.-#-.
Part 1
Tony felt his hind hooves connect forcefully with skin and bones and braced himself against the backlash. He couldn't afford to lose his own balance. His opponent stumbled, just like Tony had hoped he would, and cried out in pain. It didn't take much afterward, grabbing a shoulder, a twist, swiping the legs out from under the stallion to take him down. The edge of one of Tony's front hooves against the jugular made sure that the light bay damn well stayed down, with his nose pressed into the sawdust covered arena floor.
Tony would never, ever be able to watch 'Fight Club' again and enjoy it. And wasn't that a pity, until two days ago that had been one of his absolute favorites.
Grateful for the short reprise his victory had bought him, Tony greedily sucked more air into his burning lungs and swiped the stinging sweat from his brows. He could feel countless eyes on him, assessing, incredulous. Excited. Voyeuristic bastards that called themselves the leaders of their society. He would have loved to match those stares to faces. Not knowing who observed this travesty bothered him a lot, but in contrast to the brightly lit arena the balcony was shrouded in darkness, denying him his wish.
He looked down, concentrated on the matter at hand.
“Yield,” Tony demanded and enforced it with a little more pressure against the other centaur's neck. The furious glint in the downed stallion's eyes was all the warning Tony got but it was enough. Tony removed his hoof only to let himself fall forward and use his training and his weight to pin down his opponent in a secure hold before the other male could do more than tense his muscles. The stallion either couldn't believe that he had been defeated or he still thought this was a typical dominance game. Stupid, that piece of defiance could have cost the idiot his windpipe and hey, his life, if Tony had chosen to further increase the pressure. What's his name, he had never even bothered to introduce himself to Tony, bucked and his free arm grappled uselessly against the ground, disturbing the covering and stirring up a lot of dust that immediately clung to their sweaty coats.
“Yield,” Tony angrily demanded again. Swear words were on the tip of his tongue. Appropriate companions to his order that would express his feelings, but if he started ranting now, he feared that he wouldn't be able to stop until all he could do was shriek and howl against the Fates and their sadistic love affair with one Anthony Dante DiNozzo.
Finally the stallion slumped under him. Tony held his breath, waited for the formal acknowledgment of defeat. Not waiting had nearly cost him yesterday. Nobody could say he didn't learn from his blunders.
“I yield.”
Tony couldn't distance himself from the other centaur fast enough and he didn't care that he wasn't graceful while getting his hooves under him and scrambling away. If it was up to him he would love to take a shower and get rid of the stranger's sweat on his skin and the sharp, musky odor in his nose. He ignored the desire to scratch himself, to dance around nervously. Ignored the wet liquid slowly soaking the chestnut colored fur on his hind legs.
He might not be able to see them, but he could hear the spectators well enough. The incredulous murmurs and hushed conversations. Why the surprise? By now, after denying four prospective studs, those arrogant bastards should have caught onto the fact that Tony wouldn't just stand there and let himself be mounted and ogled while he bent his neck and offered his ass to some stranger's will.
The latest wannabe heaved himself up. He was moving slowly and still looked like he couldn't believe what had happened. Every few steps he turned his upper body around and stared frog eyed at the exhausted centaur in the center of the arena. But by his own words he couldn't do more than slink away with his tail between his legs.
Good riddance to bad rubbish.
Only after he passed the door, formally sealing the closure of their encounter, another centaur stepped out into the circular space. Tony tensed and could feel another adrenalin rush come up. One he would need dearly because his tired muscles were telling him that they alone wouldn't be able to carry him successfully through another confrontation.
.-#-.
Part 2
It took him longer than it should have to recognize the male. At first the only thing that he saw was that the newcomer was a good deal shorter than himself and lacked in the bulging muscles department. Not that muscles like Rambo meant that much. Tony knew very well that wiry, economical strength had the potential to be far more dangerous than pure power. Better not underestimate anyone. He readied himself for a fight. Then the kind pale eyes and the blue blanket in the male's hands registered with Tony's tired brain and he nearly went to his knees in relief.
“Ducky.” Another thought made him tense up again. “I thought there would be one more contender today? Is this just a break?” Not that he didn't need one.
