Melissa's Change Part 2

Several weeks have passed since Melissa has changed into a centauress.  Avoiding being seen or captured, she stayed in the various fields of high grass, corn, wheat, and Hay. Melissa broke into random houses or barns and found food that she deemed editable and was on her way before anyone knew she was there.  She was too ashamed to show her face to the world, yet couldn’t help but to think that somewhere out in the whole big world there was a place for her.  In this time Melissa has tinkered with her new body.  Her speed had greatly increased.  Melissa didn’t know how fast her top speed was but guessed that she could keep up with any race horse, it was freeing in a subtle way for her to feel the speeding wind whip past her face and through her hair.  In the end she found that her human half was just as limber as before, as well as stronger and more athletic, but her horse half was as powerful and graceful as if she was a real horse.  

Traveling through the various landscapes of the American Countryside Melissa found that she did not know where she was.  Melissa found that she had traveled farther than she could have possibly imagined on her two human feet.  Nothing seemed familiar to her anymore.  The only thing that was certain was that she was somewhere in Middle-America.  

Filth and dirt had built up over her body during her travels.  She felt that she couldn’t chance taking a shower or bath in a river because of the fear of being seen, so she kept moving.  She found that sleeping was most comfortable if she slept standing on all four legs, just like she slept as if she was an actual horse.  

Continuing on, Melissa trotted along throughout the Heart of American lands, lost in the bewilderment of unknown lands.  The morning became midday and eventually midafternoon.  Stopping to take a rest in a grove of oak trees Melissa took the time to take in the beauty of the land.  Looking around, with no apparent sounds near her, Melissa smiled at the calmness of her surroundings.  Suddenly, the roughing of the wood became clear to Melissa’s ear, much too faint for a normal human’s hearing.  She stood still in fear of what it could be, listening hard for the source.  A few moments pass, only sound could be heard.   Melissa started to become defensive, fearful of the possibilities of what could be moving around in the grove.  It was too big to be a small animal and that is what concerned her.  

A slight neigh came from Melissa as she stepped back several times, a habit that had started when she changed into a centaur, to her annoyance.  The rustling of the forest continued to come closer.  Tension was building in Melissa, who was ready to bolt at the very first sign of trouble.  

“No it couldn’t be,” stated Melissa.  As the sound started to become very close to her she noticed that they were sounds of hooves trotting through the grove.  Shaking her head, thinking that it was impossible, other centaurs in the world were impossible.  It must be someone riding a horse through the trees to get somewhere quicker.  Melissa panicked by looking around for a hiding place.

Before she could find a hiding place the hooves came walking into view, Melissa froze.  What she saw surprised her.  A cute brown haired girl who could be no older than 22 stood in front of her who held a bow and arrow aimed at her.  But what was really amazing was that this young female’s torso was attached to a brown colored horse body.  In awe Melisa could only look at her agape.  

The other centauress lowered her bow and arrow once she noticed that she was a centauress too.  Looking her over the other said, “I’m sorry.  I thought you were someone else here to harm me.  My name is Wilhelmina but everyone calls me ‘Mina’.  It’s nice to see that we aren’t the only centaurs in the world.  I was beginning to think we were.  What’s your name?”

The woman who called herself Mina trotted up to Melissa with a smile and with her raised her right arm for an acceptance hand shake.  Melissa stood there a moment longer in shock, trying to process that she had just found another centauress and it seemed like she was friendly.  Shaking herself out of the frozen state Melissa shook the woman’s hand warily.

“I’m Melissa, Melissa Theodore.”

“Well nice to meet you Melissa.  As I said I’m Mina.  It is nice to meet you.  My family can always use some more help in defending these lands from evil,” stated Mina with a big smile.

“Evil, What Evil?” asked Melissa confused.

“If you will allow me to show you were I live I will tell you the story on the way,’ said Mina.  ‘Besides it looks like you could use a bath and we have bathes that accommodate centaurs.”

Not sure that she should trust this person, this centauress, that she just met Melissa looked at her for a moment in deep thought.  Melissa decided to trust this other centauress since she was the only other person who could possibility understand what she was going through, plus she was intrigued by her origins and the story about this ‘evil’.

“Ok, I’ll follow you,” responded Melissa.  

Giving a big smile of approval Mina turned around and darted off.  A second later Melissa dashed after her, catching up to her several moments later.

Traveling towards Mina’s house, she told Melissa on how she had become a centauress.  How she lost her parents and siblings by this evil wizard.  Melissa felt kind of sad on how it all happened and became a rough life for Mina.  Although, once Mina stopped talking about herself Melissa found that she started to talk to Mina about how she became a centauress and how she got to the point in which Mina found her.  The distance didn’t seem to be much at all after they both started to talk to each other like they were old friends.  The distance however was quite a ways.   It was nearly sundown once they got back to Mina’s home.  When they got there Mina’s siblings came running out to meet them.  Melissa was so happy to find a family of centaurs.  She was also very happy that she wasn’t the only centaur in the world.  This made her feel like she had a purpose in life again.  After all the introductions Melissa asked were the bath was, since she was in dire need of one.  They all answered at once.  Melissa could only smile, she felt like she belonged.  She thanked them and trotted off towards the bath.