Chapter 2

I almost laughed when I woke up, to find that Talon is curled right into me, his body pressed into mine in every place he can possibly touch, I am on my side, and I always sleep with my knees pulled up, and so is he. He is sucking his thumb in his sleep, and looks so peaceful, content, and so fucking sexy it is not even believable. I laid there watching Talon, holding him as I had been as we slept, for easily ten minutes before he started coming to. As soon as he woke up, he pulled his thumb from his mouth with a pop, and then sighed deeply.

“Did you have a good sleep Baby?” I whispered.

“Holy shit, you scared me.” He jolted.

“Sorry Baby, woke up about ten minutes ago with you curled right into me, sucking your thumb. Have you always sucked your thumb as you sleep?”

“Yeah, hope you don't mind, woke up in the middle of the night to a bad dream and I came in here. I didn't wanna wake you, I just wanted to finally feel close to someone as I slept, and it was so nice. As for thumb sucking, I kinda still do during the day too. I try not to, my parents would slap it outta my mouth any time they saw it, and their aim was always so poor that they mostly got my face every time.”

“I thought it was cute. As for coming in and sleeping with me, I don't mind, as long as you understand it's not sexual.”

“I know.”

“During the day, if I see you sucking your thumb, should I tell you thumb out so that you can try and quit, or do you not want me to bother?”

“I don't know. I mean, I'm a baby anyway right, so what difference is there.”

“I don't mind, but it is bad for your teeth apparently, though I honestly don't know how or why, but they say it is. We could also get you a baby soother the next time we're in town, that might help some as well.”

“Really, you mean it, you'd really buy me one?”

“Sure, if you want or need one, then of course I would. I'm not like your useless parents.”

“Thanks so much. By the way, curled up here in your arms like this, is the most loved I've ever felt in my entire life, and the most calm I've ever felt. No one's ever held me as far as I know.”

“You're welcome. I'm glad that's what you feel. A beautiful baby boy like you needs to be held and to made to feel love. I think I already do love you, in a way I've never felt before. Let me put it to you this way, the two spare beds have never been used, though I've had dozens of guests. Most of them have been for a night, a few a few nights, and even a few that were a couple to a few months, but we always fucked long and hard. I loved the sex, I didn't love them. I know that eventually we're gonna have sex, but, with you, I have the feeling that maybe, just maybe, it'll be my first time of making love to someone.

“Right from the moment we met, I don't know why, but it felt different with you. I knew you were gay, even though you're so very young still and it's really hard to tell with kids, and I felt a deep connection to you for some reason. When you looked at me with all that pain, and anger, and fear in your eyes, and something else, a deep longing almost, it was like we connected. Maybe it was our shared pasts connecting us deep within, we both have horrors that our parents doled out on us that no person should ever experience, and maybe that brought us together.

“Some take that abuse, and then become abusers themselves, just because it's the only thing they know. I'm not like that, I never hurt anyone unless I have no choice, like yesterday. They knew I was gonna kill them if we didn't get what we wanted, but that's only because that's what they needed to believe, I wouldn't have done it, couldn't have done it. My dad beat the hatred right out of me, and now the only time I truly hate on anyone is if they're abusing a child.

“No, I'll never willingly hurt anyone, and it'd make me sick to do so, which is another reason I know we haveta take our time. You think you could take me, and you probably could, and eventually you will, but I can't, I won't cause you any more pain than is absolutely necessary, most especially to one I am starting to love more than life itself. That's why I want us to go slow, to truly learn each other, to truly love each other.” I whispered, right into Talon's ear.

“Thanks. When we looked at each other last night, I think I felt it too, when you saw that pain, I suddenly saw yours as well. Then I felt something I've never felt before, I think it was understanding, you knew what I was going through. You know, 'til last night, I don't think I'd ever talked so much in my entire life, and that's before we even left the mall. Then when we got here and talked for two hours, and I know I've never spoken so much in my life, I was too stupid to be allowed to speak at home you see. You made me feel like I could talk, had anyone else come up to me, I would've ran. I almost did, but another cramp hit, and I couldn't, but then we locked eyes, and I just knew. Still not even sure what I just knew, but I think maybe you're right, we connected somehow.” He whispered back to me.

“Good, I'm glad. I think we both shed a lot of barriers last night. I never believed in love at first sight, I thought that it was silly and stupid, but, now, maybe not so much.”

“Same, but then, I thought love was a joke. I've never had it before, people talked like they were in love, I never got it, I never understood it, now I think I do. I feel things about you I've never felt before, and I think I like it. The thought of you fucking me sounds so amazing, I want it all and so much it's not even funny, and even though I don't really know what the difference is, when you speak of making love to me instead of just fucking me, my whole body feels at peace, and now I think that that's exactly what I need. Maybe that's what we both need, maybe we're the only ones who could help each other.”

“Maybe you're right. I loved my adult lover, we were together for so long, he rescued me, yet, I don't think we ever actually made love. He'd let me fuck him, but most of the time it was him fucking me, but, that's the way I liked it too. I never felt so good as when I had a big cock in my little pussy, and he filled me good and proper. But, I never felt for him what I've already started to feel for you. I wanna make love to you, and I want you to make love to me, and even though you're so small still, far smaller than I've ever had, I have this strange feeling that you're gonna make it far better than anyone else has ever managed before.”

“You think so, and you really want me to fuck you too, even though I'm so small.”

“No, I want you to make love to me as well. I want it slow and tender with you, I've never experienced that before. Just like laying here and cuddling you, I've never held or been held like I'm holding you now. Even when I had guests stay the night, I never actually touched them, certainly never held them. A few cuddled into me, held me, and I always liked it, but I'm not normally the huggy type, but not with you, holding you in my arms like I am right now makes me feel at peace as well.”

“That sounds so nice, and being wrapped up in your arms is definitely the most loved I've ever felt.”

“Good. Now, how's Baby's diaper?”

“Don't know, haven't felt it yet, but it doesn't seem like the bed's wet, which is so nice, I've never experienced that before.”

“Yeah, know how you feel, I was made to sleep in it like a filthy animal as well. The first night I was diapered, I slept so well I think I slept twice as long as I normally did.”

I reached down and gave Talon the classic diaper squeeze saturation test, and he is a very soggy baby.

“Mmmm, you're a super soggy baby boy, you peepeed your baby diaper lots and lots, good Baby.” I whispered into his ear, purposely nearly kissing it and tickling it all at the same time.

“Fuck, that made me so hard, you doing that in my ear, not even checking my diaper did that.”

