Disclaimer: I do not own anything in or related to the Harry Potter universe. Please don't sue me.
Distant Memories
A Dream of Waiting
(((***)))
The boy was in an unfamiliar clearing. There were many trees around him, but these trees were unlike any other he had ever seen. They were tall – magnificent – and they sparkled with life that no other could even dream of accomplishing. That is, if trees could dream.
Dream. That word was like a wisp of air, so lightly used like that. It was almost unreal; substantial, yet unable to fully grasp; a force not to be reckoned with. The boy, however, did so, albeit unwillingly.
He had lost all sense of time. He could have been standing there for seconds, hours, as he stared at his surroundings. Between two of those gorgeous trees was a path leading to a small stream. He could hear the water slowly making its way over the rocks, and it was mesmerizing.
He didn’t hear when something snuck up behind him. It brushed against his leg. He jumped from the sudden touch and then turned around. Nothing was there.
He heard a rustle in the leaves. Eyes rapidly searched the area once again, but there was no one.
Confused yet still alert, he sat down and put his head in his hands. Why am I here? And more importantly, what was that?
Then he heard it again: a rustle of leaves, and then the sound of wings beating. A bird?
He looked high up into the branches of a tree to his left. This time he saw something. It wasn’t anything to give away the creature, but it was enough. A wing of the most brilliant red he had even seen stuck out in stark contrast with the bright green of the foliage. Was it a phoenix?
Immediately after that thought, an unearthly trill was heard. It was the sweetest thing the boy had ever heard, even better than his old headmaster’s phoenix, Fawkes. Yes, the boy thought, most definitely a phoenix.
That was enough for the creature. It seemed that now it had been identified, it didn’t matter whether or not the boy saw it. With a beat of its huge wings, the bird flew off its branches and into the air for all to be seen.
The boy had thought that it would at least stay in the clearing, but it headed through the trees leading to the stream. Not wanting to lose the only living creature he had found so far, the boy raced to catch up. He dove between trees, gaining many scrapes in the process. He had to jump over a log before he actually reached the stream. There on the other side sat the beautiful phoenix. Its brilliant green eyes stared unblinkingly at him.
The small body of water was only about twelve feet across, but that was enough for him to not be able to jump it. Gazing around, he saw no other way but to wade through it. Sighing, he held his breath and stepped into the water. The first step was the worst. Cold, cold, cold, he chanted in his head.
Willing himself to go on, he bit his lip and drifted across. The boy finally made it to the other side, where he stood on the dewy, morning grass, shivering. His arms were wrapped around himself and water was dripping from his clothes, making a puddle below him. He was freezing!
Once he got over the fact that he was standing in an unfamiliar forest, sopping wet, with only a mysterious phoenix as his guide, the boy came to realize that he was, in fact, just… standing there. Worthless, that’s what you are, he chided himself.
And so he looked around once again, but stopped when he saw a warm-looking, flannel blanket lying on the ground. It seems too good to be true, he thought as he shivered once more. He knew not to just pick it up, so he reached into his pocket for his wand. He panicked when he couldn’t find it. Sighing, he realized that there was nothing that he could do except stay alert. Weighing out the consequences in his mind, he decided to just grab the blanket. After all, there was something about that phoenix that made him feel safe.
He then reached out cautiously. As soon as his hand touched the soft material, he felt a sharp jerk behind his naval. He swore; it really didn’t seem likely that this was leading him to anywhere safe after all. However, once he finished his impressive string of curses, a new reaction took over – fear.
He feared that this was just a trick of Voldemort. He feared that this would end, once again, in death. He feared that he would never see his friends – his family – again. And that was the worst fear imaginable.
In a matter of seconds, the spinning and tugging was over. The boy fell to the ground in an unceremonious heap. Leaping up (all the while rubbing his newly sore elbow), he peered around nervously. What he saw amazed him.
He was standing in the middle of a large, circular room. The whole thing was decorated in gold and cream. No furniture existed there, save for a small wooden cabinet on the far side of the room. Lavish touches of décor were seen throughout, giving it a sparkling, ethereal glow. From beautiful sculptures to fountains that drained into nowhere, it was all there. It was magic.
He didn’t see any doors, but the whole ceiling was a sort of cone-like window. He now saw stars in the sky, the same sky that was bright and sunny only minutes ago. It didn’t seem chilling though. Actually, the room had this warm feeling to it that Voldemort – even in trickery – could never have accomplished. This comforted the boy a great deal.
Suddenly, he heard that wonderful phoenix sound again. The bird was close to the ceiling, perched on a sculpture of an angel. Its unblinking green eyes stared straight at him. Surprisingly, it still wasn’t unnerving in the least. He then heard a crash and broke eye contact. He looked behind him, but once again he noticed nothing (it seemed to be the day for hearing things that wanted to stay hidden. His eyebrows knitted together.
He heard the phoenix land behind him; then, a whisper. It started to grow into a wordless song. The sound wasn’t like that of the phoenix, but just as sweet. It seemed familiar. His eyes were closing; it was slowly lulling him into a calm state that he hadn’t been in for such a long time.
Eventually the song stopped. The boy stayed standing there with his eyes closed. He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned around, where he was pulled into a rather tight hug. Hs eyes flew open at the unusual greeting, but all he saw was a mass of auburn curls. He slowly backed away to see the person that stood in the place of the phoenix.
He froze when the whole face came into view. There, right in front of him, stood his long-dead mother, seemingly in perfect health.
“Hello, Harry,” Lily said. “I have been waiting for you.”
A/N: Ah! The first dream. You like? Was it terribly confusing? Please tell me in a review. (Hint, hint...) Thanks again for reading!