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Hi Kaitlin!
This was such a great start to a story I'd really love to read more of! I love baking and creating fancy cakes, and my dad was a chef, so I really love the base you set up for a novel here, and it's clear to me already that cooking is your own passion.The description you used for the food was so lovely and vivid, and reminded me why I love watching videos and shows like that as well.
On top of that, I'm interested in seeing how Scorpius - who's mother is already pretty clearly still anti-Muggle technology outside of obligatory things - overcomes disapproval to fight for his passion. (And I'm also super intrigued by what job is forcing Draco to have a computer!)
I really hope you continue with this. Your passion for the subject matter shines through, and I'd love to read more.
Tanya
Author's Response:Hey Tanya!
Thank you so much!
Cooking isn't just a passion, it's my career, so I thought that I might be able to create a semi-realistic story for Scorpius as a chef. :) I've seen lots of your pictures of your beautiful cakes and that's really awesome that your dad was a chef too!
Scorpius is definitely going to struggle finding his way in his career field, but I think ultimately Draco and Astoria love their son more than they love their prejudices.
Thanks!
~Kaitlin
Scorpius as a chef! I've never seen that before, but I love it. Actually, I've never seen a fic that focuses on a wizard chef.
This was such a cute way to introduce it. I definitely imagine him watching Hell's Kitchen, even though I'm sure that's not what he was watching. After this I can see him sneaking down to the kitchen at Malfoy Manor and begging the house elves to teach him to cook.
I can't wait to see where you go with this! And I'm also really curious what Draco Malfoy does for a living that requires a laptop....
Author's Response:
Hey there! Thank you so much for the review! It truly made my day! I wish I could write you a longer response, but I've gotten so bogged down in review responses lately. I hope you know how much your words mean to me and how much I appreciate your support, encouragement, and critique. Thank you!
~Kaitlin
Heya there, Kaitlin!
Not only do I know that you're a chef, but I also am a passionationate cook. So of course the title of this story drew me in, and I was even more thrilled to see that it's about Astoria and Scorpius. I do wonder what Draco is doing for job that it requires a laptop, but frankly I don't care because it's about time the magical world took strides towards merging with the muggle one. (Fun question: do you thank they have developed super fast internet in the magical world if they're requiring people to have laptops for jobs? Can you modify a laptop with magic to make it do more things? You should definitely expand on this.)
My favourite thing about this story is that you've captured the magic of the muggle world to an outsider who has never been. Especially a child. I suppose if I had never seen a television before and had not grown up around one, I'd be pretty stunned by it as well. But most of all, Scorpius is my baby (I write about him too much for my own good) and I was so happy to see him develop an interest in cooking. And tell him, on my behalf, not to fret. Working on his French will give him an edge if he ever decide to go learn cooking professional in France. <3
Author's Response:Thank you so much for this absolutely beautiful review. I hope you know how much I appreciate your words of encouragement! They seriously make me smile every time. ~Kaitlin
Transferred from hpff back to 1st May 2016:
Congrats on Archive MoTM and the achievement at 100 challenges, Kaitlin!
When I found your banner request at TDA, I had interest in your new story. Kaitlin will write about cooking! It must be interesting. I was sure.
The story begins from the scene at an electrical store. Reading the scene would not be so exciting, if Scorpius were a Muggle, but he is not. I think this story is very promising, we expect the next chapters will be like the movie, "Toast".
What if Malfoy lost all their assets and their parents had to cook by themselves, but they couldn't at all? I expect you will write the story, Scorpius went out of the the magical world and would learn how to cook in Muggle cooking school.
You have a lot of stories WIP to write, but I'll ask you. Please update this ASAP.
Kenny
Hello Kaitlin! <3
I told you I'd try to leave a non-Finals review and you were so lovely about it, it seems only right to leave it for you! Plus, I've been meaning to read this ever since you first wrote it, so it was high time!
What a fascinating idea to think of Draco learning to us a laptop. I imagine it will be something of a struggle, ha! At first I thought he must have become must less prejudiced toward Muggles if he was using their technology, but Astoria's reaction to the televisions made it clear that is not the case.
I actually feel kind of bad for Astoria in this scene. Making a big electronics purchase is stressful enough as it is. I can't imagine doing it if I'd never even seen a computer before! COnsidering that, she's quite calm and polite.
