Benjamin Hanson

Abatement

Chapter One

At that time in my life I worked at a large company as a file clerk. I was fresh from a university education, the gift of well intentioned parents, and found the job market devoid of any opportunities for a philosophy major. Even so, it was all for the better. Certainly pondering the meaning of life was intriguing, but my conclusions were no more important or profound than anyone else's. Who was I to teach others to think when I myself was unsure how to think? If my education taught me nothing else, it

taught me that I would never know enough. With that bit of knowledge in tow, I resigned myself to whatever opportunity would come. I would live my life in simplicity, in like manner of Lao-Tzu, and I would be happy.

I told myself often that existing on mere dollars a day was an acceptable way to live. My home, a mere shack, sat in a questionable end of town. Were there a lawn to maintain, I'd do so, but sadly the home found itself surrounded by dirt and weeds. The one saving grace it provided me with was an electric stove and a good sized freezer in which to keep things. It was more than many had, and I accepted it thusly.

On this particular night, trudging back at an ungodly hour as I was accustomed, I was feeling particularly sorry for myself and my situation in life. It wasn't necessarily the fact that I had so little, but that I was nearly thirty and knew that I would spend my whole life in this repetitive cycle. My chosen profession left me with no time or money to find a partner, and that was compounded by my being gay. Every now and then a voluptuous temp would turn my way with eyes of wonder, but it was a pointless endeavor on their part.

I had heard from a confidant that there was a street where young men sold themselves for sexual favors. I never took the time to look or care, but being particularly lonely and tired of my life I felt it as good a time as any to see for myself. It wasn't in the safest of locations, but neither was my home. I would slip in quietly under the cover of darkness, observe the goings on, and return to my abode with something different to think about.

As I turned a few streets and found my way into the warehouse district nestled against the sea, the smell of salty air permeated my senses. It invigorated me to some extent, and I found my steps quicken beneath me. I knew that I had only a few more minutes to walk and then I would find myself within a new place, a place that no one dared speak of except in strict confidence. As I strolled around the final corner and my eyes strained to see what was before me, I was shocked to see very little. The various warehouses were largely boarded up, what few streetlamps that still worked only cast dim shadows on the surrounding streets.

I nearly cursed my friend for his lies when what appeared to be a pair of eyes in the distance caught my gaze. I stopped, mid-turn, but the eyes had vanished. Perhaps they didn't want to be seen, but my curiosity got the best of me. I walked towards the alleyway where they had first appeared.

Arriving with my body twitching in anxiety, I peered into the darkness to see a young boy around ten sitting on the ground. He looked up at me and smiled, exposing crooked teeth and a weather beaten face. "Hi," he muttered.

"Hi," I replied, unsure of what I was doing or what he was. I felt very strongly that he must be a street urchin.

"You picked a bad night to be here you know? This isn't a place for your kind," he spoke again, his voice clear and his eyes seemingly sympathetic for some unknown reason.

"What do you mean my kind?"

"Only the rich come here sir. Ones like you become like me. We've lost a few lately and the wolves are on the prowl."

I stared at him with no concept of what he meant. I knew it was a warning, and while I regret having not heeded it now, I chose not to.

"I think I can handle myself," I chortled.

"Very well 3; what would you like?"

"Like?"

"Well you came here for a reason." He smiled teasingly, raising his shirt to expose his stomach. "Name what you want and I'll tell you the price."

I blinked, completely unbelieving of what I had been asked. When my friend said young men, this isn't what I had in mind. "Not to disappoint you or anything but you're a little younger than what I hoped for."

The boy snickered, looking at the barely concealed moon above us. "I was afraid you'd say that. Why can't you just admit you have no money?"

I was shocked by his vibrato. "Now look here, I have plenty of money!" I lied. How dare he accuse me of having nothing? He was a common urchin, a prostitute! I froze in place as a deep voice sounded behind me.

"Give me your wallet."

The boy quickly rose to his feet and ran into the darkness of the alley.

"Hey come back here!" I yelled desperately. I swallowed deeply as his silhouette disappeared and I knew then what I had to do. I turned slowly and looked at the figure behind me. It was a tall man, around 6'3" [1.90 m]. He had black hair slicked back on top of his head and piercing green eyes. He wore a suit, but it did little to hide the fact he was well built.

"Hand it over."

"Fine, just don't hurt me." I reached into my pocket and pulled it out, handing it over.

"That all depends on your level of honesty." He jeered, opening it and looking inside. "Nothing 3; you've made a poor mistake."

I swallowed and took a few steps backwards. "What do you mean?"

"You'll understand in time." He took a step forward and punched me in the gut as hard as he could. The world around me began to spin and twirl, what little light there was faded into darkness. I had passed out.

Chapter Two

"Help me!" I yelled to whoever would listen. "Please!" I pleaded, tears beginning to roll down my cheeks.

"Now, now, that's no way for a grown man to act." I heard a man's voice speak from across the room.

"Who are you!?" I half asked, half shouted. I felt my fear turn into rage.

"I would suggest you lie very still or it's going to be a difficult night for all of us. You have no more ability to escape those restraints than I have the desire to release you."

I swallowed and bit my lip. He was correct, of course. "Then at least tell me what you want with me. I don't have any money but I'm sure we can work something out." I said carefully, calculating my words as much as my emotional state allowed.

"Of course you have no money, that's what got you into this predicament to begin with." The voice became louder and more distinct as he spoke, I could hear his footsteps as he drew nearer to me. Each muscle in my body drew up and I became even tenser than I had been. Within a few moments his face came into view. It was a young face, probably no older than seventeen or eighteen, and he had beautiful blonde hair that cascaded across his cheeks. His skin was very pale and he appeared quite fragile to be so domineering.

"You're just a boy 3;"

"Well the term boy is debatable but my body is seventeen yes, do you find it attractive?" He asked, smiling as though I were some kind of toy.

"Just 3; just tell me why I'm here."

He laughed in a sadistic manner, rubbing his hands together in front of his chest. "Don't want to play? Well that's fine; you aren't my only charge this evening. My name is Frederick Hanson and I'm a doctor. You are Benjamin Gardner and you're a liar."

I began to feel anger course through me again but I managed to hold it back. "Why am I a liar?"

Frederick laughed hysterically. "You told our young James that you had money; that you could afford whatever you chose. From the contents of your wallet and your bank account I'd say that's not the case."

I thought for a moment and suddenly remembered the young boy from the alley. "Of course I lied! He accused me of being less important, he compared me to him!"

Frederick smirked, "Well you certainly have doomed yourself to be like him."

"What the FUCK do you mean!?" I asked enraged.

Frederick sighed, tapping his fingers on my chest. "As I stated before my name is Frederick and I'm a doctor. I am employed by an organization known as Purity to assist in the maintenance and acquisition of young prostitutes. With that being said, we have a very strict law code that we must adhere to. Do you have any interest in what these laws are?"

I groaned, attempting to fight against my restraints again and gave up in futility. "Do they have anything to do with me?"

"A great deal I'd say."

"Fine then, I'll hear them."

He grinned, "So feisty! Very well! You see, we have a very particular set of clientele that loves to have relations with young boys. There are a couple of problems with that of course, for one it's quite wrong to expose one so young to sex without their personal consent, and for another there would be missing persons reports, criminal investigations to avoid, etcetera 3;"

I nodded, still unsure of where he was leading me.

"With that being the case, fifty years ago the organization sought a solution to this very important problem. They wanted to find a way to have children that couldn't be traced or could mentally handle being prostituted. That's where I came in."

I laughed a little unable to contain myself. "Fifty years ago huh?"

Frederick smirked, "I'll have you know that I turned seventy nine last week."

My face contorted for a moment and I tried to process what he had said. I couldn't contain it any longer and in spite of myself I let out uproarious laughter. "You!? Seventy nine!? PLEASE! I wasn't born yesterday!" I would have held my stomach were I able. The man quickly began to frown and grabbed my shirt, drawing his face very close to mind. I stopped laughing.

"It is indeed very possible and is quite true. This body that you see, this physique that you lusted after so plainly, is the result of my solution for this company."

I nodded a little, still very skeptical. "Let's say for a moment that I believe you. Then are you trying to tell me that you are a prostitute doctor?" I snickered a little.

"Oh my, no, I am much too valuable to do such things. I merely retain this young body so I can be of service to this company for generations."

I blinked. "Then I am confused."

He groaned, shaking his head as he circled the table and came to my other side. "You are so foolish to be nearly thirty, very well, if I must spell it out for you. I turn men into children to fulfill the demands of this company."

I felt shock enter me. I was unsure of what to say.

"Where you come into this though, and this is my favorite part I might add, is what qualifies those candidates that we choose to turn into children. You see, people who wander into our little alley who shouldn't be there have two options. They can either vindicate themselves by admitting their arriving was a mistake, that they are poor and that they will never speak of it again, OR 3;" His words trailed off and I became very uncomfortable.

"They can lie and prove themselves unworthy of the lives they lead. When you lie you are given two choices." He reached beneath the table I was laying on and I heard him wrestle around with whatever contents were there.

"You can choose death." He waived a syringe containing a clear liquid with his left hand. "Or servitude." He waived another syringe containing a yellow liquid with his right.

I felt as though my life had already ended. "This servitude 3; how long does it last?" I asked. I certainly didn't want to die, but I was curious as to what path this road would lead to.

"Fifty years assuming you live that long. Once your time is up you are made into a toddler, your age limiter is removed, and you are placed with an average family with no recollection of your time spent here. Of course the fifty years can fluctuate either way depending on how good or naughty you are." He smirked.

"What do you mean if I live that long? If you make me 3; like you 3; presumably can I not live forever?"

"There are many ways to die that don't include old age." He spoke. For the first time I felt very strongly that he wasn't lying. Looking deep into his eyes, I saw an age to him that I had never seen before.

"I don't want to die 3;" I whispered mostly to myself, but he had heard it as well.

"I think that's a wise choice on your part." He slammed the syringe containing the yellow liquid into my left arm and pushed the plunger with great force. I yelled out in pain and he merely smiled in return.

"Is that it?" I asked, feeling a burning sensation rush up my arm.

"If only it were that easy! That liquid merely stops you from aging. As of four seconds ago, until I provide you with a cure, your body has lost the ability to age."

I nodded and couldn't help but feel a little excited about the concept. "If this is possible why don't you sell it to a pharmaceutical company and make a fortune?"

Frederick laughed, examining the injection point on my arm. "Do you realize what the gift of immortality would mean? It would become a valuable commodity, a treasure only the rich could attain. The political dynamic of the entire world would change. Imagine if dictators and conquerors could exist without fear of death?"

I nodded, "but what if it was available for everyone?"

"Aside from the financial implications, over population is already too big a problem."

I sighed in acceptance. Immortality was something all men wanted to achieve but the implications of such a thing were something few thought of. I certainly never had.

"What's next?"

He placed a needle in my arm to draw blood. "I have to run some tests to see what your system needs to re-age itself to the proper point."

"How old will I be?" I asked.

"Well I'm not entirely sure. I have to see what the clients want and what they are willing to pay."

I swallowed deeply.

"I will return shortly." He removed the needle from my arm and left my field of vision with blood in hand. I laid my head back partially in frustration and partially due to exhaustion. I had largely forgotten the pain in my stomach but it was coming back to me now.

Chapter Three

liquid had worked I couldn't be sure, but I was surprised that my back didn't hurt from having been strapped to a table for this long.

I tried to turn my body a fraction of an inch to gain a new perspective on the room but it was to no avail. I wasn't able to move much of anything other than my head.

"Hello?"

Nothing but silence met my ears in return. I groaned and my head hit the table. I had settled on trying to sleep for awhile longer to make time go by more quickly when I heard the door open beyond me.

"We have a bidder." The familiar voice of Frederick broke the impenetrable silence.

"What does that mean exactly?" I asked, swallowing what little saliva I could produce. Speaking made me realize how thirsty I was.

"Each time we get a new 3; convert 3; we put the person on the market for personalization. If there is someone looking for a boy of a specific age then we re-age the individual to their requested age and send them packing after training. If we can't find a bidder then we select a random age and put them on the streets."

"Then you're just selling me to someone!?" I asked; my voice strained due to my thirst.

"Selling is a strong word. More like leasing for a pre-arranged period of time." He spoke with such a casual tone that it was infuriating.

"How long?" I asked, unable to stop myself.

"This contract is for twenty years."

