This story is fictional and may contain descriptions of gay sexuality or acts (b/b and M/b). If this is not to your taste or is illegal where you are situated you should not continue.Some characterisations are based on the ideas and themes of the Pern series of Anne McCaffery. No infringement of her copyrights are intended and no references are made to any of her characters or plots.
HERE BE DRAGONS
10
DANGER
Daniel and Will whipped around, springing apart as they did so. Looking at them from the hall was Charlie Smith, an overweight crony of Williams. He had a ghastly, evil smirk on his face.
Before either boy could react, Smith turned and hurried away.
Daniel! Stop him! Will’s mental voice sounded strangled.
How, Will? Daniel sounded strangely calm. Will looked at him.
How can you be so calm, Daniel? Will sounded frightened.
It’ll be OK, Will, Daniel said smiling at his friend.
How do you know that? He is going to blab it around, and Williams will be chucking dirt all round the place. Will sounded almost in tears.
It was only a matter of time, Will. Daniel reached over and touched Will on his shoulder. Sooner or later they were going to find out.
But, Daniel, we will be a target now!
True. Daniel gave a short laugh. But don’t you think we can handle anyone that tries to bully us? Will grimaced at him.
“They can only say things to us,” Daniel continued aloud. “Sticks and stones, you know?”
“That’s all very well, but....” Will’s voice trailed off in uncertainty.
“Come on, Will. We’re late.” Daniel walked briskly out into the hall, towing Will with him. As they entered their home room, he heard a buzz go around the room, and it seemed everyone was watching them. There was a muffled giggle from some of the girls, and a much more menacing laugh from a group of Williams’ offsiders in the far corner. “It’s going to be a long day,” Daniel thought to himself, while giving Will a mental bolster against the rumour obvious in the room. He cast his mind around and caught a variety of barely concealed thoughts. Slightly surprised he sent a thought to Will.
Hey! Some of them don’t mind. The only real grouches are Williams’ mates.
Yes, I can feel that too. Will’s mental tone sounded a little relieved. One or two of the girls seem a little miffed, he giggled.
Yes, they do, don’t they. Wonder if it was you or me?
Oh, definitely me! Will laughed out loud. Daniel looked at him. Well, I’m much the more handsome!
Yeah, right! Daniel looked a trifle disgusted. Then he smiled at Will. One or two of the boys raised their eyebrows at the smile, but said nothing. As Daniel sat down he felt something hit his back, and then a wet, slimy sting as something else, presumably a spitball, hit him on the back of the neck. He turned around quickly, but could not identify who had flicked it at him. He cast his mind around but, before he could sense anything, the door opened again and Williams walked in, a smirk on his face. He walked over to Daniel and stood in front of him.
“Mr Howell wants to see you Green – and you too Harp,” the evil grin not leaving his countenance. As he turned away his hand snaked out swiftly, trying to land a blow on Daniel’s head, but Daniel, sensing what he was about to do threw up a mental block and the bully’s blow was deflected before it could make contact. Williams looked a little startled, and his eyes clouded with baffled displeasure as Daniel grinned up at him. Williams stepped back from Daniel’s desk and then appeared to stumble as he passed by Will. He looked down hurriedly to see if Will had put a foot in his path, but could see nothing.
“Have a good trip?” Will asked sweetly as Williams walked to the back of the room. Williams just scowled at him.
“He wants to see you now, faggot!” he snarled. One of his friends whispered something to him as he took his seat, a large grin spreading across Williams face. “So you are faggots!” he grunted, looking from Will to Daniel. The rest of the class gasped at the open statement. Daniel stood up and the room fell silent.
“It’s not going to do you much good, is it Williams?” he asked the bully.
“You’re the one to suffer, Green,” Williams spat back.
“I don’t see how,” Daniel said. “Every one knows now, so you can’t do us any damage.”
“We’ll see about that!” Williams looked around. “You will need to be very careful now, won’t you, pussy? You and you’re boyfriend.” He pointed at Will. “His father won’t be able to guard you all the time.” He smirked at the two boys. “Quite a few in this school wouldn’t be sad to see you two in hospital.”
“Well, you and your army haven’t succeeded yet,” Will broke in.
“C’mon, Will. We better see what Howell wants,” Daniel said briskly. “We can safely leave fat boy here to gloat over whatever it is he thinks he has.”
Williams snarled at him and started to rise but found that his feet seemed to slip on the floor, causing him to sit back hard. He grunted at the sudden pain in his backside, but by the time he managed to rise the two boys had already left the room.
As they made their way to the Deputy Principal’s office, Will sent a message to his father asking if he could meet them and as they reached Howell’s door Gerald came hurrying down the hall.
“What’s the problem, Will?” he asked, slightly out of breath.
“Williams tried it on again, but we managed to prevent anything happening without doing anything obvious,” Will told him.
“Actually, we managed to turn it around on them without anyone knowing that it was us,” Daniel said. “Williams got carted off by a teacher, Mr Harp, but he came into our home room just before and told us that Mr Howell wanted to see us.”
“Do you know why?”
“No, but....” Daniel hesitated.
“Yes?”
