1,113Lord of the Wind
by Teddylonglong
All recognizable characters belong to J. K. Rowling, and I am not earning anything by writing this story.
I am not a native speaker of English. Please excuse my mistakes.
COMPLETELY AU! Partly OOC! Time travel! Partly Animagus story!
It is my story, and I intend to write it the way I want it. If you don't like it, don't read it.
Reviews are very welcome, as they inspire my muse.
Seven-year-old Harry was running as fast as he could but knew that Dudley and his friends were bigger and faster than himself. 'I need to get away somehow,' he thought in panic, remembering how he had managed to just vanish from the spot and appear on the school roof a few months ago. However, he had no idea how he had achieved his stunt at that time and knowing that he had been in a lot of trouble afterwards, he feverishly wished to flee from his cousin in a way that enabled him to stay hidden from everyone.
A mere instant later, the scenery in front of his eyes changed. Taking a look at his surroundings, he realised that he found himself on top of a high tree. To his utter surprise, his vision had expanded greatly, and he noticed that his arms were full of feathers. 'Green feathers,' he thought in disbelief. 'Is that my body? In bewilderment, he looked down at himself, only to confirm that his skin had been replaced by feathers and that he was standing on two orange bird's feet. 'I'm a bird now. How's that possible?' he wondered in absolute confusion.
Harry spent a while looking over the houses and gardens in the neighbourhood, noticing that each of them looked very small from his spot on the tree. He hesitantly flapped his wings, not sure how much he would be able to move his newly found body without tumbling down from the tree, and found himself enjoying the slight breeze which the movement caused on that hot summer day. When he carefully turned his neck, he saw that his feathers were not all green. From the corners of his eyes, he could see beautiful orange and white feathers on his back. 'The colours of my bird body are cool,' he mused, wondering if he was able to fly. However, seeing how high the tree was, he decided to be on the safe side.
'The problem is,' he thought, 'how to get down from here. It's not as if I was able to climb down, or are birds able to climb?' Not sure about the matter, he remained quiet and pondered his situation. 'I wished me here,' he finally recalled. 'Maybe I can just wish me back down from the tree.' He hesitated for a moment, however, decided that it could not hurt to try and wished himself down onto the ground.
To his surprise on the one hand and relief on the other, he found himself standing on the ground in front of the row of trees in the Dursleys' back garden. 'All right, now I need to wish me back into my human form,' he thought.
Harry had not really expected that it would work so easily, however, all of a sudden, he was standing in the garden in his usual, human form.
'Will I be able to wish myself to become a bird again?' he wondered as he slowly returned to the Dursleys' home. 'It would be so cool. I could learn to fly. I'd really like that,' he thought, as he entered the kitchen to face his aunt's wrath.
風の力を持つハリー
"Where have you been, you lazybones?" Petunia hissed at him, as soon as he opened the backdoor. "Hurry up and make dinner."
"Yes, Aunt Petunia," Harry replied and obediently began with his chores, all the while his thoughts wandered to the beautiful bird which he had been earlier.
During the following months, Harry often used the time when he was alone in his cupboard to change into his bird form, feeling absolutely delighted that it was so easy. 'I should go outside and try to fly,' he thought one day, knowing that his relatives had gone out for dinner and would not be back for awhile. He made his way through the backdoor into the garden and changed into his bird's form, which only took seconds since he had practised so much. He stepped onto the grass, realising that it was very difficult to walk on his bird's feet.
'Maybe flying is easier,' he thought and hesitantly flapped his wings, slightly shivering at the cold breeze it caused. 'All right, I'll try once more,' he thought anxiously, 'all birds can fly.' This time he tried to lift his feet from the ground as he flapped his wings and managed to fly a few metres, before he crashed into the ground. 'Ah, that was because I tried to touch the ground with his feet,' he thought. 'Okay, now I'm going to try a bit higher,' he decided and tried again. This time, he managed to fly around the garden, realising that it was a lot of fun to fly. He flew over the garage, over the street and even over Mrs. Figg's garden, before he returned once more to the spot from where he had started.
