A Centaur's Troubles Ch. 02

Walking was... interesting, now. Used to only two legs, it was weird needing to think about four, but perhaps the strangest part was that Christoph didn't have to think about it at all. Like when Keldan had slapped his ass to get him out of the stall last night, and he'd just trotted out. The less he thought about walking, the easier it was to walk. But that was a tall order, because how could he not think about walking around on hooves when he had two perfectly normal legs just yesterday?

So, after he'd eaten a very unfulfilling bowl of porridge that Kella had helpfully brought him, he spent an hour just walking around the yard, trying not to think about walking at all, to not think about putting one foot in front of the other like he had all his life, or about moving four hooves in a pattern he'd only ever seen from the outside. Certainly not about his lack of toes.

That was easily the weirdest part, sensation-wise. But at the same time, it wasn't like he had no toes, but that he had one big toe for each foot, and walked directly on it. Very strange and precarious and if he thought too much about it...

"You're on the ground again," Kella pointed out after the third time he fell over, leaning against the barn, her grey homespun shirt tucked into into a similar skirt. On some girls it might have looked something like a loose bag, but Kella had always been a curvy girl, and somehow only got curvier over the year that Christoph had known her. Not that she'd ever really looked at him that way before, though he had admired her when he thought she wasn't looking. The way she was admiring him now regardless of if he was looking or not.

"Thanks I hadn't noticed," he grumbled, rolling upright and standing again. One good thing about all his uncertainties about his legs was that he got a lot of practice getting up from the ground.

"Happy to help, stud," she said with a grin.

"Beg your pardon?" he asked, sure he must have misheard her, but before she could answer Keldor came out of the house and headed straight for them.

"Later," she mouthed before disappearing into the barn.

"Christoph, good, yer up an' about," the older man said as he gave his farm hand another appraising look. "Jo's gettin' on in years, yeah? So I figured what with yer, uh, horse thing goin' on here, ya might be able to lighten his load? 'Specially since ya can't do any house chores that need ya smaller and lighter an' such."

"You're not gonna make me haul the plow, are you sir?" he said, unconsciously pawing at the ground as he wrung his hands. He didn't want to haul that rusty old plowshare across a field. He had enough trouble pushing the damn thing behind Jo!

"Nah, nah, not until Jo drops at least," Keldor assured him with a dismissive wave of his hand. "But I was plannin' on sendin' someone inta town with him soon ta fetch supplies. Figured you could just hitch yerself to the cart an' go on yer own."

"Well, I suppose I could do that," he said slowly, running the idea through his head. He hadn't been to town in weeks, wisely choosing to save most of his pay instead of spending it on drink and whores like the hired hands on other farms might, though now he thought of it he figured he could use a drink or two.

"Then it's settled," Keldor said, giving his hand a shake. "I saw Kella go in the barn, so have her hitch you up while I write a list a' what we need."

Inside the barn, Jo was drowsing in his stall while Kella was making sure the straps on the cart's harness were long enough for Christoph.

"Lucky Jo's so big," she said, even as she removed a few pieces of the harness and hung them up. "You'll fit just fine. And we won't have to worry about the tug, the collar, the bit, or the reins. Just the girth strap!"

"Yeah, lucky," he agreed, even as he turned and backed up between the connecting poles and let Kella tighten the strap around his second chest, just behind his forelegs.

"Can you reach that to adjust it?"

"I think so," he said, twisting at the waist to tug on the strap. "Yeah, I got it."

"Great," she said, crouching down to look at something underneath him, tilting her head as she observed.

"What, uh, what are you looking at?" he asked, suddenly a little nervous at his lack of ability to slide away from her gaze.

"They look bigger than they did last night," she commented idly.

"Welp, I'm going out into the yard now!" he said tightly as he marched forward, barely noticing the extra weight of the two-wheeled cart as it rolled behind him.

"Quite the draft horse, you are," she commented as she rose and followed him out, biting her lip, the sight of which made something lurch beneath him until he looked away to find Keldor and his son approaching from the house, the one with a piece of paper in his hand, the other with Christoph's wide-brimmed hat and coat.

"Good, good, everything fits then?" Keldor asked, waiting for him to finish slipping on his coat before handing him the list.

