In the afternoon.

We piled back in the van and drove away, Phyllis called Sherry on the phone to let her know we were on our way back. Phyllis offered to pick up lunch for all of us. We pulled through Zaxbys and got chicken sandwiches.

We sat around Sherry's table eating and talking. Jared had returned outside, and Freddie had retired to the living room to play with Rob's Playstation. Rob was away at baseball practice, but Sherry said she was expecting him home soon.

Sherry and Phyllis chatted about the fact that we were looking down the barrel of a six-month minimum in diapers. "That's an awful lot of diapers isn't it?" Sherry asked.

"Yes, thank god for disposables too. I'd hate to have to wash cloth."

"Tell me about it. Since it's going to be at least until Christmas before they're out of diapers you should consider letting me modify their clothes a bit to make diapering a bit easier, after all I don't have any projects going right now."

"That's a great idea! I'll get them some clothes this afternoon, if you don't mind watching them while I go shopping? What all will I need to buy?"

The two mothers started compiling a shopping list. Greg and I had decided to go watch some TV, and were told to go watch in Robs room so Freddie could play games on the big screen. We were watching the Sci-Fi Channel when Rob came home. Without looking up Sherry yelled towards the door "Rob, go upstairs right now and change out of those filthy clothes." Rob entered his room and said hi to us. Apologizing as he stepped in front of the TV to get some clothes from his dresser. Without modesty Rob stripped off his baseball uniform which he kicked to the corner of his room. He said he was going grab a shower and started to offer us the bathroom before doing so when he realized that we probably wouldn't be needing it urgently anyway.

Rob returned wearing nothing but boxers. I was a little envious of that and thought for a moment that maybe he was rubbing it in, but still he didn't seem like the type. He retrieved a pair of shorts off of the floor, which he slipped on, the cuffs of his boxers hanging below the legline of the shorts. He grabbed a tank top that was laying across the back of his chair and put it on. Rob asked "How'd it go at the doctors?"

Greg told him that we were both okay, but would probably be in diapers at least six months if not forever.

"That's sucks major big time! I feel for you guys."

"My mom got us all lunch, you have a sandwich downstairs if you're hungry."

"Cool, whad'ya get?"

"Zaxbys," Greg said, and Rob quickly exited in search of the proffered food (I think he must have like Zax's spicy chicken as much as I do).

Rob returned with Spicy Chicken in hand and in between mouthfuls asked, "where's your mom headed?"

"Don't really know, your mom volunteered to do some sewing. I have no idea what were in for but mom needed to do some shopping anyways, so she went to pick up some stuff."

Rob stifled a chuckle. "You gonna be over for the next few days?"

"Yeah."

"Cool, Tomorrow we can all go over the shack. I've got some bottle rockets and stuff stashed back there."

We passed the afternoon watching TV and we played a little poker. We had been on a real big poker kick so far this summer, raiding Rob's change jar for playing pieces. I ended up just ahead by about 35 cents, but then everyone else ended up with more than they started with, too.

Greg's mom returned and dropped off a couple of bags for Sherry. Promising to drop us off by 9 the next morning she herded us boys back into the van and took us home. I had ended up in the front seat this time instead of Greg. The sun felt great coming in through the windshield, contrasting with the cool air of the AC. The thrum of the engine lulled me into wool gathering and maybe I dozed off. The next thing I was aware of was the deceleration of the van as it pulled in the Gregerson's driveway.

Phyllis had us each grab a bag or two from the back of the van to carry inside. I had two grocery bags that I delivered to the kitchen. The doorbell rang, disturbing the placid sounds of the just arrived in house. It startled me but somehow I managed not to drop the groceries.

"I'll get it!" Freddie called out as he tossed his burden (which consisted of only a gallon of milk) onto the kitchen table.

"Todd, would you mind putting those in the pantry for me please?" Phyllis asked as she passed by carrying our diaper bag and one of those super jumbo boxes of Tide.

"Sure thing, Mrs. G," I replied.

"Thank you Todd, I wish my own kids listened as well as you do," she said as she put the diaper bag down and headed towards the laundry room.

