Dear readers; The next part of Alterations is here. I hope you enjoy it. Let me know.
Disclaimer: This is a Fantasy story with Male to Male sex and love relationships. If you are under eighteen years of age, you should not be here. You have been warned.
Alterations Part 11 by dymondbolt
We returned to Anthony's Hotel and within the first hour alone, I hit my head on the top of a door way , at least ten times. Anthony just squeaked under the door jam, and only hit his head on the lamp by his bed.
His bed was now too short for either of us and we had no idea who to go to for a larger size.
Andonis returned to the mainland with Janos, Anthony and I, and helped with that little dilemma.
Andonis said " I have a cousin in the next town over, who is an upholsterer. He should be able to make a mattress that will fit you two. Work has been slow recently, so he might be able to get it done in a week or two,"
Anthony said " That would be great, Andonis. Tell him we're desperate, and need it as soon as he can finish it, cost is no object."
Andonis said " Then I'll give him a call now. The phone in the kitchen is a good one to use?" He had a little smirk when he said this.
I saw that and said " It's a fine telephone to use. Just don't distract the chef until he's finished preparing breakfast. I'm hungry."
Andonis backed to the door and said " I should leave you two alone then. I remember the last time you were hungry." He laughed and Anthony and I joined him.
Anthony said " Well my Love, we must make do with the bed we have until Andonis' cousin can make a larger one."
I had to pee and I walked to the bathroom as I said " That just means cuddling closer after . " Thump !! " OOOwww"
I nearly knocked myself out hitting the door jam to the bathroom.
Anthony was kneeling by my side in a heartbeat, and asked " Are you alright Nick?"
I still saw stars, but that handsome face of Anthony's took a lot of the pain away.
That worried look on his face had to go though. I told him as I pulled his head closer to mine for a kiss, " I will be in just a second."
It was a brief kiss, and after our lips parted, he started to kiss my face, forehead first. He finished with kisses under my jaw and just on my neck. I was feeling no pain.
His beautiful smile parted and he asked " Better now?"
I almost couldn't speak with all the emotion my heart was feeling.. I pulled his chest to my head as I said " Much better now! He combed his fingers through my hair and kissed the top of my head.
Just then, Janos and Andonis came through the front door of Anthony's bedroom with a mattress from the storeroom.
Janos said " Oh good. You haven't started yet. We thought this might help until Jon gets your new one made."
Anthony helped me to my feet as Andonis and Janos dropped the new mattress onto the old one.
Andonis said " My cousin, Jon, is delighted with the prospect of something new to make. So many of his customers are elderly and only want the old styles. He says he'll have it done in ten days."
I said " What dimensions did you give him?"
Andonis said " I just told him I have two seven and a half feet tall friends in need of an emperor sized bed . That is what comes after King sized, isn't it?"
I smiled and said " Yes, I think it is. Good work, Brother. Thank you."
Janos said " Lunch is ready. We'll bring up the box spring part of the mattress after we finish."
I said " Sounds good. We'll be down in a minute."
I still had to pee and just as I turned to walk into the bathroom, two large hands grabbed me on the shoulders and stopped me from hitting my head on the door jam again.
I said " You love me!" I turned back around and give Anthony a deep kiss.
When our lips parted he said " So very much." A quick kiss and a hug followed.
Before we broke the embrace I told him " I love you Anthony."
He just smiled and put his hand on top of my head and made me duck through the doorway. After a long piss and hand wash, I avoided hitting my head again and followed Anthony down to the dinning room.
We ducked our heads to get into the Kitchen and found a seat. Luckily they were sturdy metal chairs. But they still creaked a bit.
Everything seemed just a little smaller. Just enough for me to take a look at everything. `I looked over to a side table and there were ripe figs. I said " Janos, have you ever pickled figs?"
He looked like he just swallowed something sour, then a happy surprised look. He said " Oh you mean pickled in a sweet syrup with cloves and cinnamon? I have heard of it. What do they taste like? Still like figs?"
I said " Yes, but a lot more like candy. It's one thing I know how to do. My Grandpa had a Fig tree and Grandma would pickle them. But you had to pick them just a little green of ripe or by the time you were done you had fig jam instead of pickled figs."
Anthony had a distracted look on his face. Nick saw the wheels turning in Anthony's head and said "Anthony, you don't look like you're thinking about figs."
