Much to Adrian's dismay, they didn't bring him back to his quarters. Instead he was being trudged around the compound, shown something called classrooms filled with different group sizes of Ferals.

As Charles explained that the adult at front was a teacher, who was teaching the children a subject called biology, Adrian snorted.

I know all I need to know. How to survive, how to make a nest. How to track prey and how to kill them.

The teen yawned distractedly, catching a whiff of fear coming from the pre-teens before the teacher pointedly cleared his throat.

"Charles... Would you mind continuing with the tour so our friend doesn't... distract my students?"

Students? All I smell are a few foxes, a badger, and then a mix of herbivores. What's a student? ...Is it edible?

Adrian licked his teeth, nostrils flaring at the fear that seemed to grow at the gesture. He could see several of the children not so subtly move their seats as far away from him possible, some even looking around the room for possible escape points.

He was however surprised to see Ferals so young. He guessed the oldest within this room, besides the adult of course, was less than eight years old.

No wonder they were so jumpy...

Not that Adrian was anywhere interested in chasing kids around. Well, the younger the meat, the more tender it was; but he was stuffed.

...Maybe later?

He averted his gaze as Charles apologized, ushering the young Feral further down the hallway as they both heard the teacher calm down his students.

The panicked cries and fearful mewls behind him made Adrian snort and shake himself off. How on earth were those little ones going to survive if they wet their pants at the sight of a predator?

It made Adrian wonder why Charles had identified the man as a teacher, while he so clearly was an elephant...

Maybe a teacher is a subspecies of elephant? Doesn't smell any different from a normal elephant though...

Adrian shook his head, slightly confused at the oddities these adults came up with. Calling shifters things like student and teacher while they clearly were something else...

It didn't really matter to him, but it utterly confused Adrian. Charles chuckled, tongue flicking back in his mouth. "I wish we could have a proper conversation... I can smell that you're getting increasingly confused and frustrated but I don't know the cause..."

Well, seeing how we're not the same animal, I'd doubt you'd understand anything I'd say to begin with...

He shook himself out of his thoughts, taking a whiff of the air that flowed through the hallways. Adrian quickly snorted, shaking his head violently at the multitude of scents that rushed his nostrils.

It felt like getting smacked in the face with multiple scents. Both predator and prey alike. Hints of stress, happiness. Anger. Hunger...

Fingers wrapped around his wrist, pulling Adrian out of his overwhelmed state. His brain was still trying to properly analyze all the scents, to put a creature to each unique trail...

All he managed to do, was make himself agitated and dizzy from all the scents coming in at once.

"Come on kid, the sooner we get you with the linguistics teacher, the better."

Adrian followed Charles, letting his eyes wander around the compound while the serpent talked. Still, he felt agitated, the hairs in his neck bristling slightly.

He felt as if he was being observed closely, eyes following wherever he went. But as Adrian let his own eyes flit around, all he could see was other teenagers quickly averting their gazes and hushed murmurs as they gave the Feral a wide berth.

But Adrian trusted his instincts and they were screaming at him to hide. That there was something lurking in the shadows, something strong and powerful.

Something lethal, that made even him wary. It was a feeling he wasn't used to, had only experienced it when he was little and saw the massive bear devouring his last living sibling.

No... this is worse...

A shiver ran down his spine while Adrian's senses were on high alert. Nostrils flaring, skin prickling underneath his clothes, he wasn't quite sure what to do.

Run to his nest and hide in a safe room? Keep close to one of the adult shifters as a safety precaution?

The choice was made for him when Charles smiled gently, unaware of Adrian's inner conflict as he patted the boy on the back.

"Come on kid, the sooner you learn how to speak your mind, the sooner people like Willem will stop harassing you." Charles chuckled, guiding him towards one of the buildings farthest away from the dorms.

That... that isn't a bad idea at all...

--------------------------

"So, what do you think of him, Darius?" Willem asked when the man just observed the new Feral from afar, eyes squinted slightly.

Darius smiled, leaning against the doorway and chuckled slightly. He could tell with the way that Willem was glaring at the kid, they had already had their own encounter.

"Made friends already?" He teased, watching the polar bear shake his head and grunt rather animalistically. Darius pushed off of the wall, moving in the opposite end of the new arrival.

