Getting to Know Each Other

Although Kisara and Freya were accustomed to living in a palace, they didn't like staying cooped up in a place for too long. Like Mystery, even they had a need to get out once in a while. Much like her, they spent most of their lives outside, letting the world be their school and playground. Kirara altered her size, turning into a big cat. She then allowed the cousins to get on her back. Once they were onboard, Kirara began flying, carrying them away, but still close to the palace.

They decided to explore the town. The girls were greeted with friendly smiles and waves from the local Thunderians. They all had the features of many various big cats like lions, tigers, jaguars, lynxes, cougars, pumas, panthers, ocelots, cheetahs, leopards, and even smaller domestic cats.

The cousins found a place where they could stop and rest from walking. "What do you think of this place, Freya?" the older cousin asked.

"I think it's nice here," she answered. "The folks have been nice to us so far and nothing bad has happened. I admit, I was scared, but so far, everything has been just as we were promised and more."

"Ho," a voice suddenly called. In a flash, a woman with cheetah-like features appeared before the cousins, startling them. "I saw you girls in the sky as I was going out for a run. Would it be all right if I joined you?"

The cousins looked at each other, then back at the cheetah woman. They just nodded because they were too shy to say anything. They actually recognized this cheetah. They saw her at the feast yesterday. "Please don't tell Lord Claudus we snuck out," Kisara begged. "We weren't trying to run away or anything like that. We just needed to get out."

"Oh, don't worry," the cheetah woman assured the girls. "You didn't do anything wrong. And I know that feeling. Though I may be a noble, even I need to get out once in a while." She seated herself and said, "Your names are Kisara and Freya, right? My name's Cheetara."

"It's nice to meet you," said the younger cousin. She looks down and sees Kirara and Sakuya sniffing Cheetara's legs. Then the two of them start rubbing against her. "Our partners seem to like you."

"Looks that way," Cheetara says, petting them. "They're very pretty."

"And very loyal," the younger cousin said.

Kisara wanted to try to lighten the mood, so she said, "I like your hair, Cheetara. I've never seen hair patterned with spots like yours."

Cheetara returned the compliment. "I like your hair too, Kisara. It's a beautiful shade of white. You have beautiful eyes too and so does Freya."

The cousins lightly blushed, thanking Cheetara for her kind words. They weren't used to hearing other people say nice things about their appearances and actually be sincere about it. Freya found the courage to speak. "Back home, a lot of people have been afraid of us because of what we look like. Some of them thought we were demons. But that all changed when we met our friends." She began thinking of the time when she and Joseph first met. "When Joseph said he wasn't afraid of me, I was baffled. He said it was my eyes that brought me to him. But he didn't mean it like I was putting him under a spell or anything like that. He was telling me that if it weren't for me being attacked just because I have red eyes, he never would have come to my rescue." She smiled and sighed as she recalled those memories. "What he did for me, what he said, it was the nicest treatment I ever received from anyone."

It was Kisara's turn. "And before I met any of the others, I thought I was the only person who stood out and looked unusual. But when I met Mystery, I was amazed to see another person who had blue eyes and white hair like I did."

Cheetara had to interrupt Kisara for a minute. "So then, you and Mystery aren't twin sisters?"

"Mm-mmm," Kisara answers, shaking her head. "Freya's my only relative. It's always just been the two of us until we met Mystery and Seto and Joseph and everyone else. And when we did meet them, we were amazed to meet other children who also had their own unusual appearances. Prince Atem had colorful hair and eyes in an unusual color, Joseph had blonde hair, but the others looked completely normal. Becoming friends with everyone helped us to be more trusting of others and to accept our differences."

"It's true," Freya agreed. "We've learned that there's nothing wrong with being different. And in time, other people began to accept us."

Cheetara could see that these cousins had it rough in their lives. But it made her happy to know that their lives had changed for the better when they met the rest of their friends and became the Children of Millennia. "You girls are really something special," she said.

"Not really," Freya shrugged. "It's nice of you to think that about us, but–,"

"I mean it," Cheetara interrupted. "You're not only beautiful on the outside, but there's a lot more to you on the inside. You girls have qualities that make you special and important to your friends. If they didn't see anything good in you, they probably wouldn't have accepted you."

The cousins looked at each other. "Well, I guess that's true," Kisara admitted. "I mean, Mystery and the others have said the same thing to us many times before."

