**TRIGGER WARNING: Violence and Some Blood**
The interview questions gradually got harder to answer as they asked me what went on during our training sessions and how I felt about being considered property. I was growing uncomfortable, but I didn’t let it show because this show had to go well. Eventually, they took the heat off of me and talked to Krim again about poisonbird anatomy, such as why we could fly but humans could not. I myself didn’t fully know the answer, but according to Krim it was because, our internal anatomy closely resembled that of a bird and the muscles in our wings and legs were specifically designed for flight, while humans’ arms didn’t have the power they needed to propel them off the ground, even if they built wing-like devices.
“Wow. This question is for both of you. It might be a bit heavy, but, Eclipse, how does it feel knowing you are the last of your kind, and how did you respond when you first found out? And Krim, why did you decide to pursue a job with Eclipse rather than changing fields?” Terrai shifted her attention to me.
I looked to Krim, expecting him to speak first.
“Well, I really loved working with the poisonbirds because they were so smart. It’s not just animal training, they are truly intelligent creatures and interacting with a being that is so human while also not actually being human is quite interesting. I’d say I made the decision to stay in the field because it’s a really fun job and I don’t think changing fields would be satisfying for me. Hopefully Eclipse never gets too tired of me, haha.”
“And Eclipse?” Daniel looked to me.
“Hmm, I was actually really sick when I found out that I was the last surviving poisonbird. I didn’t get the disease that the rest did solely because the specialists gave me the experimental vaccines while I was already being treated for my sickness. I was really—” I cut off my explanation to cough a wheezy cough, “I was really confused because I thought that the owner was lying. I realised he wasn’t joking later and honestly I didn’t really feel much. My mind was still groggy and I didn’t really know what it meant until a few days later. Even when I really understood, though, I don’t think I was too emotional. I knew it would greatly impact my life in terms of my performances, but the only poisonbird I ever knew was my mother, and she had been long dead anyways. I didn’t have any—” I coughed again, this time hunching over and hugging my stomach. I couldn’t manage to stop coughing for long enough to start talking again.
“Umm, Mr. Harley, is this normal?” Daniel asked, his voice sounding a bit concerned.
Krim was studying me from his seat. On one particularly violent cough, I bit the inside of my cheek, and the next cough allowed a bit of blood to come out of my mouth.
“Shit,” Krim stated simply, standing up suddenly and rushing to my side. With not even a second of hesitation, I batted his side with a wing. He flinched, but got closer to try to figure out what the problem was. Daniel and Terrai were both standing, and had matching fearful expressions on their faces. As Krim bent down, to get a better view of me, I quickly jerked his arm downward with my talons and sunk my fangs into his neck. Then I pushed him away, and pulled up the end of my leash so no one could use it to control me. Krim fell to the ground, clutching at his neck with a confused look on his face. I could feel some of his blood dripping down my chin, so I wiped it off on my ridiculous costume. I looked down on Krim. His face was frozen in confusion— not anger or betrayal or anything of the like, just pure confusion, like he never thought anything could actually hurt him.
Daniel was still frozen in his tracks, trembling, but Terrai was nowhere to be found. Even though there had been a few men behind the cameras, they had all disappeared too.
“Daniel, can I get a napkin or something?”
He looked at me terrified, but moved a step towards a nearby desk, which also had a fruit basket sitting on top of it. Daniel shakily made his way over to a few steps from me, and stretched out his hand with a napkin in it. I took the napkin between my wings, and carefully wiped the blood off my chin.
“Why do humans put their hands out when they meet people?” I asked Daniel.
“Y-you mean a hand sh-shake?”
“I guess so?”
“It’s j-just a greeting…”
“Okaaay, but why?”
“I-I don’t really know… We just do it...”
“Huh. Weird. Why do humans have couches and beds? I have a bed, but Krim called these couches. They are different, but similar.”
“Well, couches are really more for sitting down while beds are… are for sleeping in.”
“Why can’t you sleep in a couch? And you can sit on a bed, so why do you need a couch? Although I like this couch better than my bed...”
“You c-can sleep on couches if you want, they just aren’t designed for it specifically. We just use couches in rooms o-other than bedrooms. You said these couches are comfier than your bed? These couches are awful… I… you killed that man.”
“Yes.”
“Why? You-you said that he was great and you described his training and he seemed so nice…”
I just laughed, “Krim deserved it. Do you really think that I would come out and say how awful they treat me on live television in front of the man in charge of torturing me?” I was sure that I was breaking down. I could feel tears welling in my eyes and rage building up inside me, “He said it himself. I am intelligent. I think and feel like humans do. What gives you assholes the right to hurt me in every way imaginable just because I don’t want to do what you tell me. I wasn’t sick when my species died, I was being nursed back to health strapped to my bed unable to move after my suicide attempt. Fruit basket.”
Daniel brought the fruit basket like I demanded, still shaking in fear. I plopped myself down on the couch and stretched myself out on it. The fruit basket was mainly full of fancy fruits that really required human hands to properly enjoy, but I was pleased to find some strawberries mixed in as well. I stuck one in my mouth and chewed, trying to let myself savor the taste. I looked down at Krim again. His face was still frozen in that same shocked expression and his chest was desperately rising and falling, although the rest of him was perfectly still, probably paralyzed from the poison in my fangs. As I watched him, the small bit of motion subsided, and I assumed him to be dead.
“Daniel, thank you for being kind to me. I’m hoping that, with this, you all will finally realise that I’m too dangerous to live and just let me die in peace.”
He took a second to process my words, and then he was gone. I curled my body up into a ball, snuggling into the couch, shoved another strawberry into my mouth, and closed my eyes.
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