“Good. How do you like this.” I asked, and then nibbled on his ear lobe lightly, and whispered sweet nothings as I did so.

“Wow, that damn near made me cum.”

“Good. Let's get up and get breakfast Baby.”

“You're gonna leave me all hot and hard and not help me out.”

“Yep. I went rock hard doing that to you as well, but no, I'm not gonna let my cock do all the thinking with you. You're too special to me to do what it's telling me to do right now.”

“Yeah, well mine's telling me to bend over and take whatever you can give me, no matter the pain.”

“Yeah, same, but I won't.”

“It'd feel amazing though.”

“Yes, it would, but I'd still hurt you too much, possibly even enough to haveta go to the hospital, and I won't do that to you. Now, up and at em Baby.”

“Fine.” He sighed deeply, but I could hear something in his voice that says that he is all good.

“Holy shit, you're super soggy, and oh so fucking sexy.” Talon said when I stood up, exposing my super soggy diaper.

“Thanks, so are you. You know what, lay back down, neither one of us are gonna last, so let's change each other real quick.”

“Thanks, and okay.”

I went and grabbed all the supplies, one of Talon's diapers, two super thirsty diaper doublers, one of my regular thick diapers the same as Talon's, then two of my ultra thick and thirsty diapers, and finally a roll of really strong packing tape I keep for this one purpose. Talon looked at what I was grabbing with curiosity written on his face, I just grinned at him and shook my head, telling him non verbally not to ask. I grabbed the lotion, cream, powder, wipes, and a screw with an extremely sharp point on it.

I then proceeded to change Talon, and he is still stone hard, and I had to be careful not to clean, lotion, or cream him too much, lest I make him cum. I know it is what we both want, yet, I do not, at least yet. I then took one of his regular diapers, poked a whole bunch of holes in it and put it onto Talon with a really good sprinkling of the original and still best smelling baby powder, then put onto him one of my ultra thick diapers with a diaper doubler inside it. Even though I am at least two sizes larger than Talon, since I am still rather slim, with another diaper and a doubler as well, the large diaper only just wrapped all the way around his waist, it did not overlap back onto itself like I had thought it might.

I have done this to myself countless times, I love doing this and then going for as long as I can, and when working in my shop, it is always so awesome, because I never have to stop unless I want to for some other reason than to go pee. I have never done this for someone else though. Everyone that I have ever had has been a diaper wearer and or lover as well, but this I have never shared with another.

“Wow, you look fucking hot like that.” I said once I stood Talon up and taped his triple thick diaper on extra well.

“Wow, this is amazing. I've read about doing this, but obviously I've never experienced it before.”

“Then enjoy.”

“I'm sure I will. Now I getta do the same for you right?”

“Absolutely, but just remember, no playing.”

“Okay.” He said happily.

I laid down and submitted myself to a most amazing diapering, and once more, this is the first time I am letting someone else diaper me up like this. I love having others change me, and I love changing them, but this I have never shared with another, not even my rescuer.

Talon did not play, he lotioned and creamed me up perfectly, and then triple diapered me properly, and then had me stand up and taped me up good and secure.

“Wow, you're fucking hot like this too. How long can we last like this do you figure?”

“Longest I've held was pretty damn close to twenty four hours, but I usually do this in the evening, so that I don't leak during the night. Tonight, when it's bed time we'll decide if we needta change or not, or risk going to sleep.”

“Well, my vote will be risk it, and if we leak, then so be it.” He smiled brightly.

“Okay, we'll decide tonight then.”

“Cool.” Talon said, and then took my hand and led the way to the kitchen.

We made and ate breakfast together in near silence, and then I told Talon that we need to go get dressed and go out and work in the shop.

“I haveta come help?” Talon asked fearfully.

“Yes, but you don't haveta work on any of the tools, though eventually we'll teach you. I'm of the mind that all boys should know how to build things, it's good for the mind, body, and soul. We also haveta gather the eggs and milk the cow, which we needta do first, so I'll teach you that.”

“Oh, okay.”

We milked the cow first, and it is easy, and Talon loved it. We then collected the eggs, and he did not mind that at all. I also taught him how to clean up, and we even socialized with the horse for a few minutes. Talon really loved him. I will have to get another horse soon I am thinking, so that Talon has one of his own to ride, maybe I will find him a nice young male so that they can bond and grow together, learning each other.

I then led Talon out to the shop, and when he first walked in, he was shocked. I have roughly half a million dollars worth of power tools in here, and it shows. Everything is huge, will take virtually anything that I can possibly throw at it, and of course, it is perfectly clean and tidy. Everything has plenty of space around it to maneuver. That had always been my biggest pet peeve working in other shops, there was never enough room when working a larger piece, in here I have all that and more.

I have a huge amount of space dedicated to lumber storage as well. Since the ceiling height in the entire shop is roughly five meters, and I simply do not need that much, I had created a mezzanine that runs almost the entire length of the shop, but is only half as wide, so clearly about half the square footage again in storage space above. The storage mezzanine I left with a little over two meters height, so to give me just a little extra height downstairs, and there are dozens of lumber racks up there. Most of them pretty full.

With my own mill, and my own drying kiln, I do most of my own lumber, and I am always on the lookout for unique and interesting trees for my woodworking projects. I will sometimes get calls as much as two or three times a month from people asking me if I want their trees, and I almost always take them, and sometimes I go for months and not get one call, I am almost always looking for the fruit or nut trees, but I will take almost anything that is good.

My finishing room, as well as my dust collection room are of course under the mezzanine, since they do not need that much ceiling height. The main staircase for the mezzanine is in front of these walls, so that it does not take up any more space than is necessary, but there is another staircase on each of the opposite ends against the walls too, but these ones are much smaller. I also have a large chain hoist system in place to bring heavy stuff up or down and not kill me.

“Wow, it's huge in here.”

“You hadta notice from outside how big it was.”

“Well, yeah, it looks big from outside, but inside makes it look even larger. You work in here alone?”

“Yep.”

“And what's with that humming?”

“That's the power converters humming. You see, I use three phase power for most of my machinery, so I haveta convert the single phase that comes in to three phase, and the converters hum a bit. If you're in the main power room for the shop, it's almost maddening, but in here, I hardly notice it any more.”

“It's irritating.”

“Yeah, it was for me at first too, but once everything else is up and running in here, and I have my hearing protection on, then I don't notice it. Trust me, whenever you're in here, and there's machines running, you'll wanna wear hearing protection, it gets pretty loud in here. Actually, I'll haveta buy you one, I don't think I have a spare, since no one else has ever been in here working with me before.”

