The days turned into weeks, and before Harry could truly realise it, they were already in the middle of February. The reason for his absent-mindedness was justified: he had so much work with his studies and experiments that he hardly noticed what day it was. Of course, this dedication had its rewards; he had not only caught up with the rest of his classmates in the second year but had even surpassed them. Furthermore, the best part was that he got along wonderfully with the vast majority of them, regardless of their house. Apparently, everyone had genuinely grown accustomed to the idea that the boy was a kind of privileged individual when it came to magic, and therefore advanced faster than the average, earning the respect of most students, even those in the upper years.
The truth was, it brought him a certain personal satisfaction when some of his classmates asked him if he could explain something they didn't understand. Not because he knew it and they didn't, but because they offered him what his family was incapable of: acceptance and respect... and he was always happy to help. Then, there were the older students. It was incredible that sixth or seventh-year students included him in their conversations about various subjects, whether magical or current affairs.
What he didn't know was that while he remained in his room, the vast majority of the students in his house, or even in other houses, talked about him, and among themselves, they often commented that with his ability and ease of learning, he would be able to finish his degree in a very short time. Although, of course, what no one knew was that most of the teachers also thought the same, and even wondered what they would do next.
Truth be told, the boy was an enigma to everyone, including himself. For Harry, each meditation session represented a new discovery and a new question; especially because of the growing sense of foreboding and uneasiness that had taken hold of him during the last few months, although that did not stop him from continuing his sessions.
That was exactly what he was doing at that moment: conducting a meditation session. He was convinced that what he felt stirring inside him was about to unfold. In fact, he didn't want to leave that session without gaining some clarity; at the very least, if it didn't fully manifest, he wanted to know what it was.
Sitting in his room, in the centre of his rug, Harry was in a deep, trance-like state, investigating the most hidden part of his self, his latent powers. He wanted to find out what his own body was still concealing from him. In that trance, he was surrounded by the usual darkness, where his different powers were manifesting as various coloured lights. It seemed that at that moment there was nothing new; all the powers he had learned he possessed were present... so what was it that was stalking him? He wanted to know what it was, he wanted to find out, to learn how to control it.
He didn't truly know what served as the trigger, but suddenly, in that warm darkness, an intense white light appeared that somehow blinded the boy and overwhelmed the rest of the existing lights. He didn't know what had happened, but that blinding white light gave way to something that took his breath away: there, in the centre of that dazzling brightness, was a bird flying towards him. He had never seen a bird like that, but instinctively he knew it was a phoenix.
He was jolted out of the trance by the shock, and when he opened his eyes, he felt uneasy. Everything seemed much bigger than he remembered! As if by an inspiration, he looked at his body, but where before there was a black tunic, now he found soft white feathers... his feet were now the legs of a bird, and his hands, beautiful white wings... He had transformed into the phoenix he had just seen during the trance. He guessed as much, but a magical Animagus hadn't been seen in many centuries, if indeed there had ever truly been one.
So that's what it was about... It was the Animagus transformation that his meditation was trying to show him. He had to admit that it was an incredible feeling, but the best thing for the moment was to return to his human form. He remembered reading in a book that there had been cases of wizards who had succumbed to the sensations and instincts of transformation, staying more than three hours during their first time and finding it impossible to return to being human afterwards. He didn't want that to happen to him, so the first thing was to practise.
But there was a problem... he didn't know what he had done to transform himself; it had just happened. How did he return to his human body? He knew that normal Animagi could simply imagine returning to their human form and their body would react, but would it be the same for him? He doubted it would be something so simple, but it was the only thing he had at the moment. Incredibly, it worked. As if it were going in slow motion, his body grew, and where there were feathers before, now there was black fabric again.
He felt something exploding inside him; he was happier than he could remember. He was an Animagus! And not just any kind of Animagus, it was a white phoenix... Speaking of which, he didn't even know that this type of phoenix still existed; he knew that his wand had one's feather, but he understood that they were extinct, and he thought he had read that one could not transform if the animal no longer existed... Maybe they had hidden, after all, normal phoenixes weren't seen much either... perhaps, it was that they did not consider wizards strong and pure enough to be seen. He would have to study them to understand himself better, but right now, the sky was calling him with all its intensity, so it was best for him to learn to transform himself at will and return to normal with total perfection.