“Oh my, you are soaked to the skin and overheated. Let's hope you don't catch a cold, it would do your lungs no good.” The palomino shook out the soft blanket and draped it over the younger male's back. “No, the Arena Master canceled the last Mounting. You damaged quite a lot of egos today, Anthony, but thankfully no necks or bones. I suspect Master Jerome, ah, fears that you might lose your last vestiges of restraint and patience and would harm the next young hopeful.”
And young they had been, younger than him, which added insult to injury. Young, cocky and foaming to get a go at someone like him, judging by their dripping pricks when they had sauntered into the arena. His colleagues at work called Tony vain, a strutting show pony. And it was true, Tony knew that he looked good, he had counted on it working in his favor often enough. 'If you have it, use it, flaunt it', that was his credo. Although in this particular situation he would have preferred to be ugly.
Tony let himself be led out of the arena, only halfway listening to Ducky prattling on and on about what this reminded him of. Some ancient dry history, no doubt. The palomino transformed into his human form and put on the robe and shoes someone handed him as soon as they entered the hallway that led to the stalls. Tony wished he could do the same. It wasn't permitted. Most centaurs, with some religious monks being the exception, preferred to live their daily lives on two, not four feet. It was more practical, used up less space. Tony couldn't imagine a sports car design that accounted for the bulky centaur body, never mind the hooves. But here at the Gathering Plains tradition was dictating the rules, not common sense. It was seen as a tribute to their creator to undergo their race's rituals in the full form. No human form was allowed in the arena ring until the centaur in Heat either passed his needing period with volunteering studs, or found a permanent mate.
Tony sneered. He didn't really buy the Council's insistence that the mandatory attendance rule was for the benefit of the race. Safety, seclusion, experts at hand if something went wrong and age old procedures to counter the loss of control of the individuals during going crazy because of sexual need, pah. Excuses for getting a free show was more likely.
The hallway was crowded. Why did they all look at his ass as if it was glowing? It better not be glowing. His first reaction was to press his tail between his buttocks and that only made him more mad, at himself and everyone else. Tony flicked his tail with force. The long, wiry brown hair acted like a whip and nearly lashed the face of one of the lurking gawkers, made most of them back away. Good. 'Shoulders back, chin up, radiate confidence. Give them no weak point to target,' Tony ordered himself. If he repeated it often enough in his mind, his body might comply.
Ducky led him into an empty shower box. The floor was tiled and sported a gully. Supplies lay on the wall shelves. Not only a plethora of different soaps but various shower heads and medical supplies waited to be used.
“My dear boy, you can't go on this way. You'll only get seriously hurt.” Ducky pressed a wet sponge against the younger centaur's sweat soaked flanks.
It felt wonderful; cool and calming.
Tony let his shoulders slump tiredly. The side walls of the bath box were the ideal height for resting his forearms on them and that's exactly what Tony did, trusting Ducky to take care of him, he had no energy left to do it himself. And his arms looked perfect for resting his forehead on them. “I should have bought some toys, lots of lube, and barricaded myself in my apartment for a few weeks. Pretended that I'm on a spring break with my college buddies and come back to work after it was over. Stupid Heat.” He couldn't keep the accusation out of his voice.
“I know this is not what you wanted Anthony, but I am bound by my oath to report things like this, to report that you finally showed signs of going in Heat. It would be criminally negligent not to.” Ducky had finished with washing the younger male’s coat and naked torso and was now reaching for his tail. After the day he had, no matter how much he trusted the soft hearted M.E., Tony couldn't help but lift one of his hooves in a threatening way. Only to put it down again and turn his head for a moment to spare a weak apologetic smile for Ducky.
This would be infinitely worse without his friend by his side. He couldn't imagine how he could have stomached some staff member appointed by the Arena Master handling him. And he was grateful for Ducky's support; really, it was just so hard to act like it sometimes. “I'm sorry Duck.” To hell with the rules, he wasn't at work here, they did not apply, damn it. Tony threw up a mental wall. Here there be dragons.
“You have done nothing to apologize for.”
