The White Cheetah

Chapter Three

Sauda woke up from a deep sleep. She stood up and glanced around the lake. She saw waterfowl floating in the water, eating the reeds. She could hear the frogs croaking in the tall marsh grass. The albino cheetah walked up to the lake and lapped up the water. Her eyes caught sight of a black creature on the other side of the lake. It looked as small as her.

Sauda glared at it. It looked like a cheetah cub, but it did not have any spots or the pale golden coat. It was a melanistic cheetah cub with night-black fur and dark silver mane. It glared back at Sauda, tilting it's head in confusion.

Sauda smiled at it. She walked around the lake and walked up to it. It was a male cub. He looked at her and cowered down.

"What's your name?" Sauda asked the cub.

The melanistic cheetah glared at her and squeaked, "Rudo." He glared at her white pelt. "You're different from the other cub's too?"

Sauda nodded. "I am. I wish I wasn't. I get teased all the time by the other cubs. They say I can't hunt just because of my pelt color."

"Well," Rudo chirped, "it will alert prey. That bright color will make you easy to spot through the grass."

The albino sighed. "Oh. So you're just like the others."

"I'm not like the other cubs," The cub hissed. "They say I can't hunt either. They're right."

Sauda squeaked, "My friends said that they were wrong."

"You're lucky to have friends," Rudo said. "Well, they are wrong. They just wanted to make you feel better about yourself. They always do that. My friends did, before they left me."

"Where did they go?" Sauda asked.

"You do not want to know. Your friends might like you today but then the next day, they just change and finally realize your weird looking."

"Well," The albino said. "I can be your friend, if you would like me to."

"Friend?" Rudo laughed. "I don't need friends. I stand alone."

"Don't you have parents?"

The melanistic cub sighed. "They died. My aunt is caring for me."

"Who is that?" Sauda asked.

Rudo pointed at a tall, slender cheetah with his tail. "Her name is Ime."

Sauda chirped, "Do you have any siblings?"

The cub shook his head. "No. I was not born in a litter. My mother died after the day I was born. I never knew my father. My aunt said that he did not want any cubs, so he abandoned my mother when I was born."

"That is so sad," The albino chirped. "I'm so sorry. Well, my father is still with me."

"Strange," Rudo said, scratching his ear with his hind paw. "Male cheetahs usualy leave the females when they have cubs. I can see why."

Sauda smiled. "Wow, you are so smart!"

 Rudo glared at her. "Okay. Well, I've better be on my way now. Goodbye, um..........."

"Sauda," The albino squeaked. "My name is Sauda."

"Oh," Rudo said. "You don't look like 'dark complexion'."

"I know," Sauda said. "Well, bye. I'll see you tommorow."

"Okay," Rudo chirped. "Farewell." He leaped away from the albion cub and raced towards his aunt.

Sauda glanced at her father and then back at the melanistic cub. She sighed and smiled. She then turned around and walked up to Jasiri.

"I made a new friend!" She purred.

Jasiri glared at her. "Oh! Who is your new friend?"

"Rudo," Sauda squeaked.

"I don't know any cheetah who has a cub named Rudo. Why were you speaking to a stranger?"

"He's not a stranger," The cub hissed. "He's my friend."

"Well, if I don't know his parents, then he is a stranger."

Sauda rolled her eyes. "That is so stupid!"

Jasiri hissed, "Not all cheetahs are friendly out here. This is not a zoo, you know. This is the wild."

Sauda was puzzled. "Zoo?" She echoed.

Her father chirped, "It is a place where humans take animals so they can be safe. I used to live in one."

The albino cub was puzzled. Zoo? Humans? She thought. Maybe Rudo knows what that is. It sounds... Interesting.