"The Food Critics of this year's Great Hall Culinary Clash are:
Altair Black, Annabeth Holmes, Nora Hopkirk, and Hugh Gallagher from First Years...
....
....
....
....
....
Gemma Dumbledore, Sebastian MacDougal, Oliver Brown, and Victoria Montague from Seventh Years."
There were four Food Critics from each school year, one from every House, and all twenty eight of them came to sit at a separate table right under the platform where the Staff Table stood.
From the staff, the four Heads of Houses and the Headmaster were also Food Critics, and they sat down at the table with these twenty eight students.
Even if Altair wanted to avoid any conversation with the Headmaster, he could not do so now, but thankfully, the Culinary Clash soon began as the rest of the students and staff waited.
There was one Master Chef from each House, and they had been assigned randomly coloured plates to keep the tasting blind and unbiased.
The first dish served to them was a very light soup, slightly medicinal yet delicious. The bowls were small and placed on top of four small plates coloured white, black, brown, and grey.
And it was not easy to be a judge. Everyone wanted to ensure their scores were justified, and they also had to pen down a remark.
Altair took his time as he tasted the soup from each bowl repeatedly, picking up on the differences in flavour, and then began scoring all four participants, writing his remarks.
The highest score he gave was to the black plate, for its lightness, aroma, taste, and aftertaste.
He was the last to finish scoring, but no one commented on him taking his time, and once the scores were locked, everything from the table vanished.
Next, dumplings were served, all beautiful and appetising, accompanied by special sauces.
Once again, Altair took his time, not rushing to score the plates, and many others did the same, ensuring they grasped the differences in flavour.
Again, the black plate received the most points from him. The dumplings were soft, the fillings were identical in all of them, but the one on the black plate had the best texture and taste combination, and he loved the sauce that accompanied it.
Spring rolls were next, and this time the fillings were all different, making it easier to score the results as one plate clearly outclassed the others.
The next tasting was lamb chops with sauce and mashed potatoes, and all four were absolutely delicious, but since they had to score them, they had to identify even the slightest differences in taste. The sauces and the mashed potatoes made it easier to distinguish the dishes, and then there was a brief wait before the next entries were served.
Next came the braised duck, and their mouths instantly salivated at the aroma.
Watching them salivate and swallow, the rest of Hogwarts did the same, and when a few almost moaned at the taste, their hearts ached.
Altair, though enjoying the flavours, remained focused and diligently scored the plates without bias, writing his honest remarks. Most did not notice, but he picked up on the fat rendering, the method of cooking, and the seduction of the taste buds that resulted from it.
The fruit mousse came next, and the ladies at the table absolutely fell in love with it.
Altair too heartily enjoyed the light and refreshing sweet dish and wrote down his scores and remarks.
Lastly, the rose tea was served in four small, beautiful cups, and Altair again took his time as he scored them.
Once all the scores were finalised, the Headmaster stood and thanked all the Food Critics for joining him at the table.
All the students then excused themselves back to their House tables, and the staff returned to theirs.
A short while later, the four Deputy Heads of House emerged from the kitchens, having finalised the scores and results.
Professor Montclair, Professor Snape, Professor Vector, and Professor Fairwind stepped onto the stage and announced the final results.
"The Fourth Place in this year's Culinary Clash belongs to House Ravenclaw. Miss MacDougal, Plate Brown, has scored 2165 points."
"The Third Place in this year's Culinary Clash belongs to House Gryffindor. Miss Brown, Plate Grey, has scored 2190 points."
"The Second Place in this year's Culinary Clash belongs to House Slytherin. Miss Selwyn, Plate White, has scored 2205 points."
"And the winner of this year's Culinary Clash is House Hufflepuff. Miss Tonks, Plate Black, has scored 2297 points, just 13 points shy of a perfect score."
As soon as Professor Vector finished speaking, the Badgers, who had been holding back, burst into cheers, laughing merrily.
Almost everyone expected Nymphadora to win again. There truly was no one who could defeat her in the Culinary Clash. She was simply the best.
Under raucous applause, all four participants entered the Great Hall and stepped onto the stage, where the staff congratulated them and praised their efforts.
All four received their medals, and Nymphadora was then presented with a beautiful golden trophy, which she lifted happily under the applause of her House.
"This year's Star of the Critique goes to Altair Black," Professor Fairwind announced next, and Altair's critique book was presented to the staff at the table.
The Headmaster and the four Heads of Houses examined it together, and judging by the seriousness on their faces, it was clear that Altair had written some very insightful remarks.
Professor Flitwick raised his cup towards him in acknowledgement of his critique, and many students and even staff were surprised that the Star of the Critique had not gone to one of the adults at the table, but to a First Year student.
Altair stood and politely bowed towards the staff table before taking his seat again, unwilling to draw attention away from Nymphadora.
That evening, all of Hogwarts enjoyed a hearty feast prepared by the house-elves, following Nymphadora's cookbook. Everyone enjoyed what the Critics had tasted, and many moaned at how delicious the food was.
