The Man With The Nice Shoes

"That there's a suspicious fellow," said Albert.

Peggy looked in the direction her husband pointed out and saw the human walking on the other side of the street. "Ah, he's harmless. In fact, I had the pleasure of chatting with him the other day at the cafe next door." She returned to arranging the cans of soup on the top shelf. "His name's William. Turns out he's a lawyer who gave up his practice in Manhattan to write full time here."

"Manhattan?" Albert huffed, stomping his hooves. "That's why I don't like him. I hate New Yorkers."

"Oh, Al," said Peggy. "New York's not ideal for us. Too many people. Can you imagine trotting through downtown? I feel claustrophobic just thinking about it."

"Centaurs can and should be able to go anywhere we want," Albert barked. "That's the law."

"I didn't say that we can't go there, dear. I'm just saying that it's nicer here. Would you really give up all these open fields and meadows for the hard pavement of the city?" Peggy said, moving behind the cash register. "Why, you'd have to get new shoes every week!"

"Well, I didn't say I wanted to move there," Albert said, and held a breath as he noticed the human crossing the street, heading to their store. A curious smile was painted on the man's face and Albert became more annoyed.

"Good morning, neighbors!" exclaimed the human. "How are you folks this fine morning?"

Albert said nothing and seethed in silence, noticing the man wearing a pair of Chuck Taylors. He looked at his own hooves and lamented that he will never be able to wear such cool shoes.


Written for 09/16/08 "Daily Flash Fiction Challenge" 
Prompt: write a story that includes a magical creature
Word Count: 293