Tobias tells Animorphs: Encounter is the third book in the series. The book begins with him and Rachel freeing a captive peregrine falcon used by a group in their paintings. Tobias feels, like a tailed hawk himself, that all hawks can fly freely. The next day, Tobias sees a flock of geese running towards something invisible, vibrating in the air. He follows, suspecting it to be a Yeerk ship, but is quickly abandoned. After they tell about the other Animorphs, they decide to morph into wolves and look for the mountains, where Tobias saw the ship being claimed. They find a lake with a ship hovering over it, the whole area being closely guarded by a controller. They understand that the cargo ship is an air and water ship to transport a Yeerk tank in orbit. While there, Tobias watches as the hawk frees himself and Rachel, and urges the hawk to go with her.
Leaving the mountains, the Animorphs come up with a plan to become fish, get sucked into the ship, and get away from the interior. They hope to deactivate the cloaking machine and reveal the years to the public. Tobias, exploring the area around the lake, looking for a place for the Animorphs to hide, the hawk brain crushes him and kills the rat. Frightened and horrified, Tobias flies to the manor, where Rachel is performing a gymnastic show. He tries to commit death and almost succeeds until Marcus is about to hit the ball through the rain. For several days, Tobias lives like a hawk, letting the hawk brain take full control. However, one day Tobias sees a man trying to run away from Hork-Bajir. When he understands what is happening, he recovers the parts of the man and leads the man to salvation. That night she talks with Rachel, and she understands that a person must have a purpose to stay: fighting for years.
The Animorphs return to the lake and hide in a cave. After the years have arrived, they flow in the trout and Tobias carries them one by one to the lake. They are sucked into the ship, only to know that the inside is cut off water. When they are captured and unable to stay, they ask Tobias to try to bring down the ship. Tobias noticed and was fired. he himself would withdraw in the ship, lest he should be shot. When Taxxon comes out of the ship to eat him, he kills him and takes away his dragon beam. He fires at the bridge of the ship, which causes him to pull out the power and hit another ship. The ship splits, and tons of water comes pouring out as another Animorphs. The Animorphs morph into birds and escape before hitting the ground. And when he had flown away, he saw Tobias being rescued by a female hawk, and shot and killed him.
Tobias is depressed that the hawk is dead, but he realizes his ability to feel is what makes him human. With this done and with Rachel arrested, Tobias begins to accept who and what he is.
