Stability

Here's a short story. No other chapters at this time. but I think it's good all by itself. Please send feedback, or ideas to extend it. You guys have great imaginations.

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.

Stability by dymondbolt

Jesse was dreaming. He was in the upper meadow near the little cabin in the Pocatello forest. His view of the place felt strange. In focus but then not quite. It was near sunset in his dream and there were lights on in the little cabin. That was strange cause they never got power run this far into the property. He started to walk over to the cabin and finally noticed he was a horse, A Clydesdale with the classical color and markings. But in his dream, it wasn't anything unusual. He walks up to the window and sees Ernie Parson getting undressed. Ernie is the owner of the stables that Jesse works at. Then Jesse sees Robert Colby, naked as a jay-bird, come out of the bathroom and help Ernie with the rest of his clothes. Jesse thought that this might get to be interesting but just then Ernie and Robert look at the window and Ernie shouts " Get to work!" Jesse looks down and now he's human and completly naked. That's when Jesse hears an alarm get louder and louder.

Jesse wakes up and turns off the alarm. Jesse is Big. Maybe I should rephrase that. Let's see. Six foot six inches tall, almost three foot wide, sixty-five inch chest, thirty five inch waist, honest to god 34 inch arms, forty inch thighs, twenty five inch calves and twenty one inch forearms. On second thought, the phrase Jesse IS BIG fits just right.

Five years ago you would never have known he would be this big. No one in his family was any taller than six foot even and all the men on both sides of the family tended towards the thin side. His father had disappeared when he was eight. His older brother tried to take up the slack, but the ache of loosing Daddy didn't really go away until five years ago, when Ernie hired him to be a stable hand. His first job was mucking the stables.

By the end of the day he was beat. He was only four foot eleven and rail thin at the time, but Ernie saw how he put his heart into cleaning up for the horses. Jesse was able to attract the horses and somehow get them to move out of the way of his work without saying a word. and after each stall got cleaned and clean straw thrown down; more than half of the horses ambled over and nibbled at Jesse, like he was some young colt.

To Ernie, that was how he saw Jesse. A young colt in need of a herd. So Ernie let this thirteen year old work before school and after school. And when school was out for summer, Ernie started to teach Jesse how to work the horses. Many of the owners weren't able to come ride their horse every day. Some didn't get by but once or twice a week, but they expected their horse to be properly exercised. That meant an eye to how all the horses got along. You couldn't just let them all loose in a corral and think they would take care of themselves. With the amount of horses the Parsons Stables took care of, you'd have at least two or three horses coming or going each month. That kind of addition and subtraction to a herd dynamic could cause some problems for some of the horses. If you kept an eye on the way they treated each other , you could nip a problem in the bud.

Thinking like that kept you from having those annoying vet bills. Thinking like that kept happy horses and happy clients. If you had a horse that would challenge the lead mare when she didn't feel like gently disciplining the challenger, you ended up with a bit and bruised upstart and an angry owner wondering why you let their horse in with a vicious mare. At least that's what the upstarts owner would say.

From the first day Ernie had Jesse helping out with exercising the horses and watching them when they were set to the corral or pasture; Ernie never had another problem with any of his clients horses. Jesse just knew how to get the problem horses to get along with the others. Ernie caught Jesse negotiating with a horse Ernie had just decided to tell the owner to find another stable. Jesse had two carrots in his back pocket and he was in the small corral with Festus and the lead mare was in the outdoor stall next to it. Tina was a sweet big mare, but Festus would get her so riled she would chase him till Ernie had to get him out of the big corral and by himself. It was so bad he had all the other horses nipping at him too even when Tina wasn't with them. Ernie couldn't believe that Jesse was pointing at Festus with a big ole' carrot and Festus was just standing there listening to him. At one point Festus stretched his neck out closer to the carrot but wouldn't move closer. His lips tried to reach for it too but a sharp word from Jesse and he pulled his head back like he was caught not listening. Ernie almost busted up because Jesse couldn't see that Tina had been trying to do the same thing to the carrots in Jesse' back pocket , but the railing was too strong for her to push and get the carrots. She pulled her head back at the same time Festus did and Ernie had to turn away to keep from laughing out loud. By the time he turned back Festus was being given the carrot. Jesse was patting his side and still talking to him. When the carrot was gone, Festus bent his head and kneeled down a bit and Jesse laced his hands into Festus mane and pulled himself up onto Festus back. This was the second day of summer!

Jesse got festus to move over to Tina and Ernie was just about to rush out to keep Jesse from being thrown when one of the two carrots in Jesse back pocket came out and went into Festus mouth!. What was Jesse doing? Then Ernie really got a surprise. Jesse said " You promised" and before Festus could chew it down he gave the carrot to Tina! Her ears had been down when he got near but when she saw the carrot was for her her ears came up and she licked her lips and she stuck her head out and took the carrot. After chewing it down, she moved over to bump noses and smell Festus. She nibbled at his mane and at Jesse leg but didn't nip. Festus was never a problem after that day. Ernie knew he had to keep Jesse at his stables.

Ernie and his stable managers had always been into weight lifting and body building. So when the summer rolled around, five years ago, Ernie and Robert ( the manager at the time ) saw that Jesse was also interested in building himself up. Jesse seemed to respond very well to heaver and heaver weights. He never seemed to have a plateau, where he couldn't improve on the poundage's. It was in the weight room that Jesse learned that Ernie and Robert were more than friends. By the end of a work out all three were sporting wood. But Ernie and Robert tactfully ignored thirteen year old Jesse excited state. They would go to the big house (Ernie's home) for their shower and leave Jesse to use the stable hands shower. Jesse never asked to come along or what they did after the shower (or during it); but he did feel left out. He adjusted it in his head with the knowledge that he was way too young to be able to handle adult sex. And they were his employers on top of that.

Ernie hadn't talked to Jesse about the way Robert and he had treated each other. Ernie and Robert were gay and didn't have any problem with vendors, clients, horse owners, or friends. They were cowboys at heart and that's what people saw. And when Ernie or Robert would have the question put to them , they would say " Hell yes we're gay, but for heaven's sake don't let the horses hear that. They are a prejudiced lot." People seemed to take it in stride with Ernie and his crew. All that hard work and happy horse flesh won people over every time.