I turned my attention back to the pantry and started to put the items away. I only had to look a couple of times for the correct place to put things. I knew the Gregerson's kitchen almost as well as my own. I smiled at the box of Jasmine rice, which probably meant we were going to get red beans and rice for dinner soon. Phyllis made the best red beans and rice in the whole world, or so I was convinced. I was putting the last of the dry goods up when Freddie and his friend Derek came into the kitchen.

"Mom! Mom!" Freddie yelled until he realized she wasn't there.

"Where's my mom?" Freddie asked.

"She went to the laundry room," I told him.

I noticed Derek was looking at me funny, all wide-eyed and gawky. It took me a second to realize my fear from this morning had come to pass. It must have happened when I was putting some stuff on the top shelf. My shirt had ridden up and instead of settling back down like a good shirt it had came to rest on the top of my plastic pants.

"Don't shout like that Freddie, I'm right here," Phyllis interjected as she entered the room.

I adjusted my shirt and made a quick exit, heading off to find Greg. I never much cared for Derek, I've always thought he was a bit of a brat, and I damn sure hated him seeing my diapers.

"Mom can Derek spend the night tonight?" Freddie asked plaintively.

Just say no. I pleaded with Phyllis silently in my mind as I hurried down the hall. My luck was poor because Phyllis agreed that Derek could stay as long as it was okay with his folks. Shit! That little prick will be here all night and Greg and I will have to tolerate him. Oh well, life sucks sometimes.

I caught up with Greg as he was coming back down stairs carrying two laundry baskets stacked precariously on top of each other.

"Grab one of these, man, it feels like the top one's gonna fall," he asked me as he tried not to drop the loads of clothes.

I grabbed the top woven plastic basket and did a 180 and followed Greg back through the kitchen to the laundry room. Immediately upon entering, Freddie and Derek, whom had both sat down at the kitchen table, shut up in mid-sentence. They had been talking too low to overhear, but gauging from their sudden silence they had probably been talking about me or more to the point my diapers. We took the baskets to the laundry room and went back into the kitchen. Maybe it was just my paranoia, but the diaper rustle coming from Greg and myself had increased to about the rumble of thunder. Greg sat down, and when I sat down I noticed how wet my diaper had become, my weight forcing some of the fluid out of the diaper.

Mrs. Gregerson came into the kitchen, almost as if on cue. Maybe it's just a `mom' thing, but she seems like she has some kind of diaper radar. "Todd, Gregg, you boys doing okay? If you need anything I'll be in the den," she said, trying her best at discretion.

"I do, I'm soaked!" Greg fired out without the slightest bit of hesitation.

"Well okay then, grab the diaper bag and come on." She apparently felt that discretion was a wasted effort in light of her son's coarseness.

"Where's it at?"

"I set it near the table earlier on my way to the laundry room," She said scanning the area, which prompted us all to look around.

"Is this it, Mrs. Gregerson?" Derek said innocently as he retrieved the bag from the floor near his chair. The little brat knew it was. The bag wasn't even zipped up and there were several perfectly folded white disposables near the top. Derek's eyes were alive with evil glee; you could tell it was taking all his thirteen years worth of self- control to not out-and-out smirk. I didn't know which would be worse, admitting I needed a diaper change by trudging downstairs to the den or sitting there in the company of a self-satisfied little fink. What the hell, he knows anyway, I thought as I reluctantly followed Greg and Phyllis

Phyllis laid out the changing mat while Greg fumbled with his belt. His pants got to his ankles when he realized his shoes needed to come off, too. He spent an awkward moment bent over trying to get his shoes untied. Finally his shoes and jeans were off, and he was being changed. Being the smart one of the group I took the time to get my shoes off first and by the time she was done with Greg my pants were off, too.

She finished me up quickly, and like Greg, she did not replace my plastic pants, instead declaring that they had probably seen enough action for one day. She took our jeans from the floor and handed them to me, giving me instructions to add them to the washer as she had just started a load of denim.