"Twenty years? Twenty years? You have to be joking!"

"Well it's certainly better than fifty with someone much too advanced in age to enjoy you."

I groaned. I wasn't able to imagine a life of twenty years spent in captivity. I couldn't be sure what I would be allowed to do, or what I wouldn't. I wasn't sure how kind or cruel this man would be. Pedophiles are supposed to be despicable creatures. The question is could he still be considered a pedophile since I'm technically twenty-nine? It was a question that I don't think anyone could answer.

"Do you have any curiosity as to your new age?"

"I suppose 3;" I murmured, still rolling over my thoughts.

"You will be nine years, two months of age. The only change we'll have to make as far as your appearance is concerned is that you'll be a brunette, unless of course you were a brunette as a child." He looked at me with mild curiosity.

I was struck silent for a moment. The concept of becoming younger was surprising enough, the idea of never aging was astounding, but the idea of him changing my physical characteristics was something different entirely. "You can do that?"

He frowned a little. "Surely if I have the capacity to create immortals and regress or advance age I can take care of something as pesky as hair color or nose size."

I laid my head back down again. It made sense, as much as all of these insane things could anyway.

"The answer to my question is?"

"No I've always been blonde."

"Very well 3;"

I watched him out of the corner of my eye as he lifted an IV bag above my head. It was filled with a strange blue liquid that I assumed would cause my age regression. He very gently removed a needle from somewhere I couldn't see and pushed into in my arm so that he could soon feed me whatever was within the bag.

"That takes care of the age regression medication, now we have to deal with the pesky problem of your hair."

I nodded and watched with more curiosity than fear. It wasn't exactly my goal in life to become a child and a sex slave, but the whole process was fascinating. I had always enjoyed science as a child ironically enough. Frederick filled another syringe with a clear liquid and injected it into the IV in my arm. I felt a not so dissimilar burning sensation to the medicine that stopped the aging process. He must have noticed me wincing because he spoke shortly afterwards.

"I apologize for the discomfort, genetic mutations never feel grand. Thankfully you will be sedated for the age regression."

I nodded as the burning subsided a bit. "Has my hair turned yet?"

"It's beginning to I believe." He started running his fingers through my hair. "It's going to grow very quickly over the next few weeks as your old hair color cycles out. After that it should return to a normal growth rate though."

I nodded again. I sighed to myself, resigning myself to my ultimate fate and hoping for a good conclusion to it all. "May I ask you a question?"

Frederick nodded as he began to prepare another syringe.

"Why are you being nice to me?"

"I suppose I understand the difficulties you will face over the next many years. You aren't an entirely evil person, just misguided. This will give you the opportunity to be thankful for the life you once had."

"Thanks I suppose 3;" My voice drifted as I watched him inject the new syringe into my arm.

"When you wake up, you'll be a new person." He smiled a little at me as I felt myself slipping away. I mumbled something that wasn't exactly coherent as I felt the darkness overtake me. Within moments I had passed out.

Chapter Four

I tugged absentmindedly at the large white shirt that covered me. My frame was tiny, even for a nine year old, and many memories of my youth began to flood back to me. I looked at my small hands, my hairless arms. My hands rose to rub my smooth face. My hair was lying in my eyes and it was definitely a dark brown now.

"I guess it does grow faster now 3;"

I gasped upon hearing myself speak. Even my voice was now that of a boy, high pitched with a slightly scruffy quality to it. I couldn't remember the exact way I sounded as a boy but I was certain that it was similar if not exactly as it was. I threw the sheet off of my lap and looked at my legs. They had a bit of baby fat to them and not an ounce of hair was to be seen. I thought momentarily about looking at my penis but decided that this was neither the time nor the place. I was prepared to stand and see what was going on when there was a knock at the door.

"Come in?" I called out but it sounded like more of a question than a statement. I watched tensely as an older black woman entered with a tray of food.

"Well goodness I'm glad to see that you're awake!" She smiled at me happily as she sat the tray on the table next to my bed. "You've been out for nearly three days, although that always seems to happen when you kids first arrive at the orphanage. How are you feeling?"

I blinked and looked down at my lap before returning my gaze to her. Was it possible that I was taken to an orphanage? Or perhaps she was hoodwinked into thinking that's what this was. Either way I was glad for a friendly bit of company.

"I feel okay but my body is sore." I said, smiling at her what little I could manage.

"Well honey this soup will fix you right up; made it myself from an old family recipe." She planted a wet kiss on my forehead and walked back towards the door.

"If you need anything just holler sweetie."

I smiled and nodded, "Thank you 3;"

"Bessie will be just fine sugar."

"Thanks Bessie."

She nodded and left the room closing the door behind her. I pulled the tray onto my lap and looked at the contents of the bowl. It appeared to be chicken and rice soup and there was a glass of milk next to it. I smirked to myself imagining this wouldn't be enough but decided to dig in anyway. By the time I had managed to eat half of the bowl I felt like I was ready to burst and pushed the tray back onto the side table. I had forgotten how much less food you require at nine.

Just when I was beginning to feel a little more comfortable in my surroundings another knock came at the door. "Come in!" I yelled, expecting to see Bessie again. Instead, Frederick walked into the room wearing a red t-shirt and a pair of torn blue jeans. He looked even more like a teenager than he had before.

"How are you feeling?" He asked as he closed the door behind him and strolled over, taking a seat next to me.

"I suppose I feel fine, I'm a little sore though 3;" I admitted. It was an amazing thing looking at Frederick now. I had the memories of my previous self intact but my global perception had completely changed. He looked decidedly older to me now.

"Good to hear it. Now there are a couple things we need to discuss. Firstly, we have a standing agreement with this orphanage that they will house our new conversions for such time as is necessary. Bessie, who I know you already met, assumes that you are an actual child and there is no reason for you to tell her otherwise."

I nodded now receiving the answer to my previous question.

"You will remain here until we have received the fund transfer for your lease. During that time you will be a normal boy by day. You will interact with the others and the actual children as though you were a child. By night you can feel free to be yourself and you will receive training for two hours each evening by the more tenured converts."

He looked around the room to see if anyone was there. It seemed an odd time to do so as he had said so much already.

"Mind your manners and do as you're told 3; Be a good boy."

I smirked. I wasn't accustomed to being treated like a child. It had been many years after all. He rose immediately and began heading towards the door.

"You're leaving?" I asked with a mild sense of desperation that I couldn't explain.

"I have other matters to attend to. You will be fine." With those words he opened the door and shut it behind him. I sat there alone once more, wishing that he hadn't left so soon. I looked out the window to try and gauge the time. The sun was fairly high in the sky so I felt safe in assuming that it was around lunch time. I let my legs slip off the bed and my feet touched the cold wooden floor beneath me, sending a shiver up my spine.

I stood much too quickly and nearly fell over. I had to become accustomed to supporting a much lighter load with much shorter legs. Just standing there made me realize how many limitations adulthood put on a person. I felt much lighter, and the pains I normally had in my lower back and shoulder were completely non-existent. I also didn't feel as dirty as I normally did when I first awoke in the morning, although the concept of a bath did interest me. Taking my previous experience with standing into account, I walked slowly towards the window in order to peer out.

As I did my eyes surveyed the landscape that surrounded the orphanage. It was surrounded by a forest with nothing familiar coming into view. I wasn't sure how far away from home I was, but I was pleased with the solitude I would enjoy. I didn't see any children playing outside so I was certain that either they were eating or there was some sort of activity going on downstairs. I took it as my queue to leave the room and explore my new surroundings.

Chapter Five

As I made my descent down the stairs the distant sound of boy's voices became apparent. I had been correct in my assumption that they were all downstairs. The closer I got the more clear the voices became. One particular voice was that of a teenager, "I'm going to pound your face in if you don't shut up!" I heard Bessie's voice almost immediately. "Now you ain't going to beat anybody up! You go on and sit down now!"

I smiled to myself, imagining this bully being silenced by an older woman. I never had a knack for handling bullies at the age of nine but hopefully I'd have no run-ins with this one. As soon as I reached the bottom stair I peered into a dining room full of boys of various ages; Bessie ran over to me.

"Looks like my soup fixed you right up! How you feeling sugar?"

"Good." I smiled up at her, realizing how tall she was suddenly.

"Well that's just fine. Let's go get you washed up while the other kids eat so you can go play with everybody later on."

I nodded as she ushered me away from the dining room and back up the stairs. As soon as we reached the top, she opened the door directly next to the bedroom I had awakened in and directed me inside. It was fairly simple with white walls, a claw foot tub and a pedestal sink. Bessie grabbed my shirt and ripped it off of me to which I immediately froze.

"We're just going to make you shine like the sun sugar; you been asleep for three days now so this is going to feel just fine."

I blushed furiously as she grabbed the waist band of my shorts and underwear and inclined for me to raise each leg so she could remove them. It had been so long since anyone had done anything like this for me. As I raised a leg slowly she laughed uproariously.

"Now don't be ashamed sugar you don't have anything I ain't seen before!"

I nodded, still violently red as I raised my other leg and found myself standing naked in front of this unfamiliar woman. She reached behind me and turned on the water faucet so that the tub would begin to fill.

"I'll be back in a minute with some fresh clothes, go on ahead and get in."

I nodded as she left, leaving the door wide open. I walked over and closed it quietly before walking over to the tub. I actually had to hold the side with my hands in order to step over and get in without falling. As soon as I did, taking my place in the water, I felt a soothing sensation roll over me. I let out an audible sigh and began to get comfortable when the door flew open again.

"Now we don't shut doors in this house, I have to be able to hear you at all times." Bessie scolded me and I blushed in reply.

"Sorry 3;" I muttered.

"Oh you didn't know before but now you do! Don't even worry about it sugar."

I smiled as she sat next to me and turned off the faucet. She had me lay back enough to get my hair wet as she grabbed a bottle of shampoo and poured a small amount into her hands. She worked the lather through my shaggy hair and scrubbed my scalp deeply with her long nails. It was surprisingly more relaxing than I had imagined. Once finished she rinsed my hair thoroughly and grabbed a bar of soap and began to lather up a rag for me. I watched with mild curiosity as she did so.

"You really like your job huh?" I asked. It was apparent that she was very good with the children she took care of.

"I most certainly do! I have never had any kids of my own so all of you boys are my children." She smiled at me, exposing a full set of pearly whites.

I nodded as she directed me to stand. She rubbed the rag across my arms and chest, across my legs and had me raise my feet to wash each one. When she reached behind me to wash my back and then my bottom, I jumped a little from the unexpected sensation.

"Simmer down now." She laughed a little.

I nodded and allowed her to do so. It required such little effort on her part and her hands were so large in comparison to me. I wondered if she would be so large if I was still an adult. As she reached around the other side and began to wash my penis I immediately went into shock again. I looked down and watched my very small three inch [7½ cm] penis completely erect within the confines of the rag. Not a single trace of hair could be seen and my balls were tucked very close to my body. To say that it didn't feel good would be a lie but the awkwardness over powered any pleasure I could get from the moment.

She finished washing between my legs and had me sit back down, making sure to rinse my body as well as she had my hair. She patted my head as my gaze returned to hers.

"Are you about ready to get out?"

I shrugged and stood up, looking up at her as I did so. For some odd reason the feeling of shame I had experienced from my exposed body when she first undressed me had vanished. Either her being there was somehow comforting, or I was regressing in more ways than one.

She wrapped a large towel around me and lifted me from the tub, planting me firmly on the tile below. My teeth chattered as I adjusted to the air hitting my wet body. She set about drying my hair and body, making sure that I was plenty warm, and helped me into a new outfit for the day.

"There we are and I think you look mighty handsome in blue!" She said taking a look at the finished project. I smiled and was prepared to leave when she grabbed my arm.

"Now you need to brush those teeth and your hair before you go downstairs now!"

I laughed a little in spite of myself. She handed me a toothbrush as I began to brush and set forth combing through the tangled locks upon my head. I managed to finish rinsing as soon as she made the last brush.

"Alright you can go play now but no running in the house!"

I nodded and walked back towards the banister and down the stairs. I could hear Bessie letting the tub drain and collecting my things behind me. I saw a couple of boys, younger than myself, running from the dining room and towards some other area of the house. As soon as I neared the very bottom a familiar face sprung into view.

"How's it going?" The haunting voice of five nights ago spoke.

"You're 3;" My voice trailed off as I tried to recover from my shock.

"James. We've met 3;" He held out his hand.