“Really, never?”

“No, you're the first person I've ever even dreamed of working with at all. I mean, sure, I used to work in a shop with others, but I hated it, but so far, never here. Hell, I think you're maybe the third person who's been in here since the crew finished installing everything, other than the occasional client.”

“Oh. Why?”

“Just 'cause, I suppose. I don't usually like a lot of people around me at the best of times, and I like to work alone. I can get far more done by myself than if there are other people helping. Even when I worked in a shop, it got to the point that I told my boss to never have others help me with a project, they only ever fucked them up or slowed me down, usually both.

“Trust me, he was some upset when I said I was leaving to start my own shop, he thought he'd be outta business in a year, he wasn't far wrong, it was closer to two years. None of the others had any talent at all, and when I left, pretty much all my loyal customers followed me. I felt bad for him, but it was his own damn fault for not pushing his guys to build quality. I only do the highest quality I can achieve, he settled for less, I never settle. I charge for it, oh trust me, my work doesn't come cheap, but, where you might pay a thousand dollars with someone else, it'll last a few years, but, you pay me two thousand, and it'll still be in your family in three or four generations, I assure you.”

“Oh. Isn't it unsafe to work alone though?”

“Maybe for others, but I both fear and respect my tools, I let them do the work, I just feed the material safely into them. If you remember my key motto, then you're fine, and that's, soft fleshy bits have no business being near to sharp spinny bits. Simple, really, use other, more sacrificial things if you need to be close to a bit or a blade, so that if something should happen, it cuts something you don't care about, rather than you. I really rather enjoy my fingers being right where they are, thank you very much, whereas one guy I worked with was missing two fingers, from two separate fucking accidents.

“He was careless, didn't know or understand the tools he was working with, and when I tried to teach him, because he was older than me, he said that he's been using tools since I was in diapers, well, joke was on him, I was then too, but I laughed and asked him if he truly knew anything if he's missing two fingers from two separate accidents, because I assured him that he did not, and that he was to never come near me while I was working, or the police would have to be involved.

“He tried to get me fired, but, like I told the boss, he is a danger to himself and everyone around him, he's too stupid to be allowed near tools, and if he comes near me again while I'm cutting something and sticks his hand in the path of my cut, I will accidentally bash his hand right into the blade. He was shocked when I said he did that to me, and asked the guy if he really did do that, and then told him not to come back to his shop again, because that was stupidity, and he couldn't allow that in his shop.

“The next time I saw him, almost a year later, he was missing two more fingers from the same hand, and I shook my head at him and told him he really is too stupid to learn, and that I hope he never uses another tool. He was shamed though, said that he's not using tools any more, that no one will hire him any more, and his wife sold all his tools while he was in the hospital, and I said good. Never met someone quite so stupid before, well, since my own dad, but that's a totally different type of stupid.”

“Yikes, that really didn't make me feel any better.”

“Yeah, well, what can I say, I only talk about warm and fuzzy stuff.” I grinned.

“Not sure I wanna try any of that stuff at all.”

“Yeah, well, you're not stupid, this I can tell. For not even ten, you talk shockingly well, you sound far older than you truly are, and I have a sneaking suspicion that you're considerably brighter than most your age. Again, I can see it when I look at you, you just seem to look at things differently than most kids. Honestly, I've had a few young 'uns over the years, I'm no stranger to kids, like I said before, thirteen is about the youngest I've ever truly experienced before, but you're smarter and far easier to get along with than any other I've ever encountered.”

“Um, thanks.”

“What grade are you in, you're nine, so if I remember correctly, that should be grade four, right, but you're not, are you?”

“No, seven.”

“That's what I thought, so middle school now. They probably didn't wanna skip you ahead, especially that far, but, I was the same, they had no choice, I really had no choice, it was do that or be bored to tears all the fucking time.”

“You were skipped ahead too?”

“Yeah.”

“Yet you're a woodworker and not a doctor or something?”

“Just 'cause I'm smart, doesn't mean I'm smart like that. No, I could've been, had I wanted to I'm sure, same as you, if that's what you're into of course, but that's not what I was into. Me, it was all earth sciences, math, and things like that, I did reasonably well in the rest, at least I thought so, though they thought I was brilliant in it all, because I aced every test without hardly trying. The only thing I ever sucked at was poetry and geography. Hated them both, even though I still did decent enough in them.”

“I suppose that's true. My teachers tell me all the time that I should be a doctor or a lawyer, but, I swore I'd never be a scum sucking lawyer like my useless piece of shit father. I think I shocked the poor lady, she was too stunned to even give me trouble for swearing at school, but I think she got the picture. She was there to try and help me figure out what to do in school, and I chose botany, but I also do extra studies in other agriculture.”

“Excellent, so living here will be perfect for you then. You probably already know a huge amount.”

“Yeah. I've never truly gotten to try growing things though, like I said before. I hope I'll be able to do it. That'd just figure though, hopefully I'm not as stupid as my parents tried to make me think I was, and be the only botanist on the planet who couldn't grow a fake plant.” He chuckled.

“No, I think you have the same inner drive I did, do, and will just bloody well do it. I may be a wood worker, but it's what I've always wanted to do, and I do use a shocking amount of knowledge in it, but even my teachers in school thought that being in woodworking in high school was a waste of my talents. I never agreed, and told them so. I was more content in there than anywhere else.”

“I'll try. There's books I'd really liketa get, would you help me buy them please?”

“Of course Baby. We'll call and get you all set up for home schooling as soon as they open tomorrow morning, and we'll find out what all you need for that, and we'll get you everything that you need at the same time. I still read all the time too. I have a couple hundred books on wood working, some are antiques, stuff written by the original shakers, and old world wood crafters, telling about stuff that most people don't even know about these days. I know huge amounts, but there's always something to be learned, and I never pinch pennies when it comes to buying books, and so shall it be for you. Any book you want, I'll ensure you have it.”

“Thanks.” He said happily.

“You're welcome Baby. Now, in this shop, absolute concentration must be kept at all times. Both yourself and me. If I'm busy doing something, and you need help, you must always wait until such time as I'm no longer working on a machine. I'll do the same for you. This should be pretty clear, and I'm sure you understand the reasons for it?”

“Yes.”

“Good. Next, remember my motto, soft fleshy bits have no business being near to sharp spinny bits, it'll save you a lot of pain. Of course we'll start you out small and slow, work up to the bigger machinery once I think you're ready for it, which could be days, months, or even years. Even though you must keep your fear and respect of all tools, so should you be comfortable working with them. It's a fine line one must walk when using power tools, you must be comfortable working with them, but you must be fearful of them as well. Get too comfortable, and you become complacent and you'll all of a sudden be missing a finger, but, be too fearful of it, and that fear will hold you back from doing what you wanna do. Understand?”