'That was absolutely cool,' he mused, suddenly feeling tired. 'I better get inside and go to bed,' he decided and changed back into his human form, before he reached for the handle of the kitchen door, only to realise that it had been locked while he was out enjoying his flight.
'Oh no! What am I going to do now?' he thought in shock, beginning to panic thinking that he might be forced to spend the whole night outside. As it was the beginning of December, it was fairly cold. 'Maybe it'll be warmer in my bird's form,' Harry thought in exasperation and transformed again, when a sudden idea struck his mind.
'I can try to wish myself back into the cupboard,' Harry thought, and as he concentrated on landing in his tiny room, he flashed into his cupboard with a gust of wind accompanying him.
'Wow, this is brilliant,' he mused as he changed into his human form and let himself sink onto his mattress in exhaustion.
風の力を持つハリー
During the following weeks, Harry often used his new found power and flashed himself out in the garden at night when his relatives had gone to bed or even during the day, when he knew that the Dursleys were away for a few hours. He became more and more used to transforming and flashing, although he noticed soon that it was very tiring to wish himself from one place to another.
One day, Petunia stuck her head into the cupboard, handing Harry a list. "Here's a list with your chores. We're going away over the weekend. See to it that you finish all the chores before we return tomorrow night." With that, Petunia left, heading straight out the front door.
Shortly after, Harry heard the sounds of the car driving away. 'Oh cool, I have the whole weekend for myself,' he mused happily, glancing at the list in his hand. 'I'll just go flying for a bit, and then I'll begin with my chores,' he decided, placed the paper on his mattress and transformed into his bird form. He flashed out into the garden with a small gust of wind and lazily stretched his wings in the beautiful sunshine, enjoying the first warm sunrays of the early spring.
All of a sudden, a voice penetrated his ears. "Oh my, aren't you a beautiful phoenixxx."
#A phoenix?# Harry queried, looking around in surprise. Glancing in the direction of the voice, he saw a garden snake slither over the ground just in front of him. It was dark grey and had a small pattern in different shades of brown. #You're beautiful as well. I'm not really a bird though. I'm a boy, but I discovered last summer that I can change into a bird,# he trilled happily.
"I'm sssorry, little one, but I can't understand you," the snake hissed, causing Harry to give it a curious look. "I can only understand other snakesss."
Harry gave the snake a sharp look, and instants later, he instinctively changed into the form of a snake. "Can you understand me now?" he queried as he curled up in order to get a glimpse at his own body. 'Black with a green pattern of leaves,' he noticed absently while he wondered how and why he had managed to become a snake.
"Oh yesss, now I can understand your wordsss, but I don't know how you're able to change between your formsss. I've never seen anyone like you before. Which iss your normal form?" the snake queried in a gentle voice.
"I'm a boy," Harry replied in a small voice, only to add to himself, 'and a freak.'
"Ah, you musst be the small boy that always doess the choresss here," the snake replied. "I do not envy you with such a horrible family. Very well, I have to go and ssearch for food. I have to feed my babiesss. I'll talk to you later."
"Okay," Harry agreed, knowing that he had to begin with his chores anyway. "It was nice to meet you. Bye now."
'I wonder if I'll be able to change into more animals,' Harry mused as he let himself sink onto his mattress after a long day of chores. 'I'd love to speak with the tabby cat sometime, who often comes and sits on the wall behind the garage and seems to be watching my every move.'
Unbeknownst to Harry, the tabby cat, which often spent her Saturday mornings observing the Dursleys' home, had watched the phoenix arrive just in front of the back door, transform into a snake and finally change into a small boy with absolute amazement. However, on this day, Harry was too absorbed in his musings about changing not only into his phoenix form but also into other animals to notice her.
To Harry's disappointment, he did not have a chance to change into his bird form whenever the cat was sitting on the wall, because either Petunia or Vernon were always nearby, watching him do his chores.