"At least the lil' kid didn't bite me, unlike someone else." Willem's glare was burning in Darius' back, who snickered at the vague memory.

Darius pushed open the door, smiling politely at the two deer that quickly ducked under his stretched arm. They let out audible squeaks when they nearly bumped into Willem, who more resembled a bear with a tooth ache as he tried to smile in reassurance.

"Don't ever do that again." Darius wheezed as he barked with laughter, stumbling to the side when the polar bear shoved past him with a snarl. "You looked terrifying. Oh my gods, were you trying to scare those kids to death?"

"Shut the fuck up, you oversized prehistoric chicken!"

Darius grinned, giving the two does a reassuring smile, "Are you ladies alright?" They nodded breathlessly, the oldest one quickly ushering the other out of the building before Darius smiled warmly as he heard their excited chatter as soon as they were a safe distance away.

He could hear them clearly, muttering about the long black hair that spilled over his shoulders. How they were awed by the amber, almost golden color of his eyes.

Darius was grateful that he was capable of keeping his animal calm, otherwise those girls would've been running as far away as their feet could carry them. Though, that might be preferable over the cooing and gushing about the former Feral's looks.

Burying his hands in his pockets, Darius slowly followed the raging polar bear on a safe distance. It was amusing to see his old friend mutter and growl like that, but Darius knew Willem long enough that the man didn't mean anything by it.

He was still an asshole, but in the kindest ways. Willem had the habit to say things as they were without sugar coating. He was stern, stubborn, easily agitated and his beast was always right below the surface.

And yet, Darius remembered when he had fallen ill as a kid. How he had trusted nobody but Willem, how his five year old self had cried and whimpered, threw tantrums until he could see the bear.

While his memories were hazy due to the high fevers he had ran that week, he knew that the fragments of the polar bear sitting beside his bed to read him stories and to hold his hand, weren't imagined.

Darius could've sworn he once woke up from his fever, only to find himself curled against Willem as the massive bear held him throughout the night.

But each time he inquired about it with Willem, the bear would huff, puff and snarl, denying it ever happened! Darius smile grew into a satisfied smirk when the bear stopped at a door and shoved it open.

Who knew that the big, burly brute was a big old softie on the inside?

Willem snorted as if hearing Darius' thoughts, glaring down at the almost equally tall man. Silently daring him to state his mind.

"I still don't see why you don't just go check on the kid himself." The bear grunted, making way so Darius could pass.

As soon as he entered, he inhaled deeply, analyzing the scent as much as possible. He could tell it was still very Feral; it was more animalistic than humanoid, a telltale sign that the animal was more in charge.

But at the very least, it was balanced. Darius breathed a bit easier at that, knowing that at the very least, the young Feral wasn't going on a murderous outburst anytime soon.

"Rushing into anything without proper preparations is bad enough. Dealing with an unknown Feral species and not taking precautions is just plain stupid." Darius took a whiff of the air before adding, "Especially if this kid is what we think he is..."

Ignoring the frustrated grunt behind him, Darius slowly stepped around the room, noticing that little had been touched. Well, all the covers and pillows from the other beds had been removed and pulled up to make a comfortable looking nest.

Darius hummed thoughtfully, as he remembered hating any sort of height, most likely because his shift's bones were denser, built for power.

But from what little he saw from the new Feral, his body was tall, powerful but streamlined. Built for speed and agility.

"Has he jumped at all?" Darius asked, walking up to the nest and climbing the ladder to observe it fully. Behind him, Willem grunted affirmatively.

"Reached the platform in the reinforced pen without issue. Whilst he was wounded, mind you." The bear tried to keep any hint of awe or admiration out of his voice but Darius couldn't help but snicker slightly, receiving a punch to his shoulder blade in return.

Up here, the boy's scent was strongest, nearly pungent as it clung to the blankets. Darius tried his best to leave the nest intact but, if the boy was anything like him, he was sure to find what he was looking for.

Gently feeling around underneath the blankets and already cringing at the stress he'd give the Feral by accidentally leaving his own scent behind, he felt something poke his fingertips.

For a moment, he snickered as thick clouds moved past the window, darkening the room while he pulled his hand back. He'd anticipated finding something but hadn't thought to find it so quickly. Hopping down the bed, both Darius and Willem's attention was drawn to the feather that basked in the sunlight.

