Ignotus Peverell

Ignotus Peverell

From the outside, this travel agency looked utterly ordinary. Its building had probably been designed by the same person as Ollivander's, though it was nowhere near as dilapidated. The gold lettering on the door still clearly read: Terror Trips.

Pushing open the door, Ryan saw the receptionist on the right, seated in a very tall chair and leaning against a marble counter. Behind them were photographs of various travel destinations: a gloomy ancient castle wreathed in lightning, a graveyard beneath the moon where rotten arms constantly stretched from the earth, the Bermuda Triangle amid raging waves, and more.

When he saw Ryan enter, the receptionist slowly rose, walked around the counter through the exit at the back, and handed him something resembling a menu along with a quill.

"Sir! Welcome to Terror Trips! It's been so long since we've had a customer come in personally! Most people make reservations by owl."

The receptionist hurriedly rattled off a long string of words. "Take a look first. If there's anything you don't know how to fill in, just ask me."

"Did it ever occur to you that I might only be here to look around?" Ryan said with a straight face, pretending to be serious.

"Then, then, you are...?" The receptionist's ears reddened with embarrassment.

"But you're in luck. I am here to travel." Before the situation could become irreparable, Ryan politely cut him off.

He walked over to a small round jujube-colored table and began examining the menu-like sheet.

"Huh, it's pretty detailed. Departure point? There are several options."

"Time, travel route, means of travel?"

"Portkeys, buses, even planes—and something as old-fashioned as carriages."

"Number of people? Two. Dining restaurant, food... so many choices. I can finally try Transylvanian—Romanian—food. But a trip alone takes nearly a week. That's a long time," Ryan inwardly complained as he looked over the dazzling menu.

"Here. July 1st to the 11th, and the departure point will be Godric's Hollow. Take a careful look." Ryan handed it over after filling it out.

"Mm, all right, let me see. Two people? Fifty Galleons. Including the restaurant, the total comes to one hundred Galleons. You'll need to pay sixty Galleons as a deposit first, and the remaining forty after you return," the receptionist said.

"So I just need to be there at six in the evening on July 1st, right?" Ryan casually asked as he took sixty Galleons from a bag enchanted with an Undetectable Extension Charm.

"You'll need these too. There are Muggles at the departure point in Godric's Hollow, so we'll be posing as an ordinary travel agency. Once you see these little flags, we'll come pick you up." After counting the coins, the receptionist took out two small flags printed with skulls from behind the counter. "It's the birthplace of the Boy Who Lived, and the Potter family's old home is there too. You can arrive early. Only wizards can see it."

Not bad. That's exactly why I chose this departure point. At Godric's Hollow, I can take a car. When the time comes, it'll just be Kate and me, so we won't have to ride the bus with other tourists. A trip for just the two of us—but naturally, it costs much more, Ryan thought.

Godric's Hollow had been named after Godric Gryffindor, one of Hogwarts' founders, who had been born there, and it was also the final resting place of at least one member of the Peverell family.

If Ryan had guessed correctly, it could also be considered the ancestral home of the Smith Family.

After the International Statute of Secrecy was signed and put into effect in 1689, Godric's Hollow had become one of the villages with a relatively large wizarding population.

Many famous wizarding families had once lived here. The Dumbledore family and Bathilda Bagshot had both lived in the village.

However, the Dumbledore family had moved to Godric's Hollow after Albus Dumbledore's father, Percival, was imprisoned. At the time, Bathilda Bagshot had been their neighbor.

The local graveyard was carved with the surnames of ancient wizarding families, and Peverell was among them.

And because wizards came and went here, the little church had accumulated ghost stories for centuries.

After returning home, Ryan began writing to Kate again. He had an owl deliver the other small flag to her as well, and they arranged to meet in Godric's Hollow at eleven thirty the next day.

The next morning, Ryan went to the Forbidden Forest to train as usual. Near eleven, he returned to the castle's bathroom, washed up briefly, and put on a Wizard Robe embroidered with pockets enchanted with the Undetectable Extension Charm. They were filled with daily necessities and Muggle currency that Jack had prepared in advance.

Then he Apparated early to the center of Godric's Hollow, beside a square and a structure resembling a war memorial.

This place could not be marked on maps either. In Muggles' eyes, it was simply a war memorial, so Ryan could Apparate here openly without concern. The Muggles would think everything was perfectly normal.

There was still time, so Ryan approached the monument. It changed. It was no longer an obelisk carved with names, but became a statue of three people:

A messy-haired man wearing glasses, a beautiful and kind-looking woman with long hair, and a baby boy sitting in his mother's arms.

So this was the statue of Harry Potter's family? Following the route Harry and Hermione had taken in the original story, Ryan headed toward the church in the center.

Behind the church stood rows upon rows of gravestones, all bearing wizarding names.

Just as in the original story, the outermost ones bore the Abbott surname. They were probably relatives of Hannah Abbott. The original story had never specified where Dumbledore's mother and sister were buried, so Ryan bent down and carefully examined the inscriptions on the old gravestones.

Perseverance paid off. Ryan found them.

On a frozen, moss-speckled slab of granite was carved Kendra Dumbledore.

Beneath her birth and death dates were the words "and her daughter Ariana." There was also a motto:

Where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.

The wizarding world truly seemed to lack the custom of visiting their ancestors' graves. There were no offerings, no flowers—only loneliness.

Perhaps that had something to do with magical portraits. Aberforth spent every day with his sister's magical portrait, so why would he return to this place of sorrow? Albus Dumbledore was probably the same.

Ryan had expected to encounter some wizards, but there was not a single person around. If he had met Albus Dumbledore face-to-face here in advance, how interesting would that have been?

On a broken, moss-covered gravestone, beneath a name that was almost impossible to make out, was a triangular mark.

"This must be Ignotus's gravestone." Ryan bent down again to confirm it carefully. Then his moon-bright eyes suddenly seemed to blaze with fire.

Ryan used the Phoenix's vision. The coffin beneath the gravestone was empty.

There were no remains at all, only several silver items. Ryan reached into the air as though grasping at something, and a still-glittering necklace appeared in his hand. Opening the mechanism in the middle revealed a photograph of a young wizard with black hair and black eyes.

Dumbledore and Grindelwald had investigated this place in their youth as well. Had they simply not excavated it?

Or was Ryan the only one who could discover it through the Phoenix's perspective?

"This is the aura of Death. Is this what a god looks like?" Ryan sighed. Perhaps he was merely a descendant of a god.

Ryan carefully placed the silver item into his pocket. A strange magical presence came from the distance, and Ryan abruptly flashed to their agreed meeting place. Sure enough, it was the Knight Bus. Kate had arrived.