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October 31, 2009.
“Look at me, mummy, I can fly!”
“James Sirius Potter, I am giving you to the count of ten to get off of that sofa before you hurt yourself!”
“Oh, but mummy!”
“One!”
“But I can fly, just watch!”
“Two!”
“I promise I’ll get down after you watch me, mummy.”
“James, listen to your mother.”
“Oh, but daddy!”
“Fly! Fly!”
“Now look what you’ve done, James. Albus, no sweetie, you can’t climb up there like James.”
“Come on, James, get down so we can finish getting ready for Trick-or-Treating.”
“Can I at least show you how I can fly first?”
Hermione Jean Potter rubbed the tense muscles on her forehead as she watched the scene in front of her. Ever since James had watched the Peter Pan film at her parent’s house three months prior, the five-year-old had been obsessed with the boy who would not grow up.
Obsessed.
All she had heard from him over the last few months was how great Peter Pan was, how he believed in fairies too, and how he wanted fairy dust for his birthday so that he could fly just like Peter Pan. After Harry had suggested dressing their eldest son as Peter Pan for Halloween, they hadn’t heard the end of it. All they heard from James since then was how he was going to be his hero for Halloween, and how he was going to dress Albus up as a Lost Boy.
Albus had other ideas. The three-year-old picked out a very original Pumpkin costume when Hermione took him to a muggle supermarket at the beginning of October, which upset his older brother to no end.
“Never mind,” James had said, a wide smile on his face when he saw the costume that Albus had picked for himself. “We can dress Lily up as Tinkerbell instead!”
As it turned out, Harry and Hermione did find a fairy costume that they dressed their one-year-old daughter in, and they wouldn’t stop swooning over her.
James was too excited about dressing up as his new hero for his favourite night of the year – after Christmas and his birthday, of course. He had a spurt of accidental magic three weeks ago which turned every item of his clothing forest green, so that he would match Peter Pan every time he got dressed.
Even his Chuddley Cannons jersey, a gift from Uncle Ron on his birthday, had turned from a horrid orange to the dark green that James suddenly loved. Ron hadn’t been happy when he found out. Hermione tried to turn the clothes back to their normal colour, but the green wouldn’t budge. She had been torn between buying James new clothes or making him put up with the green until he grew bored of Peter Pan.
Like that would happen anytime soon.
“James. Please get off the sofa. You’re getting Albus excited, and I don’t fancy taking either of you to St Mungo’s tonight. You know how busy it gets on Halloween.” Hermione sat down in her favourite red armchair by the fireplace in the living room.
She watched as the excited five-year-old climbed down from the three-seater sofa that matched her armchair and sat on it instead. His feet didn’t quite reach the floor, which Hermione always found adorable. Albus Severus quickly followed his older brother, but found his vision obstructed by his pumpkin costume as it rode up when Albus sat down.
“Thank you, sweetie. Harry, is Lily still having her nap?” Hermione asked her husband of seven years as he began to help Albus with his costume.
“Yeah, she not long went down. She fought it today, but I know we wouldn’t be able to trick-or-treat much if she went with us overtired. I didn’t fancy a repeat of Albus’ first Halloween.” Harry grinned at her as a shiver went down her spine.
“No, I’d rather that not happen too.” Hermione smiled gratefully at Harry, then set her eyes on her two boys again. Albus still didn’t have his shoes on, and James’ green shirt was on back to front. He was also missing his hat. “Why don’t you help Albus find his shoes, James, then play in the garden for a bit?”
“Can I jump in the puddles?” James asked as he jumped down from the sofa. Albus wriggled off the sofa, refusing help from his father as he was far too independent for that.
“Not if you want to wear that costume trick-or-treating. If it gets muddy, it’s coming off.” Hermione threatened lightly. James gave her his best doe-eyed look, which made her roll her eyes lightly with a smile. “Hurry up before I change my mind.”
“Come on, Albie! Last one there’s a rotten dragon’s egg!” James shouted as he pulled Albus from the room by his hand. It was only five in the evening, but after Trick-or-treating, James, Albus and Lily were going to The Burrow to have a Halloween themed sleepover with their pseudo cousins.
Molly Weasley was more than willing to host the annual sleepover, especially when it allowed Harry and Hermione time to visit James and Lily Potter’s graves in Godric’s Hollow. Ron would take his and Luna’s children, Hugo and Violet. George and Angelina would take Fred II and Roxanne. Percy and Penelope would bring Molly II and Lucy, while Bill and Fleur brought along Victoire, Dominique and Louis. If the sleepover didn’t fall on a full moon, Andromeda brought Teddy along.
How Molly survived every sleepover with thirteen children under the roof, Hermione would never know. She could barely handle her three children, and James had started at a muggle primary school that September.
