Pony Club Days - Part 4

by
Ben Dawson

Authors Note:  Thank you very much to those folks who have emailed me about this story. Your comments and your encouragement are very much appreciated and mean a great deal to me! Thanks also to my good friends Mark and Brennan for their contributions. Without all you guys being there I probably wouldn't have kept going!

When I set out to write this story I wanted to depict a part of my childhood that I have very fond memories of. As I have said before, this story is loosely based on events that occurred while I was growing up.  Some events depicted throughout the chapters of the story did actually happen to me, while other events may have happened to other people I knew. Some other events have been related to me by other parties and have been included for the sake of providing an overall picture of the times. Of the events depicted in this particular chapter I can tell you that most of these will fall into the later category. I have used them here, however, as they were a very real part of those times for me . . . whether I was directly involved or not. At the end of the chapter there are a few additional comments, along with a link to my Live Journal page, where some additional background information is supplied. Whether or not you read it or believe it is entirely up to you.

Now for the boring stuff . . . All names have been changed to protect the guilty, or innocent, or whoever . . .  Copyright is held by me . . . This story contains descriptions of sexual acts between teens . . . If you don't like this, if it illegal for you to read this, then please don't continue reading . . .

 

Part Four - The First Year


After I returned home from my first Pony Club Jamboree, the year just seemed to fly by. I only managed to see Christopher a few times throughout the year, mainly being either at some other Pony Club events, or sporting events where our respective schools were both participating, like athletics or football carnivals.

When the August school holidays came around toward the end of winter, however, I asked my parents if Christopher could come out to the farm for a few days, to which they readily agreed, telling me that it was good that I had started to make some new friends. I couldn't really argue with that, as I had always been something of a loner, at least until I had met Christopher and some of the others from Pony Club.

When the day came that Christopher's parents brought him out to the farm I was about as excited as a kid in a candy store, and when he stepped from their car I ran to him. We high-fived then I grabbed him in a headlock, but with him being bigger than me he quickly turned the tables and I soon found it was me who was being collared and unable to move.

'All right . . . all right . . .,' I pleaded. 'You win!'

As Christopher released me and I managed to shake off his grasp everyone laughed. Christopher looked down at me, grinning, and said, 'Great to see you, dude.'

'You too,' I replied, grinning right back at him, as the pair of us stood there with our arms draped over each others shoulders.

It was getting late on the Thursday afternoon when they had arrived, and as our parents greeted each other and chatted beside the car we unloaded his stuff, then I led him inside to my room; which I normally shared with my brother Nathan. For the next few days Christopher and I would have the place to ourselves though, as Nathan would be bunking down with our other brothers, much to all their displeasure. At least it would give Christopher and me some privacy, which I was very much grateful for.

Right from the time that our parents had agreed to his coming out for a few days we had been ringing each other regularly, making plans about what we wanted to do. I had suggested to him that we might be able to spend a few days up at the old shearing shed in the hills at the back of the property, if my dad would allow it, which he thought was a great idea. There were some old shearers quarters there that we could camp in, comprised of a row of rooms, clad with galvanised iron and with a verandah along the front, while there was also a creek nearby, in which we often swam when the weather was warm enough. We also wanted to go riding and do some fishing and hunting - all the fun stuff that country guys got up to - although dad had made it quite clear to me that even though we were both country kids and we knew our way around guns and motor bikes and the like, we couldn't just go off and do everything on our own.

By the time that Christopher and Nathan and I emerged from my room (he had tagged along to make sure we didn't touch any of his 'stuff') we found that all our parents had come inside also and were now sitting around the table in the kitchen and planning what we were having for dinner. Apparently Christopher's parents were now staying for dinner, which meant that we would have to delay any fun we were planning ourselves for just a little while longer. 

As I had turned thirteen not long beforehand, in July, and was now officially a teenager, much to my mothers disgust apparently (as I think it made her feel old), I found that the feelings and urges that came with it were growing stronger and stronger. Christopher was now fourteen and was growing taller, while making things even more interesting was the fact that Nathan, who was just a year younger than me, was now twelve and was starting to show signs of growing up as well; even to the extent of starting to ask me personal questions that I was finding difficult to truthfully answer.

From the moment I had seen Christopher get out of the car all I could think about was getting my hands on him and feeling his hands on me. Now all this waiting was starting to drive me crazy. I figured that we would just have to make sure that we went to bed early tonight - just as soon as Christopher's parents had left I hoped - as we had some serious catching up to do.

