The sisters, Sophia and Steph, took their parents on a little tour of the new world and showed them the desert they visited not too long ago, as well as the lake, the tiger and the others created some time ago when her magic went out of control. Afterward, they showed Lydia and Pete the capital from far away to give them a nice overview of it.

"What do we need to do to explore this place more thoroughly?" The family was still on the small hill in viewing distance of the capital, where Lydia was looking at before eventually facing her daughters. "Preferably with Theo and Eve to get a more neutral experience."

"We'd love to get a tour from you two, but we all know you'd put up way too much of a show to try and convince just how perfect this world is." Pete felt the same. "Of course, looking at things together with you and getting even more things explained is something we want, just not as a first impression."

"That's fine." Steph smiled at her.

"Again, that's the reason why I asked Maya's parents to tell you more about the world. They know much more about the world than we do, too. Our view on it really is special, so it makes all the sense." Sophia wasn't upset by it, either. "Afterward, we'll definitely still show you the side of this world regular people don't get to see so often."

"That's perfect." Their parents were happy they understood.

"It is true that we first need to get you ready for that, though." The tiger then scratched her cheek. "There are three things that need some addressing."

"Three?" Steph tilted her head. "Magic and visuals, what else?"

"The language of this world. Or, at least the one of this continent? I'm actually not sure if there are multiple languages in this world. I only know it's not the one we were speaking around here."

"Right, I forgot about that!" The dog-girl nodded a few times.

"What?!"

"We need to learn a different language?!" Their parents didn't like the sound of that.

"Wait, we talked with Eve and Theo just fine, though?" Lydia then got confused.

"True!" Pete had also forgotten about that for a second. "They were absolutely fluent, and there's no way to get to that level without years of training. Especially if we're talking about a language that doesn't seem to actually exist in their world."

"Don't worry, we didn't learn it, either." Sophia tried to calm them down. "The overseers in this world have the power to bestow gifts on people. Steph and I have been gifted magic and the language of this place by them."

"Wow, I don't even know what to say to that!" Lydia was beyond impressed.

"How's something like that even possible?!" Their father was also overwhelmed. "Also, it sounds more and more like gods and goddesses to me."

"Overseer." The tiger stared at them. "Really, even if you don't understand the difference, which is fair," After all, she didn't really do so, either. "I still have to insist on using the right word. It is important."

"Fine." The two nodded.

"It would be great if Mira could do that for them, too." Steph also hoped for the overseer's help. "Should we ask her about the magic thing while we're at it, too?" She then looked at her older sister.

"I don't think we should." She shook her head. "She already helped us with so much, and I don't want to keep relying on her, especially if it is for things we might be able to do on our own. Let's try to give them a little of our magic, just like we talked about it the other day."

"Okay!"

"Wait, you two can also give others magic?!" Pete raised his voice.

"Yup." Sophia nodded. "I gave Ari and Anna a little of mine in the past so they could play around with it some more because they didn't have that much."

"I gave half of mine that I got from Mira to Chloe so that we have the same amount!"

"Is that a normal thing you're able to do?" Their father tilted his head. "It seems like something people could abuse in one way or another."

"Rather than being born with it, Steph and I were given magic directly from the overseers." The tiger tried to come up with an explanation. "That's why we have some extra powers."

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

"Ah, I guess that makes sense." Theo looked convinced. "Probably, I guess? Maybe, I'd say? No idea, honestly, but if you say so." He only looked convinced because he had no idea it actually made any sense.

"I'm glad you're as confused as I am." Lydia was happy that she wasn't alone with the feeling.

"Don't worry about it~." Sophia smiled at them. "There's one thing some worrying over would be advised, though. We're in the beastfolk kingdom. Steph's a dog, and I'm a tiger."

"Why's that something to worry about?" Steph tilted her head. "Just go for it! I did it, and I couldn't be happier with my new form!"

"Shush!" The older sister didn't need that kind of help. "Eve and Theo probably have mentioned there are different, uhh, let's call them levels to being a part of the beastfolk, including the so-called hidden, who have no directly visible animal features. This would probably be the easiest one to go with. The hidden are pretty rare, though, so be prepared to have a lot of people asking you about it."

"The most boring option, too!" Steph didn't like the idea. "Dad, you'd be so cool with dog ears and a tail!" She then smiled at her father with sparkling eyes.

"…" Pete wasn't sure how to feel about that.

