The Story of Tiberius

Chapter 21

Entering a room that was mostly white, the old man set the carrier down on a chair before taking a seat right beside it. A few moments later, a young lady with messy brown hair and green eyes came in. She wore light brown boots, glasses and a long white coat. Setting down the clipboard she had carried in onto the counter, she smiled warmly at the old man and remarked, "It's good to see you Mr. Jones, it's been awhile."

"Please Laura, Alfred will do," the old man replied while the young hawks finally learned his name. Shaking Laura's hand, he added, "And yeah, it's been awhile."

"How you been doing since... you know..."

"It's been four years since Stella passed away. I miss her but yeah, I'm doing okay."

"That's good to hear."

"Yeah. In fact, Claire is now a mother."

"Are you serious?! Congratulations! How's Aaron?"

"He's now a lawyer."

"That's amazing!" 

"Yeah, both of them are all grown up and having kids of their own," Alfred remarked wistfully. A second later, his blue eyes lit up as he remembered why he was here. Pointing to the carrier where the two hawks had been watching and listening quietly, he exclaimed, "I almost forgot. I brought some company." Kneeling down, Laura gasped softly when she saw the pair inside. Glancing up at Alfred, she murmured, "They're so adorable." Standing up, she continued, "Bring them up on the table please." A moment later, the carrier was lifted off the chair that it had been placed on and onto the table in the middle of the room.

Opening the carrier door, a hand reached in towards Rain. The young hawk trembled fearfully, squeaking quietly. Growling, Thunder lunged forward and bit down on the hand. However, he was merely pulled out. "Tough guy, huh? Good thing I wear gloves," Laura remarked with a smile. Looking worried, Alfred informed her, "I bought them from a pet store today. The manager told me he's bitten a few people. After he took a boy's finger clean off, they put a muzzle on him."

"Aw, poor little guy," Laura mumbled, picking up Thunder carefully after getting him to stop biting her. Squirming around, he hissed and lashed out with his talons. Examining him, the vet noted, "Red tail, about thirteen months, male. Seems to have a temper." She snickered quietly at her joke before putting on a serious face again and went on, "A little underfed and small for his age. Otherwise, he's healthy." Placing him down on the table, she went to grab Rain, who was still hiding in the carrier. Snarling, Thunder bit down on her gloved hand again. Looking down at him, Laura commented, "Calm down, I just want to look at your friend." Answered by a growl, she looked to Alfred for help. Carefully, the old man grabbed Thunder where he couldn't get bitten or scratched. The young hawk could only watch as the vet got his sister.

"Also a red tail, approximately thirteen months, female," Laura spoke quietly. Squinting her eyes as she looked at Rain, she stole a glance at Thunder before looking at the hawk she held in her hands. "Alfred, I think they might be siblings. That might explain why he's biting people," she remarked, stroking Rain gently before setting her down. Looking over at Alfred, she opened her mouth to ask a question that was on her mind. However, it seemed the old man had read it as he murmured, "The manager had gotten them when they were only a week old and put them on sale a month later. He didn't say how he got them and he thought they were bald eagles."

"What was he feeding them?"

"Steak, tiny pieces of it. And always right after he closed up the store at night."

"No wonder they're so small for their age."

"He also had them in the same birdcage that clearly wasn't big enough for the both of them."

"Well, it looks like they're in good hands now," Laura remarked, petting Thunder's head. Growling while his feathers bristled, he bit down on her gloved hand. Concerned, the vet added on, "You might also want to teach this little one to stop biting people before he gets in trouble for it."