Hard work made the years fly by and at fifteen Jesse was five foot eight and one hundred and ninety lean pounds of horse wrangler. And that's when Robert left to work at a stable half way across the state. He left without a word to Jesse. It hurt, cause Robert was the first person Jesse came out to. Robert had been cool and talked about his own experiences. Robert had made it clear that Jesse was too young for anyone Ernie or Robert's age to be messing around with. He told Jesse that a few people had different ideas on the subject , but the fact of the matter was that an adult having sex with a minor for whatever reason or situation was illegal. Jesse tactfully told Robert that he wasn't telling Robert to try to get in bed with him. He told him cause Jesse had seen how honest and confident Ernie and Robert were to people about their sexual orientation and Jesse wanted to be like that. He said he was proud to work with men who were men first and the fact that they were attracted to and loved men was secondary.

So when Robert left without a word, Jesse got quiet for quite a few days. The horses noticed and seemed to need a lot more attention from Jesse. That's when Ernie hired two new people. Manuel (Manny) Chavez as manager, and Colin (Cal) Bakewell as assistant manager. They had a group of eight horses fill the stables just then and Ernie needed to make sure they all got the right treatment. It was just after school had started and Jesse seemed to brighten up after getting to know Manny and Cal. Particularly Manny.

Manny was twenty-one and also into weight lifting. He was five foot nine inches tall and two hundred and twenty pounds. Jesse thought Manny was cool cause he would start mucking the stalls half an hour before Jesse got out of school. That meant that Ernie, Manny, Cal, and Jesse could get to pumping iron before the sun set. And this led to Ernie and Cal using the shower in the big house and Manny and Jesse using the Stable hands shower.

While Jesse slowly got the idea that Manny would be all to happy to share a shower with Jesse, Manny always called dibs to use the shower first, or would say " You go first Kid, just let me know when you're done." After eight months of this , Jesse got the nerve to ask if he could share the shower with Manny. Jesse had grown two inches and gained twenty pounds. Manny was getting caught a few times just looking at Jesse while they worked or were weight lifting.

Manny frowned and couldn't say anything for a minute. Jesse waited and reminded himself to be patient. What he was asking could hurt a lot of people, and that's not what he wanted.

Manny said " Kid " and stopped. He started again " Jesse, I've got to stop calling you Kid, but the truth is you still are one. You may not act like one and you sure don't look like a kid. You look real fine to me. I'll never lie about that, to you or anyone else. And those showers you've been missing have been mighty cold ones." He's frowning slightly and he shakes his head , thinking about what and who he would think of while taking his shower.

Jesse frowns a bit now too. He says " The last thing I want is to cause any trouble for Ernie, or the stables, or for you. I realize one little slip or a nosy owner at the wrong time and the people I care about the most would get hurt." He looks down and then into Manny's eyes as he says " But lately I've been thinking about you a lot more than I've thought about anyone in my whole life. I won't treat the way I think about you like it's wrong. The thoughts I have about you; the way I think of you and the way you are, is all good. But anything I do to show you how I feel could end up hurting you. You're older, and I was hoping you knew some way through this."

They both just look at each other for a second and Jesse says " And I was praying you felt the same way about me" His raged smile cut right through Manny's heart and soul.

Manny gave a shaky smile back. He thought ' This Kid is tough. This man is tough, but is he patient enough? Am I tough enough to tell the truth and still go and do the right thing?'

Manny looked down and said " I may be older but I'm not wise enough to know how to set this right. I'm proud of the way you told me. And I promise I will not treat the way I think about you like it's wrong. But I'm going to ask you to promise to keep this a secret between you and me till you're eighteen. Will you promise to keep what I'm about to tell you a secret from everyone, until you're eighteen?"

Jesse has six different emotions stamping through his head, and hope wins out with faith. Jesse's eyes get a little full but he holds back and says " I swear I will tell no one what you are about to tell me. I promise to keep it secret till I'm eighteen. I can't swear what I'll do after I turn eighteen, cause depending on what you say, by then I might want to tell every one in the world."

This gets a chuckle from Manny and he says " Me too." He looks at Jesse and gets serious. He says " Jesse, I will not have sex with you until you are eighteen years old. I've seen how you work around here and If you didn't have school to go to, I'd have told Ernie to make you the manager. I respect the way you love working here." he pauses again.

Then he says" The first thought should be is the minor being hurt. People slide over that when they get the idea the kid was the one who asked for sex. Then they even get farther away with thinking how the adult would be hurt with charges of child abuse. The good people never move away from, is the minor being hurt. There is no way out of the answer. Yes. " He waits for this to set in for just a second, then he says" Your mother is your legal guardian until you are eighteen. At her whim you could be forced to stop working here. She could decide to move somewhere, anywhere else and the law requires you to go with her. She seems like a good mother, but I get the idea that you haven't told her yet."

Jesse shakes his head no. Manny says " With all the good intentions in the world, she could tear all you hope for into little pieces. And be legally right doing it." Manny knew what he had to do and for how long. He needed strength to be able to do what he had to in the next few weeks and the next few years. And while he couldn't and wouldn't lie to Jesse; he would not tell him what his plans were. He prayed there would be forgiveness at the end. Forgiveness from this man the world called a minor.

Manny told Jesse " I have to tell you that I've been doing some praying too. And except for those three little words; what you've told me has answered a lot of them. And just so we are clear on the subject; Jesse Wilson, I love you and I'm in love with you. That said I have to. Oh hell. Is this some kind of cowboy Zen? I love you but I can't do a thing about it?"

Jesse starts to reach for Manny and Manny puts out his arm to stop him for just a moment and his face screws up and he pulls Jesse into a hug and they both are nearly crying. They can't speak for a while and they just hold each other. Manny thinks ' Suck it up; you're going to have a lot of this for the next two years.' Manny says " We're going to get through this. This very minute, I don't know how , but I swear, if you will just trust me and be patient, we will get through this."

Jesse and Manny pull apart a bit and Manny asks Jesse " Will you do that for me? Will you be patient and trust me?"

Jesse sniffles and says " I love you Manny. I trust you and i'll be patient." Manny's forehead touches Jesse's as Manny closes his eyes for a second.

With no conditions given, just his love; Jesse's words gave Manny the strength to do what he had to. He asked Jesse " If you give me permission, I'm going to talk to Ernie about this and see what he says. I'll tell you tomorrow what advice he gives me, and what I think we should do."

Manny lets go of Jesse and says " Go take your shower, I'm going to go up to the big house and talk to Ernie, so I won't see you till tomorrow. Just remember what you promised and remember what I promised. We will get through this patch of heartache. We will be together at the end of it." This got another quick hug from Jesse . Then as they parted Manny ruffled Jesse's hair as Jesse went to take his shower, and Manny went to talk to Ernie.