"I know you girls are shy and have been through a lot," Cheetara was saying, "but I also know there's more to you than meets the eye. Millennia chose you girls for a reason, but that's something you have to find out for yourselves. Only you can discover your own strengths and abilities."

Once more, the cousins looked at each other. They also looked at their own amulets and figured that Cheetara was right. They also wondered if maybe they already had discovered what those hidden gifts are and didn't know it yet.

Cheetara stood up. "Why don't we all head back together? I'm sure everyone's probably going to start wondering where we are." And they all begin making their way back to the palace.

While riding on Kirara, the cousins were amazed with how fast Cheetara was running. "She's really fast like a real cheetah," said Kisara. "Well, that's to be expected, since she is a cheetah."

"Don't worry, I get what you mean," said Freya. Then she wondered, "Hey, Kisara, do you think Cheetara knows about our powers? It's just, after the way she talked to us, I was starting to get a bit concerned."

Kisara understood what she was getting at. "I was wondering the same thing. I hope not. But I guess we're going to have to make that fact known soon." She looks at her younger cousin and says, "However, we should only summon our Dragons as a last resort."

Freya agreed, but thought to herself, I hope that we will never have to. She really did. In fact, neither of the cousins wanted there to come a time when they would need to call on their true powers. They were afraid that doing so would cause the Thunderians to hate and fear them.

Meanwhile, Atem and Mystery continued to spend time with Lion-O. Even Jirachi and Riolu were happy to play with Snarf and he didn't mind at all. "Forgive me, but I just noticed you guys are wearing matching necklaces," Lion-O said, referring to their amulets. "Is that another one of your marks as Children of Millennia?"

The Egyptian prince looks down at his amulet. "Yes, Lion-O. These amulets were given to us by the Great Goddess herself. As you can see, they come in different colors and each one also has its own meaning. My amulet stands for courage and Mystery's amulet stands for love. Everyone else's amulets stand for joy, light, hope, reliability, friendship, and wisdom."

"Apparently, we represent the qualities our amulets stand for," said Mystery. "You might say that they are our personal strengths that set us apart from each other, but also our gifts that we share to help one another."

Lion-O was trying to make sense of the concept. "To make sure I understand, Atem, you have the amulet of courage because you have more courage than your other friends?"

Of that, the Egyptian prince was not sure. "I don't know about that. But going by my own experiences, whenever I act courageously, my amulet glows, giving off the light of its color." Lion-O looks at the amulet and sees that it's dark blue.

"And when I perform an act of love, my amulet glows with a white light," said Mystery. "But while I may represent love, that doesn't mean I'm an expert on it."

Snarf spoke up and asked, "Well, you love your family, don't you, Mystery?"

She did love her parents. She loved all of her friends too and the city she lived in.

Lion-O grinned mischievously. "Is there someone you're in love with?"

Mystery blushed and looked away, feeling too ashamed to answer. Atem gently squeezed her hand, assuring her it was all right to let him know.

Lion-O let out a small chortle. "No… no way," he said. "You guys are lovers?"

"We are," the Egyptian prince said proudly.

Even Snarf was surprised. "But isn't that forbidden? I mean, you're supposed to court a girl of royal blood." He looks at Mystery and asks her, "Are you of royal blood, Mystery?"

"Well, my papa used to live in the palace and serve the pharaoh as a royal magician before he met my mama. So, in a sense, I am. And I am living in the palace now, so in a way, I am a royal," she explained. "And when I was little, Papa used to bring me to the palace all the time to meet the pharaoh and all of his friends. And when Atem and I first met, we were immediately drawn to each other."

"We were both three years old at the time," he was saying. "Well, I was going to be four soon. But Mystery and I became good friends right away. We would always be happy to see each other and play together. But then something happened and we weren't able to see each other again until several years later. And when we did, we accepted our feelings and confessed our love."

Snarf sniffled and wiped the tears from his eyes. "That's so sweet. I just love a good love story."

Mystery clears her throat. "Actually, Snarf, a lot of our friends have fallen in love with each other as well. Kisara and Seto, and Freya and Joseph, they are lovers."

"What about Mana and Mahad?" Snarf asked.

"Well, we don't know about that yet," she replied.

Lion-O smiled. "Well, I guess it's no wonder you all get along so well." He soon heard from one of the royal subjects that it was almost lunchtime. They all decided to head to the dining room.