Good Fortune, Tonight We Feast on Phoenix

"Welcome to Hogwarts! Annie, and Miss Granger, welcome to both of you! Er, would either of you care for something to drink?"

In the Hogwarts headmaster's office, Dumbledore had invited Annie to the school early this morning. After hospitably seating the two, he pulled out a jumble of odds and ends from a cabinet on the wall.

Accompanying Annie this time was, of course, Hermione. As one of the parties involved in yesterday's Gringotts incident, she too had been invited by Dumbledore.

The reason Hermione was also invited was mainly that Dumbledore felt she and little Annie were fairly familiar with each other, and since Hermione was his own student, having her present might keep the atmosphere from becoming too awkward. Moreover, this chain of connections could help him get closer to the little girl Annie, making it easier to build rapport or boost goodwill.

Dumbledore was cautious about this mysterious little girl named Annie. He had no idea what kind of variable she would bring to the wizarding world. Fortunately, from yesterday's interactions and her actions, he could tell she wasn't a bloodthirsty or cruel person, nor did she harbor extreme ideas like bullying the weak—of course, except for those who actively provoked her!

In fact, Dumbledore didn't find Annie's actions at Gringotts yesterday excessive. He could see that the little girl had exercised great restraint. Though the fight looked fierce, in the end, only one dragon and two goblins died. If he, Dumbledore, had been cheated out of several thousand Galleons by a goblin, he'd probably have gone on a killing spree too—and the death toll would certainly have been more than just two goblins!

"Or, would you like some Cockroach Clusters? These are quite delicious, have some?" Seeing neither wanted anything to drink, Dumbledore pulled out a large glass jar and presented it like a treasure to the two girls. Inside, hundreds of candy cockroaches crawled densely.

"No!!!"

Annie and Hermione refused without a second thought, speaking in unison.

Are you kidding? This old geezer was offering two girls moving cockroach candy? Just looking at it killed their appetite! Anyone with even basic emotional intelligence wouldn't do something like this! No wonder Dumbledore had been single for ten thousand years! He couldn't even charm two little girls, completely ignoring their feelings. Cockroaches—even if made of candy—probably no girl would dare put one in her mouth. How strong a stomach would you need to swallow that?

"Really not? Oh! Well! What a pity, perhaps you really should try some. The taste is quite nice, truly! I'm not deceiving you at all!" Saying this, Dumbledore reached into the jar, grabbed one, and quickly tossed it into his mouth. Before the cockroach could crawl back out, he bit it cleanly in half, then chewed noisily. As he swallowed, half a cockroach leg still wiggled at the corner of his lips.

Wow! Was this old geezer out of his mind? He could eat something like that? So disgusting!

Seeing Dumbledore's eating habits, Annie stepped back several times in shock. Accidentally, she bumped into some metal stand, and a crisp chirp sounded behind her. Turning around, Annie found a small red-feathered bird circling her with clear displeasure.

"Huh? What kind of bird is this?" Sensing a trace of flame-like power on the bird, Annie grew curious. Quite a peculiar bird. Was it this old geezer's pet?

"Ah! That's Fawkes! He's actually a phoenix, a magical one. Annie, he's saying you accidentally bumped into his perch and disturbed his sleep." Seeing the two girls wouldn't drink or eat candy, Dumbledore hurriedly packed away the bottles and jars.

"Phoenix?" Annie tilted her head, blinked, and looked at the red bird again. Then, suddenly remembering something, she quickly reached into her pocket and pulled out an egg of the same fiery red color.

"So, is this a phoenix egg? Will it look like that when it hatches?" Annie had bought this at the pet shop yesterday for five thousand Galleons! But to Annie, that wasn't too expensive, since the goblins had immediately compensated her with a pile of gold coins. All things considered, she'd actually made a tidy profit.

"A real phoenix egg? May I take a look?" Dumbledore was a bit surprised that Annie had such an item. He took the red egg, carefully placed it on the stone table, then adjusted his half-moon spectacles and leaned in for a close, careful examination.

"It should be right. Its aura is very similar to Fawkes's... very similar!" After studying it for a while, Dumbledore concluded it was indeed a phoenix egg.

So someone had actually managed to get a phoenix egg! They bought it at a pet shop? Did pet shops carry such good things? Perhaps he could go browse for bargains when he had time? But for now, he'd better handle this egg. So Dumbledore beckoned to his phoenix, Fawkes.

"Fawkes, come here a moment." Since it was a phoenix egg, he'd let his phoenix take a look. After all, they were humans and couldn't understand these magical bird eggs.

Fawkes, who had been circling above the three, swooped down at Dumbledore's call. Landing on the table, he first circled the red egg curiously twice, then pecked gently at the shell twice before chirping at Dumbledore.

