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Inside an enormous castle that resided fifty miles outside of Madison, Wisconsin, something significant was happening. All artificial lights had been extinguished—only candles illuminated with ectoplasmic energy provided any light. Currently, the massive castle was in the midst of meticulous cleaning. This wasn't a standard cleaning.
Yes, inside this residence, they did meticulous cleanings every other weekend because the master of the castle's wife and three children had weakened immune systems. Thus, they had to make the castle as germ-free as possible. They also had to do it with this because of the family's secret hybrid nature. However, this cleaning had nothing to do with the family's health concerns.
Magdalene Masters' best friend, Leta, was Jewish. The biracial woman always celebrated her theological holidays with her best friend's family since it was challenging to return to her hometown, Meridian, Idaho, to observe them with her kin. For as long as the Masters family could remember, they celebrated with their 'Aunt Leta' whenever her holidays came around. Likewise, she joined them for their holidays as Mag's family were devout Christians.
Mag and Leta had been doing this their entire lives. So for them, it remained wonderful to keep upholding their tradition. Right now, the castle staff was doing a thorough cleaning to remove any leavened food or chametz. During the week of Passover, anything with chametz must be removed from the household. So any item containing leaven had to be removed during the search, known as bedikat chametz.
This was traditionally done by candlelight and employing a feather. However, Leta was alright with her friends utilizing their ghost energy to light the candles. Since she'd recently become half-ghost herself, she didn't see the harm. Removing the leaven was essential, not how the candles were ignited. Mag, using her ghostly energy, went to the kitchen to see how the traditional Seder plate was coming along. The Seder plate was the customary meal served on the first night of Passover.
"Hello, how is everything going?" the ravishing young woman questioned her chef. Her chef looked up in surprise and essentially tripped over their own feet.
"Mrs. Masters! We weren't expecting you so soon!" her chef replied in slight alarm. Mag suspected the lack of proper lighting might have also spooked the cook.
"I still have an hour before I need to pick up my children from school," she coolly reminded the kitchen staff. "I came to ask how the Seder is coming along. You've all the proper food, correct?"
The chef showed the woman they had all seven traditional foods: maror, chazeret, charoset, karpas, zeroah, beitzah, three matzot, and salt water. They also made turkey, duck, and fish with scales since they were kosher. "What type of wine has been selected? Since we require wine to celebrate as well. I know we've plenty of grape juice for the children since that's permissible. However, what about the wine?"
"We've gotten enough bottles of Patrón Silver Tequilas for the adults. Therefore, it'd be best if you didn't agonize concerning that. We promise everything will be prepared when the children's godmother comes to celebrate. So, don't fret, Mrs. Masters."
"I hope I can count on you to fulfill your promises. It's crucial to my 'sister' that she has loved ones to celebrate her faith with," their female employer stressed.
"We won't disappoint you, Mrs. Masters, we promise," the kitchen staff assured her.
"Thank you," she said as she exited the kitchen. Then, taking out her smartphone, she phoned her husband, Vlad. She reminded him that he'd take the week off of work. Since during Passover, one must refrain from working. He assured her he remembered. He also reminded her she needed to have the appropriate flower arrangement. Moreover, ensure the children's attire consists of red, blue, green, and white.
She confirmed that she'd ensure their weekly garments followed the dress code. But, for now, she needed to pick up the kids from school. Plus, remind their schools they'd not be attending for the week of Passover, as was the custom. The children were slightly cranky when she picked them up from their schools in the Ghost Zone. However, she knew none had slept well the night before, so she didn't mind it.
Once they returned home, she turned to face them. "Alright, I want to be clear. You'll be on your best behavior when your aunt arrives tomorrow. You know how essential it is to celebrate with her family," Mag began sternly when her middle child and only son spoke up.
"We know, Mom. As the firstborn son, I must celebrate the Fast of the Firstborn. Since I'm the only boy in this family, and Aunt Leta doesn't have a son. Only her newborn daughter, Rainbow," Danny readily replied.
His mother smiled thoughtfully at him, "Correct, Danny. Now Danielle? Do you remember what is required of you?" Mag questioned her youngest, who nodded.
Danielle nodded before quickly replying, "I will ask the four questions. I must say Mah Nishtana HaLeila HaZeh. (Why is this night different from all other nights?). These questions encourage the gathering to discuss the significance of the symbols in the meal.
The questions I'm to ask are the following. First, why is this night different from all other nights? On all other nights, we eat either unleavened or leavened bread, but tonight we eat only unleavened bread.
On all other nights, we eat all kinds of vegetables, but tonight, we eat only bitter herbs? On all other nights, we do not dip [our food] even once, but tonight we dip twice? On all other nights, we eat either sitting or reclining, but tonight we only recline?"
"Jazz, are you prepared to read the story of Passover? Aunt Leta picked you to read it because you articulate so well. So are you prepared to read it?" Mag questioned her eldest child. The redhead tossed her long hair over her shoulder before replying.
"Yes, Mom. As I've done every year before, I'll do my assigned duty." her eldest assured her. Jazz remained quite proud of her yearly commitment.
"That's good to know. I'm confident you'll do your aunt proud. Now, I also want to stress we must do our most acceptable to keep our ghostly halves under control. Not that its against religion or anything. However, your Aunt Leta regards it more respectful if we remain as human as possible during the dinner. So let's get to it!"
The next night their Aunt Leta, her wife, and her child showed up. She greeted them in Hebrew, which they returned in the same language. She glanced around and acknowledged they'd done a fantastic job of preparing the castle for the holiday. Once Leta was settled into her bedroom and put her daughter down for a nap, she returned. "I'm so delighted with how far you'll go for me, Mag. It's an honor and blessing to blend our cultures yearly!"
"Leta, you are my sister in all but blood. We've been doing this since we were children. I'm honored to continue it with my own family. Besides, given the state of the world? I want to do everything possible to establish that some individuals are not racist bigots. We appreciate and will not disrespect your faith or allow you to be persecuted for being who you are."
The light black-skinned woman embraced her best friend tightly. Leta didn't have it easy with her father being African-American and her mother white and Jewish. Also, some individuals didn't like her being part of the LGBTQ community. However, knowing her parents and chosen family loved her for who she was made her day.
So the week-long celebration went swimmingly. She praised her best friend's children for their improvement in speaking Hebrew. By the end of the week, it had been a successful week, demonstrating once again how love, friendship, and family were the greatest blessing from God. And how it's wonderful to share it with everyone!