Anthony flashed a smile and said " Figs? No. I'm thinking about how many people should go with us and what clothes and food to take ."
Nick said " On our centaur hunt?"
Anthony smiled and said " That's a good name for it."
Now I had a distant look on my face. Until that moment I hadn't really thought about what those centaurs had to go through to just survive. And what magic did they use to hide their real bodies?
Anthony gently pulled my chin towards his face and said " You are not thinking about figs right now either, are you my love?"
I gave him a smile and said " Figs? No, my love. What they must have done just to survive. Centaur hunt may not be the best phrase to use for what we are going to be doing."
Anthony winced and then nodded before he put his forehead on mine.
I looked into his eyes and saw forever. I could smile again and I bumped his nose with mine and gave him a quick kiss.
Then I thought ' I would shout my love for this man from the highest mountains' and I said " Exaltation."
Anthony frowned and smiled at the same time and said " What?"
I said " We are going on an exaltation. We are going to ask the surviving centaurs to trust us again, forgive our ancestors and allow us to praise their kind in all their beauty. An Exaltation."
Anthony said " My love, your mind is a beautiful thing to see, unfolding as it is before me."
I could only think of one proper response to that. We were brought back from our KISS with giggling from Janos and Andonis. They were kissing too, but giggling in between each kiss, waiting for us to return. Before I could think of something to say, my stomach growled loudly. Then Anthony's stomach made a groaning sound.
Andonis said " That's why we were laughing. You didn't even hear your own stomach growling. And when Anthony joined in we couldn't help ourselves." His laughter coupled with another outburst from our bellies, had us all laughing.
Janos had large plates already prepared for us . He brought them over and removed the covers. For each of us , he had three separate Eggs Benedict's, Janos special hash brown potatoes with three types of sautéed onion, a stack of five large pancakes with maple syrup, and eight links of sausage.
Anthony and I looked at our plates and then Janos and we said " Thank you little Brother." We were so hungry we didn't say a word till our plates were clean.
I burped and said " Little Brother, that was excellent. Thank you.
Anthony waited till I was through and produced a truly awesome belch. He said " Yes, Little Brother. Thank you for another beautiful meal."
Janos smiled and said " You're welcome, my brothers."
It was Andonis who collected the dishes and washed them as Janos put what little food was left over in the refrigerator.
I said " You two already seem to be working like an old married couple."
Andonis said " There were a few things I showed Janos last night, that convinced him to let me wash the dishes as a way of thanking him for the wonderful meals he makes for me. Besides what five star chef likes to do the dishes."
Andonis was looking at Janos at the end and smiled and turned back to washing dishes. Janos came up in back of him and hugged him. He planted a few kisses on the side and back of Andonis' neck. This got Andonis to turn his head for a good long kiss.
Anthony and I snuck up to either side of them and started hugging each other with Janos and Andonis in between. It was a little early for a sandwich, but the filling didn't complain.
We four were interrupted by Arsenios when he said " Can we participate, too?"
We parted to look at the kitchen doorway to find Arsenios and Chief Michael Metaxas standing there smiling at us. Anthony and I looked at each other and then waved them over for a group hug , and a little bit of a group grope. I think that sort of thing aids the digestion.
I looked down at the sherif and Arsenios and said " What brings you two to this fine establishment? "
Mike looked up at me then looked at Janos as he said " You mean other than the fine service and five star quality restaurant?" Janos blushed and buried his head in Andonis shoulder for a moment. Andonis took the opportunity to kiss Janos on the top of his head.
Anthony rested his head against mine for a moment and then said " How can we stay humble with friends like these?" He reached down and gave the sheriff a peck on the cheek. Mike saw his chance and took it, reaching up and holding Anthony's head and getting a full kiss from my lover. After a minute, I bent down so my head was at Mike's level. He broke the kiss with a happy grin but wide eyes at how close My face was.
To defuse the situation I pouted and said " Don't I get one , too?"
Mike saw I wasn't going to get upset about sharing my lover, and said " I see your parents taught you sharing."
Anthony's bass chuckle rumbled out and he smiled before he said " My parents taught me well, also." His head tipped towards Mike as he looked at me and I got the hint.
Mike held his eyebrows up in question and I just reached over and gave him a kiss to compare to Anthony's.