In the evening

Dinner came and went, fish sticks. Yippie! Who wanted dumb old red beans and rice when you could have compressed `almost fish'? I know I shouldn't complain, the hospitality of the Gregersons was extremely generous and all, but I had hoped something would go my way. The box of rice must have been bought for the soul purpose of taunting me. Well, maybe not, but you never know.

After dinner we found ourselves watching TV in Greg's room as Phyllis had commandeered the big screen for the purpose of watching some tearjerker `Drama.' Us four boys watched `I Still Know What You Did Last Summer', which surprised me as being better than the first one. I did get some small satisfaction in knowing that Freddie and Derek were both scared at several points. That fact, along with my natural leanings towards mischief, got my devious mind rolling over a way to get back at Derek for being, well Derek.

After the movie we decided we were going to play Clue. While I was setting up the board Greg went downstairs to get us a bag of chips and some Cokes. He returned few moments later, still pantless (I had at least fetched a pair of shorts.) I had dibs on Plum, Greg played Col. Mustard, and Freddie quickly laid claim to Mr. Green. Poor Derek was left having to choose from Miss White or Mrs. Peacock (Miss Scarlet was missing from the set.) I won twice in a row, making me feel somewhat better about the day. Phyllis came upstairs and told us all to get ready for bed, adding that she would change Greg and I while Freddie and Derek brushed their teeth. Phyllis took some extra time making sure to apply baby oil thoroughly to our diaper areas. She also applied a diaper rash cream to both of us explaining that it was just preventative at this point. We were freshly changed into overnight diapers and pull-on style plastic pants when we were ourselves sent to brush our teeth. As the guest bathroom upstairs was usually shared by Greg and Freddie it had a double vanity, allowing us to both brush at once. It looked odd seeing both of us in the mirror and realizing we were both standing around in nothing but diapers. Rinse and spit. I turned around and started to leave when I saw it. I was mortified to see our plastic pants had been hung up on the shower rod to dry. Talk about feeling like a toddler. Greg noticed I had stopped.

"What's up?" he asked.

I just pointed.

"Isn't that what your supposed to do with them?" He asked as if having plastic pants drying in the bathroom were the most natural thing in the world.

I couldn't think of anything to say so I just headed off to our room. Freddie and Derek were there too, watching Leno, they were both there in just their underwear. Fate would have it that Derek was wearing blue boxer briefs and the plastic pants I had put earlier were also blue. I, of course chose not to comment on yet another example of life rubbing my nose in the irony that exists in all things Todd. Greg came in right behind me and told them, "get out, guys, Mom said we had to crash."

"Like your going to sleep anytime soon," Freddie said.

"Not so loud, numb nuts, if she hears you she'll yell at all of us."

"Ah, come on, man, just let us stay for a while. I don't have a TV in my room."

"Okay, just don't get us busted."

We turned the volume down low and turned the lights out. Soon enough, Freddie went back to his room and brought back a big quilt and two pillows. I silently smiled at the fact that he and Derek must still be spooked from the movie. Maybe there is justice after all, and maybe I could help it along. I thought. My mind returned to my plans of a prank, but try as I might I just couldn't come up with anything worth doing and I myself drifted off to sleep.

In the wee hours

I woke up in a cold sweat and I was sure something was wrong. I felt really creepy and I knew I was being watched. I scanned the room, surprised at how easy it was to see in the pale illumination provided by the moonlight coming in through the window. Greg was not in his bed, and I saw no sign of Freddie or Derek. I slid off the bed and flinched at the sound of my diaper crinkling, I made a mental note to remember it's hard to be stealthy while wearing a diaper. Movement caught my eye and I spun to see the door to room move just a hair and stop, it was almost but not quite closed.

I crossed the room to the door and reached for the knob to pull it open. I hesitated to grasp it because I knew there was something bad on the other side; it wasn't just fear but rather awareness. It took all my will power to tug at the knob. The door tried to will itself shut, yet I pulled enough to bring it open in a slow motion arc. I don't know weather I smelt it first or saw it, but I was assaulted by the sudden urge to vomit. Blood covered the walls and the floor even making small puddles in the carpet where the concentration was high.

