From Hogwarts to Strixhaven.

Chapter 296 Harry Potter's Journey into the Spirit World

There is only darkness.

Ivy's smiling face still remained in Harry's vision.

How kind he is!
He called his name affectionately, reminded him of things to pay attention to after his death affectionately, and wanted me to say hello to his parents on his behalf.

Who could have expected that someone with such a friendly smile could release a killing curse from his eyes!
Harry didn't even see his mouth change beyond a smile, just a flash of green light flashed from his eyes, and then everything was gone.

Harry felt his body falling into the cold darkness for a long time before he realized that he was dead.

There was no sound, and even the existence of his own body was vague.

Is this the afterlife? Just cold darkness? Nothing else?

Ivy was so wrong. There was no afterlife. He might not even be able to find his parents...

Harry felt sorry for himself for a while, and suddenly felt that he should try Ivy's suggestion.

Think of your parents in your mind - a tall, thin man with very stubborn hair, who looks exactly like you, and of course, also wears glasses, that is Harry's father, James Potter. And the mother with red hair and a kind smile forever, she is really the most beautiful mother in the world, Lily Potter.

Where should I find them?
As soon as this question popped up in Harry's mind, he felt his falling stopped and he felt touch on his back. He should be lying on the surface of something. No, he was definitely lying on the floor of a building. He could feel the gaps between the tiles on his back.

However, it was still pitch black before his eyes.

Did I not open my eyes?

Harry thought, and strained to open his eyes.

A flash of white light stabbed him.

Oh, I opened my eyes too fast.

Harry quickly closed his eyes again and then carefully opened one.

This is a pure white space, and there seems to be a little fog in the air.

He touched the floor tiles beneath him and found them quite rough.

Harry then realized that he was naked.

It’s no big deal. Everyone is naked when they come into this world, and it should be the same when they die.

But when he thought about meeting his parents and even a girl of the same age, Harry still hoped that he could put on clothes.

A robe appeared on the ground not far away, within reach.

Amazing……

Harry thought silently.

As Ivy speculated, change here relies on thought.

Harry noticed that the robe on the ground was the golden and red school robe of Gryffindor, the one he was most familiar with.

He took it and put it on, just like he did in school, which made him feel at ease and comfortable.

Harry stood up and began to look around. The mist in the air dissipated, allowing him to see the surroundings clearly.

It's a station.

He took the train once a year, returning from Hogwarts to the platform at King's Cross Station.

Usually from here unless it meant he had to go back to the Dursleys, but that had changed in the last year. His godfather had been cleared, and he had somewhere new to go. Somewhere where people actually cared about him.

He had already made an appointment with Sirius this summer and was going to help Sirius rent a house on Privet Drive, preferably right opposite the Dursleys' house.

In this way, if Harry was treated unfairly, Sirius could arrive immediately.

In fact, he didn't plan to stay at the Dursleys' house for long, not even to eat with them. He and Sirius could go out for a fast food meal, or try all kinds of Muggle convenience foods, pizza should be interesting.

Anyway, as long as I could sleep at the Dursleys' at night, a month wouldn't be too hard to endure.

Harry was still thinking about the summer vacation when a train whirred into the station puffing steam.

It was the Hogwarts Express, which Harry was very familiar with.

Where was this train going? Harry couldn't help but start to wonder.

Platform nine and three quarters? Central London?
"Jingle Bell--"

There was a ringing sound on the Hogwarts Express, as if urging Harry to get on the train quickly.

Harry shuddered, then jumped up, holding onto the door handle.

The carriage shook slightly and started moving with the whistle sounding.

Traveling on a train alone was a very novel experience. The carriage was quiet. There were no excited classmates or fat witches selling snacks. All the private rooms belonged to Harry himself.

Instead of looking out the window, he began to wonder if the train had a driver.

If so, he wanted to know where the train ended and whether it could take him to Godric's Hollow.

As soon as he jumped on the train, Harry realized that he had only seen his parents in Godric's Hollow.

Whether it was when he was a child with no memories, or in Professor Victor's level in the first grade.

Harry did a lot of training this year, and Professor Dumbledore explained to him how Voldemort was still alive and gave him back a piece of his memory.

He remembered dying over and over again in Professor Victor's fantasy world, and that cozy little house.

That cottage was where his parents lived, and it was in Godric's Hollow. If Harry was thinking of where he could see them, this was the only place he could think of.

Walking along the straight aisle, Harry passed through several carriages and saw the door leading to the driver's cab.

It is no different from the door between carriages and also has a glass window.

Harry craned his neck and looked around for a few times, but he didn't see the driver, but he also didn't see the instruments or seat in the cab.

Just as he put his hand on the door handle, he suddenly felt the train vibrate and begin to slow down.

He looked out the window and saw that it was snowing outside for some reason.