That was over two years ago and Jesse had not seen or talked to Manny since. Jesse remembers the next day was a sunday. Ernie had given him the letter from Manny in the morning and he couldn't open it. Jesse had asked Where Manny was and Ernie said " Manny wouldn't tell me. He said he would be back in two years, two months and ten days. I honestly never saw Manny cry before last night. He cried while he wrote that letter."

Ernie didn't continue so Jesse had asked " Did Manny tell you why he wrote the letter?"

Ernie nodded yes and said " But he asked me not to tell anyone until he got back."

Jesse thought about promises and asked " Do you know what's in the letter?"

Ernie said " The only thing I know is in the letter is permission for you to talk to me about anything you feel a need to. He told me , everything he needed to tell you was in the letter . He said it was private, but if it wasn't enough or you still needed to talk to someone, he said he gave you permission in the letter to talk to me or Cal. He made me promise to help you if I can, to give you my best advice if I'm able and to keep my nose out of it if that's what you want."

Jesse looked down at the letter with his name on it. He folded it in two and put it in his shirt pocket and buttoned it closed. He put his arms out and Ernie gave him a big hug. Jesse murmured " Thank you, Ernie."

Ernie told him " You're welcome. You gonna be OK today?"

Jesse dragged up a hard smile and said " I'm here to work."

Ernie clapped him on the shoulder and said " Good man. Take a few hours for lunch today."

Jesse just shrugged and said " OK Boss." And then went to work.

The first half of the day had Jesse frustrated. He had never met a more willful horse, than this new painted pony. He couldn't even remember who brought the horse in. The stall had a hand written note clipped on it from Ernie giving the horses name (Eddie), the owners name (Ravena Hand) , and that the horse should be let out with the other stable group and all should be given a run up to the upper meadow just before his lunch and he should take lunch there. The pony proceeded to try and eat the note and then nibble at Jesse crotch. This got Jesse horny but upset.

Jesse told Eddie " That is no way to greet someone you just met. I am having a hard time today, and you could make it a bit better if you go along with the other horses and don't make me" He ran out of steam and just hung his head and leaned on the split stall door. He tried to hold on but it just hurt. He quietly sobbed for a moment and then Eddie reached forward with his head and just put it against Jesse's chest. Jesse held on to Eddie's head for a few minutes and when Jesse calmed down a bit, he could have sworn Eddie was crying too. The horse felt Jesse stop crying and nickered . Eddie pulled away from Jesse and turned in the stall. This particular stall had two doors. Eddie went to the one that lead out to the corral and neatly unlatched the door , opened it, walked out and latched it back. He started to run the circuit of the corral. This of course pissed Tina off since she was always supposed to be the first in the corral. Jesse had a tough time the rest of the morning getting the group calmed down. Each time he tried to get close to Eddie, the willful animal would shake his head and walk away fast enough that Jesse could never get really close to him. Just before lunch, Jesse saddled Tina and pulled one of Ernie's special turkey sandwiches from the stable hands refrigerator. He got a few bottles of gatorade and got the group together. When the other horses in the corral saw Tina with a saddle, they all started to get closer to the gate that lead to the road to the upper meadow. They knew that they would get to go on a good run and have tasty grass in the upper meadow. Jesse thought it was strange that now he was on Tina Eddie wanted to be near him. Tina didn't need to be in charge when she had a rider, but the other horses always waited until she was at a trot before going all out. Eddie didn't follow the other horses racing for the pasture. He kept pace with Jesse and Tina all the way to the upper meadow, and when Jesse took the saddle off Tina, and sat down for his lunch, Eddie got close to Jesse and was leaning on a small stump of a tree. Jesse said " Oh now you want to be near me."

Eddie stopped eating looked at Jesse , nodded his head, and turned on his side. Without crowding Jesse, Eddie was able to lay his head gently onto Jesse's thigh. Jesse had wolfed down half his sandwich before this happened and he set it aside when he said " You lonely too huh?" Eddie gave a little nod and nickered, then gave out a raged sigh.

Jesse noticed Eddie musky horse scent and thought it reminded him of Manny's scent. Well there he went again. Must be time to read the letter. He unbuttoned his shirt pocket and pulled out the letter. He tears open the letter and Eddie's ear turns around towards Jesse.

Jesse asks " Does that mean you want me to read it out loud?" A gentle nod and nicker, but the ear stays pointed at Jesse. Jesse says " OK, but I don't know how much I can read out loud without loosing it."

Manny's letter to Jesse.

Jesse folded the letter and put it back in the envelope. He folded it in half and put it in his shirt pocket and buttoned it up. He started to stroke Eddie's neck. He said" I love you too Manny. I'll be strong, I'll be patient, Please come back"

The rest of the day was uneventful except that Tina would not let Jesse near her. So Jesse saddled Eddie and rode back with the group. None of them wanted to stay once Tina started to leave. Half way back to the stables, Tina decided Jesse had been punished enough and she started walking with Jesse and Eddie. She would nibble at Jesse pants leg to let him know she still loved him too. Jesse read the letter twice again before getting to sleep that night. The next day Eddie was gone before Jesse got to the stable. Ernie just said the owner left the state and wouldn't be back for some time.

Jesse had re-read that letter hundreds of times, and now it was August 14th 2006. He was officially eighteen, a legal adult as of today. He sort of hoped Manny had been at the stable hands bedroom door, waking him up

For the past six months Jesse had been living at the stables in the little mini apartment called the Stable Hands rooms. As he started to feed the horses he caught sight of a note clipped to a stall. It was Eddie! This has to be good luck! Eddie showed up When Manny left. This must mean Manny will be back today! Eddie remembered Jesse and the crazy horse started to poke his nose at the note clipped to the stall. Jesse pulled the note down and read " Dear Jesse, Happy Birthday. The owner let me convince them to let me buy this horse. I now present to you Your own horse Eddie. It is not the only surprise for you so hurry up and feed the horses and come up to the big house for a real breakfast.

Ernie Parson Love ya Son, Happy birthday!"

Jesse shouted "Yeah" Eddie didn't even flinch. Jesse held his head and planted a big kiss on Eddie's head and said

"OK Eddie, You are my horse now, and you are my lucky charm. I'm gonna call you Lucky Eddie. Cause Manny is going to come back today. I just know it." Eddie nodded his head too. Jesse got the horses fed in record time and only lingered over Tina and a chestnut Rangerbred horse called Whipple that had come in two days ago. Then he remembered.