When I broke the kiss, Anthony was finishing one with Arsenios.
I smiled and shrugged and looked at Janos and opened my arms. Andonis gave him a swat on the butt to get him moving.
Janos smiled before we kissed and said " If everyone gets to compare, this may take a while."
Anthony bent down so both our faces were next to each other as he said "We do want to get going today but we can take our time doing it."
I glanced at him and said " I like the sound of that. Take our time doing it."
The Kiss comparison continued. No conclusion was made on who gave the best kiss, for by the time we had all tasted of each others lips, we realized we had all forgotten to compare one to another.
We all laughed and I said " We should start our centaur exaltation some time today."
Mike and Arsenios looked curious and Mike said " Centaur what?"
Anthony said " We've decided not to call it a Hunt. They've had enough of those. Nick came up with the name Centaur Exaltation. It matches what we're trying to do with them."
Arsenios said " I like that. And also the part that says 'with them', as opposed to 'to them'."
Mike said " Well, we're ready to leave whenever you are."
I said " You're going with us?" It was the first we had heard of them joining us.
Mike said " You don't think we would let the Avatar and his Companion go searching for potentially violent creatures , without some protection?"
I looked at Anthony and said " You wanna show him or should I ?"
Anthony said " He'd appreciate it better from you."
I said " Ok." I bent down and grabbed Mike and threw him over my shoulder as I said " I need you to come with me for a minute."
Mike let out a little yelp when I grabbed him but was silent as we went outside. There was no one in sight as I put Mike on the ground in front of the hotel. I started to grow bigger and bigger, until I was eighteen feet tall. Then I kneeled down and asked with as soft a voice as my giant lungs would allow " What kind of protection would you suggest?"
Mike stepped closer and laid a hand on my knee as he said " While your size still makes my heart beat fast, In my case it does so because I know what a wonderful lover you are at any size. I'm afraid a centaur using magic to hide from humans would probably be a bit intimidated by anyone over say eight feet in height."
I shrank back to seven and a half feet tall and said " So having people under say six foot tall might make them feel a bit more comfortable with us?"
Mike smiled and said " It's a thought. And I have had some contact with some of the other local Sheriffs and Police Chiefs. Just in case we find ourselves accidentally trespassing on private property."
Anthony said " Now that that's settled, I'll go get our clothes. The Yacht has provisions for two people for ten days. Now four people five days."
Anthony moves upstairs as we pass through the hotel towards the dock and rejoins us in under five minutes.
Janos was standing on the dock with Andonis and looked sad. He wanted to go with them but guests were scheduled to arrive in three days.
Janos said " I'll apologize to the guests about not having the Yacht."
Anthony stepped back onto the dock and said " Thank you little brother for taking care of things here. At least this time it looks like you have some one to help."
Janos smiled and looked at Andonis.
Andonis said " The first of many times, for the rest of your life."
Janos focused on Andonis mouth with a wicked grin on his face, before he swooped in for a lingering kiss.
Janos corrected him with " For the rest of our lives!" Then they rested their foreheads together for a moment, before they turned to wave at us as we pulled out.
I called back to them " We'll try to call you around nine each night. Love you!"
Anthony and the others Joined in with " Love you." Janos and Andonis echoed back the sweet declaration " Love you."
