A little earlier:
Lucy was still with Bolt, Daisy, Sarah and Jessica. All of them had been watching the spectacle of Aiko and Helios transforming into centaurs – and now Lucy turned her head to regard the reaction of the two seated, human women. Both of them looked shocked – their hands pressed close to their open mouths.
“Oh dear god…! That’s what all of you had to go through? It looks so painful!” Sarah blurted.
“It does hurt – but not for long,” Daisy reassured them. “You will gain a set second of vital organs – as well as an increase in your size and…mass. Our goddess’s magic has to be powerful to achieve all this.”
“But how do your bodies work? You must need to breath deeply, to fill in both sets of lungs!”
Daisy shrugged her shoulders. “We breath normally. I sense that we centaurs are not just reshaped by the goddess’s magic – we are maintained by her magic. But we thrive best in fresh air, surrounded by greenery. I would hate to live in a large city – the type that my former owner, Amanda told me she used to live in.”
“Hopefully, with the numbers of centaurs increasing, Epona’s power will increase further – and she will make the transformations easier for the rest of you …” Bolt trailed off as he briefly closed his eyes, before reopening them and nodding. “Yes – she has just sent me a thought of her intent. By the time it comes round to the children, she hopes to make the transition for them all as painless as possible.”
Jessica sighed with relief. “That’s good of her. I hope Sarah, Steve, and myself don’t have to suffer too much when we get forced into becoming like you guys. As for Deputy Jackson… The way he behaved – and before the kids, as well… I’ve no sympathy for him.” She took another look at the meat on her plate, not touching it. Lucy saw her weary expression, and immediately felt guilty.
“Sarah, Jessica… I should apologise,,,” Lucy announced. “Apart from what you’ve just saw, I’ve put you off your food, haven’t I? I’ve been too forward about my growing instincts as a newborn centaur. Wanting Ben to… I’m sorry.”
The two women nodded. “Apology accepted. Jessica wants to get to know Steve better – and you want to mate with Ben,” Sarah replied. “I have to say he does look rather dashing as a centaur. I hope my future…stallion…will be as good as your boyfriend seems to be.”
“Ben is my master – or rather, my former master,” Bolt spoke up. “Lucy – it will help you to calm down, if you go to Ben and spend some time together. Even when I was a horse, I could sense the unspoken attraction between you two, for each other. You both deserve to be as happy as those of us who are already mated.”
Daisy reached out and squeezed Lucy’s hand. “Go…,” she whispered with a smile. “We will look after the halflings here.”
“Halflings…,” Jessica sniffed.
“I apologise – it is not meant to be a derogatory term. Those of us who are fully centaurs just see it as a factual term to describe humans and horses. As does our goddess,” Daisy explained. “To us, you are half-centaur and half-other.”
“Thanks for your understanding.” Nodding to the others in the group, Lucy slipped away. She carefully walked through the gathering, occasionally stopping to let a few of the scouts walk in front of her. They smiled and raised their hands in thanks. Lucy’s half-pointed ears twitched as she heard a couple of the older boys comment on how hot she looked, before they jogged across to sneak a glance at the unconscious Helios. The new centaur’s hooves were pointed in their direction. Again, she overheard the youths, as they whistled to each other.
“Holy-moly! Are we really going to end up as big as that?”
“Guess so – and the rest of our bodies below the waist will be horse-sized too!”
The first boy blushed. “That’s not what I meant, you jackass, Jimmy!”
“Hey! We’re going to become centaur colts – not donkeys, Lenny!” the second boy fired back with a grin.
Lucy rolled her eyes. Boys… Perhaps Epona should turn this Jimmy into a donkeytaur, to teach him manners. Or maybe just scare him with a dream about becoming one…
And then the crowd all froze in place as Fred and April were the next pair to transform.
When the panic was over, with the scouts talking animatedly between themselves at what they had just witnessed, Lucy then overheard Wendy talking to Lightning about Deputy Jackson – who was some yards away, looking miserable as he ate some rabbit meat and some of the potatoes that had been recently dug up from one of the gardens. He was sat next to some of the scout horses, who – to look at them – were now able to talk.
“You told that man Jackson…,” Wendy was saying, as she gestured with her hands.
“Joseph Jackson. He told me his name when I asked him,” Lightning butted in.
“Joe, huh? That’s good. Easy to call her Jo, when Jackson becomes a new sister to the herd, then! Already, you say that you told him that you had a mate. But who…?”
Lightning sighed and glanced down at the ground. “I admit that I lied. Just to make that man freeze up when he annoyed me. That’s not a human habit I wish to practice… I have no mate – yet.”
