Disclaimer- I do not own Harry Potter or any such franchises. The only ideas that I own are my own that I write down here for you all to enjoy. And unfortunately, I've yet to make any money off of these ideas of mine. (T.T)

And now, time for some reviews!

Solarsailor55- I'm really glad you're enjoying the story so far. I'm going to try and make this as good as I can. Hopefully I'll be able to turn out plenty more chapters in the future.

TheLastPeverell- Things are definitely going to get interesting in the future. And as for the eyes, feline is a good comparison, but they're definitely not cat eyes.

Zyph01- Pretty close. A bit more specific but very close.

Otagema- Well now you get another chapter to read! Part of the reason I wanted to do this story was because Harry and Gabrielle pairings are so incredibly rare. I plan to finish this story to completion, even if it will take a while. And also I truly appreciate the story suggestion. Hope was a pretty good read, though not what I was expecting.

To any who want to ask any questions to me or make any suggestions of the story, feel free to give a review. I don't write much so any critiques and help is more than welcome. If there are particular parts of the story or my style that you're enjoying, let me know.

And now, onto A Tale of Wings and Fangs.

Chapter 3

"The Quidditch World Cup, huh?"

Harry slowly read through the note that Ron had sent him. Apparently, Ron's father had managed to secure a group of tickets to the game and had enough extra to bring along not only Harry himself, but also his other best friend Hermione. At first, Harry was ecstatic at the information. Not only would he be free of the Dursley family early for the summer, but he would also get to spend time with his friends and the Weasley family watching what had quickly become his favorite sport. Though, to be fair, the wizarding world didn't really offer much in the way of sports. It was one of many areas where the hidden world was far behind the times compared to the mundane world.

But as Harry thought over the idea more and more in his head, he started to come to a realization. If he did decide to go with the Weasleys, he would be away from the Dursleys for the remaining weeks of the summer. Normally that would be a great thing for the young wizard, but his previous actions seemed to have thoroughly cowed both his aunt and uncle, especially his uncle. As nice as the Weasley family was, their home was anything but big enough for the amount of people that lived there. Harry would be lucky to get any free time to himself, let alone any peace and quiet to practice his meditation and animagus transformations.

That thought led into Harry's biggest worry and what held him back from grabbing a sheet of parchment and scrawling out a reply immediately. For the weeks that he stayed with the Weasley family, he'd likely not be able to practice his animagus training at all. Mrs. Weasley was extremely against her children performing any sort of 'dangerous' magic outside of Hogwarts. Along with that the Weasley matriarch was incredibly controlling to the point that it often ended up being annoying. As much as Harry appreciated the woman for all that she and her family had done for him over the years, she did get on his nerves more and more often.

Considering he had just experienced his first success with the animagus transformation detailed by the American book, Harry was hesitant to agree to something that would put him weeks behind on practice. There were dozens of questions that he wanted to figure out about the recent feelings he'd experienced during the confrontation with his uncle and Harry was unsure if he would be able to investigate that away from the quiet of the Dursley home. Molly Weasley would likely confiscate the book Sirius had sent the moment she spotted it as well.

It wouldn't be until later that Harry would realize just how much focus he had put into learning the animagus transformation. It was a damn near consuming urge, but not entirely a harmful one.

With his worries and thoughts in mind, Harry grabbed a sheet of parchment and began to scrawl out a short message to his best mate.

Ron,

Sorry about your favorite team losing again. But really, you should just take Dean's advice and try routing for a better team. The Cannons really aren't doing well and I don't think they ever will.

I'm doing alright this summer. My relatives have actually left me alone for the most part so I've been able to have a more peaceful time and not have to worry as much. The downside is that there's been a pretty bad stomach bug going around town lately. I'm trying not to go out and catch it, but it doesn't look fun.

The World Cup sounds like a good time to me! I'd love to come along for it, but I'll let you know in a week or two if I'll be able to. If this stomach flu manages to get me I don't think I'll be doing much aside from staying in bed or in the bathroom. And I really don't want to get you, Ginny, or your mum and dad sick as well with something so important going on.

I'll let you know soon as I can. Until then have fun and don't let the twins rile you up too much. You know that they'll only prank you more if they know it annoys you, mate.

P.S. Please make sure you give Hedwig some bacon or something. Just because my aunt and uncle haven't been bothering me much this summer doesn't mean that they're going to be ok with me bringing my owl into the kitchen with me.

Your best mate,

Harry

Once the letter was finished, Harry moved towards the still open window and looked outside. Even though he couldn't see her, he knew that his owl was nearby. A quick whistle and the sound of fluttering wings soon reached the young boy's ears. A few moments later and the beautiful snowy owl fluttered to the window.

