The Lonely Lion Cub

by Amelia Cobb

  Zoe watched sadly as her great-uncle climbed into the balloon and started getting ready to take off.

  Meep jumped into her arms and rubbed his soft head against her cheek. “Don’t worry, Zoe!” he whispered. “Goo will come back soon.”

  As the balloon lifted slowly into the sky, Great-Uncle Horace waved to the crowd and blew a special kiss to Zoe.

  By the time the sun had set over the Rescue Zoo that evening and the last of the visitors had left, Zoe and Meep were exhausted.

  Lucy laughed when she spotted Zoe trying to hide a yawn. “Come on, you two!” she said, ruffling Zoe’s hair. “Let’s get you both to bed. You’ve been brilliant today.”

  Zoe brushed her teeth and put on her favourite pink flamingo-pattern pyjamas. Before climbing into bed, she opened her bedroom window and gazed out over the Rescue Zoo, listening to the gentle hoots of the snowy owls and the howl of the arctic wolves, far away on the other side of the zoo.

  “Good night, Rory,” she called softly as she closed the window. “Good night, Leonard. Maybe this time tomorrow you’ll be together. Sweet dreams!”

  Chapter Eleven

  Rory’s Big Day

  The following morning Zoe was already up, dressed and making toast for breakfast by the time her mum came downstairs.

  “I can’t believe it!” Lucy said as she walked into the kitchen. She kissed Zoe and stroked Meep’s head. The little lemur was perched on the table, nibbling his second banana. “You’re both up so early!”

  “I woke up and started thinking about Rory, and then I couldn’t get back to sleep,” Zoe explained. “And Meep’s excited about Rory’s big day, too.” She smiled at her friend as Lucy poured herself a glass of apple juice.

  Meep had struggled to open his sleepy eyes that morning, but as soon as Zoe had whispered, “Rory,” in his ear, he’d become wide awake! Now, both Zoe and Meep were desperate to set off and see the little cub.

  “Can we collect Rory from the hospital straight away, Mum?” Zoe pleaded.

  Lucy nodded. “Of course, sweetheart. We should move Rory to his new home nice and early, before the zoo opens for the day and the visitors start arriving.” She finished her juice and spread honey on a piece of toast. “Come on then – I’ll eat my breakfast on the way!”

  Zoe half skipped, half ran to the zoo hospital with Meep on her shoulder and Lucy close behind. Rory was already waiting for them. As they raced over to his pen, the cub’s ears pricked up happily and he gave an excited growl.

  “You’ve eaten all your dinner from last night,” Lucy exclaimed. “Well done, Rory.”

  “Does that mean we can definitely move him to the new enclosure?” Zoe asked nervously.

  Her mum nodded. “Yes, we can. He looks so much stronger already.” She smiled at Zoe. “Why don’t you carry him there? After all, this is your idea – and Rory seems to like you!”

  Zoe grinned in delight. Although she had lots of experience with all sorts of animals, she had never held a real lion cub before. Usually it was Lucy and the zookeepers who handled the most fragile creatures at the Rescue Zoo, so she knew this meant her mum really trusted her.

  Lucy showed Zoe how to gather Rory carefully into her arms, with the special blanket she’d used when the cub had first arrived. He felt light, soft and very warm, just like a very big kitten. Zoe stroked his silky golden head and he gazed at her with his huge brown eyes. Zoe had never seen anything so gorgeous – except for Meep, perhaps!

  With Meep bounding ahead of her, Zoe walked slowly along the path so that she wouldn’t drop Rory. This was the first time the cub had seen the Rescue Zoo properly since he arrived, and he sat up in Zoe’s arms, staring at the other animals and their beautiful enclosures. Around him, the creatures of the Rescue Zoo brayed, whinnied, roared and squawked, wishing Zoe and Rory luck.

  “Goodness, they’re noisy today,” Lucy said. “It’s almost as if they know what’s happening!”

  As they reached Leonard’s enclosure and the empty one next to it, Zoe whispered, “We’re almost there now, Rory.” The little cub mewed eagerly, excited to see his new home. Zoe saw that a small group of zookeepers had gathered outside to watch.

  “Morning,” they called in hushed voices, afraid to startle Rory – or to unsettle Leonard.

  Zoe could see the old lion through the fence, prowling around and watching them all suspiciously. He looked just as grumpy as ever. Zoe suddenly felt very nervous – she hoped she hadn’t made a big mistake.