Dinner proved to be a barbeque on the back verandah of the house, cooked by our fathers, who seemed to spend the time chatting about things that we had no interest in at all, while our mothers prepared some vegetables to go with the meat. All us kids ended up in the living room watching our black and white television while dinner was being cooked, not that I could even remember later what was on the TV, as I only had eyes for one thing right at that moment, then when dinner was ready to be served we were all called to the dining room, where the feast was laid out for us.

When dinner was over and the washing up was done, Christopher's parents said their farewells and headed off, leaving their son with a warning that if he didn't behave himself the consequences would be dire.

'I promise,' he said to them, although the grin that he was sporting seemed to indicate otherwise.

'It's okay,' my father said. 'Any trouble from either of them and they'll have me to answer to.'

'I like your thinking,' Christopher's father replied, then with a shake of hands and a few hugs for Christopher they set off into the night, leaving us standing there watching the tail lights of their car slowly disappear down our long driveway.

As my mother and siblings turned and started to head back inside, my father placed a hand on one of our shoulders each, holding us back. 

'Right you pair,' me father said firmly. 'Any crap from either of you and it'll be the last time, you got that?'

'Yes, sir,' Christopher replied.

'Yes, dad,' I added.

'Good. I was fourteen once too, remember, so I kind of know what sort of trouble kids can get up to. Let this be your first and last warning, okay?'

'Yes, sir,' we both replied, then he released us and gave us both a pat on the bum, sending us on our way.

We made straight for my bedroom, not even stopping to see what was on television, shutting the door on Nathan as we locked ourselves in the room and leaving him looking crestfallen on the other side of the door.

'Hey, what do you think your old man meant by that?' Christopher asked, when we were safely inside. 'You don't think he was talking about us fooling around, do you? Like, maybe that's what him and his mates used to do!'

'What? Him? Nah, he couldn't have. He's as straight as!'

'I dunno . . . lots of guy do it . . .'

'Yeah . . . and lots of guys DON'T! So knock it off will you . . . just the thought of it . . . of him having sex . . . uurrgghh!'

'Ha! I bet he still does it. Him and your mum . . .'

'Aaarrgghh . . . I'm warning you!' 

'My folks still do it! I walked in on them once! They were both naked . . .'

'ENOUGH!' I cried, while grabbing him in a headlock again, only this time managing to swing him around and point him at my bed. We collapsed in a heap on top of it, wrestling and playing for a couple of minutes, until suddenly Christopher stopped, his face just inches from mine. We were both panting heavily, our bodies lying flat against ech other, his on top of mine.

'You're stiff,' Christopher whispered.

'So are you,' I replied just as softly.

'What are we going to do about it, then?'

'What do you reckon?'

A broad grin broke over his face.

'69?' he whispered

'I thought you'd never ask!' I replied.

Slowly we disentangled from each other and stood up facing one another in the middle of the room.

Christopher stepped closer toward me, until we were almost touching.

'I've missed you,' I whispered.

'I've missed you, too,' he replied, then reaching out and tugging at my shirt, pulling it from my jeans.

I reached out and did the same for him, pulling his tee shirt over his head and dropping it on Nathans bed.

He pulled my shirt off and dropped it on the floor, then ran his hands over my chest.

'You look . . . more muscly,' he said to me.

'So do you,' I said, while returning the favour. His chest was more defined than when we had last seen each other, while his stomach was flatter and developing the start of a six-pack, which was something I had only recently started developing a fascination with.

We both reached out and fumbled with each others jeans, and before long they were both down around our ankles, with us holding onto each other as we both stepped out of them. That only left our jocks, which right at that moment were both struggling to contain the monsters they were hiding.

I reached out and ran my hand across the front of his jocks, feeling the hardness beneath the soft fabric.

'You've grown,' I said to him.

'Yeah, but not as much as you have judging by the feel of that,' he answered, having taken a hold of my own cock as well.

'I'm getting more hair, too,' I whispered, trying to keep as quiet as possible so as not to have my folks banging on the door.

'Let me see,' he demanded, so I hooked my thumbs in the waist band of my jocks and pulled them down, freeing my throbbing cock which was now standing fully to attention.

'Now you,' I said, to which he did the same.

We looked each other up and down, each appraising the other, each of us looking to see how we had both changed in the six months since we had last seen each other naked.