I heard a whisper of sound coming from the downstairs,. TSK TSK. I was drawn toward the curving staircase. Grabbing abjectly on to the banister I recoiled as I realized it had little bits of gristle and flesh clinging to its surface. I slowly descended unable to stop myself, my fear was mounting with each step. The hair on my body was standing on end and with each step I felt the thick air moving around me. TSK TSK.. The rhythmic sound drawing me forward. I sensed that he was down, down there waiting, watching, listening and smiling.

I saw him silhouetted in the foyer, the gray man. I could make out no feature, no hint of definition, just his shape. He waited patiently for me to approach and I heard him chuckle as I reached the landing.

"Hello child," I heard, but I don't think he spoke out loud.

I was frozen in spot and couldn't move. In an abstract way I wanted to. I just couldn't get my muscles to work.

"Don't be frightened young one, I'm here to help. Just think of me as Mr. Friendly. That's right, Mr. Friendly, friend. As your friend, I think you should go to the kitchen."

My legs moved before I thought about it and I moved down the hall going to the kitchen. TSK TSK. the rhythmic sounds were louder now. I neared the kitchen and fumbled for the light switch, I could see fine but it was just habit. The switch clicked up and nothing happened. TSK TSK..

I peered into the room; Phyllis was there, broom in hand trying in vain to sweep a pile of entrails into a dustpan. She passed the broom across them pulling them into a neat pile then she stooped over grabbed at the dustpan, but of course by the time she was ready to scoop them up they had spread back out.

"OH DARN!" She said as she set the dustpan down and reached again for the broom. She repeated this process a few times never seeming to understand the futility of her task. I laughed at this, the laugh sounding alien and hollow. I felt like I had laughed at a funeral.

"Now Todd, this is not a laughing manner. He'll be here soon, and we want the house tidy for our guest," Phyllis admonished me.

"Enough of that, child," Mr. Friendly called from the doorway. I had no idea he had followed me to the kitchen.

"You have much to learn and little time do so. Unfortunately I don't have time to waste coddling you and making your education easy."

He turned and walked down the flight of steps leading to the den. His shuffling footsteps stopped at the bottom of the stairs. "Come along, child, don't delay me any longer than necessary."

The den was cold and ankle deep in water. Mr. Friendly had sat down on the couch and with a gesture invited me to sit across from him. He was idly playing with some small object that caught the light and flashed silver.

"Lesson one; all is the mind, it is more `you' than the flesh prison you move about in. Lesson two; the body serves the mind. When the mind knows truth it is made manifest in the realm of flesh. For example, please observe the coin I am toying with."

He held out the quarter to me in his featureless hands. Even up close I could see no lines on his skin, no wrinkles, no hair, no fingernails. The quarter sitting idly in his smooth palm blurred and melted taking on the shape of a. small molten gold colored ball. The ball flattened out and became hollow on two ends forming a ring. Mr. Friendly leaned forward holding out the object to me.

I took the offered ring and became enraptured in its details, there was delicate scrollwork covering the inner and outer band. The detail was fine and intricate, almost animated. It was perhaps the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. "As your friend, I'll give you this gift. It's yours now, put it on," he urged me with the smallest hint of desperation in his voice.

I looked at the ring and hesitated. Something felt wrong about this whole thing. Shouldn't I be upset about something? I pondered. I looked deeper at the ring, seeing the scrollwork was in fact a depiction of some sort of vine with little thorny outcroppings along its trunk.

"It is beautiful, is it not? Very few are ever offered the retvelion, and the numbers of your kind have been even fewer. It is an honor to even see it, much less be allowed the opportunity to command it."

With out thinking I slipped the ring over my finger. When the ring cleared the second knuckle the etched vines started to pulse and writhe across the ring's surface. I could feel the thorns digging across my finger as the pattern shifted about. The pain was terrible, but I only knew that in a detached manner, I couldn't actually feel it.

Mr. Friendly nodded and stood up, pausing to brush himself off "Very good child, very good. We will talk further, yes, you and I will."

