CHAPTER 17"Sophie Topfeather, Superstar!"She woke up that evening in her cage with a fluttery, empty feeling in her stomach. There wouldn''t be any dinner until after the show. As she groomed her feathers, Sophie kept praying that she wouldn''t be asked to go after a mouse. They had kept referring to the object she''d be hunting as the "prey," but never said what kind of prey. She was so hungry she was afraid she might eat it by mistake.Anything but a mouse! What will I do if it''s a mouse? As she stretched out her wings, they hit cold steel. "Thorns and thistles! These bars!" "Patience, our new friend!" said the golden eagle, giving her a wink. "Fly well tonight, and you''ll soon be out of the cage.
We all know you''ll do great."He cocked his head toward the other perches. All the other birds were in the midst of stirring, yawning, and stretching out their wings, but as they heard the eagle speak, they nodded their beaks at Sophie and murmured small encouragements. "We''ve heard they''ve even given you a new name: Miss Fancy Feathers!"Only Horace, the other caged bird in the room, did not look Sophie''s way. He kept ducking his head under his wings and looking like his fondest wish was to become invisible.Just then, the screen door to the Raptor House squeaked open. The bird-keepers entered, and Horace jumped a full inch above his perch. "What''s the matter with him?" Sophie whispered to the golden eagle.
"You make him nervous because he''s got agoraphobia-fear of open spaces-and you''re so recently free." He winked again. "Plus, he jumps a mile every time the door opens. Afraid they''re going to send him away, because he''s no longer useful to them."Before Sophie had time to respond, the bright-eyed pony-tailed bird-keepers flitted over to Sophie''s cage."Ready for tonight, girl? Kids are pouring into the barn as we speak. After the movie about birds of prey, it''s show time!" said the smaller of the two, Jessica."That''s right!" said Alex, the taller one.
She leaned toward the cage. "You, girl, are going to bring down the house! Our very own superstar!""Fly like you did in practice, okay? A big-shot administrator guy is coming to watch and we told him all about your fancy flying. Don''t let us down!" said Jessica. "Say, Alex, why don''t you give our owl a look at her big, juicy mouse? You know, a little motivation for flying her best?"Oh no! It was a mouse!"Sure," said Jessica. She held up a little box with air holes in it. Sophie could hear terrified sniffling inside it. Her heart sank, and she winced."This mouse is just a tasty snack.
Your real dinner will be waiting for you here."''A tasty snack.'' Thorns and thistles!She had once called Timley that very thing, back in the days before she knew him well. Instead of being hungry, now she thought she might be sick.What am I doing?Jessica unlatched the cage and opened the door. Sophie reached forward with her beak and bit the leather-gloved hand, hard."Ouch!" She pulled off the glove to examine her finger, while Alex closed the door again. "None of that, now," said Alex.
"You don''t want to have to stay in this cage forever, do you? Be a good girl and let''s do this just like we practiced."Sophie glared at the bars of the cage. I''ll do as they say tonight, and then I''ll figure out how to get out of here later. There has to be a way! The mouse squeaked in the box. But they CAN''T make me eat that mouse!She stood very still on her perch and held a leg up for the leather strap, trying to let them know that-for now-she''d ''be a good girl''.As the bird-keepers led Sophie to the barn where the event was to be held, Sophie could hear hooting, trumpeting, and growling inside. What was going on?Sophie could see a large screen through the window, flashing with images of birds and animals. The screen went dark, and all the children burst into applause.
"You''re next!" said Alex cheerfully. "Right after the kids put on their night vision goggles. Fly for a while, and then we''ll open the box." She gave the mouse box a jiggle. The mouse squeaked and scraped its tiny claws on the box walls.Sophie instinctively raised her wings and tried to fly off the glove-anything to get out of this situation."I know you''re hungry and can''t wait to eat that mouse, but a few more minutes," said Alex. She looked through the window and nodded to Jessica.
"Okay, Fancy Feathers, go do your thing!" Jessica said. She loosed the strap from Sophie''s leg, and waved her arm through the door. Sophie took off into the dark room.The kids sat in rows around a low-walled ring where the mouse was evidently going to scamper. They erupted into wild applause as Sophie flew into the large, big-beamed room. An amplified voice boomed out: "Introducing City Zoo''s amazing new flier, Great Horned Owl, Miss Fancy Feathers!" Sophie soared. She swooped. She flew in and out among the rustic beams that crossed the ceiling, just like she had once danced among the masts of a ship.