I really couldn't tell if I had changed that much, but the changes in Christopher were noticeable, to my eyes at least. His body was filling out and his dick was definitely growing. I liked what I saw, and could only hope that he was liking what he was seeing in me as well.

'You're beautiful, you know,' he said to me.

'So are you,' I answered as I placed my hands on his hips and pulled us together, so that our erections were flat up against each others bellies. 'I think about you all the time.'

'Same here . . . about you I mean.'

'What else do you think about? Or who else?'

He shook his head and said, 'No one.'

'What about girls?' I asked.

'Nope. Not even them.'

'Neither do I,' I added. 'Do you think that means anything? I mean, if all we think about is each other, does that mean we're . . .'

'What? Gay? In love? What?'

'I dunno. Maybe all of that.'

'Maybe,' he replied. 'But you know what? I don't care.'

'Do you mean that?'

'Of course I do . . . but . . .'

'But what?'

'Well, we just can't let anyone find out, that's all. If they knew what we got up to, well, I reckon they would stop us from seeing each other.'

'Yeah. I think you're right.'

'So, it's just us then? Best buddies and lovers forever?'

'Forever!' I boldly replied.

'Pinky swear!' he demanded, holding his hand cocked in front of him with his pinkie sticking outwards.

'Pinky swear!' I replied, hooking my pinkie finger through his, before then leaning in toward him and finding his lips leaning toward mine.

We kissed long and hard, consummating what we believed was our commitment to one another, before Christopher started turning me and manouvering me toward the bed. Before long we were both lying on our sides, head to toe, and feasting on each other. 

Nothing more was said for quite some time. There was no need to say anything. We both knew what the other wanted and were happy to provide each other with that.

When I was getting close I stopped for a second and whispered to him. 

'Me too,' he whispered back, then moments later I felt the familar tightening in my loins and the shiver that ran down my spine. I didn't say anything more to Christopher; I just let nature takes it course.

My balls were on fire, my cock was throbbing.

When I came, I came in a rush, spurting wads of hot juice into Christophers mouth, squirt after squirt, after squirt, which he swallowed willingly, without gagging or losing stride for one second.

It must have been all he needed to send him over the edge as well, as at almost the same time I felt his cock harden more and the head expand, as he too exploded, his cum hitting the back of my throat, almost choking me, but I too managed to take all he could offer, swallowing the hot, salty juice like it was the last meal I would ever have.

When we were finished we both sat up and faced each other on the bed, grinning at each other.

I could feel his cum running down my chin, and I could see my own cum running down his, so at the same time we reached up and gently wiped each other clean, before then holding our hands up in front of each other, looking at what we both had on our hands.

Bringing my hand to my face I stuck out my tongue and licked it clean, then he did the same.

'That was perfect,' he whispered.

'Yes, it was,' I replied.

As we leant forward and kissed each other there was only one thought going through my mind; 'This must be what love truly feels like.' 

*     *     *

Later on, when things of ours had settled down and were no longer looking to gather attention for themselves, we dressed in our shorts and tee shirts, ready for bed, then ventured back out into the house. Everyone was still up, watching some Disney movie on television, although by the look of the kids they were all about ready to flake out anyhow.

'You boys okay in there?' my mother asked me when she saw us standing at the doorway to the living room. 'Got everything you need?'

'Yes mum,' I answered.

'Alright then. Just so long as you behave and don't go making noise all night and keep the rest of us awake,' she added.

I looked from her to my father, who gave me a sly wink.

Suddenly I felt my face blush, feeling as if everyone must have already known what was going on in my bedroom, that somehow we had let our little secret out.

'We're just going to grab a drink and go to bed,' I eventually said, then grabbed Christopher and started dragging him toward the kitchen.

'Good night then,' my parents both called to us.

'Good night,' we called back.

When we were safely in the kitchen Christopher said, 'Your parents are pretty cool I reckon.'

'Do you? Why?'

'I dunno. They just seem that way. You mum is nice and your dad is easier to get along with than mine,' he replied.

'You haven't seen him when he's pissed off yet,' I laughed.

'Let's hope I don't then!' 

We both had a drink of water then quietly headed back to my bedroom, closing the door behind us and carefully locking it. It was then that I had an idea.

'Hey, have you ever slept in the same bed as someone else?' I asked him.

'What? Apart from with my cousins when they were visiting or something like that?'

'Yeah, like with someone other than family,' I said.

'No, not that I know of.'

