Harry, Fleur and their seven years old daughter woke up late that day. And no wonder, it wasn’t that long since the Harvest Moon festival. A fortnight lasting feast and dance, that sounded great and they definitely had fun, but they were paying the price. Still, today, at the end of October, was an important day. Harry regretfully disentangled himself from his wife’s feathery embrace, not an easy task, since she added her wings to the mix. However, they had to prepare. After a quick breakfast, accompanied by their daughter’s pouting, and proper hygiene, they set to be about their tasks, Harry cooking and baking and Fleur and their daughter carving out beet lanterns. Today, especially the baking was something Harry paid special attention to, since the pastries had to have a special shape. After some usual shenanigans, Fleur and their daughter have also finished their task, carving out five beet lanterns. Around noon they had a filling lunch that Harry had prepared and Fleur went to gather the portraits. They were stills, showing James and Lily Potter, Sirius Black, Fleur’s cousin Boyana Belova and Fleur’s maternal grandfather Gerard. They set up the portraits in a semicircle in the living room and lit a candle for each person. They put the candles into the lanterns and left each one behind a different window. The entrance to the house would remain open for the remainder of the day. Harry prepared the furniture while Fleur went to fetch drinks. Today, they would need them. And then the family of three sat down in front of the portraits and Fleur went on to tell the stories of her grandfather. Recalling the good times, the fun and the bad, Fleur painted a vivid picture of the memorable man. A cozy atmosphere filled the house, the wind seeming to gently embrace the family.
And so the afternoon went on, filled with stories of the departed, of family members whose names would be remembered. Fleur and Harry switched places from time to time, when the other needed a rest from storytelling, while their daughter sat, rapt with attention, trying to absorb as much as she could. She didn’t even notice when her mother went to the kitchen to prepare dinner. As always, when called for food, their daughter squealed and proceeded to hug both of her parents. This time, the table laden with food was expanded, five more places were prepared, a dish of deliciously smelling food ready at each one. As they explained to their daughter, today they would welcome any visitors. Dinner, as usual, went swimmingly, filled with banter and laughter (and some food throwing too) and then it was time to check on the lanterns. So the three went around the house, checking that every candle was still lit. Their daughter made sure to wave at the portraits whenever she ran by. Finally, they returned to their dining room. Their daughter gasped, all the food was eaten. As a smiling Fleur ushered her to the living room, Harry smiled affectionately as he noticed what looked like a muddy paw-print of a large dog under one chair and a white lily petal near one of the plates. On this night, the gates of the underworld were open, and the deceased were free to visit their loved ones, as long as they were remembered.