The Hogwarts Express slowly came to a stop. There was no platform, it was more like a square.

This is Godric's Hollow.

Harry swallowed madly as he spotted the familiar statue in the square.

The door of the carriage opened, and Harry, ignoring the probably nonexistent train driver, leaped out onto the square and sprinted towards the Potter Cottage.

The streets were exactly as he remembered them, with Halloween decorations everywhere.

Harry was afraid that he would encounter a figure hidden in a black cloak and cast the second Killing Curse of the day on him.

The lights in the Potter's house were still on, shining a warm light on Harry's face.

He looked around suspiciously but didn't see any suspicious shadows.

Mom and Dad are in there.

Harry's eyes passed over the iron fence in front of the courtyard and fell on the glass of the restaurant. He was eager to see his parents' faces appear inside.

Just standing at the door like that is not the way to go!
Harry raised his hand to knock on the door. He paused in mid-air. My parents are in the house. This is my own home. So why should I knock?

Harry pushed open the iron gate and met the eyes of the woman who walked out.

"Harry!"

Harry heard his mother yell.

She has a lovely voice, Harry thought.

But his legs were faster than he was, and he jumped into his mother's arms in almost the blink of an eye.

"I miss you so much, Mom..." Harry heard himself choking.

"You've grown up, Harry." Lily Potter stroked her son's back. "But this is the spirit world... How did you end up here?"

"Because I'm dead." Harry was afraid that his mother would worry, so he added, "It's temporary, just to see you...where's my dad?"

"This is the spirit world, the place after death..." Lily Potter recalled, "I don't remember whether I have seen him or not, nor do I remember how long I have stayed here, but this place makes me feel peaceful. But I also know that this is not a place for the living to come."

"Living people?" Harry raised his head from his mother's arms. "But I'm already dead... killed by the Killing Curse... I came here to ask if you are willing to be resurrected. Where is my father? Is he in the house? Let me see him!"

"This is the spirit world, Harry. It is very difficult for two souls to meet..." Lily shook her head, her red hair swaying. She was still as young and beautiful as she was more than ten years ago, as if time had not had any effect on her.

"What are you talking about, Mom?" Harry looked at his mother strangely, "Aren't we in Godric's Hollow? This is Potter Cottage! I ran so far just to find you!"

"Oh - child, the rules of the spirit world are not like this... The scenes seen by two souls are different." Lily tucked a strand of red hair behind her ear and explained to her son carefully, "When I first came here, I always saw scenes from the past, the street where I was born, the big tree where I played with Severus, and Godric's Hollow... But I have never seen Hogwarts. I don't know why... Maybe only ghosts can stay in Hogwarts?"

"In my eyes, this is a wilderness." Lily stretched out her arm and passed through the brick wall beside her, "and you appeared from the mist of the wilderness. I have never seen anyone else here... Oh, maybe I have seen James once or twice, and even Severus? Anyway, I don't remember much. You are so old now, so I must have been dead for a long time? The spirit world is different from the world we used to live in. It makes people feel more peaceful here."

"Then are you willing to come back?" Harry couldn't quite understand what his mother meant, but he couldn't wait to ask again, "I mean, resurrection. I have a friend with great magical powers who can bring the dead back to life, as long as you are willing... He also asked me to say hello to you on his behalf!"

"Just for this? Harry?" Lily laughed. "You only died once?"

"Not only for this, but also to destroy Voldemort." Harry was a little embarrassed. In the afterlife, or in his mother's words, the spirit world, what he imagined and what he saw were completely two completely different concepts. He thought he would be welcomed by his parents, after all, he saw his former home with his own eyes.

But there is only mother here, no father.

Even the house... The house behind his mother disappeared, replaced by a vast wilderness. There were some grass-like plants on the ground, all shining with bright light. He saw the scene in his mother's eyes. Perhaps this was the real spiritual world.

Harry shook his head and continued to explain to his mother: "Your love protected me. It rebounded Voldemort's killing curse and turned him into a shadow and wandering soul. But he made many Horcruxes in advance, so he did not die. Instead, because of his unstable soul, he lost a fragment, which happened to be attached to my forehead."

Harry touched his forehead and found that the scar that always hurt was gone.

"So I have to die once to make Voldemort truly die." Harry continued to explain, "So the main purpose is to remove Voldemort's soul fragments, and by the way, ask about your willingness to resurrect..."

Seeing that his mother had understood, Harry continued to ask, "Are you willing to come back to me, Mom? If Dad agrees, we can be reunited again!"

"Resurrection?" Lily shook her head. "This miraculous magic must have a price, right? What is it?"