The first thing he did was open the window so that he could leave through it once transformed, and then he concentrated with all his might on becoming a phoenix again. The change was as slow as the previous one, and he sincerely hoped that as his body got used to it, the transformation would become much faster. Resisting the urge to fly away, he returned to human form, repeating the process a couple of times, faster and faster, before being satisfied. Then he opened his wings and, after experimentally flapping them a couple of times, he flew out the window.
Euphoria. That was the first feeling he could recognise as the Hogwarts sky opened before him. It was fortunate that it was already late, and the sky would soon begin to darken, for there was no one on the grounds to see him. He was flying over the Quidditch pitch when he felt a movement in the air that made him turn his head backwards... Just behind him had appeared a regular phoenix that looked at him curiously from its position in the stands.
Curiosity (one of the few psychological traits he had inherited from his parents) overcame him, and he approached the other phoenix to see it better; he also wanted to know how it had appeared behind him and why.
"It's rare to see one of your kind so freely... and even stranger, being as you are a wizard," Harry heard when he landed in front of the phoenix, amazed because that voice was that of the phoenix in front of him.
"How do you know?" Mentally, he knew that what would come out was a bird's trill, but to his surprise, he, and apparently the phoenix too, heard the question.
"It hasn't been easy, believe me," the Phoenix laughed. "You are the wizard who possesses the greatest essence of the animal into which he transforms, but something human remains in you. You're one of the youngest students, right?"
"Yes. By age, a first-year, although I study second year."
"Ahhh... Yes, Albus talks a lot about you, at least with me... you have puzzled him. All the skills you show, he expected from your brother, not from you."
"Then, like everyone else," he replied despondently.
"Not everyone else, young man. There are many people who believe in you and your possibilities. What happens is that Albus was confused many years ago and, blinded by the belief that he never makes a mistake, he has never realised his mistake. And since the people around you are so close to him, it hasn't occurred to them that he could make a mistake. If it is of any use to you, I have not doubted you for a moment since I heard of you."
Harry internalised the phoenix's words, and while they didn't taste very well, he felt better. There was something about the bird that made him respect it and seek its approval, which puzzled him, and the bird's laughter when he explained it to him baffled and annoyed him even more.
"Don't be angry, young man, I'm not laughing at you, but at your innocence, not that it's bad," he appeased. "What you feel is normal; I don't know if you know but you are a very young phoenix, and as such you need a mentor to teach you everything that one of our species should know... The situation is not ideal because it is normal that it would be a snowy phoenix (the species to which you belong) who would mentor you, but since there is no one nearby, I will be the one who has to play that role. Since I will be your mentor, you have respect and a desire to please me, and I feel a desire to protect you and a lot of pride in your achievements."
"I didn't ask you for your name."
"They call me Fawkes, except for the moment. The wizard I consolidated with before Albus called me Ares and the previous one Cewlon... but better call me Fawkes," he answered and at the same time added, "And before you ask, I'm 3,762 years old... So I'm quite a bit older than you."
Harry blinked in surprise. Fawkes was 3,762 years old? By comparison, he was a tadpole. His thoughts must have been reflected on his face because Fawkes began to laugh loudly, but this time he was not offended; on the contrary, he ended up participating in his laughter, happy to have someone who could teach him the powers of his animal form.
"Well, I can see that you have no problem flying... It's kind of intuitive, and I think you have it in your human form as well, right?"
"Yes."
"Perfect, so we can start with other things... I think the first thing is to learn how to fix your feathers," Fawkes said, looking at him carefully. "Yes, it will be for the best. You have them in a mess."
"They are!"
"It's the truth. Come, let's go to my perch; there we can be calm."
"Isn't the Headmaster there?"
"Albus? Yes, of course he is. But don't worry about him... he'll make a lot of fuss, many wrong conclusions and maybe some enthusiastic notes... but if what you are worried about is that he will discover you, don't worry, it will be impossible for him. Only animals would be able to realise it, and in your case, not all of them; only the phoenixes and those who are already close to you."
"In other words, Night will recognise me."
"Night?"
"My kitten."
"Ahhh... Yes, he does. Come, follow me."