Almost everyone ate to their absolute fill that evening, except for those who were to participate in the Great House Talent Gala the next day.
As always, Slytherin came fourth in the Talent Gala. None of them were interested in singing, dancing, painting, or other talent shows, and Hufflepuff ended up winning it again.
On Sunday evening, the last day of the school year 1990 to 1991, the results of Years 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6 were announced, and many smiles disappeared.
Unsurprisingly, the Slytherin First Years performed exceptionally well that year, even better than the Ravenclaws, and this was a result the staff had expected.
Gryffindor, as always, performed poorly across all years, losing more points in the House Cup.
"House Gryffindor: 1480 House Points."
"House Ravenclaw: 1590 House Points."
"House Hufflepuff: 1760 House Points."
"House Slytherin: 2220 House Points."
It was the first time a House had broken the 2000 point mark in the House Cup, and the Slytherins were immensely proud of their achievement.
The Slytherin Prefects accepted the House Cup from the Headmaster together with their Head and Deputy Head of House.
Photographs were taken, the banners were in Slytherin colours, and the chants of "Campio" resonated through the Great Hall.
Everyone felt it was one of the most important days of their lives, and in his address, Altair said only a few words.
"Be proud of yourselves. Well done, House."
And those words were enough.
Almost no one slept that night. The Seventh Year students who were graduating felt melancholic, and under the lead of the Prefects, they were permitted to walk around the castle one last time.
As for the rest, they stayed in the common room, chatting, laughing, and recalling the best moments of the academic year that had just ended.
Around midnight, Altair, Aurelia, and Cho quietly left the dormitory, visited Lord Salazar in his solar, and remained with him for the rest of the night, chatting and telling him everything that had happened since their last visit.
"Can we not take the painting with us?" Cho asked despondently as they walked back to the dormitory in the morning.
"No. His soul shard is linked to the castle itself. There is a risk that his memory would be erased."
Aurelia and Cho tensed at those words and solemnly nodded.
Most of their luggage, except for Altair's trunk, which was under the Fidelius Charm, and another small trunk that Aurelia and Cho shared, had been transported to the train.
After they changed, Altair asked Rinky to transport the remaining luggage as well, which the house-elf happily did.
After joining everyone in the common room and heading for breakfast, they found the Seventh Years subdued and very quiet as they silently ate their meal.
None of them fully understood what they were feeling, having their last breakfast at Hogwarts, and even the staff seemed emotional.
Professor Dumbledore, who was present, gave his farewell speech, and then the Seventh Year representatives from each House came forward and delivered theirs.
By the end of it, everyone else felt sombre as well, and the journey to Hogsmeade under the lead of Hagrid and their Heads of House was very quiet.
Altair smiled when they opened the door of the same compartment they had arrived in and found their familiars already present. Cleo and Sidious were, as always, cuddling together, and Illya was on the opposite seat, fast asleep. Their owls were resting in their cages, and Strix was absent.
The young Black knew it would find its way home, so he was not worried.
Once they settled, he excused himself, and his fox leapt into his arms before he could leave.
She seemed to understand where he was going, and he smiled at her.
He made his way to the Prefects' compartment, right behind the engine, and without greeting anyone, he entered Nymphadora's compartment and smiled at her Moon Fox, which opened its eyes and gave a soft yip.
Illya jumped beside it, and soon they were nuzzling each other.
"You can stay here until we reach our destination," he said to his familiar, who yipped and began chatting with the other Moon Fox, telling it about the curious behaviour of Cleo and Sidious, which made Altair chuckle.
He left them to their conversation, exited the cabin, locked the door, and as he turned around, he came face to face with Nymphadora.
She stood leaning against the wall, hands folded before her, not raising her head to meet his eyes.
Altair glanced around and, seeing no one else in the compartment, reached into his pocket and took out a bracelet he had created for her some time ago.
He gently took her left hand and fastened the bracelet around her wrist.
"Happy birthday, Nymora," he said softly, placing a kiss on her cheek before stepping back and bowing, pressing a kiss to her knuckles.
She did not speak, and he did not wait for her to do so.
"Keep it on you. It will keep you safe."
With those words, he took his leave.
Nymphadora raised her head and watched his retreating back, then entered the cabin and glanced at the two Moon Foxes, who were conversing quietly.
She sat down, removed her shoes, hugged her knees, buried her head, and wept.
Sensing her distress, both Moon Foxes softly called out to her, and their soothing sounds eased the tightness in her chest.
When she had cried enough, she wiped away her tears and stared at the unique pinkish orange gemstone she had never seen before, and the lustrous silver that encased it.
It felt soothingly cool against her skin, and merely looking at it helped her mind settle.
Part of her felt truly happy and relieved that he had remembered her birthday, but recalling their last conversation brought the ache back.
Despite everything, she could not bring herself to remove or return the gift, so she put her shoes back on, checked herself in the mirror, and walked out to patrol the train once more.
Today was the last day of her life as Hogwarts' Head Girl, and she would not neglect her duties.