28 Fawkes and Birthday

Agustus appeared in his room with Skadi, who chirped happily. She liked apparating with Agustus. He walked up to a chair and sat down, feeling tired after a long day.

Suddenly, a Portal of Power of Destruction opened in front of him, and a red phoenix emerged from it. It was Fawkes. Fawkes looked angry and tried to peck Agustus, who dodged her sharp beak by creating a POD wall blocking Fawkes.

Skadi, who had never seen another phoenix before, looked at Fawkes with curiosity. She tilted her head and flapped her wings, wondering why she was so hostile.

Agustus glanced at fawks and said, "Sorry, mate. I kind of forgot about you. I was a little angry last time, you know. Dumbledore was trying to interrogate me and all."

Fawkes was not satisfied with his explanation and attempted to get closer for another peck, but her instincts warned her of the danger. Agustus was not an ordinary wizard. He had the power of destruction, which could harm even a phoenix. Fawkes retreated and eyed him warily.

Skadi chirped at Fawkes, trying to communicate with him. Fawkes saw her for the first time and was dumbfounded. She had not seen another phoenix in a hundred years, and the blue ones were very very rare. Fawkes felt a surge of happiness, which chased away her depression and hunger. She realized that Agustus was not his enemy, as he has another phoenix. (Phoenix logic)

Agustus smiled and said, "Alright, you two. If you want to be friends, go play outside my room. And Fawkes, Dumbledore might be thinking that I killed you, so go and see him. I kind of pity that old man."

Fawkes and Skadi nodded and chirped in agreement. They flew out of the window, leaving a trail of red and blue sparks behind them.

Agustus then covered himself in power of destruction, as he did not want to shower. He was too lazy to bother with hygiene. He just wanted to sleep.

Agustus was planning on early morning training, He thought about improving his swordplay. He wanted to master the blade, and he always sought to learn more.

Time passed and Dora's birthday came. Agustus decided to surprise her with a visit. He came to the Tonks residence exactly at 11:59 pm. He saw that Andromeda and Edward were outside Dora's room, waiting for it to be midnight so they could wish her a happy birthday. But Agustus wanted to be the first one to do so. He used his power of destruction to sink their feet into the floor and cover them with a soundproof barrier. Andromeda was furious at Agustus and shouted threats from inside, but he just waved at them and entered Dora's room.

He saw her sleeping peacefully in her bed. She looked adorable. He had to wake up the sleeping beauty.

He leaned over and whispered, "Hey, Dora. Wake up."

She groggily shifted and mumbled, "Am I dreaming again of Agustus?"

He chuckled and hugged her gently. She felt his arms around her and fully woke up. Her face turned red and she unconsciously hugged him back. She said, "What are you doing here, you idiot? It's so late."

He kissed her forehead and said, "Happy birthday, Dora. I wanted to see you."

She smiled, kissed his cheek and said, "Thank you, Agustus. You're the best."

They continued their hug, feeling happy and content. They did not notice when Andromeda and Edward entered the room, well Agustus did after all he had removed his power of destruction from them. They saw them hugging and cleared their throats. Agustus and Dora ended their hug, and Dora looked at them sheepishly. Andromeda and Edward hugged their daughter and wished her a happy birthday.

After their hug, Andromeda and Edward glared at Agustus, who made himself comfortable on Dora's bed.

Agustus just said to them, "Everything is fair in love and war, and this was both, right?"

Edward's glare intensified, while Andromeda's softened. She then playfully said, "So Agustus, are you going to sleep with Dora tonight?"

It didn't take more than a minute for Dora to kick all of them out of her room.

Agustus just sighed, while Andromeda laughed at Dora. Edward looked dead..

After that, the Tonks and Agustus started preparing for the birthday party. It was a very small gathering of friends and family. Agustus was there from the beginning and helped Andromeda with the decorations and the food.

Dora wore a simple and elegant dress. She looked really cute, but when Agustus told her that, she just punched him and called him an idiot. Guess She was not over the morning debacle. She was such a tsundere.

As everybody arrived, the Tonks welcomed them warmly.

The twins, Cedric, Cho Chang, and her Hufflepuff friends were invited by Agustus. He wanted to make Dora happy by inviting her friends.

Everyone enjoyed the party. They ate, drank, danced, and played games. At 10:30 pm, the party ended and everyone left.

Edward and Andromeda were tired from the day and went to bed.

But Agustus was resting on Dora's bed, his eyes closed, his head resting on Dora's lap. Dora was running her fingers through Agustus's hair, feeling relaxed.

"Thank you for everything, Agustus," she said softly.

Agustus hummed in agreement and said, "Today was really fun, huh?"

Dora smiled and said, "I know. It was the best birthday I ever had. But where is my gift?"

Agustus smiled but didn't open his eyes. He said, "What gift?"

Dora pouted and pulled his cheeks. She said, "Give me my gift."

Agustus then said, "Alright, here." A box appeared in Agustus's hand, conjured by his power of destruction. Dora took the box and opened it eagerly, only to find a cup in it. The Hufflepuff cup.

It was safe to say that Dora loved the gift. Agustus told her the abilities of the cup, and she was really impressed. It was a small golden cup with two finely-wrought handles with a badger engraved on the side. The badger was the symbol of Hufflepuff House. After becoming a Hufflepuff, she had read about the cup of Hufflepuff that was lost. She had never imagined she would see it, let alone own it. She was really happy today.

After that, Agustus left her room and apparated to his own room.

(Dumbledore's office)

'It was so hard to appease Fudge, after that disaster of an election. Why don't people understand that Britain's magical society needs stability? Fudge's easy approach is the best, but he had his orders, which he obeyed to the letter.' Dumbledore thought to himself.

Fudge wanted to do nothing with the ministery and resign from his position after that humiliation he suffered, but dumbledore again convinced him to continue doing his job.

Millicent Bagnold was not a competent minister, thought dumbledore, as she has too harsh policies. Same was with Lady Bones.

Dumbledore had gone for asking Lady Bones support for Fudge and, asked for recommendation, due to his inability to give one, but she denied him to his face.

As he was contemplating, he felt his connection with Fawkes.

A red bird appeared in front of him. Fawkes was alive.

He didn't kill him... Dumbledore thought he had lost Fawkes. He had felt their connection break. But here he was.

Tears appeared in his eyes as he petted Fawkes. He thanked Agustus for letting him live. But he also knew better. The first time was a warning.

Dumbledore knew that next time he did something to anger him, he would kill Fawkes without blinking twice.

The demon he had seen that day still haunted Dumbledore, more than any Dark Lord he had faced till date.

________________________________________

Time skip. Canon's going to start from next chapter.

Question:

Suppose I gave you a million dollars. What would you spend it on? ( Don't write investment and stuff, be materialistic)