The Story of Tiberius

Chapter 36

After one month of not seeing each other, Alfred came to get the two red tailed hawks.

The first few days at the clinic weren't that bad. Tiberius and Rosa were taken care of by their personal vet Dr. Laura Green and the other vets. They had food, water, a place to sleep and plenty balls of yarn to play with in the small room they were placed in. All the while, Tiberius was treated for the burns on his face. Everything was totally fine. But after a week and a half, the two hawks were growing more worried for their owner. By the time two weeks passed, Rosa was having terrible dreams and would break out into a random panic attack during the day while Tiberius was having trouble sleeping and would often be awake all night long. They stopped playing and eating. All the pair would do was huddle together in the bed provided for them. The vets eventually got the two eating again but it was obvious that they were deeply worried.

When Alfred came after one month, the attitude of the two hawks changed before one could snap their fingers. The pair were letting out happy squeaks and purring while nuzzling their owner's hand. It wasn't until a few moments later when they noticed the cane in Alfred's other hand. There seemed to be great sadness etched in the old man's face when he spoke softly to the young hawks that they were heading home. When he walked, he appeared to be limping. And he limped bad. As they watched their owner with round eyes filled with concern, Tiberius and Rosa immediately came to the conclusion that the fall down the stairs back at the apartment building had caused some damage to Alfred's leg.

Riding in the elevator towards the seventh and highest floor of the apartment building while perched on Alfred's glove. Tiberius quickly grew confused when he saw that they had just passed the floor they lived on and were still going up towards the roof. Looking over at Rosa, the hawk could tell that she had noticed too. The pair gazed up at their owner to find he still seemed sad. About what, they could not figure out. At last, the elevator stopped and the doors opened. Heading towards the door that led to the rooftop, Alfred opened it. Peering out, Tiberius saw something that wasn't originally there in the first place.

Underneath the water tower was a crudely built shed.