This boy that looked so much younger than me now seemed so much older. Perspective truly is a bitch. Regardless of my lack of affinity for him before I realized that what had occurred was hardly his fault. I reached my hand out as he shook mine.

"So do you want me to show you around?"

I nodded; I supposed it would be good to know what was what before I began trying to fit in, if that were even possible. He led the way into the room where the two younger boys had run previously.

"This is the playroom for the younger boys. There are lots of toys in here to mess around with. Since you're nine you could hang out here or in the electronics room if you chose to."

We immediately left as he led me back to the hallway and behind the stairs. There was another room with a large television, a few older video game consoles and a myriad of handheld electronic devices.

"This is the electronics room obviously. You have to be at least nine to play here but the older boys tend to bully anyone under thirteen. I have a bit of credibility so I'd be able to protect you if you needed."

I smiled a little. "Thanks."

He nodded and turned back towards the main entrance. He slipped on a pair of flip flops sitting by the door and gestured towards a slightly smaller pair. I slipped them on and noticed that they were still a tad too big for me, but would suit their purpose. As his hand wrapped around the door knob and flung it open, a warm breeze hit us both and I couldn't help but smile a little. The freedom of being outside was something I didn't think I'd get to enjoy again.

We marched into the yard, circling the property as he pointed out a playground, a picnic area and a trail that went into the woods.

"It's important that you don't go any further than half a mile [800 m] down that trail. Beyond that Bessie will get very angry with you and that's one person I can't protect you from."

I nodded. He looked contemplative for a minute as he pointed up at the house. I turned to take a good look at it for the first time. It was an oversized Victorian, completely white, and seemed to be in good shape considering its purpose. The upstairs was lined with a great number of windows and there was an additional story that I hadn't been aware of.

"The second story where you woke up is for the older boys and Bessie. The top story is for pre-teens aged nine to twelve, and the basement is for the younger kids. I think that about covers it 3; do you have any questions?"

I looked at him and raised a single eyebrow. There were so many questions that I wanted to ask but I wasn't sure if it was the appropriate time or not.

"Can I ask THOSE questions?" I asked as carefully as I could.

He smiled a little, "Sure but wait for tonight. Right now we're kids okay?"

I nodded. He patted me on the back and turned to walk back towards the house.

"Hey wait up!" I yelled, sounding a tad younger than I had wanted to. I could hear him laughing as he drew closer and closer to the porch. As soon as I was about to follow him two twin boys jumped in front of me from behind a bush. They were younger than me, probably around seven or eight.

"Hey what's your name?" They asked in unison. Both were a few inches shorter than me with short red hair, blue eyes and just a light sprinkling of freckles. They wore matching green shirts, blue jeans and white sneakers. I found it slightly amusing how identical they were.

"Ben, what's yours?"

The one on the left spoke first, "I'm John but you can call me Jack."

Then the right, "I'm David."

"It's a pleasure to meet you." I said, smiling a little. They both looked at each other as though I had spoken in an entirely different language.

"Sure 3;" Jack replied.

"Do you want to play with us?" David asked.

I shrugged, "Maybe later, I want to go check out the inside for a little bit if that's okay."

"Yeah sure," Jack said as David and he burst past me and started making noises that mimicked the firing of a gun. They didn't seem too upset by my disinterest. I watched them for a brief moment before I shrugged and ascended the stairs to go back inside.

Chapter Six

"Where do you think you're going shortie?"

I looked up at the boy who was probably around fourteen or fifteen. He was extremely tall, from any perspective, and had black hair that hung lazily in his eyes. He had deeply set brown eyes that looked at me cruelly and his brown skin led me to believe he was probably Latino.

"I'm just looking for my friend." I swallowed deeply feeling an irrational fear rise within me.

"James 3;" I added in desperation feeling myself begin to shake.

"He's not here. This room is just for teenagers, got it?"

I nodded and nearly stuttered as I spoke. "Y 3;y 3;yes sir!"

He laughed and turned to look at someone behind him that I couldn't see before turning back to me. "I think I like you kid, what's your name?"

"Ben." I replied, I began to feel tears rising in my eyes but I fought them with all of my strength.

"I'm José, pleased to meet you shortie. Say, how would you like to play a game?"

I took a step backwards before his hands flew down and grabbed my shoulders. "No reason to run off! We're going to have TONS of fun. I think you are going to be my best friend."

I nodded nervously. Every part of me told me that he was up to no good but the childishness within me wanted to be trusting. "Okay José," I said.

He led me into the room and sat me down on a fairly weathered sofa. He took a seat right next to me and placed his arm around my shoulders. I finally got a look at the other boy. He was probably about the same age as José but was much scrawnier. Her had short blonde hair and green eyes and was probably about the same height.

"Introduce yourself dummy!" José said to his friend.

His friend laughed, "I'm Jake."

I smiled a little, "Hi, I'm Ben."

"Cool," Jake replied.

José began to run his fingers through my hair. "So what do you like to play?"

I blushed furiously as my mind fought hard to formulate an answer. "Uh, I like video games."

José nodded, "Yeah video games are cool. Don't you ever like to play other kinds of games?"

"Like what?" I asked suddenly as though by reflex.

"Well I don't know what about truth or dare?" He asked as I heard Jake snickering across the room.

I looked down at my feet. "I've never played it." I lied. I wasn't sure what he was up to but I was fairly certain that it was no good.

"Well I can teach you all about it. If you win, I'll let you play in here anytime you want!"

I looked up at him, my eyes tearing up a little, "Really?"

He nodded, grinning from ear to ear, "Absolutely!"

I sighed, finding no available outlet to my predicament. "I'll play."

José nodded to Jake who immediately went and stood in front of the doorway. I felt my stomach sink deep inside me.

"Basically this is how it works. You ask me any question you want and I'll answer it honestly, then I get to dare you to do something. If you do all five dares then you win."

I swallowed deeply with all of my prior fears now assured. I knew very well that this wasn't how the game went, but what could I do? If I said that I knew he was lying then I would probably be beat within an inch of my life. I had to relent and that was all there was to it.

"You go first." José said, still smiling that shit eating grin.

"Uh 3; what is your favorite color?"

"Blue." He replied, patting my head before he drew back and leaned back on the sofa.

"Are you ready for your dare?"

I nodded despite the fact I wasn't.

"I dare you to lick the bottom of your sandal."

I smirked a little. This was certainly better than some of the alternatives I could imagine. I feigned disgust, as children ought to do, and licked the bottom of my sandal. José applauded me as Jake stood firmly in his position at the door.

"Only four more to go and you've won."

I smiled a little, averting my gaze as much as I could.

"It's your turn." He reminded me.

"What is your favorite food?"

"Hmm, probably hamburgers."

I nodded as he began to tap his fingers on the arm of the sofa.

"I dare you to take your shirt off."

I shrugged; it seemed a harmless enough dare at the time. I slid it off and placed it gently between us. José seemed satisfied with himself.

"Three more to go."

I nodded already prepared with my next question. "How old are you?"

"Fifteen," he replied.

I bit my lower lip; he was considerably older than me and by extension that much more powerful.

"I dare you to lick the sofa."

I once again managed to feign a fair amount of disgust and licked the sofa between us. I noticed José shift and make some sort of a motion towards Jake who seemed to stand stiffer than before. I sat up and looked at José.

"Two more right?"

José nodded as I prepared to ask my next question.

"Do you really want to be my friend?" It was a childish and foolish question to ask. He wasn't exactly anyone that I had any desire of befriending, but I hoped that had he any dark plans for me with the next two dares that this would make him take it easy on me.

"Sure I do Ben! Why wouldn't I?"

I shrugged; I didn't exactly have a prepared response for that.

"Alright here's the big one buddy are you ready?"

I nodded, my stomach churned uncomfortably inside of me. José leaned over so he could whisper something in my ear.

"I dare you to suck my dick."

I felt my face become extremely red as he began to stand. He towered above me with the zipper to his pants directly in front of my face. I can't say that José is an unattractive boy, but him utilizing his position as a teenager to bully me into this encounter seemed largely unfair to me. I wondered how many others he had done this to. He began to unzip them and looked down at me with a huge smile on his face.

"Are you going to chicken out like a little baby?"

I blushed furiously looking down at the floor. If I backed down then I would receive the brunt of his anger for the remainder of my stay. If I consented, he may choose to make me the object of his sexual frustrations for awhile. Perhaps it would be healthy to resist a little, to not give in so easily. Then again, I may learn to regret that if I do. I had few options, telling Bessie was certainly not viable. Without James here to protect me I was at a complete loss. I felt hatred, I felt fear and I felt arousal. I had never been so confused before in my life.

I shook my head violently.

"That's a good baby." He smiled as he finished unzipping his jeans and pulled them down to his knees. A particularly large uncut erection came into view. He was probably around six inches [15 cm] long, which considering his age was fairly significant. I leaned forward with my mouth open and prepared to suck him when his hands found their way around my head. He slammed his dick into my mouth before I had a chance to respond.

I could feel José's hips thrusting forward and backwards as my mouth fought to contain him. At each point that he hit the back of my throat I nearly gagged, but I fought hard to maintain my composure. My hands reached up to try and grab his, to try and relay that he was going too fast. Instead of being able to convey my message his fingers found themselves intertwining in my hair, pulling it tightly as I winced in pain. This child was a sadist.

Despite the discomfort and the inability of my small mouth to handle him well, I remained incredibly still. I knew that it wouldn't be much longer before he finished and if this gave me any degree of acceptance I could take the abuse. I held my throat as tightly as I could when suddenly he began to pickup pace. I heard him breathing hard as a torrent of warm cum began to fly into my mouth. I nearly gagged, but he held me tightly forcing me to swallow each drop as it came.

José let go of my hair, simply holding my head close to his body as the last few streams escaped. His breath was quick and I could see tiny beads of sweat collecting on his stomach. He backed away from me and looked down, using his hand to raise my chin up to him. He wiped a few tears from my face that I hadn't realized I'd cried.

"That was great. You swallowed it all huh?"

I nodded not really certain what else there was to say.

"That's good. I think you have a real talent kid."

I tried to smile a little even though I found it difficult to do so.

"Well I really don't feel like playing anymore. I'll save that last dare for later."

I swallowed deeply, the salty taste still prevalent in my mouth.

"Are we friends now?"

"Sure kid, but if you want to hang out in here you still have to do that last dare okay?"

I nodded as he zipped his jeans and collapsed onto the sofa next to me. Jake, who finally relinquished his post, motioned for me to leave the room. I pulled my shirt back on and watched my feet as I walked out into the hallway and felt every bit as cheated as I should have.

Chapter Seven

The remainder of my day was spent searching for James and trying to avoid José as much as was possible. Fortunately he seemed to have no desire to leave the electronics room until something necessitated that he do so. I found myself feeling more hurt by the encounter than I had imagined. As an adult, such an encounter would have been exciting, erotic and invigorating, but as a child I found myself torn. A part of me that I didn't understand sought his acceptance, and another part of me hated him for the vile act he committed. It wasn't my desire to bring any more attention to my presence than was necessary, so I chose to not tell Bessie. The only person I knew I could talk to was James, and he was nowhere to be seen. I decided to go outside, shortly before dinner, to search once more.

"Hey dude!" I heard a familiar voice call from beneath the hedges that surrounded the porch.

"Hi?" I asked, almost certain now that I knew who it was. As soon as Jack and David's heads popped up my suspicions were confirmed.

"Do you want to play now?" They asked in unison, looking up to me in some unfamiliar manner. I wondered if they saw me as older, as a big brother type. They were obviously actual children, there was no denying that, and apparently I wasn't as obvious as I felt I had been.

"Uh, what do you want to play?"

Jack and David looked at each other, shrugging silently. All of a sudden David's eyebrows stood sharp again his forehead and he turned to stare at me, a curious expression etched across his freckled face.

"We don't know any big kid games, could you get us into the electronics room?" His eyes seemed to plead with every inch of their scope.

"It's really not that exciting. I'm sure there are a ton of games we could play out here that would be a lot more fun."

"Oh 3;" Jack and David said together with a slight look of disappointment. I didn't have to wait long for them to perk up again.

"Let's play tag!" David shouted.

I laughed a little, feeling quite pleased that the subject of that damned room had been dropped so quickly. "Sure, anything you want."

Jack giggled and ran up to me, slapping me hard on the arm. "You're it!"