"You really do always know when I've got a job for you, don't you girl?" Harry joked, a small smile on his lips as he gazed at one of the first real friends he'd ever made. He would be eternally thankful to Hagrid for getting him the intelligent owl as a gift.

"Now I need you to take this over to Ron, at the Burrow. Feel free to stick around for a little bit since I told him to give you some bacon. Wait around if it looks like he's going to send back a reply too." Gently he wound some string around the owl's leg, securing the package firmly enough to stay attached but not enough to hurt the stunning owl.

In response to his words Hedwig gave a long hoot and tilted her head. She gave a quick, affectionate nip to Harry's fingers before she turned and flew off into the early morning air. Within seconds she was gone, and Harry moved back towards his bed.

"Now, I need to figure out what exactly happened back in the kitchen. I haven't felt that mad since… Well, ever." Picking up the book from where it laid, Harry was soon scanning the pages for any sort of information regarding emotional responses and outbursts. After a few minutes, he managed to find a small passage explaining what he had felt.

"Normally one would experience a sort of small shift in attitude once they've achieved a full transformation into their beast. Each form has some amount of the same instincts that they would have out in the natural world. Things like a more prideful attitude, incredible loyalty to those close, a dislike of the sun, or even a desire to be in the air are common depending on the form that a wizard or witch could have.

While that is normal, there are also some times when the responses and instincts of the animals can be felt even before the full transformation is achieved. If the wizard or witch has a strong bond with their animagus form, they could experience small amounts of their animal's instincts or feelings at times. Surges of anger are common in such cases, since most of the witches and wizards who have experienced this trend tend to have forms which are often predators or apex creatures in their respective environments.

In these cases, learning to adapt to the beast is best. While it hasn't been officially recognized by the world at large, we who write this believe that there is some sort of sentience to the animalistic sides we all channel through the animagus form. They seem to represent a more bestial side of us and they can respond to our emotions. There is a reason we have made this book. We of the wizarding tribes believe that coexisting with one's animagus form is an important part of the transformation itself."

As he finished reading the passage, Harry's mind ran through what he'd just read. While most would have disregarded the writing as just an opinion, the boy-who-lived thought otherwise. The feelings he had experienced as Vernon grabbed him had been far more intense than anything he'd felt before. There were also the almost predatory thoughts that had filled his mind when he'd looked at the fearful eyes of his uncle.

It was pretty clear to Harry that the writing in the book was actually the truth. No matter what sort of form he had, it clearly had some emotions or strong instincts of its own. He would need to focus more on trying to get used to the feelings and impulses and better separate his own emotions from his form's. It wouldn't do for him to get back to Hogwarts and end up snapping and revealing his secrets if someone like Malfoy said a few simple things to piss him off.

The rest of the day was spent quietly inside of his room, Harry meditating and trying to make some sort of connection to animagus form. Hours passed but he wasn't able to make much of a connection, but he did have some minor successes. Thinking back to the encounter with Vernon, Harry could feel that small surge of prideful vengeance and was able to start working on separating those sensations from his own. He still felt them each time, but they weren't able to affect him as strongly.

A week passed by far quicker than Harry would have liked for it to. Focusing thoroughly on the partial animagus transformation, the young wizard had spent the entire week trying to get a proper grasp on changing his eyes to and from that of his animagus form.

While he still hadn't gotten any closer towards finding out the true appearance or identity of his form, Harry had made leaps and bounds in control. Knowing about the almost sentient way his bestial form could respond to his emotions had made it easier for Harry to focus on and isolate those emotions. He'd gotten enough of a grasp to keep from outwardly reacting in most cases, but he hadn't been able to put his control through a proper test yet.

The Dursleys, particularly Vernon, avoided Harry like the plague after the second day. With Harry trying to go the entire day with his eyes in the form of his animal, the trio were eager to not test Harry's bluff at all. The only downside of the peace and quiet was that Harry wasn't really able to be in any sort of situation that truly got him mad enough to trigger an actual response from his animagus form. In the end it would likely be a trial by fire once he got on the Hogwarts Express.

By the time the week had finished, Harry had gotten to a point where he could easily change his eyes to that of his form's in the blink of an eye. It actually served as a good method of intimidation, since he'd sent Dudley running one morning when practicing. Apparently, his eyes going from a vibrant green to a dangerous, reptilian gold between one blink and another was startling. Who could have guessed?