“Well, after it was all over, one of Williams henchmen saw us hugging each other and before we could stop him he bolted back to our home room and now everybody knows.”
“Oh!” Gerald looked a little worried. “It might get a bit rough.”
“Howell won’t know yet,” Will interjected.
“Mr Howell, to you, Will,” his father corrected him automatically.
“Thank you, Mr Harp,” a rough voice said from behind them. They turned to see Howell standing a few feet away. “So, I was right, was I? You two boys are fairies?”
“I think, Mr Howell,” Gerald grated, “That ‘gay’ might be a better term. Yes, they are. Does that make a difference with you?”
“Oh, yes, it most certainly makes a difference.” Howell glared malevolently at them all. “These boys made a fool of me before. I won’t forget that. And, for your information, I consider homosexuality an abomination.”
“You may well consider it an abomination, Howell, but I suggest you do not allow it to cloud your judgement as far as Will and Daniel are concerned.” Gerald stared grimly at the Deputy Prinicpal. “I understand you wanted to see them,” he continued. “Why?”
“I wanted to clear up what that ruckus by the lockers this morning was about.”
“Don’t you believe it was Williams? All the reports point that way.” Gerald looked pointedly at Howell.
“Williams claims otherwise.”
“He would, wouldn’t he?”
Howell looked at the three. He grunted, nodded shortly, and then started to turn away.
“Oh, you might as well go. I can see I am wasting my time,” he said with scant courtesy.
Gerald nodded at the boys who turned and walked away. Looking at Howell’s back as he entered his office, Gerald turned away shaking his head. “More trouble coming up from that direction,” he thought.
The remainder of the day passed uneventfully, unless some minor attempts at jostling were taken into account. All of these Daniel and Will had little difficulty in warding off. They received some strange looks, and not a few direct stares, and often as they walked past a group of fellow students it would fall silent. As they met up on the steps after school Will looked at Daniel.
I suppose it could have been worse, he thought. You were right, Daniel. I guess I am glad it is out in the open.
I don’t mind being outed, Will. But we still have to be very careful about this.
“Yes, you’re right, Daniel.”
As they started to walk home, they saw Williams and some of his cronies running off in the same direction, but, being a little preoccupied with their own thoughts, took little notice – until they got to Will’s house, that is. There they stopped, open-mouthed. And realised what the other group had been hurrying to do. Across the front of the house, in huge letters, had been spray-painted “fag”,”poofter” and other derogatory insults. Daniel felt Will’s distress and hurried to put his arms around his friend’s shoulders. Hugging Will closely, he sent calming thoughts, at the same time feeling the malevolence from Williams group which had to be hiding close by.
Will, can you feel if they still have the paint cans with them? he asked his boyfriend.
Will gathered his wits and, calming himself, thought Yes, I think I can.
Daniel placed an idea in Will’s mind. Do you think you can do that?
Will giggled. Oh, yes! I think I can do that.
Both boys applied their minds and heard sudden shouts from bushes further up the road. Williams and his mates sprang out of the bushes, paint seeming to bubble out of their pockets. From the noise it seemed as though pressurised cans were exploding, or discharging their contents very rapidly. The bully’s gang leaped about like demented animals, desperately trying to get the vigorously leaking cans out of their pockets. As they danced, Will and Daniel turned back to look at the gang’s handiwork on the Harp residence. Will looked at Daniel and nodded, and looking at the offending words, they concentrated and slowly smiled as the words disappeared from the wall. Looking back up the road where the gang were still dancing around, Daniel called out.
“Hey, Williams! What are you guys doing, practising your ballroom dancing?”
Williams started to run at him, followed by some of his cronies. “I’m going to hurt you Green!” And then he stopped, staring in disbelief at the now blank wall of the house.
“How did you do that?” he snarled.
“Do what?” Will asked, innocently.
“Get rid of the paint.”
“What paint?” Daniel asked.
“The paint on the wall.......” Williams stopped suddenly, realising what he was inadvertently owning up to.
“Oh?” Daniel asked, softly. “Did you paint something on the wall?”
“Uh. ... No! Umm! No!” Williams stuttered, walking backwards, a stunned look on his face. “Uh... Forget it!” He turned, and running back to where the others were still trying to wipe paint off their legs, swept them up and made them run up the road away from the boys.
As he ran away from them Will giggled, looking at Daniel, who smiled back at him.
“That worked, didn’t it?” Daniel laughed.
“What worked?” a voice said from behind them. The boys whipped around to see Gerald standing there. “Well,” he repeated “what worked?”
“Williams turned up here, Mr Harp,” Daniel said. “He and his mates spray painted the front of the house.” He grinned at Gerald. “It would appear that we are better than paint solvent.” He gave a laugh as Gerald smiled at him.
“How so?”
“Dad,” Will spluttered. “You should have seen the look on his face when he found that the paint was no longer there!”
“Are you boys sure that was wise?” Gerald looked a little worried.
Daniel’s eyes sparkled.
“What can he do?” he asked. “If he tells anyone, he is admitting that he spray painted the front of your house.”