風の力を持つハリー
It was at the beginning of the summer holidays that Harry accidentally burned the meat he was supposed to fry for lunch, causing Petunia to shout at him and hit him with the hot frying pan on the head, before she left him crying on the floor and decided to take Dudley out for lunch.
Harry remained sitting on the kitchen floor, gripping his achy head with both hands, barely noticing that the tabby cat had left its position on the wall and was standing in front of the backdoor, sternly looking into the kitchen. 'Maybe I'll feel better in my bird form,' he mused and transformed. 'That was stupid. My headache is better now, but I should have gone outside before changing,' he soon realised as he struggled to walk on his bird feet, stumbling and landing on his stomach after every second step. 'I just can't get used to these feet,' he groaned inwardly as he finally reached the open backdoor and jumped outside.
Still feeling a little dazed, he remained next to the door for a while, turning his head until it came to rest on his back feathers. After a few minutes of resting and recalling the earlier events, he felt better and at the same time became very annoyed at his aunt's behaviour. 'It was bad of me to not take better care and burn the meat, but did Aunt Petunia have to hit me with the frying pan?' he thought, suddenly feeling his stomach grumble. Realising that Petunia had forgotten to give him any chores to do during her absence, he allowed his phoenix instincts to take over. He took off into the air and flew a few rounds around the garden, just barely above his aunt's beautiful flowerbeds, not realising that the flowers obviously didn't like the swirling blasts of wind every time he beat his wings.
Suddenly, Harry's attention was drawn to the wall as he heard a soft voice. The tabby cat was sitting on the wall once again. Just a few metres separated it from Harry, and it was craning its neck to watch him with interest. =You better stop doing that,= the cat admonished him gently, pointing to the flowerbeds, which Harry had just left behind. =Otherwise, you'll be in a lot of trouble.=
HP
Harry made a soft landing right in front of the wall and looked back at the flowerbeds, realising in horror that they looked as if a storm had just passed over them. #Oops, I'm sorry. Would you mind not telling my aunt, please?# he asked hesitantly.
=I'm sorry, but I can't understand you,= the cat informed him, and Harry had the impression as if her stern expression slowly stretched to a small smile.
Instinctively knowing that he would be able to change into a cat like he used to transform into his snake form from time to time when he wanted to communicate with the garden snake, Harry concentrated on changing his phoenix body into the form of a cat, sighing in relief as he noticed that he managed to transform smoothly. A fine coat of black fur had replaced his green wings, and Harry tentatively took a step on his cat's feet, before he tried to jump up onto the wall. Unfortunately, his body, which was not used to the unknown form yet, failed to reach the wall, causing the small cat to fall back onto the ground, where he came to lie on his back.
The tabby cat shook its head in exasperation, as it jumped from the wall and gently nudged the smaller cat back on his feet.
=If this is the first time you changed into your cat form, you have to practise a bit, before you try to jump onto walls,= the grey cat scolded Harry lightly.
=I guess you're right,= he replied in a small voice. =Thank you so much for rescuing me.=
=Is my assumption correct that you're Harry?= the cat queried, throwing him a questioning look from her eyes that had strange quadratic markings around them.
=Yes,= Harry replied in surprise. =Why...= He slowly trailed off and looked anxiously at the tabby cat, feeling grateful that it apparently decided to remain on the ground with him.
=I am an Animagus just like you, although I'm only able to transform into my cat form, while you seem to be a multiple Animagus and a natural Animagus on top of it. My name is Minerva McGonagall, and I'm a teacher at Hogwarts, which is the magical school that you're supposed to attend in three years' time. Your parents were my students, and I knew them very well. I've even knew you as well when you were a baby, Harry. That's why I've been coming here to check on you sometimes on the weekends.=
Harry was too stunned to say anything and merely looked at the other cat in amazement, trying to completely understand her explanation. However, the thought of 'She's only coming here because of me' penetrated his mind, causing him to feel more cared for than he had ever experienced before.
