Mom let out a small, happy mewl as she stepped forward and rubbed against her cub comfortingly, our way of reassuring and teaching. Her tail flicked towards the dens entrance and took off, quickly being followed by dad and then Kate. I began going after them, my ears flicking at each rustle of the leaves, and pawed at my sisters tail, earning a yowl in response.
A growl of a laugh rumbled from throat and I leapt up, latching onto a thick, low hanging branch and pulling myself into a tree. I remember going for a run for the first time in my tiger form. It was difficult running on all fours, and climbing was definitely out of the question. My tail flicked as I watched Kate prowl around the trunk, our parents forgotten as she tried to figure out a way up without crashing back down.
I let out a taunting cat-like meow before climbing a little higher into the branched, the leaves brushing against my back. I vaguely heard her hiss as she leapt against the tree trunk, slamming her massive head into the bark. If I were a dog I'd bark out a laugh. I internally rolled my eyes at the horrible pun before yawning and resting my head, allowing a paw to hang tauntingly over my sisters head.
She huffed in her frustration, shaking the hit off as she clawed at the trunk, not wanting to give up.
I watched while her muscles tensed as she prepared herself to jump up, her tail flicking as she studied the branch with a piercing gaze. She launched herself upwards, claws extended, and let out a loud growl of determination, only to get struck by a small dart and crash back down to the ground.
My ears flicked back and I let out a call to our parents as I made my way down the tree, quickly going over to studied the downed tigress.
"There's another one Todd." A voice hissed, following by a shuffling noise.
"Shoot it too, they're nearly extinct. We need to get them to the sanctuary." A second voice whispered.
"Help me." The first voice whined pitifully.
I huffed and nudged my sisters cheek, only getting a soft groan in response. A soft 'click' sounded and then something sharp and annoying pricked my neck, almost immediately making me see scents and smell colors. I wobbled on my paws and yowled in protest, just as my parents came into view.
My mother growled as she came over to me but nonetheless licked at my fur until I passed out, her instincts as a mother tiger forcing her to act as if I were still a cub.
When I came to I found myself in a smaller version of our den, Kate sitting at the entrance while my parents were both still out like a light. I looked around the cave and growled as I noticed a window to my left where several heads -some belonging to little kids, most of which were adults- were peeking into the den and watching us.
We're in a zoo!
Well, technically, it's a sanctuary for nearly extinct animals, but a zoo is essentially the same thing
So helpful
I mentally rolled my eyes at my tiger as I strolled leisurely over to my sister and chuffed. I rubbed my head against her cheek to comfort her and she stared at the metal bars surround our large enclosure. It was spacious, with at least a dozen thick trees strong enough to carry our weight, a large pool as well as a pile of rocks to sunbathe on.
It was a tigers dream home, if they couldn't be wild anyway. My sister huffed and sent a sharp glare at the people watching as our parents began to stand and shake off the sleep.
I stayed where I was and used a series of growling and mewling to speak with them, albeit softly.
"Well good morning sleeping beauties."
"Hush Olive. Do you have any idea where we are? Or how long we've been out?" Mom asked, stretching.
"A sanctuary, I'd assume the one close to the school since there are no other sanctuaries in the area. Other than that, not really."
She huffed, tail flicking, and watched the milling people walking around in front of the bars of our cage.
"What could possibly possess someone to kidnap wild animals?"
"It's a sanctuary dad, it's supposed to keep us safe, so we can repopulate."
He growled and stalked to the pool, using swimming as a a way to cool off.
We hung out and did our best to act like normal wild tigers for hours until finally all the lights went off and the sanctuary's owner locked up after giving us dinner.
I was the first to shift back, shedding my tiger fur and letting out a loud sigh.
"It feels good to be human again." I mumbled, watching as the others shifted.
"On a scale of one to ten that was a sucky first shift." Kate grumbled, going over to try the door.
"Great, we're locked in."
"Relax, I've got my phone still." I pulled it out and dialed Peyton's number.
"Hello?" Her tired voice answered.
"Hey, I need a favor."
"Olive, it's nine o'clock at night. I'm trying to sleep."
"Ok. I need help."
"Olive."
"Please Peyton? We're kinda stuck."
"Stuck where?"
"I'm the wildlife sanctuary near the school."
"HOW DID YOU GET STUCK IN A WILDLIFE SANCTUARY!?" The four of us flinched at her shout and I rolled my eyes.
"We got caught by some workers. That's not the point, can you help us?"
"Not until morning. One, I don't have the energy to go all the way over there and two it's too late. It's all locked up by now and I don't need to be going to jail for you. Just act like a normal tiger, I'll see you tomorrow."
The familiar beeping followed and I sighed.
"She hung up on me." Kate laughed.
"It's Peyton, of course she hung up on you."
"Alright then. She's not coming until sometime tomorrow so let's shift and get some sleep. We have a long day of pretending ahead of us."