The GPS system in the Yacht was really helpful. The screen was large enough that it resembled the way I saw the land near the mausoleum for Cheiron's children. We aligned ourselves with the Island and moved west to the coast and followed it north till we came to the first river. That was the half way point to the correct river that leads up to the land where so much centaur blood was spilled. Anthony noticed my anxious mood. He came up in back of me and folded me into his arms. Anthony said " We will find them , My Love. And we will protect them, and show the world what beautiful children they are. Our children." This lifted my mood, but I just smiled, nodded yes and twisted around to kiss him my thanks. I have a lot to be thankful for, with someone like Anthony loving me. Mike chuckled and said " I think we have arrived. And the strange thing is . I think I've been here, when I was a teenager. I was friends with a very large boy. Nikki was what we called him. He and I would play around. but he liked girls , too. And then his mother caught us and I wasn't allowed over. Then my parents moved to our current sleepy little town. I never heard from him again." Mike looked at Arsenios and smiled. Mike said " As things have turned out; I am much happier." Then he kissed Arsenios. Mike took a breath and said " But one thing is odd. I never saw the property from the river. The family mausoleum was always between the orchard and the river. We never did go near it. It must be the one from your dreams." I said " Well there is a dock. I don't see any no trespassing signs. Let's tie up to it and make a friendly house call." Anthony said " That's what we're here for. A friendly visit." The Yacht was moored to the dock and shut down. There was no gate. Just a plank leading up to an old stone path. The path meandered enough between shrubs and trees so within a ten yards of the river you couldn't see it anymore. That's when footprints that were barely visible suddenly stopped. there was a churned up area. Then hoof prints could be plainly seen. I said " Wow. More magic. That's how they survived. Cool!" Just then I thought I heard something in the bushes. I said " Let's see if this leads to Cheiron's mausoleum and say a prayer for his children." The path straightened out but started to go up hill. The brush and trees still shielded it from the river. I was leading the way when the path leveled out. I took two steps and froze. Anthony put his hand on my shoulder and I jumped. His voice calmed me when he said " What's wrong my love? What's got you so tense?" I reached back and pulled Anthony's other arm around me before I spoke. I took a deep breath and said " It's just as I saw it in my dreams. But my Dreams were of a time and place over two thousand years ago. I wasn't ready for all those years of sorrow and fear heaped one on top of another, to hit me all at once." Anthony whispered in my ear " Does my holding you help?" The emotions I had felt before were reduced to a gentle murmur, when I pulled Anthony's arm around me. I told him " Yes my love. Now all I hear is the love and reverence for these people's dearly departed. They're a very loving people." A male voice spoke up and said " Which makes it a lucky thing for you four, since you are all trespassing !" We all turned to find a tall young man of about eighteen to twenty years of age, standing behind a hip high boulder. He was built like a tall gymnast and dressed in jeans and a white t-shirt. He stepped around the boulder hand he had a pair of sandals tied to a belt loop. In one hand he held a thick branch and in the other was a cell phone. The phone started to mumble words and he put it to his head before he said " Father! Please Father stop. We have four men trespassing near the mausoleum No they haven't threatened me. They haven't said anything to me since I told them they were trespassing. " Pause " Because they are speaking english. And because they seem to be respectful of the mausoleum. Two of them are very large." Then he whispered " I think they might be family. They mentioned magic when they saw the hoof prints." He realized that none of us had said a thing yet and all of our attention was on him and his conversation. His next words were at full volume when he said " And I don't know why I'm whispering. They're fifteen feet away from me and haven't moved since I challenged them." His father's voice could be heard but not what he said. suddenly I remembered the inscription on the mausoleum. I spoke up as loud as I could and started to grow to nine feet tall as I said " Here lie the children of Cheiron, No more will their sweet voices sing the songs of their childhood." The man on the phone and his son before us were shocked into silence. The young man just dropped his arm but held on to the cell phone. His mouth stayed open as he gazed up at my face. He blinked a few times and then closed his mouth in a smile. I smiled back. I told him " We're sorry about trespassing, but we just wanted to pay our respects to the children of Cheiron.." The young man said " That Family holiday is in the fall. How tall are you?" The cell phone buzzed with his fathers voice. I decided to keep him off balance until his brothers and perhaps father show up. I rubbed my right nipple that was straining at the fabric of my XXXXL sweat shirt. I smiled and said " At present I'm nine feet tall. My name is Nick Stavros." As he took that