The idea of running as fast as a horse appeals to you. Fast as the wind, your career as a hero would be much easier! None of your enemies could catch up to you. You'd be admired and impressive.
"The wine. I choose the wine," you say.
"A fine choice indeed," nodded the elf. "You will be slender and lithe. None of your kind and kin shall keep upon your heels."
You drink the phial full of a dark red liquid. The wine was good, full of spice, red grapes and blackberries, mingled with spices.
"The quality is extraordinary!" you exclaim.
"If you are a brave and fast warrior, you shall garner more. I am glad you can recognize a fine beverage. I hope you shall keep your restraint and good taste in your future life. Your kind can be a little... rambunctious at times."
You want to ask him what he means but you feel your head spinning and sit down. Soon, you are lying down on the ground as your vision blurs. The last thing you see is the elf attempting to add something but you are already slipping into consciousness.
You wake up slowly. And your vision is still unfocused. You are completely weak and sluggish. You can barely feel your body. Your ears seem to function a little more but you can catch only snatches of conversations amongst other noises, a confused din of people talking and arguing, cartwheels going about and animal noises aplenty. You feel so tired still... You just want to go back to sleep and deal with all the things around you later... As you slip back into a blissful sleep, you hear some people talking very near you.
"Where did you find him?"
"Near the marshes. 'Was already completely out."
"You sure no one will come looking for him?"
"Nah. Marshes are far and completely deserted. Don't know what he was doing there, but he was alone. Otherwise, one the herd would have been near him."
"Well, if you're sure. Because I say..."
You shift and try to block out the pesky voices. It works because soon you are back into a dreamless sleep. Before running, might as well rest a long while before...
You emerge out of your deep slumber when someone picks you up and places you on an a soft, flat surface. You frown and groan because whoever picks you up is doing a poor job out of it. You're being held very awkwardly, first at the waist and then at the belly and it feels strange and a little uncomfortable. But the surrounding noises slowly disappeared and the slight rocking and bouncing of the cart you're in is soothing and lulls you back to your very long but irresistible sleep.
When you wake up a third time, still very exhausted and feeble, your eyes open to a strange place and stranger bed companion. A furry wall. A furry wall inhaling and exhaling. A regular breathing. The hair was short and light brown. Soft, though. You try to move away, frightened, but your limbs are sluggish and your legs stiff. You can't even locate them properly through your own brain and senses. And you're in a cave! Lying on soft grass, pelts and with a fire smoldering in a chimney holding a cauldron. A low table without chairs was in the middle and various jars, parchments, boxes and dried herbs were placed among shelves. You could see other things in the distance. But your head spins all of a sudden and you moan. You are hungry, thirsty and very confused. You want to know where are you are. When will you run as fast as a horse? Because you are barely able to raise your head at the moment!
"Are you all right, little one? Don't move too much. Daddy is going to come back with warm milk and plenty of porridge."
The voice is male and someone places a thick blanket on you. Those people make you sleep with horses! You can feel the movement of legs and hooves next to you. The only good news is that food is going to come soon, apparently. You still feel very tired, though. As if just moving the upper part of your body had been the most your stamina could do. You still had been awake a little longer than before, though. It was a step in the right direction. You snuggled into the warm body of the horse and the thick blanket. Big, warm hands patted you and it felt very nice.
"Oh, did you see? The little sweetie just stirred! He's waking up!"
A light chuckle.
"I saw too. He is a cutie, no doubt."
"I love him. Thank you! You're the best husband a centaur could ask for."
"You as well, my darling. And I already have a lot of affection for him. And look at his legs. He'll be an incredible racer for sure!"
