Paradox had always found the idea of school an interesting subject, and after gaining knowledge that such an institution existed, was rather disappointed that she wasn't able to attend a similar one in her youth. Centaurs generally didn't show any interest or need for such knowledge, able to survive quite well on traditions and relatively primitive items and ideas. It worked for a great many of her kind, but it was also partially what pushed her away also. She could appreciate her history and her people well enough, but what she sought they simply couldn't teach her. Once she'd learned all she could from them, she felt the need to continue on and keep learning. 

It was this desire, this yearning to seek knowledge, that enabled her to learn to read the common language as well as write small texts and learn the exchange rates of currency. Yes, she had learned quite a lot. Reading initially was quite a challenge, but she had been fortunate to find enough assistance that she was able to pick up most of it on her own. It quickly became something she did love to do when she had the chance, such as now when she was able to find some quiet time amongst her travels. She held the firm covers firmly in both hands, her head ducked down as she read over the words on the page. She walked forward carefully, using her other senses to navigate the street as well as she could, mindful of unprotected feet and small children. 

Thoroughly engrossed in the literature, she continued her way down the street and turned around the corner of the building. She didn't even see the young lady she bumped into until she was right on top of her. The light impact distracted her from her reading and she looked up to apologize. "I'm sorry Miss, I didn't see you there." She said looking at the lady, partially surprised to see that she was only slightly shorter than herself. Her ears perked forward in interest as she noticed the lady's pointed ears and found herself eyeing her body up and down before she could stop herself.

She was stunned to see another centauress standing before. The young lady in front of her, though rather human from the waist up, was very much equine from the waist down. She appeared to be from a different herd, as she couldn't recall any two-toned members in her homegroup. She was slightly shorter and stockier, with stunning red and white patches of fur covering her body. She hadn't expected to see another one of her sort for a while, never mind in such a populated area. She closed her mouth, that she hadn't realized had dropped open and composed herself as well as she could. "Hello," was the best she could muster under such circumstances. Closing her book, she held it against her chest as she continued to look at the young centauress before her. 

Kimari was rather edgy as she made her way through the city of Ilia, wondering why she had gone there in the first place. She needed to find some things to take with her as she planned to travel somewhere, she could be sure that no one would trail her. Going through a bustling city wasn’t likely a smart idea, as she was trying to escape her old life, not wanting to be recognized by anyone, or to be identifiable if anyone came and asked about a Centaur such as herself. She had a blanket over her horse body, for the most part, but her white marked red fur was still visible, unfortunately for her.
As she walked, she pulled her hood up some, trying to avoid eye contact with anyone and everyone. She doubted that any of these people knew her, since she was from one of a few small herds from back where she had come from. Not too many folks would even know of the small families. She knew that some of the scouts from back home would surely be looking for her, as she had vanished without a single word. And, being the daughter of the leader of her herd, gave them more reason to come searching for her. ’They won’t find you… You’ll be fine.’ The young centaur woman kept telling herself.
She was careful not to bump into anyone or be bumped by anyone. She didn’t want the blanket to slide from her back, since she had only just draped it over her horse half. She was expecting, but it wasn’t overly obvious just yet. The young centaur woman knew that was the reason she had to leave home. She hoped for things to go well enough, but she knew that it would be hard for her on her own. Especially with a foal on the way.
She mused to herself, so much so that she wasn’t paying attention to much around her. At least not in detail. She didn’t pay mind to the fact that there was another set of hooves making their way towards her. Being in the city, she hadn’t much reason to think anything of the hooves. She just assumed that it was a rider on horseback. That irked her, but she knew that there wasn’t anything that she could do to change the way that humans and other bipedal races used horses for transportation.
Kimari walked straight on, choosing to ignore the sound of hooves, until she felt someone bump right into her. This startled her and she looked from beneath her hood. She quickly realized that it was another centaur and she almost had a panic attack. However, this one was not anyone she recognized from any of the small family groups she had known all her life. She was still cautious, though. She had no way of knowing who this centaur knew. She pulled her hood back but was still unsure if she should have done that, knowing that if anyone took in her appearance, they could help identify her beyond just a centaur with paint markings. She managed to get out a “hello,” although wasn’t sure she wanted to talk too much. Small chat, perhaps, but she was not going to say of where she came for, nor speak of where she was going. Kimari did not want to risk her herd finding where she went.

