Harry Birthday, Harry!

To celebrate Harry Potter's birthday, I'm going to post the prologue to my work-in-progress fan fic.

This fic is set after Deathly Hallows, though the prologue is not.

Note that this is an 'alpha revision' - that is, it has not been checked by an editor, unlike my other published fan fic. If you see errors of any sort, please let me know.

Disclaimer: JK Rowling owns Harry Potter and his world. She didn't write this, however. No money is being made from this story and no copyright infringement is intended. Any reprints of this story should carry this disclaimer and identify the author as "Gridley."

Prologue: For Every Ending

Author’s Note: Even while I was reading Deathly Hallows, I kept expecting Fawkes to show up. After I got over my initial shock and awe with DH, plot bunnies formed a phalanx led by that non-appearance and charged. This story will re-use many of the features I’d intended for the pre-DH version of “Flame of Life.” I hope that those of you who were disappointed with that stories’ abandonment will read this and forgive me.

“…Harry thought, for one heart-stopping moment, that he saw a phoenix fly joyfully into the blue…” – Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 30.

In the beginning, there was the Spirit.

The Spirit felt the rush of flames about it and was joyful, for it knew it need have no fear of fire. The Spirit leapt happily into the air, for it knew it could fly. The Spirit flew far from the place it had begun, for it knew it was free, and wished to explore and learn.

It was not until some time later that the Spirit began to wonder how it knew these things. How did it know that the things below were trees? How had it known that it could fly? It knew, somehow, that trees could not fly. Logically, some things could fly and others could not.

Perhaps that was the greater problem. The Spirit knew it existed, but what was it? If it knew what it was, that might explain how it knew things. It was not a tree. It looked around. It was not a lake. Lakes also could not fly. Perhaps the Spirit should not be able to fly after all? The Spirit studied its wings. Yes, they seemed intended for flight. Each answer merely led to another question: how did the Spirit know what wings were, and that they allowed it to fly?

The Spirit studied its body in more detail. It had feathered wings of red and gold. It had long, sharp talons. Well, the wings were for flying. What were the talons for?

The Spirit’s study was interrupted by a voice, seeming to appear directly in its head.

*Young one?*

*Yes?* The Spirit answered. It looked around, and saw another body, similar to its own, flying towards it from the side.

*Hello, young one.* The other body turned to fly alongside the Spirit.

*Who are you?* The Spirit asked. The Spirit hesitated, and then asked the question that it felt was more important, *Who am I? What am I?*

*We call ourselves the Reborn, for each time our bodies die we are reborn from their ashes with our souls intact. We are called many things by others. In this place, in this turn of the Larger Wheel, we are often called ‘Phoenix.’* The other body, the other phoenix, turned slightly and flew upwards, flying over the Spirit to look at it from above, coming to a halt on the other side. *As for whom I am, I am myself. I have been called by many names since I was first reborn, many, many turns of the Lesser Wheel ago.*

*Who gave you these names?* The Spirit asked. Perhaps it could go to them and get one of its own. Perhaps then it would know who it was, and how it knew things.

*We call them Sparks, for they spend such a little time, rarely more than a hundred turns of the Lesser Wheel, upon the world. When we spend time with them, they often give us names.*

*How do they know the names are the right ones?*

*They are neither the right names, nor the wrong names,* the other answered. *They are but sounds. You wish to learn who you are, do you Young one?*

*Yes!* The Spirit answered. *I know things, but I do not know how I know them. I do not know where I came from, or what I should do!*

*Do not be afraid, Young one.* The other replied, soothingly. *I will explain. When a truly great one among the sparks, strong in magic, wise in the ways of the turning of the Wheels, sharing greatly in the love of other sparks, goes knowingly and willingly to their death for the sake of others, not all of their soul takes the journey to what awaits them. A small part of it remains here, bound to the world. It is from that part that our kind is first reborn. Not even the Eldest among us knows how or why. Some of what they knew, we know. Some of what they were, we are.*

*Do they know this?* The Spirit asked, interested. This explained so much!

*No,* the other seemed saddened by this. *It is but a small piece of their soul that lights our first flame.*

*Who was I?* The Spirit asked eagerly. *Can you tell me?*

The other did not answer for a moment. *I know from whom the spark came. But do not confuse that with who you are now. You have a full soul of your own, now. You are not the same as what you came from, and it can only cause you pain to try to be the same.*

The Spirit considered this. Surely, as its body was different, it would have to be different in some ways. Very well, it would take the other’s advice. *What should I do now?*

*Each of our kind chooses their own path. Some believe that as we came from the greatest of the sparks, it is our duty to help them. We have found that our tears can heal their bodies, that our song can help their souls, and that our tail feathers can channel and strengthen the magic that some of them possess.* The Spirit turned its head, looking back at its own tail. After a moment it looked away again. *Others feel that as we are not like them, we should go our own way. They sit alone and think about what will happen when the Greatest Wheel completes its turn. They say that while the sparks have little time to think, we have much, and so we should use it well.*

*Are there many of us?*

*Less than fifty of our kind exist that we know of. Some of our kind search the world, turn upon turn of the Lesser Wheel, looking for our kind. They say there are billions of the sparks, and many other creatures, but of our kind, only the few.*

*How can so few help so many?* The Spirit was awed by the thought of how many sparks there were.

The other flexed its talons. *We are powerful, Young one. Never forget that. We have found nothing on this world that can destroy one of our kind once they are reborn for the first time. Our beaks are sharp and our talons strong. We fall only to rise again.*

The Spirit became afraid. *Is not so much power dangerous? What if we… do not use it well?*

The other sang out loud happily. *Ah! You have already begun to ask the most important questions. Part of the answer, Young one, is that we can still feel pain. Pain of the body is fleeting, but pain of the mind stays with us always, for while the sparks seem able to forget, we cannot.*

*And what is the rest?*

*Calm yourself, Young one. Not all of your answers should come from others, some you must learn from yourself. The Wheels turn, and this turn of the Least Wheel is almost complete. In the dark we will rest, and when light comes again we will go on. I had thought to aid one of the sparks in the task before him, but if you wish it, I will remain with you for some time.*

*Thank you.* The Spirit was relieved. There was so much it wanted to know! Another thought came to it. *Will the spark be all right without your help?*

*The turning of the Wheels will tell, but I suspect he will. When he had lived for but twelve turns of the Lesser Wheel I helped him destroy a great evil. He has learned much since then, and this time he need not be alone in his task,* the other paused. *And, in a way, I am with him still.*

End Prologue