The crowd cheered, and boys whistled. The new round of applause sent her spirits soaring. For a big finish, she went into Spike''s signature move. She flew as low to the ground as she dared, then spiked high amidst the beams of the lodge''s ceiling, and then into a spiral dive. Everyone gasped when she pulled up right before hitting the ground.Two boys stood up and pumped their fists."Wow!""She''s some flyer!""No-she''s a SUPERSTAR!" Thank you, Spike, Sophie thought as she swooped over the heads of the crowd. That is one awesome move.
When the mouse was finally released, it was the only thing besides Sophie in the entire barn that was moving. Every person in the large room appeared to hold his breath as the mouse scurried frantically to and fro, its nose sniffing for an exit. Sophie hovered above. To get out of there, she had to do something, so she silently circled above the mouse.Lower and lower she glided. As she approached the mouse, she thrust her talons forward and spread them out in order to wrap them around its shivering body. As gently as she possibly could, she closed her toes around the trembling creature, making sure her sharp talons didn''t scrape or cut into him. The crowd went wild.
She bent her head low over the mouse and whispered, "I won''t hurt you. You''re safe."The mouse jerked and twisted his head as far up as he could to get a look at his unusual captor. Sophie winked at him and before her handlers could even give the whistle signal, she headed toward the door where the bird-keepers and the man wearing a navy pin-striped suit were waiting for her. Each wore a huge smile.Jessica held out a gloved hand. Just before Sophie reached her, however, she flew low to the ground and let the mouse go. It quickly vanished from sight "What?" Alex said in surprise.
"The owl let the mouse go?"Sophie landed on Jessica''s arm and dutifully let her attach the leather strap to her leg. Alex held the door open, and the newly-freed mouse scampered through it.The kids nearest the door saw what happened, and shouted with glee. "She let it go! The owl set the mouse free!" Kids from one end of the barn to the other quickly spread the word. Soon, three hundred laughing, delighted kids poured through the doors. Sophie led the way like a triumphant victor from the field of battle. Both of the bird-keepers grinned broadly. As the kids followed their chaperones down the dimly-lit paths to watch the bats in the Nocturnal House, Sophie''s keen hearing caught many of them saying that they couldn''t wait to see what she did next time.
"I''ve never seen anything like it in my life!" exclaimed Alex. "I wonder if our fancy flier would rather have a rat, or a snake-"Jessica stroked Sophie''s back feathers. "You were fantastic in there! You deserve a special dinner-""This little lady can have anything she wants!" interrupted Blue Suit Man, who, huffing and puffing, was struggling to keep up with them. "You girls made a miracle happen in there," he said to the bird-keepers. "Treat this owl to a feast! I want her to stick around for a long, long time. Keep this one alive, will you?" As he strode down the path, he chuckled to himself.Why does everyone keep talking as if I might keel over any second?Sophie barely had time to wonder, though, because a group of girls approached her and pointed to her chest."Is this owl wearing jewelry?" one girl asked.
"She is!" said one of her friends. "Cool! I thought I saw something dangling from her neck as she flew, but the darkness made it hard to tell what it was, even with the night vision goggles."Sophie''s olive wood cross on its leather cord hung partially hidden among her mottled and striped chest feathers. "She''s even wearing a ring! Ooh, how beautiful!" another girl added. "Sorry, girls," said Jessica, pulling her arm with Sophie perched on it out of the girl''s reach. "I wouldn''t get too close to our little superstar. She''s got to be hungry after letting her snack go free back there, and I''d hate for her to mistake your finger for breakfast. Maybe next time.
"Next time. The idea of that made Sophie oddly excited. Before she had left for the show, all she could think about was getting out of there, but now. She had to admit, being owl-napped was much more fun than she ever thought it could be. Thorns and thistles! In the days to follow, Sophie settled into a new life on her perch in the Raptor House (no cage) and into a whole new routine. Kids from across the City and from towns all over the state thronged to see the owl that had thrilled the crowd at the big show. Night after night, she perched on a leather-gloved arm in the middle of a spotlight. There, she displayed her impressive wingspan, her razor-sharp talons, and the soft, comb-like edges of her wing feathers that enabled her to sneak up on her prey in silence.
Night after night, she wowed the crowds with Spike''s spiral dive. Night after night, throngs of kids sent her out into the evening with the sound of their cheers and tumultuous applause ringin.