Love
Remembrance
Jacinta Hidalgo woke up to the sound of birds chirping softly outside her bedroom window. She stretched out in her comfortable bed and opened her eyes, looking forward to starting the day and refreshed after her sleep. She sat up in bed and stared around the room. The sunlight was pouring into the room, and Jacinta could already feel the heat from the sun warming up her southern-facing room. She could hear the wooden struts above her bed moan and groan as the warmth caused them to expand. Jacinta retrieved the remote from her table and flicked on the TV. She briefly listened to the news as she brushed her teeth. The news reporter was talking about the United States had fallen into a deep recession and how businesses were going under ubiquitously.
Jacinta was wearing nothing, only her white panties and tank top. It was too sweltering for anything else. She left her room and walked down the hallway of the ranch house she lived in, admiring the illimitable beauty of the ranch that she called home.
Jacinta was Hispanic, with dark brown skin and jet black hair that came to her shoulders. She had an athletic body with a toned midriff and small A-cup breasts. Jacinta was twenty years old, and had lived at the MacKlam ranch for as long as she could remember. She could recall very little of her life in Mexico before the MacKlam family adopted her. Her parents had been trying to cross over into the United States, but drowned whilst trying to cross a river. Supposedly, Ryan MacKlam had found Jacinta in the river and had jumped in to save her life. Ryan and his wife Lisa, who had no kids of their own, adopted Jacinta once it was obvious that her parents had died during the journey to the US.
Jacinta made her way to the kitchen and opened the fridge, and decided to start cooking breakfast for her parents. She knew that both of them would be awake soon, and Jacinta enjoyed preparing their morning meal. Jacinta grabbed the following ingredients from the press and fridge: oats, blueberries, milk, water, and maple syrup.
She wiped away some perspiration that had formed on her forehead as she placed all the ingredients into a saucepan. It was so damn warm; she thought to herself. She mixed all the ingredients and heated the saucepan over the electric stove. After a few minutes, the breakfast was ready, and as if by on cue, both of her parents entered the kitchen and greeted her a good morning.
"Hello, there chicken," her father said happily as he walked over to her and gave her a big hug, before taking his seat at the table. Lisa also hugged Jacinta before joining her husband at the table.
"Did you sleep well last night?" asked Lisa as Jacinta served up their breakfast.
"It was so warm! It took me ages to fall asleep, but once I did, I slept like a baby," replied Jacinta.
"What are you planning to do today?" asked her father. It was a Saturday morning, and Jacinta did not have college today.
"I might borrow the car and head into town to meet up with some friends if that's alright with you guys?" asked Jacinta as she ate her breakfast. She savored the explosive taste of the blueberries in her mouth.
"That's fine, but listen... there's something we need to talk about," started her father. "Because of the extreme heat and the lack of rainfall this year, coupled with the loss of over half of our herd of cattle, we can't afford to pay the bills for the farm," Ryan stated sadly.
"I don't understand," said Jacinta, no longer eating her breakfast. She was aghast at what she was hearing. How could the family farm be going under? She knew they were undergoing a hard time, but she did not know just how dire the situation was.
"Chicken, we are going to have to sell the farm and move into the city. Me and your mother will find work there. We just thought you had the right to know," replied her father.
"You can't sell the farm! It's been in your family for generations. And besides, what will you do in the city? You don't have any qualifications that are not directly related to farming. The same goes for mum," said Jacinta trying to reason with them.
"Oh, honey," said Lisa, "I know this is hard for you, but it's for the best." We just can't compete with the bigger and more modern farms in Texas."
They continued their breakfast for several more minutes in silence before her parents left the table for a day of work on the farm. Jacinta barely held back the tears in her eyes as she ran to her room and locked the door. She sobbed wholeheartedly, as she knew she was going to lose the only place in the world where she felt comfortable and safe.
After a long period of crying, Jacinta gathered all her strength and resilience.
"No, we are not losing this farm," Jacinta said aloud to no one in particular. She opened her laptop and navigated to Google. She desperately searched the Internet for new farming methods, investment opportunities, and even considered placing a couple of hundred dollars on the lottery. Jacinta had just given up when she saw an advertisement in her browser for a local company called 'Transformation Corp'. Curiosity piqued, she opened the link and found herself greeted by a very modern-looking website.
"What the fuck?" Jacinta muttered to herself as she browsed the website. This company was using some sort of genetic technology to perform boob jobs, bum jobs and, most incredibly, to turn people into human-hybrids of their choice. She was pictures of mermaids, centaurs and harpies, and suddenly she had a moment of clarity.