Paradox stood quietly, her book held tightly as she continued to stare in surprise at the centaur. She was just so overwhelmed with surprise that it took her several minutes before she realized that she was being rude. She broke her gaze momentarily and dropped her ears slightly to decrease her intensity. She didn't want to scare the young mare away with her curiosity. "I apologize for being rude," she said, looking at her. "It's just, seeing another centaur here is rather a first for me. I've never really seen another outside of my herds back home. It's just very surprising to me, in all my travels I have yet to meet another." She gave the girl a small smile. 

Reaching around, she opened up a saddlebag and deposited the book inside before turning and facing her again. "The name's Paradox," she said, reaching out a hand. She didn't know if this centaur was as knowledgeable on human customs as she, so she wouldn't be offended in the slightest if she didn't get a response back. She also wasn't aware of other herds and their customs, which very likely could be quite different than her own. She brought her hand back to her side and clasped her hands together in front of her. "It's very nice to meet you. I have never met any painted centaurs before, your colors are simply quite stunning."

She waited another moment before speaking again. "If you're new to the area, I'd be happy to show you around. I don't recall seeing you before now, so that is only a personal assumption. If not, I'll happily get out of your way and let you continue on with your afternoon." She smiled and nodded as she stepped to the side and started to walk slowly past the other centaur. If she wanted to continue talking, she was more than welcome to do so. Personally, she just felt like she had too many questions she wanted to ask her and was afraid that she would come off sounding rather rude to ask them all at once. She was quite curious yes, she wanted to know more about her, but for now, it wasn't her place to ask such things unless the young lady wanted to tell her such information, as such she would leave it up to her to decide.

Kimari stood back a bit from the other centaur, her blue eyes drifting over the other to make sure that she was able to see if there were any weapons that could be drawn quickly. She didn't feel that this centaur would try that, but she couldn't know. As she did this she heard question after question rolling out of the other centaur's mouth. They were harmless, but still made Kimari uneasy. She managed to make comments in reply to earlier statements, however. "I haven't seen any others, either, but it isn't so bad." She didn't know how much she wanted to talk to this other centaur. She didn't look familiar in the least, but who knew who might have been paying her to find information. Not that that was the case, of course.

The young centaur woman didn't really know if she should shake this other centaur's hand, but did so briefly, before she pulled her hand back to her side. She stiffened for a moment and glanced back at her belly. She felt the foal move some, which was a first. It had startled her a bit, as she'd not felt that up until this point, but she didn't let herself get too wound up over something she would have to get used to. She quickly turned her attention back to the centaur in front of her, trying to ignore the subtle movement she felt in her horse belly. "Most from homehave similar markings… Most of us have painted coats."

Kimari knew she shouldn't stay there for too long, but she hadn't seen another centaur for a while, so she wondered what it would really hurt. "I don't mind you showing me around. I don't normally get to go to any large cities and don't know my way around them." Yes, it was probably risky to stay in a very populated area, considering there would be more people to see two centaurs walking around. Although, she needed to relax as stressing out wouldn't do her, or her unborn foal, any good. "Are there any places that you recommend checking out first?" Staying in one place was a risk for her, but she didn't feel that her herd would come looking for her in a place like this. Not when the rest of the herd was not too fond of humans as she was. Yes, the young centaur woman was somewhat skittish around humans, but she didn't hate them like those in her herd seemed to. For what reason she hadn't really ever known. She quickly added to her earlier words. "I can't stay too long, though, I have to be somewhere soon." She didn't sound too sure of herself and she silently cursed herself for letting that tone come out in her words.

Paradox looked behind her and saw the young woman accompanying her. From her stance and small movements, she could tell she was nervous. She reminded her of herself when she was younger and still exploring the world of people. They were strange, and even now, after spending a great amount of time amongst them, there were still somethings that she didn't understand. The small amount of constant unfamiliarity always helped remind herself that she never would become completely like those she surrounded herself with. Yes, one could walk, talk, dress, and have similar mannerisms, but some of her characteristics were unique to her, like her legs, and even without them, she'd still be different. There was something different than the physical appearance that made her different from both her kind and others around her, and that would never change. 

She glanced to the side and saw the other mare fall in stride with her as they made their way down the side of the street. She was still walking stiffly as if she was physically uncomfortable. She gave her a smile. "It gets easier," she said quietly, in an effort to reassure her companion. "Staying around people all the time. You become more comfortable with time when the people understand you better and you, them. It's a process, but one I have found rewarding. They have much to teach us and we have much we can teach them if they choose to listen and if we're willing to learn. For now, I have a place you might like more than this." She led them down the street a short way before turning towards an open area of the city. 

