A Friend For Chloe

      "I'll be back next week!" the Shoyru had promised a few days before.

      Or maybe that was only yesterday, Chloe had lost track of time there. She admitted, some people were very kind and bought all the Kadoaties food, but she wished she was home, where she could dig in the refrigerator when she was hungry, much to her owner's dismay.

      "Okay Chloe, what would you like for lunch?" a funny looking lady with a weird hairdo asked her.

      "Um, I don't know." Chloe wasn't that hungry at the moment.

      "Well here, look at this catalog. It shows all the foods you can ask for. Please hurry!" The lady slipped her a small packet labeled 'Approved Foods'.

      This was just great. Now she had a restricted diet. She placed her paw on the little picture of a happy Kadoatie. That was most likely the furthest thing from her mood right then. She bet to herself that even the foods here weren't very good, but as she looked through the catalog, she saw most of the foods looked very good. She settled on a 'Lime Jelly Burger'. It looked very good, since Chloe was a big fan of lime jelly.

      "Have we decided yet?" asked the lady impatiently.

      "Yes. I would like a Lime Jelly Burger, please," Chloe replied, nervous about going out in the main feeding room.

      "Ooh, a good choice! Now that you know what you want, I can bring you into the feeding room," the lady said as she opened Chloe's cage, and Chloe happily jumped to the floor.

      She followed the lady (who she found out was named Ms. Kadler) through a long hallway. Throughout the hallway were gold and silver statues that each displayed a Kadoatie eating something. When they reached the main feeding room, it surprised Chloe that the room looked nothing like the rooms in the back. It was a large space, with room for about 20 cages. Clean floors, polished metal bars, and there was no rotten food smell. It was certainly better than the room she had just come from.

      As Ms. Kadler opened a cage, she jumped into it, curling up in a corner. Ms. Kadler put a small sign up under her cage that read "Chloe is very sad, you should give it "Lime Jelly Burger!"

      "I will come back in about 15 minutes, when all the Kadoaties will be in their cages and ready. Please stay quiet until then."

      That made Chloe feel special. Not. Just as she started feeling sorry for herself, she heard something crying in the cage next to her. She peeked over in the cage and she saw a sniffling green Kadoatie, curled up in the corner. Her eyes were big and her paws on top of her head, like she was trying to hide. Perplexed as to why the Kadoatie was crying, Chloe decided to try to talk to her.

      "Why are you crying? Feeding time hasn't begun yet!" she said, looking through the little hole in the side of her cage, where the two cages were connected.

      "I know," the little ball said. "You would be crying too if you had been here a month and no one wants to feed you!"

      The Kadoatie's voice was weak, she sounded like she had been crying a while. Chloe looked at what she was asking for. She was asking for a Grape Slurpship. Chloe had seen it in the Approved Foods catalog, but she had decided against it. Chloe also noticed that her name was Socks.

      "Why is nobody feeding you?" Chloe asked, still clueless as to why nobody had tried to feed Socks.

      "I am asking for an unbuyable item. I didn't mean to, but I am too afraid to ask Ms. Kadler to change what I want." Socks slumped back against the wall and started bawling.

      "It's okay… Er, Socks, right?"

      "Yes. Your name is Chloe, right?"

      "Why yes it is!" Chloe hoped she was doing the right thing by trying to make Socks feel better. "Well, you need to get the courage up to ask in the next 15 minutes, because that's when the next feeding is, and I really want you to come back to the regular cages with me." She really meant it too. It would be nice to have a friend here in this sad place.

      "Really? Will you help me?" Socks face brightened up.

      "Of course!"

      Socks and Chloe worked on getting Socks' courage up, which was quite easy. The real challenge was getting Ms. Kadler's attention. She was very busy, but when they finally got her attention, Socks went right to the point.

      "Excuse me, but may I change my lunch preference?" Socks asked, in a very polite voice.

      "Well, I am not supposed to let you, but I guess you can, since you have been here quite a while. What is your new preference?" Ms. Kadler replied.

      "Um, I didn't really think of that…" Socks looked confused

      "Non-Magical Blueberry Chia Pop," Chloe whispered.

      "Oh, a Non-Magical Blueberry Chia Pop!" Socks quickly added.

      "Okay, let me change your sign, and we will get going!" Ms. Kadler quickly switched out signs, and headed to the door.

      "Everybody ready?" Ms. Kadler smiled. "Okay, GO!"

      Once the doors were open, the Kadoatery all became a rush. Chloe heard the contented mew of Socks immediately. It took a little longer for Chloe to get food shoved down her throat, but she soon stifled a mew and munched on the other half of the burger that wasn't already in her stomach. The sign on her cage now read 'Chloe has been fed! Thanks littlej001!'

      Chloe looked at her feeder. She had a baby pet tugging at her pants leg, and she was pleasantly chatting with a fellow feeder. She couldn't get the girl's attention, but the pleased sigh of Socks next to her brought her back to thinking of her food.

      "Okay, so it wasn't that grand of a meal, but I am happy!" Socks sighed happily again.

      "Mhmmm… Hmch…" Chloe attempted to say, between bites.

      "Chloe, I advise you swallow your food before you talk!" Socks laughed.

      "Mhm… Okay, better!" Chloe smiled back.

      Over the next few days, Socks and Chloe became good friends. The two never went to a feeding time alone, they were always side by side, and they even caused mischief among the other Kadoaties.

      One day, Chloe spotted the familiar pink shine of her owner. Ms. Kadler came over to her unlock her cage, and Chloe leaped into her owners outstretched arms. She was so happy that she was going home, but not as happy as she should be. Socks let out a little sob, and Chloe went over to Socks' cage to say good-bye.

      "Wait a second, are you Socks?" asked the pink Shoyru, looking at Socks as if the Kadoatie was familiar.

      "Yes I am, why? Do you know my owner?" Socks asked optimistically.

      "As a matter of fact, I do. I met her on vacation! She should be here… Oh! There she is!"

      Chloe looked where the pink hand was pointing. She saw a Speckled Uni run over to the cages with Ms. Kadler right behind her with another set of keys.

      "Socks! I missed you so much! I didn't mean to stay away so long, but my ride home got canceled, and I had to wait two more weeks until I could get another one!" The Uni picked up Socks, giving her a big hug.

      After all the hugs and introductions were over, Chloe hugged Socks good-bye.

      "I will miss you! Thanks for keeping me company," said Chloe sadly.

      "I know. I wish there was some way we could see each other every day." Socks hugged Chloe again.

      "Why are you two acting so sad," asked Chloe's owner. "It's not like you will never see each other again. We live just a few blocks away from each other. You can see one another any day you want!"

      The two little Kadoaties looked at each other and smiled. They knew that from this point on, they could be friends forever.

The End

Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed this story! The Kadoatie names used are all names of actual kads; even the food asked for is the food asked for in the Kadoatery! All feedback on this story is welcome! Thanks for reading!