Tony could feel the doctor's hand stroke up and down his right flank and it disgusted him how much he wanted to lean against it, even knowing that there was no other intent behind the touch than to comfort.
“Now we did this yesterday and it is not much different to all the other times in human form, you know what to expect. It would be much simpler if you allowed me to-” Out of the corner of his eye Tony saw how Ducky's free hand reached for the highest shelf and the blindingly white rolled up strips of fabric that lay there.
“No. I don't want my tail braided and bound.” Bound so it couldn't get in the way, in virginal white to boot.
“I don't know why you are so against it.” Ducky let his hand sink down again and the disappointed sigh tugged at Tony's heart. He knew that his friend was a traditionalist who treasured their race's rituals and trappings. It really would be more practical to let him do it, but binding wasn't crucial for Tony's health and more importantly, had become a milestone in his own mind for giving in. If he donned those bindings it was one more step toward surrender.
Tony tiredly reached back, gritted his teeth, flicked his tail again and caught the end with his hand. Now it was out of the way.
“Thank you.”
The next thing he felt was something soft brushing his anus. Another sponge soaked with a medical soap, carefully and efficiently cleaning him. Even this innocent stimulation made him twitch. Tony bit down on his lower lip. He felt muscles rhythmically contract, felt another dollop of clear liquid rise out of the slit that should not be there, just under his anus and behind his testicles, and he hid his suddenly burning cheeks behind his arms.
It wasn't like being a hermaphrodite was rare among male centaurs, nearly everyone had the potential to be one, but Tony was thirty-six, not eighteen for Zeus' sake! Normally this extra organ developed during puberty. Tony had sometimes played with the thought of offering his services in the arena to female centaurs in heat. He was a proud Lady's male, so why not? Stepping into the ring as a submissive hadn't ever crossed his mind. Why, oh why had this happened? He would have been perfectly happy to resume his normal life as a member of the common masses, without this change, thank you very much. The Fates really must hate him. Maybe he had flirted with one of them while she was incognito and this was her revenge for a slight? His head sank deeper down in misery.
Ducky resumed his ministrations without comment.
.-#-.
Story Notes:
This is not my usual stuff, a lot darker and kinkier, Heed the warnings. I made Tony into a hermaprhoditic quasi virgin, that should tell you what to expect.
!!!! Don't try any of this out at home, if you are adult enough to read it, you should be adult enough to know that, apart from none of us being a half horse, it would not work that way most of the time in real life. !!!!
One of my passions is the Greek antique. They were a fairly sensual, passionate cruel and creative people. I love the spartan pair bond. Not that any of them would approve of my story^^ and don't expect me to be accurate to my inspirational source. I took only the parts I wanted and put a twist on them.
Beta read by mamamia1964, Thank you so much for your help Vicky. All remaining mistakes are my own.
Author's Chapter Notes:
Mother Nature can be a bitch when you are a centaur. Tony pays his dues to her whims.
Chapter End Notes:
This is not my usual stuff, a lot darker and kinkier, Heed the warnings. I made Tony into a hermaprhoditic quasi virgin, that should tell you what to expect.
!!!! Don't try any of this out at home, if you are adult enough to read it, you should be adult enough to know that, apart from none of us being a half horse, it would not work that way most of the time in real life. !!!!
One of my passions is the Greek antique. They were a fairly sensual, passionate cruel and creative people. I love the spartan pair bond. Not that any of them would approve of my story^^ and don't expect me to be accurate to my inspirational source. I took only the parts I wanted and put a twist on them.
Beta read by mamamia1964, Thank you so much for your help Vicky. All remaining mistakes are my own.
!!!! Don't try any of this out at home, if you are adult enough to read it, you should be adult enough to know that, apart from none of us being a half horse, it would not work that way most of the time in real life. !!!!
One of my passions is the Greek antique. They were a fairly sensual, passionate cruel and creative people. I love the spartan pair bond. Not that any of them would approve of my story^^ and don't expect me to be accurate to my inspirational source. I took only the parts I wanted and put a twist on them.
Beta read by mamamia1964, Thank you so much for your help Vicky. All remaining mistakes are my own.