“Ah, yes! I see,” Gerald chuckled. “Well done boys. Now you are beginning to use your noggins. Excellent!” He looked around. There was no one else in sight, anywhere. “Looks like you might have pulled off a neat little coup. Without anyone noticing!”
“Dad,” Will sounded a little exasperated. “Don’t you think we ‘listened’ to see if anyone else was looking before we erased it?”
“Oh, yes. I suppose you did. Good boys!” Gerald looked relieved. He turned towards the house, gathering the boys with his arms, and shepherded them inside. “I think you should be a little circumspect about telling your mother, Daniel,” he said.
“I will, sir,” Daniel said with a smile. “We don’t want a repeat of the other night, do we?”
“Definitely not!”
That turned out not to be a problem when the rest of Will’s family arrived home, and, shortly afterwards, Daniel’s mother walked in. She was obviously excited and did not wait to greet anyone.
“I’ve found us a home,” she nearly shouted, then stopped, taking stock of the startled looks on the Harp’s and Daniel’s faces. “Ah! Yes! Well, if we all think it suitable,” she stuttered.
“Where is it, Jennifer?” Gerald asked.
“It’s out in the country a bit,” she said. “We could drive out to have a look at it after dinner, if you’d like.”
“That could be an idea,” Maureen broke in, “But dinner first, definitely.”
“How far out in the country, Mum?” Daniel asked.
“Not far. Perhaps about 5 km.” she replied. “Out to the north.”
“What is it, Jen?” Gerald asked.
“It’s a large, low set house, with six bedrooms, four bathrooms, two living areas, games room, pool and pool house, and it’s set in about six hectares. Some of it is wooded.”
“Sounds alright,” Maureen said, looking over her shoulder from where she was preparing the evening meal.
“I hope so,” Jennifer replied. “After what I’ve just observed, I think I would like to be out of this area!”
“Oh?” Maureen turned, with a querying look on her face. Gerald looked at Jennifer. Will and Daniel held their breath.
“Don’t look at me like that, you three,” she said, looking at the men, her left eyebrow cocked up. “I saw what happened outside, with that boy.”
“Tell me!” Maureen demanded.
“It looked like the front of this house had been spray painted by some yobbos, but when Will and Daniel confronted the ring-leader, the paint had mysteriously disappeared.” She turned to Daniel. “Have I got that right, young man?”
“Uh! Well, yes!” he replied.
“Actually, Mrs Green,” Will broke in “we did remove the paint. But Williams won’t be able to say anything about it.”
“Why not, Will?” his mother wanted to know, a worried frown forming on her brow.
“It’s really very simple, Maureen,” Gerald spoke before the boys could say anything. “I was worried too, that they might have let the cat out of the bag. But they explained it to me, and they are quite right.”
“Gerald, will you get to the point!” His wife sounded exasperated.
“Oh, yes. Sorry. Well the bully boy can’t say anything about it because then he would have to admit that he had painted the front of our house!”
The two women looked at each other, and then smiled.
“And just whose brilliant little plan was that?” Maureen asked, looking at her eldest son.
“Ours, Mum,” Wills said.
“It just sort of popped into our heads at the same time, Mrs Harp,” Daniel interjected.
“What had he written,” Daniel’s mother wanted to know.
“Just some nasty words, Mum,” he replied.
“Daniel! What sort of words?”
“Mum, you really don’t want to know.”
“Daniel Green! I most certainly do.”
“Jen,” Gerald said, “It’s really nothing – its just part of the bullying that Williams has been trying on for years.”
“Not good enough, Gerald,” she replied, somewhat tartly. “Come on, someone, give! What happened today?”
Daniel and Will looked at each other, each blushing slightly, which both mothers noticed immediately. Maureen began to look concerned again. Jennifer merely looked determined.
Do we? Will asked.
Guess so. Now or never, I suppose, Daniel replied.
“We were outed today, Mum,” Daniel said, looking from his mother to Maureen and back again. The two women sighed, as though they had been holding their breath.
“Is it serious?” Jennifer looked at the boys and but turned to Gerald. “Gerald?”
“Not really, Jen,” he said “but they will get hassled some, and this evening’s little effort is part of it.” He looked thoughtful. “I guess finding a place a little out of town might not be such a bad idea.”
“I agree with that,” Jennifer said, “But just how serious were the words?”
“I have no idea,” Gerald replied. “They were gone before I turned up. What were they boys?” turning to look at Daniel and Will.
“Nothing much, really Dad. Just ‘fag’ and ‘poofter’ – things like that.” Will told him.
Maureen looked at her son, her expression a mixture of concern, sadness and pride. “How did you remove them,” she asked the boys.
“We’re not sure, Mum,” Will said. “We’ve found we can do some things, but we really don’t understand how.”
“Doesn’t really matter how, Mrs Harp,” Daniel said. “It happens, and we can control it, and use it.”
“Actually, Jen, Maureen,” Gerald said “they used that power at school this morning to avert a serious incident. That’s the reason Williams was here.”
“What happened Gerald?” Jennifer asked, looking at Daniel, who squirmed a bit under her gaze.