You rise slowly as someone asks a certain Amalthea to come over with a bowl of food. The shapes around you finally reach a certain clarity. A man approaches you. Or rather, the torso of a man. The rest of his body is that of a fit, slender, elegant and handsome horse with a glossy black fur. He is smiling kindly and bends down to put in front of you a bowl of porridge and a bowl of pickled pickles generously sprinkled with seeds. It wouldn't be your favorite foods in the worst of taverns but here the smell and sight enthrals you and you want nothing more to bite into the vegetarian meal. Indeed, a glass of warm milk arrives shortly, brought by another centaur, a tiny juvenile female with a spotless white coat and a single horn sprouting from her forehead. A sort of unicorn centaur, with big violet eyes. She then seeks shelter in the proximity of the black centaur who puts his arm around her lovingly. What are you doing in the company of centaurs? What are they talking about? The potion was supposed to make you fast, that was all! You have to explain to them! You turn around to get away from the blanket and notice two things. First, the wall of horse ribs and muscles is also the lower part of a centaur, one of large build, bulging muscles and scruffy hair. His eyes sparkle with kindness when they watch you, though. The second, more alarming thing, are the four horse limbs protruding from the cover. Foal legs, dark brown and still rather weak. You can barely register as the enormous arms of the centaur next to you bring you in for a bear hug worthy of a giant teddy's. A loving nuzzle follows, rendering you speechless. This must be a mistake! A horrible mistake! You just took a potion to make you as fast as a... You then understood. The potion was supposed to make you as fast as a horse but it never claimed to just give your legs a great strength. By being literal, the potion still kept its promise. On that condition, then you could have turned into a complete horse... You have to explain. You have to find a way to change back! You don't want to be a kid again, centaur or not!
"You don't understand... I'm not supposed to be like this... I am... Well, a human...."
This beginning of an explanation was completely misinterpreted as it resulted only in a huge smooch on your head and a bigger hug. The large centaur cooed.
"Poor darling! We can imagine. You had a loving family and mother and a mean human hunter killed them. You were taken away by awful slave traders but luckily, your new daddy saw you while he was selling his ointments and saw you. You'll live with us, now!"
You want to protest but another flow of memories invade your mind. A sweet centaur mother living on her own in the mountains with you. Days of play and love. Until she was bunted down with you, fled to marshes and got shot while you hid and wandered aimlessly for days, on your own and constantly thinking of your mommy. A tsunami of sadness engulfed you and you want nothing more to bawl your eyes out, all for a mother that never existed. Where did those vivid memories, fake but so seemingly real, come from? So real, in fact, that you start crying, calling for you mama, so far from the young man aspiring to be an adventurer as could be. Immediately the other centaur hugs you profusely, asking if you have any other members of your herd alive or where your daddy is. You answer the lack of father in your life and your life story comes flowing out incredibly naturally, as if it was the only life you'd ever known.
"Don't worry," the black centaur says. "Now you have two daddies and you can never leave us again."
He then waves to the little centaur.
"Here, Amalthea, come make your new little brother feel better. We adopted her 38 moons ago too and she's very happy," he adds to you.
This reassures you enormously. You'll be safe, with people loving you. Sentiments that do not fit the adventurer you were aspiring to become just a day ago! And this prospect of being a little centaur starts to feel more natural by the minute! Soon you'll end up fully losing yourself. You curse the potion, the elf, your choice and drinking that damn wine. Amalthea comes to join the family with its new addition and afterwards you dig gratefully into the bowls of food. It was delicious, this nourishing milk, tasty oats and delicious vegetables! You consider why you like those foods all of a sudden but you just stay focused on such delicacies. You try to explain to the centaurs you are not a centaur foal but they chide you for trying to think too much after obviously having received a blow to the head and being left without food for so long, leading to delirium. They swear to tear apart the humans that did this to you and you feel so secure, even if in the back of your mind you think that the centaurs can search for a long time humans that never existed. Or did they? The combination of warmth and a full belly means it's hard to concentrate and it's so much simpler to focus on the nice soothing words of the two centaurs. Them being your daddies sounds very appealing. The thought of seeing them mate like two horny stallion together, from disgusting, becomes a fact of life, to completely forgotten and out of your grasp of what life is. Except sweets, running around in nature and games, what can be really important, really? Well apart from hugs issuing from a strong daddy! Strong daddies are the best! And the other daddy sings delightful lullabies with great stories! As for your sister, she means always having a playmate. You let go of your past life, both the real and the fake. The former is too complicated to remember and make sense of anyway. You fall asleep as the rest of the family lies down for the night and a trip to the land of sweet dreams.