'You want to try it?'

'What if we get caught?'

'The door's locked. No one will know.'

He grinned at me then said, 'You ever sleep naked?'

'With Nate in the room? You've got to be kidding me?'

'Well, you want to try that?'

I grinned back at him, then in a flash I had my tee shirt and shorts off and was standing there in front of him, totally naked.

'I take it that's a yes,' he chuckled, before quickly stripping off himself. It looked like it was going to be a night of firsts for both of us.

*     *     *

We were woken in the morning by a loud knocking on the door and Nathan yelling at us.

'Come on guys. get up!'

I don't know how long he had been knocking for, but when I eventually woke it took me a second to realise where I was and whose body it was that was pressing hard against my back, with something even harder pressing into my butt.

'Chris, wake up,' I said while shaking him by the shoulder.

It took a couple of attempts, but eventually I managed to raise him from the depths of his slumber.

Quickly I got out of bed and it was then that I realised I was stark naked, remembering how we had both decided to sleep. I grabbed my tee shirt and shorts and pulled them on, then picked up Christopher's and threw them at him, while all this time Nathan was still banging on the door.

'Hang on to your horses!' I yelled back at him.

Christopher got up off my bed and quickly pulled on his shorts, then sat down on the edge of Nathan's bed, which was without a pillow and hadn't been slept in at all. When I thought it was safe I unlocked the door and let Nathan in.

'About bloody time!' he cursed as he came into the room, looking around the room as he did so; obviously checking for any of his 'stuff' being out of place.

His gaze skimmed over his bed and then mine, then back to his again, before finally looking over the half naked form of Christopher, looking him up and down, then turning his attention back to me.

'Sleep well?' he asked us, with just the faintest hint of a smile dancing across his lips. I was instantly alert, convinced he was up to something.

'No,' I replied. 'Christopher snores too much.'

'Do not!'

'Do so!'

'Alright, alright!' Nate exclaimed. 

'So, what do you want?' I asked him. 

'Nothing. Mum said to wake you up so you can have breakfast before she washes up and goes to work.'

'Shit. Is that all?'

'Yeah. So, what are you doing today? Can I come too?'

'None of your business. And no,' I replied.

'You sure about that? I could tell dad what I think you were doing last night.'

'What?' I hissed. Now the little bastard was trying to blackmail us.

'You heard me. I'd love to know myself why you two slept together, so I'm sure mum and dad would too!'

'Why you little c . . .' I started to say, even starting to draw my fist back, ready to punch him, but Christopher noticed and reached out, grabbing my fist in his huge paw and stopping me.

'Don't sweat it, Ben,' he said calmly, as he got to his feet and came over to us, standing so that we were on either side of Nate. 'He's twelve now isn't he? Let him tag along. He might even learn something.'

'What?' I squeaked. 'You can't be serious?'

'Can I? I promise I'll be good,' Nate eagerly asked.

We had planned to head up to the shearing quarters for a camp out, just the two of us, and I sure didn't want to have to be babysitting my kid brother; there was other stuff I had in mind that I would much rather be doing.

'Think about it,' Christopher said to me. 

'Are you sure you don't mind?' I asked him.

'Nah, it's okay. The more the merrier,' he replied, the turning to Nate he said; 'Are you sure you want to? We don't play little kids games you know!'

'I'm not a little kid any more,' Nate bullishly replied.

'And whatever happens, nothing gets said to anyone, anywhere? And if you chicken out we're not bringing you back until tomorrow,' Christopher said solemnly.

I was feeling uneasy about this, but if Christopher was keen then I suppose it was okay with me. Nate still didn't really know exactly what it was that we intended to get up to, but being my brother and being twelve now, I was guessing he had at least SOME idea.

'And,' I began; 'whatever we tell you to do, you will do it without arguing?'

Nate nodded.

'Well then, I suppose that's settled. Now all you need to do is have dad say it's okay!'

'Oh, I've already asked him. He said he didn't care, just so long as it was okay with you guys.'

'You little punk. You had this planned all along!' I scolded.

'Maybe,' he replied, with his trademark grin.

*     *     *

After Christopher and I had showered we went to the kitchen, where we found that mum had cooked us a breakfast of scrambled eggs on toast, which was now warming in the oven.

'Good morning you two,' she said. 'I hope you had a good sleep?'

'Good morning, mum. Apart from Christopher keeping me up all night, it was okay thanks!' I replied.