“Are you ready for tonight?” Harry asked Hermione, pulling her from her thoughts. They were both looking forward to spending the evening together. It was something they didn’t have much time for these days, what with Harry moving up the ranks in the Auror department and Hermione preparing to take over as Head of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. There were rumours in the Ministry of Hermione joining the Department of Law Enforcement, but she couldn’t leave when there were so many magical creatures who needed her help.
“I think I’m the one that should be asking you that,” Hermione said to him with a small laugh. She let her eyes roam over her husband who had slumped back into the sofa. Even after all this time, she couldn’t believe that he was hers. He still made her full of butterflies every time he smiled and winked at her, those damn emerald green eyes glistening with the love he felt for her.
He was exceptionally handsome tonight as he wore a new set of jet-black dress robes. He wore a white frilled shirt with a red and gold striped cravat. His raven hair stuck up at all angles, but there was nothing that could be done about it. Not that Hermione wanted there to be, she loved how wild and untameable his hair was. Thankfully, it was a trait that hadn’t been passed down to James, Lily or Albus. Yes, they had thick Raven hair like Harry, but they had Hermione’s curls.
“Yeah, I’ll be fine, Mione,” Harry gave her a fond smile. He loved how she still worried about him, after all this time. “I’m actually quite excited to tell mum about James’ obsession with Peter Pan. I remember her saying it was one of her favourites, last time we spoke.”
When they first went to Godric’s Hollow on Christmas Eve 1997, they didn’t leave with the best memories. The memory of Bathilda Bagshot’s body being ripped apart by Nagini still haunted Harry sometimes. Not as much now, twelve years later, but he occasionally dreamed of the horcrux hunt and Battle of Hogwarts whenever he had a particularly stressful day at work. Hermione was always quick to soothe him from his nightmares and made quick work of taking his mind off of them. He always did the same for her.
In the years since, Harry and Hermione always made a point to visit James and Lily’s graves at Godric’s Hollow. Birthdays, Christmas, and Halloween. They always turned up, most of the time without the children, to hold vigil and update them on the going’s on in their life.
Ron thought they were barmy, but it made sense to Harry and Hermione.
Especially when they remembered to bring the Resurrection Stone, so they could speak to them face to ghostly face. Sirius and Remus were there too, after they were buried beside James and Lily. Well, Remus and Tonks were. Sirius’ favourite leather jacket was buried in lieu of his physical body. The connection to them was always stronger there, so it was a no brainier that Harry and Hermione visited them at their graves.
“Who are you supposed to be this year, then? You never did tell me.” Hermione said, trying to subtly change the subject. The pair of them always dressed up when they took the children trick-or-treating, and they were due to go to George and Angelina’s after they visited Godric’s Hollow for a small gathering. Likely, they were going to get very drunk and forget most of the night.
Harry gave her a dazzling smile and stuck his hand deep into his pocket. After rummaging around for several minutes, he suddenly turned his back on Hermione as he fixed something into his face.
“Mwah Ah Ah Ah!” Harry growled at her in a bad impression of Count Dracula from one of the Hammer films he had seen with George a few years ago. In his mouth was the biggest pair of fake fangs Hermione had ever seen. They looked muggle, which surprised her as George has released a special Halloween line at WWW that includes some very realistic vampire fangs. “I vant to suck your blood!”
“Your accent is atrocious, Harry. And probably slightly creature-ist. Not all Vampires speak like that you know.” Hermione frowned at him but couldn’t help the way her lips twitched ever so slightly.
“I know, Mione. Besides, I’m a Muggle Vampire, it doesn’t count. I’m dressed up as their interpretation of Vampires. Heaven forbid I dress as an actual vampire. I don’t have an un-Death-wish.” Harry rolled his eyes at her, a roguish smile on his face. He took the plastic teeth from his mouth and put them back in his jacket. They were far too uncomfortable to wear before they left the house. He looked her up and down, frowning. “Where’s your costume?”
Hermione picked uncomfortably at her blue and white gingham dress. It had a heart shaped bodice that was perhaps a little too tight but showed off her curves and cleavage well. It’s a-line skirt fell to just above her knees and was made of smooth satin. She wore fishnet stockings with a black garter in her left thigh and had a pair of 4-inch-high glittery Ruby slippers on her feet. Her hair was pulled up into a half-do, with the top half of her hair tied with a small blue and white checked bow. Her make up was natural, but her lips were painted blood red.
“I’m supposed to be Dorothy. The shoes have actual rubies on them, I had Ginny collect them from Italy for me when the Harpies played there last month.” Hermione resisted the urge to rub at the Mudblood scar on her left arm. Even eleven years later, it still looked as fresh as the day she received it. As did the small scar on her neck where she was held at knifepoint. “I wasn’t sure whether or not to wear sleeves and a choker, as we’re going out into the Muggle world later, but Ginny said that the Muggles might not even notice. She said they’d think it’s part of my costume.”