  Lucy used her paw-print pass to unlock the empty enclosure. Zoe bent down and carefully placed Rory inside. As Lucy closed the door, they watched the cub closely. Zoe could feel butterflies fluttering in her tummy.

  Rory padded straight past the ropes and pieces of sacking that the zookeepers had put out for him to play with, and went right up to the fence separating his enclosure from Leonard’s. His ears pricked up as he saw the lion. Placing a paw on the fence, he growled excitedly.

  Zoe glanced anxiously at Leonard. He was watching Rory through the fence. Would he be friendly towards the cub, like Zoe hoped? Or would he growl and bellow and roar? Everyone was silent as the two lions looked at each other. Zoe held her breath …until she heard a furious voice behind.

  “What is going on here?”

  Mr Pinch glared at them all. His face had gone very pink, which meant he was extra-specially cross. Zoe glanced anxiously at Meep. Was the horrid zoo manager going to spoil everything?

  Lucy darted to the front of the group. “I can explain, Mr Pinch,” she said. “Instead of putting the new cub in an enclosure by himself—”

  “I can see perfectly well what you are doing,” Mr Pinch snapped. “I do have eyes, you know. What I do not understand is why I was not informed first. No animal is to be moved without my permission.”

  Lucy put her hands on her hips and took a deep breath. “I am the zoo vet,” she reminded Mr Pinch, “and I decided that the cub was ready to leave the hospital. Zoe thought of a really clever way to find out if the two lions could get along, by using this empty enclosure.”

  Zoe’s heart sank. She knew that Mr Pinch would disapprove of the plan even more when he heard it was her idea – and she was right.

  Mr Pinch scowled. “I should have known you two had something do with this!” he sneered, glaring at her down his long, thin nose. “This is unacceptable. It is not up to a little girl and a lemur to decide how my zoo is run!” He turned back to Lucy and pointed a skinny finger at the enclosure. “Remove the cub immediately, please.”

  As Lucy and the zookeepers tried to calm Mr Pinch down, he started shouting even louder. Inside the enclosure, Rory growled unhappily. Zoe could tell all the fuss and noise was frightening him. She glanced at Leonard.

  The lion had moved right up to the fence next to the little cub and was watching him carefully. Zoe didn’t think he looked angry. She couldn’t wait any longer. She picked Meep up.

  “Meep, listen,” she whispered. “Do you see that wooden door halfway along the fence? Can you pull the lever and open it? We need to prove to Mr Pinch that the two lions can live together. He’ll never let us try again, so this is our only chance!”

  Chapter Twelve

  A Roaring Success

  Quick as a flash, the lemur sprang out of Zoe’s arms, darted over to the fence and pulled the lever. The wooden door swung open, leading straight into Leonard’s enclosure. Before any of the grown-ups noticed, Meep ran back on to the path and leaped on to Zoe’s shoulder, curling his tail around her neck.

  Rory gave a growl of excitement as he looked into Leonard’s enclosure. Lucy glanced up at the noise.

  “Oh my goodness!” she cried, her face pale with worry. “Quiet, everyone. Look – the door’s open!”

  “But…how did…” Mr Pinch blustered, his face even redder than before.

  Meep chattered innocently.

  Zoe crossed her fingers as Leonard noticed the open door and walked through into Rory’s enclosure, his yellow eyes gleaming.
With a little roar of delight, Rory scampered up to the bigger lion. Lucy and the zookeepers gasped, and even Mr Pinch was holding his breath.

  Come on, Leonard, Zoe thought desperately. Please don’t hurt the cub.

  Rory pushed his golden head against Leonard’s enormous front paw, growling playfully. Leonard opened his huge mouth wide, showing rows of sharp teeth. Zoe gasped in terror as the lion loomed over the little cub…and rolled over on to his back with his paws in the air, letting the cub jump all over him!

  For a second Zoe just stared at them. Then, as she realised Rory was safe, she threw her arms into the air and jumped up and down in excitement. She felt so happy she wanted to do a cartwheel – or a somersault! On her shoulder, Meep was squeaking and jumping with joy.

  “It worked!” Zoe cried, hugging her little friend. “Meep, it worked!”

  Behind her, the other zookeepers cheered with relief. Will the penguin-keeper shook his head, astonished.

  “I just can’t believe it!” he said. “I never thought Leonard could be so playful.”

  “Well done, love,” Lucy said proudly, wrapping her daughter up in a big hug. “For a moment there I was a little bit worried – but your plan worked perfectly. Thanks to you, both Rory and Leonard have a family now – each other!”

