Beyond Life And Death

Pain. Screaming. Flashing lights. Avada Kedavra!

'AHHHH!'

Harry sat up and looked around. Everything was white.

'I'm dead'.

'Yep'.

He spun to find a grinning red head.

'Fred?'

The older boy came over and sat beside him.

'That's my name!'

Harry stared at him. Then he started crying softly.

'Fred I…I'm sorry…!'

'What? Don't be Harry. It…'

'DON'T say it's not my fault!'

'I wasn't going to say that'.

Harry wiped his eyes.

'What?'

Fred grinned.

'I was going to say it's a shame you can't stick around. You'd love the party'.

'I…what…Party?!'

'Yep. See the afterlife shouldn't really be called the afterlife. People here are dead, but they aren't dead. I know that sounds mad but…let me try and explain. See, Death is actually Life. Nope that doesn't help…um…Ok, Death is the one that created life. You know, the world and space and all that stuff. He isn't called Death, that's a name we created for him cause that's what we think he does'.

'Fred my head hurts!' Harry groaned.

The older boy sniggered.

'Yep, I couldn't get my head around it either. Let's try it the muggle way. People believe in a God. Different people believe in different Gods. Death is every single God anyone has ever believed in. He is Life, he is The One. He made the world and the plants and seas. And then he sat down and thought, I'm going to make this world into a nursery. I'm going to sprout my seeds of life and leave them to grow however they want. So he got a handful of tiny cells of life and put them on the world. Then he stood back and watched to see what they did. The muggles have been digging up the results for years, what do you call them…fossils. Those little cells grew and evolved into lots of different beings. The muggles got the designs of some of the dinosaurs wrong, it's pretty funny to see the differences. He promised himself he wouldn't interfere, so when Magic came along and tweaked a few things he let her'.

'So what you're saying is Death, who is actually known as Life, and Magic are like two people, and they decided to create something and watch it grow?' Harry said.

'That's right. Some of the beings that were tweaked by Magic became humans. Others became Centaurs and Unicorns and Dragons. But if Magic hadn't tweaked them, they might still have taken on that shape, they just wouldn't have had her influence'.

'What's all this got to do with me being dead?' Harry asked.

The red head sheepishly rubbed his neck.

'Ha ha, sorry I got a bit carried away. See when people started believing in Gods, they started naming them. They decided in their infinite wisdom that Death wasn't a God, he was only there to kill people, hence the name. But see what he was actually doing was taking beings from the "nursery", that is, the world, and bringing them to a new home. Like when you transplant a sapling into a bigger pot. His way of moving beings is to let them shed their outer layer, their body, and gather up the souls to move. Like when a snake sheds its skin, except it's the entire outer body. Everyone who "dies", regardless of how, has been picked by Life to be moved to their new home. It doesn't matter what age a being is, it's a signal in their soul that Life looks for. Even a newborn can be moved, because it's only a newborn to us. To Life that soul is now ready to be moved, even if the being is only days or even hours old to us'.

'Where does Magic come into this?' Harry asked.

'Ah, she likes to play around. She's a bit like the kid who's told not to touch the sapling but does so anyway. She's the one who picked out the first male and female to have magic. Then she got creative and tried to copy Life by putting the pair in a garden of her creation. But she got a little carried away. Something to do with apples and snakes, I didn't get the whole story'.

Harry started laughing.

'You're kidding?! Magic created Adam and Eve and the Garden of Eden?!'

Fred chuckled and nodded.

'Yeah. Life told her not to do it again, but she didn't really listen. She doesn't do a lot of meddling, but occasionally she will see something she thinks is wrong in the world and try to fix it, whereas Life would have left it alone. Both can have bad or good consequences for the world, like the meteorite that meant the end of the dinosaurs in the world, allowing all of them to be moved to their new home, or the overpopulation of the world because Magic decided to hold back the growth of certain beings' Fred tried to explain.

'I think I'm getting this. The bottom line is, death needs to happen because it's not actually death but moving to a new home' Harry said.

Fred grinned.

'Absolutely correct. But there's a slight problem'.

'Let me guess, it has something to do with me?' Harry muttered.

'Well sorta. But not through any fault of your own. See beings who are alive on the world don't realise that the end of their life isn't really the end of their life. Some have tried to keep themselves alive on the world for eternity, which means they are really stunting their growth and will never move on to their new home. Voldemort did this with those horcruxes of his. And so did Dumbledore'.

'Dumbledore had horcruxes?!' Harry exclaimed.

'Yeah, he fooled a lot of people. "Death" is supposed to happen in order to move, but some beings don't see that. Voldemort actually made a few more horcruxes that no-one knew about. And Dumbledore made four. Actually there are quite a few others who have done the same. A lot of purebloods have made horcruxes, normally just one but there are a few who have made more. It's tied in to the whole "I'm a pureblood therefore I'm better than everyone else" attitude. They want to wipe out those with less than pure blood and rule the world. It's a big conspiracy, and it's hilarious to watch!'

'I don't get it? What's blood got to do with living on the world?' Harry asked.