“I don’t know all the details, but I gather it had something to do with Williams and one of his cronies dancing around like fairies, much to the amusement of something like a hundred on-lookers. I believe Williams got crudely vocal and accused his friend of acting gay!” He laughed.
“Not quite, Mr Harp,” Daniel too was giggling “but it was rather funny.”
“Dad, you should have seen them,” Will spluttered. “At one stage they were sort of holding each other up and Williams called his mate a fairy, so his mate let go and Williams crashed to the floor. When Williams screamed at him to help him up, his mate said he wouldn’t because he was no fairy to help someone up like that. Williams got so wild – that was when he started to swear.” He grinned at his mother. “He said .........”
“No need to repeat it Will!” his father interjected.
“No,” Will giggled, “I guess not.”
Jennifer looked at little resigned as she looked at Gerald and the two boys.
“So there is really nothing to be concerned about?” she asked.
“I think there is reason to be concerned, Jen,” Gerald told her. “But I think the boys have it well under control, and they have demonstrated that they can protect themselves – that they can think their way out of a predicament.” He looked at both women.
“No, I don’t think we need be overly worried. But I think it will be a good idea to check out this house you’ve found, Jen.”
Turning back to her cooking, Maureen announced that the meal would be ready shortly and hurried everyone to wash up in preparation. Later the two boys repaired to Will’s room and, although tired from the drama of the day, managed to work their way through their homework, while their parents drove out to have a look at the house Daniel’s mother had found. Around nine pm, when the adults returned, they went back downstairs to hear about the house. About an hour later as Jennifer prepared to leave, she looked at Daniel.
“I suppose you’re staying here again?” she asked.
“If that’s OK, Mum,” he replied, looking down at his feet.
“Yes, it’s OK!” she grimaced. “I don’t suppose it matters that I get a bit lonely?” Her eyes twinkled as she watched his embarassment.
“Oh, Mum,” he gulped. “I am so sorry. Do you want me to come home with you?” he reached for Will’s hand.
“No,” she grinned. “No, it’s alright, love. I don’t really mind.” She looked at Gerald and Maureen. “But it will be a lot better when we are all together in the one house, won’t it?” Everyone nodded their agreement.
Turning, she walked over to Daniel and gave him a quick peck on his cheek and a brief hug, then, waving goodnight, she opened the front door and left.
Daniel turned back to the Harps.
“I feel awful,” he said.
“Why, Daniel?” Maureen asked him.
“Well, it seems so unfair that I stay here and she goes alone, to an empty house.”
“Don’t worry about it lad,” Gerald told him. “She understands. And she thinks it is better for you two to be together. She thinks the support you give each other is important.”
“But, Dad. She knows that we are only a thought away from each other?” Will gave a muffled giggle as he realised he was quoting his favourite author.
“I know that – and I recognise the quote!” Gerald smiled at them. “Bed, I think, you two. Goodnight!”
Both boys gave him a hug, and kissed Maureen before heading back upstairs. As he closed the door, Will asked Daniel.
Are you going to shower?
No. I’ll shower in the morning. Daniel yawned. Actually, I’m whacked.
Will giggled. Dunno why! You haven’t done anything to it all day!
It was Daniel’s turn to giggle. I haven’t thought about it since this morning. Been a rough day!
You can think that again, Will laughed. He disappeared into the bathroom, returning as Daniel was undressing himself. Sitting on the edge of his bed he watched his friend strip off his shorts and underpants. Daniel looked up and saw Will watching him, a soft yearning evident on his face.
Like what you see, he said with a smile playing around his eyes.
Oh, yes! Very much. But I don’t think I am up to much tonight, Will thought sadly. I’m bushed, Daniel.
Daniel walked over to the bathroom door, looked back at his friend to see he was still watching him, and went in. Will heard him brush his teeth and use the toilet. When Daniel came back into the bedroom, Will was still sitting on the edge of his bed, looking exhausted.
C’mon mate, you need to get undressed. Shake a leg. Daniel chuckled. Any one of three will do!
Will smiled tiredly at him. I don’t think I could do anything at all tonight Daniel. I really am whacked.
Daniel walked over to him and reaching down to hug him, lifted him up to a standing position. Will felt Daniel’s penis press against his groin, the appendage thickening as his friend held him tightly. He shook his head gently.
I can’t Daniel. I feel too tired to even undress.
No problem there, Will, Daniel thought. I’ll do all the work for you. Straightening, he grasped the hem of Will’s shirt and nudging his friend’s arms, lifted the shirt over his head. Sitting on the edge of the bed he leant down and untied Will’s shoe laces, lifting his feet in turn to push the shoes of his feet. He undid the belt of Will’s shorts as Will tiredly placed his hands on Daniel’s shoulders. Gently he unzipped the shorts and pulled them down over his mate’s hips, taking his briefs with them. Leaning on Daniel’s shoulders, Will wearily lifted his feet and let him slide the clothes off. As Will straightened up, Daniel leaned forward and gently kissed the flaccid penis that was just in front of his nose. Will gave a slight start and a little groan. Standing again, Daniel lifted the bed clothes and, taking Will’s hand, gently guided him into the bed, nudging him over to the far side before crawling in himself. Exercising one of his new-found skills, he thought carefully and, finding what he needed, turned the light out and rolling onto his side, spooned up against Will who was almost asleep already. Daniel gently probed into Will’s mind and found himself caught in the cotton-wool like texture of the boy’s exhausted mind.