At that remark Nathan suddenly let out a giggle, which I silenced with a harsh glare. For a twelve year old kid the little shit was certainly developing a dirty mind!

We ate breakfast and then the three of us headed outside to find dad. It seemed that Nate had suddenly become the third wheel in our little group, which was something I wasn't overly keen on myself, although it didn't seem to bother Christopher. I suspected that Christopher had something in mind for my kid brother, which in itself I found both disturbing, yet quite intruiging.

We found dad in the shed with his head under the bonnet of the old Land Rover that we used around the farm, fixing something or other.

'Good morning boys. Just thought I better check the old rust bucket over before you take to the hills in it for your big camp out,' he said to us.

'Thanks for that,' I said to him. 'Hey, did Nate tell you he wants to come with us?'

'Yeah, he mentioned something about it this morning. I told him he'd have to ask you guys. Do you mind if he tags along?'

'Nah, it's okay,' Christopher answered, before I could even open my mouth. 'If he gives us any trouble we'll just tie him up, put a sock in his mouth and throw him outside.'

'Yeah, maybe the panther will drag him away for us and save us the trouble of having to bury him after we kill him?' I added, referring to a local legend that said there was a black panther roaming the hills in this part of the country, not that we had ever seen or heard any real evidence of that.

'Panther?' Christopher said. 'You don't believe that old cock and bull story do you?'

I shrugged. 'Who knows?' I answered. 'Maybe I'll believe it when I see it.'

'W-what are you talking about?' Nate stammered.

'Don't you worry about it Nate. They're just trying to wind you up,' dad said, trying to smooth things out. 'And don't let me hear you saying any more about that thing either,' he said to me, while pointing at me with the spanner in his hand.

Christopher and I both grinned, knowing now just what buttons to push to get Nate behaving himself; or better still, doing what we wanted.

'So, can I go?' Nate asked again. 'I promise I'll behave.'

'Well, if the boys don't mind, then I guess you can go. You all better go get your gear ready if you want to get up into the hills before it's too late,' dad said.

The three of us ran back to the house and quickly started gathering together what we would need; our swags (mattresses, blankets and pillows all wrapped up in a small canvas tarpaulin), some clean clothes and personal items, plus some food, cooking utensils and other camping gear. 

We stacked everything on the verandah at the back of the house and stood back looking at it all, wondering what else we could possibly need.

'What do you think?' Christopher asked. 'We got everything?'

'I think so,' I replied, while scratching my head and trying to think what else might be missing.

'What about fishing rods?' Nate asked.

'Good idea,' I answered. 'Can you go grab both of ours from the shed?'

'How about a rifle?' Christopher asked. 'Will your dad let you take one?'

'Will his dad let him take what?' we suddenly heard being asked as my father appeared from around the corner at the end of the house.

'Ummm . . . he was asking if we could take a rifle,' I said, not really very hopeful that he would agree to that. I had used dads twenty-two rifle often, and was actually a pretty fair shot, but that was always with my father close at hand and keeping an eye on things. He had never allowed me to go off on my own with it and I didn't really expect him to let me take it with us now.

'A rifle, huh? Hmmm . . . I don't know about that,' dad answered, looking us up and down. 'Do you know how to handle one, Chris?'

'Yes, sir. I have my own twenty-two. We go rabbit shooting all the time.'

'Is that right!' my father said, while scratching his chin thoughtfully. 'Come with me then you lot.'

Dutifully the three of us followed him back to the shed, where he reached into the old Land Rover and pulled out a rifle, which he had apparently placed in there ready for us to take anyhow, by the look of it.

It was the old single shot twenty-two that I had learned to use from a relatively young age, although always under the watchfull eye of my father. Most kids who grew up on farms back in those days knew how to handle a rifle, as they were an essential item to have on a farm, for a variety of reasons. 

Passing the rifle to Christopher, who instinctively held it pointing low and away from any of us, he then reached into the dash compartment and pulled out a packet of bullets, which he opened and handed one to Christopher, while also getting a couple more out and keeping them in his hand, just for good measure.

'Let's do a little test then, shall we?' dad said as he led us back outside.

We walked to the end of the shed and dad pointed to the row of pine trees that lined the driveway of the farm.

'See that end tree, Christopher?'

'Yes, sir.'

'Think you can knock a pine cone off it?'

