I spared a glance every few moments towards the captor – who had draped himself in an extra coat of heavy fur and seemed to be in temporary hibernation – as I jutted my beak through the cage bars, jerking the cold, hard lock sideways as quietly as possible.

The captor, of course, was only one of my worries. The quiet work was as much for him as for his accomplice, who lie sleeping on the windowsill. The cat (or Boots, as the captor calls him) is, for all intents and purposes, a ruthless and savage beast bent on my destruction at his claws; earlier attempts at freedom often ended inches from my death, alive only through the captors infatuation with caging me. I don't try and contemplate the logic behind the rescues, although I am mildly grateful.

One particularly rough jerk freed the lock from its resting place. With only the softest squeak, the cage door swung open. I thanked the Gods for rust-free doors and fluttered forward, perching on the opening. A quick scan of the area assured me that Boots remained comatose.

There was an open window in the next room over. I could see the curtains billowing in, bringing forth a gentle breeze – I could smell the freedom.

A loud yawn cut through my internal ranting like talons through flesh – I hadn't checked the captors state of hibernation! The human was standing, rubbing his eyes and stretching to the sides in order to show off impressive wingspan... no doubt a display of superiority.

Thinking quickly, I launched forward and pumped my wings. I heard the captor startle at the sound of my take-off and I managed a glimpse back to see his face tilted towards me. Faster, I urged myself.

My heart raced, though from the impending freedom or the eerie mewl I didn't know. My jailer made loud, booming noises to show his surprise and anger at my actions; I flapped my wings faster.

The open window was inches away. I could see a mass of green and blue, trees and open sky. No more cages, only open air... freedom...

No! Warmth encased my body, my wings forced to my sides by the gentle pressure of the captors appendages. I cursed inwardly as he carried me away from freedom and towards my enclosure. Boots followed below, watching with a fascination that I, personally, thought only cats could convey.

He made soft, quiet noises as he put me in my prison and relocked the latch. Gathering up the shards of my damaged pride, I perched in the middle of the cell and leveled the captor with a gaze full of loathing.

"Attempt number twenty-three may have failed, but I won't rest until I'm free," I told him, my determination and courage already returning to me. The captor made a loud, joyful sound, obviously incapable of communication with my kind.

I preened and readied myself for another attempt.

A/N: Just a small experiment writing from the point of view of a bird. I changed the formatting a bit right before the upload so you might spot a few errors between 'he' and 'it' in dealing with the birds owner - feel free to point them out or tell me what you think!