"Yes sir," he said, adjusting his hat as he gave the list a once over.

"Good, you should be able to find everything at the general store, so it'll be an easy trip. I put the coin in yer coat, so you get goin' now, Christoph, I'll have the kids get yer stuff set up in the barn while yer gone, leastwise 'til we can figure out somethin' more comfortable."

With a wave and a farewell, he was off at a brisk walk, wondering if he could make it all the way to town without breaking a sweat, just like Jo did, faster than his old legs could carry him.

It was a long distance from the farm to town, but the road was wide, and mercifully empty, giving him some time to think about how the townsfolk might react to seeing a centaur ambling in. Would they be scared?

Intrigued?

Would they react with a strange... touchy curiosity, like the twins?

He hadn't noticed he was starting to trot until the jingling of the links that held the connector posts to the cart caught his attention and reminded him to pace himself, just like he would if Jo started going too fast.

He had no need to go galloping down the road, since the little farm town of Plowman's Rest(named for the tavern) was already in view as he crested a small rise.

For the most part, it was really just the tavern-cum-inn, the general store, the smithy, and the houses belonging to the people who ran those businesses. Those, the Mayor's house, and the well, made up the entirety of the small 'town'. Not even enough buildings to warrant more streets branching off the main crossroad they were built around, but it was the closest thing to civilization for almost a hundred miles in any direction, and it was home.

Still, as he came closer to the cluster of buildings, he felt his nerves creeping up on him again. It seemed awfully crowded today...

"Christoph? Iszat you up there?"

Looking down, he saw the Mayor himself, a fat little man with a balding head that sat almost directly on his shoulders, walking towards him from the direction of the inn.

"Yes sir, mister Mayor," he said, snatching his hat from his head politely as they met each other in the middle of the road. "Just, uh, just getting a few things from the general store, sir."

"Uh... right, good lad," the Mayor replied, looking as if he desperately wanted to ask the obvious question but having no idea how to do so. So instead, he chose to ignore it. "Always nice to see the youth working hard."

"Thank you sir," Christoph said with a sigh of relief. If everyone decided it was just too weird to talk about, that would suit him just fine.

"I'll run ahead and let Murray know to send his boy out to you," the Mayor said as he jogged ahead of him and disappeared into the store, but when Christoph pulled up in front of the sturdy two-story building, careful not to smack his face into the swinging sign as he did, it wasn't Murray's boy who came out, at least, not just him. It was the boy, his father, and his mother.

"Well then," the shopkeeper said, staring wide eyed. "You've uh... well, you're um..."

"You've grown," his wife supplied with a strained politeness as she goggled at him right alongside her husband.

"Thank you, Misses Cordell," Christoph said, holding out the list for the silently-gawking boy between them. "Just need a few things and I'll be on my way."

"Right," Murray said with a sharp nod, knocked out of his shock by his keen sense of business. "Get to it, Piter."

The young boy had to jump to snatch the list from Christoph's hand, but took only a moment to memorize it before running inside to fill it after handing it to his father.

"Keldor give you enough to pay for all this?" Murray asked, perusing the list even as his son started hauling things out of the store and into the cart, placing them with practiced care before running back for more.

"He did," Christoph said as he pulled a sack of coins from his pocket, making to hand them to the shopkeep before Murray held up his hand.

"Never hand over the money before ya have all the goods loaded and ready to go, boy," he explained. "Otherwise I'd cheat ya, and old Keldor would tan your hide, then come down here for mine!"

They shared a laugh at that, at first because the idea of Keldor coming into town to pick a fight over a miscalculated price was based more on history than anything else, and then because the idea of Keldor beating the now massive Christoph was just hilarious.

When he'd stopped laughing, Christoph saw that it wasn't just the Cordells keeping him company while there son came in and out of the store with supplies, but the whole town had gathered close to get a look, most pouring out of the tavern.

"Is that Christoph?"

"Can't be, he ain't that tall."

"It IS a centaur!"

"Was Christoph always a centaur?"

"Such a pretty coat~!"

"Do you think he'll let us pet him?"

"I never get to look at the horses that come into town!"