Still, the anti-Muggle bias is clear. "Some sort of Muggle disease"??? My godness. Muggles do not have cooties! I suspect this does not bode well for Scorpius' cooking dreams.
It is so sad to me to imagine never having cooked anything! It sounds like Scorpius has hardly ever see anyone cook at all. I'm glad he sees the art in it, because it really is an art. I wonder if he will go to the Burrow and see Molly cooking with magic? I woud like to read about that!
Man, I'm with Scorpius. Cooking shows are so fun to watch! The Whole Foods by my apartment always plays the Food Network on the TV in their sitting area, so if I buy a lunch there I always sit and watch. My grocery trips sometimes take ages, lol! Fortunately, I don't usually shop there =P
I can feel for passion for cooking in this. It comes through so well in the way you wrote it. I really hope you will get back to this fic someday, even though I know how hard it can be, because I would love to read mosre about Chef Scorpius, and no one could write this as well as you! <3
You've really won me over. Scorpius is so loveable here. I think the style of your writing makes him seem a little naive in a sweet way. And I really believe him, he's so earnest. I love that. You're established his character even with such a short opening chapter, and I cannot wait to meet the older Scorpius!
xoxo Renee
Hello! Thought I'd drop by with a review, as I've not done so for a while. Plus, it's your birthday. What better excuse do I need?
This was another fantastically cute story from your collection! The thought of Draco requiring a computer is one that I found most laughable, considering how he'd spent most of his youth shunning anything and everything to do with muggles/muggle-borns/pretty much anyone who wasn't a pure-blood, basically. I'm kind of not at all surprised that he persuaded Astoria to venture into muggle London to buy a computer for him. The mere notion of Draco consorting with a muggle electronic goods salesperson is making my head spin (although I have to say, it would have been hilarious to read about his endeavours. Perhaps he is forced to return the laptop in chapter two - just putting the idea out there ;) ). I'm guessing Astoria was quite well-informed regarding the basic workings of a computer, otherwise I should imagine the sales-pitch to go straight over her head in a completely non-sensical way. Although, after musing that, I expect the salesperson was probably very used to unknowledgeable customers. Good job really, otherwise anything "odd" from Astoria would raise suspicions.
I can just picture cute little Scorpius staring around at all the "peculiar" gadgets in complete awe! I felt particularly sorry for him when another salesperson nearly told him off for putting his hands on a TV screen. I LOVE the fact that he scrolled through the TV channels and stopped on a cookery programme. It immediately made me wonder whether Astoria or Draco prepared the meals at home. You answered my question in the next paragraph; it hadn't occurred to Scorpius that people could do their own cooking! The way that the short cookery clip inspired Scorpius into wanting to find out more about cooking was simply adorable!
This was such a sweet story! Happy birthday :)
Brax X
Tansferred from HPFF (Challenge Cheerleader)
Good Merlin, another one?!?!
I'm not jut running in your dust now - you've lapped me twice! I have no chance of catching up with you, but that's no reason for me to stop cheering you on!
Right away I know this is going to be good, because you are writing about something that you are passionate about and that always improves a story!
Your descriptions at the beginning are incredibly engaging! I really believe that Scorpius has never been in muggle London (though I wondered if he had been to other muggle environments), and his curiosity and wonder and everything around him was well captured.
I was totally drawn into your description of the cooking show on tv, just as Scorpius was. Your description here is perfect, as is Scorpius' continued sense of wonder.
I particularly liked how you approached Scorpius' fascination with cooking, not just with your mouth-watering descriptions, but also with full appreciation of how foreign cooking is to Scorpius, both as something that people do, that lower class wizards could do, and something that can be an art form.
And of course his mother crushes his dreams, both in her responses to the tv and his cooking question. Well, I know that is something Scorpius will overcome!
One thing I'm really curious about here that isn't addressed is why Draco needs a laptop for his job. He seems to speak French, so perhaps something in international relations? But I'm unclear how a computer ties into that.
Fabulous, fabulous job! I cannot wait to read more of this, and I'm sure it will make me hungry every chapter. For now I'm going to dash out of here before you have time to post another chapter!