“Yeah, I think so. So, I haveta face my fear and control it then.”

“Yes, exactly.”

“Oh, okay.”

“We'll start you on hand tools of course, you can't respect a big tool if you can't respect a little one. For instance, my chisels are kept so sharp, that one incorrect movement could lead to a very serious wound. Granted, I also feel that dull tools cause far worse injuries than any number of properly sharpened tools ever can. You also need to learn how to properly use a hammer, a screwdriver, even pliers. These are the most basic of tools, and people scoff when I say they need to go back and learn those first, saying they've used them all their lives and know how to use it. But, most people don't actually know how to use them correctly, and all too often use the incorrect tool for the job. True, most of them can be used interchangeably, to a certain degree, and if you have the proper one, but still use the improper one, that tells me that you don't know as much as you think you do. Why would you use a three kilo sledge hammer on something that requires a much more delicate finishing hammer, yet I see that all too often. Maybe not to that extreme, but it happens.”

“Really.”

“Yeah.”

“Even I know that you use the right tool for the job, and that if you do, the work will be easy in comparison.”

“Exactly. That's especially true in a shop. Look around you, I have five different sanding machines, and probably fifteen other hand style sanding implements, every one of them will work for virtually every job, but each one is specialized to do a certain thing, and if you use them properly, it makes a job that can be tedious, and sometimes downright nasty, and takes it to sometimes a breeze.”

“It's like the one botanist I was reading, saying that if you use the proper fertilizers, in the proper soil, with the proper amount of water, you can yield far more than if you do not.”

“Exactly, I think you'll find a lot of the same principles that you learn in the shop can very easily be transferred to just about anything else in life. Every second in a shop presents all sorts of challenges that one must overcome, you constantly have to think, and sometimes as many as twenty steps in advance, otherwise you just make it so much harder on yourself in the end. Problem solving in here is my biggest challenge, and the one thing I love about it. I love cracking a huge puzzle of how to build something that everyone else says is impossible. That's the reason I think that every boy, especially, needs to learn how to properly work in a shop, any shop, learn to use tools and your hands and your head, once you can do that, everything else becomes much easier.”

“Cool.”

“Let me go grab some stuff, meet me at that work bench.” I said, pointing to the bench I want him to go to, for I have several large work benches and stations all throughout my shop.

I went and gathered several pieces of wood, some screws and nails, several hammers and screwdrivers, a few chisels, and a couple hand planes. I came back and set it all on the bench, lining everything up as to what they are.

“Okay, so, an experiment on woods first. Pick out the ones that are hardwoods and softwoods please.” I said, and pointed him to the pieces.

Talon sorted them pretty near exactly how I expected him to. He took several minutes, he picked each piece up, pressed into them, even scratched them, then grinned, and put them in their piles.

“Okay, believe it or not, you're only about half correct on these. You put this one into the softwood pile, why?” I asked, picking up the large and shockingly light piece of balsa.

“Because it's so light and I easily scratched the surface of it with just my fingernail.”

“Okay, and this piece, why'd you put it into the hardwoods?” I asked, grabbing the piece of fir.

“Because it was pretty heavy for its size and didn't seem to scratch near as easy as some of them did.”

“And those are excellent tests, and you did exactly what was expected, and even many professional's will do the same thing. The problem though, softwoods and hardwoods aren't actually classified by their densities or their physical hardness. For instance, balsa, this is a hardwood by its proper definition, yet it's so light that it seems unholy. Balsa is incredibly strong though, and has far more strength than its weight suggests it might. It also mars very easily, so is not suitable for furniture making. As a botanist to be, you'll probably understand some of this better than I would, and I'm not gonna try to explain it, because I couldn't possibly do it justice, but I do have an excellent book on the subject that you're welcome to read. Balsa is an enigma in the wood world, when it's green, it's one of the heaviest woods on the planet, yet when it's dried, it becomes the lightest, when it's green, it's shockingly weak, when it's dried, it's surprisingly strong.”

“Cool and I'd love to read that book.”

“Good, I hoped you would. Next is the fir, good reasoning for putting it into the hardwoods pile, but also incorrect. It feels harder than most soft woods, and is a decent weight, but is actually a soft wood. The basic principle, if it is a leafy tree, it is a hardwood, if it is a needle tree, it is a softwood. There's a little more to it than that, but, as this experiment clearly taught you, just what you see isn't necessarily the deciding factor. Now, I want you to take this piece of pine and put it into the jaws of the vice in front of you so that about two to three centimeters of the face is sitting proud of the jaws.”

He did it, but I had to help him a little.

“Perfect, now, take this hand plane here, and set it so that the knife is just about to touch the wood, and then push it slowly and gently with the grain.”

He did, and he did well.

“Excellent, how'd that feel?”

“Pretty easy, actually.”

“Good, now try the same with this plane.” And he did. “And how'd that feel?”

“Way harder.”

“Okay, now try both, but this time against the grain, and tell me what you feel?”

He did it again, but against the grain this time.

“The one that went nice with the grain, sucked going against, and the one that sucked going with the grain was super easy going against the grain.”

“Perfect. Could you use both to do both jobs?”

“Yeah, I suppose, but I'm gonna guess that you shouldn't, because one was way easier than the other for either job.”

“Perfect. Okay, here are some nails, I want to see you choose a nail, then the correct hammer for it, I wanna see how you do this on your own to start, use your head, it isn't hard, and when you're done, I'll show you how to do it better.”

I had four nails set in front for him to use, and four different hammers. He chose the smallest nail and went at it, then the next, and the next largest, and so on.

“You have decent technique, you just need to hold it more comfortably, it's more of a wrist motion, rather than a whole arm motion, and logically you chose the right hammers, yet you didn't. This hammer here, isn't for nails. This hammer here, is more the type for using with a chisel, see that it's not actually metal, this is more properly called a mallet. Now, try it again, but use this hammer for these two nails, and this hammer for these two nails, drop your grip a little on the handle, and use more of a wrist motion.” I said, showing him as I went.

He repeated the process.

“So, what do you think?”

“Was way easier that time for sure, and my elbow doesn't hurt as much after doing it.”

“Perfect. Now, onto screwing.”

“I'd like to, but you won't let me yet.” He grinned cheekily to me.

“Brat.”

“Thanks.” He said brightly.

