Signum Vitalis (a dramione story)

In which there are ladles and laddu

Hermione had gotten through the rest of the box of onions before Harjeet returned. Being smarter than Draco, Hermione had subtly cast a spell to protect her eyes from the onions and so she was not the least teary-eyed when Harjeet entered the kitchen.

Samir pulled his skillet off the stove and gently slapping the back of Draco and Amar's heads. "Behave, you two."

"Hey," Amar said, holding the back of his head with the hand he wasn't using to stir his pot. "What about her?"

Draco snorted. "She's Hermione Granger."

Hermione raised an eyebrow and mouthed 'really'?

"She wasn't the one starting the trouble, Amar."

Amar rolled his eyes but it was lost on Samir, who had already turned to leave.

Harjeet pulled out a large bowl and connected it with a mixing attachment.

"Draco, please finish those dishes. Amar, start up the fryer," Harjeet said, pulling down flours and spices from the cabinets. "Hermione, would you start pouring things into the bowl as I give them to you."

The next several minutes were a flurry of activity as Harjeet nearly glided around the kitchen, measuring things, pulling odd utensils from their racks and directing them all to do one thing or another. It was a very different method than Samir used but still quite effective. Hermione admired the grace with which Harjeet took over the kitchen and how, with barely a word, she sent Amar or Draco off for one task or another. How often had Draco come back here for them to be so comfortable with each other?

Harjeet returned to Hermione who had been designated to slowly add water until the dough became the consistency of a thin pancake batter. Harjeet nodded in satisfaction (to the relief of Hermione) and then called Draco over.

She handed Hermione a ladle with holes in it and then held an identical ladle over the fryer. With another ladle she poured some of the batter onto the first ladle. To Hermione's surprise, the batter did not immediately run through the holes, but sat in the ladle until Harjeet gave it a tap on the pot and several drops of batter fell from the ladle and hissed in the oil. Harjeet continued to tap the ladle until most of the batter had dropped as tiny balls into the fryer.

"The only way to make laddu," Harjeet explained, "is to have a boondi ladle." Then, when the dough had started to turn from white-yellow to golden-brown, Harjeet pulled the fryer-basket out of the oil and dumped the fried dough into a waiting bowl lined with paper towels. "We will do this with all the boondi batter," she explained, handing Draco the boondi ladle. "Any questions?"

Draco and Hermione looked at each other and Draco shrugged. "It seems pretty straight forward, Harjeet."

Harjeet nodded. "I'll help Amar prepare the dishes until you two are almost done."

Harjeet left and Hermione and Draco shared another look over their boondi ladles as they tried to figure out where to start. It had seemed simple enough when Harjeet had done it but...
Hermione pointed at the fryer. "Hold yours over there and I'll pour some into it."
Draco followed her advice but then she poured too much and it splashed in chunks into the fryer and they both groaned. As that piece of dough fried, Hermione dunked her ladle straight into the batter but that slopped it everywhere as she rushed it into the oil. When she finally got the ladle to the fryer, none of the batter would come out.

She bit her lip and glanced worriedly at Draco. He set down his own ladle and slid next to her so his bicep pressed against the outside of her arm as he gently held part of her hand and wrist in his grip. "Just a little firmer," he said softly into her ear and she couldn't help the shudder from his voice and body heat at her back. She wasn't sure he was doing it on purpose this time but this was driving her breathing up.