An End to Summer

There is no under 18 year old sex in this story.

There are underage character in this story but there is no sex for individuals under the age of 18!

All sex is between adults. No children were harmed in the writing of this material.

The back story of under-aged individuals is purely non-sexual.

References to the term 'boy' are either in affection or derogatory connotation. If you are skimming for the word 'BOY' and assume that means a child, please read in full context.

There is gay, male+male sex in this story that may be offensive to some.

Special thanks to FiveWolves who requested some gay and lesbian romance in my world. I enjoyed writing this.

An End to Summer

Chapter One - The Summer 2006

Reduced to it's finest elements, the Harris family motto was, 'If you want something, take it.' Alexander Harris-Wallace loved his Harris cousins more than his own brothers. He often wished he would have been born under the branch of that particular tree rather than his own. The Wallace line could trace their heritage back to the foundation of Yountville through settlers from Scotland.

He was sick of telling people, "No, not that Wallace."

Fuck Mel Gibson.

The Wallace family was filthy rich and like the wealthy, they were conditioned to getting what they wanted and everyone danced to their little drum. For that reason they were arrogant and uptight. They had always been the leaders of the community and any dispute against their status was swiftly handled. They were powerful leaders, everyone knew it. Alexander's father was first son of a first son going back to the settlement of the town.

Unfortunately, Alexander was not the first son and he wasn't even the second, he was third down the line and nearly forgotten. His two older brothers completely eclipsed him.

Christopher, the eldest son, thought he was invincible and went about throwing himself into any sort of danger he could find. There wasn't an extreme sport he wasn't interested in. So far he'd proved he was honestly unbreakable, at the expense of all his comparably fragile and expensive equipment.

His body might be strong but his heart was fragile. Sophia, the woman he was going to marry just left him at the altar for another woman. Big brother Christopher was out of his mind with grief and the whole family was in a tailspin.

Driving home from leaving Christopher at the airport, his parents dropped the bomb on Alexander.

"Alexander honey, we need you to step up and take care of your younger siblings this summer."

His heart sank and heat rushed to his cheeks. "What? Why me? Why can't Derek do it?"

His mother turned slowly in her seat and fixed him with a long, curious look. "Your brother Derek is going to be at riding competitions all summer. Your father and I will be taking turns driving him. It's time that you step up to your responsibilities. You're no longer a child."

That's right, he'd reached his majority. Not that anyone seemed to care earlier. He'd come into his talent months ago but unlike when Christopher, Derek, or any of their numerous cousins embraced their true nature and their spirit-form, there was no party for Alexander. Christopher and Sophia had an wedding shower and the weekend after was some cake-tasting nonsense that everyone in the family wanted to be involved with that instead. Every moment of every day seemed packed full of something Christopher or Derek were doing.

Alexander becoming a man in truth didn't interest anyone.

He got a clap on the shoulder and a, 'Good job, kiddo.' From his father.

Good job.

Other kids got cars or a horse or even a new computer. Something really awesome. He got a knowing smile.

"I don't want to," he growled sullenly.

His mother's eyebrows lifted. "Oh?" It was a warning expression and he knew not to press his luck but he was too irritated to censor himself.

"Yeah. I have to work in the restaurant. After that I need me time."

"Me time?" His father chuckled quietly.

"Alexander," his mother said with quiet concern. "You've been working too much. You won't be working at the restaurant this summer. This will give you all the me time you need and still look after your siblings."

He felt the heat bleed from his cheeks as the realization settled in the center of his chest. His income was cut off! Without the job he wasn't going to have money to pay the tithe.

"Will you pay me for looking after the brats?" Too late he realized his voice had broken in the tightening of his panicked throat.

"We are not paying you to watch the younger children. That is a duty you should accept with pleasure. They are your family Alexander," Mother said.

"What have you been spending all the extra money on?" Father asked quietly.

He couldn't admit where the money was going. The tithe. Payment to his Harris cousins to protect him. Sure, a larger portion of the protection was from his cousins themselves but it was worth it. For years Alexander had payed their price. Willingly he'd given them everything he earned, but the price kept rising. What he'd paid every month was never enough.

They thought Alexander was rich.