Mr. Friendly was gone, but he didn't leave or disappear or go poof or walk away, he was just not there anymore. I stood up and noticed most of the water had gone away and only some residual dampness was left on the carpet making it squish as stepped. I made my way back upstairs, and I thought Phyllis was no longer in the kitchen until I stumbled upon half of her. It looked like she had been neatly torn in half, her torso partially hidden under the table. Odd I thought, I wonder where they put the other half of her? She'll be pretty angry if someone has hidden her legs. Nothing I can do about it now, I gotta get some sleep!

I mounted the stairs and puzzled over how we were going to get the bloody footprints out of the carpet. I stifled a yawn as I got to the bedroom door. Didn't I leave it open? I tried the knob and it refused to turn. Somehow I had gotten locked out of the room, probably Derek. I knew he had to be jealous of my ring, and thought he would lock me out as punishment. Fine be that way. I'll just sleep in Freddie's room. His door is locked too? What the hell is going on here, don't these people know I'm special? I'll show them. I'll just.

"Remember what we talked about?" Mr. Friendly asked although I couldn't see him. "Remember that the mind need only know something is true for it to be so?"

"So all I have to do is know that the door is unlocked?" I said back to the empty hallway.

"As your friend, I think it would be a good thing to try."

I gripped the knob and turned. The door opened easily and I steeped across the room to my bed. I think that as soon as my head hit the pillow I was lost in sleep.

In the morning

"Wake up boys, rise and shine" Phyllis called into our room. I woke up with a jolt feeling very awake and not at all sleepy. I was a little confused and half expecting Phyllis to be a zombie as the details of my nightmare flittered about my mind, fading as I tried to get a grasp on any particular disjointed memory. I've always had terribly violent nightmares ever since I was little, and maybe last night's horror movie had gotten to me too?

"Freddie, what are you and Derek doing sleeping in here? Why didn't you boys sleep in your room, wouldn't it have been more comfortable than sleeping on the floor?" Phyllis continued.

"We watched a scary movie on TV last night and we didn't want to sleep alone," Freddie admitted.

"Okay, well you boys get your showers, and I mean quickly, too! We overslept and I don't want to be late for work."

"I can wait until I get home, Mrs. Gregerson, if that will help," offered Derek.

"That would be great, Derek, thank you," Phyllis said.

Score another point for ass-kissers the world over, I thought. Freddie had left to take his shower, and I elected to go before Greg did as he didn't seem fully awake yet. Derek had yet to actually get out his makeshift bed on the floor, perhaps not wanting to be seen in his underwear by Phyllis, so he was still in the room after she had left to attend to breakfast. I was a bit embarrassed about removing my plastic pants in front of him, especially when I saw how far my diaper was sagging without them. I undid the four tapes and rolled the diaper up taping it back up securely before tossing it in the trash.

After my shower I returned to my room towel wrapped about me. Greg had apparently gotten the shower after Freddie was done, and I assume Derek had gotten dressed and gone home or was eating breakfast with Freddie. I grabbed a diaper from the bag and made an effort to get it on correctly, but when I sat up I saw I had done a lousy job and the diaper wasn't going to stay on well. Damn it! I thought, as I tried to redo the `refastenable tapes'. I only managed to rip the front of the diaper up in the process. Discarding the ruined diaper I sighed knowing what I had to do.

I wrapped the towel back around me and went in search of Phyllis. She was downstairs at the table getting her papers organized for the day. "Um. Mrs. G? Could I get you to... ah. help me?" I asked trying not make eye contact with Derek or Freddie.

Phyllis was dressed for work in a dark blue pinstriped suit, and I thought that despite her being about my mom's age she was still very pretty. She looked up from her papers, smiled knowingly and said, "sure thing. I'll be up in a jiffy."

True to her word, she entered the room right behind me. "Okay champ, let's get you taken care of."

As she was diapering me I thought about how it was that someone else could do so much of a better job with the diaper. Maybe I just needed more practice, or maybe you just couldn't diaper yourself with any great success. I lifted up so she could slide some plastic pants up under me, she was finishing snapping them up when Greg came in.