in , I had a moment to really look at this young man. That was when I noticed how strangely his feet looked. His heel was very slim thin, and it stayed that way for two thirds of the foot. Then the place where the toes attach widened out to three times the width of the heel. And the toes were all thick and a bit short. His thick toes wiggled. He said " My name is Remo. How did you know what was written on the mausoleum?" The voice on the phone got louder. Remo just waited for my response. I said " I dreamed I was back in the time of Herakles and Cheiron. I saw men killing centaurs in the clearing over there. I saw Herakles bind Cheiron with rope and protect him from the genocide. I saw Herakles release Cheiron and remind him that Cheiron had stayed Herakles own hand from suicide when Herakles discovered that in a madness sent by Hera, he had murdered his own wife and children" By now the voice on the phone was shouting Remo's name. I continued and said " In my Dream, I saw Herakles put hundreds of dead centaurs on a pyre. But Cheiron's three dead son's were interred in the cave where Herakles had kept Cheiron safe. Then I saw what Herakles had carved into the marble." The cell phone in Remo's hand was practically vibrating with the volume of his fathers voice. Remo was suddenly finished with hearing it from a distance. He put the phone to his face and bellowed into it. He said " Father I love you, but shut up! Please try and control yourself. You have been shouting for a good two minutes. Come down here yourself and talk with them. I'm done listening to you yell at me. I'm hanging up. Good-bye!" Then before a complete word from his father could be heard, Remo hung up on his father and then turned the cell phone off. He almost threw the phone towards the sea. He thought better of it and put it in his front pocket. Remo looked at Anthony and I and smiled. He said " You two are together, aren't you? And you're more than lovers, Huh? I'm right, aren't I? " We nodded and I crouched to be able to put my arms around Anthony. We all smiled and Anthony leaned back and put his big hands on the inside of my thighs and rubbed from knee to groin. He was doing a very good job of hiding my growing erection. I said " Remo. This is my Anthony." Remo's eyes got bigger but stayed happy with us. He said " Oh you don't know, but I can taste the love between you two like a powerful scent on the wind. I just know Philip and I smell like that. I've loved him for eight years. We've known we loved each other for six years, but kept it from my family. Father was bad enough when he thought Philip was a two legged demon while he thought Philip was just a friend. Things sort of fell apart when Philips sister called up my mother and told her how happy Philip was now that I was in his life. She almost got away with leaving the impression we were just best friends. Then my mother remembered that we had been friends for over eight years. When she pointed this out to Philip's sister, she sort of giggled and said something along the lines ' Well they've known each other for eight years now, but for the past three months, they've come to know each other in a much deeper way.' Mother echoed the word ' Deeper?" and Philips sister giggled and said ' That was one of the words she heard from Philip and I late at night, that kept her awake into the early hours.' "My mother silence didn't seem to warn Philips sister. She said ' The smile on both their faces in the morning always stopped her from complaining about the loss of sleep^P.' My mother was thinking about the face she saw around our home. Father rarely let any chance slip by when he could be insulting Philip or his family or Humans in general. While I controlled myself well enough to ignore my father's comments, it didn't leave me smiling at the dinner table. When it all came out, I discovered my mother was supportive. She thought I was becoming depressed and just wanted me to be happy. She took me being gay in stride. And even when Father is present and she's talking to Philip on the phone; she'll call him son." Another voice chimed in. He said" You should see how the big bull puffs up with pride when his mother calls me son. With all that Remo's father says about us, she makes me real proud of my second mother, when she shows us her love anyway. Nickolas can't fight her happiness with us and he leaves the room." Remo walked over and helped Philip down off the ridge that lead to the Mausoleum. They kissed for a minute or two. I nuzzled Anthony's neck and he still rubbed my thighs, but he said " If we start something now we won't be able to finish anything we'd like to before Remo's father and brothers get here." I just nodded my head yes and pulled him tighter. I whispered " I wonder which direction they'll come from first?" I didn't even have time to get a guess out of Anthony. Two very large men who resembled Remo ran through the underbrush and came to a halt when they saw Remo kissing Philip. William didn't see me and Anthony yet and said " Now I know father has lost it. How is Remo in danger? Is Philip going to give him a lethal tongue lashing?" William looks over at his usually talkative brother Xander. William said " Xander aren't you going to give me a snappy comeback explaining Father's logic....." Now William could see where Xander had been staring for the past minute. Williams mouth hung open until Xander walked over to Anthony and