Harry gave her a soft smile and leaned over to squeeze her hand. He knew her scars didn’t bother her anymore, but she hated the looks she got whenever she ventured into the Muggle world. Glamours didn’t hide her scars as they were inflicted with dark magic and cursed blades, so she usually covered up to avoid the stars. In the Wizarding world, she wore her scars with pride as everyone knew the story, so didn’t stare as much anymore.
“Well, I think you’re the sexist Dorothy I’ve ever seen.” Harry waggled his eyebrows at her, earning a giggle. He looked behind him at the Muggle clock that hung on the wall. “We should probably wake Lily soon so we can take them trick-or-treating.”
“That’s a very good idea, Mr Porter.” Hermione said as she stood onto her feet. She took her wand out from where it was hidden under neath her skirt and cast a stabilising and cushioning charm on her shoes as she started to wobble.
“I do tend to have some good ideas, Mrs Potter,” Harry winked at her. He stood as well and pulled his wife close to him. He pressed a tender kiss to her lips. “I have some ideas too for when the kids are at Molly’s.”
“Oh yeah? Such as?” Hermione pulled him even closer and gave him a long, lingering kiss. He tried to deepen it by licking her lips with his tongue but was interrupted by James and Albus making gagging noises behind them.
“Oh gross!” James said as he covered his and Albus’ eyes. “You shouldn’t be kissing! Yuck!”
Hermione rolled her eyes but kept a smile on her face. The boys had managed to keep clean while they played in the garden but had clearly become impatient as they wanted to trick-or-treat as quickly as they could.
“Let me go and get Lily, then we can go trick-or-treating before you sleep at Grandma Molly’s tonight.” Hermione said to her boys. She ruffled their hair affectionately as she walked past, earning an indignant cry from James and a giggle from Albus
oOoOoOo
Hermione placed a wreath of fresh white lilies at the grave of Lily Potter as soon as she and Harry apparated to the graveyard. They had their own designated apparition spot underneath a willow tree, so nobody could see them as they arrived. On James’ grave, Harry placed a slice of treacle tart that Hermione had made the day before. Sirius’ grave had an offering of 30- year aged Ogden’s Finest Firewhiskey in his favourite crystal tumbler. Remus received a bar of Honeyduke’s Finest Milk chocolate, and Tonks received a slice of Molly Weasley’s famous pumpkin. Tonks didn’t usually show up whenever Harry and Hermione visited on Halloween, but they never let her go without.
On the first Halloween they celebrated together after the war, Tonks told them that she felt like she was intruding as Halloween held powerful memories for the Potter family. Harry told her it was ridiculous but still respected her wishes. She appeared at every other event, so it wasn’t like she didn’t want to say hello to them.
“Ready?” Harry asked as he took the Resurrection Stone from his pocket. He still had the Muggle vampire fangs in, hoping to get a laugh from Sirius and his dad at the sight of them. Hermione nodded, stepping back to allow their spirits room to appear. Harry took a deep breath then turned the Stone thrice in his hand.
“Happy Halloween!” Came Sirius’ cheerful, booming voice. “Is that 30-year aged? You both spoil me!”
“Happy Halloween, Padfoot,” Hermione smiled at him as he tried to pick up the crystal tumbler, despite knowing that he couldn’t touch anything in the mortal realm. “Happy Halloween Prongs, Moony, Lily. I hope you like your offerings.”
“Thanks, Mione,” Lily smiled, stroking one of the lily petals with her fingers. “I love your costume. Dorothy, right?”
“Yep. Ginny helped me with the shoes. Harry’s a muggle vampire.” Hermione rolled her eyes at her husband, who grinned at them all to show off his plastic teeth. “He’s been unbearable while we’ve been out.”
“I’ll have you know that the kids loved it.” Harry puffed out his chest in pride before he took the fake teeth out of his mouth. He vanished them back to the bathroom at Grimmauld Place. “None of the other parents dress up when they take their children trick-or-treating, so all the muggle kids loved me playing up the role.”
“I bet you did wonderfully, Prongslet.” James winked at him. “Cheers for the tart, Hermione.”
“You’re welcome. I’m sure Harry will eat it later.” Hermione smirked as she glanced sideways at Harry. He had eaten the rest of the treacle tart earlier in the day.
“Tonks says thank you for the pie,” Remus offered her a bright smile. He perched on the top of his own headstone. “How has your Halloween been with the pups?”