"How big do you think his dick is now?"

"I'll go help Piter," Murray said with an apologetic smile, fleeing from the closing crowd even as his wife moved to put herself between Christoph and them.

"Knock it off, the lot of you!" she shouted over the rising din, silencing it handily. "Now we can all see that Christoph's gone through some changes-"

"Got that right!" came a jeer, which received more than a few laughs.

"But," she started again, glaring at the interruption. "He's still Christoph, a good boy who works hard. So you lot just leave him alone!"

"Or what?" came that same voice again.

"Or you'll answer to me is what, Clyde Smith, you little shit! Don't think I won't beat you six ways from Sunday just because your daddy's a big man with a hammer!"

This received an even bigger laugh as the crowd began to disperse, with only a few straggling children coming in closer.

Luckily, Murray placed the last bundle of rope on the back of the cart before they could start pestering him with questions.

"Now you can pay me, lad, and be on your way before any folks try to ask for rides or something!" he laughed, laughing harder when he saw the kids that had been screwing up their courage to speak suddenly deflate with disappointment. Christoph chuckled at the sight before handing Murray his pay and taking the receipt, bidding the family farewell and making the U-turn necessary to leave town the way he'd come.

The cart was much heavier this time, but still almost weightless at the same time. Feeling adventurous, he decided to try going faster this time and set off at a trot, but almost as soon as he topped that same rise he started going even faster, a canter, then a gallop down the road, massive hooves slamming into the dirt and leaving deep tracks as he went past.

It was amazing. Speeds no man could reach on foot, the wind snatching at his hat before he snatched it off himself to feel that breeze in his hair.

Why had he never ridden a horse before?

He couldn't remember anymore, only that no reason was good enough to avoid anything close to this freedom. Well, relative freedom, what with the cart he was pulling along behind him.

Thoughts of the cart made him slow down rapidly, looking over his shoulder to make sure he hadn't lost anything. Seeing that all was right, he heaved a sigh of relief and put his hat back on, once more speeding up to a canter. He was far to energized by the brief sprinting to slow all the way to a walk!

He was still riding that high when he trotted into the barnyard, barely managing to hold himself still long enough to unhitch himself from the cart.

"Keldor!" he hollered. "I'm back with the stuff!" While he waited, Christoph went ahead and began to sort through the cart, knowing that at least half of it wouldn't be stored in the house, but the barn or the shed, figuring he could burn off some energy by putting things away. Normally, one of the bundles of thick hempen rope and a heavy wooden post would be enough to make him strain, but he found he could lift them easily in his arms. It wasn't until he had two more bundles of rope coiled over one arm, and four posts slung over his shoulder that he began to sweat.

Marvelling at his new upper body strength, he stored the posts in the barn and the rope in the shed before pulling off his coat and looking down at himself. That morning, he'd been too overwhelmed by the whole 'half-horse' thing to really notice, but apparently being a centaur meant that his human half would get some benefits too. Now that he was looking, he could see his shirt was stretched taut over muscles, his shoulders far more broad than he recalled them being. All in all, he felt bigger, and definitely stronger.

"I'm gonna need a new shirt," he said to himself as he moved back into the yard to find Kella waiting for him, her family putting away more of the supplies.

"You were off in your own little world over there," she said, smiling up at him. "Good thoughts?"

"Good thoughts."

"Good!" she grabbed his hand and led him back into the barn, to the stall he'd apparently claimed as his own. "Me and Keldan got your stuff in here, tried to make it homey." Sure enough, his few possessions were present, along with a few pegs on the posts of his stall that let him hang up his coat and hat, and farmer Keldor's very expensive full sized mirror in the wall of the barn opposite his stall.

"The mirror's only for today, since i figured you'd want to get a look at some point," she explained, watching him try and do just that. Luckily, it wasn't hanging in the wall but propped against it, meaning it was angled just right so he could see the most of him. And he looked good.

Farm work wasn't easy, and he had been building muscle, but he was really straining at a shirt that had been comfortably loose the previous day. Pulling it off, completely forgetting that Kella was even there, he could see clearly defined abs, a broad chest, and of course some very thick arms. He wasn't some kind of over-muscled monster, not even enough to do all that lifting he'd been doing before... If it wasn't for the fact that he was proportionate. His human half was just all around larger than it had been before. He'd wager that even his head was bigger, judging from the band of red across his forehead left by his hat.