Although his two elder brothers had received a bounty of riches when they'd reached their majority, Alexander had not been so lucky. Everything was in upheaval and no one had time to spare him any attention. As far as he knew, he didn't even have a trust fund like his elder brothers.

Instead of making up a lie about where his work money was going, he pressed the issue about his summer indenture-ship. "Grammy can look after—"

It did the trick of drawing the topic off his finances.

"Alexander, this isn't a debate, you will look after your siblings this summer. Your me-time can be spent with your brother and sisters and your cousins but you are responsible for your siblings. Am I making myself perfectly clear?" Barbara Harris-Wallace gave him the look that sent a cold rush down his spine. She never needed to detail what would happen if he didn't obey, he'd seen often enough the types of punishment doled out for his elder brothers.

It didn't make the news any more tolerable.

Last month his cousins had informed him that his tithe payment was going up again. They expected him to come into his riches and could afford the deeper scratch on the surface. It didn't matter that he'd been pulling extra shifts to make the money to begin with. When he'd come up short for the last tithe all four Harris cousins had cornered him and taken his flute. Princeton broke the instrument as a demonstration of what would happen if he didn't follow through next time.

It scared him. Worse, when they realized he was afraid, they shamed him.

Now he didn't have a job and no means to make the money to protect himself from their abuse. For many years they'd been threatening him this way. Surely even his ruthless cousins saw it had to come to an end. Yes, he'd been soft and afraid and allowed the four of them to rule him all these years, but they would need to find someone new to torment and ply for money.

He crossed his arms over his chest and threw himself back into the leather seat with a huff that only earned him a narrow-eyed look from his father in the rear view mirror.

Good job, kiddo.

Assholes!

"You are also going to take care of Christopher's horse while he's gone," Mother said.

"Remmy? Mom!" He couldn't believe he heard her correctly. The concern he had about his cousins dissolved under a wave of terror that clawed up his chest. "He bites!" And kicks and he would be pissed that Christopher left him behind.

"Does your brother have another horse I don't know about?" Mother asked without even turning around to address the issue. "You'll be fine."

Because if Remmy crushes me into red goo, she has a replacement, Alexander thought gloomily as he curled onto his hip and glared out the window.

When he got home, he secluded himself to his room until sunset. He thought, maybe, if he was very lucky, he could just hide all summer and avoid Remmy and his retribution and just—

"Alexander, honey, time for feeding."

He shoved aside the drawings he had been scribbling and glared at the door, wishing with all his heart that his mother would leave. Go away! Let him be safe here. He did not want—

"I know you're in there Alexander. Come out right now and talk with me."

He thought he'd rather face Remmy than his mother right now. He also knew that she would simply walk in if he made her wait any longer and it would just be worse.

Gripping his hands together he stood and forced out a hard breath before moving to the door. He yanked it open and looked up at his mother, hoping that she couldn't read the fear he felt radiating off of him in waves. It was never good to show fear, his cousins taught him that.

"There you are. You weren't practicing your flute?" She sounded more troubled than he expected. He had been avoiding talking about the fate of his instrument too. He didn't want to lie about what happened to it but he couldn't tell the truth either.

"I'm not playing anymore," he said sharply.

Her bright green eyes gleamed with concern. "Alexander. Love, is this about your new responsibilities? You love the flute. I know you do."

"No I don't. It's for wimps, mom. I'm a man now. I'm not going to play that stupid thing ever again."

He knew the heat and emotion behind his words were out of context to her question. It shocked his mother so much he was able to slip by her without being restrained.

Her voice was calm at his back. "You should get to it or you'll be working in the dark. Derek is out loading up Calypso. He can give you some tips for the summer." Her lack of emotion cooled his anger and thickened his throat with guilt.

It would be better not run into his brother at all. Derek's playful nature had a way of making bad situations worse. Alexander wasn't in the mood to deal with him or his mount right now. He needed his whole focus on handling Remmy. It wouldn't do him any good to have his emotions in a frenzy.

He heard Derek inside, laughing. "All right, real funny. Okay, enough jokes, get in the damn trailer Cal."

