Leaps were his forte, as were narrow escapes. There were even sayings on his name- ‘he clawed his way out’, ‘his claws are out’. He was accustomed to the tasks given to him- rescue operations and retrievals were the ones he took up the most. ‘Dependable’ was most certainly something you could pin him as, but he was also known for his sharp tongue, which was sharper than his claw. Quick as his jumps were, quicker still were his retorts. The younger agents loved seeing him in action and tried to listen in on his conversations as often as they could. The ones handling dispatches were always active, they were what others called- bright eyed and bushy tailed, but they were more so when he was involved. They had heard ‘your voice is breaking’ from his end more than from anyone else’s, and by now they all knew that it was his way of ending calls.
He loved it here as well. As opposed to the common belief, he didn’t like it for the limelight. He did like keeping the tension, the pressure, off of him, and humour was the easiest route to it, but he liked it for the action. He enjoyed being able to come up with escape routes, he had a great team to back him up too, but he and everyone knew that he worked exceptionally well when he tackled the missions alone. ‘Curiosity killed the cat’ was debunked by him a record number of times, so much so that the adage was long forgotten and was not in the manual anymore. In fact, curiosity was encouraged and taught to be the core for creative feats.
He often thought of his buddy, Izzy, who had adopted him. He enjoyed playing together and seeing Izzy’s eyes sparkle when the leaps got higher and the running speed got a little overboard. He would often think about Izzy during his various operations. ‘Izzy’s eyes would pop out if he had seen that landing!’, ‘Izzy’s cheers would grow louder with excitement if only he saw what I did here’. He went about the games with his buddy, as practice runs or simulations; though they were rather dull compared to his action-packed escapades, they were still met with such energy and enthusiasm, that Izzy would be all smiles during their daily play sessions.
His thoughts were interrupted when he heard his handler rambling- “You have got to fall asleep as many times as possible, Claw. You know that even though the time here is longer than what is back there, we still need more jump-ins. Missions keep coming and takers are always welcome. You are among the best and we need you here..”
“Yes, yes”, he replied, “You can stop now. I don’t want to fall asleep here. I get it and I do sleep almost all the time back there; if I did it any longer, I would be taken to the vet. Got to go.”