What if Jacinta could turn herself into a half-woman, half-cow hybrid? She could still live on the farm, and she could contribute to the running of it. She might be able to save the family farm!
Jacinta searched for a phone number and dialed it into her mobile and rang. There were a few seconds of silence as she waited for the phone to connect.
"Hello, this is Jim from Transformation Corp. How can I help you?" said a friendly voice on the other end of the phone.
"Hello, my name is Jacinta. Jacinta Hidalgo. I'm inquiring about your services? Is it true that you can turn people into animal hybrids?" asked Jacinta. Her heart was beating extremely fast in her chest. What was she doing? Was she actually considering turning herself into a cow?
"It most certainly is true, ma'am," replied Jim. "We can offer a range of hybrid transformations that are available, such as the 'Mythical Mermaid' and the 'Carefree Centaur'."
"What about a cowtaur," asked Jacinta. "Could you turn me into a half-woman, half-cow?"
"Cowtaurs are not currently in our catalogue of treatment options," said Jim. Jacinta felt her stomach sink, but she also had a great sense of relief that she wouldn't have to go through with her plan. "However, we can do custom procedures," continued Jim. "A cowtaur should be no problem, although I should warn you that this procedure will cost several thousand dollars and it is permanent."
"That's not a problem," said Jacinta. Her parents had put away thousands for her college education, but it seemed like she would no longer be attending college, instead she was signing up to be confined to the farm.
"Fantastic. Would you like to discuss the operation? We can discuss customization options now," said Jim.
"No, that's okay. The only requirements are that I need to produce as much milk as possible," replied Jacinta.
"Not a problem," replied Jim on the other end of the phone. "When can we arrange an appointment for the procedure? I'm all booked up this weekend, unfortunately."
"Next Saturday should be fine," said Jacinta.
"See you then!" replied Jim, and the phone call ended. She couldn't believe that she had just committed to turning herself into an animal for the rest of her life, but she knew if the situation was reversed, her parents would do anything for her. They already had. The MacKlam's had taken in a poor Mexican, orphan girl, and they had raised her as if she were their own. No, she had to do this no matter what.
Jacinta put away her laptop and decided that she would borrow her parent's car and head into town. In a little over a week, she would never be able to drive again, so she figured she might as well visit her friends while she still could. Pausing, she gazed at her reflection in the mirror. She knew she was a beautiful woman with long black hair and deep brown eyes. She tried to imagine what she would look like as a cow, and suddenly she felt her stomach churn and she ran to the bathroom and pulled up the toilet lid and vomited into the toilet bowl.
"What am I doing!" she screeched. "Calm down," Jacinta said aloud. She knew there was no other choice for her. It was either become a cow woman or forfeit the farm, the place she had grown up and come to love. Jacinta knew that this time next week, her life would change forever, and her body would be alien to her. The worst thing was, the only person who was forcing her to go through with this was herself. Jacinta knew she could never live with herself if the farm was to go under. The ranch meant everything to Ryan and Lisa. It was their life's work. She couldn't imagine that her parents would adapt well to life in the city.
Jacinta cleaned herself up and brushed her hair in the mirror so that she looked acceptable. She told herself that she had another week at least, so she should put any thoughts of her impending transformation out of her head. She should try to enjoy her last week as a female human.
Jacinta left the house, locking the front door behind her, and made her way to the truck that her parents used for travel into the city and to collect farming supplies. The truck was old, but it was reliable, and Jacinta enjoyed driving it. As she pulled off, she took in the sights of the ranch. The ranch itself seemed endless. It was a large area of land that was worked by her parents. Jacinta wondered if she was truly okay with signing herself up to work on this land for the rest of her life. She would probably never marry and have children of her own if she went through with the surgery. Who would want to marry a cowtaur?
All these thoughts were racing around Jacinta's head as she finally exited the boundary of the farm and entered the freeway. She tried to silence these thoughts, and she turned on the radio and listened to some pop music as she continued her last drive into town.
After a few songs had played, Jacinta had calmed down and felt better about her decision. She knew how grateful her parents would be once they understood what she had done for them. She imagined they would be furious with her at first once they laid eyes on their precious daughter's new form.
As Jacinta sped down the freeway, the Texan sun was high in the sky, and the world seemed at peace. Jacinta ignored all her worries and concentrated solely on her parents and the farm. She knew she would do whatever it takes to secure the future of her family's ranch, and that was all that mattered to the young Hispanic woman. The future seemed bright for her, and she couldn't wait to see what was in store for. She turned up the volume of the radio and sang along, oblivious to the procedure that she had volunteered herself for.