I watched, stunned for a moment, as he ran off into the yard, giggling the whole way. David was soon to follow and it amazed me how much energy they had. They had been outside for hours at this point. I tried hard to remember how much time I had spent outside as a child and it completely escaped me; my parents, being better off than most, prized tutoring sessions and violin lessons before all else. I found myself experiencing the antithesis of my youth, the opportunity for wild abandon, a life devoid of responsibilities and unpleasantries. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all? My grin spread wide across my face as I let my childhood instincts overtake me. My legs shot forward and I was soon in hot pursuit of Jack as he ran into the woods.

"You'll never catch me!" I heard Jack shout as I rounded the first set of trees and I managed to clear the gap between us quite quickly. It amazed me how good the wind felt against my face and arms, and the amount of energy that I had. A mere walk home at the end of each shift as an adult left me winded, but running as a child left me more energetic, left me feeling free. I couldn't help but laugh; I couldn't help but enjoy myself. I noticed David out of the corner of my eye running through the trees next to me, fighting hard to catch up to his brother. I snickered to myself as I shot off the path and after David who seemed to be the slower of the two.

"You can't catch me!" David giggled wildly as he started rounding around random trees to lose me. I imagined that I had already lost the opportunity to catch Jack at this point but passing the 'it' to someone else seemed worth it. It was, after all, the point of the game.

"You wish!" I laughed as I sprung forward, tackling David into a pile of leaves as we both giggled wildly.

"You're it!" I shouted as I stood and prepared to run back further into the woods. As soon as David began to rise and follow, we heard a scream beyond us.

"Help!" I heard the familiar voice of Jack shout. David and I looked at each other earnestly and nodded, running together back towards the trail to find him. It didn't take us long to see the reason for his distress, as we came across a large pit with Jack stuck at the bottom of it. I stopped, frozen for a moment, as my mind raced to find a solution.

"Are you hurt?" I asked, already expecting the answer I would receive.

"I think I hurt my ankle!" Jack groaned, using his arms to reposition his leg.

I glanced over at David who had tears welling up in his eyes. He grabbed hold of my arm tightly, looking up at me.

"Please help him you're older!"

I smiled a little, unsure of how I would accomplish the feat but I knew it had to be done. I shook David off of me and walked over to the edge of the pit. The walls were fairly steep and I would imagine it was about four feet [1.2 m] deep. Being somewhat shorter than that, it would be a challenge to get him out but I knew there had to be a way.

"Go back to the house and get help!" I shouted at David who nodded and very quickly ran back up the trail towards home. I looked around for a vine or an old forgotten rope, anything that would help me in getting him out.

"I'm trying to find something to lift you out with, hold on." I said as calmly as I could. Jack nodded, rubbing a few errant tears from his cheeks. While I couldn't find anything that resembled a rope, I did manage to find a fallen branch that was long enough to make a ladder of sorts.

"Get over to the far side of the pit!" I shouted down to Jack who nodded. I watched as he crawled over, wincing each time his leg moved. I sighed, feeling more helpless than I had in many years. I grabbed the edge of the branch and pulled, straining with every ounce of me to get it within a comfortable distance of the pit. Once it was close enough, I grabbed the other end, lifted it up, and began to push as hard as I could. My feet kept sinking into the wet earth beneath me, but I finally managed to exert enough pressure to make it move. I grinned, feeling fairly accomplished, as I pushed it far enough to collapse the rest of the way into the pit. I looked down at Jack who was sobbing into his hands.

"Hold on, I'm coming down!" I called, taking a seat next to the pit and dangling my legs inside. There were two feelings that overwhelmed me at that point; the first was my desire to not get hurt, and the second was an intense fear of heights that I had nearly forgotten. Four feet [1.2 m] seemed a long way to go for one so small. I swallowed deeply, accepting what I had to do, and pushed myself down. I thankfully landed on my feet and breathed a sigh of relief. As soon as I collected myself I bent down to look at Jack's leg.

"Are you okay?"

He shook his head, wiping more tears away as I noticed it was turning blue.

"Can you move it at all?"

Jack's right arm grabbed me tightly as he made an effort to move it. Thankfully it managed to turn a little but with no small amount of pain in return. He let out a yell that could probably be heard from miles away. I patted his shoulder, trying to comfort him as best as I could.

"It's not broken if you can move it so that's good. Now we just have to get you out of here." I bent down in front of him and motioned for him to put his arms around my neck. I braced myself on my feet and tried to raise us both up. It amazed me how heavy he seemed, and it took a great amount of personal effort on my part to actually manage to stand. Jack yelled out, wrapping his good leg around me and allowing the other to dangle near inches from the ground. I grabbed his arms and held them, hoping that he wouldn't fall.

"Okay you have to hold on tight alright?" I wasn't able to see him nod so I assumed that he had heard me. I walked over to the branch and began to climb. Navigating my way up it was fairly difficult; I had to search for holes and crevices in which to place my feet and my hands. By the time I had managed to get half way up my legs were so weak from the weight I was holding that I didn't think I could go on. My hand grabbed wildly to support myself and I felt a splinter go into my hand. I yelled out in pain, grabbing Jack's arm even tighter with my free hand.

"Are you okay?" He asked with concern between sniffles.

"Yeah I just got a splinter." I turned my head and smiled at him. I moved my hand and grabbed another knot in the branch higher above me and willed my legs to move. No matter how weak I was, or how impossible it seemed to accomplish, I knew that I had to get Jack out of that pit. I climbed and with each step I groaned, fighting against the will of my knees to buckle. At last I felt my hand touch the soil above and I felt an unbelievable sense of relief wash over me. I managed to step on another knot and with a quick thrust; I propelled us both onto the forest ground above.

Jack winced as he rolled over onto his back and I panted right alongside him. My knees were still weak but I was pleased with what I had managed to accomplish. Having nearly forgotten my charge, I quickly rolled over to make sure he was okay.

"You okay?" I asked, looking at his face so filled with agony.

"I'm really glad we got out, thank you." He smiled what little he could.

I smiled back and helped him to sit up.

"I'm going to get you as far up the trail as I can. Do you think you can ride on my back some more?"

Jack nodded and I stooped down in front of him. As soon as he wrapped his arms around me and I stood to my full height once more, I started back up the trail. I silently cursed David, wondering why he hadn't ran back immediately with help for his fallen brother. It wasn't his fault that this had happened, but I could only do so much as a nine year old. I realized my limitations, probably more than anyone could, and he seemed to have no concept of them. At least I knew in my heart of hearts that what I was doing was a noble act. I had visions of being lauded as a hero, carried on shoulders back to the house and declared a child messiah. I didn't know why I wanted recognition for what I had done but I did just the same. As I made it nearly close enough to see the clearing ahead, I saw Bessie running down with David leading the way. I smiled gratefully, in full knowledge of the relief I would soon receive.

"It's going to be alright honey!" Bessie shouted as she ran towards me. I bent down what little I could as she swept David from my arms, cradling him like an infant against her chest. She said nothing to me, only turning and heading back towards the house. I looked at David who was out of breath. His already cheeks were even rosier than usual.

"Thanks." He spoke genuinely, fully confident of his brother's recovery in the care of Bessie.

"Anytime 3;" I whispered in reply. I didn't want to toot my own horn or anything. David wrapped his hand in mine as we started walking slowly back towards the house.

When we reached the clearing we saw that the yard was devoid of life. There was an older station wagon situated next to the porch with a medical cross on the side.

"Doctors still do house calls?" I murmured to myself mostly but David had heard me.

"Yeah anytime somebody gets sick or hurt the doctor comes up here. We really aren't near any cities."

I nodded, suddenly realizing that this child obviously had more knowledge of the area than I did.

"Where are we exactly?"

David giggled for the first time since the incident. "We're in Maine of course!"

I simply nodded. The pine trees should have been a dead giveaway but I didn't expect to be this far away from home. I wondered logistically how they could get James from Maine all the way to Massachusetts to serve his duties each night. It had been awhile since I made the trip, but by car I remembered it being about two hours if we were as far south as Portland. When we approached the door I could see Bessie rushing towards us. For the first time since the earlier incident with José, I felt genuine fear rise inside of me. I didn't know why, it was fairly irrational, but I held David's hand even tighter than I had before. As the door burst open she looked down at me with an unreadable expression on her face.

"Now you listen here. You are nine years old; you are supposed to be responsible! What you did leading them down into those woods was reckless and foolish!"

I felt my eyes begin to water up. I had no idea what to say in my defense and all of my prior desires for praise had escaped me completely.

"With that being said, I can't believe what you did to save him. I'm very proud of you!" She wrapped her large arms around me and lifted me up, pressing me firmly into her bosom. I smiled deeply, wrapping my arms around her. I had been vindicated and recognized for what I was, a hero. She sat me down and patted my head.

"Now go on upstairs and take another bath, I've got to make sure Jack is okay and dinner gets made on time."

She looked at David next to me.

"Take him with you."

In any normal circumstance the fact that I was completely covered in mud and dirt would have been obvious, but in the rush of the moment I hadn't noticed. I looked at David who was in a similar state and giggled to myself. I grabbed his hand and led him back inside. I peered over towards the electronics room and saw no sign of José or Jake.

"The coast is clear 3;" I said in silent relief. David had noticed but decided not to say anything.

We ascended the stairs together and I was grateful that I had David with me. He made quick work of showing me where the towels and rags were. He showed me the linen closet that held all the clothing. Apparently everything that we wore was community property, donated by local charitable organizations for us to wear; when I asked David why that was, he explained that Bessie didn't want anybody to have something that somebody else didn't. She wanted everyone to feel equal and the same. I couldn't help but smile; it was a remarkably clever idea. After finding some clothes that fit us we marched into the bathroom where David started to disrobe. I stood there for a minute, staring in amazement of his nonchalance about it.

"Are you going to get naked?" He asked as though I were committing some egregious crime.

I nodded, and slowly took off my shirt, still a tad embarrassed to reveal myself. My eyes cast over David's naked form. As were most children of Irish descent, his skin was pale. He had an adorable bubble butt that fit his age quite well. I watched in mild curiosity as David turned on the water. My eyes broke away as soon as he climbed into the tub. After completely undressing and climbing in to join him, the tenseness in my body began to fade away. We each washed individually and David blabbed on and on about Jack and how he was really tough. He told me about all the delightful meals that Bessie made, and how she always kissed everyone goodnight, even the older kids. One item of interest was his mention of the 'bad boys', a pair of teenagers that made life hard on everyone else. I felt my muscles tense again at the thought of one of them violating this child before me; he seemed so sweet and innocent, vibrant with life and purity. I tried my best to ask without being too explicit.

"Have they ever done anything bad to you?"

"Yeah! They made me lick their feet one time!"

I breathed a sigh of relief. Apparently such treatment was either reserved for me personally, or for people closer in age to them. I relaxed a little, still unhappy they'd do anything mean to him or his brother, but it was certainly better than the alternative. As we finished and dried off, we stood at the sink together combing our hair and brushing our teeth. As soon as I managed to wipe my mouth and slip on my pants I caught sight of David running back towards the entrance. I smiled to myself, glad to have made a friend. I walked out of the bathroom and turned the corner stopping dead in my tracks. It was James.

Chapter Eight

"I really didn't mean to lead him into the woods like that. They wanted to play tag and I just decided to do it! I saved him, I mean, yeah I saved him!" I said preemptively protesting any accusations that could come. I felt my stomach churn at the words that I had said. I sounded more childish than I had thus far. James held up his hands and laughed a little.

"Dude, no reason to be sorry, you were just being a kid."

"That's kind of the problem 3;" I muttered to myself.

"What do you mean?" He asked with a curious expression on his face.

"I'm not the same anymore! I feel all these emotions that I can't explain and I want to go out and run and play. I actually want to make friends with these kids and I just don't understand it."

James smirked, laying back on his bed and placing his hands over his stomach.

"Well there's a reason for that, you are a kid now. You will always be aware of your past, but things just start to change. You feel more energetic, want to play, and want to have fun 3; At the end of the day you are just a slave to your emotions. There isn't anything you can do about it."

I blinked. I had suspected that I was acting this way due to shock or due to some innate survival mechanism that I couldn't explain. The fact that the transformation did this as well was a new revelation.

"Then the medicine changes your brain?"

James shrugged, turned on his side and propped his head up on his arm so he could see me better.