Whipple had appeared three years ago when Robert had left. Whipple stayed a week but left just as mysteriously as Eddie had two years ago. What was stranger was Whipple didn't seem hungry even though the past two days the horse would chow down as soon as the hay or alfalfa was in his bin.

Before Jesse went up to Ernie's home he checked to see if there was anything obvious that could explain lack of appetite. With nothing physical to explain things Jesse made a note in the 'Stable log : Whipple Low appetite, no outward sign of problem except loss of appetite.' Notes like that made sure if a vet was needed they would get the correct information.

Jesse headed for Ernie's place and his second surprise for the day was Cal! Cal's mother had had a heart attack two months ago and he had taken some of his vacation time to help her and make sure his other brothers and sister were going to take care of their mother properly.

Cal was at the door when Jesse came up for breakfast. They hugged and Cal nudged Jesse and whispered " Today's the day"

Jesse asked him real loud, " Cal, have you heard from Manny? Do you know when He's gonna get here?"

Ernie walked into the living room and said" Happy birthday Jesse!" and hugged Jesse and Cal together. Then he said " No more information until after you two fill your bellies. Carmen has made enough for five men, so don't you piss her off by only taking a little spoonful of this and a spoonful of that. Take big bites , Moderation is for monks."

Jesse didn't need telling twice. He got one of the every day serving platters and piled a bit of everything onto the platter. Cal tried to keep up , but at two sixty and Jesse at three eighty, Cal was not ever going to out eat Jesse. But he took enough food to make his stomach feel painfully stuffed. He couldn't help it, Carmen was such a good cook. He looked over at Jesse plate and croaked " Help me" His eyes went to his own plate . There were two pancakes and three sausages left. Call pointed to his plate and nodded yes as if it was a question.

Jesse said " Anything for a friend." Jesse popped the sausage in his mouth and forked the pancakes onto the small puddle of syrup on his own plate. He savored the pancakes in eight bites. Then as if on cue, all three belched loudly. From the other side of the kitchen, just out of sight from the dinning room Carmen called out " You're Welcome!"

Jesse said " Hey where's My Birthday hug? "

Carmen snorted a laugh and said " You know me and birthdays. Can't you guess what I'm doing?"

The three men laughed and said in unison" Wrapping presents!"

Carmen laughed with them and asked " And who's the King of Aluminum Foil?"

Ernie and Jesse said in unison " Robert!" Cal frowned the question at them and Ernie explained. "Jesse and I would always bet on which one would wrap christmas and birthday presents the very last minute; Robert or Carmen."

Jesse cuts in with " I won more back rubs cause I always backed Robert as the present wrapper procrastinator. "

Ernie said " I backed Carmen because she always had so much to do around the holidays and birthdays, she hardly had time to get gifts for those involved, let alone slapping wrapping paper and a bow on it too."

In the kitchen a door softly closed and they could hear Carmen say " Nothings changed , you know where it is."

Jesse heart started to race with the idea that Manny was in the kitchen, but the sound of a drawer opening and the sound of a sheet of aluminum foil being torn from the box, let Jesse heart slow down a bit. He got out of his chair but didn't move

Jesse called out " Carmen, Robert. I'm gonna cry if you two don't come out right now . I could care less about wrapping on a present. I want my Birthday hug from you both!" He put on a fake pout expression, as Carmen came out.

She stopped and said " None of that. No guilt trips. Besides I helped you get another of Ernie's famous deep tissue Back massage. Happy birthday! "

Jesse took the present and immediately put it on the table and scooped Carmen into a bear hug. You could hear some of her lower vertebra pop, like at a chiropractors office. Jesse told her " Thank you Carmen. This is always ten times better than what you wrap up."

She giggled and said " And I always think it's my birthday present when I get a hug from you." He gave her a peck on the cheek, and let her down.

Carmen stepped out of the way, but Robert was still not ready. Ernie shook his head and called out " How long does it really take to slap aluminum foil around a present? "

Robert said " Sorry. I was torn between wrapping the present with or without the box. The first won out." He stopped eight feet away from Jesse. Robert looked at Jesse and shook his head just a little and said " Wow! " softly. He asked " Three hundred and sixty?"

Jesse shook his head no and said " Three- eighty." He threw up his massive right arm and flexed his biceps. Then he said " I blame Ernie's shakes, and Carmen's cooking." He smiled as Robert walked over and gave Jesse a big bear hug. At six foot four inches, three hundred and ten pounds of lean muscle, Robert could still pick up Jesse and give his back a friendly pop. Jesse just slumped after his lower and middle back got cracked.

Robert said into Jesse massive chest " It's a good thing I still work out, or you'd be picking me up."

Jesse let out a sort of nickering sigh and whispered. " I really missed you , Robert."

Robert says just as quietly " I missed you too." They separate and Robert got the aluminum foil covered box he had set down just inside the kitchen. He says " You've come a long way from that skinny kid, using carrot sticks to get the horses to behave."

Ernie said " Hey! you saw that too? I never talked about it. I had to duck back behind the stables to keep from giving myself away."

Robert finished with " Oh, because of Tina!"

Ernie nodded and laughed with Robert.

Jesse was just a little lost. He said " What are you two talking about?" It sounds like a funny story at his own expense but he'll take it in stride. Cal looked curious too.

Ernie said " Just about five years ago, we got Festus an uppity gelding, that drove every other horse to distraction. Even Tina had a hard time . So we put him by his self in the little corral, and Tina gets put into the outdoor stall right next to the little corral. Now Festus knows better than to pester Tina but what he was doing , nipping and bucking and tearing around , would make any adult pause and think before going into the corral with him. Well, I (and now I find out Robert), came upon skinny short Jesse with two carrots in his back pocket and a real long carrot in his hand , and he's wagging it at Festus, while he's lecturing the horse. I can not remember the words spoken, but the impression I took away from Jesse words, was he told Festus what the score was, he told him which horse was in charge ( Tina), he said if he wanted any friends at all he better straighten up and be nice, or he was going to be one lonely horse. "

Robert said " I think there was something about ' If you aren't being good, you don't really think I'll be handing out these carrots do you"?

Jesse said " Oh my god I remember that. Festus was a snot and I got pissed how he disrespected Tina, the easiest horse to get along with."

Ernie told him " What really got me and apparently Robert here tickled , and what you didn't see was the fact that when Festus tried to stretch forward to get the carrot out of your hand, Tina was doing the same thing for the carrots in your pocket."

Robert said " And what ever you said that got Festus to stand at attention again, it got Tina doing the same thing." They all chuckled.