I. He told William as he touched my knees " Your on your own with this one. Nothing Father says is going to keep me from learning more about this massive hunk of a man and his equally handsome giant lover." I kissed the top of Anthony's head and then leaned over and gave Xander new ideas about kissing. As we separated , Xander's face went sad and he said " Please tell me you have a brother, that's also into guys, or a close gay friend that resembles you?" I said " Sorry Xander, but you're on your own, too. Maybe William can help you find that man of your dreams." Xander looked over to William expecting some joke or harsh words. But William said " Anything brother. Anything I can do to help you find love, I will do for you. I still don't get the excitement you and Remo get over looking at another guy. But you two older wiser brothers , have never made me feel weird when I go girl watching at the hot springs. Or when I start listing a girls charms. You sit back and let me ramble on about some gorgeous red headed goddess. And you even bought me rubbers when it was my first time with Moira. We're still friends because she knew I learned respect from my older brothers. She even set me up with Theresa." William looked so happy thinking about Theresa. Remo couldn't resist and said " And you'd do anything for Theresa, huh William?" William said " Damn right I would! She never makes me feel small. Always happy to see me. Her smile for me makes every shadow of every doubt I ever had just shrivel up and die. Hell, Xander. you know how much I liked working for our Dear Uncle Stan. He wouldn't apprentice me to the Masons union, but he would pay the waiver fees every month since I'm a relative. She has my attitude in such a great place that Uncle Stan actually sent in the paperwork for my apprentice hours for the past eight months. Now everyone at the warehouse likes working with me, and the lead journeyman for installations is showing me the trade. He doesn't mind teaching me now. Before he rushed through showing how to do a particular piece of work And then, he only acted like he would teach me , because Uncle Stan told him to. So you know the only change in my life has been Theresa." Xander smiled and said " You told us the first month you two were together." Remo said " Yeah. You said with her loving you, you actually had a life." William just smiled and nodded. Mike and Arsenios had been quiet for all this time and they decided to jump in. Mike said "Remo? My name is Mike. This is Arsenios. I was just a bit curious. I think I've been to your house before, years before you were born. Is your father's name Nickolas Santini? And your mothers name is Sara?" Remo said " Yes and yes. Were you a friend of fathers from Middle school?" Mike looked at Arsenios and then told Remo " In High School, we were more than friends. But your fearful Grandfather decided I was a bad influence on your father. Even though I was able to help him get a B grade in math for five years. What happened was your Aunt Cecilia had a crush on me, even though half the class knew I was gay. And when I finally had enough of her games, I told her she wasn't built right for my tastes and that I liked them built. It was unfortunate that I told her that just outside the cafeteria. That let the rest of the class know about me. And about Nikky. " Mike paused and looked at all three brothers for awhile. He said " You all three favor your father. Large, athletic, muscular, really handsome but humble about it. When your Grandfather forbid us to ever be together again, we deliberately waited two weeks without talking to each other and on a birthday celebration for your Uncle Eustace, My brother and I had a reservation at the table next to your family's and we got there before anybody. When the first members of your family arrived, I went and hid in the bathroom, until your whole family was there. Your grandfather had over heard my brother talking about his date that night. So when I came back from the rest rooms, your grandfather was incensed. And to top it off , Nikky changed places with my brother and half the family thought it was so funny." A new Voice cut in and said " I didn't think it was so funny when your parents decided to move one hundred and fifty miles away. Or when you didn't write. Or when you finally did start to write, but missed my wedding." Mike got within a foot of Nikky and said " That's not fair. You knew I was in the Navy. The return mail address said it as plain as day. And nobody was allowed off base for a full month. And besides I tried to reach you after I got out of the Navy and all the servants said you didn't want to see me or talk to me. You can only take so much of that before you realize you lost your best friend." Mike had looked down at his feet until the last, where he looked into Nikky's eyes, challenging him to say different. Nikky was a bit shocked. He frowned then said " I never knew. Grandfather, again! " Nikky bit his lip and then looked at Mike's lip and then into his eyes. Nikky looked like he was about to cry. He said " I never got over loosing my best friend either." Mike realized what Nikky was saying and grabbed him in a long bear hug. Mike said " I really missed you." They separated and Arsenios walked up and put a hand on Mikes shoulder. Arsenios said " I can attest to that. A few nights I've been woken up to Mike dreaming and calling out for Nikky. He didn't