"The best way that I can explain it is how Frederick explained it to me. You are smaller; you no longer have hormones coursing through you, so naturally you are going to be different. I go whole days that I forget how old I really am but I always remember eventually. There isn't anything wrong with it, you get used to it after awhile. When you start serving your purpose you'll start to lose it a little bit."

I looked down at my feet. I had completely forgotten about my 'purpose'. I guess the change and the emotions it was causing occupied my mind too much.

"Are you going out on the streets or did you get a bidder?" James asked.

"I have a bidder."

James winced uncomfortably as he turned back over onto his back. I felt fear rush through me as he did.

"What's that supposed to mean!?" I asked breathlessly.

"At least while you're on the streets you get to come here during the day. You can have a little bit of a childhood and it's kind of a reward after everything is said and done. When you have a bidder you don't get breaks, you don't get to be a kid. I think I'd rather die than live like that."

I swallowed deeply. I had my suspicions as to what kind of a life that would be but he had confirmed it. I wasn't sure what to do or what to say as I felt tears begin to slide down my cheeks. James immediately stood up and came to sit next to me. He wrapped his arm around my shoulder in comfort as I laid my head against him.

"I don't want to live like that! I just want to stay here and never leave!" I said in between sobs. James sighed and patted me gently.

"I told you not to stay but you chose to. You made your bed and now you have to sleep in it."

I looked down at my feet again. He was right, he had given me a warning and I chose not to heed it. I didn't feel that it warranted such a life, but maybe it did? Was I really that bad of a person? I didn't want to think so but my life before meant absolutely nothing. I worked at a job I hated; I had no ambition to improve my station in life. The only reason I ever went down to that place was because I was feeling sorry for myself. I should have been more grateful.

"Maybe if you give him a hard time he'll sell you back." James laughed a little nervously. I took his suggestion as what it was, pointless hope.

"When is Frederick going to come back?"

"He'll be here tonight with Horace to take me back to Mass. He'll stick around though to give you your training."

"I think I'm going to talk to him." I said with a small amount of misplaced confidence. I slipped off of the bed and turned on my heel to stare at James. The look on his face was fairly sympathetic. I knew that talking was useless, and that he didn't want to burst my bubble, but I would look forward to it just the same. I had a Bachelors in Philosophy after all. If I couldn't talk my way out of something then what were all those years for?

James stood up and patted my head. "Ready to eat?"

"Yep!" I shouted and ran out of the room ahead of him. I wasn't going to lose hope until I absolutely had to.

As soon as I reached the bottom of the stairs I saw David and Jack already sitting together. Jack had a pair of crutches stacked neatly against the wall behind him and I decided to quickly run over to make sure he was okay.

"Hey, what happened?" I asked with genuine concern.

"The doctor said it was just a bad sprain. I haveta have this stupid stuff wrapped around it for a week but he said it should be okay after that. Guess I can't go outside and play anytime soon." He lamented his situation in classic style.

"Well at least you're okay." I smiled, preparing to leave when David caught hold of my arm.

"Sit with us!"

I smiled and obliged, taking a seat next to David and looking around the table at the other boys. José and Jake sat together near the end of the table and they were throwing spit wads at some of the younger kids. James had taken his place near a shifty looking ten year old with messy black hair and blue eyes. He looked decidedly uncomfortable and I assumed that he must be like us. Before I had the chance to examine anyone else, Bessie was coming into the room with large plates full of food for everyone.

"Alright everyone y'all get ready to eat!" She smiled from ear to ear, putting down the dishes she could carry and busily hurrying back towards the kitchen to get more.

Each dish was a delight to behold; mashed potatoes, green beans, macaroni and cheese, corn, stuffing, cornbread, fried chicken. It was an entire southern feast and it seemed as though there wasn't any taste ignored. Everyone became very quiet as the serving dishes were passed around and everyone got whatever they wanted. I went for a leg, some green beans and some mashed potatoes. David and Jack seemed to take way too much of everything. I knew there wasn't any way that they could actually finish all of it. By the time everyone had been served I dug in and felt a warm sensation cover my entire body.

"Ish gud!" I said. My mouth was completely full of chicken as David was hungrily shoveling the contents of his plate into his mouth. He swallowed and grinned at me happily.

"Yeah it is! Bessie makes the best food ever!"

Bessie, who was a few seats down, had heard the compliment and smiled at us.

"Well thank you sugar I appreciate that."

I nodded, continuing to eat as much as I could handle and actually managed to polish off my plate. My mind wanted more, but my small stomach just couldn't take it. I sat back and groaned, entirely too full to even think about moving. I watched David and Jack give up around the same time but they had actually managed to eat about two thirds of their plates. They seemed even more miserable than I was. Bessie disturbed my moment of peace very quickly.

"Alright everyone! Tonight we have José, James and Colby on dishes, the rest of you can go play for the rest of the afternoon!"

José groaned immediately and stomped away from the table into the kitchen. James and Colby, the black haired boy from before, simply stood and began collecting things. I now knew that my suspicions were confirmed about the boy. David tugged on my shirt.

"Do you want to play some more?"

Jack's face seemed to contort into one of bitter loneliness. I smiled at him gently before returning my attention to David.

"I think I'm going to go upstairs and take a nap. Why don't you play with Jack for awhile?"

David groaned but accepted. Jack smiled appreciatively at me as I rose from my chair and went back into the entrance to climb the stairs to my room.

Chapter Nine

"What are you doing here!?" I demanded in a voice that sounded more adult than it had in many days.

The man laughed, mostly to himself, and Frederick smiled in turn.

Frederick soothingly spoke, "There is nothing to worry about; he's just here to take James back to Massachusetts for the night."

I nodded, still a little disturbed by his presence. "Then he is 3; Horace?" I suddenly remembered the name that James had mentioned earlier that day.

"Yes. He provides security for the boys and in your case inducts them I suppose 3;" His voice trailed off as he looked thoughtfully at the ceiling.

James walked into the room; completely dressed in the same frock I had seen him in the previous evening. His face looked completely different to me, as though he hadn't eaten in weeks.

"Hey Ben, catch you tomorrow." He waived a little.

I silently waved back, a little concerned that we might turn into something entirely different at night. Perhaps it was something like being a werewolf 3; I prepared myself to ask when Frederick, seemingly knowing what I was going to ask, answered.

"Part of not wanting to face any legal investigations is taking as many precautions as possible. If he looks homeless, then people assume he is. For those who come through unaware, for the police, for 3; well you catch my drift. It's easier this way."

I nodded understandingly. I was glad to hear that we didn't turn into some deviant creature when night fell.

"I'm glad you came; I have a lot of stuff to ask you." I spoke suddenly, rising up on my knees and looking up at Frederick.

Frederick smiled, patted my head, and took a seat next to me. He was wearing the same white lab coat he had worn the night I first saw him.

"I'm sure you do."

I nodded and began to incoherently blab out everything on my mind, "Basically I mean I went downstairs today and this one older kid made me suck him! He completely tricked me and it wasn't even my fault! Then I started feeling really funny I mean like I don't think or talk the way I used to 3; See what I mean!? THEN! THEN I went down into the woods to play with these two kids and one fell in a hole and I had to save him, but it was okay because Bessie didn't get too mad at me. Oh and I don't know what you think but I'd rather go on the streets and stay here than have to be leased to somebody, and 3;"

My voice suddenly trailed off as my hands rose to cover my mouth. I knew how foolish I sounded, and everything I said was mostly involuntary. I knew, because of James, the sort of emotional changes that I was going through but I didn't expect them to be so powerful. I looked up at Frederick who was merely smiling. I looked down below me onto the bedspread and hoped that I could completely disappear. This man was, at the end of the day, my mortal enemy. It was because of him that I was experiencing these things. I may have erred, but this punishment was not legitimate or even moral. I should be an adult right now, repeating the exact same mundane routine that I always had. Instead of hating him I cleaved to his presence like a son would to a father. I wanted his wisdom and there were so many answers that I craved. Before I could try and convince myself to feel anger he had already begun speaking.

"To begin with that was a whole mouth full but that's okay. I'll answer all your questions and tell you things you didn't even know you wanted to know. All I ask is that you sit back and relax."

I nodded, unable to keep my curiosity at bay. I scooted backwards onto the headboard and sat, my eyes locked permanently on his.

"I am well aware of the incident this afternoon. The young man in question has a wealth of problems that certainly need to be addressed. You did exactly what anyone would expect a child to do. You wanted acceptance, therefore you relented. If he attempts to pursue the issue again then I suggest you either politely refuse or relent. Either way the leaders at this establishment do not need to be notified."

I raised my eyebrow, unaware of how he knew so much.

"As far as your emotional state I realize that James explained to you a little of what's happening. We aren't entirely sure what causes it to occur, to what severity it will present in each person, or at what speed. You seem to be very susceptible to it. Once you start having relations with your bidder the innocence that you are reclaiming will be slowed considerably."

I nodded. I wanted to protest the bidder part but he had already begun speaking again before I could.

"I'm very happy to hear that you are getting along so well with everyone. I know that Jack and David value your friendship dearly, and I assure you that no one blames you for the earlier incident. You were, after all, just being a boy."

I sighed to myself. Part of me was comforted, another part infuriated by being talked down to.

"As far as your bidder is concerned, we have already signed a legally binding contract with him and short of the funds not clearing or his choosing to cancel it, there's nothing that can be done. Your personal happiness, while important, isn't more important than twenty-five million dollars."

My jaw nearly dropped when I heard that. Was I truly worth that much? Perhaps the better question would have been was I worth that little? Could a value really be put on a person's time? Was it more or less valuable if they were, for all intensive purposes, immortal?

"It's just not fair! I'm not a bad person, I promise! I don't want to go." I shook my head as hard as I could. My eyes began to well up with tears and I felt completely hopeless again. As I began to sob and the tears flowed like a river, Frederick placed both hands on my shoulders.

"You made the choice of servitude over death. This was your decision. I realize that you are overcome by these emotions but there is nothing I can do. I can assure you that this client will not relinquish his control over you, no matter what you do, so you better learn to accept your fate now."

My tears stopped as I looked up at him in anger; every fiber of my being ached to lash out at him. I wanted so badly to make him feel the same pain that I did. I wanted to use my arms, my hands, my legs 3; anything available to me to cause him excruciating pain. I knew that I couldn't; I knew that as a nine year old I didn't have nearly enough physical strength. I was unsure of what to say, what to feel.

"You said that you wanted to create someone that could psychologically handle this; if I am becoming a child then how does that qualify!?" I asked, looking at him with eyes aflame.

He looked at me with the same cold expression I experienced the first night we met.

"This little maturity regression will end in due time. As soon as you are within his control, this youthful vigor will be lost. Do you see how much more mature James is than you? Do NOT attempt to psychoanalyze my methods. I know very well the ramifications and regardless of how small you are now, you are still a despicable, foolish, ungrateful twenty-nine year old."

I looked at him with a slightly hurt expression. The emotions of my reviving youth and my adulthood were fighting once more.

"What if 3; what if 3;" my voice trailed off as I tried to find something, anything to support my case.

"There are no what ifs you damned fool!" He slammed his fist down on the bedside table causing me to jump. I looked at him in terror for the first time.

"Do you want to hear more about this or would you like for me to just let you find out on your own?"

I shook my head unable to know what I wanted. My curiosity existed, but so did my anger. There was so much I wanted to say but simply couldn't get out. I began to cry uncontrollably again, falling into Frederick's side against my better judgment. Frederick wrapped his arm around me and held me for a minute, letting his fingers pass through my hair.

"I'm sorry that I yelled," he whispered.

I chose not to reply. All that I wanted was to cry, and for him to comfort me in turn. I may have hated him but I knew that I needed this more than anything else right now. I felt myself weaken, my body waned. As soon as I began to relax he began speaking once more.

"Two weeks from now the funds will have been received and sent to the appropriate accounts. Once that is accomplished, you will be immediately sent to Mr. Terrance via secure transport. You will be put to sleep so that you do not recall how or where you arrived. Once you are in his possession it becomes your responsibility to do as he says. There is no request that is beneath you. If you choose not to fulfill his requests then your punishment will be determined by Mr. Terrance. The only rule is that he cannot terminate your life. If he does so, then he will not be welcome to bid on anyone else in the future. Once your contract of twenty years is over, or Mr. Terrance dies, you will have the option of either going to the streets or being placed up for another bidder for the remainder of your time. Once you have hit the fifty year mark, well you know what happens after that."

I backed away from him so I could look at him. The requirements that he had for me were so inhuman.

