Date: October 31st, 1991 / Samhain (Saw-wn)/ All Hallows Eve
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This being human is a guest house.
Every morning a new arrival.
A joy, a depression, a meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor.
-"The Guest House", Rumi
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Tonight was the night of the ritual . Each member who was going to participate, was to bring a little bit of what they ate at dinner to the celebration, as an offering to those they lost. A meal to share with the dead. Then, they would perform a cleansing rite to wipe clean anything that would cause harm to their minds and spirits. They had arranged to meet at the entrance of one of the secret passages, courtesy of the twins, and from there go into the Forbidden Forest- away from the prying eyes of Dumbledore of course- to a secluded clearing and set up.
Hadrian had witnessed this particular ritual done by his mother several times, but had only done the cleansing part once before. Both Draco and Blaise had performed the full ritual themselves with their families. He was confident that with their help, this would go off perfectly.
But, that didn’t stop a little trickle of worry about what would happen if they did this wrong.
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“Are you ready for this, Harry?” Ron asked, as they walked towards the Forbidden Forest. They stuck to the shadows and placed a Silencing Charm on themselves, to keep their footsteps quiet. They thanked Hermione profusely after she taught them how to do it.
“I’m ready. It’ll be a good thing for me, I think.” He replied with a sigh. Ron just patted him on the back and nodded.
There wasn’t any need for words or conversations tonight.
As the trees began to loom over them, they were joined by Draco, Blaise, Marcus, and Theo. The four boys were wearing dark cloaks and carrying their own bags of salts, candles, and communion food. They grinned as they fell into line with Harry and Ron, a sort of giddy comradery passing through all of them. Marcus lit up the path with a bright Lumos as he led them to the clearing they chose. Hermione joined them with a quiet ‘Hello’, walking next to Draco and Theo.
When they reached the clearing, they all broke off to set up for the ritual. Marcus shrugged off his cloak, hanging it on a low branch of a nearby tree before gathering wood for the fire. Ron, Blaise, and Hermione began to line out circles with the salts, Theo followed them with candles, placing them around the circles. Harry and Draco prepared white clay and herbs to write runes on everyone. Marcus returned shortly with a large bundle of sticks with three more people following him. It was Daphne and the twins.
“Pansy decided to go home to do the ritual with her family.” Daphne greeted, shrugged off her own cloak.
"That's alright, ten's a good number still." Hermione replied, finishing up her circle. Blaise and Ron weren't far behind her and helped Marcus with the fire after they were done.
Draco collected everyone's cloaks, using his magic to fold them all up neatly on a log before taking his place in one of the circles. One by one they surrounded the fire, each within a circle of salt and ash, facing one another and holding hands. Harry stood between Draco and Ron, with Hermione and Blaise on the other sides of them and Theo, Marcus, and Daphne rounding them out. The oldest boy stood across from Harry and sent him a small smile as they began the ritual. He smiled back.
"Under the full moon of Samhain, we are here to honor our loved ones who are no longer with us…" Daphne began, facing the sky as she spoke.
Draco continued, with his head also tilted to the sky.
"...we call upon them to celebrate with us and to enjoy the feast we have prepared for them…" The moon illuminated his porcelain features making him glow under the light. Daphne had a similar glow, the both of them looking ethereal.
"...we ask and seek the goddess Selene, for good tidings and for renewal tonight…" Hermione said.
"...we humbly ask for your blessing and to help guide our ancestors to us…" Ron.
"...and to keep those lost safe on this auspicious night…" Theo.
"...we bring offerings for you and for Death…" George.
"...for this night belongs to you both…" Fred.
"...with these gifts, we honor you…" Marcus.
"...with these words, we honor you. So it is said, so it is done." Harry finished.
A warm breeze passed over his body and instinctively, he knew that he was glowing like the rest of them. He felt invigorated, his mind was clear and his magic was alight inside of him, swirling and pressing against his bones. He breathed in deeply, feeling connected to the earth and his friends and the sky. And then, he felt it.
A presence. A couple of them.
Harry languidly opened his eyes, feeling like he'd just woken up from a long nap, and looked around to see ghostly figures appearing from the woods.
A tall, elegant man with long blonde hair and aristocratic features stopped in front of Draco. He touched the boy's shoulder lightly, and smiled down at him.
Similarly, another man appeared, this time a lot older, walked over to Hermione with a large grin. He was carrying a small book in one hand and a cane in the other, but Harry could clearly see the resemblance between them.
As each spirit appeared, the wizards and witches tossed a little bag which contained their offering into the fire and the ghostly beings became more and more tangible until they solidified.
Harry knew when it was his turn. He could feel his magic react to the sight of his parents coming into the clearing; the sight of them, together and looking so young, made his eyes burn with oncoming tears. They immediately rushed over to him as he threw the bag into the fire and hugged him tightly.
"My beautiful boy." Lily cried, arms wrapped around him and his father.
"He's almost a man now, Lil's, I don't know if I'd call him a boy anymore." James laughed, wiping his eyes as they pulled away slightly.
Harry could see why his mama told him he looked like them. There were parts of their features he could see in his own reflection; the shape of his mother's eyes, his father's hair and skin color, the way his mother smiled, and so on. It made him feel even more connected to them than ever.
Lily elbowed James in the ribs and hushed him.
"He'll always be my baby." She replied, pulling Harry even closer to her. The boy just smiled and embraced her back as James grinned cheekily back at them.
"You've grown up to be a fine young wizard, Harry." James said, running a hand over his head. "We've missed you so much, I hope you know."
Lily nodded.
"We've been keeping watch over you, but Cecily has been doing us proud at raising you. With the help of Severus and Remus, of course." She said. Her smile held a set of dimples on each side like his that made her look even more endearing.
"I've missed you too. I mean, I've grown up on stories of you, but I'm glad I'm old enough to do this, to see you both. I don't think I've been happier in my life." Harry stated, tears slipping from his eyes as they held him tightly again.
When they pulled away, his parents looked around at the others, who were also visiting with their own people. Harry knew that this could be dangerous for him, for his identity, but he trusted his friends enough to let them know who he really was. As if they were reading his mind, Ron and Draco looked over at him and gaped.
"Merlin's beard! Those are the Potters!" Theo exclaimed, bringing everyone's attention to Harry.
Daphne and the twins looked equally as shocked at the sight of them all together and Harry could see them putting the pieces together.
Could see the gears turning in their heads as they realized that he was, in fact, the 'Boy-Who-Lived'.
Collecting his wits and clearing his voice, Harry spoke.
"I've been waiting to tell you all, but it's a little obvious. To answer your questions, yes, I am who you think I am, but I'm also not. I, legally as Magic and the government decrees, Hadrian James Graemark, but before that, 10 years ago, I was Harry James Potter." He announced, anxiously looking around at his friends and their family.
He waited a baited breath before he was surrounded.