“Okay, still into this pine, I wanna see you put these screws in.” I said, handing him four screws, starting with a really small one to a pretty large one.

Talon tried, he managed to get the smallest one in, but failed on the rest to get them in more than just a couple millimeters.

“Why do you think you're having so much trouble with those ones?”

“They're too big, and I just don't think I'm strong enough.”

“Strength can certainly play a part in it, I could drive even the largest of those screws into that piece of wood if I really wanted to, sure, but all four of those screws will easily go into such a soft wood like that. If you were able to, what would you do to make this work much easier?” I asked, wondering if he could figure it out.

“Can I try something?” He said after a moments thought.

“Certainly.”

He removed one of the mid sized screws, grabbed the nails that are still on the bench, chose one that is only a little smaller than the screw, chose the proper hammer to drive that nail, drove it in about as far as he needed to, and then pulled it back out. He then put the screw back into that hole, and this time had a much easier time of it.

“Excellent problem solving. That's certainly one way to do it. Can you think of another tool that might achieve the same results, but might even be faster and easier?”

“I know you can drill holes in wood easily, so maybe a drill.” He asked happily, really soaking this up.

“Absolutely. The key is to choose the right size bit for the screw that you're installing, for the wood that you're putting it into. Into a softer wood such as pine, the hole should be slightly smaller, whereas in a harder wood, you might need to make the hole slightly larger, but still clearly smaller than the threads of the screw.”

I then went and grabbed my drill and the drill bits. I taught Talon how to chuck up a bit, and showed him how to drill a hole, and then passed it over, and he did it as well. I had given him the bit that would be best in pine for putting in the largest of the screws, and as soon as he had the hole drilled, I told him to put the screw in now, and he did.

“Much better?” I asked.

“Oh yeah, still not easy, but way easier than without.”

“Of course. There's lotsa resistance, and the harder the wood, and the bigger the screw, the harder it becomes. Honestly, there are only a few cases where I even drive screws by hand any more. This is what I prefer.” I said, and showed him my cordless impact screwdriver, then showed him how the unit drove in even the largest screw into the pine.

“Wow, that looks much easier.” Talon laughed when the screw went in in about three seconds, versus his three minutes to do the same one.

“It can be, yet using one of these things takes skill. If you don't hold it right, then you'll never get it done right. You also haveta be very careful in doing so as well, because you can easily split wood and/or strip the hole out completely. These bigger screws absolutely would, normally, except these bigger ones I typically only buy the ones that are self drilling, so that they clean out their own hole, but often you first haveta pre drill. Then, much like the manual screwdriver, as you found, if you don't hold it correctly, it doesn't work very well. Then there's the type of screw too. Technically all screws can go into all woods, but again, here you're always better to use the screw for the job at hand.”

I went over several types of screws, and what all they would and could normally be used for. There is far more to this than most people ever realize, most just think that a screw is a screw is a screw, but if you use the right one, it makes things so much easier, and I taught Talon all this. I even had him drive a few screws into some miserably hard wood, by hand and by drill, and of course he preferred the drill, but, as I said, and he learned, a drill makes for stripped holes very quickly, and so he has to learn finesse.

“Very good Baby. Now for chisels. Chisels are broken down into several categories again, standard flat chisels, which can be ground in many ways for various reasons, but almost all mine I keep at the standard thirty degree bevel, then you have carving chisels that come in a huge assortment of shapes and sizes for carving all sorts of things, and then lathe chisels. Once more, you would never use one chisel for the others job, sure, it can work, but, you'll never get as good a result, and in the case of the lathe, can be downright dangerous to do so. Lathe chisels are not classically sharp like a woodworking chisel is, yet it is sharp in its own way. This is because they work in a different way. You could use a standard woodworking chisel on the lathe, and I've even done so for very certain reasons we won't get into yet, since that's masters work, but again, unless done right, can be dangerous. Now, this is a standard woodworkers flat chisel, tell me what you think of it.” I said and took the protective end cap off, and handed it to him.

“Holy shit, this thing is sharp.” He said after testing its edge. He then pressed it flat against his arm, and proceeded to very cleanly shave off some of the soft downy hairs he has there.

“Yes, they are, I keep all my chisels like this, and as you just found out, you can very easily shave with them. What else, look at it very closely?”

“Yikes. These aren't tools, they're bloody weapons.”

“Absolutely they could be, and I even have an old set that I no longer use, but keep just as sharp, and I use them as throwing knives, and I'm deadly accurate with them too.”

“Oooookaaaaay.” He said.

“So, what else?”

“They're really finely polished, it looks like a mirror. It's heavy, but not too heavy, and feels really nice in the hand.”

“Excellent. A good chisel should be an extension of your hand, it hasta feel comfortable, and it hasta be well balanced, or it's more a danger than an asset. As for the mirror polish on it, that's the key to it being super sharp. I'll teach you how to sharpen them later, but, for now, try carving into this piece of wood.” I said, handing him a piece.

When he went to do it free hand, I gave a light cough, then he looked to see where his hands were placed, then realized his error, and put it into the vice. He then tried carving both with and against the grain.

“Very good, and I'm glad you realized on your own how boneheaded what you were about to do was. That's the sorta thing that causes hospital visits, never put your hands in the way of sharp items.”

“Yeah, when you coughed, it made me realize that I was doing something wrong, and I saw it instantly. Thanks. That coulda hurt.”

“It would've happened so fast, and with that chisel being so sharp, you probably wouldn't have realized it 'til you saw the bleeding, trust me, I know, I've still managed to get myself at least a couple times. Usually it's not so bad, and I just bandage up and go about my business. Most of the time, when you're working with good sharp hand tools, you're not working with the force needed to do really bad damage. But, if I were to do this.” I said, and then dropped the chisel onto the ground, point down, and allowed it to totally destroy my fine edge.

“What'd you do that for, that thing was deadly sharp, now you've just ruined it?” He gasped.

“Teaching. You can't hope to learn, if you don't know what abusing your tools does for them and you. Now try it?” I said as I picked it up and handed it back to him.

He tried, and he could get a shaving off, but I could see how much more he had to struggle.

“I think I see what you mean about being unsafe, I hadta use at least fifty times more strength to do that, and it's sure not as clean.”

“Exactly. Now, let's say you were having to force your chisel that hard, and something slipped, and you just so happened to have a body part in the way, what'd happen?”

“I don't even wanna think of that, it'd be right nasty I'm thinking though.” He said, with a clear green tinge.