Sleep well my love, he thought as he felt Will slip into a deep sleep.
I will, was the last thought he received from the other mind.
School the next day was much the same as the previous day had been. The boys received some odd looks from a few people, but most of their friends did not seem to be affected by the rumours that had been flying. A couple of youngsters that they knew only to nod to in the halls smiled at them and one gave them a “thumbs up” sign, prompting some mental speculation from Will.
You reckon? he queried Daniel.
Joe?
Yes.
Oh, yes, he’s gay.
How do you know, Daniel?
Will! Daniel’s mental tone sounded exasperated.
Oh! Yes, of course!
Will, you can be a dummy sometimes, Daniel said to him.
It’s just that I can’t sort of get used to these powers, Daniel. I don’t think of testing their thoughts.
I know, Will, but I reckon you better get used to it because it is going to save us a lot of grief.
Daniel, I know it will, but it takes some getting used to. He gave Daniel a plaintive smile.
God, Will! I want to kiss you.
I want you to, Daniel. But we can’t – not here!
I know, I know.
They made their way to their home room, arriving just before their teacher who looked at them carefully.
“I don’t know what it is you two have done, but Mr Howell wants to see you again,” he said.
“Not again!” Daniel expostulated. “What on earth does he want now?”
“I don’t know,” the teacher said. “Will, I suggest you contact your father. It might be wise to have him around.”
“Thank you,” Will replied. “I might do that.”
“He wants to see Daniel first,” the teacher continued. “You’d better cut along lad. Will, you go find your father.”
He doesn’t know I don’t need to see Dad to get him, Will thought to Daniel.
No. Bloody hell, what does that shit want now! Daniel looked as though he was about to explode.
Don’t Daniel! I’ll get Dad.
The boys took off in opposite directions, Daniel heading to the Deputy Principal’s office, Will to the Staff Common Room to find his father.
As Daniel approached the door of Howell’s office he felt a growing sense of impending danger. There was something wrong. He didn’t know what it was, but the sense of danger was palpable.
Will, there’s something wrong.
What?
I don’t know. Just get your father here quickly. And get him to ring Mum. I think we are going to need some legal help.
‘K! I’m just at the Common Room. I can feel Dad inside.
Hurry, Will. I think we are in danger!
Hang in there, Daniel.
Daniel knocked at the door and heard the unmistakable tones of Howell tell him to come in. As he opened the door, he sensed some others present, and started to back away, but found himself pushed from behind into the room. He had been so engrossed in trying to ascertain what or who was behind the door that he had not sensed someone behind him. As he fell through the doorway he heard the unmistakable voice of Williams chuckle.
“Gotcha, Green. Suffer, you fag bastard!”
Tumbling to the floor, his left wrist was suddenly crushed as a heavy foot was placed on it. Desperately trying to look around, he could see Howell’s feet, with several others in the room, not to mention the one that was standing on his arm.
“Gerroff!” he shouted, only to find a hand suddenly clasp over his mouth.
“Shut up!” a voice commanded.
Help! Will! Gerald! Help me! In his anguish he didn’t realise that he had called Will’s father by his first name.
We’re coming Daniel. Will sounded distraught.
Daniel calmed his nerves and tried to look around. “Calm down,” he thought to himself. He looked up from his position on the floor. He recognised Howell but not the three men with him. Quickly probing their minds he realised they were also from the security forces – but were not connected with those he and Will had seen previously. Howell’s thoughts were projecting hatred and fury. “How can this man be allowed in a senior position in a school?” he thought. Assessing the situation he thought he needed to do something to protect himself – and he needed to do it quickly.
“Don’t let him fool you,” he heard Howell exclaim. “He has special powers – he will use them to convince you he doesn’t know what you are talking about.”
“You’re hurting me,” Daniel shouted at the man who had his foot on his wrist., his voice muffled by the hand that tried to gag him.
“Keep quiet, kid,” a voice said.
“Keep hurting me and I’ll scream,” he shouted, biting at the offending hand.
“Shit!” he heard a voice say. “The little turd bit me.”
“And it won’t be the only things that gets hurt,” Daniel thought.
Daniel, are you OK? Will sounded really worried.
They’re hurting me Will. Hurry!
Daniel could feel the Harps getting closer, but it still couldn’t solve his immediate predicament.
