Fulvus flew forward speedily, his wings turned and feathers spread. Clint was positioned on his back with his bow held tightly in his hand. He allowed an arrow to fly and it hit the target right on point. Fulvus made a sharp bank turned and before it would have thrown Clint but Clint had learned how to curl his feet under Fulvus's underbelly and hold on while firing an arrow. It hit right beside the other one and excitement pulsed through Fulvus.
Out of the corner of Fulvus's eyes he saw Fury on the ground. He halted in the air and drew his beak back to nudge Clint's foot. "Fury."
Clint turned his head and nodded before he patted his hand against Fulvus's neck. "Alright. Let's land and see what he wants."
Fulvus obeyed and he lowered down and nearly laid down so that Clint could easily make his way off of him. Clint strode over to Fury with Fulvus following.
"Clint, Fulvus, just the two agents I was looking for," murmured Fury as he crossed his arms against his chest.
Agent? Fulvus nearly leaped when he heard that Fury had called him an agent. He shook off his excitement and just gazed up at Fury with unblinking eyes.
"What is it, Fury," asked Clint with a subtle nod. "We have a lot of training to get done."
Fury nodded a bit. "It's the end of the week. I was just making sure that you both knew that it was the end of the week," he reminded them.
Clint shrugged and looked over to Fury. "Your point being?" Fulvus remembered and he shuddered, wondering how this would turn out.
Fury looked down at Fulvus and Fulvus shrank a bit. "You said that you would allow Fulvus to train with you for just a week. It's the end of the week. It's time for me to take him back."
Fuvlus longed to shake his head but he didn't. That would make him look desperate and as desperate as he was to stay with Clint he didn't need everyone to know.
Fury motioned for Fulvus to follow him but Clint shot out an arm and blocked Fulvus from wandering any further. "Fury, wait," Clint began.
Fury rounded as if he expected Clint to say something. "If I recall you didn't want Fulvus to be training with you. Now you want him to keep training with you?"
Clint rested a hand on top of Fulvus's head and Fulvus smiled a bit. "Well, things change. Fulvus and I make a great team and I think if would be foolish if you split us up."
Fury gave a smirk as if he knew that this was going to happen. "Very well. You two have one more week to 'train' before I'm sending you two out on your first mission."
Nervousness and excitement surged inside of Fulvus but he tried not let it show. "What kind of mission," he inquired as he leaned forward a bit.
Fury turned toward the door, shaking his head. "That's for me to know and you not to ask questions about. You'll be debriefed later on what information is important to you."
Fulvus got the feeling that Fury was smoother than he first thought. He always seemed to be a step ahead and very secretive. Fulvus made a mental note to keep himself and not trust Fury more than he needed to.
Clint didn't seem overly bothered by not being told about the plan. He tapped Fulvus on the shoulder. "Would you like to practice some more?"
Fulvus thought about it but he had promised Albus that he would introduce her to Clint, at least if they stayed together for longer than a week. Now that that had happened he had to uphold his promise. "Could we do something first," asked Fulvus hopefully as he looked up at Clint.
Clint raised an eyebrow. "Depends on what it is. If you want to see how I look falling from twenty feet I'm going to have to deny it but other than that I think that I'm open."
Fulvus let out a chuckle. Clint was always being sarcastic. "It's nothing bad. I want you to meet someone that means a lot to me. She said that she's really excited to meet you."
Clint seemed a bit taken back. "She says that she's excited to meet me. Well I don't know anyone who would say that," he joked warmly.
Fulvus pushed his head against Clint's calf. "Just follow me. Don't make any sudden movements. She's a bit untrusting of humans but she really wants to meet you."
Clint wasn't sure that he should meet whoever Fulvus wanted him to but he sucked it up and finally nodded. "Alright but you lead the way."
Fulvus dipped his head and scampered forward, allowing himself to break into a steady trot. Clint followed and Fulvus led them toward the lab. He stopped and made sure that no one was there before he pushed forward. Clint looked toward the class container that Fulvus was usually kept in when they did anything with him.