I hope that you find a worthy centaur mare, my former horse. Someone who will truly care for you, even as you love and care for them. We all need someone to love…, Lucy thought to herself as she moved on, passing the barn where the remaining three horses of the second equestrian team were being tended by Jenny and Zoey – with Marcus and June standing by to assist them, in case either (or both) of the ladies joined the herd tonight. What was Chris’s horse called again? Oh yes, Sandy – because of his colouring, despite being a stallion and not a mare. And Zoey’s stallion – with his white spots against a dark fur coat – made her think of a constellation. And she had duly called him Pegasus.
Sandy and Pegasus… Lucy giggled. Their rival university equestrian team apparently had a couple of Olivia Newton John fans, such as herself. Shame that they couldn’t play music from their phones anymore…
Breaking out of her thoughts, Lucy drew closer to where Ben was talking to two of the younger children – a boy and a girl – about the life he used to live, when he had been human. He sniffed the air, and stopped his narrative – twisting his human torso round to see Lucy approaching. He beamed and waved her over. So Lucy sat down on her equine stomach next to them, and joined in the conversation – explaining a little about how she and Ben first met at the equestrian team, before covering the broad tale of what unfolded since they and their friends had come through the portal and arrived in this world (minus the saucy details, of course). During their recounting of their shared story, the strawberry-blond haired boy looked thrilled – whilst the girl looked worried. She then sniffed and tears ran down her face.
“Hey…” Ben reached out and hugged the blonde-haired girl. “I understand, Cindy. Lucy and I miss our families too. They may have forgotten us – but we will always remember and love them. But we also accept our fate – to help the once-extinct race of centaurs thrive again. To rebuild this lost civilisation. And make it the best it can be for now – even as we try to be the best people that we can. Better than we were, as humans, if possible! This is a fresh start for us all.”
Lucy nodded and stroked Cindy’s hair, to help calm her. She kissed the forehead of the distressed girl scout.
“I hope that I turn out to be a worthy centaur girl, then… An archer, perhaps. I am a Sagittarius, after all! I…I like you two.” The girl hugged both Ben and Lucy, and gave a weak smile as she dried her eyes. The boy, Tim, offered to look after her, as Ben picked up on Lucy’s changing scent and rose upon his hooves…
Soon, Ben and Lucy were slow-trotting side-by-side to the edge of the village, with Lucy having already decided upon the route as they weaved a path between the shops and services that had now been investigated with the aid of the scouts, earlier in the day. The laundry, the records and maps room, the courtroom, what appeared to be a trading post, and much more. They both walked on hooves that now bore new horseshoes – an acceptance of their joint centaur status – after having visited Fred around midday. And, in the process, learning about May being the reincarnated sweetheart of Fred. Ben and Lucy had gaped at each other – but they both hugged the reunited couple, accepting the wisdom of Epona bringing them together.
And now Fred had become their latest brother – along with their new sister, April. June, May – and April, Ben thought with a grin.
Minutes later, both Lucy and Ben were standing up to their equine knees in the stream that ran alongside the village. No one else was within sight or scent. The lanterns in the village giving them enough light to see by. Both moons on the eastern horizon – but they were more spaced apart than three nights before. The gushing of the water, and the gentle breeze helped Lucy to calm down. Ben nervously shifted his forelegs in the water. He knew what was coming – and he wanted to make her proud of him…
“I saw your expression when you comforted Cindy. You want to adopt her,” he stated. “You would be a mother perfect for her. I just know it.”
Lucy turned round to him and nodded. “Thanks, Ben. And I saw how you interacted with the kids. How about you? Are you ready to become a father? I really think you’ll be a good dad.”
“Yes, I am. But that’s not the only way you want to become a mother. I smelt your desire for me,” he told her.
“I unintentionally put Sarah and Jessica off their food…,” Lucy admitted, before telling him about her outspoken fantasising about him. “So, Bolt wants us to be happy together. And here I am. Holding myself back with the coolness of the stream to prevent myself from becoming a frisky mare!”
“I, um… Spoke to Chris earlier. Admitted that we had a shared erotic dream,” Ben admitted as he stood a few feet away from Lucy in the stream, standing so that the breeze wasn’t blowing either of their scents towards the other. “He confessed that he and Amanda shared their own erotic dream too, last night. And not long before I spoke to him, they…”
“…they’ve mated as well.” Lucy nodded. “I saw how blissful the pair of them looked together this afternoon. I hope that we’ll be just the same after we’ve mated.” She grinned. “After all, we need to practice – so that by the time I enter estrus, whenever that’ll be, you will make me pregnant. If that’s okay with you, of course…”
“Of course it is! We’ll give Cindy a baby brother or a baby sister to fuss over. We’ll adopt Cindy – with her permission – when she’s ready to take us on as her new parents.”
Lucy beamed. “Yes, we will. She’ll soon be ready, Ben. I sensed it. Just as she is mentally preparing herself to become a centaur. And that boy, Tim…”
“…they are becoming friends.” Ben nodded. “Best if he’s adopted by someone amongst our new brothers and sisters – so that he and Cindy can explore their friendship, and maybe take it further when they are old enough. Chris and Amanda have already adopted Cindy’s friend, Maggie.”