He started to exercise his kinetic ability and slowly forced the foot up, easing the pressure on his wrist. The agent muttered something to his fellows, and Daniel, straining to look up, but not quite making it, watched as a pair of feet moved towards him. He looked at the feet and, thinking quickly, caused a wrinkle to form in the mat, and then saw the feet trip as the agent stumbled over the mat. He heard an explosive curse as the agent tried to save himself from falling. Reaching out with his mind he could feel the bitter invective in Howell’s head. “What is it with this guy?” he thought. “Why does he hate us so much?” He gave a mental push and the agent who had stumbled, bumped into the man who had his foot on his wrist. He heard another curse, but was too occupied with trying to get his arm out of the way to hear exactly what was said. He used his ability to assist himself to kneel up and looked around, taking in the sight before him. Howell was standing at the other side of his desk. Three agents were in the room, one quite close to Howell. The other two were still bouncing off each other, the one who had Daniel trapped desperately trying to stop the one who had tripped from knocking him to the floor. Standing up and casting quickly around the room for the thoughts and feelings of the men, Daniel noted that Howell wasn’t quite sure about what was happening while the agent close to him seemed confused about how Daniel had managed to get to his feet. He gestured to Howell, who moved around his desk, looking at Daniel, and reaching to grab hold of the boy. Daniel exercised his mind and the desk moved a few centimetres. Howell bellowed as his thigh collided with the corner of the desk, the sudden pain causing him to double over. The two agents nearest to Daniel tried to untangle themselves, at the same time reaching to trap Daniel once more, but he stepped quickly back and deftly, kinetically, ankle tapped the nearest one causing him to stumble, tripping the agent immediately behind him. There was another shouted curse, but once again Daniel did not hear clearly what was said because at that moment the door burst open and Gerald, closely followed by Will, burst into the room.
“What the hell is going on here?” Gerald shouted as Daniel dived into his arms.
“They hurt me, Mr Harp,” Daniel gasped.
The three agents stopped dead in their tracks, looking at a very angry Gerald. He pushed Daniel behind him, shielding him from the agents, and allowing Will to reach for Daniel’s hand, which he grasped tightly.
Howell straightened up, his thigh still hurting from the corner of the desk. He looked at Gerald.
“Get out,” he shouted.
“No way,” Gerald said firmly. Turning to Will, he said, “Go and get the Principal, Will.” He glared at Howell. “This has gone quite far enough.”
He turned to the three agents.
“Just who are you, and what are you doing here?” he asked the one who seemed to be the leader.
“That is none of your business,” the agent said through clamped lips.
“If it has to do with these two boys, it most certainly is my business,” Gerald retorted.
“It is a matter of national security. It has nothing to do with you,” the agent replied.
“Don’t give me that crap,” Gerald said, fixing the agent with a glare. “You hurt this boy. I believe that is criminal assault.”
“You are getting into deep hot water mister,” one of the others chimed in.
“Oh, no, my friend,” Gerald said in a frigid voice, “I rather think it is you who are in hot water. I think this is still a democracy!” He turned to Daniel.
“Are you OK, Daniel?” he asked.
“Yes, I think so.” Daniel sounded a little shaken, but his face showed resolution.
“Do you think you can hold them here if you have to?”
“Oh, yes. I don’t think that will be a problem.” Daniel looked around the room grimly.
“I think you’d all better sit down,” Gerald said to the four men in the Deputy’s office. Howell spluttered something then seemed to stagger back slightly as Daniel gave him a quick mental push, and fell into his desk chair. Gerald looked at Daniel, who nodded very slightly. Looking at back at the agents he gestured to the chairs on the other side of the room. One of the agents started towards him, an angry look on his face, but suddenly tripped and staggered to a stop. He looked down at the floor, clearly puzzled. Daniel applied some mental pressure, and the three agents seemed to relax a little, and then, glancing at each other, stepped back to the other side of the room and sat down.
“That’s better,” Gerald said quietly. “Now just let’s wait until the Principal gets here, shall we?” He looked at the boy who seemed to have relaxed and no longer had a distraught look on his face. “OK, Daniel?” Daniel nodded again.
Footsteps were evident in the hall outside and the door burst open as the Principal hurried into the room.
“What is going on here,” he demanded. “Why is your son forcing me to come here in great haste?” he asked Gerald.
“Forcing you?” Gerald asked in reply.
“Well, it seems like that,” the Principal said. He looked at Daniel, and then back to Gerald. Turning to Howell, he asked his Deputy.
“You have an explanation for this, I suppose?”
Howell spluttered, making incoherent noises.
“Daniel,” Gerald said, “Could you assist?”
“What?” the Principal interjected. Gerald ignored him, looking keenly at Daniel, who nodded impercetibly. Howell suddenly seemed to find his voice.
“These boys,” he expostulated, “ Are a menace to the school.”
“What?” the Prinicipal snapped.
“These.... they.... those two boys.... They’re a menace,” Howell stuttered.
“How? Ridiculous!” The Principal glared at his deputy. “And who are these men?” he snapped.
“They.....” Howell stuttered again. “They are security agents.”
“What are they doing in my school?”
“I... I, uh, I asked them.”
“Why?” The Principal sounded angry.
“Because of those two boys. They have some sort of special powers.....” Howell, stopped, flustered. He went on, “They can control people.”
“What on earth are you burbling about, man?” The Principal was now definitely angry.
“These boys are dangerous...” Howell glared at his boss.
“Dangerous!” The Principal was very nearly shouting.
“They.... they’re.... they’re fairies. Fags!” Howell spat out the last word, his voice loaded with venom.
