Harry Potter: Who cares about belated motherly love?

――――July 7st has arrived.

Today is Harry's birthday party. It is also the day when Harry officially becomes the next head of the Potter family, and it is also the day when my brother and I make our social debut. Harry will end his days at the Dursleys' today and move to the Blacks' in the morning with his luggage.

Since today was our social debut, Oliver, the house elf, had been busy since the morning (although the protagonist was Harry…). He ironed the dresses for my brothers, ironed my skirt (to be precise, it was ironing, but actually using wrinkle-removing magic), and polished my shoes until they were shiny.

Although the actual party started at 6pm, Harry sent a letter asking us to go earlier (I heard he was very nervous), and we planned to leave for the Black family at 5pm.

Bill has work today, but he said he would finish early and come with us, so if nothing unexpected happens, he should be home by 3pm.

I heard that today was a buffet style party and I guess there wouldn't be much time to eat, so Sirius suggested that we have a slightly later lunch, so we decided to have a late lunch at 2pm. Since I had eaten a little later than usual in the morning, it was almost noon now, but I didn't feel particularly hungry. It was too early to prepare for the party, and my homework was almost done, so I decided to go to my suitcase to tend to the herbs that were growing to kill time.

The herbs I am currently growing include oregano, cloves, lavender (not the human, the flower) and various varieties of rosemary, lemongrass, rose hips, chamomile, sage, mistletoe, hawthorn, jasmine, etc.

In the past two years, the variety of herbs I grow has increased significantly since Neville started giving me some seeds and seedlings. Since I often help him with reports and homework, he probably also wants someone to discuss herbal medicine with, so he not only gives me the herbs I need, but sometimes also shares the varieties he recommends.

Because my suitcase is full of magic, the flowers and plants inside bloom all year round, and the surrounding environment has almost become a small forest.

I waved the wand to pull out the weeds (even though it was in the suitcase, the soil was brought in from outside, so the weeds would grow) and used the "aquatic magic" to water them.

I carefully removed the weeds around the oregano. You may not be familiar with the name of oregano, but its other name is "flower mint". Yes, it is the raw material of "flower mint extract", an important item in the "Harry Potter" series.

Oregano itself is not difficult to grow, but the process of extracting its essential oil is somewhat troublesome, so it is not often made at home. It also has quite strong therapeutic effects, so it is usually not cheap when purchased in a pharmacy.

Anticipating that I may need these herbs in the future, I have been carefully cultivating them, extracting the essential oils from time to time and storing them in small bottles with magical preservation effects. Although I have only accumulated four bottles now, I will soon be able to extract enough essential oil from the oregano for a new bottle, so I will spread fertilizer and tend to the other herbs in the meantime.

By the way, this fertilizer is a compost mixed with fallen leaves collected from the "Forbidden Forest" near Hogwarts and dragon dung. The dragon dung, of course, comes from our "Puff", from the toilet built near the cave where he used to live. Dragons are very smart, so they don't defecate near their habitats, but habitually use toilets near their habitats. Although I say this, don't get me wrong, it's not that they use toilets like humans, but they defecate in fixed places.

I also picked some rosemary and chamomile.

I plan to dry them and make sachets later.

Sachets were originally introduced from France, and "sachet" items made from these herbs have always been an indispensable item among ancient wizards and magicians.

These magical tools are especially close to those who, like me, do not have a strong magical lineage (commonly known as "non-magical Muggles"). As for the past, magical families tended to use "vanilla" as a home protection (different from the current sachets). However, 300 years ago, with the introduction of sachets from France, it gradually became popular due to its convenience in carrying, replacing the traditional vanilla bag.

This kind of item does not distinguish between the East and the West, and similar items exist in different cultures. When I first heard about it, it reminded me of the Onmyoji novel that I was obsessed with in my middle school years in my previous life (the super famous one that tells the story of the Onmyoji's grandson). I really miss it. The morbid adolescence at that time made me study a lot of spells...

The topic has gone too far...

In the past decade, handmade sachets have become popular among young witches, and at Hogwarts, many senior students also carry homemade sachets (although few use herbs to make them directly).

Since magical herbs, even if they are of the same species, grow in different soils, their magic power is stronger than that of Muggle herbs. Therefore, items made from herbs, such as sachets, are easy to add magic power and can be used as "talismans" and "amulets".

Natural gemstones such as crystal, lapis lazuli, agate and amber are also common "talismans", but even in the wizarding world, these natural gemstones are relatively expensive. Sachets are much cheaper and easier to make. Therefore, they have gradually become a popular trend among young witches. Although this item is usually passed down from mother to daughter, I only learned how to make sachets from Hogwarts because Molly Weasley didn't teach me this.

It is worth mentioning that the craze for making sachets, which had once cooled down, became popular again when the "Dark Lord" and his followers were at their strongest. Most people believe that this was because the wizarding world was in turmoil and everyone was eager to protect themselves.

Homemade sachets have become a popular gift these days, especially when they can be magically given a "talismanic" effect. Making a more powerful sachet is not only a reflection of magical ability, but also a symbol of status. - This makes me think that this may be becoming a "marriage" item, but even between family and friends, it is also given to each other. So I decided to give Harry such a gift this year.

I made a small red cloth bag and tied it with a thin gold ribbon to match the Gryffindor colors. Harry was a Seeker, so I embroidered a small gold Snitch design in gold thread on one corner of the bag.

For the herbs in the sachet, I chose sage, rosemary, lavender, etc., which have the ability to ward off evil spirits. I tried to avoid overly sweet fragrances, retaining the fresh and cool aroma of sage and rosemary, while lavender slightly neutralized their taste.

For this sachet, I cast some talisman magic with Bill's help to make sure it was strong enough. Although I haven't been able to give it the power to "protect you like your life", this simple talisman is the best I can do so far.

In fact, my real goal is to make a talisman that can defend against the "Death Curse", but to do this, the sachet obviously cannot meet the requirements. So I plan to save some pocket money to buy natural gems and try to make a more powerful talisman.

After all, Harry seems to have a "bad year" almost every year. Those of us who are with him are also uneasy, if this little consolation can have some effect, it would be great. I wonder how much of this correction... power he can resist...

Realizing I was getting too deep in thought, I decided to do the same for Harper's birthday present in September.

By the way, yesterday was Neville's birthday, and I also gave him a sachet to thank him for giving me a lot of seeds and seedlings. Unlike Harry's, Neville's sachet is made of another red fabric (I think it's called "Pope Red"), and is also tied with a golden ribbon. I embroidered the birthday flower of July 7th - white bougainvillea - in the corner of the sachet. The herbs inside are mainly chamomile and jasmine, which have a strong relaxing effect. The magic I cast is also to soothe the soul. However, be careful, if the magic is too strong, it may make people drowsy, so it is difficult to adjust. Of course, like Harry's sachet, I also added fine work to it.

——Oh, of course, I also gave different colors of the same style sachets to my brothers, so you can rest assured. In fact, the first trial work I made was given to Bill as a thank you. He was so excited that day that he almost flew up and was almost hugged by him.