“Right nasty is probably being too kind. A sharp chisel will cut you easier, true, but because you're hardly pushing it, it's just gonna cut, and the cut'll be clean, it'll hurt, sure, but probably not too bad. This chisel, though, no, with the force you haveta use to use it now, if it slipped and impacted your body, not only is it gonna tear your skin and be excruciatingly painful, but it's also gonna go in far deeper and do way more damage than a sharp chisel ever could. Your skin is way softer and easier to cut than pretty near any wood, so, remember that, at the force you haveta use to use a dull chisel, it's still more than sharp enough to kill. I'll show you how to sharpen them later, that's a whole other level of skill, that honestly too many people just don't possess.”

“Thanks, I'd like to learn it though.”

“And you will, because I honestly think it's one of the essential skills a woodworker must master, preferably before he or she ever gets good at something else. Now, onto the carving chisels.” I said and then showed him a few, taught him how to use them, and then had him try them to create a few shapes.

“Now, carving is usually done free hand, and even on rare occasions, you actually haveta have the chisel pointing toward your own body, but done in a controlled manner, with just your fingers pushing gently, this can be perfectly safe, but trust me, all carvers nick themselves from time to time, it bleeds, it hurts, and you just say fuck that was stupid, and bandage up and continue on. Most of the time, if you just pay attention to the grain if the wood, and work within it, you're fine, but, when carving, you're often going against what the grain wants you to do, and that's when it becomes a little more dangerous, especially when taking bigger passes. Many guys will still try and secure their piece in some sort of vice for the majority of their carving, but, when it comes to fine details, more often than not, you haveta hold it freehand. I have a couple different carving vices, and I'll show those to you later. Now, you try, carve this pattern out however you wish.” I said, drawing onto a piece of basswood and handing it to him.

Talon decided that this would be easy enough to do in the vice, so put it in, and then chose his first chisel, and went to work. Once he was done with that one, he chose the next, and continued on from there, and then he also used the other couple that I had, and actually did really quite well.

“Very good Baby, you held the chisels well, you took nice small light passes, going just a little deeper with every one, 'til you got it to where you thought it needed to be. This is the thing with carving, there's no real rules, there's no one chisel that's better than another, you haveta use your feelings to choose the right chisel to do what you're trying to do. Some guys get away with just a small handful of chisels and do stunning work, whereas others, like me, have dozens of chisels, each one really made more for certain things. It takes practice to figure it all out, but you did very well.”

“Thanks, I actually enjoyed that.”

“Good, then maybe we'll get you carving some stuff. For instance, for a project I'm working on, I need a fan shaped relief carving done for it. I won't expect you to get it perfect on the first try, and if you can't do it, then I can, but I think it'd be an excellent carving to start on, since they're pretty easy to do.”

“Really?”

“Sure. You can't learn if you don't try, and the best time to try is when it hasta be perfect, because then it causes you to take your time and do it right. With time comes skill, with skill comes speed, never speed through anything 'til you have the time and the skill to back it up. Even still, I'm nowhere near fast, yet to you, at first anyway, I'll probably seem super fast to do the same thing, but that's because I've gotten really good at it, but I'm not even a master carver yet. You should see some of the masters do their work, it seems you blink and they're done.”

“Oh, okay.”

“So, now, power tools. You already tried the drill and the driver, and technically they're power tools, true, but to me, a true power tool is something that cuts or moves at high speeds. We're gonna get you onto one of the smaller sanders and the scroll saw.”

“You want me to use a saw, is that wise?”

“Of course it is. Now, scroll saws are special. Because the way they work, they're about the safest power tool a child can use. Here, I'll show you.” I said, as I had been talking, I had been leading him to where we were to go, and as we got there, I turned the saw on, and then put my finger up to the moving blade and let it kiss me. Talon screeched.

“What the hell'd you do that for?” He said.

“To teach you something.” I said and held up the finger.

There is a tiny little nick in it, you can see a tiny bit of blood under the surface, but it is not so bad that it will actually bleed, and I will not even need to put a bandage on it.

“You just stuck your hand into a moving blade, that's not very smart.”

“No, that was teaching, putting my hand into any other saw would not be smart. Because of the way the blade moves, unless you press into the blade, it'll give you a little kiss, but will rarely, if ever, truly cut you. See, not even any blood. Now, because of this, though, the scroll saw is amongst the slowest of saws to use, and only slightly slower are the hand tools. This is the preferred tool for certain forms of art though.”

“Still don't think very highly of that particular teaching method.”

“Yeah, but now see what it does to wood when you actually mean to cut something. Try cutting this shape on it.” I said, taking a small thin piece of plywood and drawing a simple shape on it.

I gave him the basic instructions, told him to take his time and to let the tool do the work, and to never force it, because that will cause accidents. He started just fine, and then, because he was not holding the piece firmly enough, it started jumping around on him.

“Ah, what the hell.” He screeched again.

“What'd I tell you about holding it firmly, you're in control of the saw, the saw is not in control of you, though at the moment it has you in its control. Turn it off, pull it out, and then start again, this time, hold properly and firmly.”

And this is why kids should be taught on a scroll saw, it teaches a lot, in a reasonably safe manner. Talon did quite well, once he got the hang of it, and he relaxed some. He has good control, and is not forcing the work at all, so that is good. For almost an hour, I drew out patterns, and made him cut them, and he was doing great. Finally I moved him over to a sander, and taught him everything there as well. Clearly sanders are very easy to use, but there is still plenty to teach, and so I teach it all. Before we know it, it is lunch.

“That was a lot of fun, thanks.”

“You're welcome, now, let's go get some food, and then we'll come back and I'll get you doing some carving for me.”

“Okay.” He said happily, but I am sure that is more for lunch than anything.

We made and ate lunch, then headed back out to the the shop after cleaning up. I grabbed a piece of cherry, since that is the wood I am using for the cabinet, painstakingly drew out the shape that I wanted it to be, and then handed it to Talon.

“Okay, here you are, and here's a picture of what it needs to look like. Do it however you feel is required to make this, look like this. The flutes should be about five to six millimeters deep, and try your best to keep it as even as possible. Have fun, but don't get discouraged. If you screw it up, I have roughly a tonne of cherry, and this piece will just go in the burn pile, so no biggie, and of course, don't be discouraged when I ask you to try again. If it's to go on one of my finished pieces, it has to be as close to perfect as it can be, and while I can't expect you to be perfect, I do want you to try your best. Once it's close, I'll be able to clean it up, and I'll let you watch and learn, unless you manage to get it, which, at the stage of your learning, I'd be shocked, but don't take that as an insult, with practice comes perfection.”

“Okay, and I'm not insulted, I know I don't know much yet.”