Carmen piped up with " I liked it when somehow you convinced Festus to take the carrot, not eat it himself and actually give it to Tina as a present. You got him to apologize horse style and make nice with Tina. I was so impressed"

Jesse is blushing now and Ernie asked " You saw that too? Why am I hearing about this now and not when I hired him?"

Carmen told him " Cause you did the right thing and made sure he stayed . "

Robert said " Yeah , we would have said something if you hadn't hired him full time."

Jesse said " I never knew Tina was trying to steal the carrots. Or that you guys all thought I should be here. It took a while for me to feel like I belonged here."

Robert says " Aw hell, Jesse . You were family past the second day you were here. You're stuck with us. Even if we all don't stick around like we should."

Jesse and Carmen felt a little weird. No body had ever asked what caused Robert to just move out in one day and go half way across the state to work at another ranch. Ernie had been depressed but never let it show too much.

Ernie held out his hand to Cal and Cal grabbed it. Cal turned his head sideways and nodded yes with a little grin. Ernie said " When Cal came into my life I told him what the situation was with me and Robert. I never did get to telling anyone else why Robert left."

Robert blurted out " Ya snore too loud" Ernie laughs and smiles but looks shocked.

Cal jumps right in with " Does he ever. I gotta get him to go to sleep on his side and then I sorta pin him that way and then he's quiet as a mouse."

Carmen is just looking at Cal and says " Thank you Cal. A tad more than we needed but, thanks."

Ernie looked a little hurt now as he says " I don't snore."

Robert and Cal both gave a snorting kind of laugh. Robert looked at the ceiling and Cal covered his mouth , tipped his head down and looked up at Ernie while stroking his chin. You could call it an ' Oh really' kind of look.

Ernie didn't last long. He said " I don't snore that loud." Now Carmen gets into it with a " Ha!"

Ernie turns to her and says " You too?"

Carmen smiles and says " Ernie there were times before Cal came when I couldn't get back to sleep. You would get the paneling in the hallways vibrating. In the hallway!"

Ernie backed down just a tiny bit but said " Not that loud. " more like a question than a statement.

Carmen was not backing down at all. She said " In the Hallway!"

Ernie muttered " Sorry."

Carmen said " Forgiven" But she told Cal "While you were gone, I had to get up every third night and knock on his door and say turn over. Then I could get some sleep. You aren't going anywhere, understood?"

Cal said " Yes Ma-am."

There was a little pause and Robert said " Just so we get this out in the open. I was happy with Ernie, snoring and all. But the work I had around here made me feel useless. Ernie and I had met at a steeple competition. I had been Jumping and assisting people who competed in horse jumping. But when I got here, there were no courses close by and my sweet horse that lived for jumping couldn't get what she needed. I couldn't do that to her and I sold her to a really good student. The kid went on to the nationals with her. Then after three years of no jumping I started to get depressed. Ernie tried to see what he could do to help, but the kind of requirements for training and maintaining a course you could really teach students on was way out of our budget."

Ernie said " I had even contacted the bank to see what kind of loan I could get with the forest as collateral. The bank wanted to buy the forest but wouldn't think about using it for collateral on a loan."

Carmen, Jesse and Cal are shocked. The forest had been in Ernie's family for over a hundred years. there was a small tribe of native americans that would come through twice a year and perform private rituals in the forest. Ernie's family had always participated with the tribe. When the state sold the forest to Ernie's family they turned around and wrote up a document giving the tribe the right to perform what ever religious rituals they needed to when ever they wished, in perpetuity. The idea that Ernie would risk the loss of the forest was shocking.

Robert spoke up and said " I nipped that in the bud. No way was I gonna let Ernie risk losing that forest. I stopped complaining ." Ernie cut in with " You never complained" Robert said " I felt like I was. Anyway we went to some competitions and met some guys with the capital to make a fine course and stable for teaching. They remembered me from years ago and saw me and Ernie and asked if I could take some time off to design a course and training facility."

Ernie said " It had been his dream for as long as he could ride and jump. I told the guys that it just so happened that Robert was going to take a long vacation from my stables and he could design the finest course in the state if they took him on. I knew what it would do to us but love means giving up sometimes. You let go and you get something back"

Ernie's hand had never left Cal's and they were both smiling at each other.

Robert said " I kept in touch with Ernie and I was so tickled when he called me one day to talk about this new kid he hired, name of Cal. He told me three stories of what Cal had gone through as a rodeo clown, and other jobs he had. It did my heart good to hear Ernie in love again. And it got me to really start looking at the younger brother who hired me for the design job. We've been together for two and a half years now."

Ernie said " Then Cal and Robert got to talking over the phone once a week about their significant others. I couldn't complain cause Robert had a few little tricks up his sleeve that I had been missing for a while. When Cal suddenly started doing things only Robert had done before , I had to thank them both for thinking about me like that. You know you're really loved when your lover pumps your ex for information on how to please you."

Carmen says " Sometimes just knowing they asked is good enough to please me."

Jesse told Robert and Cal " It's good to see both of you. Cal's Mom got sick and his brother and sister acted like he was the only one who should look after her. He's been gone for two months. Ernie's been channeling all his energy into working me like a dog in the weight room. Now Cal's back I can take a break."

Cal laughed and said " Yeah right. It just means you get two of us pushing you to work harder."

Ernie said " But not today. For today I've scheduled us to help participate around noon with Painted Horse and his sons and grandsons. You're family Jesse and today you become a runner in the forest. Just like Robert did eight years ago and Cal did three years ago." Jesse couldn't believe it. He pushed back his chair and by the time he got to him, Ernie was out of his chair and hugging Jesse back.

Jesse is blown away. He says " I never even thought of asking. Thank you Ernie." He looks like he's thinking of something. They part and Jesse asks " Do I need to prepare somehow?"

Ernie says " Nope. Though we do want to talk to you about the ritual, there's very little that you need to know for you to get through it OK."

Carmen said " Before you boys get going I want to see Jesse open his presents. He'll get his cake tonight, but for now, sit and tear paper."

Jesse grinned and obeyed. He opened her's first and found an ornate bronze statue of a centaur. But the human body part looked like Jesse with all his huge muscles and the horse part looked like a clydesdale. It was a good fifteen inches tall and anatomically correct.

Jesse said " So that's why Dennis took those pictures three months ago. This is just incredible. Thank you Carmen, and please thank Dennis too,"

Carmen says " You're welcome! Happy birthday"

Jesse tips it upside down and notices the cock on the statue was rather large though not erect. " I don't know If I should be modest and say he was being kind or outraged that he took photos of me in the shower."