"What do you know about Mr. Terrance?" I asked, lips trembling.

"I know that he is a very wealthy man. He doesn't tolerate insolence so it would be in your best interest to obey. I feel fairly certain he has an adequate housekeeping staff so you will probably just be there for his personal pleasure. As far as what that entails, I'm not entirely sure."

I nodded, more curious than angry. I wanted to know everything that I could.

"What would happen if I murdered him?"

Frederick laughed before returning his gaze to my serious expression. "You're serious? Let's see, if that occurred which is fairly near impossible, then 3; I'm not entirely sure. There would certainly be dire consequences I assure you."

I nodded. "Are there any ways for me to get out of it without him?"

Frederick laughed again, rolling his eyes at my futility. "It's adorable that you're trying but sadly no there are not. He would have to voluntarily relinquish control in order for that to happen and I assure you he won't."

I sighed, looking down. "Does he know my real age?"

"Thanks for mentioning that. No he does not. All of our clients know that we stop the aging process not that you are actually adults. It is extremely important that you not reveal this or you will be terminated."

I frowned. As much as I tried there appeared to be no outlet.

"Is there anything else?" He asked with mild interest. His eyes were staring at the window.

"I guess not 3;" I whispered, accepting my fate to some degree.

"That is grand. Considering the late hour I feel that it's time for me to depart. Prepare for another meeting at this same hour tomorrow." He inclined his head in my direction before walking towards the door.

I watched silently as he left, closing the door behind him. I was left alone once more, and as a slave to my thoughts. I thought momentarily about the option of death that I had so easily passed up. What was life without freedom, without liberty? Was the price of survival worth it? I made the decision to reflect on the issue later. It was extremely late and I was very exhausted. The various emotional states I cycled through that evening left me exhausted and in need of some well deserved sleep. I lay back against my pillow, closed my eyes, and quickly drifted off into my dreams.

Chapter Ten

"Come in!" I called. I wasn't sure if I'd ever get used to these constant intrusions.

"Hey!" David grinned as he slid in, shutting the door quickly behind him. He was wearing the same clothes from the day before and looked winded.

"What's up?" I asked, unsure of what to do.

"Not much." He stuck his hands in his pockets and strolled into the room. He examined James' already made bed and the window behind it. I began to feel confused.

"Is there something you need to tell me?"

"Oh I'm sorry I guess I forgot you're new." He giggled, rubbing his ginger hair with his right hand. "We aren't supposed to be up here."

I nodded and smiled a little. "So this is your first time up here?"

"Kind of, I mean I've been up here before but I've never been in any of the rooms. They're bigger than ours are. Plus we have to share with three others boys!" He looked personally insulted.

I smiled, trying to sympathize. "I guess that kind of sucks 3; You can come up here anytime you want though."

He grinned from ear to ear. "Really!?"

"Sure." I laughed. I appreciated how much he seemed to like me.

"Good! Have you taken your bath yet?"

I shook my head. Apparently he hadn't assumed I'd just woken up.

"Oh that's cool. We don't have breakfast for another hour."

I nodded, immediately glad that it was still early. I didn't want to arouse any suspicion concerning my being up so late the previous evening.

"You want to take a bath together again?"

"Sure!" At that point he ran out of the room and I could hear his feet rushing down the stairs to the second floor. I laughed to myself again, and followed at a much slower pace. By the time I had reached the lower level he was rushing back from the linen closet with clothes in hand.

"I got us matching clothes so we can be twins today!"

I smiled and swung the door to the bathroom open, letting him enter ahead of me. My mind raced back to the hurt expression on Jack's face from the day before. I hoped that he wasn't forsaking his brother due to his injury. It wasn't his fault that he couldn't run around anymore. I tried my best to remove the thought from my mind as I took my shirt off, staring at the nude form of David in front of me.

"How's Jack?" I asked, deciding it was okay to know that much.

"Oh he's okay. He said you're really cool for saving him."

I smiled, glad that what I had done was appreciated. I really didn't have much of a choice in the matter but they didn't have to know that. David slipped into the tub and I followed suit, sitting directly across from him.

"What do you want to play today?" He asked, soaping up a rag and rubbing it across his chest.

"Whatever you want to I guess. What does Jack want to do?"

David's nose scrunched up a little bit. "All he can do is sit around now, I want to do something cool!"

I frowned a little. I didn't want Jack to see me as a threat to the relationship he shared with his brother. Children are somewhat selfish, it is the nature of who they are, but I couldn't help but hope for some manner of sympathy on David's part for his brother. "I know he can't walk as good but I think you should play with him. I think he's really lonely right now."

David looked slightly distressed as he launched himself at me, wrapping his arms firmly around my body. Our young members mashed together and I began to blush.

"Please don't hate me! I promise if I'm annoying I'll get better!"

My feelings of sympathy for Jack immediately shifted to David. I had never thought of him feeling lonely and left out with the absence of his brother. He craved my attention, and was glad to have it. It was in that moment that I decided to be the best friend I could be. I wouldn't question him, and anything that he wanted would be my command; damn the consequences. As David shifted down a little to look at my face, I remembered the closeness of our bodies and I became red again.

"Please?"

I smiled, patting his back softly. "I think you're cool, I'll play with you anytime."

"Hurray!" David shouted as he hugged me tightly again, pushing himself upwards and causing our cocks to come in contact once more. I at once felt dirty for enjoying it and excited by the contact. I was no longer an adult, technically, so maybe it was alright to like it? Then again David was an actual child in his own right. It wasn't that I had any plans to do anything; I just wanted to understand how I was feeling and how he possibly felt. The answer to the last part became immediately apparent. David let go, a look of delight etched across his face, and resumed his washing. He seemed blissfully unaware of our physical contact, or what exactly it had meant to me. I guess I should have expected as much. I joined him and as soon as we were rinsed, we dressed and walked down the stairs together.

At the bottom I caught sight of José in the corner, talking intensely with Jake. I grabbed David's hand tightly and turned towards the dining room, watching them cautiously while trying not to draw their attention. José cast a quick gaze in my direction and another towards my young companion. He winked at me, a cocky expression crossing his face.

"You going to come finish our game today?" He asked. Jake immediately turned to see who he was talking to. David looked first at me, and then to the other boys. I knew what was coming before it happened.

"He's my friend now, go pick on somebody your own size!" David squeaked, sticking his tongue out. I began to flush violently in both fear and regret. Either David felt invincible in my presence or he was prepared to defend me. Either way, I just wanted to steer clear of José entirely.

"Is that so?" José asked as he strolled over, towering above David.

David immediately clinged to my side and I conjured up the most threatening face I could. I had no chance of defending myself against José but I couldn't let him pick on David like that. "Yeah!" I shouted; my voice quivered.

José and Jake both laughed. My eyes grew large as José began to draw up a fist. I grabbed onto David as tightly as I could, trying to protect him. Thankfully Bessie chose that moment to intervene.

"Now what do you think you're doing? These boys are too young for you to be bullying them around. You get in here right now and eat your breakfast!" She immediately grabbed José by the arm and pushed him into the dining room. I watched as José turned his head before disappearing.

"This isn't the end of this." He said with violent anger.

David hugged me tightly as tears began to pour down my cheeks. I was afraid, and there was nothing that could be done to stop José; he was a bully and a deviant. David looked up at me and frowned.

"It's gonna be okay! Bessie won't let him beat you up!"

I sniffled, wiped the tears from my face, and forced myself to stop crying.

"I hope so." I said. David smiled as much as he could manage and slipped his hand back into mine. We both entered the dining room together and took our places next to Jack.

"How are you feeling?" I peered over at Jack, doing my best to forget about the previous altercation.

"I'm okay I guess." He smiled at me. While the two boys were very much similar, there were some subtle differences that one could see on closer examination. Jack had a slightly thinner face than David, but their smiles were identical. He also seemed to have slightly darker hair.

"I was worried about you." I said, smiling back. I wanted Jack to know that I wasn't a threat to him in any way. I hadn't lied either, I truly was concerned.

"Thanks." Jack said. He didn't say a lot but I didn't detect any jealousy or pain.

Bessie exited the kitchen with the same voluminous array of food as she had before; eggs, bacon, sausage, pancakes, biscuits, gravy, hash browns, grits and toast. I wasn't sure how she found the time to do all this but I was grateful. As long as I stayed here, I knew I would eat well. Unfortunately I had no idea how long that would be.

As soon as we finished David and I quickly ran off to play. I cast a glance back at Jack who seemed to not care either way. I hoped that that meant everything was alright. I had made it a point to not look at José, but he had been selected to wash dishes once more. I wondered if it was some form of punishment, but I found it hard to believe that James or Colby would do anything that would deserve that. As soon as we reached the entrance David pulled on a pair of flip flops and I did the same. Right before I stepped out James and Colby walked over to us with unreadable expressions on their faces.

"Can we play?" James asked. Colby looked at him with a look of bewilderment for a brief moment.

My eyebrow rose in confusion but I couldn't fight my curiosity.

"What do you think David?" I asked; my eyes still locked on James.

"Sure! Let's play hide and seek!"

"Sounds fun 3;" Colby murmured as he crossed his arms across his chest.

I could tell this was going to be interesting.

Chapter Eleven

As we walked together into the yard, I felt an awkwardness that I hadn't felt before. James seemed fairly stoic, his emotions unreadable. Colby on the other hand seemed more annoyed than anything. I had never had the opportunity to speak to him before, but I was fairly certain now that I wasn't missing out on much. I was immediately broke from my thoughts as David turned to look at all of us.

"Alright, you can be it Colby! Just count to twenty while everybody hides!"

Colby rolled his eyes and uncrossed his arms. "Sure kid 3;"

James nodded as Colby began to count. "1 3; 2 3;"

David giggled. "You have to close your eyes and cover them! Like this!" David quickly demonstrated proper hide and seek etiquette. Colby groaned but relented.

"1 3; 2 3; 3 3;"

Within moments we were off running. I lost sight of David as he went around the other side of the house. James motioned for me to follow and I did, the two of us running as fast as we could into the woods. As soon as we came across a tree large enough to conceal our forms, James grabbed my arm and pulled me behind it. He began to speak as we fought to catch our breath.

"I found out some stuff about your bidder last night."

I nodded, my curiosity immediately peaked. My thoughts hadn't returned to the previous evening until now, and a flood of emotions began to enter me again. The most dominate, curiosity, was definitely there.

"What did you find out?"

"His name is Mr. Terrance and he owns some shady company that nobody knows a whole lot about. He has been coming to the alley off and on for years to get whatever he wanted. He doesn't like blondes, so I've never had him, but Colby has. Apparently he likes to pull hair and when Colby said it hurt, he put out a cigarette on his thigh."

I immediately felt the blood drain from my face as I turned pale. Whatever hope I had for Mr. Terrance being somewhat human had immediately left me. Colby didn't seem to be the most agreeable person in the world, but surely nothing would necessitate that sort of a punishment.

"What happened then?" I asked, shaking myself from my shocked state.

"Well naturally Horace took care of it, beat him up pretty bad. He just came back a few weeks later though. We don't know for sure but Colby is pretty sure he must have bribed Horace or something because anyone that hurts us usually never comes back. I don't know what kind of money he offered for you but it must have been a lot. Horace really watches him closely when he's with one of us for just a couple hours."

I nodded trying to absorb everything I had been told. It was difficult to imagine myself being with someone so cruel. "What can I do?"

James sighed, looking around us carefully before he replied. "If I were you I'd run away. I don't think you'd survive him."

I swallowed deeply. The idea of running away had crossed my mind but I knew the limitations I had as a child. If a cop saw me, he'd pick me up; if I was caught by Purity, then what? I'd still have to go and stay with Mr. Terrance either way.

"There has to be another way, I mean what if I get caught?"

James sighed, tapping his fingers on the tree in front of us. He appeared to be deep in thought.

"I know! There's a small town not that far from here and it has a train station. Maybe if you get on a train and just ride, everyone will lose track of you."

I nodded. It seemed fairly pointless to me but I supposed it was something to consider.

"So I should just leave now?"

James shook his head. "I don't think now is a good time. They watch the place really closely so they'd notice if you didn't come back up to the house soon. I think you should wait until after dark after they take me to Mass. As soon as everyone starts heading back they have jobs to do. They don't have as much free time at night as they do during the day."

I nodded; it made perfect sense to me. I would wait until night fall and at least give it a try. If I never tried, how would I ever know if I could reach freedom?

