"Come on, Meira! I know you'll like this."
"But dad, I'm not a horse!"
"You're still a centaur, dear."
"Half-centaur."
"Half-centaur then, but you still got those legs. Let's put them to good use, shall we?"
Meira wasn't too thrilled about this activity her dad had come up with. He had taken them to an obstacle course near a local farm, mostly used for horses, but occasionally centaurs came here to train as well. But being here reinforced the part of her she wanted to leave behind, the part of her that made her a target for bullies, her horse part of her lower body. She was a centaur-human hybrid, born from a miracle of medical science, though in practice she was more centaur than human, but her snoutless face, her furless ears and upper torso, and the lack of manes running down her spine were clear signs of her human heritage from her mother's side. Still, her centaur physique was a hindrance since she moved to her new home-town, where she and her dad were the only centaurs among humans. Sitting at a school desk was a bit tricky, toilets and stairs were quite the challenge, and for PE the gym teacher had little idea what to do with her with exercises. It was not a part of her she felt need celebrating, as it was shutting her out of so many things...

The sand beneath her hooves felt good when they trotted across it. It had been a while since she stood on anything else than the paved streets, the stone floors of her school, or the grass in her back yard. It was soft enough to absorb the impact of her hooves, yet not too hard to slam her legs with every step. But she knew her father had more in mind for her.
"Alright, my little filly," her dad said, "we're going to exercise the centaur way. I heard you're forced to skip PE, right?"
"Yeah, the teacher just seems to pick the things I just can't do."
"Like what?"
"Ummm... climbing a rope last week."
"Yeah, that's a shame. I used to look forward to PE class, but since your teacher doesn't have a programme fit for centaurs, well... we have some catching up to do."
"But dad, I don't wanna do this in my free time!"
"Sure you will, I always enjoyed this as a kid. I'm sure you think otherwise at the end of the day. You just have to try it first, OK?"
Meira nodded, though she had her silent doubts.
"Alright, have a look at the obstacles," her dad said. He pointed to some gates with some loose horizontal beams spanning across. It was clear she had to jump all over these. "You see signs those numbers on there? Those show you the order which to take the obstacles. There are nineteen on this course, remember that. You want to make sure those beams don't fall off when you jump over them."
"Dad, I'm not sure if I can jump high enough."
"Oh, I think you'll be surprised. You're much lighter than a full-grown centaur, but your legs are almost as strong as an adult's."
"Really? Wow. So... can we start?"
"First the warm up, dear. I think six laps around the outside of course should be enough. Come, let's go!"
Her dad started galloping, and she followed her. Each step kicked up the sand from beneath their hooves, but the sand was not as dry as on the beach; it was more compact, more cohesive, leaving little dust in the air as they ran around the course. After six laps, her dad slowed down, making a little lap before the first obstacle.
"Right, are you ready?" he asked her.
"Ummm... I don't know. I... ummm..."
"Shall we go together then?"
"Yeah... together."
"OK, ready? Go!"
They started the obstacle course side by side. They approached the first obstacle at speed, but her dad started the jump earlier than she expected, and in the heat of the moment, she jumped herself, but hit the horizontal beam with her rear legs, throwing her off balance on her landing and she fell on the ground. Her dad noticed it happening and stopped his run to get back at her.
"Are you alright?" he asked her.
"That beam... that stupid beam!" she sneered, trying to get up.
"You really shouldn't wait for the last moment to jump," he pulled her up. "This course is all about timing. Come, let's do it again. Maybe this time it will work."
They walked back to the beginning of the course again, Meira a bit more nervous than earlier. She felt that this may not be her thing, but she didn't want to come across as a quitter to her dad. She just had to try again...
They set off again, to the first obstacle. This time she started her jump earlier, together with her dad, and to her satisfaction, she cleared the first gate. And the second, and third, and fourth, before they had to turn around.
"That's it! You're getting the hang of it," her dad said. "Come, let's go to gate five!"
They continued the obstacle course, and each jump started to feel easier, more intuitive to her. Before she realised it, she had gone through all nineteen gates.
"You made it!" her proud dad said. "Though, that was just the exploratory run."
"You mean, we're going to do more runs?"
"Yes, but a bit more challenging," her dad reached into his pocket and retrieved a stopwatch. "Do you think you can beat your own time?"
"Beat that run? Easy!"
"Show me!"
Dang, her dad did it again! He knew she couldn't resist such a challenge. She went back to the beginning of the course, filled with more confidence and started the course again, now trying to complete it in the fastest time possible. And for a second time. A third time. A fifth time. An eleventh time, every time asking her dad what her latest time was. After seventeen times, she trotted back to her dad, puffing from the effort she had just put in.
"Aaaah, I can't do another run anymore, Dad!" she puffed.
"Not bad for a first time. How did you like it so far?"
"More fun than I expected... and exhausting."
"I'm not surprised. But do you know the purpose of this is?"
"No?"
"I took you here to get more in touch with the centaur part of you. That body of yours is built to roam, and you miss it in town and at school. I miss it too. You're having trouble with that part of you, so... I hope this should help you accept it better..."
"Maybe... I don't know... It's complicated..."
"Well, I can tell you one thing: mom wouldn't be able to do this."
Meira laughed. She imagined her mother doing the obstacle course, as a mere human. The thought alone was absurd. Maybe it really was nice to be a centaur, she thought...

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This illustration was drawn by the wonderful  reigohoo, with whom I have a very pleasant experience working together. They did a good job on Meira and her dad Solnan, and I absolutely love the 1980s vibe of their hairstyles and outfits!

Check out the original drawing on the artist's page!