"Good news! Annie, Fawkes says this is indeed a phoenix egg, and he can help you hatch it." Understanding Fawkes's meaning, Dumbledore smiled at Annie. "Would you like to hatch it now?"

"Huh? It can hatch? Great! Hurry, hurry!" Annie had been worrying about what to do with the egg.

She'd even considered roasting it over a fire to try, but feared accidentally cooking it. If she couldn't figure out a solution soon, she might have just fried and eaten it in a fit of pique. Who knew she'd run into a phoenix right now that could help hatch it? This was fantastic!

"Very well, let's step back a bit and not disturb Fawkes." Dumbledore pulled Annie and Hermione a little away from the table, then signaled Fawkes to begin.

Fawkes glanced sideways at the three who had moved away. Only after they were far enough did he spread his wings and take flight again. Circling the red egg twice, he suddenly dove down.

With a crisp cry, a burst of flame shot from Fawkes's mouth, directly onto the red egg. The entire stone tabletop was engulfed in flames, as if the egg had been burned away. After spitting the flame, Fawkes quickly returned to his perch, looking somewhat drained. This fire had clearly taken a lot out of him; he needed a good rest.

As the flames gradually died down, Annie and Hermione eagerly crowded around. On the stone table lay a scrawny, wrinkled chick with sparse feathers—barely any at all—its head drooping, eyes not even open.

"Huh? So ugly... I suddenly don't want it anymore." Sure enough, a featherless phoenix was worse than a chicken! Annie's first impression was: disgust! Second impression: even more disgust!

Looking at the hideous baby phoenix, then at the fully grown Fawkes, Annie wondered if taking a phoenix as a pet was a wise choice. Not good-looking, weak in strength—even if it lived another hundred years, Tibbers could crush it with one claw. Too pathetic!

"Annie, all baby birds look like this. Maybe when it grows up, it'll be like Fawkes?" Unlike Annie's disappointment, Hermione was visibly excited. This was a phoenix! She'd only ever heard Dumbledore had one! Now, this might be the second phoenix pet in the magical world? Not counting wild ones, if any still existed.

"That's right! Annie, let Fawkes take care of it for a while, then you can take it back. It'll become as beautiful as Fawkes! And it has many special abilities. You may not know, but phoenixes are divine birds. They can be reborn after death, their tears can cure poison and heal wounds, and they have incredible carrying capacity." Having owned Fawkes, Dumbledore was a wizard familiar with phoenix nature and abilities.

"Of course, according to legend, the environment is also crucial for a phoenix's growth. If, after leaving the chick stage, the young phoenix consumes different flames or grows up in a secret realm filled with magical fire, it can become a fire phoenix with extraordinary power! And it's said to be extremely, extremely beautiful!" After saying this, Dumbledore looked helplessly at the dozing Fawkes. This phoenix had been ruined by his raising; fully grown Fawkes was beyond saving. Alas! Regretful memories, all tears now.

"Is it that impressive? But I still don't want it. Sister Hermione, if you want it, it's yours now." Hearing it would grow up like Fawkes, Annie's disgust deepened. Even looking like Fawkes was still ugly... It seemed like a big red turkey! She didn't want to raise something like that—small and ugly!

"Give it to me? B-but I already have Crookshanks..." Hearing little Annie wanted to give her the phoenix, Hermione was taken aback. This was a five-thousand-Galleon phoenix! So casually, just giving it away?

"If you don't want it, I'll roast and eat it." Annie looked disdainfully at the featherless, chick-like phoenix on the table, as if considering how to cook it and what seasoning to use. She'd never actually eaten a phoenix before.

"Don't! Th-then I'll take it, alright? Thank you, Annie." Hearing Annie would roast the baby phoenix, Hermione panicked and quickly agreed to take it.

She already had the big-faced cat Crookshanks, but raising a phoenix too should be fine, right? The school probably didn't have a rule against two pets. Thinking she'd soon own a magical phoenix just like Headmaster Dumbledore, Hermione grew excited, eager to scoop up the little thing from the table.

"Then it's settled." This was actually Annie's small compensation to Hermione for scaring her so badly yesterday.

Besides, Annie really didn't want to raise such an ugly creature called a phoenix. It wasn't big, nor did it have a fierce, terrifying appearance. What use was it? For detoxifying, healing, or flying with heavy loads, Annie's own spells were enough—she didn't need its help! Annie only wanted pets that could help her fight, and the bigger, the better!

Hearing Hermione agree to take the baby phoenix, Headmaster Dumbledore and his phoenix Fawkes both breathed a sigh of relief.

This little girl was utterly unreasonable—threatening to roast and eat a phoenix at the drop of a hat! That was a phoenix! You couldn't just eat it casually! Fawkes had been terrified; he'd almost snatched the chick and fled. It was his kin, and he absolutely wouldn't let it be roasted and eaten by humans!