Chapter 14
The War Phoenix
[A/N – For Alan Rickman, the man who brought Severus Snape to life…you shall be sorely missed.]
"Man, some people have all the luck," Seamus grumbled good-naturedly at the newly adorned Harry James Potter Holmes at the breakfast table. "As if being Harry Potter wasn't enough, you're now a Holmes, too!"
Harry flinched. Ron and Hermione glared at Seamus.
Seamus put up his hands. "Just kidding, mate." He grinned broadly. "You do realise that the Holmes family is ranked way above the Malfoys?"
"They are practically magical royalty," Neville said. "Historically, they have not been very involved with magical affairs – or muggle ones, for that matter – but if he chooses to, Lord Holmes can easily overthrow the Wizengamot."
"Uncle Mycroft doesn't care…" Harry began hotly.
"Shh, Snape!" Ron hissed.
Professor Severus Snape glided smoothly to the Gryffindor table. "Is there a problem, Mr Holmes?" he asked Harry.
Harry shook his head. "No, Sir."
Snape cocked an eyebrow but did not comment. The Gryffindors watched him silently.
"Very well," the Potions Master finally said. "Detention, Mr Holmes, for making a ruckus. Meet me at my office at six." He walked away, robes billowing after him.
Dean whistled. "Now, there's one git who doesn't care a fig whether you're Potter or Holmes, Harry! Why is he after your blood?"
Seamus and Neville were contrite and apologetic.
"Can't you get your uncle to do something about the greasy git?" Ron asked.
Harry shook his head, remembering all the times Snape had helped him. Besides, at Christmas, Snape had not only helped save Emrys, he had also promised to talk to Harry about his mother. If detention with Snape was the only way to learn about his mother from her friend, Harry didn't mind at all.
Hermione's reassuring hand on his arm told Harry that at least one of his friends understood.
XXX
"That was hardly fair, Severus," Lupin said mildly once the Potions Master returned to his seat.
"Severus needs to maintain his cover," Dumbledore replied before Snape could open his mouth. "We may need him soon."
Snape pursed his lips. As if in response to the Headmaster's words, the Dark Mark on his arm throbbed violently.
"Severus! Are you ill?" Minerva asked solicitously.
Snape nodded curtly and left.
Sirius and Remus exchanged a concerned look.
XXX
Harry's day was fairly uneventful. At quarter to six, he stood outside Professor Snape's office, slightly scared of the Potions Master. Snape had been rather decent to him this year, and he didn't want to break that spell…and he couldn't help but wonder if this arbitrarily assigned detention meant that Snape had gone back to his old ways of Harry-hating or if it was a mere camouflage for something deeper, and the man he had gotten to know as his mother's friend was actually the real Severus Snape.
"He did say he would assign me a detention when he wanted to talk about Mum," Harry said to himself and raised his arm to knock but someone grabbed him from behind and pushed him against the wall.
"How did you manage to worm your way into the Holmes family, Potter?" Draco Malfoy demanded, his pale face reddened with anger.
"It's Holmes, or Potter-Holmes now, Malfoy," Harry retorted, striving to remain calm.
"You don't belong with them!" Draco spat. "It is bad enough that they took you in…but to actually make you the heir to the Holmes legacy…!"
Harry shrugged. He had known that the Holmes family was powerful, but the reaction to his changed name made him curious and not a little afraid of what he had brought upon himself. He himself had never heard of the Holmes name in the magical world till he met Sherlock and Mycroft and Emrys. The appearance of the three brothers at the beginning of the year and their very public support of Harry had unleashed a drama, but that was nothing compared to how people were reacting right now, especially the Pure-Bloods and Half-Bloods. The Muggle-Borns were usually aware of only Sherlock because he was in the Muggle papers so often. But those of magical ancestry…especially the Pure-Bloods, now seemed almost deferential towards him. High-born students who had previously looked down upon him or treated him with slight contempt, now seemed to acknowledge his status. Could a mere surname added to his name bring about such a change? Was the name so important? And if it was, why had Sherlock granted it to him so easily?
"Answer me, Potter!" Malfoy yelled, shaking him.
