Hidden in Plain Sight, Lies the Owl

The Briefing

Oliver was confused, James rarely called him in for anything, his wings fluttering nervously against his back as they walked over to the meeting room, where he knew his brother, Jeremy, and the boss, James, were going to be.

As he approached the door, he heard arguing as well as the faint sound of his brother's wings twitching and hitting something, probably a desk or wall. A knock on the door silenced the arguing before the door swung open. Jeremy was holding the door open as he glared at James. “Uh, guys? What were you guys talking about?” Oliver asked in confusion, noticing the way they glared at each other.

James hurried Oliver inside before speaking, “Oliver, I have a mission for you, and I understand that you may not like it, but I need you to hear me out.” Oliver paused and stared at James before glancing at Jeremy, who, despite his calm face, was visibly agitated, his wings fluffed up.

“What’s the mission, sir,” Oliver asked, “And why is my brother mad.”

“Well, those both have the same answer.” James said before quickly following up with information about the mission. “The mission I have for you is based on the recent uptick of kidnappings. I want you to be kidnapped”- Oliver cut him off with a quick, “What.”

James smiled sheepishly, “Just hear me out. I want you to be kidnapped so that we can find where they are keeping the kids, and we can save them. Jeremy and I have agreed that if we put a tracker on you and a listening device in your wings, we can get you in and out in a couple of days at most.”

Jeremy grumbled something that Oliver couldn’t quite hear, wings puffed in annoyance before smoothing over.

“What if it doesn't work? What if the tracker is defective? What if they have a technology blocker?” Oliver asked, worried, before James spoke up, “We'll have a guy following you to make sure we don't lose you.”

Oliver, still worried, even with the reassurance because of his brother's visible fear, hesitates before nodding firmly, shooting an apologetic glance at Jeremy. “I accept.”