Into the Centaur World (COMPLETE)

Chapter 4

The meeting stop was at a tree in the woods, a bit secluded for my likings. I had taken her there many times to see if her husband was there.

There I spread out a blanket and towels and sat next to her, holding her hand. "Ruby, why here?"

"I'm sorry," she whispered, reaching up to rub my cheek. "In this tree is a box. Take it, keep it safe. Inside are some books that should teach you how to read our writings."

"Ruby, I don't understand."

She squeezed my hand. "Please, believe me."

"Believe what? Ruby-"

"I'm not human."

All my muscles tighten. Was she hallucinating? Was she worse off than I thought and she didn't know what she was talking about? "Ruby-"

"I am, I promise," she whispered. "I'm a centaur. His kicking hurts because his kicks are stronger. I can handle the pain better when you're gone because I go around in my other form."

"Other form?"

She sighed before closing her eyes. A second later her legs were replaced with a horse's body, her torso attached where the head should be.

I jerked back, hand over my mouth, breathing hard.

"Crystal," she whispered, reaching for my hand.

My arm shook but I took it again.

Her sounds of pain became less but were still present. "I'm sorry. I-I didn't mean to frighten you." She bit her lip, hand on her stomach, the horse one. Her human stomach looked normal, as if she weren't pregnant.

"Ho-how-"

"Magic. There's not much more to explain otherwise. Me transforming makes the baby change randomly and a human's womb isn't meant for a centaur baby."

"Why-why are you telling me this?"

She gave a weak smile, tears glimmering in her eyes. "Crystal, you know already. I-I don't think..." She bit her lip, tears forming. "I need you to take care of my baby."

I shook my head. "No-no! You're going to make it! You-you have to-"

She cupped my face in both of her hands. "Crystal, my people are at war. My husband is the king. My people are centaurs, unicorns, and pegasus. The war has damaged my body-"

"The hospital-"

"And what would happen if my child changed in front of them? Or I changed involuntarily because of the pain? I didn't want to risk my baby."

I trembled, tears running down my cheek. "Ruby."

She gave a weak smile. "Protect my baby, please. He is the sole heir to the kingdom. The notebooks have notes for my husband, for my child and so you can learn more about our people."

"I-I can't."

"Yes, you can. You're stronger than you think." She groaned and held her stomach, taking short deep breaths.

"Wh-why would you trust me with this?" I asked.

"You protected me and trusted my word... looked in the purple diary, I wrote down more."

"Why-why can't you tell me?" I whispered.

She squeezed my hand as she went through another contraction.

Six hours I sat there, helping her through labor, praying that she was wrong, that she'd made it through but the further along she was, the more I knew it wasn't true. Trying to stay strong for her was all I could do to prevent myself from breaking down in tears. At the same time, I couldn't help but marvel at the strength of this seventeen year old, ready to lay down her life for her child that hadn't even drawn its first breath yet.