Harry wrenched himself away from the Slytherin's grasp.
"It's none of your business, Malfoy," he said quietly. "Why my family chose to do what it did is their personal matter." A warm feeling engulfed him as he said "family". He had a family now…and people who didn't hate him.
Draco gaped at him.
Severus Snape chose that moment to turn up. He regarded the two boys with narrowed eyes.
"Is there a problem, Mr Malfoy, Mr Holmes?"
"N-no, Sir," Draco said quickly and ran off.
Severus regarded Harry like Sherlock regarded a rotting corpse. Then he bade Harry to follow him to his office.
"What did Mr Malfoy want?" Severus asked as soon as he closed the door behind them.
"He wanted to know why I was taken in by the Holmes family," Harry said quietly. "Apparently I'm not good enough for them."
"Don't be foolish, of course you are," Severus snapped. The Potions Master looked even paler than usual and his eyes were shadowed.
Harry blinked. Was the man ill?
"Sir? Are you…?"
Snape grabbed his arm and collapsed into the chair behind him.
Harry did the first thing that came to his mind and texted Mycroft. Then he pulled out the mirror Sirius had given him and informed his godfather.
That is why Harry was surprised when Dumbledore was the first to arrive. The Headmaster shook the young professor gently. Snape opened his eyes.
"Severus, my boy," Albus said quietly. "You must go back to him. Convince him you are a spy. You cannot ignore this anymore."
Snape remained silent.
"Severus, we need you. Remember your promise," Dumbledore said sternly.
Snape seemed to wilt.
"As always, Albus, you ask too much of your friends," came Mycroft's voice from the doorway. He was flanked by Sirius and Remus. "There is no point in sending Severus to his death. Voldemort is aware that Severus has sworn to protect my nephew."
"We could gain important information…" Albus protested.
"You would have Severus torture and kill against his will? You would have Voldemort torture him to gain information on you?" Remus asked angrily.
"We are at war. Every war has its martyrs," Albus replied sadly. "Severus is dear to me but…"
"…he is just a pawn in your game," Sirius spat.
Harry stared at the adults, not really comprehending the situation.
Mycroft turned to his nephew. "Harry, could you please take Professor Snape to the infirmary? Sherlock should be arriving there in a few minutes."
Harry stepped forward to assist Severus. The stoic man, however, grit his teeth against the pain and stood up by himself, albeit slightly unsteady. Harry hovered close. Snape strode out and Harry ran to catch up with him.
Sherlock was waiting for them just outside the Hospital Wing.
"Thank Merlin," Snape murmured, as he spotted Sherlock. He staggered and Harry grabbed his arm.
The Dark Mark hissed angrily and Severus cried out in agony. "Master wants you dead," came the eerie whisper.
Harry couldn't move. "Get out," he hissed in response, not realising he had switched to Parseltongue. Sherlock's bees surrounded him protectively.
The Dark Mark coalesced into a thick, smoky form in front of them. The snake in the skull continued to hiss angrily, calling Snape a traitor to the Dark Lord and promising him a painful death.
"Shut up!" Harry shouted. "He doesn't belong to your master!"
The smoky snake leapt forward at Harry, baring its fangs.
"Stay away from my son, you vile excuse of a serpent," Sherlock's sibilant whisper caused Harry to simultaneously feel warm with affection and cold with fear.
The snake recoiled. Snape attempted to push Harry away but Harry refused to let go of his teacher. The snake's fangs sunk into Severus' arm instead.
"Leave him alone!" Harry yelled. His eyes flashed a brilliant green and a magnificent green phoenix appeared in front of him.
Sherlock smirked and put a gentle hand on the boy's shoulder, pouring his magic into the child. The phoenix grew, its wings spouting silver feathers now.
"Go on, Harry, finish off the Morsmordre," Sherlock said softly.
"Go back to your master, filthy snake," Harry hissed. "You will never touch my friend again."
The phoenix charged and bit the serpent's head off. The snake writhed and disappeared. The skull cracked and faded away. The phoenix trilled and settled on the boy's shoulder.