Alexander poked around the corner, not wanting to be seen just yet. The piebald horse was mostly white except for the black patch over one ear and eye that spread down his muzzle and jaw. The eye without the patch was ice blue with a bold outline of black like the stallion was wearing heavy mascara.

Derek was currently fussing over a big tear on his shirt. The missing piece hung from the quivering muzzle of the horse. One of his brother's hands extended towards the exit and the awaiting trailer. Horse and rider were alike, two pranksters. The horse flicked an ear towards Alexander and very slowly tipped his head at him and nickered. He chewed at the cloth between his teeth a moment before spitting it out.

"I'm going to cinch you extra tight, Cal!" Derek threatened but the horse wasn't listening. Cal wandered towards Alexander, his mismatched eyes interested and long ears cocked forward.

The markings made the horse look like he was wearing a jaunty hat. He might appear and act like a horse, but he was no horse. As Alexander understood it, they were something else completely. Friendly, jovial emotion washed over him, like a mental hug as the stallion shared images with him. The enjoyable wrestling match with Derek and as victor he had taken a scrap of his shirt.

When Alexander pushed the thoughts and emotions away grumpily, the interest sharpened. Cal's concern formed a wordless question. Was Alexander alright?

"You better get into the trailer. Hey Derek," he called to his brother. "You know it's cheating right?"

"Hello, little brother. What is cheating?"

"Using Cal in the rodeo. It isn't right."

"Since when did you get so righteous and rule-lawyer'y? Do you think some of those people who have spend a million dollars on a horse and even more on training think they're cheating?" Derek asked as he walked closer and leaned against Cal's side. His arms crossed lazily over his chest.

"It's not the same and you know it. He's faster than other horses."

"Nah," Derek smirked back at the dark look his mount gave him.

"Smarter for sure."

"Now that's a stretch," Derek answered and gracefully dodged the horse's lazy kick. "Listen, do I have an edge? Sure. Would you feel better if I just begged mom and dad to get me an expensive mundane horse and paid someone to train them?" He sighed and rubbed Cal's flattened ears but continued to look at Alexander. "What's wrong with you tonight?"

He closed his eyes, wanting to argue and fight with his brother but he should save his energy. "I have to take care of Remmy and the brats all summer while you're screwing off. You're all leaving me alone! It's not fair!"

He felt the waves of amusement from Calypso an instant before Derek burst into laughter. These two were never going to be any help. Scowling, he stomped away from them, not even wishing his brother good luck at the event. Behind him, Derek called, "You'll be fine. Just show him who's boss!"

The stables were set up mostly for show. Oh sure, his younger siblings and himself had equines of the non-mystical variety but the special-horses, what father and mother called war-mounts, only used the stalls out of respect for appearances. There wasn't a fence that could hold them in if they wanted out. Once Remmy had showed up at school to join a fight Christopher found himself in. It took a month at Amy's house with the formidable Aurora Borealis educating him to make sure it didn't happen again.

He used the time getting the oats and grain to rally himself. If Alexander ever got lucky enough to get one for himself he wouldn't ever leave his mount without warning. It was just like Christopher though, jumping in with both feet without ever paying attention to anyone or anything else. Eldest brother rarely thought about how other people might suffer for something he did.

Alexander added a little extra molasses to the mix and let out a breath. He fed his little gelding first and then carried the special bucket down to the stall where Remmy waited. The regal muzzle poked out first and then darted forward to the length of the powerful neck. The color of his coat was bright copper, like a penny struck by sunlight and his head was marked by a broad white blaze from eye to eye. At seeing Alexander, the ears perked a little more forward as an image of Christopher very clearly filled his thoughts and the single question, not in words but in emotions.

Where?

"He's gone to Scotland," he said, glad his voice didn't quaver. He tried to imagine pictures he'd seen of the place at least express a huge distance.

The ears remained forward and again the image of Christopher and a more urgent enforcement.

-Now!-

Remmy expected Alexander, to bring Christopher before his Highness to answer for the slight of making him wait.

Alexander sighed and closed his eyes. Figures Christopher was self-centered enough not to even tell his warmount he was leaving. "Yeah well, he's far away now. I can't just bring him back. Here's your food. I'm sorry." He really was sorry. He could feel the distress and confusion.