“Fairies! Fags!” The Principal took a step towards Howell, who cringed away from him. “What sort of language is that, man? How dare you refer to students in those terms.” He was nearly apoplectic with anger. Daniel and Will sidled backwards away from him. Even Gerald was surprised at the vehemence of the Principal’s reaction. The Principal turned his palpable anger to the security agents.
“I think, gentlemen, it would be best were you to leave.” He gestured towards the door.
The agent in charge looked at him.
“Sir, I think you don’t appreciate the situation.”
“I.... don’t.... appreciate.... the.... situation?” the Principal ground out through clenched teeth. “You come into my school at the invitation of someone I think is seriously deranged; you terrorise a student. And you think I.... don’t.... appreciate.... the.... situation?” He glared at them. “Get out! Get out, now!”
The agents stood up and, circling carefully around the very, very angry man, quickly left the room. Howell started to follow them but was pulled up sharply by the Principal.
“Not you, Howell. You don’t leave until I say you leave.” Howell slumped back into his chair. He looked around the room: at the Principal; at Gerald; and lastly at Will and Daniel. His eyes seemed to glaze over and he let his head fall forward into his hands.
“They’re an abomination. They are! They can’t be allowed to roam freely around the school,” he sobbed.
The Principal looked at him with disgust written all over his face.
“Pack your belongings, Howell,” he said. “You have no place in this school any longer.” He turned to Gerald. “Gerald, would you be so kind as to look after the Deputy’s duties until we can get this mess sorted?”
“Of course,” Gerald nodded his agreement. “However, I think I’d better get these lads out of here, don’t you think?”
“Yes.” The Principal paused and then asked, “Have you contacted Green’s mother yet?”
“Oh, yes. We called her when we were on our way here.” Gerald omitted to tell his chief that Will had called Jennifer mentally.
“Good. How do you think she will react?”
“Oh, I’ll react very strongly,” Jennifer said from the doorway. She looked at Daniel and Will and coming into the room, put her arms around both boys. “Are you alright,” she asked them. When they nodded, she turned to the Principal.
“Don’t worry, I’m not going to sue the school. But I will be taking some action against this person,” she said, indicating Howell. He looked up at her with bleary eyes.
“Wha....what?” he asked.
“At the very least I will get a restraining order against you. If you ever come near my son, or any of my family – and that includes the Harps – you will experience the inside of a prison,” she barked. Howell flinched at the anger in her voice.
“I came as fast as I could,” she said, turning to Gerald and the boys.
“Thank you, Mum,” Daniel said, hugging his mother tightly.
“Thank you, Will, for calling me,” she too omitted to say how Will had called her. “Gerald, should they go home?”
“Oh, Mum, we can stay at school – its only just 10 now,” Daniel said.
“That’s right, Mrs Green,” Will said. “We’re alright now. It was a bit scary for Daniel for a while. But we are really, really alright.”
She smiled at him, and then turning to Gerald and the Principal, said:
“OK. Then I will get back to my office and get the paperwork done to file a restraining order against this weasel.” She looked at Howell and sneered.
“Mr Harp,” Daniel said, “There’s something else you ought to know.”
“What’s that Daniel?”
“As I reached the door here this morning, I sensed that the agents were inside,” he hesitated and then went on, “I didn’t know that’s who they were, but while I was standing at the door, Williams crept up behind me and pushed me through the door. I tripped and fell over and that’s when one of them stood on my wrist so I couldn’t get up.” At the name of Williams, the Principal looked up.
“Are you sure it was him, Daniel?” he asked.
“Oh, yes. I’ve heard his nasty laugh often enough to know who it is.” Again he hesitated, and then carefully watching Gerald, said “I think he was trying to get back at us for last evening.”
“Oh, and what was that about?” the Principal asked.
“Last evening he and some of his loutish friends tried to spray paint our house,” Gerald told him. “But they were thwarted by Daniel and Will.”
“Hmmm,” the Principal hummed. “Maybe at last I can get sufficient on that ruffian to throw him out of the school.” He looked at Gerald and Jennifer. “Gerald, we need to discuss this as soon as possible.”
“OK,” Gerald said. “Boys, back to your classes. Jennifer, let me escort you out.” He took her by the arm and started down the hall to the main door. The boys walked off in the opposite direction to find their next class.
Is this ever going to end, Will? Daniel’s mental voice sounded tired and not a little depressed.
Hey, it is usually you trying to cheer me up, Will replied. He noticed they were passing one of the boys’ toilets, and on an impulse he pulled Daniel in through the door. Turning him gently, he put his arms around his friend, hugging him tightly, and leant forward to lovingly kiss his mate on his lips. Daniel sighed.
God, Will, I need you to hold me so much, he said, his mind gently caressing Will’s mind.
I’m sorry we didn’t get there earlier. He gave a little laugh. Wish we could teleport. Wouldn’t that be neat?
Oh, yeah! That would be great. Daniel gave a little laugh of his own. Mind you, it would probably cause us even more problems, he said.
How so? Will wanted to know.