But with the week coming to an end, Harry had to also come up with a response to Ron's letters. His best mate had urged him to come along for the trip, and a part of Harry really wanted to come as well. But despite the desire to see the biggest Quidditch game of the year, Harry felt like he was on the verge of a breakthrough. Some sort of feeling had been bothering him for the prior two days and he felt like there was a sort of barrier that he was so close to breaking through. His hopes were that he would be able to see something more of his animagus form, something else that he could practice with and get closer to completing his goal. In the end, though, the young wizard would have accepted just about any sort of results.

Pushing aside the thoughts of his animagus form and whatever it could possibly be, Harry sat down and pulled out some parchment. He took a moment or two to think of what to write before beginning.

Ron,

Hey mate. I know this is going to suck but I think you're going to have to go without me to the World Cup. My cousin, Dudley came to the house yesterday and spent almost half the day throwing up anything in his stomach. I feel bad for him, but maybe it'll help him slim down and lose some weight in the end.

Jokes aside, I've already seen my aunt and uncle looking worse for ware and I'm not feeling too great myself. I'm not going to risk getting you, your family, and Hermione sick so I'm gonna stay at the Dursley's for the summer. There's no way that this flu can last until school starts back up, so I'll probably be fine by the time we get back to Hogwarts. I'll meet up with you and Hermione on the train.

If you can, try and get me a souvenir from the game or something. Tell your mum and dad I'll pay you back for it at Hogwarts.

Your best mate,

Harry

Sighing softly, Harry read over the letter twice before he sealed it up and called for Hedwig once more with a whistle. He felt bad for lying to Ron and Hermione, but he wasn't sure if either of them would be able to keep his secret. Hermione… She would likely assume that the magic was too advanced or too dangerous and report it to either a professor or Molly Weasley herself. If any of the Hogwarts professors or Mrs. Weasley found out about the book he'd gotten from Sirius, he would lose it in minutes. Thankfully, lying to Ron was far easier through a note than in person. Even then, it didn't stop Harry from feeling a bit of guilt.

As Hedwig alighted in the window, Harry smiled and spent a few minutes just petting and feeding his favorite owl. "Ready for another delivery, Hedwig? Same place as before, bring it over to Ron and wait for a reply. I'll see you soon girl." Once the letter was tightly secured Harry let the snowy owl fly off and Harry watched the white bird vanish into the dark night sky.

With the dirty deed done, the dark-haired youth moved to the bed and sank into the rough mattress with a groan. He was tired and needed some sleep. A glance at the clock revealed the time was already nearly midnight, so he simply stopped resisting. Within minutes the sound of Harry's soft breathing filled the room as he faded into unconsciousness.

The first thing that greeted Harry as he awoke were the smells. The scent in the air was familiar and it only took a second for him to remember. He could smell the earthy, clear air of the forest he'd been dreaming of for the past months.

Unlike the previous times in his dream, Harry didn't feel like he was moving at all. The reason for why that was came quickly as Harry opened his eyes. He wasn't moving quickly through the trees of the dense forest. Instead, he was standing by the lake, the same lake that his dreams always ended at. The sound of water gently trickling into the large pool filled his ears as a gentle breeze sent the leaves of the tree rustling. The biggest change to his normal dreams was the simple fact that Harry wasn't looking through the eyes of an animal.

Looking down, Harry could see himself, standing at the edge of the crystal-clear lake, in his own body. Wearing the same oversized t-shirt and shorts that he'd fallen asleep in; Harry found the change to his dreams startling and confusing. The peaceful quiet of the forest didn't last long before a loud rustling could be heard coming from the tree line. As he turned to look at the surrounding area, the young wizard went for his wand only to find that it wasn't on his person. Attempts to sharpen his vision with his animagus form's eyes didn't work either.

Before he could investigate the odd circumstances any further, the trees before Harry parted and a large creature moved into the clearing around the lake. The boy's eyes went wide as saucers and his jaw dropped, looking at what could only be the embodiment of his animagus form.

"Bloody hell!"

Aaaand Chapter 3 ends with a cliffhanger!

Sorry for those who were hoping to learn of Harry's animagus form this chapter, but I promise that you'll all be learning what it is by the next chapter. This means guesses will only last for the time it takes me to churn out the next chapter in this developing story.

I'm really finding myself enjoying writing again, and I only wish that I had started sooner. Unfortunately, college is starting up soon and I'm going to be getting busier when it does. With me having to deal with schoolwork and a part time job, I'll be a fair bit busier in the coming future. I still plan to keep pumping out more chapters for this story, but I do also have to acknowledge the fact that I will likely slow down a bit when things get more hectic.

Feel free to like and follow the story if you enjoyed, and comment any questions, suggestions, or comments you might have in the reviews.

Until next time everybody! Stay tuned for more!