  Zoe watched Mr Pinch stomp away.

  “No one ever listens to me!” he snapped.

  Lucy smiled. “Don’t worry about him,” she whispered. “He’s just grumpy because he knows you were right! Only someone who truly understands animals could have known just what to do.” She gave Zoe a kiss. “You’ll make a brilliant vet one day.”

  Zoe beamed at her mum and winked at Meep. She really did understand animals – much better than her mum could ever imagine!

  From his sunny enclosure, Leonard turned his shaggy head towards Zoe and growled a thank you. Rory copied Leonard with a baby roar, and patted his new friend with his front paws.

  The lion got up and began to show Rory around his new home. They walked through the long golden grass to the pond at the edge of the enclosure that sparkled in the morning light, and after a gentle nudge from Leonard, Rory began lapping at the cool water with his pink tongue.

  Zoe grinned happily. “Look, Mum!” she cried. “Leonard’s giving Rory a tour!”

  “Good old Leonard,” said Lucy. “Now, the zoo will be opening soon, so I think we should leave our new lion family in peace for a little while. That way they can have a bit of time to settle into their new home together, before the visitors start arriving for the day. What do you think, Zoe?”

  Zoe nodded. She could happily stay and watch her lion friends all day, but she knew the other animals in the zoo would be desperate to find out if the plan had worked. “Can I go and check on Bella?” she asked. “And Sasha, and Oscar, and Hetty – and maybe say hello to the otters and the chimps too?”

  “Just make sure you’re back at the cottage for lunch!” Lucy said, laughing.

  Zoe gave her mum a quick kiss on the cheek and waved to Leonard and Rory before dashing off down the path, her dark hair bouncing. Meep leaped along beside her, squeaking excitedly.

  “They’re all going to be so relieved,” Zoe said happily, running her hand over a row of pretty wild flowers lining the path. “And just imagine how pleased Great-Uncle Horace will be when he finds out that Rory has a new family.”

  “Yes!” Meep agreed. “I hope he doesn’t stay away very long this time.”

  “Oh, Meep, I miss him too,” Zoe told him. “I wish we could see him every day! But wherever he is, he’s helping scared and poorly animals. And the next time he brings an animal home with him, we’ll try our best to help – just like with Rory!”

  Zoe’s eyes shone as she thought about the rainbow hot-air balloon appearing on the horizon once again. “I wonder what the next new arrival will be? Great-Uncle Horace is in the Sahara Desert right now, but he might visit lots of other places before he comes home again.”

  Meep’s dark eyes opened wide in excitement. “Maybe another tiny little cat, like Rory!” he suggested. “A baby jaguar, or a lynx.”

  “Or maybe Great-Uncle Horace will bring home something much smaller – like a bamboo lemur? Mum says they’re endangered and so, so cute.” She winked at Meep.

  “Another lemur, like me?” Meep was so excited at the idea that he bounced around in dizzy circles and almost crashed into a tree.

  Laughing, Zoe scooped her little friend up for a cuddle. As they strolled through the Rescue Zoo, listening to the screeches, barks, squawks and roars of their animal friends, Zoe sighed happily.

  I am the luckiest girl in the world, she thought to herself. Whatever my next animal adventure is, I can’t wait for it to begin!

  Copyright

  ZOE’S RESCUE ZOO: THE LONELY LION CUB

  First published in the UK in 2013 by Nosy Crow Ltd

  The Crow’s Nest, 10a Lant Street

  London SE1 1QR, UK

  This ebook edition first published in 2013

  Nosy Crow and associated logos are trademarks and / or registered trademarks of

  Nosy Crow Ltd

  Text copyright © Hothouse Fiction, 2013

  Cover illustration © Sophy Williams, 2013

  The right of Hothouse Fiction and Sophy Williams to be identified as the author and illustrator respectively of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988

  All rights reserved.

  This ebook is copyright material and must not be copied, reproduced, transferred, distributed, leased, licensed or publicly performed or used in any way except as specifically permitted in writing by the publishers, as allowed under the terms and conditions under which it was purchased or as strictly permitted by applicable copyright law. Any unauthorised distribution or use of this text may be a direct infringement of the author’s and publisher’s rights, and those responsible may be liable in law accordingly.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, incidents and dialogues are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictiously. Any resemblence to actual people, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  ISBN: 978 0 85763 198 5

  www.nosycrow.com