Carmen said " Now you're bragging." she paused cause the statue got Jesse to tent up just a little. Then she looked at Ernie and said " Or not." and the men chuckled.

The next present was from Robert and it turned out to be an ornate halter and some Silver spurs. Jesse said "Thanks Robert, this will go with Ernie's gift. Ernie I forgot to say it this morning , but Thank you for Eddie. The first time I saw him was just after Manny left and I thought he was gonna be just like Festus. But he turned out to be real good to all the other horses and sweet to ride. Thanks Ernie."

Ernie said " You're welcome Happy birthday son." Jesse and Ernie got up and hugged again

Carmen said " You boys go out and play while I clean dishes. And have a good time in the forest. High water and her daughters are going to help with dinner. Ernie already made about twelve of his special sandwiches and their in the refrigerator in the stable. We'll see you men around sunset."

Jesse hugged her again and said " Thank you ."

She gave him a peck on the cheek and said " Have fun." and she got to washing dishes as the men headed out to the stables.

Jesse invited them into the front room of the stable hands apartment. Ernie looked around and said " The ritual that goes on has ben handed down from european traditions that the Indians adopted when they adopted horses. Through a spanish family fleeing the Inquisition in europe, they came to mexico and promptly headed north as far as they could get with some of the finest horses of the time. The family was not originally spanish. They were more closely associated with Gypsies. And in return for a safe place to raise their horses and share their horses , the indians took them into their tribe. These native americans knew people of power when the saw them , and knew that as part of the tribe , they would be safe from the europeans. "

Jesse was taking this in and just then Ernie pulled out an old flask of some liquor. Ernie said " This has some alcohol in it , but it's the herbs and powders that Painted Horse steeps in the alcohol that causes the change. It has been passed down , father to father. for at least seven hundred years. The family story says it started in ancient Greece but no sure proof remains. Only what the drink causes to happen." Jesse was getting a little uncomfortable.

Jesse asked " What change? What does it do?"

Cal says " We should go out to Eddies stall and we can show you better than just tell you."

Robert says " It is easier watching it happen and believing , than just working on faith that it's the truth."

Ernie says as they all head to Eddies stall " Besides the best present you're gonna get to day is in Eddies stall."

Jesse jogs over to the stall thinking Manny is in there with Eddie. But Eddie is alone. Jesse face falls as he turns back to the three men and Eddie starts to nibble at Jesse crotch.

Robert says " Thats a frisky little horse you got there."

Eddie keeps on playing with Jesse crotch and now he's laughing a bit cause it sort of turned him on. Jesse says " I thought Manny would be in there with Eddie. Hey stop that Eddie that tickles." to stop him Jesse grabs his head and Eddies lips still fiddle with Jesse dick. Jesse mutters " Persistent little fuck aren't you. What would you do if you got my pants off anyway."

The next thing Jesse knows Eddie has pulled his head away from Jesse and is jerking his head back and forth like a shudder and nickering like he's struggling with something.

Jesse says " Eddie! what's wrong with him? "

Before he can get the door open Ernie stops him and says " Nothing is wrong, Just let him get through the change." Jesse stares at Eddie twisting and shuddering and now Jesse sees that parts of Eddie are changing. His hooves are thinning out and splitting into five digits a piece. And his Muzzle is shortening. along with his legs and body. Eddie sits down with a thump and the word " Ow" comes out of his throat.

Jesse says " Eddie?!" then he looks at Ernie and asks " Is this Eddie?"

Ernie says " Eddie is just a nick name he got in high school cause he was so fast playing football." Jesse turns back to see Eddie's coloring even ing out to a light brown, as the hair disappears from most of his body. Jesse opens the door now and Ernie lets him go in. The figure that Jesse sees is getting closer and closer to the one he's dreamed about for two years.

Jesse kneels down and reaches out to hold a bigger looking version of Manny. His face and ears still had horse influence, along with his dick. But as Manny's face pulled back into a human one and his ears were now on the sides and not the top; his dick stopped shrinking, cause he was very horny. That was due to Jesse holding him like he was.

Manny looked into Jesse eyes and smiled . He said " Hey k. I was going to call you kid but you're bigger than me. You look so huge"

Jesse has a goofy grin on his face and his cock is fighting his jeans so bad the buttons look like they are going to pop. Jesse looks at Manny's very hard , very long dick and says " You think I'm big? Look at you!" and with that Jesse grabs Manny's enormous erection.

Manny says " I have been waiting for you to be able to do that to me for over two years." Manny gets frisky and starts to unbutton Jesse's pants. Just then Ernie and the boys chuckle and Ernie starts to close the door. Ernie says " We'll just let you two open you're presents in private. If you two want to pull any of us into it you'll have to come to your apartment. Besides that's where Manny's clothes are anyway. Have fun!"

Jesse said " Thank you Ernie." He turns to look right at Ernie's disappearing head and Ernie looks back as Jesse says " Thank you poppa."

Ernie looks real proud and says "You're welcome son."

The door closes and Manny literally rips the jeans off Jesse.

It shocks Manny as well as Jesse. They both look into each others eyes and get real serious. Manny grabs Jesse and pulls him into a hug, and Manny is almost crying when he says. " Please forgive me. I couldn't look at your face and be able to say good bye. I'm sorry, but I love you and I couldn't let myself even get close to hurting you. I didn't want to lose you forever." Jesse was sniffling too .

Jesse just held him tight and said " I knew you'd come back. I knew you really loved me. I thought about you every day. I'm sure I scared a client or two when I missed you so much I bent from the pain. This one lady saw that happen twice and she asked Ernie if I was coming down with something." His face lit up as he got another look at Manny.

Manny smiled too. He said " Ok there's the sunshine I really missed. That smile was what I dreamed about. Thinking it would be there on your eighteenth birthday was what got me through all those months away from you."

Jesse hugs him again and said " Just thinking of you back here was what got me through it."

Manny softly says into Jesse neck" So you do forgive me?"

Jesse draws back and says " I'll say the words, 'I forgive you' cause I see you have to hear them. But for me I always thought that there would be nothing to forgive you for , If you came back to me."

That was something that deserved a long drawn out Kiss. And Manny got their first one started right then. While Jesse never kissed anyone like this before; he knew he liked kissing when it included kissing Manny. Manny ripped Jesse shirt in two with his help and the rest of the pants were gone. Jesse started to stroke Manny's huge erection and Manny started to explore Jesse mighty erection. Jesse sat onto the Horse blanket that Manny had been wise enough to lay down on the floor before he changed into a horse. Now that their buts were on the same level Manny could see that Jesse dick was as long or even maybe a little bit longer than his.