Hermione rolled her eyes and sat down on a blanket she had conjured onto the grass. She pulled off her shoes and groaned in relief. No matter how many charms she used, her feet still ached once the offending items came off. Harry laughed and joined her on the blanket. He took one of her feet in his hands and gently began to rub the aches away.
“James has become a wee bit obsessed with a certain film about a boy who doesn’t age,” Harry said to them, watching in satisfaction as Hermione’s head rolled backwards in her pleasure. “He’s been trying to fly by jumping off the back of the sofa.”
“We dressed Lily as Tinkerbell, so James thought it would be funny to pretend that the glitter from his arts and crafts box was her fairy dust,” Hermione said, biting back a moan as Harry pressed harder on the ball of her foot. “I had to make him run around in the garden with Albus to burn off some of his energy before we went trick-or-treating.”
“Albus was a pumpkin. Picked it out all by himself when Hermione took him to Tesco earlier in the month.” Harry said to them as he moved onto her other food. Hermione was practically laying down now, unable to hold herself up by the elbows at the attention Harry was giving her feet. He had a wonderful way with his hands.
“Are they at Molly’s tonight?” Sirius asked, smiling smugly at the couple on the ground.
He loved how Harry and Hermione included them in their yearly traditions, even though the couple knew that they could do no more than appear when the Resurrection Stone was used. It meant a lot to James and Lily too, as they were able to be involved in their son and grandchildren’s lives as best they could. If only they had the foresight to sit for a Portrait before their death, then they could see the young family whenever they wanted. Remus and Tonks were also happy, as they got updates on how their son Teddy was doing.
“Yeah, Molly’s got the whole gang tonight. Merlin knows how Arthur’s going to handle it all,” Harry sniggered. Arthur loved the grandchildren dearly, he really did, but he got overwhelmed too easily and often disappeared into his shed once it reached a certain time. “George is hosting the Halloween party this year, so we’re going to go once we’re ready.”
“Once Hermione’s had time to get the feeling back in her feet you mean.” Lily said with a laugh.
“Too right. I don’t know why I let Ginny talk me into getting these shoes. They’re a death wish.” Hermione groaned, closing her eyes as she tilted her head back once more. “I’m tempted to just go barefoot. We’re at George’s house, and it’s not like anyone is going to be there that I have to impress. They’ve all seen me at various stages of being drunk. I’m just going to skip a few so that I already arrive with my shoes off.”
“I somehow don’t think that Ginevra is going to appreciate that, after all that she’s done to help you out.” Remus pointed out. Hermione groaned again, knowing that he was right. Ginny would take one look at her feet then spend about an hour demanding her to put her shoes back on. The two women were as stubborn as each other.
In the distance, the church clock struck midnight. Its loud bells ran twelve times before coming to a stop. The graveyard remained quiet as the family soaked up the suddenly melancholy atmosphere.
It was never easy to say goodbye.
They never had long with each other, they didn’t like to push the Resurrection Stone’s limits beyond an hour. It Hermione’s idea, after reading the story of the Deathly Hallows one too many times and not wanting to end up like the Second brother.
“Don’t worry, you’ll see us next week.” James said to them as Harry helped Hermione put her shoes back on.
“Yeah, you’ve got to come back for my birthday! Do I get presents this time?” Sirius asked excitedly. Harry knew that if he was in his Padfoot form, his tail would be wagging madly.
“We’ll see what we can do.” Hermione said to him with a laugh as Harry helped her on to her feet.
“I’ll pass your love onto Teddy,” Harry told Remus. Hermione began to fold away the blanket before vanishing it back to Grimmauld Place. She hoped that it appeared back onto the sofa, but her vanishing charms were never accurate.
“Thank you.”
“Happy Halloween Harry, Hermione. Enjoy your party.” Lily smiled at them. Hermione brushed off the skirt of her dress as Harry pulled out the collar of his ruffled shirt. He then fiddled with the ruffled sleeves as he tried to pull them out of his jacket sleeves to make it more comfortable.
“Thank you. I’m sure Hermione is about to get inappropriately sloshed.” Harry winked at his parents.
“No worse than how you were after Halloween last year.” Hermione pointed out to her husband.
“Nah, I wasn’t that bad. You only think so because you couldn’t drink because of Lily.”
“Pot-ay-to, Pot-ah-to.” Hermione winked at Harry. She heaved a heavy sigh as she smiled at the ghostly apparitions in front of them. “Happy Halloween. We’ll see you next week for Sirius’ birthday.”
“Happy Halloween, kitten.”
Sirius winked at her. Remus and Lily smiled at the both of them. The last thing they heard was James’ deep laugh as they vanished.
“Are you ready?” Harry asked Hermione, offering her his hand to take. She took it and swung their hands between them as they made their way to the Willow tree to apparate to George’s Halloween Party.
“Yes, Harry. Let’s go and party.”