Flying Free
Chapter 5
¡§To find dandelion seeds, of course,¡¨ Fawkes happily chirped.
Harry let out a bird-like snort. ¡§Trying to fool me? I don¡¦t think so.¡¨
The true phoenix ignored him and walked gracefully towards the Potions Master. He cocked his elegant head and trilled once, staring deeply into the man¡¦s ebony eyes.
Snape raised an eyebrow when Fawkes approached him. He was quite fond of the creature, and he was not going to tell anyone about that. Fawkes had even saved his life once, although Dumbledore did not know about the incident. Snape was quite smug that the Headmaster did not know everything.
Fawkes, knowing the man was lost in his own amusement, decided to take a more aggressive tactic. He began to attack the man¡¦s robe and bury his head in the Potions Master¡¦s tight sleeve.
Harry watched with interest as Snape¡¦s expression changed from irritation to resignedness. The black-haired man began to fumble in his robe pockets, while Professor McGonagall and Hagrid looked a bit startled at Fawkes¡¦ behavior.
¡§I think Fawkes wants somethin¡¦ from yeh,¡¨ Hagrid commented. He looked at the smaller phoenix longingly, hoping that the creature would come to him as well. However, the bird gave him an annoyed look and turned away, his tail facing the half-giant.
¡§Like I don¡¦t know,¡¨ Snape muttered darkly. He pulled out a small jar from one of the many folds of his robe. Upon seeing the content of the jar, Fawkes made an excited noise.
Curious, Harry walked closer to the man. He wondered what was in that jar.
¡§What¡¦s that?¡¨ Minerva asked, pushing her glasses up the bridge of her nose and tried to examine the substance.
¡§Dandelion seeds.¡¨ Snape said flatly, like it was the most recognizable thing in the world. He shook the jar slightly and turned to Fawkes. ¡§I know you want them, Fawkes. Go on.¡¨
The bird made happy sounds again, and poked the jar repeatedly. The other phoenix stared at the jar as well. He edged even closer by the minute.
Snape eyed Fawkes¡¦ sharp beak warily. Then he opened the jar and poured out a handful of dandelion seeds. He extended his hand towards Fawkes wordlessly.
Fawkes happily ducked in. He used his perfect beak to pick up the finest seeds, and swallowed them eagerly. Harry looked at the food with interest. The seeds had a delicious aroma, and the white soft fur was very inviting. He moved his delicate head forward, hoping to examine the herbs more closely. His beak almost touched the Potions Master¡¦s thumb.
Fawkes sang a note, encouraging Harry to try the herbs. Harry opened his beak obediently and tried to catch a few of the herbs. He could not even pick one successfully, not to mention to swallow them. The furry thing was too slippery. Harry let out some pitiful chirrups, which sounded a lot like whimpers.
The Headmaster¡¦s phoenix had to clamp his beak shut so that he would not emit laughing squeals. Eating required skills- it was not a joke. Fawkes wanted to help Harry, but the seeds were too small. Harry had to open his beak wide and allow Fawkes to transfer the food down his throat. Fawkes doubted Harry would like to be fed like a baby bird. Besides, he¡¦d rather wolf down the delicious dandelion seeds himself.
The magical creature stared at Snape and shifted his gaze on Harry thoughtfully. An idea popped up in his little brain.
Albus always thinks that they act too mean to each other. Maybe my method can make them to be friends.
Wanting to prove that he was smarter than the old Headmaster, Fawkes nudged Snape¡¦s hand gently.
Snape looked at Fawkes questionably, not knowing what the bird wanted this time. Fawkes nudged the man¡¦s hand again. The bird picked up a dandelion seed and moved his head towards the smaller bird.
The Potions Master got the message this time. Looking at Fawkes doubtfully, he took the seed that the bird offered. With great cautiousness, he extended his hand to Fawkes¡¦ charge.
Harry saw Snape offering him food. His first thought was to bite Snape¡¦s smelly fingers, hard. What does he think he¡¦s doing? Feeding a pet bird? Harry¡¦s anger grew. He had already opened his beak wide, preparing to strike.
¡§Stop, Harry. He only wants to help.¡¨ Fawkes warned.
¡§I don¡¦t need him feeding me!¡¨ Harry scoffed, his syllables came out as a squawk.
¡§The most important thing is that he has the will to help you.¡¨ the magical bird said.
If Harry was in his human form, he must have frowned. What was Fawkes getting at? There was no way eating whatever offered by the git of a Potions Master. Getting annoyed at the hand sticking in front of him, Harry glared at Snape. Their gazes locked together. Then something happened.
Harry felt as if he was falling into the man¡¦s beetle-black eyes. Countless emotions were crushing onto him. Sadness¡K anger¡K weariness¡K guilt¡K and many others. There were too many negative emotions that Harry almost couldn¡¦t breathe. He hoped that he could find some positive emotions in the man. Then he noticed that behind those dark emotions, there were affection and passion, waiting to be unleashed.
Snape was not heartless. He wanted to be trusted and loved, too. He hid those feelings away just because he was afraid that his hope would be crushed¡K
The warm feelings swirling within Snape¡¦s eyes made Harry feel like as if he was wrapped in a warm, fluffy blanket. He knew the man was on the light side now¡K No evil man would have such type of fervors¡K
Harry felt his mind become fuzzy. His surroundings blurred. All he could see clearly was the emotional storm in the Potions Master¡¦s eyes. Without knowing what he was doing, Harry took the food from Snape and rubbed his cheek affectionately against the man¡¦s pale hand.
***
Author¡¦s notes: Here¡¦s chapter five. Hope you¡¦ll like it. This chapter has not been beta-read yet. Sorry for any mistakes that I¡¦ve made. I¡¦ll re-post this chapter when I finish correcting the mistakes some time later.
Crab Apple Fairy: Where¡¦re you? Please leave a message when you¡¦ve read this¡K
Thank you to all reviewers:
Ice Lupus, PhoenixPadfoot89, Skipastarseeker, Skullfarmer, Squirrelface RAE, Snapes_daughter, Kathleen, Crookykanks, Goprongs90, Boris, Gryphon, Jordan, Hobbs and Smoofie.