High in the sky, the air rushed past his ears and over his wings as he pounded them up and down. The glorious feeling of freedom rushed through his being as he flew. Nothing could stop him or distract him up here. There was no aunt to berate him, no uncle to scowl, and no cousin to snigger. It was just him, Hedwig, and the occasional insect.

Laughing in his roaring laugh, he performed an incredibly exhilarating dive towards the ground, his paws curled against his chest, wings furled close to his back, and his tail fringe of feathers spread out, ready to catch him when he pulled up.

He waited 'til the absolute last second before snapping his wings out and whipping his tail down towards the ground. He felt the tip of his tail brush the top of a tree as he pulled back up, the muscles of his back, tail and wings straining to catch the force of his weight

He laughed again, because he had frightened the little woodland creatures below half out of their wits from his false landing. He soared back up, knowing he would be forever glad that he had been able to master his Animagus transformation. It had taken him two and half years – he had started on it right after freeing Sirius with Hermione – but he had finally done it.

He was an Animagus. He wasn't sure how common it was for a wizard to have a magical creature form, but he hadn't seen it any books he read about Animagi. He thought that must mean he was pretty incredible.

He was a griffin! A real, honest-to-Merlin griffin! When he transformed, he stood at about 3 feet high at his shoulders – although about 3 and half feet high if you counted the wings on his back. His wings had a span of about 15 feet across, and they were 3 feet wide at their widest point. His fur was a deep golden-brown, which faded into black through the feathery mane on his head. He had a thin, black stripe running horizontally down his back and tail, into a dark brown and black feather fringe at the tip, instead of a tuft. There was also a black smudge on the tip of each of his toes, where his claws came out. His beak, which still had a small set of sharp teeth on the inside, was the color of ivory at the tip, which faded into grey and black at the base.

All in all, he looked fearsome, bold and proud, yet somehow cute at the same time. When he had first learned about his form being a griffin, he thought it ironic, since he had been nearly sorted into Slytherin house. However, when he researched griffins themselves, he changed his mind.

Wild griffins were intelligent and proud, yet they were fairly peaceable creatures, choosing to avoid confrontation and people in general. There was one characteristic they always had, however, and that was protectiveness. The male griffin is fiercely protective of their mates, cubs, and even foreign griffins that they took under their wing. While they wouldn't necessarily sacrifice themselves for one of their "protégés" – though some would, in fact, even do this – they would let themselves be killed protecting their families if necessary.

In this, Harry was definitely like a griffin. People said he had a hero complex, but the truth was, he just couldn't stand seeing someone hurting or in danger of being hurt. So he helped them to the best of his ability.

Harry gently glided through the air, looking down at the countryside below. He always made sure to walk to this place before transforming for a fly. The nearest street was about 2 miles away, on the ground, and it wasn't very busy. Not to mention there were trees pressed close on both sides of it, and Harry flew high enough – unless he was diving – that people would likely think him a bird, even if they did get a glimpse.

He took a deep breath of the crisp, clean air around him. He loved it up here. He was only ever able to fly about half an hour, since it was a fairly long walk back to Privet Drive, but it was always worth it. He couldn't wait to tell Sirius about his transformation. He hadn't told him before, when he was learning it, because he didn't want to get Sirius' hopes up, and then fail. Perhaps this was foolish, as Sirius could have given him tips, but it was too late now. He did it.

He didn't want to tell Sirius over a letter, though. He wanted to show him in person. He couldn't wait to see his face! He also hadn't told his friends. He hadn't told Ron, because Ron couldn't keep a secret and his parents finding out would be a nightmare. He hadn't told Hermione either, because he didn't want her to worry, or fuss over the "fact" that he shouldn't be doing it.

Harry sighed. He didn't want to go, but he knew he needed to. He started the gentle, circling glide back down the ground. When he neared the tops of the trees, he found a good gap between two, and came to a stop, flapping his wings, before lowering himself to the forest floor. He started at a trot in the direction of the street, still transformed. He would get there quicker this way.

Tomorrow, I go to Grimmauld, I'll see Sirius, and I'll show him my transformation. This cheered him up, greatly. He could hardly wait.

As long as I can have these occasional moments of freedom and fun, Voldemort and the Dursleys can bother me all they want. This makes it completely worth it.

AN – Song listened to was Touch the Sky, Brave Sountrack.

No beta, and not even a second reading. Just a random plot bunny-thought-thing I had. My fingers were itching for the keyboard… Sorry for any grammatical errors spelling mistakes, "plot" holes (like there's totally a plot for this), or clichés.

EDIT(4/19/14): I've finally gone back over it. It's still not the greatest fic, as it was just a random plot bunny, after all, but at least it should be in consistent past tense form, with some of the sentences worded better. If you see any problems, please tell me in a review! I'd greatly appreciate it. Love you guys!

Tasha