Manny breaks the kiss to say " Ya Huge old Stallion. Look at you. You are bigger than me , and I'm as big as a horse"

Jesse said " I like your size just fine. " He reaches down and starts to lick Manny's dick as it pumps out some precum. He says " Tastes like mine. The last year and a half I've gotten so big everywhere I can even give myself head."

Manny says " Aww, but it's your birthday. I wanted to be the first to give you head Jesse. Ya beat me to it. " Manny tips Jesse dick over and into his mouth. Jesse had gotten back to licking and then sucking Manny's big boner.

Neither young buck could take this attention for very long. They both started to speed up their stroking and within moments both were filling the others belly with liquid love.

When they pulled the last drop up to the tip of their dicks. they both sighed. Jesse leaned back and pulled Manny with him. Manny said as Jesse arms folded around him " I always knew I'd feel this good being held in your arms."

Jesse told him " You know I'm holdin the best birthday present I've ever been given. " He shifts to see his face as he tells Manny " I love you Manny. I knew the clouds would go away someday. I knew you would come back."

Jesse heard the words he always heard in his head but had not heard from Manny. Manny told him " Jesse I love you. I had to come push those clouds away. My sunshine. It's a corny song but it says what my heart feels. You are my sunshine."

They go at another good long kiss and lose track of time.

There was a light tapping on the stall door and Ernie said " Sorry to interrupt , but we have a ceremony to get to. Painted Horse is here. Jesse , you won't need to put any clothes on."

Jesse and Manny gave each other a quick little kiss and Jesse went and opened the door.

Painted Horse stood next to Ernie and smiled at the man opening the door. He said " Jesse you are already part horse I see. Do you wish to share the freedom and power of the Horse?"

Jesse bowed his head a bit and said " Yes I do, Painted Horse."

Manny walked over to Jesse's side and asked " Jesse, will you be my rider? Will you trust me to lead you to where we become one Herd?"

Jesse put his left hand on Manny's shoulder and said " I trust you with my life, and my heart and my soul."

It was like Manny grew a foot taller, he was so proud of Jesse. He put his right hand on Jesse's hand and turned to Painted Horse and said " I will guarantee this Young Bucks worthiness to be part of the herd, with my very soul. I know he will make our herd stronger. May I carry him to the gathering of the herd?"

Painted Horse smiled and said " Yes Manny, Eddie may carry this Young Buck to the Gathering of the Herd. You may take on the Change.

Ernie handed a flask to Jesse as Manny walked a few feet away and got on all fours. Ernie said " Drink all of this and join with us Brother. At the gathering of the Herd you will be asked a few questions. Answer truthfully and with all your heart and you will be brought into the Herd. Do you wish to be part of the herd?"

Jesse said " Yes. " Ernie nodded at the flask.

Ernie said " Drink, Brother. Begin the journey to the Herd."

Jesse drank the whole thing in one gulp. He was smiling as he handed the flask back to Ernie. Jesse looked over at Manny but Eddie was almost all there by now. Then Whipple, Robert's horse form walked over to the stall door and then Bilbo, Cal's horse form ambled up. Bilbo was a big Shire horse, Black with white muzzle, spats and feather. He was seventeen hands high, and had a deep bass nicker.

Jesse looked at Bilbo and said " Cal?"

Ernie said " Call goes by the name Bilbo when he's a horse."

Jesse smiled and said " Bilbo ". the horse nodded his head twice then nudged Jesse over to Eddie.

Painted Horse had already taken his clothes off and said " Young Buck. You and I will be the only humans riding to the Gathering. I will ask you questions, and If the Herd approves, then we will both change together into our Horse form. On our ride over to the gathering of the Herd you must think of the name you wish to be known as , in horse form. When the time comes you will say that name, but not before."

Ernie was already half way to horse and Painted Horse walked over and opened the door to the corral.

Jesse was shocked to see over fifty horses in the corral and the road to the upper meadow. The corral gate was latched open. When the Horses saw Jesse they all nickered or whinnied. This got a big grin on Jesse's face. He knew that for a horse welcome.

Ernie was now a chestnut brown Morgan horse, fourteen hands high. Painted Horse said " Shep" and Ernie walked over. Painted Horse was on Shep's back in an instant and Jesse followed his example by leaping lightly onto Eddie's back.

Without a word Painted Horse and Shep lead the Herd, with Jesse and Eddie close behind. They had a fine ride to the upper meadow, and the Horses arranged themselves in a circle. Jesse and Painted Horse got down and while Shep moved to the circle, Eddie stood by Jesse's side.

Painted Horse shouted " The Herd is gathered!"

The horses made a loud neighing sound that sent goosebumps up and down Jesse's arms and legs. It was a powerful sound. One herd united.

Painted Horse loudly said " We are here to gather one more into the fold."

Painted Horse looked at Jesse with a serious look as he said " Who will guarantee this Young Bucks worthiness to be part of the Herd?"

Eddie whinnied and stepped forward. He bowed to Painted Horse and looked at Jesse.

Then Painted Horse said " And who will Stand by this Young Buck? "

First Shep and Whipple and Bilbo stepped forward. Then every single horse in the Herd stepped forward . Jesse thought he was going to cry. He had never felt so wanted before.

Painted Horse was smiling even though he wasn't supposed to. He asked Jesse " Will you lay down your life for the safety of the Herd?"

Jesse stood tall and threw out his chest as he said " I will lay down my life for the safety of the Herd."

This made Painted Horse stand taller. He asked " And will you live for the strength of the Herd?"

Jesse said " I will."

Painted Horse walked over to a boulder and lifted two bridles. He came back and told Jesse " Tell the Herd the name you wish to be known by as a horse and put the bridle on." then he said "Swift Wind" He handed one to Jesse and put the other one in his own mouth.

Jesse said " Bud " and put the bit in his mouth and the bridle over his head.

Painted horse held his hands and started to chant but after the first sound of chanting Jesse couldn't hear anything else Painted horse said. The other horses got closer until they were all together , just like any other herd. As Painted Horse stopped chanting, Jesse could hear a final syllable and then Painted horse let go of Jesse hands.

Jesse doubled over with a mild stomach cramp and then the change took over. Afterwards he couldn't tell if it really hurt or not. His bones shifted and grew, his skin changed and his head lengthened. His eyesight got a little weird and his sense of smell got much much better.