"You're just in time," she told him as he took the place on the changing pad that I had just vacated. In mere minutes he was likewise diapered. Phyllis left us to return to her paperwork. I rummaged about in one of the drawers Greg had given up to me when I had come to stay for the summer (thankfully he had a large dresser.). I found a pair of jersey shorts and a tee shirt to wear, while Greg opted for some denim shorts and a tank top. It seemed to me that the denim was much more effective at reducing the diaper bulge than the cotton jersey of my shorts, but ultimately I didn't care enough to change.

We went downstairs and ate a quick breakfast of cold cereal. Even running late, Phyllis maintained that you shouldn't skip `the most important meal of the day.' I finished up about the same time as Greg who took our bowls and deposited them in the dishwasher.

"You guys ready?" Phyllis asked. We nodded our agreement. "All right then, Greg you go get your diaper bag, and Freddie, turn out the lights and check the back door and let's go."

We were in the van and on our way when Greg thought to ask, "Why'd we have to bring the diaper bag? Didn't you get us some diapers for when we are at Aunt Sherry's?"

"Yes, you have diapers at Aunt Sherry's, but what if she takes you guys somewhere?"

"Ohhhh okay," he said as if she had explained a great mystery to him. Takes us somewhere? Great I thought, just what I want is to go into public wearing a diaper. Greg didn't seem to be bothered about it, but he doesn't ever get bothered about much. Maybe that's why we were such good friends he was so mellow, and I was so high strung.

We were dropped off at Sherry's and ushered inside by Jarred who ran out side when the van pulled up. He was obviously excited that his older cousins would be spending the day at his house. Jared was still in his PJ's and it was clear from the bulge that he, too, was wearing a diaper. "Jarred Joseph Matthews, get yourself in here right this instant, you don't go out side in your pajamas," Sherry scolded him.

"I'm sorwy. Gweg and Fweddie are hewe all day?" He asked his mother.

"Yes, and Todd, too." She said looking at us. "Sorry, ya'll he just got up and ran downstairs. He's a handful sometimes." She stuck a finger down the front of his PJ bottoms and asked him "Did you have a dry night?"

He looked down at his feet as she retracted her finger and just shook his head.

"It's okay honey, momma was just curious, go get your clothes I laid out for you and we'll get you cleaned up."

Jarred ran upstairs, probably used to the routine, and returned with some clean clothes. Sherry stripped of his bottoms and his diaper. She then cleaned him up with a diaper wipe and then handed him a pair of training pants to put on along with the rest of his clothes.

"Greg, Todd, you guys okay or you need anything while I got this stuff out?"

"I'm fine, thanks," I said, I was a bit embarrassed at being asked this in front of a small child. Greg, with his usual lack of well-chosen wording, just said, "nope, I think I'm still dry." This elicited a giggle from Jarred.

"Gweg, you don't wear diapers, you're too old!" Jarred looked at his mom as if to say I know Greg is just trying to fool me.

"Do too!" Greg said back.

"Do not!" Jarred was quick enough to reply.

"Do too!" It was like the `duck season' skit from Bugs Bunny.

"Don't," Jared said back, but this time with a little doubt showing in his voice. Maybe he sensed Greg's sincerity.

"Do too...and I'll show you!" Greg stood up and dropped his trousers right there.

Jared's eyes went wide and for a moment he was speechless. "Todd does too, don't ya?" Greg said poking me in the ribs.

Sherry was astute enough to come to my rescue "Jarred, go eat your breakfast before your cereal gets soggy." Which was enough to send the four year old dashing to the kitchen.

Rob came downstairs with his bathrobe wrapped around him and saw Greg standing by the couch with his shorts around his ankles. This caused him to raise his eyebrows but all he said was something that might have been a growl or good morning I couldn't tell. I guess Rob isn't a morning person either, more power to him I thought.