Severus Snape pushed up his sleeve and found his arm smooth and unblemished. He looked up at his best friend's only child.
"You have your mother's eyes," he whispered and fainted.
Sherlock rolled his eyes and conjured a stretcher.
"What just happened?" Harry asked his guardian.
Sherlock appeared pleased. "You broke the Dark Mark," he told Harry, smiling proudly. "Also, our Parseltongue experiment was a success."
"You called me your son," Harry whispered, staring at the detective.
Sherlock flushed, then smiled. "So I did. Problem?"
Harry shook his head threw himself at Sherlock. "Can I call you Father, then?"
Sherlock smiled and patted the child's hair. "Of course."
XXX
"A war phoenix," Mycroft said, eyeing the green bird on Harry's shoulder. "I am most impressed, my dear nephew." They sat in the Headmaster's chamber.
The phoenix trilled.
"She says her name is Victoria," Harry told his uncle. "And I am her pet wizard."
Mycroft smiled. "Indeed."
Fawkes swooped in, showing off his beautiful red and gold plumage, clearly trying to impress Victoria, who turned up her beak at him.
Harry laughed. "Don't snub Fawkes. He's saved my life before."
The green bird perked up at that.
"How exactly did you break the Dark Mark, Harry?" Dumbledore asked, peering over his half-moon glasses.
Harry frowned. "I'm not really sure. It hissed at me, I hissed at it. Then it jumped from Professor Snape's arm and solidified in the air – though it was sort of smoky. It tried to bite me, but Father shouted at it and Professor Snape pushed me away and got bitten instead. Then Victoria appeared and bit its head off." He turned to Mycroft. "What is a war phoenix?"
"The most powerful warrior you can desire by your side," Mycroft said enigmatically.
Sherlock and Sirius laughed.
"I'll give you a book, Harry," Remus said kindly. He turned to Severus, who slouched in a chair. "How are you feeling, Severus? Poppy didn't want to let you out."
"I'm fine," the Potions Master muttered.
"You need rest," Professor McGonagall snapped. "What were you thinking, Albus, pulling out the poor boy from the infirmary before he has recovered?" She glared at the Headmaster.
Victoria flew to Severus and shed a few tears on him. Then she flew to Mycroft and settled on his shoulder.
Mycroft's eyes flashed as he stroked the bird. Several new blue feathers appeared on the phoenix.
"How did she get blue feathers just now?" Sirius asked. "Wasn't she green and silver?"
"She was just green at first, then she got some silver ones," Harry said.
Sherlock smiled. "Victoria was called forth by Harry's magic, so she has the colour of his magic. I poured some of mine to assist my son against the serpent, so she got silver. My brother gave her some of his magic, so now she has blue, too. I have no doubt she will soon pick up other colours from those who love Harry. A war phoenix assimilates magic born of love, loyalty and dedication."
Harry watched, awestruck, as Sirius held out his hand. Victoria flew to him, and gained some rich indigo feathers. Remus was next, and added some steel grey. Severus added black. Minerva added dark red.
Albus Dumbledore held out his arm, but Victoria refused to fly to him. She flew to Harry and trilled.
"Er, sorry, Professor, she says she can't trust you yet," Harry said. "She likes Fawkes, though."
XXX
To everyone's surprise, the war phoenix had taken a great liking to Severus Snape. She would often sit on his shoulder during class, even when Harry was at another lesson. Severus would never admit it publicly, but whenever he felt troubled or miserable, Victoria would immediately appear and refuse to leave him alone until his mood improved. Harry knew this, but wisely kept his silence.
Over the course of the next few weeks, Victoria gained chocolate brown feathers from Hermione, bright red from Ron, orange from Hagrid, khaki from John, gold from Emrys, purple from Arthur, turquoise from Mrs Holmes and copper from Mr Holmes. Even little Emma Rose gave her a couple of baby pink feathers. Surprisingly, when Hedwig and Victoria met for the time, they rubbed their beaks against each other. Hedwig's eyes flashed and became flecked with green, and Victoria gained some snow white feathers. Finally, around Easter, Victoria allowed the Headmaster to add his pale blue magic to her plumage.