=Well, I better clean up your aunt's flowerbeds,= the cat said gently, and Harry observed in disbelief as his new friend changed into an older woman. In spite of the summer heat, she was dressed in what seemed to be a long, green coat, and she wore her brown hair tightened into a tight bun. The woman waved a stick, and the flowers straightened, looking even fresher than they had appeared before. With another wave of her stick, the grass was freshly cut, and Harry threw the woman a grateful look, knowing that he would have probably had to cut the grass during the next few days, but she just saved him a lot of time on that chore.
=That was brilliant! Thank you,= he breathed, looking at the tall woman in absolute amazement.
=You're most welcome. You'll be able to do magic like this in a few years' time,= the professor said, soothingly, after quickly transforming back into her cat's form. =You must be careful though. You seem to be a wind phoenix, and every time you fly or flash you cause quite a whirl of wind around yourself.=
Harry and the professor spent the whole afternoon talking, before Harry had to hurriedly transform back into his phoenix form and flash into his cupboard when he heard his aunt and cousin entering the house.
Over the following few months, Harry often recalled his conversation with the cat professor, as he called her to himself since he couldn't remember the name she had told him. 'I am a wizard; that's why I can transform into animals, and that's why the Dursleys call me a freak,' he realised, wondering if it was true what the professor had told him – that he was supposed to attend her school when he was eleven. 'The Dursleys will never allow me to go to that school,' he thought sadly.
風の力を持つハリー
A fortnight before Christmas, Harry's and Dudley's class at the primary school held a Christmas party for the parents and pupils. Their teacher took the opportunity to decorate the hall with the pictures of Christmas scenes, which the children had painted, and Harry noticed in amazement that his picture was the very first picture in the hall, so that it caught everyone's eye first. He looked proudly at his picture that showed himself together with Father Christmas, who was holding a present in his hand. 'Maybe I'll get a present this year,' Harry mused in desperation, staring at the present in Father Christmas' hand. All of a sudden, while he was still looking at the picture, Father Christmas leaned down to Harry, gently handing him the present. Unfortunately, Harry's final touch to his picture that made the persons move caused the spectators to panic.
Thirty minutes later, Harry found himself back in his cupboard with a very sore backside and head, his uncle's enraged voice still ringing in his ears, "Boy, you are to never do freakish things in our presence again, you ungrateful little urchin."
'I'll just flash away,' Harry thought and transformed into his phoenix form, wishing himself to flash to some place in the magical world, of which the cat professor had told him, where he would find people who would not hate him because of being a wizard. Seconds later, he felt a huge wind come up, which became faster and faster.
風の力を持つハリー
Harry reappeared right in front of a huge door that chose exactly that moment to be flung open. Unfortunately, the storm Harry had brought with him caused the door to open so fast that it hit the phoenix full force.
#Ouch,# Harry trilled at the sudden pain, unconsciously flinching back as he saw himself in front of black human legs. He backed up slightly, moaning a bit at the pain the small movement caused his sore head, until his ears took in a soft, silky voice.
"Are you all right?" the tall man, who was standing in front of the phoenix and was dressed completely in black, asked softly as he crouched in front of the obviously hurt bird and gently held his hand out for the phoenix to step on it.
'He must be a wizard, because he's wearing similar clothes to the cat professor,' Harry mused and hesitantly stepped onto the man's hand.
"Did you get hurt when you hit the door?" the man asked again, causing Harry to slightly nod, wincing as it caused his head to hurt even more.
#It's all right, sir. My head hurts a bit, but I'll be fine,# he trilled softly.
"Unfortunately, I can't understand you. Are you the familiar of anyone living nearby? I've never seen you around before."
#No.# Harry carefully shook his head, just a little bit, and thought, 'I want the man to understand me. How can I do that? I don't want to change back to my human form. People are much nicer to me if I'm in my phoenix form.' He threw the kind man a helpless look. #How can I make you understand, sir? I don't know.#
The man remained pensive for a moment, before he decided, "I'll take you to the Headmaster's office. Professor Dumbledore has a phoenix, and he might be able to translate. Do you agree?"