Sherry told Greg to go ahead and get his shirt off, too, indicating that I too should lose my clothes. She explained that she had some things for us to try on. Sherry left the room and returned a few minutes later with an armload of clothes. "I made some alterations to some stuff your mom bought, I thought that it might help you guys out a bit with your diaper situation"

Sherry gave us each a tee shirt that was really long and had a flap with snaps in the crotch. I pulled it over my head and snapped it up. "See, that will keep your shirt from coming untucked and exposing your diapers."

I hated to admit it, but it was a good idea, I also had to admit it was a onesie, but I could live with it if it spared me from showing my diapers off. Sherry handed me a pair of overall shorts, which I stepped into. I've always thought overalls were a bit redneckish but these were nice enough. Greg was handed a regular pair of jeans. Sherry explained "Those jeans have an elastic waist, that will help keep `em over your diapers and I put snaps on the inseam so you don't have to take them off to get changed. I did the same on those shortalls you've got on, Todd."

Sherry did a great job keeping the snaps hard to see, I thought, and it does make sense functionality-wise. I sat down and looked at my crotch to make sure the inseam wasn't gapping and that the diaper wasn't showing through. Everything looked good. I thanked Sherry and gave her a big hug, not normally my style, but it seemed like the thing to do.

"Thanks. I'm just glad ya'll like them, I'll get some more done over the next week or two."

Sherry returned our normal attire to us so she could put the finishing touches on our new clothes. Rob had joined us in the living room and asked if we had any interest in going with him to the shack. The shack was an abandoned house in the woods where we would hang out and shoot off fireworks.

Rob told Sherry we were going to the woods for a while.

"You boys be back by lunch time, and don't you go getting into any trouble. Greg, Todd if you guys don't feel well or get tired you come on back okay?"

"Yes ma'am" Greg told her as we headed out the door.

The trail back to the shack was wide open and inviting. We made our way fairly quickly, my mind spinning ahead of my legs, eager to become occupied with bottle rockets and firecrackers. A glance over my shoulder showed a darkening sky as huge weighty clouds seemed to seethe and roll over each other like snakes. A storm was coming, but we had an hour or two before the squall got to us.

The man sat in his chair tapping an ink pen absentmindedly against his forehead, not really looking at the output on his computer screen. The reports would collaborate with all the others, that much he was sure of, but without having any pre-exposure data on the two boys it would be a hard case to prove. This was such a great opportunity for the study, but the frustration level was high, working with kids and their parents was not the same as dealing with his own people and the study volunteers. His volunteers wouldn't ask questions the way these people might. And the short sighted powers that be have not yet given him permission to acquire the children.

He fished at his cup of coffee and found it to be almost empty with only the cold bitter dregs left. Grimacing he swallowed anyway and reached for the phone. He had to report into the people who were in charge.

He picked up the phone and dialed the number he was to use that week. Although the phone lines were electronically scrambled, one could never be too sure in this day and age. Considering who his employer was precautions were in order and the phone number changed each week.

"Thank you for calling Autoshine, how may I direct your call?" A pretty sounding voice said at the other end.

"I need a manager, please."

"One moment, sir."

The phone clicked as the line was transferred and voice checks were performed.

"This is Ray, what can I do ya for?"

"Hello Ray, I just brought my van in last week for cleaning."

"I take it something is not to your satisfaction?"

"No. Everything was just as I expected it to be and the price was in line with my expectations."

"I just wanted to thank you for your service and was wanting to make arrangements to have my Mercedes cleaned."

"Very good sir, where can we pick up your Mercedes?"

"At the office, could you take a look at the carpet on the driver's side? Its particularly dirty."

"We'll pick it up tomorrow morning and have it back by tomorrow night"

"Thank you. Ray."

The man hung the phone up, `what a stupid cloak and dagger way to communicate'. He felt like he was in a bad spy novel. Although the man was high up in his organization he knew that only meant he had a long way to fall if he ever made a mistake. Not following procedure was a very grave mistake in the eyes of his employer and the man had spent many years learning to avoid such mistakes.

Amy popped her head in the office.

"I'll be leaving for the day sir, is there anything further you require?"

"No Amy I'll be fine, have a good day."

Amy started to pull away from the door, but then thought better of it. "Did the tests conform to your projections?"