"I'm gonna need a lot of new stuff," he said quietly, poking at his muscles and thinking about how glad he was that his old coat had been stupidly oversized before.

"Yeah," Kella said with a soft sigh as she leaned against his stall, watching him.

*~*~*

That night, the twins brought him dinner in the barn again, which he nearly inhaled.

L"Could I get seconds?" he asked shyly, even as Kella giggled and took his plate. "I think I'll be needing a lot more food now..."

"I'll get your thirds too," she said as she left leaving Christoph alone with her brother, who had his elbows perched on the stall's wall.

"So, what's it like?"

"What's what like? Being a centaur?"

"Mostly the horse dick. Is it heavy down there?"

"Uh-um, not really?" he stammered, face suddenly burning. "I uh, haven't really noticed anything..."

"Not even those two apples you've stuffed in your sack?" Keldan teased, licking his lips. "They sure felt heavy to me."

"Well, uh, not really, no," he mumbled, simultaneously trying to avoid looking him in the eye while being unable to look away from the sudden heat he found there. At the same time, he felt an odd tugging sensation below him. "I guess it's like the walking... Not really a thing until I think about it."

"Are you thinking about it now?" the blond asked, his voice getting husky. "About those massive balls hanging low in that leathery sack? Naked for every breeze to brush, so easy for someone to grab and play with... I'd be obsessed... Always thinking about how full they must be, how they've gotta just be boiling with pent up cum..."

Well. Now he was thinking about it, that tugging sensation accompanying almost every other word out of Keldan's mouth. He was thinking about it so hard that he almost didn't notice Keldan move to the front of the stall, slipping inside with a blush on his face, chest rising and falling with panting breaths.

"In fact I am obsessed," the blond admitted, sinking to his knees and crawling beneath Christoph's body, gasping and cooing with delight. "Well aren't you excited?"

It took him a minute to figure out what he meant, a minute and the younger boy's hand on his cock. The tugging sensation had been his erection pushing free of his leathery sheath, a sensation that was still happening, though now accompanied by a hand that felt so damn small.

Earlier, someone had adjusted the mirror so that it was flat on the wall, and Christoph had the perfect view of Kalden between his legs, and the monstrously massive cock that was still pushing out and swelling with blood and lust. It was black, with splotches of pink, and riddled with veins that dwarfed Keldan's fingers in thickness. And the boy was loving it, but clearly his focus was further back, on the centaur's swaying balls. He hadn't even touched them yet, just watching them twitch with adoration all over his beautiful face.

The face he soon pressed against that musky sack with a happy sigh, making its owner seize up with sensation and grab the nearest wall for support as he felt Keldan's lips and tongue start working over his heavy balls, sloppily bathing every inch of them, the pleasure of it-and the sound-serving as enough to get his cock fully hard. Precum, thick and slimy, oozed from the flared tip, the blond happily smearing it along the shaft even as he dutifully cleaned the oversized spermtanks that were producing it, his other hand clearly very busy with his own arousal, rubbing the length of it through his trousers.

"Hey!" came Kella's shocked voice, alerting Christoph to the fact that she was standing right next to the mirror, a plate heaped high with more food in her hands as she watched her twin brother noisily suck on his balls, a feat that he did not bother even slowing down in. "I can't believe you started without me!"

"I couldn't help it," Keldan finally responded, pulling free from his addiction so he could breathe, both of his hands suddenly hefting Christoph's sack. "They're just so full and needy! It's almost like they're getting heavier the more I play with them~!"

"You still should've waited, jerk," she huffed, setting the plate on the nearest haybale and joining her brother without a word to Christoph himself. "You know I like the first taste!"

Before Christoph had a chance to be indignant at being completely ignored, her hands-just as small as Kalden's had felt- were squeezing his cock, fingertips unable to meet as she slowly stroked him, fingers sliding through the thin coat of precum her brother had applied, milking up a much thicker dollop of the pearlescent slime to his flared tip, which she aimed directly into her mouth.