“Good. When you start to feel the chisel starting to work, stop, come to me, and I'll sharpen it for you. Maybe tomorrow I'll teach you how to sharpen properly, but not today, now I wanna have some fun. I forgot how maddening it is to teach, I could never do that for a living, I'd have a nervous breakdown.”

Talon giggled. “You're really good at it, but I know how you feel. I was asked to tutor someone last year, most frustrating and pointless thing I've ever done. I couldn't be a teacher either.”

“Thanks. I'd really only be a good teacher to a good student, someone who's bright and wants to learn, and only about this sorta thing, because it's what I'm passionate about.”

“Yeah, I can tell.”

“Okay Baby, get to work, let's see just how good you can get it. When you wreck one, come see me and I'll redraw it for you. Just remember, never disturb me 'til it's safe. Well, unless it's an emergency, but in that case, I did forget to show you something. In six spots around the shop are emergency shut down switches, those big red buttons, hit one of them, and then power to all tools is cut, and everything shuts down. Clearly that's only in an emergency, because shutting down power half way through a cut on something usually ruins that piece.”

“Oh, okay, good to know, and it makes sense. I hope I don't wreck one.”

“It does make sense, and where you hope you don't wreck one, I hope you do.”

“Why?”

“It's not our victories that teach us, it's our failures. Once you fail, you begin to learn, and that's when I can really teach you. If you somehow manage to screw up and do it right the first time, you maybe made errors that you'll keep repeating, things you didn't know about, but make it harder. Just because something works, doesn't always mean it's the right way. I'll likely be able to see those errors on the finished product, and then I can show you how to fix them, and even better, how to prevent them in the first place. I can only show you so much, but I can teach you so much from your mistakes.”

“Oh. You have a different way of teaching, everyone always says do it right the first time, or don't do it at all.”

“Bullshit, how can you do anything perfectly your first time, hell, even your hundredth time, it's impossible.”

“I know that, that's why I think it's stupid. All the teachers are like that though, they expect everyone to grasp things instantly, and when they don't, they fail. I was lucky, I almost always do get it right away, but many of the kids don't, and then they get mad because they didn't learn it, but how could they have learned it, if they didn't teach it in the first place, or, like you said, fail, and then learn why it failed, and then learn from that.”

“Yes, I saw all that as well. Teachers rarely teach any more, if you ask me. They have a hard job, there's no denying that, I couldn't do it, that's for sure, but I don't think teachers are taught how to actually teach any more, and that's sad.”

“Yeah. Well, I guess I'll get to work then.”

“Me too.”

I separated from Talon as he was putting his piece in the vice to hold it, and I went to the cabinet I am working on. It is an antique replica of a large grandfather case clock with so much fine detail and exquisite workmanship that even I had wondered if I had the skill to manage it when I was asked to make it. The blasted thing is almost two and a half meters tall, and has more joinery in it than some entire kitchens. I am about half way done though, and it is looking amazing already. I am milling all the various moulding parts for it now, because it has several stepped and very intricate mouldings all over it to decorate it.

A little more than an hour later, just as I finished what I was doing, I saw Talon wave to me to get my attention. With my hearing protectors on, I would likely not have heard him anyway.

“Hey there Baby, how's it coming along?”

“Good, I guess, it's definitely not perfect, and I have a feeling that I'm doing another, but I think it's pretty good for a first try anyway.” He said, handing me the piece.

I looked it over carefully.

“You're being very critical of your work, that's good. Perfection comes from within, and unless you strive to be perfect, nothing you make will be, you know and understand this already, which is excellent, most adults have a hard time with that. No, it's not perfect, yet, but it is pretty damn good for a first try. Your lines aren't quite straight, that's the largest single flaw, but all the small flaws add up to more. You have varying depths, you have a few deeper gouges, and it's not smooth. How would you go about fixing this?”

“Throw this one out and start new.”

“Actually, believe it or not, this isn't beyond repair, yet. See, this is the thing with carving, almost anything is fixable, you just haveta take a nice soft touch, go just a touch deeper on the whole thing, even out the lines, and smooth it out. I don't want the flutes too much narrower though, so you may end up having to start over again, just because they might end up a little too narrow by the time you fix it. I want you to try that, though, okay. It's not perfect, and neither of us expected that, but it is pretty damn good for a first try, and is not yet ruined. I expect you might just ruin this one yet, but that's good. Good work Baby.”

“Thanks.” He said, took it and skipped happily back to the work bench.

Almost an hour later, Talon was back.

“I think I'm better, but I think you're right, now the flutes look weak in comparison to everything else.” He said and then passed it over, and I looked it over thoroughly.

“Yes, I agree. Much better over all though. Still a little bit of differences in the depth of cuts, but much closer this time for sure. The lines still aren't quite as straight as they need to be. Actually, I should've shown you what this is going on, so that you understand the level of detail that we're striving toward.” I said, and then led him to the piece.

“Holy shit, you made this, it looks amazing?”

“Thanks, and it's only half done. You caught me making just one of the head piece mouldings that your carving will centre on. At present, like I said, this piece is only at the half way stage, yet this last half is where all the true detail comes in.”

“Fuck, it looks perfect already the way it is.”

“Here, look at the picture of the antique original that I'm basing this off of, and then maybe you'll understand. Even I doubted I had the skills necessary for this level of craftsmanship.”

“Yikes, that is some fancy. Where on earth could you put this and make it look good, because you'd need some fancy room to showcase this.”

“That it is, and you're right, you need somewhere truly spectacular to showcase this piece, and that's where it's going. This client has a massive grand colonial that he's restoring, one of the oldest houses in the province, has stunning ocean views, and the place truly is massive and grand. This is designated to go at the top of the double curved grand stairway. Wanna guess how much this is costing him, and that's just my portion?”

“Wow, that's amazing. How much?”

“Twenty five thousand dollars.”

“Holy shit, for this one piece?”

“Yes, and that's my portion. The clock maker, who's making the clockworks for this, is charging about that much as well. The piece you're making is only one of almost a hundred separate pieces that needs to be painstakingly hand carved though, the easiest one, hence that's why you're doing it. Now you understand the importance of perfection on this. This is due in two months, and at the rate I'm going, and the stage I'm currently at on it, it's gonna be a tight squeeze to make it happen. Granted, like I told him, I was mid project on another massive build, so his wasn't gonna be done instantly either, and I warned him that I could be late, depending on how that project went. He's filthy rich though, so he doesn't wanna hear stuff like that, I don't actually need to eat or sleep, I just needta get him his stuff when he says so, god I hate the ultra rich sometimes, but they do pay me well. Well, except the one asshole, but I successfully sued him for twice what he owed me anyway. Thank mankind for good paperwork.”