"Is simply staying human not an option?" Lydia looked at her striped daughter. "You two either mentioned it, or I took it from how you worded things in the past when talking about this world, but humans aren't all that popular, are they? Is it really that bad?"

"Ah." Sophia wasn't looking forward to that talk. "Honestly, it's not good. The humans and the beastfolk don't get along at all. Going into detail won't help anyone, but there were countless fights, battles, and other things in their past. Most of them were instigated by the humans because their leaders in this world are a bit deranged and led the entirety of humanity astray. At least in this region. It might be different in other parts of this world, but I've only met the humans around here so far. There are some movements regarding the human rulers to improve the situation between the two races, but we aren't there yet."

"…" Lydia wasn't sure what to say.

"It might be different in a couple of years, but right now, I can't see humans living in the beastfolk capital becoming a thing. Even if it would be easy for you to prove you're friendly, everyone would be constantly wary because it's just too out of the ordinary."

"I see." She scratched her cheek. "Is it okay if I ask Theo and Eve about it? I'd like to hear more about this from someone who has lived in this world their entire life."

"Yes." The tiger nodded. While she had asked Maya's parents not to mention it, it was mostly because it would've been too much for the first meeting. "Although, they don't really know about the human leader part and how the regular humans got manipulated by them. Their view on them might be a little harsher."

"That's okay."

"There's also a more personal reason that you two being human would complicate things even further." Sophia got even more awkward. "Only our immediate group, including Maya's parents, knows that Steph and I are not from this world and used to be human. I'd like it to stay that way, too. I adore my new identity, my new self, and I'd like it to stay like this. I have no idea how I'd be able to introduce you as my parents to anyone, and I'd like to be able to do that." She paused for a moment. "I know I'm being selfish, but…" The tiger didn't know how to finish her sentence.

"I understand, but you also have to understand that giving up humanity is a bit of a tall thing to ask for being in this world."

"Is it really?" Steph thought otherwise. "You've met Chloe, you've met the other girls earlier, and you spent half of the day with Maya's parents. They aren't human, but did they feel inhuman to you?"

"They were lovely. All of them." Lydia could only agree there.

"In this world, not being human is the closest to being human in a way we'd associate ourselves with." The dog-girl kept going. "In the future, it might change, and they'll stand on equal footing, but as Sophia said, we'll always be different in a way. Neither of us wants to stop being a member of the beastfolk, after all. Not now and not in the future, either."

"I guess that makes sense after having bonded with so many people." Pete scratched his cheek. "Also, what is humanity?" He suddenly got philosophical. "On Earth, it is clear. It describes the qualities that make us human, such as the ability to love, have compassion and kindness, and be creative, among many other things, as we are pretty much the only species that have all those traits. In this world, that doesn't seem to be the case, as there's more than just a single species that has developed to such a level. The values of the people of this world we met so far seem to align with that perfectly."

"So, you're okay with adding some feature to your body…?" Lydia stared at her husband.

"Big brown floppy dog ears for dad, let's go!" Steph's excitement rose even more.

"Hmm." Their mother only increased her stare at Pete.

"Let's not be that hasty, okay?" He didn't like how Lydia seemed to be imagining something right now.

"Oh, did I mention already that you don't have to actually change your body and being?" The tiger tried to make it easier for them. "With enough magic, you can simply change your looks without it becoming a part of your body. Like, the possible ears and or tail would be more of an accessory rather than a part of your very being."

"Huh?!"

"This would've been valuable information before all of this!" Her parents got loud.

"Ahaha." Sophia couldn't blame them for their reaction. "Can I suggest a course of action? Go exploring together with Theo and Eve while pretending to be a hidden. It will work. If you see some interesting styles, I'll give you enough magic to copy the looks. You can then either stay like that, or if you start to feel a connection, you can become the real thing, like Steph and I did. You just should avoid making any too deep friendships with other people while trying out stuff because it would be difficult to explain the sudden change in looks to someone you've already gotten to know."

"A boring plan, but a plan indeed!" The dog-girl was hoping for a more instant change, and dog ears for her father.

"It sounds like it could be a viable plan." Pete liked the suggestion.

"Yes, we can give that a try for now." Lydia nodded along.

Once they had agreed on a rough course of action for their future exploration, Sophia and Steph showed them more notable things about the capital from afar while telling all sorts of stories they had experienced while living there.

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