Harry once more nodded slightly, and the man raised his hand towards his shoulder, motioning the bird to step onto his shoulder. Harry looked around at the moving paintings to both sides of the corridor in fascination. 'Like in my picture of Father Christmas,' he thought while the black wizard carried him into a huge, round room that looked like a very old office. 'This is a fantastic room,' Harry thought, startled when he suddenly saw himself face to face with a very old wizard, who looked like Father Christmas in his picture that he had painted earlier that day.
HP
Suddenly, a voice penetrated Harry's ears. #Hello, little nestling. Come onto my perch and introduce yourself.#
Only now, Harry noticed the phoenix that was sitting on a perch next to the Father Christmas' person's desk. 'Won't I hurt the man if I flap my wings?' Harry thought anxiously and threw the tall man a grateful look when he gently placed him onto the perch, before he began to explain to the Headmaster and his phoenix how he had found Harry.
#You can only speak to the human one if you bond to him like I'm bonded to the Headmaster,# the other phoenix, who introduced himself as Fawkes, advised him. #The snarky one is not too nice, but he has a good heart, and it'll be good for both of you to have each other. I'm sure, because I've already known him for many egg turns. Hogwarts is a good old place to put your nest in. We always get as much in our beaks as we want, and I'd love to have a friend to play with, even if you're still a nestling.#
#All right then, what do I have to do?# Harry queried, feeling very excited at the prospect of having a friend, even if only in his phoenix form. 'I hope he'll stay my friend. I shouldn't tell anyone that I'm human,' he decided, turning his eyes to the two wizards, who were talking animatedly.
#You only have to think, 'I want to bond with the black and grumpy one,'# Fawkes instructed Harry, who closely followed the humans' conversation.
"Albus, I don't need a familiar, and I definitely do not want a feathered rag like yours," the tall man sneered, sounding very annoyed at the thought.
#Ah, just ignore him; he's always like that, but he'll get used to you,# Fawkes said firmly, motioning Harry to bond with the tall wizard.
'I want to bond with the unnice man, who was still very nice to me,' Harry thought, and all of a sudden he felt very happy, although he couldn't really place what had happened.
#You look much happier. I guess you're bonded now,# Fawkes stated, smirking.
"Severus, I believe that you don't have a choice. Your familiar seems to have chosen you and already bonded with you," the headmaster said, and Harry noticed that the old man's eyes began to twinkle happily.
#Tell him that you're a wind phoenix and your name is Gaoithe,# Fawkes instructed the younger phoenix. #Don't forget to address him as Professor unless he tells you otherwise.#
#Gwee-ha?# Harry asked in disbelief, trying to pronounce the difficult name.
#Of course, you need a proper name if you're bonded to a Hogwarts professor. Gaoithe is Gaelic and means wind. Yes, the pronunciation is Gweeha,# Fawkes confirmed.
#Hello Professor. My name is Gaoithe, and I'm a wind phoenix,# Harry said obediently, causing the professor to step in front of the perch.
"Very well, Gaoithe; I am Severus Snape," he said in the soft, silky voice he had used with Harry earlier.
"Severus, I suggest that you take Gaoithe to your quarters then," the headmaster spoke up, before he called, "Twinkle, Cicero."
With a small pop, two funny creatures appeared in front of the professors, bowing so deep that their ears flapped over the floor. "What can Cicero and Twinkle do for Master Professor Dumbledore, sir?" one of them queried.
Harry stared at the two creatures in amazement. Never before had he seen such beings.
#The left one is Twinkle, the headmaster's house-elf, and the other one is Cicero, the elf of your familiar,# Fawkes informed him quietly, causing Harry to throw his new friend a grateful smile.
"Twinkle, this is Gaoithe, Professor Snape's new familiar. Please help Cicero to install a perch for him and instruct him how to care for a phoenix," the Headmaster ordered his elf, who bowed and nodded enthusiastically, before the two elves left with a small pop.