“Mankind, most people thank god.”

“Yeah, but I don't believe in god, and all the churches and their version of god, and their holier than thou art bullshit are the largest single contributor to all the pain and suffering on this planet, at least in my opinion.”

“Not just yours. I feel the same way too.”

“Yeah. So, let's go draw you up another one, and see how much better you can get your next one. With any luck, by the time you complete your tenth one, it should be about perfect.”

“You think it'll take ten tries?”

“Why wouldn't it. Even I myself sometimes take two or three times before I perfect something the first time I try something new now, and I've been doing this for years. I know virtually every technique there is, yet I'm still constantly learning, there's still always new ways and ideas. No, just learning like you are, ten times is where I put you at, you've already done two, so only eight more to go. Though, I think you're like me, you probably won't even take that many.”

“Other than the obvious, how so?”

“It is the obvious though, you're smart, you're already starting to see and understand how and why, what and why, and when and why. I see it in your eyes as I describe the imperfections to you, you're already thinking about those imperfections and how to perfect them.”

“True.” He smiled brightly.

This is why teaching people who are smart is far easier, they do not get all offended when you point out that they are not perfect. I have always found that the smarter someone is, no matter how, the less they get offended, and the more they are willing to learn. I know and understand that everyone is smart in their own way, yet some people are not smart enough to strive for more.

I drew out a new piece for Talon, and then as he started working, so did I. A little more than an hour later, he was done.

“It's better, but I still think it needs something.” Talon said, handing the piece over.

“Better, much better. You're right though. I think you need to deepen and enhance the flutes just a bit more, you still have just a touch too much waver to both the straightness of the lines, as well as the depth, but it's much closer. This one is still repairable, so go try again Baby.”

“Thanks, that's kinda what I thought too.”

“I suspected you might have.”

Half an hour later, he was back again, handing his piece over.

“Very good Baby. Still needs just a touch more work. Try and enhance and then smooth out the button just a little more, and this flute isn't the same depth as the others.”

“Oh, okay, missed that one.”

Almost half an hour later, he was back again, handing it over.

“Damn near perfect Baby. Now all you haveta do is sand it. Because of the detail on this, it's all hand work though, so let's show you that.”

“You think so?” He said in shock.

“Of course I do. I wouldn't say so otherwise. To me, stroking someones ego does nothing but harm him. If it's not perfect, I'll say so, and tell you how and why to fix it. I'm not just gonna say, oh look, it's absolutely perfect, when it's not, you'll never learn and grow if that's all you get. I suppose to some that makes me sound harsh, or even overly critical, but I'm far harder on myself than I am anyone else. To me, striving for perfection is the only way to go, and why should I expect less from those I teach. The guys in the shop hated it when I hadta teach them anything, and my boss made me teach them lots. They always said I was the most strict and anal teacher they'd ever had, but, when I asked them if they learned, they always admitted that the certainly learned far more than they ever knew before.”

“Thanks, I actually appreciate that sorta teaching, I don't want someone to stroke my ego,” He said normally, and then under his breath. “Just my dick.” And then normally again, “And I can understand why they wouldn't necessarily like you as a teacher, but that you always taught them so much. Look at me, this morning I'd never even touched a tool in my life, now I've done this. I never thought I'd ever do anything like this.”

“Heard that.” I grinned.

“You were meant to.” He grinned back.

“I know. So, here's the sanding station. Hand sanding is far more time consuming than power sanding, but you haveta understand the principles of it regardless, which I already taught you on the power sanders. Here it's the same, start with course, work to fine. Because this isn't rough, you could easily start in the one fifty to one eighty grit range and be just fine. Something like this I want sanded right up to three twenty grit though. That'll take a while, because it's so small and fine.”

I then showed him all the detail sanding pads I have for doing this sort of work, and then watched for a few minutes as he got to it. I continued my work until Talon got my attention again, almost an hour later. That was when I also realized that I am getting hungry and it is after dinner, again. I do that fairly regularly. He handed over the piece.

“Very nice Baby. Couple areas need just a tiny bit more work to make perfect, but all in all, a most excellent first real carving.” I said happily.

Not bad, he has done exceptionally well, even though it is amongst the easiest of carvings that he could do, I had not expected it to be quite so good, quite so fast.

“Thanks.” He said.

“You're welcome. That'll be for tomorrow though, it's after dinner and we needta go eat. We'll come back out after dinner to clean up and close up the shop for the night, and then maybe we'll sit back and read for the evening.”

“Okay, sounds good, I'm getting really hungry.”

“Me too.”

We went and made and ate dinner, cleaned that up, and then headed out to the shop to clean it up and shut it down for the night. When we got in, we stripped down to our very soggy and thick diapers, and Talon asked for the book on woods that I had told him about, so I showed him my book case, and found the book for him. It is a shockingly large book, and it has so much information in it that it is not even funny. I have read it, but considering I am not as adept at the information it is giving, much of it had went over my head, yet I still learned a shit load more about wood and why it does what it does. I think that Talon will get a lot from this book, and I have a feeling that he will truly understand it too.

We sat there, reading in silence until bed time. It was very nice and peaceful and relaxing. I try and end every day like this. I so very rarely watch TV or movies, almost never use the computer, though I do do some research on it, and honestly, I have no real interest in them either.

“Well Baby, I think it's time for bed. How's your super thick baby diaper?”

“Glorious.”

“Yes, that much I can agree upon, however, are you gonna leak if you go to bed is what I needta know?”

“Probably not.”

“Same, so we should be good. Let's head to bed Baby.”

“Okay, but could I just sleep with you again please?”

“I suppose so, but no playing.”

“Couldn't if I wanted to, I wouldn't wanna take off this amazing baby diaper yet, and we'd certainly haveta.”

“Good to know, keep you diapered up ultra thick, and you'll be easier to control.”

“I wouldn't say that, I'm an uncontrollable force, why do you think my parents dumped me.” He grinned cheekily.

“Yeah, they couldn't kill you or force you to be as stupid as they are, so clearly they had no choice but to get rid of you.”

“No shit. No, eventually I'm gonna have you, have no fears there.”

“I have none, don't worry. I want it as much, but I want love more, at least with you.”

“Yeah, me too.” He sighed contentedly.

We headed to bed, crawled in, curled up, I kissed the back of Talon's head, and he sighed deeply, I whispered to him goodnight, I love you, and he whispered it back to me as well, I turned off the light, and then we slept.