I dreamt I was living in the Kingdom Of Horses. There were people citizens there, too - living side-by-side with the horses, but it was the horses who were in charge. The people didn't put up too much fuss over it, because the Horse King - a white stallion magnificent to behold, slim and well-muscled, with wise eyes and a prodigious greysilver mane - was a kind and capable ruler, beloved by all. Life in his kingdom was orderly and pleasant.
There was some trouble though, because some of his subjects from mixed households were half-and-half, both horse and human. It was kind of like a werewolf situation - sometimes they were one, sometimes the other. They could turn back and forth. And what happened was, the Horse King selected one of these to be his bride: a beautiful young weremaidenmare.
This caused a certain amount of unrest in certain quarters. Now, even in human form, she was fully grown young lady - her quick maturation owing to her horse nature (horses mature much faster than we do, in both body and sense). But that didn't stop her human mother crying out "but she's only three years old!"
Which, the Horse King (together with most of his horsekindred) would be all like "that sounds fine to me!"
But that wasn't the only issue. There was a considerable faction of the populace - across both the human and the equine demographics - who while they might appreciate the benefits of everyone getting along together in a mixed sort of society, were nonetheless dead-set against that sort of mixing. It was already a very controversial social issue, just at the level of ordinary folk mixing it up. There were organizations of the so-called "Purity Movement" on each side of the species divide - now sparring with each other in the public forum, now warily sharing common cause.
But with the Horse King's surprise declaration, a potential powder keg's potential fuse was potentially lit! Could the very happy foundation of this peaceable kingdom come crashing down?
Before anyone knew quite what was happening, the bride-elect had been spirited into hiding by Horse-Purity activists, with the Horse King (nostrils aflare) vowing to pursue her 'til earth's end - and to dreadfully punish any who dared thwart his love or his will in this matter! No one had ever seen the Horse King lash out in so rash and passionate a fashion.
Anyway, it got pretty hectic. I woke up before the whole thing could be resolved.
There was some trouble though, because some of his subjects from mixed households were half-and-half, both horse and human. It was kind of like a werewolf situation - sometimes they were one, sometimes the other. They could turn back and forth. And what happened was, the Horse King selected one of these to be his bride: a beautiful young weremaidenmare.
This caused a certain amount of unrest in certain quarters. Now, even in human form, she was fully grown young lady - her quick maturation owing to her horse nature (horses mature much faster than we do, in both body and sense). But that didn't stop her human mother crying out "but she's only three years old!"
Which, the Horse King (together with most of his horsekindred) would be all like "that sounds fine to me!"
But that wasn't the only issue. There was a considerable faction of the populace - across both the human and the equine demographics - who while they might appreciate the benefits of everyone getting along together in a mixed sort of society, were nonetheless dead-set against that sort of mixing. It was already a very controversial social issue, just at the level of ordinary folk mixing it up. There were organizations of the so-called "Purity Movement" on each side of the species divide - now sparring with each other in the public forum, now warily sharing common cause.
But with the Horse King's surprise declaration, a potential powder keg's potential fuse was potentially lit! Could the very happy foundation of this peaceable kingdom come crashing down?
Before anyone knew quite what was happening, the bride-elect had been spirited into hiding by Horse-Purity activists, with the Horse King (nostrils aflare) vowing to pursue her 'til earth's end - and to dreadfully punish any who dared thwart his love or his will in this matter! No one had ever seen the Horse King lash out in so rash and passionate a fashion.
Anyway, it got pretty hectic. I woke up before the whole thing could be resolved.
Comments
I did always consider Planet of the Apes to have semi-ripped that off, the whole humans as savage brutes in a land where animals reign bit, albeit, they did add a neat twist to it that made it its own.