call it a nightmare. He said he was searching for a friend. I heard the words 'best friend', but I never said anything. I'm Arsenios. It's good to finally meet you." Arsenios held out his hand and Nikky shook it. Nikky said " Have you been taking good care of my friend?" Nikky didn't let go of his hand. Arsenios looked a little embarrassed as he said " Mike always tells me I take good care of him. I know I try. He always treats me like a king." Nikky pulled him into a hug and said " Thank you for taking care of my best friend." Nikky kissed Arsenios cheek and let him go. Nikky looked up at Nick and said " Mike, introduce us to your very large friends." That was when I decided to shrink back to a more normal size. Nikky said " Now I see why my son called. Let's all come up to the house. Then we can calmly discuss what is happening. That includes you too, Philip. I apologize for my rude behavior." Remo and Philip start walking up the path with Mike, Arsenios and Nikky following. Remo has Philips hand and is swinging it back and forth. I grab Anthony's hand as we follow Nikky up the path. The brothers follow close behind. The path led through an orchard of pear and apricot trees. Then past a barn like building and up to a villa. I said " More like a villa than a house." Nikky said " More like a home than a villa. When you have your family with you." Sara said " I'm glad you got everyone to come back with you, Nikky. I think introductions are..." She saw Mike and her smile got bigger. She said " Mike... You know you could have come to the front door. Nikky's grandfather has been gone for over eight years." Remo muttered " Thank God." Nikky said " Remo! Please try to be respectful of the dead. However miserable they made our lives." Sara said " Nikky!.." Then she laughed and said " I suppose we're all blessed because the old goat is dead." Remo said " Mother?!" Philip nudged Remo and said " Hey! Mother is on our side." Then he hugged Remo from behind as he looked at Nikky and Sara. Nikky had a funny look on his face as he looked at his youngest son and his lover. Then the pained look got a bit lighter as he looked at Anthony and I. Then he smiled at Mike and Arsenios. He reached out and took Sara's hand and smiled at her. Then looking at Philip he said " Son, you are nineteen. I can't keep on treating you like a rebellious teenager. So as a responsible adult perhaps you can explain some of the very real fears I've had for your safety, to our guests. Maybe you can even explain some of them to Remo. He thinks I just hate all two-leggers." Philip stood up straighter and put his hands on Remo's shoulders. Philip and Remo were moved by Nikky calling Philip 'Son'. Remo's father had never had a good thing to say about humans. Mike said " Nikky. All those times you said your family had a secret. With all the love we shared, you never trusted me with it. Did you think I would betray you just because you had four legs instead of two? The magic of our love opened me to the possibility that the world held more than I could see. It led me to a magic that is deeper and more profound than I can possibly describe." Nikky said " Well you better try. Because the only magic I know keeps my family safe and the other families from being stuck in freak shows or pickled in some laboratory." I stepped away from Anthony and said " I guess that's my cue." I pulled off my shirt which was tighter than the sweat pants and started to grow. I stopped at ten feet. I towered over everyone for only a moment and then sat down cross legged. I said " I apologize for the theatrics. I am not here to exploit anyone. I am not here to expose anyone. Before I became the Avatar to the Temple of Brotherly Love, I was just a simple archeologist. I was just human. Unaware of real magic. True gods and goddesses, and the power and love of God. " I said " I had a scroll that led me to a disappearing island, A temple dedicated to five of the ancient gods, and my true love, Anthony." Anthony stepped over and rested his hand on my shoulder. I told them" I didn't know what I was doing at the time, but I became part of some very old and deep magic. But while this was happening, my nights were spent with my soul traveling to the past. I inhabited the body of Cheiron, and made love to Heracles. The next night I thought I was once again in Cheiron's body and before Heracles." Anthony said " Somehow our love pulled me along with Nick the second night. But my soul landed in Heracles body." I said " We didn't understand why God would be doing this to us. What possible purpose was there for us to make love to each other in the bodies of people - In - the past?" I said " Then the third night I wasn't in a body. I floated above this land here. I witnessed the murder of hundreds of centaurs by humans. I saw Heracles bind Cheiron, to keep him from being murdered with his sons. I saw Heracles break a sword in two, when one of the Lapiths tried to kill Cheiron. He shouted at the top of his lungs to ' Leave Us Alone ' . And for a moment the fighting stopped. But it didn't last. " I couldn't look into their eyes. I finished with " Only after I saw the pyre and the mausoleum, and what Heracles wrote, did I have some idea why I was made to see that. I was human and given a chance to change. I lost none of my fears and faults. I was given great love and the idea that I had lost it. Humans were innocent of the sin of genocide..." The