Chapter 1

The crisp rays of winter sunshine beamed through the window as Harry gazed out at the gardens of Hogwarts. Hagrid's hut was visible among the light mist, a glittering frost on the grass surrounding it. Hagrid himself was busy in the pumpkin patch nearby, in his thick hairy winter robes, with his boarhound Fang standing as if on guard at the door of the hut. The icy northerly wind picked up the autumn leaves and swirled them around in the air.

However cold it was outside, Harry felt he would rather be out there than where he currently sat. He was under Professor Trelawney's watchful eye in the muggy divination classroom. A crackling fire roasting in the grate and the doors and windows tightly shut were almost too much for Harry. He stared back at his book in front of him as Professor Trelawney glided towards him. The class was strangely silent today, but this was probably because that none of them had had much sleep last night after a Gryffindor victory in Quidditch against Ravenclaw. Harry thought ecstatically of the moment he had closed his hand tightly around the golden snitch…

"You look far, far away this morning, my dear," said Professor Trelawney, breaking into Harry's daydream.

"Er, sorry…," said Harry, trying to stare back at the open book on the table in front of him.

"A troubled mind often reflects a troubled life," Professor Trelawney added in a misty voice.

"What's Harry got to be troubled about?! He just won us the Quidditch match last night didn't he?" said a voice on Harry's left. Ron Weasley, his red hair flaming, smirked at Harry, who grinned back.

"Nevertheless… deep down…," murmured Professor Trelawney. "I'd advise you to watch out for strangers this week my dear, I have seen some terrible things… terrible things," she added, more forcefully as she drifted away from them over to Lavender Brown and Parvati Patil.

"What's wrong with her?" said Ron in disgust. "Why doesn't she ever say anything good will happen to you?"

"Don't know. Bet she thinks if she predicts my death often enough, if it happens she'll be able to tell the other teachers she was right," Harry said lightly. Way too often had Professor Trelawney predicted his doom for him to pay much attention anymore.

As the lesson ended, the class climbed down the silver ladder that led up to Professor Trelawney's classroom. Waiting for Harry and Ron at the bottom was their friend, Hermione, who seemed to be bursting with some information for them. "Harry! Oh Harry, guess what?"

"What is it Hermione, get another 'A' for one of your essays?" asked Ron.

"No, Ron, it's this!" She waved a letter excitedly in front of their faces. Harry made a grab for it and read it aloud.

Dear Mr Hagrid,

We are pleased to inform you that after due consideration of the panel, we at the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures would like to declare the Hippogriff "Buckbeak" released of his charge. Since the disappearance of the Hippogriff in question, regulations surrounding the condemning of so-called dangerous creature have been altered. Therefore the animal is free and if seen will be brought back to Hogwarts.

"Hermione! This is great! Let's go down and see him," said Harry, as Hermione, visibly still excited, hopped about in front of them.

As they walked over to Hagrid's hut, grass crunching under their feet, Hermione said, "I wonder what made the Ministry change their minds?"

"Maybe Malfoy's dad got eaten by a dragon and the committee members realised they do have minds of their own," suggested Ron.

"Do you know how unlikely that is Ron? No, I bet it was Dumbledore…" said Hermione. Hagrid's hut was right in front of them now. Harry reached out his hand and knocked.

Hagrid's door burst open, and Hagrid stood in the doorway with a huge smile, although he looked like he had been crying. "He got off! He got off! Tha' Dumbledore, he's a fine man he is. Made them committee members change their minds… Beaky's free! He'll come home to his mummy, jus' you wait an' see!"

Harry, Ron and Hermione exchanged doubting looks as they entered Hagrid's hut. They knew that Buckbeak was with Harry's godfather Sirius Black, but the two of them were in hiding together and it seemed unlikely that one would return without the other. There was no way of explaining this to Hagrid of course, only five people knew that Sirius was innocent of his murder charge, and they were themselves, Professor Dumbledore and Professor Lupin, who had been one of Sirius's greatest friends, as well as Harry's father's, back in their day at Hogwarts. Lupin had been the finest Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher the school had seen in years, but had been forced to leave Hogwarts when word got out that he was a werewolf. Harry missed him, almost as much as Sirius; having them nearby made his father seem not so far away… Anyway, they were gone, they were all gone.

"Cupa tea anyone?" asked Hagrid cheerily.

"Yes please," said Hermione and got up and reached for the huge teapot, but stopped at another knock on the door. Fang the boarhound growled deep in his throat, until he saw Professor Dumbledore standing in the doorway, then settled down on his blankets again.

"Dumbledore!" Hagrid beamed.

"Good afternoon Hagrid," said the headmaster of Hogwarts, the familiar twinkle in his eye. "You must be celebrating. I heard of Buckbeak's dismissal."

"My 'lil Beaky, free- I can' believe it! All thanks t' you," added Hagrid.

Dumbledore frowned slightly. "I assure you it had nothing to do with me, Hagrid." The small group in front of him looked slightly bewildered- surely nothing other than Dumbledore could have made the Ministry change the law…

"Any alterations in the wizarding laws were made by the Ministry of Magic, not my influence. I only assume they had better things to spend their energies on… looking for a stray hippogriff took up too many precious resources," Dumbledore continued, mildly enough to appear casual, but there was a definite strength behind his words.

"What-"

"My dear Miss Granger, it was merely a suggestion," Professor Dumbledore's eyes glinted knowingly behind his spectacles. "Now, what about that tea?"

*