Toby flew faster than he had ever flown before. As he zipped ahead, the mansion - which was placed right on top of a grassy green hill - seemed to get smaller and smaller in the distance behind him. Still, he didn’t slow down. He kept flying, the wind streaking through his maroon-brown hair, which happened to be the same colour as the wings of a hawk, the bird of prey that’s wings Toby possessed. As his hair got messier and messier, he got happier and happier. He’d always been able to fly comfortably; he was lightweight and skinny yet had very strong wings.
It’s safe to say this was the most liberated flight Toby had ever experienced. He had never flown out of the mansion’s boundaries and, as outsized as it was, he felt trapped everyday living there with his Grandfather. Now, after fifteen years of “living” he was finally going to have the only thing he wanted; to feel alive.
The sun was setting, his feathers glistened, and Hawk Manor had disappeared from view. The few clouds remaining visible had an orange tint to them thanks to the sunset. Trees fell behind and signs of the Humans power over nature were starting to show down below. As he grazed through the sky alongside birds returning to their nests to roost, Toby spotted a small town a few miles ahead. He spread his wings to climb up a thermal (a pleasant, rising column of warm air) and proceeded to glide effortlessly forward using his new altitude. This was the type of flying that was nearly impossible to enjoy in the mansion’s courtyard. Feeling ecstatic, Toby started his descent towards the town that was now directly below him. He had been warned about these Human settlements his whole life, but as far as he’d seen, the only difference between him and Humans was that they didn’t have wings. Instilled with definite rebelliousness (and possible overconfidence), he gently glided down into the streets.
The town was dark; all the lights were out except for the stray street lamp. Toby had to fly extremely carefully to avoid hitting anything in the cramped streets, stretching onward into the darkness with new buildings appearing, each exactly the same as the last. Toby guessed he had only seen half the town so far but had already seen everything even remotely interesting (other than the Humans themselves of course; Toby had always thought they were fascinating creatures). It seemed as though all the Humans had gone to sleep, despite the sun having just slipped beneath the horizon. ‘I could do with a break too’ thought Toby drearily. He’d never flown for long distances before and was already pretty tired. Upon deciding that any freedom was better than no freedom he settled on a quiet alleyway to rest and get some well-earned sleep. Alleyways were more closed off than he’d like but he figured the Humans wouldn’t take kindly to a winged boy knocking on their door at night, asking for a place to stay (not that he would enjoy a cramped Human household much either).  Thankfully, the alleyway was dimly lit by a nearby street light (Toby hated the dark) and he dozed off soon enough into what he expected to be the greatest night of sleep he would ever have…