I looked at the tree, which was about fifty metres away. I could see clusters of pine cones along some of the branches and I knew that I would only have a fifty fifty chance of hitting one. I had no idea how good a shot with the rifle Christopher was, but I figured we were just about to find out.

'I . . . I think so, sir,' Christopher answered, then looking at me he gave me a wink. 'How does it shoot? Left, right, up, down, or what?' he asked.

My father gave a wry smile. He knew then that Christopher knew what he was doing. So did I.

'What do you say, Ben?' dad asked me.

'Aim just an inch or so to the left,' I answered, then giving me a nod Christopher slotted the small brass looking shell into the chamber and rammed it home, then walked a few paces away from us and leant against a post to steady himself, before selecting a target and taking aim.

Standing several paces behind him I tried to see where he was aiming and figured it was a small group of cones about half way up the tree and toward the end of one of the branches. If he hit those it would be a pretty fair shot, by my reckoning. Silently I was willing him to make the shot.

I watched in admiration as he stood there readying himself, then I saw him take a couple of deep breaths then hold it. From behind him I couldn't see him move at all, then all of a sudden the sound of the shot rang out, echoing around us, while over at the pine tree we saw no less than three pine cones come hurtling down to earth

Nate and I jumped into the air, whooping and hollering, as Christopher turned back around to face us, while opening the chamber of the rifle and ejecting the smoking, empty shell, before holding the rifle out for my father to take.

'How was that? Did I pass?' Christopher asked with a shit-eating grin plastered across his face. 

'I guess you'll do,' dad said as he took the rifle from him. 'Providing of course you don't get attacked by anything more dangerous than pine cones.'

'I'll keep my eyes peeled, then,' Christopher answered.

'Alright then, here's how it's going to work, you guys,' dad said as he gathered us around.

'You can take the rifle, but Christopher is in charge of it, seeing as he's the oldest. You got that?'

'Yes, dad,' Nate and I replied.

'Alright. Now, Ben is in charge of the Land Rover, so whatever he says goes.'

'Yes, sir,' Christopher said.

'What about me, then? What am I in charge of?' Nate pleaded.

'The camp,' dad answered. 'You can be in charge of setting up the camp.'

Nate looked as pleased as punch, but Chris and I looked at each other and grinned. We both knew who our bitch was going to be.

*     *     *

It was well after lunch when we finished packing our gear for the camp out. Swags. Clothes. Food. Fishing gear. Rifle. Lanterns. Torches. Radio. Cooking gear. Generator and fuel. Gas bottle for cooking and for the hot water system. The list seemed to go on and on, but eventually we could stand back and say we had everything we needed, much to my parents amusement.

'How long did you boys say you were going for?' mum asked.

The plan was for two nights.

'We'll be back when we run out of food,' I said confidently.

'What? Tomorrow? I thought you were going for longer than that?' dad laughed.

'Very funny,' I replied.

'If you're not back in a week we'll send out a search party,' mum added. 'Although they shouldn't have any trouble finding you, you'll all be smelling like pole cats by then, we'll be able to sniff you out.'

'What is it with you guys? Don't you think we can look after ourselves for two nights?'

'Do you really want us to answer that?' dad asked.

We all climbed into the old green Land Rover and after knocking it out of gear I started it up. A cloud of acrid blue smoke blew out behind us, then straight over the top of us after being caught by the wind, which left us all coughing and spluttering.

'Now, remember what I told you boys,' dad said firmly. 'Be careful, and listen to whoever is in charge of whatever you're doing, okay?'

'Yes, sir,' we all answered.

'Alright then. You had better get going or it'll end up being too late when you get set up.'

'Geez, dad. It's only like, a ten minute drive,' I protested.

'That may be, but the way you guys dawdle and stuff around it'll probably be three hours before you get there!'

Casting a look of disgust at my father I pushed in the clutch and slammed the vehicle into first gear. Unfortunately I let the clutch out a bit too quick though, without pressing the accelerator down hard enough, and the old beast stalled, without having moved an inch, much to the delight of everyone. While silently fuming I started it up again, then being sure not to make the same mistake twice I pressed the accelerator down some before letting out the clutch, and this time we were away, leaving them all standing there in a cloud of our dust.

I pointed the Land Rover up the track that started by the sheds behind the house and led us toward the hills at the back of the farm. It was little more than a goat track in places, and there were a number of gates to open and close along the way, but we bounced along happily through open grassland and then thick bush, letting the wind rough up our hair, all the while teasing each other and laughing, as kids do.