"What do they do to you in here," muttered Clint under his breath.
Fulvus looked back and frowned. "We can talk about it later. I don't want to ruin the experience." Fulvus trotted over to a door and opened it with his head. Clint helped the last of the way before he crept forward, his eyes scanning around madly. "This way, I think."
Clint followed in the dark before he found a light switch and turned it on. He heard a deep hissing in the corner of the room in a medium sized den.
"It's okay," assured Fulvus as he jumped forward in front of the cage. "Albus, it's me!"
"Fulvus," murmured a voice that sounded female like but also had a deepness to it. Clint realized that this was no human that he was dealing with.
Fulvus gave a nod, smiling a bit. "Yes, it's me. I brought Clint with me, just like I told you I would," he exclaimed as he flicked his tail to Clint. "He really wants to meet you."
Clint wouldn't go that far but he wasn't about to interrupt Fulvus or correct him. Fulvus motioned for him to lean down so he did. Fulvus leaned forward and ran his beak against the bars of the cage.
In the back of the den Clint saw a beautiful white lioness with dazzling eyes. Her ribs protruded from her body but Clint still wouldn't want to take her on.
"Why don't you open the cage so that she can come out," suggested Fulvus as he motioned to a lock. He clawed at it with his talons but he couldn't unlock it.
"We'll work on that," assured Clint as he patted Fulvus's shoulder. He unlocked it and the lioness sprang forward, tensing her muscles as she landed.
She arched her back as she stretched out and when she yawned she exposed giant teeth. "It feels wonderful to be out of there and not be on a leash." She looked up at Clint and tilted her head. "So you must be Clint. Fulvus has told me a lot about you."
Clint smiled as he sat down with Fulvus right beside him. "All good I hope."
Albus dipped her head. "Oh yes. I'm Albus by the way, Fulvus's mother."
Fulvus took a step forward and pressed his beak against her muzzle. "She took me under her wing and took care of me when I couldn't take care of myself. Now I can but she'll always be my mother." He sat beside her and allowed her to rest her head on his shoulder. He was growing at an alarming weight and he was now slightly larger than his mother. One day he would probably be at least three or four times a male lion's size.
Albus narrowed her eyes a bit as she tried to get a better look at Clint. "I hear you are an archer. How did you learn?"
"I taught myself," confessed Clint as he remembered when he was younger. "How long have you been here?"
Wrong question. A growl rolled in Albus's throat and anger lit in her throat. "Too long to count," she growled as her eyes glazed over as she thought of all that she had been through.
Fulvus looked to his mother. "But it's gotten a lot better, right," he pressed as he rested his head on his Albus's shoulder.
Albus sucked in a breath and sighed. "Yes, it is. It's just hard to be here when all you are seen as is an experiment."
Fulvus frowned before he rose to his paws. "Would you like some water," he offered, hoping he could make her feel a bit water. "I know where the freshest water is, not whatever they usually give us."
Albus smiled warmly and dipped her head. "That would be great, Fulvus. Thank you," she whispered. Fulvus dipped his head back to his mother before he meandered out of the room.
Clint found it a little awkward to be alone with Albus but Albus didn't seem to mind. She was still going to speak with Clint. "How do you like training with Fulvus?"
Clint was a bit surprised by the question but he was glad that he could answer it honestly. "I really enjoy it. Fulvus is a great er griffin and he's certainly someone who I would fight alongside."
Albus smiled. "Now, I know that they made Fulvus for one reason, war."
Clint looked over, his eyes unreadable and downcast. "War? What do you mean? We're not even in a war," he pointed out as his voice rose a bit.
Albus hissed and reminded him to keep his voice down. "I've been here forever. I know what they are doing when they make a creature like Fulvus. They want him to kill and he can but I don't want him to be disposable. He's my son, not a weapon made to be thrown away as soon as it's convenient."
Clint leaned forward and rested a hand on Albus's shoulder. "I promise that I won't let that happen."