"Alright I'll go tonight!" I said with as much vibrato as I could muster.

"Not so fast. You just tripped out last night; I'd wait a few days and make them think you're getting used to the idea. They might even be watching us right now, but I hope not."

I nodded. I would take the time to perfect the plan for my escape at any rate. There had to be ways to overcome my obvious flaws. I wasn't sure what they were, but I'd figure it out.

"With that being said 3;"

Colby walked behind the tree and stared at us with a disinterested look on his face.

"Which one of you wants to be it?"

James shrugged. "I guess I'll be."

Colby shrugged and tapped him on the shoulder. Both of the boys stared at me afterwards.

"What?" I asked feeling confused.

"You are supposed to run to base." Colby said with the same disinterested tone.

"Oh 3;" I muttered. My mind was too consumed with the prior revelation to have given it any thought. I nodded towards my two comrades and ran back up the hill. I caught sight of David who was leaning against the porch.

"Hurry before he gets you!" He shouted, jumping up and down excitedly.

I nodded and headed towards him. I heard Colby and Jake running behind me, although I was fairly certain I was in no immediate danger of being caught. As soon as I reached base, James put on a fairly convincing show.

"Dang I have to be it? That blows! Oh well 3;." He covered his eyes and began to count.

As we spread out once more I decided to follow Colby. I was fairly certain I knew everything there was to know, but my curiosity as to whom he was held strong. Colby either didn't notice or care, because he never took a glance back at me. He chose a large rock behind which to hide, and I scooted behind it with him.

Colby turned his head slowly and stared at me, arms crossing across his chest again.

"Hi." I said simply. He was awfully intimidating to be ten.

"Hi." He replied; his icy blue eyes examined me as though I were a piece of merchandise. I felt a little repulsed by it.

"I'm Ben." I smiled and held out my hand.

Colby smirked a little but made no effort to return the gesture. "I know who you are."

I let my hand slowly fall back to my side. I knew that there would be no opportunity to make friends with him. I wondered if I had done something to insult him, or if he was just a cynical person in general.

"Thanks for telling James all that stuff." I said, trying my best to get him to act somewhat friendly towards me.

"I told him because he means a lot to me. I don't really care about you." He stared down at a root rising from the ground, kicking it softy with his foot.

"Oh 3; Well thanks just the same." I smiled.

He nodded, allowing his eyes to rise to mine. I felt like a mouse staring at a cobra.

"How old are you?" He asked suddenly. I wasn't sure what made him curious, but I was intrigued. Just the same, I decided to be an asshole.

"I'm nine years and two months, yourself?"

Colby smirked. "Real cute, bet you think you're the life of the party huh? What's your real age?"

I frowned. There was no getting through to him. "I'm twenty-nine."

Colby nodded as his eyes fell once more; his foot setback on its task of kicking the exposed root. "Interesting 3;"

My eyebrow rose. "Why is that interesting?"

"I just took you as being younger."

I nodded, not completely understanding. There was something about Colby that made me want to get to know him, but it seemed an impossible feat. None-the-less, I decided to follow common courtesy and return the question.

"How old are you?" I asked.

His eyes rose once more to meet mine. "I'm sixty-three."

I stared at him for a brief moment in disbelief. Naturally I understood that we three were adults, but I never thought of someone that advanced in age being forced into this. I suddenly saw an ornery grandfather trapped inside the body of a child. The way that he acted made sense to me.

"Sorry about that, I bet you must hate being like this."

Colby suddenly did something that I hadn't expected him to. He began to laugh. Not just your typical laugh either, but a full bellied laugh that echoed across the entire forest. I looked at him confused. I wasn't sure whether I said something that amused him, or if I was wrong in saying that. It was difficult to be able to tell what was going through his mind at the best of times.

"You just don't understand the gift you have do you kid?" He rolled his eyes as he settled down. The way that he stared at me was contemptuous; I felt incredibly uncomfortable in my skin.

"There isn't a single one of us that didn't deserve it. All of us are sick, chasing after kids. I made the decision to go down that alley and I'm damned glad I did."

I felt confused at that moment. For one, I had gone with the intention of seeing young adults, not children, and for another he seemed to speak ill of what he was. Why did he call it a gift before?

"I had had my turn with several of the boys over the years. I blew my money on the only drug I loved, and it was a foolish decision. I lost everything I had; my wife, my job, my house, my kids 3; Then I found out that I had cancer and I knew my life was done. I didn't have anything left but I wanted it once more. I wanted to feel like I had something left from my former life. I went down that alley and tried to get what I wanted, and I was punished for it. Do you know what though? Here I stand before you alive! Here I stand before you reborn! I have the chance to live my life over again; do you know how many people get that chance?"

I remained completely silent. I had never looked at my new life as an opportunity for anything. I resented the fact I was robbed of my accomplishments and freedoms. I felt as though I had done nothing wrong, and I didn't deserve what was given to me. I didn't want to tell him that though; he had every reason to be grateful I supposed. If his life had fallen to such a low point, then this was indeed his chance at a second life. For me, well my life wasn't so bad. I didn't have a lot of things and I worked at a job that I hated, but I had made it through the awkward years of my youth, attended college, and made it by myself into the world. There wasn't anything more valuable than that.

"I bet you didn't have shit did you? I bet you worked at some crummy restaurant and spent your days lusting after the little boy as they walked in." He spit on the ground, looking at me with disdain. I immediately felt my blood begin to boil.

"You listen to me; you don't know a damn thing about me! I didn't go down that alley to look for some kid; I thought there were adults there! Plus I have a college education; I had a REAL job in the REAL world. What do you have to say about that?"

Colby shook his head. "Can't even admit when you deserve it huh? That's alright. Just remember that I'm not going to feel a damn bit sorry for you. You ought to go live with Mr. Terrance and do as you're told. At least you'll get a second life at the end of it."

"Why the hell are you picking on me? What did I ever do to you?" I asked, still as angry as I had been.

Colby sighed, looking up at the canopy above us. I couldn't tell exactly what was going through his mind.

"Nothing, you have done absolutely nothing. I just think it's a damn shame that you're looking a gift horse in the mouth."

I stood silent once more. There was no way that I could convince myself that this whole thing was a gift. He didn't know me, but he had good reason to assume that I was sick. Why else would people go down that alley? What had I ever done to convince anyone otherwise?

"Look I think I understand where you're coming from. I'm sure that this whole thing means a lot to you. I mean, I wasn't really happy with my life but I was okay with it. I never messed with anybody or anything 3; The only reason I went down that alley was because I was bored."

Colby looked at me once more and smiled. His hand rose in the air and patted me on the shoulder. "Then at least be glad that you aren't bored anymore."

I was about to speak when James rounded the corner and tapped me on the shoulder. I watched as the two of them began to run back towards the clearing ahead. I still didn't completely understand Colby, but I supposed that I saw his point. I would do my best to try and look at this as somewhat of a gift. With that being said, there was no way that I was going to live with Mr. Terrance no matter what anyone said. I would have my new life on my terms.

Chapter Twelve

As we sat down for lunch, I could see that James and Colby were speaking in hushed tones. The mood Colby had been in originally had diminished somewhat, and I felt as though I had won a great battle with him. He would probably always see me as ungrateful, but at least he knew more about me than he had before. I tried to do my best to remember that he was just an older man with stubborn views. No matter how young he looked on the outside, his inside didn't change.

"Are you okay?" Jack suddenly asked, leaning over his brother. I shook my head and rejoined the conversation.

"Yeah, sorry, I was just thinking."

Jack smiled as he took a serving of mashed potatoes from the plates that had just arrived. David took a similar amount and deposited the same portion onto my plate.

"We can eat the same stuff too if you want." He grinned at me.

I nodded and smiled. "Sure anything you want."

By the time David had managed to fill my plate to the brim, I began to eat and it didn't take a long time to polish it off. All the energy I burned that morning had made me hungry and it amazed me what I was capable of eating. Surely this is why children never gained weight. As soon as everyone else managed to finish eating what they could, Bessie began assigning dishwashing duties once more.

"Alright everybody listen up! This time we have José, Colby and Benjamin on dishes."

I suddenly turned as pale as a ghost. My eyes shot quickly to José who seemed to be grinning in delight. Before I could gauge Colby's reaction David was already tugging on my shirt.

"Hey I'm going to be in the playroom while you do dishes. Come in there when you get done okay?"

I nodded, not entirely sure if I'd be alive long enough to actually finish the dishes. As David ran off and the other kids exited the room, I followed Colby's example and began to gather the dirty dishes.

Walking into the kitchen revealed something much smaller than I had expected. It was a fairly simply space, by anyone's standards, and had a normal sized refrigerator, stove, and oven. There seemed to be a little extra counter space than the average kitchen, but other than that it was fairly typical. I was amazed at how Bessie managed to make such large meals with just this small space. I slid the dishes I was holding onto the counter and felt someone nudge me from behind, it was José.

"So do you not want to be my friend anymore?" A feigned hurt expression crossed his demonic face. I looked up at him, wanting so badly to rip him apart with my bare hands, but decided to play it cool.

"Of course I do! Sorry about David earlier he was just being a kid you know?"

José smirked and I could hear Colby snicker. José turned his head towards him and growled. Colby said nothing in response.

"That's good to hear because I've really been wanting to finish our game. Want to come play after we finish dishes?"

I began to blush and the childishness inside me began to take hold.

"I don't want to play those games anymore 3;"

José cackled in an insidious manner. "Does that mean you can't finish what you start? What good are you?" He poked me in the forehead with his index finger. I began to feel tears roll up in my eyes. Colby immediately walked over and stared at the older boy with the same stoic look on his face from before.

"I don't think it's in your best interest to make him cry."

José laughed heartily, his slightly chunky belly shaking in response. I couldn't help but notice a complete lack of fear on Colby's face. I wasn't sure why he was standing up for me, but I was glad. I wasn't sure what he'd be able to accomplish but I decided I would support him any way I could.

"Just what are you going to do about it? James isn't here to protect you, you know?"

Colby smirked and closed his eyes. His arms lowered from his chest and for a brief moment I didn't think he was going to do anything. Before my eyes had a chance to react, he had drawn back his fist, punched José full on in the balls, and had begun wailing on his face as soon as he fell. José yelled out for help as I stood there in complete shock for a brief moment. I grabbed Colby by the arms and pulled him off before he could hurt the older boy too badly.

"I'll get you for this! This isn't the end! I'll beat you up you stupid kid!" José spoke between sobs, tears mingling with blood as it fell from his nose. He immediately rose to his feet and ran out of the kitchen. I let go of Colby and stared at him in shock.

"How did you do that?" I asked.

"Think I can't fight just because I'm an old guy?"

I shook my head. "No, because you're eleven now!"

Colby chuckled a little, rubbing his right fist with his left hand.

"Size is relative. You just have to know your opponents weak point."

I nodded, still in disbelief. I had never actually fought anyone in my life but I was fairly certain I wouldn't be any good at it. Colby must have had some experience before his regression or he wouldn't know half of this stuff.

"I don't think he'll be bothering you anymore."

I nodded. "Thanks."

"Don't mention it 3;" Colby replied as he began to walk towards the sink with a dirty dish. As soon as he had reached the sink Bessie burst into the kitchen.

"Which one of you did this?" She asked with her fists propped up on her hips.

"It was me." Colby said, depositing the dirty dish in the sink and turning to look at her.

"You come with me right now young man!" She walked over and took him by the arm, escorting him out of the room. Colby turned momentarily to wink at me as she did so. I smiled softly, suddenly having a new sense of respect for Colby that I had never had before. Maybe he wasn't as bad as I had thought? I looked around at the dishes that surrounded me and felt overwhelmed. How was I supposed to do all this by myself? I walked over to the sink and began to wash what I could. Maybe if I went slowly, Bessie would come and relieve me at some point.

I was nearly a quarter of the way done when the door opened once more. Bessie walked inside and over to me, kneeling so that we were at eye level.

"I don't know what you did to make José pick on you, but you should be glad you have a friend like Colby."

I smiled at her. "I am."

She nodded and shook her head a little bit, the look on her face becoming suddenly stern.

"Now don't get me wrong, what Colby did was wrong. You shouldn't ever hit anybody. Just the same, he stood up for you and that means his heart was in the right place. Now, is there anything you need to tell me about José?"