"Gold Galleons!" Harry blurted out, "Sirius will help pay! He inherited all the Black family fortune... He is my godfather, do you remember? Of course... I don't think it can be taken for free... We will find a way to pay him back! Someone will also resurrect Sirius, his brother! His name is Regulus, who also died for resisting Voldemort... And Professor Dumbledore's sister. I'm not only here to find you, I have to find them too!"

Harry looked up at the sky, trying to find some reference to time, but there was neither the sun nor the moon, nor even stars. Harry could see nothing except a layer of gray fog.

"I don't know how much time I have..." Harry begged, "Promise me, okay? Promise me, Mom! I miss you so much..."

Lily still had that faint smile on her face, but with a slightly distressed look. Her green eyes stared at Harry for a while before she gave up: "I promise you, kid."

"Great!" Harry cheered. "I'll go find Dad right now! I know how to find him! It won't be long before we can be reunited in the real world!"

Harry's heart was beating wildly at his mother's promise to be resurrected. His thoughts were flying everywhere and he was extremely excited.

Almost immediately he turned around and saw his father. Just like what Harry had seen in the Mirror of Erised, his father looked unchanged.

"Dad!" Harry shouted in surprise, and then quickly turned around to find his mother, "Mom, look! Dad is here..."

There was nothing behind him except the unchanging wilderness.

"Harry!" James Potter shouted excitedly, "You've grown taller! And bigger! Good God! Why do I see you here?"

James soon came up with the answer: "You...you died too?"

"No, not yet." Harry explained quickly, "I came here specifically to see you. I've just seen my mother, and she promised to be resurrected! Can you promise me too?"

"Resurrection?" James asked in surprise.

"Yes, I have a friend with great powers..." Harry felt that he had to explain it again. When he thought about the two complete strangers behind him, his mouth became dry.

However, James's reaction was completely different from Lily's.

He happily, almost eagerly agreed: "Sure! Why not?"

This stopped Harry from finishing his words and made him confused - why were there such huge differences between parents when it came to the same attitude towards resurrection?

"Who would turn down the chance to be reunited with his wife and son?" James smiled widely. "Sirius must still be alive? I've never seen him here!"

"Yes... He is my godfather... He was just exonerated from Azkaban a year ago and is now a professor at Hogwarts." Harry stammered to explain Sirius's recent situation, then asked his own doubts, "Have you seen anyone else here?"

"Yes! But we were only far away from each other, and I'm not sure who they are, but I think people who are close to each other will recognize each other." James nodded and said, "I've only seen your mother several times, but she... I'm not sure. Since we can reunite in the real world, let's forget about it! When can we be resurrected?"

"It should be possible to resurrect only one person at a time... But don't worry, everyone will be back soon." Harry hurriedly ended the topic, "Since you have agreed, I will go find others, including Sirius's brother and Professor Dumbledore's sister."

"See you later!" As if James could see that Harry was in a hurry, he didn't ask any more questions, but just laughed and waved goodbye.

Watching his father's figure quickly disappear in the mist, Harry calmed down. At least his parents agreed to be resurrected, which was the best outcome for him.

He set his next target on Sirius's younger brother Regulus. Since he was the godfather's younger brother, he was more or less a relative, right?

Anyway, she is definitely closer than the principal's sister.

Harry began to recall Regulus's appearance in his mind, and then concentrated all his attention on thinking: "I want to see Regulus Black!"

"who are you?"

Harry heard someone talking in his ear and realized that he had succeeded.

"I am the godson of your brother Sirius." This was the first thing Harry said when he opened his eyes.

Regulus looked basically the same as Sirius remembered him, still wearing the uniform of the Slytherin Quidditch team.

"Godson?" Regulus snorted. "Is it that Potter? You died too? It seems that you are not the nemesis of the Dark Lord at all."

"No, I'm not." Harry smiled, "But Voldemort's Horcruxes are almost all destroyed."

"All of them?" Regulus looked skeptical. "He made more than one Horcrux?"

"Yes, he originally intended to make six, but I am the seventh Horcrux," Harry explained. "The Killing Curse he shot at me was rebounded, and a piece of the split soul landed on me."

"Living Horcrux?" Regulus's expression relaxed a lot. "We are all the same. We sacrificed ourselves to stop Voldemort's ambition."

"Now we have a chance to be resurrected." Harry said quickly, "Someone found the fake Horcrux you hid in the cave, and got the real one from Kreacher. Now it has been destroyed. Your sacrifice was not in vain..."

The expression on Regulus' face relaxed a little.

Harry struck while the iron was hot and said, "Kreacher is still waiting for you at Number 12, Grimmauld Place... When I got there, it was totally uninhabitable! Mrs. Black's portrait was permanently stuck to the wall of the entrance hall by a sticking spell, and we had to tear down the entire wall to stop her crazy screams..."

"Stop talking! I want to see for myself what you have done to my house!" Harry could see Regulus gritting his teeth.

(End of this chapter)