Confident | Fred Weasley

Chapter 96 | Taboo

Sarah started off October with decorating the house. She put a couple of Weasley Wizarding Wheezes' Glow in the dark Jack-O'-Lanterns on the front porch. She also hung some autumnal bunting across the fence of the porch and back garden.

The Halloween spirit was low this year, especially compared to how fun it had been last year, where they had thrown a party in the flat. She hoped the decorations might make up for what was going to be a simple, quiet Halloween.

Sarah stepped back from the bunting and admired her work. Turning to Fred, she asked, "What do you think?"

Fred looked up from where he was using his wand to rake the brown leaves away from the main path and into piles. He glanced at the decorations and nodded approvingly. He had pulled on his winter cloak as the days were getting shorter and colder. Even then, it was windy, and if it wasn't for the stasis charm on the pile of leaves, they would have all blown away.

"Looks good," He answered, "I like how you stacked the jack-o'-lanterns. That's a nice touch, actually. We should have done that at the shop."

"Thanks!" Sarah replied cheerfully, "Need some help with those leaves?"

"Please."

Sarah waved her wand steadily over stray leaves, sending them to the large pile that Fred had already amassed. The couple were in comfortable silence for a while, Sarah's humming and the howling wind as their only musical accompaniment.

"What do you want to do for Halloween this year, anyway?" Fred broke the silence. So far, they had managed to clear half of the path leading to the gate.

"It's gonna be hard to top last year," Sarah responded, giggling to herself at the memory, "But we'll have to keep it small, won't we?"

Fred inclined his head slightly, "We can invite our friends around at least? They'll all have Halloween off as usual."

Sarah nodded, "That's a good idea. Let's do that. It'll be nice to see everyone."

"George and I were thinking we might do a fireworks show," Fred told her, now near the gate.

Even with the darkening sky, Fred couldn't see anyone beyond the gate, watching like they did at the shop. It filled him with relief, knowing that the location of their house was still safe.

"With the Halloween themed fireworks, I take it?" Sarah responded over the increasingly loud wind.

"Yeah," Fred responded, squinting in the dark to spot for any leftovers leaves, "Shall we burn that pile, then?"

Sarah agreed, and the couple headed back up the path to their house. The pile of leaves stood tall and eery in the evening sky.

Sarah raised her wand and quirked her eyebrows at Fred, "Together?"

"Together," Fred raised his wand.

"Incendio!"

The pile of leaves lit up with flames, painting their faces in flickering orange. The warmth of the fire was welcoming compared to the biting wind.

Fred wrapped his arm around Sarah's shoulders, noting how the orange flames reflected in her cerulean eyes. She watched the fire with a small, satisfied smile. He wondered whether they would be here next year, decorating for Halloween and burning leaves. He liked to think that they would be, perhaps planning for a more extravagant Halloween celebration.

The thought of them in the future brightened him up. The future, what Sarah said was her reason for fighting, was really starting to resonate with him, too. He was fighting for his future, the shop's future, his family's future, and most of all, his future with Sarah. He was only nineteen, after all. There was so much he had yet to do.