I stood there for a moment and fought hard against the child that I was. I wanted so badly to tell her what he had done, about what an evil person he was. I knew that I couldn't; I knew that she shouldn't know a thing about this. I couldn't bring attention to myself no matter what happened. I decided to take the safe out and simply hugged Bessie tightly.

"He's a mean boy but he didn't hurt me."

Bessie sighed and held me gently, kissing the top of my head. I felt very warm and safe, a complete turnaround from how I had felt all morning.

"That's good to hear sugar. I'll finish up these dishes you run along and play okay?"

I nodded and smiled up at her as she stood back up to her full height. I ran out of the kitchen and towards the playroom. David was waiting for me after all.

Chapter Thirteen

"You don't think he'll find out do you?"

I shook my head. The memories of what we had done flooded back to me. As soon as David showed me the balloons I figured that he wasn't up to any good. I wasn't entirely sure how he got me caught up in the act, but it seemed the right thing to do at the time. I few well placed water balloons later, and we watched in delight as the doctor who was attending to Jack became drenched. We ran as fast as we could around the house as he looked for someone on which to place the blame. The look of fury on his face was hilarious.

"I'm so tired!" I yelled out suddenly. It was true, I was completely exhausted, but I was also completely happy. I had never experienced something so amazing before in my life; existing in a place of wild abandon, not having to worry about bills or other adult responsibilities; life was so much better. I hadn't even thought for a moment on the events of that morning, and the terrible revelations concerning Mr. Terrance. I was becoming lost in a world that I felt very much at home in.

"Me too!" David giggled and collapsed on my chest. He rose his head up to look in my eyes mischievously. I smiled back at him, glad to have him with me. My right hand rose up as I wiped a trail of sweat off his forehead.

"What do you want to do next?" He asked, squirming on top of me. My eyes rolled inside of my head as I fought to find an answer. A part of me wanted to continue to play even though I was exhausted.

"Whatever you want to do." I said finally. He hadn't come up with a bad idea up to this point, unless you counted the water balloon fiasco.

"I always come up with the games!" He giggled, climbing on top of me completely. Our sweaty bodies mashed together as he placed his forehead against mine, staring intensely in my eyes. I began to blush, feeling my now erect penis pressed against his leg.

"I know but I like you." I said gently, not knowing how to feel or wanting to draw attention to myself.

"I like you too." He giggled and pecked me on the lips, just causing me to blush even more furiously than before. I pecked back, not wanting to seem awkward.

"So 3;" He asked staring at me as his body rocked back and forth playfully. I knew that what he was doing wasn't sexual to him, but my penis said otherwise. The friction caused me to gasp audibly, and he suddenly stopped to stare at me.

"Did I hurt you?" He asked, looking very concerned.

I smiled, patting his cheek gently with my right hand.

"Nope I'm okay."

"Why did you make that sound?"

"It feels good when you rock back and forth." I said without thinking about what I was saying. I immediately felt remorse and fear rise up inside of me. I was an adult and here I was so turned on by this seven year old. I wasn't a pedophile; I had never spent any time looking at a child in that way before. All of a sudden with this transformation, I saw my sexuality from a completely different perspective. Everything was so different, the sensations that I felt were so strong. With that being said, I had knowledge of what all of this meant and David did not.

"Oh." He giggled and started rocking back and forth again. My eyes shot wide open as my hands fought to stop him, grabbing at his sides and trying to get his momentum to cease.

"I don't think we should do that." I said as seriously as I could. David looked at me with a confused expression etched across his face.

"Why not?" He asked innocently.

"I don't think I can explain that 3;" I said as gently as I could. I wasn't prepared to open up the Pandora's Box of sexual knowledge to this child. I may be a slave to my childhood perspective but I still had some semblance of my adult common sense.

"I think it feels good too." He smiled at me, trying to calm my nerves. I smiled in return, in full knowledge of his ignorance. Should I allow him to continue so that he didn't ask unnecessary questions? Or should I refuse to continue and take the chance of hurting him? I wasn't sure what to do.

"Why does it feel good?" I asked looking up at him and letting my head fall onto my pillow.

"My thingy is rubbing you." He giggled. My eyes became very large as I suddenly realized that his penis was indeed pressed against my stomach. I wasn't sure why I hadn't felt it before, but it was definitely there. Whether he realized what he was doing or not, he was aroused. This complicated my situation that much more.

"What if somebody sees us?" I asked, trying to rationalize with him why we shouldn't do this.

"Jack and I do it sometimes and we've never been caught."

I closed my eyes tightly. Did he know that what we were doing was wrong? Did he have any reason to feel shame? Before I had a chance to say anything else David was fiddling with the front of his jeans to trying to unbutton them. I shot backwards and sat back against my headboard.

"What are you doing!?" I asked in complete terror.

David stopped what he was doing and looked at me with a hurt expression on his face. "It feels better without any pants on. You said it felt good didn't you?"

"It does, I mean, but you're just a kid!"

David giggled a little bit, "You're a kid too!"

His logic was fairly sound.

"I just don't think we should be having sex, I mean 3;" My voice trailed off as I fought to find some reason to end this.

"What's that?" David asked with a curious expression etched across his face. My eyes rose to meet his and a feeling on calmness began to fall over me. He had learned that rubbing together felt good, but he had no idea what it was or what it meant. David was innocent, and I felt that I had overreacted for no reason. Who was I to deny this moment? It was simply rubbing after all. We were two kids who were experiencing something that was exciting and invigorating. It wasn't like he hadn't done it before.

There it was though, the essential problem! I wasn't a kid, I was taking advantage of him, and I felt horrible. I was stealing away his innocence, becoming the monster that people on television always talked about. I just knew that any moment someone was going to burst into the room and expose me for what I was. I was a freak to want this and even more of one for trying to rationalize it. Then again, it was him that had started it 3;

I looked into David's eyes with a look of realization dawning on my face. "You have no idea what that means."

David giggled a little. "Nope, do you still want to rub together?"

I looked towards the door to make sure there was no one around. I wasn't sure what consequences would come from this, but I was going to enjoy it. As long as it was nothing he didn't already know about, as long as I didn't corrupt him, then there couldn't be anything wrong with it.

"Sure," I replied. David smiled and I watched as he finished unbuttoning his jeans, dropping them to the floor. Each milk covered leg came into view and I could almost feel the softness of his skin. As soon as he stepped out of them complete, he went one step further and I watched as his fingers found themselves inside of the waistband of his underwear. He slid them down, exposing his hard two inch [5 cm] cock to me. It was truly a monument to behold, standing tall and proud. It jutted out of his body and his pink head dominated my vision.

I felt my body tense and my own member began to throb inside of my pants. I wanted him so badly and here he was giving himself to me freely. This wasn't in a perverted sense, but in a way that seemed innocent, in a way that seemed right. I undid my pants and slid them off, following David's example. I stopped momentarily at my underwear as I noticed David's eyes staring excitedly.

My fingers reached into the waistband and pulled them down, my own small cock sprung into view. It was probably about three inches [7½ cm] long and not much wider than a marker in circumference. I had never taken the time to examine it but it was a delight to behold. It jutted out straight from my body and I was amazed at how similar it was to David's, apart from being just a little longer in length. I also noticed my balls for the first time. They had yet to descend, naturally, and drew close to my body. I let my index finger trace over them momentarily.

"Wow you're bigger than me!" David said as he stared at it. I blushed, and couldn't help but laugh a little. Only a seven year old could consider what I had to be big.

"What do we do next?" I asked, stepping out of my underwear and staring at David's face for any sign of distress or discomfort.

"Uh we just kind of rub them together." David said as he motioned for me to lie down. As I did so he climbed on top and the sensation of his nude body against my own felt incredible. The moment that we had in the bathtub was absolutely exhilarating, but in this moment where everything was on purpose, my senses were amplified. His penis smashed against mine and I felt my breath quicken as he began to grind his hips against me.

"It's like playing swords!" He giggled, staring me in the eyes with a playful expression on his face. I laughed and smiled, enjoying the sensation and the innocent way that he viewed the activity. My hands slid down his back and gently caressed his bottom, pushing him closer into me.

"Eww you touched my butt!" He accused, laughing and stopping his motions for a moment. I laughed, becoming aware of myself. The adult part of me refused to be silenced completely.

"I like your butt." I said as innocently as I could. My hands kneaded it for a brief moment before falling down to my sides. The skin on his behind was like silk, and just touching it for that brief moment was incredibly erotic.

David shrugged. "You can touch it if you want."

He began moving his hips again as our cocks grinded together. I blushed deeply, my hands trembling as they rose to grab his ass once more. Apart from a momentary giggle he didn't stop his movements. As my hands gently rubbed across their surface, I was amazed at how perfectly formed his cheeks were. Each was tiny, of course, but relatively plumped. They curved up perfectly, seeming to go on for days. I couldn't remember a single adult who had an ass that even remotely compared to this one.

I kneaded each cheek gently, letting my fingers caress each globe as though it were some precious artifact. I found my own hips involuntarily grinding against his in turn, as the passion and eroticism inside of me intensified to a point I could barely contain. I began to breathe more heavily, not wanting the moment to ever end.

"I love you." I said involuntarily. It was something that was so easy to say but there was a deep part of me that felt that I meant it.

"I love you too!" He said, raising his head up to look at me better. His breath was as quick as mine and he seemed to have no desire to end the movements either. While my eyes stared into his, I knew that the love he felt for me wasn't the same that I felt for him in that moment. I was a dear friend, just another kid in his life. He knew what we were doing felt good, but he had no idea what it meant. I felt guilty, in that moment, but my body refused to listen.

Our bodies were sweating intensely with each movement and my hands fought roughly with his bottom. My breath became quicker and quicker as I began to feel a tingling sensation build up inside of me. I had no idea whether I was able to orgasm at this age, but I knew that it wouldn't take much longer for me to find out. My arms rose up, wrapping around his torso tightly as I closed my eyes and buried my face into his shoulder.

The tingling began in my stomach and continued on until it met my groin. It actually felt fairly similar to having to pee. The only way I could tell it apart was the pure intensity of it all. I let out a loud moan, feeling my penis twitch as the sensation ran up my shaft and completely overwhelmed me. My penis tried to find something to push out; even one solitary drop of semen, but it was to no avail. With nothing to stop it from tingling the feeling became stronger and stronger; I grinded hard against David, seeking an end to this eternal orgasm. I wanted relief, but there was a part of me that wanted to see how far I could be pushed. By the time the feeling became so intense that I felt I was going to pass out, the tingling began to disappear and I became aware of my surroundings once more.

I looked down at David whose cheeks were redder than I had ever seen them. He was grinding with the same level of commitment against me, and it didn't take long for his legs to begin to tremble.

"I have to pee." He said suddenly, trying to pull away from my grip. I refused to release him, holding him as tightly as I had during my own orgasm. I quickly flipped him onto his back and climbed on top, making sure that his penis had as much friction against it as mine had.

"Trust me, you don't have to." I breathed. My own penis was so sensitive that I wanted to stop but I knew that I couldn't. I wanted David to feel the exact same thing that I had. I felt David's hands as they grabbed at my back, squeezing tightly and fighting against the unfamiliar feelings that were building up inside of him.

"It tickles!"

David started to yell out as I quickly covered his mouth with my right hand, holding him close to me with my left arm. I felt his penis jerk against my groin as he reached his climax. I noticed that my feeling that my orgasm was lasting extraordinarily long wasn't just my problem, his seemed to last an eternity. I tried my best to comfort him as I knew how intense the feeling was for me, and couldn't imagine how it felt to someone who was experiencing it for the first time. As he reached the end of his orgasm I felt his muscles begin to relax and his penis begin to stop twitching. I removed my hand from his mouth and backed up, staring at his tired, red, and sweaty face. I felt bad for forcing him to continue but I knew how close he was to finishing. I wanted David to understand what could happen, even if it took the innocence of the moment away.

"Are you okay?" I asked, afraid that he would be mad at me.

"That felt really good 3;" He said quietly, blinking his eyes open and staring at me in disbelief.

"Yeah it did." I smiled. Apparently he wasn't too upset with me.

"I'm sleepy 3;" He whispered as his eyes began to close. I smiled at the small boy, kissing him gently on the cheek. I slid next to him and wrapped my arms around him torso, pulling him close to me. As I lay there, in the afterglow of my first underage orgasm, everything felt right with the world. I suddenly felt thankful for the transformation for the first time. My eyes closed and I fell asleep, my face buried deep within David's hair.

NEXT PART