'It started years ago. When you are moved to your new home you've matured enough to realise it doesn't matter what kind of being you are. The new home is free from suffering and religion. Everyone gets along, no matter who they are. Oh and I shouldn't be saying this, but there's a great bonus. You can age and de-age at will. Severus almost killed me but I couldn't help it, his mum at age sixteen is incredibly hot!'

Harry stared wide eyed at the red head.

'You didn't?!'

Fred grinned.

'Hell yeah I did! Best part, everyone is doing it, there's no such thing as incest or gay or bestiality, its just sex! Believe it or not Harry but once Severus realised that he got right in the bed beside us!'

'I did not want to hear that!' Harry groaned.

Fred sniggered.

'Right, back on subject. Up here, peace. On the world though…well you know how bad it is there. When man first discovered that some could do things others couldn't, they started dividing into groups and fought over which group was superior. You can see it all throughout the history of man, and a few other beings. When Magic became involved, that just increased the problem. The first set of "pureblood magicals" thought themselves better than everyone else. And they preached that to their children and their children's children. Thousands of years down the line they discovered a way to live forever, and every pureblood worth their salt practiced this ritual. I'm not saying every single magical person did, but you'll find that a lot of people down on Earth have horcruxes. Members of just about every family tried this method. I'm ashamed to say even the Weasley family ancestors did it. Eventually though most people realised that it was wrong and stopped, but there are still those who do it in the world'.

'How do you know a Weasley did it?' Harry asked.

'Because they're still on the world. They cut themselves off from the rest of the family because they knew horcruxe making had become a dark practice, but they're there. If you take every being off the world and left only those who have split their soul, you'll be surprised to find how many there are'.

'Wow!'

'Yep. See that's where you come in Harry. No-one has ever survived being turned into a horcruxe. Sure lots of people tried to turn family members and children into horcruxes, but they eventually stopped when they realised they were endangering themselves. You are the Boy-Who-Lived. That name wasn't just given to you because you survived the killing curse. Magic whispered that name in certain people's ears because you were the only one to survive as a horcruxe'.

'Great! Even when I've moved on I'm still different' Harry groaned.

Fred rubbed his shoulders.

'Trust me, everyone here won't make a fuss because of it. But Life is asking that you help him out. He wants those who have split their soul to discover just how bad living on the world would be if everyone else is gone. He's interfered once before, now he's doing it again and pushed along the signal of every being on the world that hasn't split their soul. He wants you to go back and bring them here'.

'WHAT?! And how the hell am I supposed to do that?!' Harry exclaimed.

'Simple, you gotta "kill" everyone in sight'.

Fred continued quickly before Harry could speak.

'I know that sounds bad but trust me when I say moving on will be better for them. It's like…what's that guy called? Noah! It's like Noah and his ark'.

'How does that work?!'

'Well see Noah didn't really listen. Life told him that there was going to be a big flood and he was to tell everyone not to panic and allow themselves to move on. Noah instead thought Life was tricking him and made that giant ark, thinking he was saving the animals, as well as certain people he deemed worthy enough to save. Life moved on everyone else and left a scattering of people, those who had made horcruxes, to stay behind. But because Noah had taken two of each animal and put them on the ark, along with the people, the great move didn't work. So now he's trying again with you. He's not bothering with a flood this time. You need to spread the word to every being you can and move on as much as you are able. Once you finish, you will of course move on as well. Life's a bit stubborn though, he's basically said that if you don't help, he won't allow you to move on'.

'No pressure then? So what, I'm supposed to go around zapping people with the killing curse?'

'Pretty much. That curse was the best spell people came up with. Absolutely no pain'.

Harry thought for a moment.

'What about those people who suffered before "dying"? Or the people who are raped? How does that work?'

Fred scowled.

'Life didn't plan that. When the people who do things like that "die", Life punishes them for their crimes'.

'Punishes them?'

'Well yeah, moving on meant your soul has matured. If a man rapes a kid then kills her, when he dies he's mature enough to realise that he did something stupid in hurting that kid. Life makes him watch his crimes over and over as a punishment. Time is hard to measure in the new home so I can't really tell you how long it lasts. I had to watch myself killing that puffskein, when George comes here he will have to so the same. We thought we were only playing, but we were actually torturing that poor thing. They don't mind being thrown around, but a playful toss and being whacked by a beater bat are two entirely different things' Fred replied with some guilt.

'What about things like bugs? I mean you don't always know you've cut a worm in half when you're weeding?' Harry asked curiously.

'Life knows which beings you caused pain by accident, and which you hurt deliberately. In fact when you finally move on he'll have you watch yourself cursing Draco. You deliberately used a spell you didn't recognise and were pretty sure it would cause some form of pain'.

'Oh. Yeah, that was a stupid thing to do' Harry said quietly.

Fred ruffled his hair.

'Life understands that you felt bad about it, he probably won't make you watch for long'.

Harry had a sudden thought.

'What about immortal beings? Like Fawkes or vampires? Or ghosts? How does that work?'