It wasn't long before we reached 'The Gap', which was a short, steep section of track which wound it's way up over the edge of the mountain to the higher country, which was where the shearing shed and quarters were. In the old days, when the our farm was actually a part of a much larger property, this was where all the sheep from outlying areas were brought in for shearing, which then made it much easier to transport the wool into town to be sent to the auctions.

When we reached the top of 'The Gap', where the land levelled out into open grassland once more, we could see lying ahead of us the peak known locally as 'The Pinnacle'. The shearing shed was located about half way between there and where we now were, which wasn't too far away.

'How much further?' Christopher asked as we bounced along.

'Not far,' Nate replied. 'See that hill between here and the mountain? It's about there.'

Christopher nodded and continued holding onto the safety bar in front of him.

Now that we were on open country once more and the track was a little smoother I put my foot down a little more, speeding along the track quite quickly. It sure felt great to be out in the open air with the wind rushing by, masters of our own destiny and not having to answer to anyone but ourselves. Looking across at my brother and Christopher I could tell by the look on theirs faces that they were feeling exactly the same.

Before long we could see the outline of the buildings looming up between the trees, then just a few minutes later we pulled up in front of the old shearers quarters, a long, corrugated iron building, rusted in a few places, and with a verandah along the front.

'So this is it, huh?' Christopher said after I pulled the vehicle to a stop and we had climbed out, all of us stretching and yawning, as if we had been on the road for hours.

'Home, sweet home,' I replied. 'Well, for the next two nights at least.'

'Cool. Let's get things unpacked and set up before it gets too late,' Christopher said.

'Hang on a minute. I'm the boss of that,' Nate exclaimed. 'Dad said I was in charge.'

'Alright then hotshot. Where are we setting up camp, then?' Christopher challenged.

Straight away Nate jumped up onto the verandah and started for the centre doorway, which I knew led into the kitchen. 

I figured that that would be where he would go, as it is right next door to the showers and toilets, so everything was close and handy. There was even a doorway between the kitchen and other amenities, which meant not having to venture outside onto the verandah to go to the toilet in the middle of the night.

'In here,' Nate commanded after opening the door and sticking his head inside. 'We can all bunk down beside each other. I'm in the middle though, 'cause you're not leaving me out of the fun!'

'What are you talking about?' I demanded, as Christopher and I jumped up onto the verandah and started toward him, already knowing full well what he meant, but stringing him along anyhow.

'You know!' he replied. 'I know you two were sleeping together last night, so what were you doing? I bet you were playing with each others doodles. Whatever it was I want to try it too.'

Chris and I looked at each other and smiled, then both of us started walking toward Nate, who was standing in the doorway of the kitchen, his hands on his hips and trying to look like the boss.

I have to admit that I still felt a little uncomfortable about this, with him being my brother and all, yet at the same time it was kind of exciting. I had seen him naked heaps of times, but had never even thought of doing anything with him; not even since I had started to play around with Christopher, yet right now I found myself getting hard at the thought of seeing him naked again, even despite it still feeling kind of weird.

As we approached him he started backing away from us, through the open doorway and across the room, until finally he was hard up against the bench and sink against the back wall. Chris and I had boxed him in and he had nowhere else to go.

He looked up at us both, defiant, yet still looking like the scared twelve year old kid that he was.

'You promise not to say anything to anyone . . . ever!' I asked him. 

'Y-yes,' he whimpered.

'Promise that you'll do whatever we tell you to do?' Christopher asked, leaning in so close to him that for a moment I thought he was going to kiss him.

'Y-yes,' Nate stammered.

'Alright then!' Christopher agreed. 'Tonight's the night.'

With that he stepped back away from Nate, so I did the same.

'First things first . . . we need to set up camp,' Christopher said. 'But how about we check out the other rooms first?'

There was a door in the centre of one side wall, which Christopher walked over to and opened.

'That's the way to where the showers and toilets are,' I said to him as he peered into the dim area in front of him. 'Those two doors on either side are the pantry on one side and where the hot water heater is on the other side, then the door in front of you takes you to the toilets and showers.'

'Cool,' he said, before entering the area and opening the door into the showers and taking a look inside.

There were two shower cubicles on one wall, with two toilet cublicles on the opposite side, with an open area in the centre and wash basins along the wall opposite the doorway. Even though the floor was only bare concrete and the walls were only lined with corrugated iron, just like the outside of the building, it was quite well set up for the annual shearing, when up to a dozen shearers and workers would descend on the property for the annual gathering, which provided the main source of income for the farm each year.