The big horse swung his head towards Alexander and he thought he was going to get bitten but instead, the big stallion nickered. His dark eyes were wide and ears perked forward. The waves of anxiety increased, crashing over Alexander as the warmount processed getting abandoned. This was not a being that would tolerate cooling his heels while his rider went about life without him. The question punched at Alexander.

Why?

Why?

-WHY?!-

"He was hurting." Of course Remmy knew Christopher was hurting, he could see into his heart right? "The woman he loved left him." So Christopher felt he must leave everyone and everything in retaliation. The huge equine stood very still, his ragged breathing pumping his sides as he processed the news. Alexander took his chance to dump the food. "I'll be taking care of you."

The horse's ears flicked back and then pinned before he let out a horrible sound or anger. Horses were not supposed to sound like that! A jumble of emotions washed over Alexander, savage and strong and of course as the messenger of this wretched news, he had to suffer for it. He cried out in shock at the soul crushing fury. He hoped Derek and Cal didn't hear his pathetic mewling. What a coward he was. The stallion attempted to break through the door of the stall, roaring out his rage as the emotions lashed at Alexander.

Derek must have gone already, or he wanted no part in dealing with Remmy in one of his moods. Alexander's experience with the war-mounts was limited. They were tended by their riders and those accustomed to such things. His own horse was a little bay gelding, barely one step up from a pony, far removed from an uncut stallion with a full arsenal of sagecraft behind it. His talent was new and insignificant.

His mother misjudged his ability. The realization burned him with shame. Or, perhaps she and father were testing him. If he didn't get crushed or run through by the splinters flying from the wooden door, he might be found worthy.

"Hey!" he shouted. "Stop throwing a tantrum and listen!" It took him crying another, "HEY!" Before the stallion relented his screaming. Remmy glared at him, breaking another of the boards with a bash of his hoof.

"You can't swim across the ocean to get to him." He glared back at the puffing stallion and willed his limbs to stop shaking. "I'm all you have!" he shouted. "You're stuck with me and I'm stuck with you. Why do you think your rider ran off without even telling you? Because you're not worth the effort."

Alexander had no idea why Christopher didn't tell the war-mount he was leaving. But clearly being reminded of his faults brought the big horse up short. He blew hard and stamped but this time when he called, it was shrill with a plea. He didn't want Alexander to leave him too. The questions tumbled out. What should he do? Would his rider ever return? Was he forsaken?

The grief felt worse than the earlier pain of his wrath.

"I will not leave you," Alexander said, turning back to the trembling stallion. "But, no biting, no kicking and...no flipping out. You got it?"

Remmy's eyes narrowed as he looked Alexander slowly down to his feet and then up to his face. Yeah, he got the message. Alexander was a pathetic replacement to Christopher. "Yeah, but I'm not leaving you," he said firmly. "So, do whatever you want. You're free to go if you don't want me."

He turned and stomped out. At least he still had all his fingers and his limbs still worked.

Chapter Two

His self-congratulatory was short lived. He didn't get far beyond the stables before he was caught by his cousins. The sun was sinking and the long shadows had blurred completely into the gloom as day crept towards twilight. It was a dangerous time of day for those who believed in superstitions.

His cousins looked completely harmless with their lupine smiles so bright. Pride, the youngest, was a few months older than Alexander, the others, Courage, Princeton, and Crown were each less than a year apart in age. They had strange names but no one dared tease them about them. He'd seen the bloody faces of those who tried it. They were ruthless, and tough. They were huge compared to Alexander and handsome.

But Alexander didn't like to think about how he found men handsome. He was just confused, that's all. If he was considering his cousins appearances as attractive he definitely needed to have his head examined.

Too late though, Courage saw his lingering look and whatever intensity lurked behind it. The eldest of his Harris cousin's features twisted up in response. For a moment he stood clutching his fists and chewing at something he wanted to say in response to it. His brother, Crown, reached out to grab his arm and it stilled whatever insult he might have said. A smile solidified behind the revulsion. "Hey Alex. We're here for the tithe. Figured you wouldn't just show up. Your momma said you were out here feeding the nags."