“Exactly,” Lucy agreed. She suddenly quivered – and she took a deep breath to regain her focus even as she began to pace back and forth. “I can smell your arousal, too, Ben. I’m ready when you are. Don’t worry about hurting me. I know this is your first time ever – and I want it to special for you as much as for me…” And with that, Lucy strode out of the stream and stood next to an apple tree on the bank, in the gloom.
Ben followed her, his throat tense with anticipation, already feeling his centaur phallus beginning to slid out of his sheath. He took up position in front of Lucy – and they began to kiss as they held each other. Soft, lingering pecks on the lips that soon turned into hungry kisses of fire. Ben and Lucy unbuttoned each other’s shirts and tunics, before dropping their clothes to the ground. Lucy’s bra followed.
Ben let his instincts guide him, as he again teased Lucy’s slim breasts with his fingers before licking the tips and gently nipping them with his teeth. Lucy sucked in her breath sharply - then began to moan and pant even as she dug her hands into Ben’s brown hair, before moving her caressing fingers down through his mane, resulting in a moan of delight from him, in kind. Lucy’s questing hands found the sensitive skin where the small of Ben’s back merged with the start of his equine fur – and Ben reciprocated the stroking on her back in the same place, locating Lucy’s own sweet spot in that region of her wonderful centaur body…
Now sweating in their shared heat, both of them kept shifting positions as their dance of love progressed. Lucy asked Ben to tease her two equine teats – before he got her to stroke his quivering sheath. Finally, wanting to move on from their foreplay, Lucy stood up and placed her outstretched hands against the apple tree, her equine vulva now glistening with her arousal – her clitoris having already been aroused by her partner. She glanced over her shoulder and smiled to Ben.
Ben gave a whinny as he carefully moved into position. Then he gave in totally to his instincts as an adult male centaur, and he reared up and mounted Lucy. After a few adjustments, he found himself pressing into his centaur mare – and her vaginal walls clamped onto his rod, squeezing him for all the sperm that he was offering her.
“Oh, my! Keep going, Ben. That’s it!” Lucy gasped. She moaned as Ben bent his human half forwards, stroking her white and brown Lippizaner fur – before moving onto caressing and kissing her blonde-brown mane, and lovingly brushing her fine hair.
“You’re warm… You feel wonderful,” Ben panted as his thrusts – and Lucy’s counter thrusts found their joint rhythm. Their tempo increased steadily – becoming fiercer and more urgent, until eventually Ben reached his climax just as Lucy reached hers. They cried at the same time, and then froze in place. Then, swooning, Lucy collapsed upon her front knees – with Ben still locked within her. Panting, she reached out over her shoulder with one hand, and her gasping lover squeezed her hand in response.
“Wow – just wow!” Ben managed to breath. “Luke and Marcus… They weren’t kidding about how heavenly it would be!”
“I second that. That was better than any session with my ex-lover, Ben! Wait – the mental transformation… I can feel it…” Lucy trailed off, as both she and Ben experienced a tingling sensation in their heads. A flood of new perceptions and knowledge. The certainty that the mated centaurs before them had told the truth – that all traces of their previous lives on Earth had been wiped away, as if they had never existed as humans in the first place. And that the two of them were now complete – neither of them wanted to return to their lives as human halflings, if somehow they could survive a reverse transformation, which they knew they would not. They were now fully confident in their new status as a loving centaur couple. They had joined the haras in mind and spirit, as well as in body – and it was towards their brothers and sisters that their loyalty now lay. As well as to each other. And they would now both worship their benevolent goddess Epona. Who had blessed them with the forms of centaurs, as well as the new skills that they sensed they would wake up with in the morning. The farming skills and other skills that they needed to help their new race survive and prosper.
“I know what you just felt… I sensed you sharing the same feelings as me. Sheer bliss.” Ben gasped. He kissed her neck again. “I am your devoted and loving stallion now, Lucy. For life!”
“Yes… And I am your loyal and loving mare, Ben. For life.” Lucy looked over her shoulder and beamed at him, with their hands still entwined. “Hopelessly devoted to you.”
“I’m hopelessly devoted to you, as well, Luce. So… Who do you think will be the next pair to mate? I’m thinking it’ll be Fred and May.”
“Maybe – maybe not. But they truly deserve to be happy together – like we are…” Lucy was interrupted as screams broke the evening air – a horse’s, followed by a human’s.
“Another two halflings are joining the herd! We had better take a quick shower together – and head back and help out the latest additions to our family,” Lucy observed.
“Yes, we should,” Ben groaned as he carefully eased himself out of his mate. Pushing himself up, he then reached out his hands to help Lucy up. They gathered up their dropped clothes with one hand each. Then grinning like kids who had found their presents on Christmas Day, the newly mated centaur couple summoned up enough energy to trot back to the showers, holding hands as they did so…