"Yes, and then some. But we really need to observe them overnight, see if you can arrange that after their next appointment."

"Yes sir." Amy said, unconsciously spinning on her heel as she left the office.

The man known to the boys as Dr. Will looked back to his computer and started typing notes for inclusion in his next proper report. "Physical output is positive five to fifteen percent above nominal expectations for pserafine levels present in blood. Organ growth occurring as expected, however adolescent physiology may complicate. Further research needed to determine effects of puberty on pserafine production levels. To early to speculation on host organ tissue regenerative abilities. Unable to gauge psychological effects with out controlled lab environment."

A double beep indicated to the man that there was incoming email. He saved his work, flipped to his email program and read with interest the two memos to make their way into his inbox. The first was a report from one of his colleagues on the study indicating that the black flag had been lifted and that all environmental hazards had been contained or destroyed. Dr. Will smiled knowing that black flag was referencing the escaped insects from the production control facility a few miles away.

The other memo was also good news as far as Dr. Will was concerned. This one was from his newshound program that provided him with local news. A man was found dead in his upscale home, shot apparently in a drug deal gone sour. The article explained that the man was a doctor who had apparently been using his access to certain substances as a way to make a little extra cash. Preliminary inquiries revealed a sketchy past with huge amounts of debt to less than reputable sources.

"We should get back," Rob said looking out of the broken window at the darkening sky.

Not really wanting to go back I peered out the window myself in hopes of spotting a blue sky where Rob was seeing dark thunderheads. I was enjoying some of the first unmitigated freedom offered us since the accident and this newfound emancipation from authority was sweet even if it was short-lived. Turning around I surveyed the insides of the shack, the shadows deepening as sunlight faded outside. Gregg was crouched down beside a partially broken interior wall taping a group of bottle rockets together. The bottle rockets joined in such a fashion were a little device we called a cluster bomb. While in retrospect not total original our version of the age old classic involved using vinyl electrical tape to add some extra compression.

"Okay we'll blow this one and then go," Gregg said placing the package on the ground near what might have one time been the porch. He placed a length of PVC pipe into the ground into a circular depression around the `DMZ'. The pipe sported a small cut away area at the bottom to allow lighting the fuse. The pipe thus positioned into the ground Gregg stretched a plastic bag over the top of the pipe and secured it with a rubber band. It was all routine for us, but it was the highlight of many a day when I was lucky enough to spend it with Gregg and his cousin.

Lighting the fuse Gregg called out "fire in the hole."

A moment later, there was a muffled thud as the bag billowed out at the top and then ripped letting out the acrid smoke in a small puff. We retrieved the pipe and secured it back in the shack with our meager supply of bags, rubber bands, vinyl tape and other sundry firework modifiers. Rob did, however, make sure to take our stash of `Class C's' on the off chance that some one else might find and pilfer our entertainment.

We started the ¬ mile trek to Sherry's in relative silence, each of us being thankful for the moment but already plotting ahead to what we might do to top today's fun. My stomach reminded me that we had been away all morning and that lunchtime was rapidly approaching.

Just at the edge of the woods with the house in sight, the sky opened up and poured forth its contents in a warm but driving summer shower. The dark clouds dissipating as they delivered their moist payload to the dry ground below, creating one of those oddities of summer where it gets lighter the more it rains. In the time it took to cross the 150 feet to the yard proper we were soaked and our shoes were caked with mud.

Stopping just long enough for Rob to deposit our fireworks in an old bin beside the lawn shed we trudged to the backdoor.

"Don't ya'll get mud on my clean floor," Sherry cried impulsively at the first creek of the screen door. Thankfully the eve provided shelter from the diminishing down pour as we shed out shoes and stepped into the kitchen.

Lunch was being put down on the table and looked to consist of some type of sandwich and soup. I noticed the absence of a place setting and decided not to comment and just be thankful that the table wouldn't be that crowded.

"I know you weren't thinking of setting at my table wearing those muddy clothes were you?" Sherry admonished, stopping the three of us in our tracks.

"You boys git out of them clothes and come downstairs presentable, and don't forget to wash your hands."