Disclaimer: These characters belong to JK Rowling, Joss Whedon, and JRR Tolkien
A/N: If you're still here, thanks, and you know the drill by now. I promise, some stuff will actually happen sometime. I think...
Chapter Nine
"What's a Fawkes," Buffy asked, "and does it bite?"
"Fawkes is a phoenix. In point of fact, the phoenix that belonged with Dumbledore. He saved my life once. 'Lo, Fawkes," Harry said. Fawkes extended his leg like a post owl, and Harry noticed the scroll tied to his leg, there was a stoppered vial wrapped within it.
"Dear Harry," began the note, "Fawkes appeared shortly after you left with the Elder Wand. This vial contains my memory of a conversation with Dumbledore's portrait soon after that. Good luck, Harry." It was signed, "Neville".
"This guy Neville had a conversation with a portrait?" Buffy asked from over his shoulder.
"After this is over, I'll take you to Hogwarts," promised Harry. "This must be important." Harry went over to a cabinet and removed a pensieve. He placed it on his desk and emptied the vial into it; Buffy stared at the silvery stuff that flowed into the basin.
"That stuff is memories?" she asked.
"Yup. Feel free to join me, just stick your face in it," said Harry, and he proceeded to do exactly that.
"Maybe another time," Buffy said. She turned to the large red and gold bird perched on the desk. "Polly want a cracker?" she ventured. Fawkes regarded her with benign curiosity.
"Hello, Harry, it's so good to talk with you again," said the smiling portrait of Dumbledore, "don't bother replying, I can't hear you, you know. I'm sending you this message via Headmaster Longbottom. I can't say I foresaw that happening, but he is doing an admirable job, if I do say so myself. And I suppose I just did, didn't I?" The blue eyes in the wrinkled face had the remembered twinkle in them, and Harry smiled at the sight. Seeing Dumbledore's old, familiar face was a comfort to him.
"Now then, Fawkes' appearance here in the Headmaster's office can only mean that you have retrieved the Elder Wand with the intention of making use of it. I feel it imperative therefore to deliver to you the following words of advice concerning it." The lined face grew serious, and Harry braced himself for a scolding.
"Do not fear to use the wand, Harry. It is powerful, yes, but it is merely a tool. In and of itself it will solve nothing. The true danger of the Elder Wand lies in depending upon its strength rather than your own. Use it well, and it will serve you well, as it did me." Harry swallowed hugely.
"Fawkes may feel inclined to remain with you; he really is a marvelous fellow you know. Should you be so fortunate as to receive his companionship, I beg you to remember that he has a sweet tooth. He has a positive passion for pepper imps!"
"Fare well, Harry." The vision faded, and Harry pulled his head from the basin.
"Good news?" Buffy asked upon seeing the huge smile on Harry's face.
"Words of encouragement from an old friend. So, Fawkes, would you care for an imp or two?" Fawkes trilled a few notes of phoenix song and eyed him hopefully. Harry opened his desk drawer and extracted a box with the Honeyduke's logo on it and then held out his hand with the candy in his palm. Fawkes gently took an imp, worked it in his beak for a moment, and then spat out a small tongue of flame. "It's grand to see you again, Fawkes," Harry told him, "fancy a trip to Mordor?"
"Tell me of your world," said Lofar over breakfast. The men were sitting around the cooking fire talking, the ladies having yet to make an appearance.
"Hard to know where to start," Angel said. "For one thing, there are a lot more people and a lot less trees."
"A lot of machines, too," said Spike, "got machines for evrythin'. Machines to carry you around, take you through the sky, cook, play with, even got machines that think."
"You might be more comfortable in the magical world to start with," Draco told them, "not so many machines."
"These worlds are unaware of each other?" asked an elf.
"Well, the magical world is certainly aware of the non-magical, but we try and keep the muggles, or non-magical people, from knowing about us."
"Much as elves have lived here," agreed another elf.
"I dunno if you'd like it, frankly," Spike said, "but it would be a change, that's sure."
"Are there many of our kindred like you there, Dagger?" asked Lofar.
"A fair few, yes. Most house-elves works for wizard families as servants. It's only recently that we has gained our freedom. Our world is changing," Dagger answered.
"The one constant is change," sighed Lofar.
"I guess tonight we'll see if we can't do a little changing ourselves," said Faith as she joined them all.
"Morning boss," said Angel, grinning. "Sleep well?"
"Like a baby," answered Faith with a grin of her own.
"What's on for today then," Draco asked, "training?"
"I figure we take the day off and rest up," answered Faith. "Take the time to relax a bit before we put on our game faces. How long do you think we need to get from one portal to the next?"
"Apparition is nearly instantaneous," answered Draco, "not much walking to do on either end, 30 minutes ought to give us plenty of time to check things out before we cross into Mordor."
"Anybody heard from Luna?" Faith asked.
"Not so far," answered Dagger, "but it's early yet."
"I think I'll take a walk 'round the wood," Draco said as he rose, "lovely place, this." He moved quietly off through the trees.
"Is Draco worried about something?" Faith asked.
"I don't think so, Faith," Dagger replied, "I thinks it's just the whole thought of all these worlds and dimensions and such. It does tend to bend the brain."
"Keep an eye on him Dagger, don't let his mind get too bent, okay?" she told him.
"No need to worry about Draco, he'll be ready when the time comes."
"Always has been, yeah. How are you and Fidget getting along there, Spike?"
"Super, she's the perfect woman, never says a word – ow!" Spike grabbed his ear.
"Serves you right," chortled Angel. Spikes' face displayed wonder for a time, and then broke into a grin.
"She just said that she hadn't had anything to say before now, but she's not gonna ride around with a great prat, and I'd best mind my manners in future! My apologies, niblet, let's go for a stroll ourselves and you can explain to me the error of my ways – we do too have that much time. I'm not that bad! Well, not anymore I'm not." Spike headed off as well, looking for all the world as if he were talking to himself, as Fidget was inside the hood of his cloak.
"Ada will leave with you, will she not?" Lofar asked Faith.
"It's up to her, but I think so. She feels like she's fading away here, I think," answered Faith.
"Indeed we are," one of the others spoke up. "There are no more ships to be had at the Havens, and there are but eight of us left in Lothlorien."
"You would be welcome among us," Dagger assured him. "I thinks we could learn from each other as elves."
"We shall see, brother, once this business is done. I should be glad indeed to see Mordor itself give over evil. I always felt it would return, even after Sauron fell, perhaps this Goddess you seek will write the end to that story of pain and evil."
"Perhaps," Angel said quietly, "perhaps a tiny spark of what Fred was remains."
In fact there was now a good bit more than a spark, the years of enforced solitude had afforded Illyria the chance for reflection, and her recent experiences in the mortal realm had been much on her mind. The feelings she had experienced with the death of Wesley were still bright within her, so different were they from those of conquest and domination that had ruled her mind for an eternity before.
Once she had determined that she could not escape, she had abandoned rage as of no present value, and sought to bring order to her thoughts. She allowed the memories of Winifred Burkle to surface in her mind, drawing some small pleasure from the sheer novelty of these thoughts and feelings. She found to her surprise that the mind that had spawned those chemical traces had been a truly remarkable one. But there arose among them a bubble of thought, of feeling, that she was sure was rooted in madness.
"Angel will come for us," whispered the thought.
