A/N: Just a short piece that takes place towards the end of HBP. Hope you like it.
Teardrops on a Flaming Heart
His heart was drowning in his own unshed tears as he allowed Fawkes' melody to fill his soul. The song was an ironic icon of his own mourning, the expression of his own despair.
For a long while he listened to the phoenix while standing on a hill that overlooked the lake and gazed at the Dark Mark as it glittered menacingly high above the castle. The song ended and he heard the rush of wings as the bird itself came into view and perched itself on a branch next to him.
Fawkes blinked questioningly and he sighed, facing it.
"Shoo," he said, willing the bird to fly away. It didn't.
The persistency of the phoenix irked him, especially as all he wanted to do at the moment was wallow in self-pity and blame. How was he to go about that with the damn thing staring at him so expectantly? What did it want from him?
Yet, he knew.
He knew that all Fawkes wanted was for his peace. At times, he thought that the bird was a reflection of his own soul, and that when he ached, the bird ached for him.
They were alike in more ways than he would care to admit, and with a pang of annoyance at the late Headmaster, he acknowledged that the man had always known it.
Much like the bird, he had been destroyed—his heart set aflame and his soul burned—and had then been reborn from the ashes to begin again. The phoenix was willing to lay down his life for the wise old coon, and that was just what he was doing now. Just as Fawkes had been sent to protect Potter in the Chamber of Secrets, he was duty-bound to protect him until his last breath.
"Leave me be," he tried again.
Fawkes blinked and brought his head down to rest on his left breast. The bird blinked again and a fat tear leaked from his eyes and landed on the cloth of the man's robe, right above his heart.
"It's no use," he said bitterly, yet lifted a hand to stroke the top of the phoenix's head.
The bird looked up at him with sad eyes and he felt a wave of energy flow between them. He closed his eyes and allowed the magic to consume him. He looked back at the bird and nodded his understanding and gratitude. He knew that this was his mentor's gift to him, so that he would not have to carry on alone.
The bird nipped his finger affectionately and took off into the night, leaving behind a long, red feather as a reminder that he would always be with him.
He sighed and turned, ready to embrace his destiny.