'Every nursery has pests. Well they're not really pests, they're actually creations of Magic. She tried her luck at creation once more and immortal beings were produced. You shouldn't worry too much about them, they'll be fine on the world with the horcruxe makers. Ghosts are a little bit different. Those beings were forced into staying by others. Myrtle for example was killed by the Basilisk, and Riddle wished her into staying behind to make an example of her. His idea was that if she stuck around, people would realise he meant business. Other ghosts stay cause they have a great need to finish something. Sir Nicholas stayed behind, believe it or not, because he wanted his beheading to be a clean cut, and it wasn't. Just before he died he realised that he could be a headless ghost and haunt those who killed him. If he was properly beheaded he would have been moved on though, but because he wasn't he got angry that they couldn't even allow him to become a proper headless ghost, and became a ghost. Binns was the same, he wanted to finish his teaching before moving on. Problem is he keeps repeating the same thing over and over and never gets to truly finish'.

'So they won't be able to move on?'

'Ghosts can, once they realise there's nothing holding them back. It might take a nudge or two so be sure to mention to them. Those who were forced to stay can move on using the same method. If Myrtle stopped making a fuss and just tried, she'd move on no problem. Sir Nicholas is stubborn, but he'll get it eventually. With the immortals, Magic and Life apparently had a big argument over that. Life wasn't happy Magic disobeyed him. It was agreed that if an immortal being did happen to "die", Life would move it on to the new home. However Magic wasn't allowed to make anymore creations, ever'.

'How come he got you to explain this to me, instead of explaining it himself, or letting my parents to it?' Harry asked.

'I'm the most recent person to have died down there, and someone you'd listen to. I mean I know you'd listen to your parents, or Remus or Sirius, but I guess he wanted someone a bit closer to your age.' Fred answered with a shrug.

Harry nodded and took a few deep breaths, running over the idea of the new home in his head.

'By the way, everyone sends their love. Even Cedric and Dobby' Fred continued.

'Alright. You wouldn't play this kind of prank. So…how am I supposed to get back?'

Fred nodded to the side and Harry glanced over to find a veil.

'That looks like the veil of death'.

'It is'.

'Why is that even on the world?'

'There are some beings who could feel their own soul signal. Life put that veil there so those beings could move on by themselves. For someone who says he won't interfere, Life has done quite a few things. But like everything else on the world, the idea got warped.' Fred answered.

'Oh. What beings were they?' Harry asked.

'I think it was the Demons. You know me Harry I hardly pay attention to lessons'.

Harry laughed.

'Yet you still managed to remember all that stuff about Life and Magic'.

Fred gave him a mock glare.

'Hey that was drilled into me! I meant I don't pay attention to things that don't matter to me. I'm pretty sure Life said it was the Demons'.

Harry chuckled and shook his head in amusement.

'So Life and Magic talk to those who have moved on?'

'Oh yeah. They live in the new home and they're happy to chat'.

'Alright. So I just go through the veil and I'm back on Earth? What if someone hits me with a killing curse?'

'You won't die. Not until the very last being, except those with split souls, have moved on. The immortals aren't your business, you don't need to bother with them. Life did tell me to say that if you tell beings like the Centaurs and whatnot that…what was it…? Oh right! He wants you to say, the great move has begun. Because it didn't work last time, he planted a tiny order into each of the beings. If you say tell that to the creature types, they will instinctively know that they have to move on. The people will be the hardest to convince, Life didn't bother planting the order into them cause he knew they'd fight it. Tell the creatures, kill the humans'.

'How will I know which humans have split their souls?'

'When you pass through the veil, Life will plant images in your head. You will know which people have made horcruxes. And don't be surprised when you find out some of them should be muggles'.

Harry gave the older boy a confused look. Fred grinned.

'You every wonder where Walt Disney disappeared to? I can tell you now he didn't die'.

'Alright now I know you're having a laugh!'

'Nope. Then there's Attila the Hun, he's still kicking around, under a new persona. Hell a lot of people that are known in the muggle world used horcruxes to keep them alive. Some of them were even muggles themselves'.

'Muggles can make horcruxes as well?!'

'With the right help from those with magic'.

'That's certainly one way to turn your world upside down' Harry muttered.

'And the rest isn't?!' Fred laughed.

'Alright. I guess I'd better head back then. Any idea how long I've been here?'

'Not a clue, pretty sure it's not been long by Earth standards though. You'll be back in your body so you'll have your wand'.

Harry nodded and headed over to the veil.

'Hey Harry'.

He turned to look at Fred.

'I never thought I'd be saying this, at least when I was alive, but could you kill my family first? I miss them'.

Harry smiled and nodded.

'And just one more thing. I know you'll feel guilty. But once they realise the world is just a nursery, they won't blame you. That is something I can promise' Fred continued.

'Yeah, ok'.

Harry faced the veil. He didn't know how long this was going to take him, and he didn't know how hard it was going to be. He knew he was going to feel guilty, even after everything Fred told him. Sucking in a breath Harry mentally prepared himself to kill people he loved, and stepped through the veil.