'They seem to be very funny,' Harry mused. 'I already love being here.'
"Very well then. Gaoithe, I suggest that we retreat to my quarters then. By the way, you were hit by the entrance doors quite fiercely. Are you hurt in any way?" Severus queried, looking piercingly at his familiar.
Harry squirmed under the professor's sharp look. #My head still hurts a bit, but it's not bad, other than that I'm fine,# he admitted in a small voice, not wanting the man to think of him as a nuisance if he admitted how much his head hurt.
"All right; I'll give you a headache potion. I just have to consult two friends who might know more about birds and possible doses of potions I can give you, as I am unfamiliar in how I can treat a bird," Severus replied and invited Harry to step onto his hand once again. "You don't know how much of a headache potion I can give Gaoithe, do you, Albus?" he turned back to the Headmaster.
"I'm sorry, Severus. I can't recall Fawkes being in need of a potion," Dumbledore replied gently, popping a lemon drop into his mouth.
#That's because I always speak to Twinkle if I need anything. The elves have a wonderful Healer, Misty. She has already helped me several times,# Fawkes informed Harry, who cast him a grateful look and quickly translated for the professor.
On their way out of the office, Harry heard his familiar mumble something like, "Lemon drops can't cure everything, Albus."
風の力を持つハリー
Harry was already drifting off to sleep when the tall professor finally arrived in front of a door that was guarded by a stern looking man and a huge snake. "This is Gaoithe, my familiar," the man shortly introduced him to the wizard in the picture, before he said in a smaller voice and apparently without any context, "Lily."
"Oh, what a beautiful phoenix. A wind phoenix I suppose," the wizard said approvingly, and the snake seemed to agree.
"He looks niccce," the snake hissed, causing Harry to throw her an appreciative smile.
"Now if you don't mind letting us in; it's already quite late," Severus said impatiently, causing the door to open instantly, revealing a huge, round room that was built around a fireplace and was surrounded by bookshelves, which reached from the floor to the ceiling.
Harry looked around in absolute amazement. 'This room is just wonderful,' he thought as the professor nudged him to step onto his new perch, which the elves had set up in front of the fireplace.
"Cicero!" Severus called his house-elf, who appeared in a blink and to Harry's surprise did not bow like the elf had earlier in the Headmaster's office. "Fawkes told Gaoithe something about Misty healing him when he had health problems. Misty is Poppy's elf, isn't she?"
"Yes, Master Severus. Misty is also the Healer of all the elves, and she is very good. Shall I fetch her?"
"Yes please."
An instant later, Cicero returned with another elf in tow. Severus shortly explained to Misty what had happened, and Misty turned to Harry. "Don't be afraid, little one. I'm just going to check on you," she said gently, before she waved her hand over him.
Harry could feel a tingling sensation pass over his body, but it was over in a few seconds. "He has a concussion," Misty explained to Severus. "He must rest, and you have to keep him warm. Give him a spoonful of the normal headache potion every six hours. I come back to check on him in two days' time." Turning to Harry, she continued, "You must not fly or flash for a week, only rest."
"I will see to it," Severus promised and thanked the small elf, who gently laid her hand on Harry's head to pet his head feathers.
'Feels good,' Harry mused as Misty let quite an amount of Healing magic flow into his body. Before the house-elf even popped away, he was already fast asleep.
風の力を持つハリー
When Harry woke up in the morning and lazily opened his eyes, he saw that Severus was hovering in front of his perch, apparently considering if he should wake him up or let him sleep. "Oh good you're awake, Gaoithe," the professor said softly. "I need you to take your potion."
#All right,# Harry agreed sleepily and obediently opened his beak, so that the professor could empty the teaspoon he was holding in his hand into his beak. Unfortunately, Harry had never before taken any medicine what so ever, and his phoenix instincts took over, making him gag at the foul taste as soon as the cool liquid hit his tongue. Before Harry knew what he was doing, he had already spat more than half of the liquid out.