He could smell the Herd now and his own scent mixed with it. He could tell he was part of the Herd now. And he could tell he was one of the larger horses in the herd.

Jesse became Bud, a Clydesdale stallion; light brown with a white muzzle, spats and feather, eighteen hands high.

Suddenly the bridle on Bud was gently tugged . Bud looked over and saw this beautiful paint, light brown with white patches, let go of the rein. Eddie rubbed his head against Bud's huge neck. Eddie was only fourteen hands high, but Bud felt like he was a giant. That's how much love Bud had for Eddie.

Eddie started to sniff at Buds gigantic cock. Then lick and nip at it. It didn't take long for Bud to get the idea to do the same to Eddie. They weren't alone. Other pairs started to either do what Eddie and Bud were doing ( a mild sort of sixtey-nine sex play) all the way up to fully mounting each other and humping for all they're worth.

Painted Horse was a grand father and happy with the woman he married, but Swift Wind , a white pinto with brown and black spots, and fourteen hands high, was under Whipple who was fifteen hands high, and humping away slow but sure.

Just then Eddie was able to get a good portion of Bud's dick down his throat. Eddies sucking action caused Bud to lose it. He couldn't concentrate on anything but bucking his hips forward. Eddie never let up and ended swallowing every last drop of horse seed Bud pumped out. All four of Buds legs were quivering by the time he had finished pumping all his cum into Eddie.

Eddie didn't stop when there was no more cum. He simply started to lick Bud's shrinking shaft and balls. Bud started to nip at Eddies but which got Eddie to stop long enough for Bud to start doing what Eddie had done for him.

Bud liked the taste of Eddie and Eddie let out very loud nickering and then neighing sounds as Bud sucked on Eddie's big ol cock. Within fifteen minutes, Eddie was pumping and bucking his love into Bud. they took a break after that and just stood head to head, smelling each other and rubbing noses.

Ernie walked up naked as a jay bird and started to rub Bud down. Ernie said " Now you get to see what this really feels like. I don't know how many times you've done this for the horses at our stable." Bud nickers and gets a hold of Ernie's big flopping dick, and starts to suck it out straight."

Ernie says " Whoa now. You are going to get my lover mad at me."

Just then Bilbo walks up and starts to nibble and lick at Ernie's but and ass.

Ernie starts to laugh and say " Now you're makin me feel like it's my birthday."

The horses in earshot all nickered a laugh and ambled over and started to lick at wherever they could reach on Ernie. This was their way of honoring the owner of the forest, and their fine friend.

Ernie got louder and louder as Bud got a good rhythm going and Bilbo got his big ol tongue further up Ernie's but. Ernie was saying " Oh God, Oh yes!, Oh God! Oh yes! , yes, yes, yes."

Then Ernie came about as long as he had when he was in horse form. By the time he finished, Bud had pulled off Ernie's massive dick and Bud was just licking the tip and then Ernie's belly.

Ernie said when he caught his breath " You sneaky son, I never knew you wanted a little fun with me." Bud points his head over at Eddie who is right by Buds side.

Ernie says " Oh, I get it. Now that you have your heart back, you feel a need to share all that love, Huh?"

Bud and Eddie start to nod yes and then rub each others head. Ernie walks over and grabs both their heads and plants a big kiss on top of them both. He says " I love you both too. I'm so glad you're back together."

Ernie smiles , then he gets serious and says " This change will last until sundown, and then you will feel how to change back as it happens. The next time you want to change into a horse, Manny will be able to help you change into a horse and back into a human. Once you've gone through the change two times you will always be able to do it yourself."

Ernie turns to Bilbo and says " And now I have a beautiful Shire horse patiently waiting for me to be able to take his massive horse cock, so I will see you back at the stables at sunset."

And with that, Ernie turned back into a horse named Shep, and Bilbo snaked his big ol cock into the happy end of Shep. Eddie liked that idea and rubbed his rear up under Bud's head and chest. Bud got the idea and reared up as he danced forward and his massive horse cock eased into Eddies rear end. Both Horses started to make some loud very happy horse sounds. It turned out they were the last to gallop down to the stables as the sun set.

In the twilight most of the others had already changed into the Native americans, or the few single farmers that were around the county. Bud recognized about eight of the european style faces. And of course Painted Horse and his three sons and seven grandsons. And of course There was Ernie and Cal and Robert. Twelve more were caucasian and the other twenty or so were the members of Painted Horse's tribe.

Eddie and Bud stand before them and just as quickly as the change to horse; the change back to human took the same time. There was little or no pain this time. Jesse stands up and hugs Manny. He looks out on the happy accepting faces of the herd in human form. Jesse looks down into Manny's loving face and then up at all the other faces. His smile is threatening to take his head off at the grin. He shakes his head and yells out for all to hear " I'm so happy I really don't know what to say. I love you" He said this to them all.

This got a few chuckles, and many said " We love you little brother."

Then Jesse looked into Manny's eyes and said " I love you Manny."

Manny said " I love you Jesse. " Just before they got lost in another kiss. A mild cheer went up and someone wrapped a blanket around them. A few patted them both and said " We missed ya too Manny."

Ernie and Cal stood by them . They had already put their pants on. Ernie said " Manny I couldn't be more proud of you. You did the right thing, when it was the hardest thing to do. And You Jesse. You just worked through the pain. Ya never came crying to me, though you were welcome to. And even though there were times I caught ya crying and never let ya know I caught you. You both held onto the faith that this day would come. And I was honored this morning when ya called me poppa. I've thought of you as my son for some time now. I know I couldn't have had better sons, than you both. I love you two, and I'm so glad you're part of the Herd now."

Jesse and Manny pull Ernie and then Cal into a big hug. The best gift of all is to know who your family is and to be able to show them how much you love them. It's icing on the cake when you know how much you're loved.

Jesse and Manny walked behind Ernie and Cal. Jesse finally got to share the shower with Manny , and it was well worth the wait. In the years that followed Manny came to agree with Jesse that the birthday hugs were ten times better than the other gifts. And in particular, Manny enjoyed helping Ernie give Jesse his winnings from the bet about Robert and Carmen. With so much muscle on Jesse it really took two people to give him a good massage. Manny found out later that night and for the rest of his life, that giving Jesse a good All over massage meant he got the same kind of massage a very short time later.

If this was a fairy tale I would end it with And they lived happily ever after, but its not a fairy tale. The truth of this tale is that they lived and loved happily together, for the rest of their lives. And I wish the same for you, kind reader and for your loved ones.

The End