Free Cloneward Bound by M.E. Castle

looked like it could swallow him whole. “Come on in and have a seat. Is that our little star-to-be?” She looked at FP with a cheek-splitting grin.
    “Hi, Ms. McGee,” Fisher said, unwrapping FP’s blanket and slipping off Trevor’s headgear. “Yep, this is FP.”
    “Please, call me GG,” McGee said, flipping through a binder on her desk. “Now, I’ve been working up some ideas for the little guy—what’s his name again?”
    “FP,” Fisher repeated. “Flying Pig.”
    “I see,” McGee said. “An adorable name for a personal pet, but we’re going to need a stage name with a little more flash. What do you think of Jet Jowls, the Wonder Pig, or Ace McSnout?”
    “Um …” Fisher said, looking down at FP.
    “Too ordinary?” McGee tapped her chin. “Thinking of something more sophisticated? How about Ham-let, Prince of the Sky or Sir Flapsis Bacon?”
    “Sir Flapsis isn’t bad,” Fisher admitted honestly.
    “Well, we have plenty of time to make a final decision. Here are some ideas my team and I have been pitching back and forth. Picture it: a run-down old city full of crumbling buildings that are always catching fire. The fire department does the best it can, but they have trouble rescuing people trapped on the upper floors! So who do they send for? A humble pig gifted with the power of flight to swoop in and save the day! We’ll call it
Out of the Flying Pan
.”
    FP had perked up in Fisher’s lap. Noticing the large tray of baked goods on the desk, he began devouring bagels and muffins with astounding speed. GG either didn’t mind or didn’t notice.
    “Or imagine him as a superhero!” she continued. “Similar setting, a town where crime is running out of control. The police are overwhelmed. Nobody can stem the tide. Nobody except … 
The Pink Avenger
. He uses his powers of flight, his sensitive, crime-detecting ears, and his mighty snout to fight crime. Or we can go the holiday movie route! Imagine: it’s days before Christmas and Dancer has a broken leg. How will Santa power his sleigh with only seven reindeer? But then, a lowly stable pig, the property of a poor elf farmer, accidentally falls out of the hayloft and realizes he can fly! The reindeer don’t accept him at first, but eventually he warms everyone’shearts and fills in the eighth spot, and the sleigh can fly at last!”
    She set down her sunglasses, revealing electric-green eyes, and whisked away a tear. She leaned across the desk and started to pet FP, who began to shudder uncomfortably in response.
    “What a sweet little creature you are,” she said, scratching at FP’s ears. “You’re going to have a marvelous future in—
oww
!!” As FP snapped at her, she yanked her hand back quickly. Suddenly, her face contorted in a frown, and she spat out: “Why, you miserable little bacon factory! I’ll—” She caught herself quickly and immediately pasted a large, sugary smile back on her face. “… Er, sorry, I just, um … had a bad experience with a pig … as a child. As I was saying … this little fellow has a big future.” FP hopped down from the desk, spreading a trail of corn muffin crumbs as he went. “Maybe one day he’ll even be as big as my Molly.”
    “Your who?” Fisher said. His head was spinning. GG changed topics—and, apparently, personalities—so quickly, he had trouble following her train of thought.
    “Molly.”
McGee picked up a small white fluffball from her lap, which had been concealed from Fisher’s view because of the mounds of stuff piled on McGee’s desk.
    Molly turned out to be a Maltese dog, smaller than FP, covered in long, white fur. She let out an annoyed yip as McGee lifted her up. McGee set Molly down on the floor and picked up a huge binder, handing it to Fisher. “She’s my pride and joy. Just look at some of the modeling work she’s done.”

    Fisher thumbed through the photo album halfheartedly, all the while wondering how he could turn the conversation to