#Oh no, I'm sorry. I've never taken potions before, and I was too surprised at the taste. I didn't mean to do that,# he hurriedly apologized and quickly swallowed the rest of the liquid, hesitantly throwing the professor an assessing glance. 'Oh no, and Fawkes told me he was the one brewing the potions,' he suddenly remembered, feeling even worse at the thought. 'He will be so angry,' he thought, anxiously waiting for the explosion that was sure to come.
'How dare he,' was Severus' first reaction as his new familiar had the gall to spit the potion out he had just spoon-fed him. However, as the bird began to apologize, he couldn't help taking pity at the innocent creature. "Very well; it's not my fault if you're suffering from a headache," he finally stated, raising an eyebrow at the clearly shocked bird.
#Yes sir, I'm sorry sir,# the phoenix apologized once again, casting him an anxious look.
HP
"It's all right. Don't do it again," Severus replied. "Now, my first morning class is going to begin soon. Under normal conditions, I'd take your perch with me to my classroom, so that you could watch; however, since Misty ordered you to rest and told me to keep you warm, I suggest that you remain here in front of the fireplace for today. These rooms as well as the classroom are in the dungeons, and your place here in front of the fireplace is the only warm spot around," he said thoughtfully.
#That's all right, sir,# the phoenix replied, still sounding sleepy. #It's not light outside anyway, so I'll sleep some more.#
"Very well then; I'm going to leave the doors ajar, so that you can call me if you need me. However, only disturb my class if it's absolutely necessary. I'll return to check on you between classes."
#All right, sir. Thank you, sir.# With that, the phoenix turned his head onto his back and went back to sleep.
'He must be feeling better,' Severus mused as he recalled that Hagrid had told him only sick birds slept with their head forward, when he had helped him look after a sick owl before. 'Last night, he didn't turn his head backwards.'
風の力を持つハリー
Severus headed to his classroom, groaning inwardly at the thought of having to teach the first year Slytherin and Gryffindor class. 'These Weasley twins top all the mischief makers I've had before,' he thought. 'On the other hand, both of them are more adept at Potions than the rest of their family combined.'
The Potions Master absentmindedly observed his students brew an easy Healing potion but couldn't prevent his thoughts from returning to the beautiful bird that was currently occupying his perch in the living room. 'I still can't understand why a phoenix would want to bond with me, the greasy bat of the dungeons, especially as I have the Dark Mark. I thought phoenixes were pure birds, only able to bond with good people.' A small voice at the back of his head spoke up, 'You are good, Severus. You made a mistake, due to the circumstances, but that doesn't make you a bad person; otherwise, the phoenix wouldn't have bonded with you.'
Severus let out a long sigh, before he told the annoying voice, 'Oh shut up. What do you know? If I had been good, maybe I'd have managed to keep Lily at that time. Apart from that, it's not as if I needed such a good for nothing familiar like the Headmaster's anyway.'
'Oh, I'm sure having a familiar will do you a lot of good,' the annoying little voice still had the gall to counter. 'It sounds like the Headmaster,' Severus mused, suddenly looking up as he was pulled out of his thoughts when a small explosion shook the classroom.
風の力を持つハリー
Harry abruptly jerked out of his dreams when the professor began to shout, "Weasley and Weasley, detention with me tonight!"
He lazily stretched his legs and his wings and began to trill a soothing melody, instinctively knowing that it would help to calm his familiar. By the time the professor came to check on him between classes, his mood had lightened considerably.
#Is everything all right, sir?# Harry asked softly.
"Oh well, there are always dunderheads, especially among the Gryffindors, who don't understand that you can't play pranks on your classmates while brewing potions," Severus replied, shaking his head. "Thanks to them, I have to supervise their detention tonight instead of spending the evening here with you." With that, the Potions Master headed back to his next class.
'I'd love to learn how to brew potions,' Harry mused. 'It's probably a bit similar to cooking. Too bad I can't tell my familiar that I'm human and can cook meals. I won't be able to cook or brew in my phoenix form.'