"Just as I thought..." Darius murmured, twirling the nearly black feather in his hand before placing it against his arm as a measurement. The tip of the feather tickled his fingertips while the shaft rested within the crook of his elbow.

Hints of white were speckled in between the dark brown and black colorations of the feather. It was long, gorgeous but not really fit for flight.

"So, he's the same then?" Willem asked, voice a tad wary as he let his arms drop. The feather was familiar, as Willem has spent countless of hours, days, watching over Darius, both in his humanoid or animalistic form.

And while they weren't mirror copies, they looked very similar. Almost eerily so.

"Similar but...not quite... the same." Darius hesitated, bringing the feather to his nose and inhaled deeply. He hadn't encountered one of his kin before but knew enough of his own scent to realize that their shifts were very similar.

"Fucking looks the same to me." The bear grunted, leaving the room and waiting impatiently for Darius to follow. The later barked out a laugh, holding the feather delicately as the headed towards their meeting with the Compound Elders.

"Willem, I've known you for twenty-five years now and you haven't changed a bit. Still the same, grumpy old bear." Darius teased, ducking to avoid the swipe that had been aimed to the back of his head.

Playful, but it still packed quite a punch. And Darius knew it would've hurt, as he had been on the receiving end of those playful swipes and punches.

"So, meeting or kid first?"

The dark haired man stretched, groaning slightly as they made their way down the hall. "The meeting comes first, as all the faculty teachers and staff need to know the danger they're in, were they to try and take on the Feral."

Bells buzzed loudly in the hall, followed by groans from the teenagers as they reluctantly made their way to their classes. Darius snickered, knowing that back in the day, he did more than just groan in protest when they took his outside time away to learn new things.

In fact, during one of those hissy fits, he managed to shift and bite Willem in the arm. It had instantly shocked the boy into reverting back in his human self, seeing his father figure wounded and bleeding on the floor.

Ever since, he had meticulous control over his beast. A shared consciousness instead of pushing back one in favor for the other.

And with the way the young Feral had behaved earlier, he suspected it was the same for the boy. Something in his past had shocked him enough to reign in his animal. To have impeccable control, a shared understanding so few of the shapeshifters had.

"Darius! Damn, it's been years since I last saw you!" Darius turned around before he was yanked in the arms of Tibor. The honey badger grinned down at him, patting his shoulders before standing back.

"You've filled out nicely. Before you left, you were this tall, lanky kid that needed to prove something." The badger's laughter rattled through the air while Darius rolled his eyes good-naturedly.

"Ah Tibor, still the same old jokester that you were. You know that the headmaster sent me off to aid in some research and to see a bit of the world."

Tibor hummed, scratching at his darker skinned throat before baring pearly white teeth in a nearly threatening grin. "I figured the higher ups finally listened and kicked you guys out for breaking down the dining hall. Speaking off, " His dark-brown eyes landed on Willem, sparkling with humor.

"You're on dinner duty for the lions." Tibor's statement was met with a series of colorful curses as the polar bear snarled at the mere idea.

Even Darius raised a curious eyebrow at that. "Why? What happened?" Tibor sighed in response, cracking his neck to release some of the built-up tension there.

"Eh, typical lion shenanigans. They kept harassing the smaller carnivores to the point where all but the hyenas refused to dine with them. Ethan attacked Zuri today as well and we were going to report that but-"

Both adults stopped, looking at the honey badger as the man scratched his neck sheepishly. "But, what? What happened."

The honey badger snickered with amusement, grinning to himself. "Well, Ethan decided it would be a good idea to steal food from the new Feral."

Almost in perfect unison, both Darius and Willem groaned, only Darius facepalming as he could vividly imagine the reaction that any predator would have, if a carnivore that was lower in the pecking order tried to steal their kill.

"How many are wounded?"

Tibor snickered slightly, "Oh, the kid showed some remarkable restraint. Ethan is currently in the infirmary after he got his hand stitched. 36 stitches if I recall correctly and Fiona is hoping that there won't be any lasting damage, as the kid managed to sever several sinews and nerves, biting all the way to the bone."

Darius cringed as Willem pulled a face. "Sounds about right." The bear muttered with a pointed look to his own arm where, to this day, part of the skin still felt numb and tingly at times.

And while Darius has apologized on multiple occasions and Willem had accepted the apology, he still felt guilty.