sorrow and shame overcame me. I muttered " So many beautiful people..." I got my self together and said " I can't remember where I heard the statement : A righteous man is not without sin. He admits his sin, and expiates it." I looked into Nikky's eyes and said " I called this search a Centaur Exaltation. But in truth, I am to be the Protector of our brothers , the centaurs. For I am also to be the one to admit to the world, humanities sin. Humans murdered over a thousand centaurs. And I think God wants his four-legged children to be able to run free in the world without fear from humans. I think the Atonement humanity has to provide is to truly make centaurs our brothers again." I shrank back to a more normal size and stood up with Anthony and Nikky's help. Nikky frowned and shook his head. He said " You know, some of the families still have the name Lapith? Those that knew some of the centaur mages were able to get the spell to work with out any knowledge of magic. So they hid right among the very people who slaughtered our cousins. It's been over twenty -two hundred years and we're still afraid. The only two humans I can really trust are my ex-lover and my son's lover. Once the world knows of us, they won't stop until they catch one of us and torture the secret of the spell out of us. Then anyone can break it if they want. We'd never be safe." Philip said " Nikky, do you really think humans would do that?" Nikky said " Philip, your love for my son is strong. So strong, I feel Remo is safe with you. Even though I know in my head If some medical research group found out about Remo, and wanted to do research; I think I would lose two sons when they were done. It's not even governments anymore. Big, multi national corporations can get away with some evil things, in the name of better stock prices." I didn't notice Anthony quietly walk outside. I was trying to get my head around the idea that God gave me this mission and I didn't have a clue what I should do. I thought finding them was going to be the problem. In truth, I didn't really think about what I was going to do. Anthony, my love, went through the orchard and found the Mausoleum. He kneeled before it. He touched the ancient greek letters carved in the marble. Anthony closed his eyes and whispered " How can I help?" The sound of distant thunder could be heard. Thick rain clouds started to gather. Moments before the sky was clear. The crescent moon was soon covered. I heard those words like Anthony was right beside me. The hairs on my arms and legs started to stand up. Something was very wrong! I looked but couldn't find Anthony. I asked Remo " Did you see where Anthony went?" Remo said " Uh, he went outside towards the orchard." I corrected him " Towards the Mausoleum?" My fear and the sound of rain had me walking very fast. Remo and then all the others followed Anthony was unaware of my fear. He was silently praying for a way to help me. I could hear the words in my head but Anthony couldn't hear my fear. I heard " Father Zeus, Father Zeus, Help me Help my Love." He kept repeating it. He didn't seem to hear the wind pick up or see far off flashes of lightening. I was at one end of the orchard and could see Anthony kneeling. I only got five yards closer when I heard Anthony shout "Father!!" Then I died. The lightening flash and lightening bolt struck Anthony I think I shouted NO so loud it stripped leaves off of the trees I was near. I started shouting No and running. I don't remember getting twelve feet tall. I pushed over on tree on the end and ran to the lifeless body of my heart and soul. He was ten feet from the monument and the clothes on his body were smoldering. I kept on say ing No, and Please don't leave me. I shrank to a smaller size and picked him up. He wasn't hot or cold. I just kept pleading with God. I must have cover half of Anthony with my tears. Then something shot up through the ground and my body and Anthony's body , too He groaned, and my heart started again. I said "Anthony? Can you hear me?" Anthony opened his eyes and said " Yeah. Why are you so big?" Then he twisted in my arms and moaned. His legs seemed to thin and get longer. Then two bumps formed on his hips below his belly. His skin started to darken over his legs and the bumps burst open and formed two more legs. Anthony was turning into a centaur. Then I noticed he was becoming a very big centaur. His cock got stiff and then longer and longer. As his horse half seemed to form up properly, his balls decided to be huge. Just to keep up with his forty inch dick. I set Anthony down and he wobbled up on four legs. His body was beautiful. He stood at about seven and a half feet tall. I shrank to that size and hugged him for a long time. We were brought back to our surroundings with Remo on four legs and looking for a hug , too. He wasn't quite as big as Anthony, but I could see why Philip fell in love with Remo. At least , at first. Philip laughed and hopped up on Remo's back. The twisted around a bit and started to kiss. Then Nikky and Sara carried Mike and Arsenios on their backs. At that moment I was just thanking God for letting me keep Anthony. But at that moment, the healing had started between Humans and Centaurs. We had a lot of work ahead of us, but we would both work it. We had found our Brothers. The End Part 11 Well I hope you liked it. Please send feedback. It's all good. It's what keeps us writers going. Thanks.