Author's Response:Thank you so much for this absolutely beautiful review. I hope you know how much I appreciate your words of encouragement! They seriously make me smile every time. ~Kaitlin
Hello chef! Kaitlin, I love this story already! Can we please laugh at Astoria for a moment? The way she acts here. What a ludicrious idea, Astoria Malfoy cooking? Ha! Over her dead body I'm sure. Like my mother I doubt Astoria could ever boil water let alone chop an onion correctly. If she and Draco were stuck on a deserted island, no wands, I wonder what they would do to survive? They'd have to resort to cannabalism.
In all seriousness though I really enjoyed this! I don't know if this was on purpose but I got this really fast paced vibe from the story. Like I felt that eagerness to go shopping. You know what I mean? Here and there they are, rushing to the store, side stepping others, waiting on line. Shopping for a purpose is exciting to me. I think it's because I've worked in retail so many years I like customers to know what they want.
Can we also laugh at Astoria in the muggle world looking for a computer?
Abraxas Malfoy must be rolling around in anger in his grave.
Can we also imagine Draco on his computer and surfing the web? I need to know what his computer is being used for and his brower history--stat.
Scorpius was the true gem in this story. I could practically feel the excitement rolling off of him. How magical! A tv! How interesting it would be to be a chef! I see Scorpius as Amy Adams in the movie about Julia Childs!! Yes!!! Learning to chop up some vegetables, learning about all of the muggle contraptions out there and for some reason running away from a lobster. I love to cook so I can't wait to see his progress and if he really sticks with wanting to become a chef! The first in Malfoy family history!
Author's Response:Thank you so much for this absolutely beautiful review. I hope you know how much I appreciate your words of encouragement! They seriously make me smile every time. ~Kaitlin
Here for CTF!
OH MY GOD I LOVE SCORPIUS!
You make him so like the one in cursed child in a way I just can't help and want to wrap my arms around him because he seems like such a clever boy who would totally ask those questions and is deeply intrigued by everything yet doesn't ask the questions which would give everything away to salespersons and everything. The fact that he becomes so enamoured by the tv and that it makes him want to cook and only later on realises it was actually people cooking meals themselves and not using elves and the fact that he wants to become one himself rather than use elves to cook him meals. And then the accociaton with potions (which I totally get by the way) it just. It just works on every single level and now I actually want to know if he succeeds in later life as a cook or that he fails drastically at it or fails but keeps on trying anyway and I just. I need more of this. I need more of your Scorpius. I need more of your Scorpius as a cook.
And then the fact that Astoria completely rebutes his question and dubs it a monstrosity it made me ache Kaitlin. Ache. And then the pressure she sets upon Scorpius when it's not what he wants or needs make me want to shake her because god. Some loosening up can't hurt! But alas. It also makes me want to know more if he succeeds. Please write a companion piece?
Author's Response:Hey there! Thank you so much for the review! It truly made my day! I wish I could write you a longer response, but I've gotten so bogged down in review responses lately. I hope you know how much your words mean to me and how much I appreciate your support, encouragement, and critique. Thank you!
~Kaitlin
Back again for CTF :)
This was honestly just completely adorable! It was a nice break after the tears of the last thing I read, so I'm absolutely in love with this. I love that you picked Scorpius to use for this as it feels like we'd get a lot more pay off in the lign run of seeing him learn to cook, especially with how you've written Astoria here. Half of the fun of this is going to be seeing how Scorpius fights his way to getting to do what he wants with his life.
Tbh, I'm not too sure what age Scorpius is suppoed to be, but I'm going to assume around 9 or 10? Either way, you've totally nailed everything about a young kid's personality. He's curious and observant and wants to learn everything that he posibly can. I love that he tried to follow everything the sales lady said, it was such a cute touch. Plus, I'm not sure I could follow whatever she was saying and I grew up alongside computers!
I also love love love your descriptions of everything that Scorpius sees on the TV. I found myself trying to figure out what cooking shows he was watching as you described them (because Food Network is Life) and it was so neat to see it through someone's eyes who had never even considered cooking before. I also love that we can really see your own passion shining through here. It adds so much authenticity to the story and honestly makes me that much more interested knowing how much you love what you're writing about :)
Cheers!
Claire
Author's Response:Hey there! Thank you so much for the review! It truly made my day! I wish I could write you a longer response, but I've gotten so bogged down in review responses lately. I hope you know how much your words mean to me and how much I appreciate your support, encouragement, and critique. Thank you!
~Kaitlin
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