Tears showed in Albus's eye. "I love him like I gave birth to him and I am glad that he has a partner like you. You seem to care about him and he cares about you."
Clint nodded. "I know that he would have my back and I have his. That what makes a good partner on the battle field," he murmured.
"Just promise me that you would never hurt him. I know that others here don't care about creatures like us. We're experiments and weapons, nothing me," rasped Albus as she hung her hand.
Clint smiled as he sat back. "I promise, Albus."
Albus purred before Fulvus romped back with water in a cup held with his beak. He set it down and beamed. "It took me a while but I found it! It tastes like the water that you describe that you had before you came here!"
Albus purred in amusement and lowered her head before she lapped at the water in the cup. She drew back with it dripping down her chin. "Yes, very good, Fulvus." She yawned and hung her head a bit.
"We'll leave you to get some rest," purred Fulvus as he leaned forward and touched his beak to Albus's nose.
Albus licked his beak as he drew back. "I love you." Fulvus murmured that back before he and Clint strode out of the room, turning off the lights behind him.
"She seems nice," Clint commented once they left the lab and they started toward Clint's room up the hundreds of stairs.
Fulvus nodded vigorously. "Oh, she is! She sometimes comes off a bit rough along the edges but you get used to it. She just doesn't trust a lot of humans."
Clint understood that. "So, how long has she been here?"
Fulvus looked at the stairs as he jumped two steps at a time. "Forever. She still hasn't told me. I know that she lost a litter of cubs but I think that the cubs she were supposed to have were genetically altered."
Clint clenched his fists as he heard that. Fulvus didn't even know why he was truly 'made' as Albus had said. Also he couldn't bare the idea that Albus's cubs were altered for the same purpose that Fulvus was made.
Once they reached the floor that Clint's room was on Fulvus darted to the nearest window to look out. He sighed heavily, wishing that he could be out there. He could feel the wind rushing through his feathers and feeling like a true eagle or lion. Either or he would take.
"Maybe I can speak to Fury and see if we can get you out there," suggested Clint as he stopped and looked out. To him the outside world didn't seem that special but to Fulvus it seemed that that was all that he wants to do.
Fulvus turned his head and his feathers lifted in excitement. "Really?! That would be wonderful," he exclaimed before he drew back and bounded toward the room. "Though, I doubt Fury would agree."
Clint knew that Fulvus was catching on a bit on how the agency worked but what he didn't know wouldn't hurt him. "I'm sure I can convince him. It's not like anyone is spying on us and there's nothing wrong with anyone seeing you."
Fulvus knew that Clint wasn't being honest about that but he just shrugged. "That would mean a lot to me." He stopped at the door and allowed Clint to scan his finger.
He pushed through and bounded over to the other window. Some lights shinned and he saw men shuffling around like always. He wondered what they were always doing around but it wasn't like he was going to ask anyone.
Once Clint took off his 'work' clothes he checked his pistol like always before he tucked it back under his pillow. He laid down and allowed his arm to slump down like it always did.
Fulvus found his way in the dark and he lowered down with Clint's hand moving through his feathers. Fulvus thought he was going to get some rest but Clint began to speak. "What did they do to you?"
Fulvus opened one of his eyes, debating whether or not to answer Clint. "I'm not really sure. I was usually sleeping but one time they injected me with somethings that made my body feel like it was on fire. Another time they shot something into my throat and I could speak to humans like you and the scientists. That hurt like you would probably believe."
That gave Clint the answer that he was hoping for, truth. "That's what I wanted to know. I'm sorry that they did the things that they did to you."
Fulvus shook his head as Clint's hand traveled to his shoulder. "It's not your fault. Besides, now everything is good. I haven't been tampered with since we've started training together and next week we have our first mission!"
Clint wasn't as excited as Fulvus since he knew what they were probably hoping was going to happen. They wanted Fulvus to take out someone and they wanted Clint to be there in case they needed to take Fulvus out. That was not going to happen for as long as Clint was alive.