."
"Oh, thank you, Kreacher," Harry said then welcoming over the house elf he added, "Just set them over here, I will get to them later."
"Of course Master Harry Potter." the elderly house-elf said as he got to set up a few servings of tiny pastries like Yorkshire pudding, lemon tarts, chocolate shortbread, and coffee, tea, and milk.
"Thank You," Harry uttered once again as the old house finished placing the food, bowing lowly the magical creature was about to head out, but Harry couldn't help but call out "Kreacher why are you so loyal towards me, huh?"
Already Harry was cursing himself for asking the dreaded question, he knew deep down ignorance was best but for some god damn reason he carried on. "When we first met, you and I were not close, really you were not good to me at all. So what brought about this change of heart?"
"Master Harry Potter is powerful," the old house-elf croaked out. "Master Harry Potter knows how to treat a house elf well, Master Harry Potter is from an old, powerful family, Master Harry Potter is a perfect master," the house elf continued as his voice rouse in fanaticism. "Kreacher must follow. Mistress will be proud of Kreacher for finding a strong master."
Staring at the extremely unstable elf, Harry silently closed his eyes then opening them back up, he uttered in vacant tone, "Thank you, Kreacher. You can leave."
Sitting back in his chair Harry didn't even watch as the house-elf made the pleasant farewells, all he did was sit there vacantly, not moving even an inch for what felt like countless hours.
"Harry" somebody called out from so far away.
Turning to face where he thought the voice came from, Tonks came into view and Harry didn't overreact at all. "Hey Tonks." Harry said as he did his best to collect himself.
"What's wrong, Harry?" the spunky witch asked as a look of concern crossed her face, "I have been calling you for almost a minute!"
"Nothing," Harry said as he did not want to worry the witch with his own issues, "Nothing is wrong at all."
"Oh, I can tell when something is wrong," the young spirited witch said as she sat her sharply ass in the table before him. "Look you haven't even eaten your food," she pointed out.
Seeing that the witch before him wasn't going to leave it at that, Harry rubbed at the bridge of his nose and voiced. "If I tell you, would you just leave it at that?"
"Mhm," the plucky witch said as she thought it over for a moment, "Well it all depends what you have to share really!"
Sighing out loud, Harry just got into the heart of it, since no matter what you did you can not please witches.
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