Shadow

Shadow awoke to the sound of yelling cubs and yawned. It was yet another day in the adoption center. Shadow heaved himself up and stretched, a few of his bones making a cracking sound. He smiled and trotted over to the pile of animal carcasses. Some of them were beginning to rot so he pushed those ones aside. He decided to go with a small bird since he wasn't as hungry. The adoption center wasn't very huge, since it was located next to the Giving Tree. It was a den with a sign above it that said "Adoption Center: Come find a cub today!" with little adornments scattered all over it. Inside, there wasn't a lot. Since the den was small, there wasn't much decorations they put could inside... besides some wall lights and feathers. One of the cubs ran over to him as he was munching away at his bird and playfully climbed up onto his back. "Good morning, Shadow!". A smile appeared on Shadow's face. "Good morning, Uleli".

The monkey that Shadow hated sat perched upon a tree branch, vigilantly watching over the lion cubs running around. All of a sudden, a male adult lion walked into the adoption center, his body covered in armour. His gaze landed on each and every cub, his eyes narrowed. Then, his eyes finally landed on Shadow. Shadow stared with wide eyes, unable to move. It was as if his stare had Shadow glued to the floor. The adult lion's intimidating stare suddenly turned into a soft smile. Shadow then felt something wash over him, almost like a calm feeling. The lion walked over to Shadow, but the monkey stopped him in his tracks. "Are you here to adopt?", the monkey asked. The lion nodded, his ear twitching. "Ah, well you've come to the right place. Follow me!". The monkey hopped past the lion and he followed. "Woah..", the cub that was still on Shadow's back stared at the lion in awe. "He looks so cool!". He hopped down and followed after the lion and the monkey.

After a few minutes, the lion and the monkey came back into the play area. They stopped and began chatting again before finally walking and stopping in front of Shadow. "Shadow," the monkey began. "This lion here wants to adopt you. He believes you'd be a perfect addition to his pride!". The lion nodded in response. Shadow couldn't say anything. Why him? There were other cubs much more deserving of this than him. "H-hello.", Shadow stuttered.

The lion smiled and said "Hello Shadow. My name is Grey,"