風の力を持つハリー
#I'd love to see your classroom, sir,# he told the professor when the man returned from dinner. #I don't feel cold anymore. Please, may I come with you?#
"All right," Severus replied, sighing. "We'll take your perch with us then," he resolved, inviting Harry to step onto his right hand, from where he led him towards his left shoulder.
'I like this spot,' Harry mused. 'It's warm, and his hair has the smell of herbs.' #No, we don't need the perch. I'm sure I'll find something to sit on,# he trilled quickly, knowing that it had to be inconvenient for the man to carry his perch through the rooms all the time.
"Very well then, if you're sure," Severus replied. "Don't pick at my ear, Gaoithe," he scolded him lightly, gently moving the phoenix's orange peak away from his ear. "Now, where do you want to sit? Is the back of that chair agreeable with you?"
#On top of that shelf please,# Harry decided, turning his beak towards a shelf that was full with extremely interesting looking ingredients.
"That's too dangerous," Severus decided and placed the bird on a higher shelf, which was half empty and only held books instead of glasses with frog eggs and other potions ingredients.
Harry happily made himself comfortable on the shelf, watching in amazement as two identical looking boys entered the classroom and immediately pulled his familiar into a discussion.
"Professor, we're sorry..."
"We only wanted..."
"... to give a small payback..."
"... to one of the Slytherins..."
"... who..."
'They're too funny,' Harry mused, letting out a small giggle.
"What was that?" one of the boys asked the other.
"Anyway, Weasley and Weasley..."
Harry couldn't help chuckling at the professor's voice. 'I love his voice. It sounds so soothing,' he mused, 'but it's funny if he seems annoyed, as long as he isn't annoyed at me.'
"There is something strange in this classroom tonight, Professor," the twins said simultaneously, glancing around in surprise.
"Nothing is strange," Severus snarled. "Anyway, you're going to prepare the ingredients for this potion for me." He pointed to a recipe that was laid out on a table. "Now, get to work."
Harry watched in amusement as the twins began to gather the requested ingredients; however, it soon became boring and he turned his head onto his back to take a short nap. Unfortunately, his nap was interrupted soon afterwards, when one of the twins accidentally dropped a glass that hit the floor with a loud bang.
"Sorry Professor, but there's a green ball of wool or something on your shelf..." one of the twins said.
"... and it's moving," the other completed the sentence, causing Harry to look down from his shelf and chuckle again.
Severus smirked as realisation set in and sneered, "The green ball of wool, as you so eloquently call it, is my phoenix familiar Gaoithe, and now continue with your work. You can deem yourself extremely lucky that I cast an unbreakable charm on the glass with the sharks fangs you just tried to break. Otherwise I would use your fingers as potions ingredients instead."
#They're too funny,# Harry trilled in a small voice and proceeded to closely examine the books nearby. 'A Beginners Introduction to the Fine Art of Brewing,' he read with excitement, realising that his eye sight was much better than it was in his human form. 'That sounds very interesting. Would Severus mind if I read a bit?' He carefully used his beak and his right foot to open the book and was soon completely engrossed in his reading. Only when the twins were finished with their work and looked up, beginning to laugh aloud at his sight, the professor noticed what he was doing.
"What do you think you're you doing, Gaoithe? I do not wish to see any dog-ears in my books. Are you able to read at all?"
#Yes sir; I love to read, and I promise to be very careful,# Harry trilled anxiously. #Please sir, let me continue; this book is so interesting.#
"What did he say, sir?" the twins asked simultaneously, causing the Potions Master to throw them an irritated look.
"He is doing something that you should remember to do from time to time, reading a book. Now clean the dirty cauldrons over there, and you'll be dismissed."
The twins obediently set to work, glancing up to the shelf, on which the phoenix was completely engrossed in his reading, from time to time. "He seems to be very alert. We should try to coax him into playing pranks with us," George whispered to Fred, causing the twins to chuckle in anticipation.
