Looks like it was time for your regularly scheduled beating. You were the weakest boy at the care home, and thus you were picked on mercilessly by your peers, who all knew you couldn’t fight back. These two in particular seemed dedicated to making your every waking moment a living hell. “Looks like the pipsqueak here doesn’t want to give me what’s mine!” He said, as the two of them toss you roughly onto the cold, solid ground of the barn. The other boy went about closing and locking the big wooden door while Eric paced over to you. You tried to climb to your feet, only for Eric to knee you in the chest, knocking you back down again. “Seems he needs a little reminder who’s in charge around here!”
Another kick hits you in the side as you lay on the ground, shivering, clutching yourself sadly. You knew an onslaught of kicks and punches was about to come, followed by them simply taking what little money you had. However, instead, the boys were distracted by the sound of something stomping on the ground. They looked up to see a huge cow, reared up and ready to charge, fuming with anger. “Hey!” She called. “Why don’t you pick on somebody your own size?” With that, she started rushing forward towards them! The quickly split up, and the cow heads straight for Eric, sending him flying into the wall of the barn!
While the cow rears up once more, the boy hurriedly unlocks the door, before helping Eric to his feet and rushing him out of the barn. The two escaped just in time to avoid getting charged at again. The cow calmed down quickly, seemingly giggling as she watched the two bullies trip over themselves in a panic as they darted away. “Phew! I thought they were going to put up more of a fight then that,” she said, talking to herself as if you weren’t even there. It occurred to you that she didn’t know you could understand her yet. “Now I just need to take care of this poor boy, and I can go back to nappin’...”
“My… stomach...” You said, clutching your belly in pain as you laid there, the pain of Eric punching you in the stomach earlier still remaining.
The cow glances all around, startled, as if wondering who said that, before looking down at you. “W-what?” She gasped, not really sure she heard you talk.
“It hurts...” You repeat.
“Oh my stars and garters…” The cow gasps, her eyes wide. “I can understand you!”
Contrary to how you were expecting her to react to her situation, the cow actually started pacing around the barn hall excitedly, a huge smile dawning on her face. “I mean, I’ve never really wrapped my head around yer fancy human speak, and yet… I can understand you, somehow,” she realized, “and you can understand me! Ohmygosh! This is so exciting!” She practically hops in place with excitement, her hooves throwing up dust as she stomps loudly. “I must be the smartest cow on Earth! Just think it - me, ol’ April, speakin' human!”
Eventually, she turns to you again and sees the look on your face. “Oh! Oh, yes, I’m so sorry, I got carried away,” she blushes, before trotting slowly up to you. Once she was close to you, the huge laid down on the ground by your side, offering her back. “Here, go ahead and climb up on my back, sugar! I know somewhere comfortable where you can rest.” Still clutching your stomach, you carefully try to climb up her side, up onto her back. The cow was so large, it was actually quite a difficult climb, but eventually you managed it. Once you were in place, she gently stood up, and gently walked deeper into the barn, careful not to let you fall off.
You relaxed against her soft, pillowy skin as she walked. She was a jersey cow, which means her fur was various shades of brown rather than the black and white color scheme associated with cows. She was actually surprisingly pretty by cow standards, with a big, expressive smile on her face as she walked. She wore a cowbell around her neck that rang out as she walked, and ‘spoke’ in a deep, motherly southern accent. She had quite a spring in her step as she navigated the barn, apparently excited to have finally met a human she could talk to. Eventually, she found a spare room in the back.
“This here’s where the farmer used to keep his tools. Now, a stable boy has turned it into a room of sorts,” she said, gesturing to the worn-out, elevated cot in the corner. “I’m sure nobody would mind ya restin’ here for a tad, sugar.” She gently slid you onto the cot, and grabbed a thick, wool blanket with her mouth, clumsily tucking you in. The cot was comfy, but not as comfy as her back was, though you were gracious enough to not complain. Once you were settled in, your injuries quickly started hurting less, and soon you had a smile on your face as you looked up at the cow. “Now… uh, I’ve never had a conversation with a human, before.”
“Well, what do you wanna talk about, ma’am?” You giggle.
“Well, I sorta want to know how we’re talkin’ in the first place,” she replied. “Either I somehow learned how to speak human overnight, or you somehow know how to speak cow.”
“Well… I’ve never really had a ˓mom…” You explain, sadly. “So, Mother Nature let me talk to animals, so I can find one to be my ˓mom…”
“Oh, Mother Nature, huh? Well, that explains it. She sure works wonders,” she smiles, nodding in understanding. “If you’re looking for a mom, you’ve definitely come to the right place, sugar. I’m sure there are plenty o’ gals around here willing to take you in. Question is, what kinda animal do you wanna be?”
“What do you mean?” You ask, curious.
“Oh! Um… you didn’t know…?” She looked a bit taken aback. She paused for a little while, trying to choose her words carefully. “Well… I guess you can stay a human for a while, while you’re making your decision. But if you really want to seal the deal, you’re going to need to, uh, crawl up where the sun don’t shine…” She blushed a little at the thought. “Then, you’ll get changed into whatever animal she is, and she’ll be your ˓mom from then on out…”
You were fascinated. You had never even considered these concepts before. You guess it made sense that you’d have to be same kind of animal as your ˓mom in order for it to count. Not that you minded, of course — you loved animals with all your heart, and were always sort of jealous of them. Animals had such simple lives, and never got bullied, or felt lonely. You would jump at the chance to be like them. “Sounds cool!” You said, sitting up in excitement. “Which animals could I be?”
She stares at the ceiling for a while, considering it, her tail swishing back and forth behind her. “Hmm… well, I guess there’s Penelope. She’s a clydesdale mare, and she’s been wanting a colt for a while, but there’s just no stallions around,” she said. “There’s always Rosie. She’s a pig. If you like food and roughhousing, she’d be the best choice.” She sheepishly averted eye contact as she continued. “And… I guess, if you don’t mind, I’ve always sort of wondered what being a ˓mom is like…”
You sat there, dumbstruck. How could you make such a choice? Every option seemed so tempting! Noticing the look on your face, she offered. “Here’s an idea, though! While you’re still a human, why don’t you try spending a while with each of us, letting us be your ˓mom for a week? Then you’ll be able to choose which one you like best,” she smiled, and you perked up. That was an absolutely genius idea! You were almost bursting with excitement as you made your choice...
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