God, you’re a dummy sometimes, Will. He grinned. How do we explain being able to move from one place to another without appearing to have done so? He hugged Will tightly to show that he didn’t mean it as an insult and tilted his head to kiss him on the lips. Vaguely they heard the bell ringing in the halls, the sound eventually penetrating through the haze in their minds. They released each other and stepped back just as the door burst open and a boy from one of their classes ran in, intent on hitting the urinals urgently. As he passed them he looked at them, shook his head, and then, standing at a urinal, looked back at them.
“You guys been in here all the time?” he asked. Not waiting for a reply he continued, “You guys really do need a room, don’t you?” He giggled.
“No, not all the time,” Will smiled. “Just the last minute, actually.”
“Yeah, right!” their class mate laughed. “Come on, or you’ll be late for the next class. You guys have some more trouble with Williams?”
“Something like that,”Daniel said. As they turned to leave, he gave Will’s hand a brief squeeze. He felt a phantom hand brush across his crotch in return.
Will!
Sorry, Will giggled. Couldn’t resist.
The rest of the day passed uneventfully although they did notice some comings and goings and at times could “hear” some thoughts and feel anxiety and anger from certain directions. Particularly they could feel the malevolence of Howell’s thoughts as he made his way out of the school. Daniel thought about the man and wondered why he had been so nasty. What was it that made someone hate so strongly – and why he and Will? Surely not just because they were gay. He can’t have known about that for long. But then, maybe so. The man’s mind was badly twisted. On the other hand, perhaps it wasn’t aimed at them at all – perhaps the malevolence was really aimed at Gerald. Because it was equally obvious that the man disliked Will’s father intensely.
What do you think, Will?
What? Oh! as Will caught the thought from Daniel’s mind. I see what you mean. Yeah, I guess that could be the reason. What a prick!
Ask your Dad, Will. He might have some thoughts about it.
I will.
The boys were walking down the front steps of the school as Gerald caught them up.
“What are you two looking so glum about?” he asked them.
“Dad, we wondering about Howell, and why he was so nasty to us,” Will said, looking up at his father. Gerald reached out and put his arm around his son’s shoulders.
“Does it really matter?”
“We think it does.”
“Why?”
“Mr Harp,” Daniel joined in. “We know part of is because we’re gay, but that is only part of it. Because he can’t have known that for very long.”
“That’s true, Daniel.” Gerald thought for a moment. “What do think it is all about?”
“You.”
“Me! Why?”
“Dad, we noticed that his malevolence seemed to increase when you were around.”
“Great word, Will! I’m glad to see your vocabulary is increasing!”
“Dad!” Will giggled. “We think we became targets for him because he really hated you.”
“That’s quite possible, boys. But, well, I don’t think we have to be concerned about him anymore.”
“I’m not sure about that,” Daniel said quietly.
“Do you know something I don’t?” Gerald queried looking from Daniel to Will.
“Not really,” Daniel said.
“But we have a feeling it isn’t over yet, Dad,” Will continued.
“What can he do?”
“It’s not really him, Mr Harp,” Daniel said, squinting up at Gerald. “It’s the security agency, now. I think they are just using him.”
“Well, he tried to use them in the first instance,” Gerald mused.
“Yes, but its gone much further than that, hasn’t it?” Daniel asked.
“How so?”
“Well, he didn’t get any money. You’ve made sure he lost his job – at least in his own mind he thinks that. And he probably won’t get another one – job that is.” Daniel stopped, quietly chewing at his bottom lip.
“You are developing into quite an analyst, Daniel,” Gerald smiled at the boy. “So you think he will try something else?”
“Not him, by himself, Dad,” Will said. “But he will help the agents if he can – just to get at you.”
“In which case we’d best be on our toes.” Gerald laughed, to ease the tension in the boys, and put his arms around both of them, pulling them into a hug, and then trying to tickle their ribs. They broke away from him, and, running down the steps, headed for the car park. When Gerald arrived Daniel, who had been leaning against the driver’s door, stood back and allowed the door to open for Gerald, apparently under its own power.
“How did you do that? Did I leave it unlocked this morning...... Oh! Don’t tell me – I don’t think I want to know!”
The boys giggled. They climbed into the vehicle, Will and Daniel sitting in the back. After the seat belts were fastened they held hands, and, looking at each other, nodded as if in complete union and harmony. Looking at them in his rear vision mirror, Gerald smiled.
“You two guys really are very happy with each other, aren’t you?”
Daniel planted a thought in Gerald’s head and watched, smiling, as Gerald’s eyes reflected in the rear vision mirror widened and then crinkled into their own smile.
As they arrived home and Gerald parked the car in the drive, Maureen appeared at the door. She looked distraught. Gerald caught a look of anguish in her eyes.
“What is it?” he asked.
Daniel! Will had picked up a thought from his mother’s mind. It’s Robbie!
NO! Daniel had picked up the thought too.
“Gerald, its Robbie,” Maureen sobbed.
“What about Robbie,”
“He’s been kidnapped.”
“WHAT?” Gerald shouted.
“They want Will and Daniel,” she threw herself into her husband’s arms. “They said they’ll hurt him if we don’t give them the boys.”
Copyright© 2004 ilb3000.
If you wish to reproduce part or all of this story please contact the author at ilb3000@hotmail.com for permission. All credits should be retained in any reproduction.