"This is the courtyard, beyond it in that building is the library. It's a little calmer here, more like at home. I come here when I want somewhere quiet." They were on a very large lawn, trees dotting the edges and in small clusters of the lawn. Pathways weaved their way through the green grass, some going to the library doors, others trailing out to the edges of the park. Slowly, she walked through the trimmed grass, enjoying the feeling of the growth beneath her hooves instead of the harsh gravel and stone of the roads. Her ears perked forward as she looked back at the shy cloaked figure and smiled. 

"Where do have to go next?" she asked, partly curious and partly to be polite. "I'll take you there if you want, I know you aren't terribly familiar with the city yet. If you'd rather go alone. That's alright too. I respect those that opt to figure things out for themselves than request assistance, though in some circumstances assistance is more than warranted." She was quite interested in if the young lady would talk about herself some so that she could get to know her better, but she wouldn't pressure her to do so. She didn't even know her name as of yet. 

Kimari was unsure of why she was actually allowing this other Centaur show her around. Likely it was because she missed being around others of her own kind. She had left her herd as soon as she discovered she was with foal, so she had been gone for quite a long while at this point. Her skittishness around the humans was obvious. Yes, the young centaur woman didn't mean any offense, but the way that she pulled back whenever she was unintentionally bumped by anyone made some of the humans look at her with narrowed eyes. She gave small apologies, but that didn't stop them from glancing at her differently than how they looked at Paradox. This did not make Kimari any less antsy. However, she looked forward, trying to ignore the stares she had gotten from a few people who had brushed up against her, and caused her to jump some.

The young centaur woman wanted to believe that it got easier, but she didn't see that happening easily. Only having had brief encounters with others who were not centaurs made it hard for her to get used to so many bipedal beings walking around. "I suppose….I'm not at all used to this. I am so used to being back home…and around others like us." Her voice trailed off as she thought of being back home with her family. But she had a strong feeling that things would not go well for her if she were to return home either carrying a foal or with a foal tagging along. Her family had chosen someone for her to be with, but she hadn't ever had a single thing to do with him, but rather someone from a herd that wasn't exactly friendly with her father's herd. That did not bode well for her, considering that stallion was the sire of this foal she was carrying.

Once she followed Paradox to the courtyard, Kimari calmed a good bit. There weren't narrow, gravel roads and nowhere near as many people walking about. "It is calmer…not really exactly like home. But it is better than being surrounded." She said, loosening up some as she followed Paradox. "I…anywhere but back. I don't have anything planned. I just can't stay here too long." she admitted, pulling her cloak and hood tighter around her. She was also trying to make sure that the blanket hanging over her horse half did not fall off. The blanket helped better hide the fact that she was starting to really show. Being a stocky horse to begin with made that somewhat easy for her to conceal that she was pregnant, as she already had a slight barrel shaped build, but if someone really looked they would see she was rounder than she could have been. "And you don't have to go with me, if you don't want. I haven't anything to really give you in return…if you would come along and help me."

Paradox cocked her ears towards the young girl and gave her a sympathetic look. She remembered the times early on when she was afraid to be touched by the people of this world too. They were strange and odd creatures, that she didn't understand, she merely spent most of her life observing from a safe distance, never interacting with them directly until she chose to leave the herd. Like her companion, she struggled to fit into this new world. New smells, tastes, actions, and various customs she had to adapt too. As would any traveler in a new world, regardless of whether they had four legs or two. With time she'd become quite adaptable and she had confidence that the young mare with her would do likewise if given enough time. 

"I understand," she said quietly. "I miss my herd sometimes too. But in a way, throughout my travels, I have built my own herd too. I've met many people, some bad, but most have been good, just like at home. There are good and bad people just like there are good and bad centaurs. People look different than us, but deep inside, we are the same in many ways." She gave her a small smile. "You just have to give them a chance. I know it isn't easy, it wasn't easy for me either at the beginning. Starting over in a completely new world is so very hard, and tiring and frustrating. But it all takes time and trust takes a lot of it."

She continued walking through the lush meadow with her companion as she listened to her speak. "I'd be welcome to go with you where ever you want until you feel comfortable to go it alone. This world is a strange and beautiful place if you know where to look. There is nothing you could give me that I'd want or need. Possessions don't mean much to me. I believe one has to find their own happiness to be satisfied with this world, material things simply can't do that." She walked side by side to the young centaur as they continued their way along the large courtyard. Even now, in the middle of the day, the large field was almost empty.