Fawkes took flight and began to fly towards his perch just as he had already told Harry, although he was much faster than the boy, who despite going as fast as he could, was always far behind the golden bird. He gradually circled the castle as he ascended, which led him to suppose that the Headmaster's office was higher than it had seemed to him when he had gone at the beginning of the term. When he was already at the height of the upper floors, Fawkes entered through a window, forcing Harry to follow him to where the Headmaster's office was supposed to be.
He approached Fawkes's perch and perched next to him, attentive to everything he could say and thus learn as much as possible. Although he landed on the perch, he was aware that he was subject to fixed gazes. Correctly assuming that one was from the Headmaster, he turned to return his gaze: he was not alone.
Albus Dumbledore was in the middle of a meeting between the Potters and himself. The central topic was Harry again, but once informed of the decision to take the second-year exams when the Easter holidays arrived, the topic had changed to someone more important: Brian Potter and his future entry into Hogwarts. They were talking about how excited the boy was when Fawkes had entered the office from the window, landing on his perch. This would not have been so strange, if it had not been for the fact that another phoenix had followed shortly after, causing immediate silence. It was a bird much smaller than Fawkes and also a pure white colour. A snowy phoenix.
That was something unheard of; snowy phoenixes had been considered extinct for hundreds of years, and now one of them was seen, alive and close at hand. James Potter was pulling out his wand to catch it when the old Headmaster stopped him with a gesture, while the bird stared at them with bright green eyes.
"No, James," said the Headmaster. "Never even think of capturing a phoenix. Much less a snowy phoenix."
"But Headmaster, this phoenix is considered extinct."
"I know well... but that is no reason to capture it."
The old man got up and walked over to both birds, looking intently at the unknown bird. He raised his hand, and it was clear that he intended to stroke its neck, much to what seemed to be its displeasure, although after a slight trill from Fawkes, it allowed it, letting the old man caress him.
"Snowy phoenixes are the purest beings that exist, James, and are rarely seen by humans... among other things because of what you have just discussed. That's why they've been thought extinct for so many years..." Dumbledore said as he stroked the bird's neck.
"I don't understand, Headmaster, if it is so rare to see one of these phoenixes, why does this one let itself be seen without reservation?"
"Because he's just a baby, Lily. I don't think he's more than two or three months old... he needs someone to mentor him, and Fawkes is the closest phoenix. If I'm not mistaken, this one was born on the island... Perhaps after centuries had passed since his mother laid the egg."
"Why now, if it has not hatched for so long?"
"Because it is now when it is necessary. Remember the prophecy... Brian is called the white phoenix, it is normal for one of these magnificent creatures to be consolidated with him, don't you think?" At this, the bird made a gesture of discontent and moved its neck away from the old man. "It must also be said that they are quite temperamental on some occasions."
He abandoned the two phoenixes and returned to the couple, to whom, after a few more sentences, he said goodbye until another time. As soon as the couple disappeared, the young phoenix began to look at the older one greedily. After a few seconds, Fawkes began to groom his feathers, to which the other tried to imitate him with more or less success.
"You have to smooth them more with your beak," Fawkes told him when his feathers still looked so dishevelled. "When you run your beak through your feathers, they generate a special oil that helps fix them."
"It's not easy!"
"I know, that's why I'm teaching you."
The red phoenix approached the Animagus and began to fix its plumage, among other things to teach it how to do it, causing it a feeling of comfort and relaxation; you could practically tell that it was falling asleep.
"Well, that's it," Fawkes said, taking him out of his reverie. "You already have them well... I hope that from now on you will know your own."
"I'll try, but I don't promise anything."
"Well, that's better than nothing," Fawkes said indifferently. "I hope to see you soon... I still have a lot to teach you."
"When I have free time, I will transform myself again. Is that okay with you?"
"Me, of course. I have too much free time."
"Not bad..."
"Ah! Harry."
"Yes?"
"It would be best if you explained a few things to your friends. They are good children and will help you."
"Some things?"
"Your transformation, to begin with, and your room, to continue."
"But..."
"Trust me, it will be useful in the future... besides, you have a few easy exits..."
"Okay... I'll explain it to you later."
"That's how I like it... See you soon, Harry."