"Well, at least the kid didn't kill anyone. But I guess Ethan has been taken down a notch and knows his little pride isn't as powerful as he thinks it is."

Darius hummed at that, letting his eyes roam over the courtyard full of shivers as they spoke. Most of the students were busy chatting, moving from class to class or enjoying their breaks.

He smiled as a class with toddlers was herded across the lawn, multiple teachers eying the carnivores warningly to not press their luck.

It made Darius snicker slightly as he saw several of the shifted toddlers trip over their paws, three fox kits tumbling over one another and giving their supervisors quite the workout, trying to keep em all together.

Of course, their animals didn't see the running teachers as guides to safely follow. They saw it as a fun game to play, to dodge and zigzag between their legs, nearly tripping up the adults. Leap over stretched arms with excited yips before romping over the floor when they collided with a sibling.

Darius paused, watching the captivating dance for a moment before the kits were finally caught, scruffed and scolded gently while the little herbivores were huddled together, watching wide-eyed as the teachers dusted themselves off.

"Reminds you of the time where that was you two, huh?" Tibor snickered while Willem huffed aggressively, clearly remembering when he had bit the dirt more times than I could count.

No wonder they had put the new Feral under Willem's wing, probably anticipating that they were rather similar. If Willem could deal with Darius, he could deal with the new one, right?

Darius pushed past the doors, holding them open for the other two and smiled at the few students that slowed down to stare at him.

He knew it had been a while since he was on the compound, so naturally their animals would make them wary of an adult new arrival.

"Ah, Darius. Welcome, I hope you..." The woman paused, eyes falling to the feather before she sighed. "Of course. As if things couldn't be easy for once... right this way, please."

He absentmindedly twirled the feather around in his fingers, watching the sun glint on its black surface. Even Darius' shift was intrigued. It hadn't seen another of its kin, or related to it so it wanted to meet the newcomer.

But Darius was wary, as he wasn't too sure how the kid would react. How his own shift would react.

As he entered the meeting room with several teachers and guards present, he cracked his neck and sighed, sitting down at the table.

Absentmindedly, his finger tapped against the polished wooden surface as he waited for everyone to assemble in this sudden meeting, the feather displayed in the middle of the table.

They'd have to make careful plans and approach the kid with caution. If the young Feral lost control over his shift and a poor herbivore decided to flee...

It'll be a massacre.

A.N. Adrian's reveal is so close ^-^ Any last guesses of what he might be?

Oh, right, I promised to make a list of all given hints before his reveal :p

1. He's a carnivore.

2. He's an ambush predator.

3. His shift is too big for a densely forested area.

4. Adrian's species has more than one offspring per go.

5. Adrian doesn't groom ; he preens.

6. While mostly a solitary hunter, Adrian doesn't look down on group hunting either.

7. Underground dens are not natural for his kind.

8. Adrian has shown that, even in a Feral state, he is calculative and highly intelligent.

9. He has nictitating membranes.

10. His species are egg-laying.

11. Adrian can leap up to 21 ft.

12.He has 2 inch serrated teeth.

13. Their species have medium offspring care, in the sense that they do not abandon their eggs once laid but after they can hunt, they're on their own.

14. Adrian isn't threatened by most of the carnivores save for Willem due to bad past experiences.

15. a. His shift is not an Apex predator.

15. b. However, Adrian's shift shares it's domain with the Apex predator, which is a tyrannical king.

15. c. One versus one, Adrian's species would highly likely die against said Apex predator but it would go after the Apex offspring. If they worked in a group, they could kill the apex, presumably with some losses on Adrian's shift species.

16. Prey are captured by pinning them down before they are devoured alive. In short, Adrian's shift has powerful legs.

17. Adrian has 5 inch claws on his hands/ front limbs.

18. His shift is a real animal that exists or has existed in the real world.

19. He is not a snake.

20. Adrian has enough biting force to split bones. (FYI, to split a human femur, 4.000 Newton is required.)

21. His shift has feathers but isn't capable of flight.

22. And lastly, Adrian is similar to Darius, but not quite. Darius is, as mentioned earlier in the chapter, an oversized prehistoric chicken according to Willem.

Let's see if you guys can aptly pinpoint Adrian's shift ^-^ One of you already did ^-^