'So, have you left any marks on these walls yet?' he asked me with a grin on his face.

'No. Not yet anyhow,' I replied, with a wink. Nate was looking at us with a strange 'what the fuck are they talking about?' kind of expression on his face. 'You'll find out later,' I simply said to him.

'Yeah, whatever! Now, have you two seen enough, or are we going to unpack?' Nate asked us.

'Alright, alright,' I replied. 'Anything to shut you up.'

Turning around he left us there and stomped outside. Christopher came to me and stood beside me, swinging one arm over my shoulder and pulling me close to him.

'We need to be careful tonight,' I said to him.

'Yeah,' Christopher agreed. 'I know, but I'm sure it'll be fun. He's definitely up for it.'

'He thinks he is. But he doesn't really know what IT is yet. I just feel a bit funny about it, with him being my brother and all . . .'

'Relax, mate,' he said, while giving me a bit of a squeeze. 'It'll just be a bit of harmless fun. Nothing too serious. I promise.'

From outside we heard some grunting and groaning as Nate started pulling stuff from the back of the Land Rover.

'Are you two dicks going to come and help, or just keep playing with your dicks?' we heard him call out.

'Just keep your shirt on . . .' Christopher called back, then started for the door, while dragging me along with him.

When we reached the verandah and looked down at where the Land Rover was parked we were startled when we found Nate standing there, shirtless and leaning against the vehicle, having quickly pulled off the tee shirt he was wearing, which was now being swung around and around. Some of our gear was already scattered around on the ground at his feet.

'We starting already?' he said to us with a cheeky grin on his face.

I looked across at Christopher, who had a queer expression on his face that I couldn't quite work out.

'Save it for later, sport,' I said to Nathan. 'Now put that shirt back on. It's the middle of winter for fuck sake. Mum will kill me if you catch something.'

'Oh, damn. I was just starting to get excited.'

'Heaven help us,' I thought to myself.

As Christopher and I jumped down off the verandah and started to pick up a few items of our gear and stack them on the edge of the verandah, Nate pulled his shirt back on then started helping us, all the while sporting a huge grin.

He was expecting something big to happen tonight. Only time would tell whether or not he would get his wish.

*      *      *

It didn't take long to give the kitchen a quick clean out, then set up our camp. After moving the table and chairs aside we rolled out our swags on the floor, with Nate saying firmly; 'Mine in the middle!' 

Things had changed a bit since this building was first erected, with a few mod-cons now being added compared to the old days. We now had use of electricity, by way of portable generators, which hadn't been used before, while the hot water was now provided by a small gas system, rather than the old wood fire system that had once been located just outside the back door of the kitchen.

The generator now gave us the power to run a refrigerator and lights, with just a few tanks of petrol needing to be used throughout the day or night to get by with.

Compared to even just ten years ago the place was positively state of the art now.

Between Christopher and me we lugged the small generator up onto the verandah, along with the cans of fuel we had brought for it. We also took inside the two gas bottles we brought with us for the hot water system and stove top, then the couple of boxes of groceries which mum had packed for us.

'Okay then, what's the plan now?' Christopher said when we had finished putting everything in its place, connected up the gas bottles and filled the generator with petrol, ready to go. It was getting toward the middle of the afternoon and we still had a good two or three hours of sunlight left, even allowing for it being the middle of winter.

'Come on, we'll take you down to the creek and show you around,' I said to him. 'We'll take the rifle and maybe we'll be able to shoot a few rabbits or something.'

'Yummm . . . rabbit stew!' Christopher said.

'No way!' Nate cried. 'I'm not eating that!'

'What's wrong? Afraid of a little bunny-wabbit?'

'You can have it. I'll stick to what mum packed for us!' he replied.

'Wimp!' Christopher teased.

The three of us headed out the door and I made sure that I shut it behind us, then we jumped down off the verandah and headed for the vehicle.

'How far is it?' Christopher asked.

'Not far. The creek starts with some springs near the foot of the mountain.'

Once we were all aboard I starting the Land Rover and we were on our way, bumping along the track and heading toward the mountain. There was plenty of grass about and it whipped against the side of the Land Rover as we sped along. After a little while we came to the edge of a ridge that ran above the creek and I pointed the vehicle down a track which would take us down to the grassy flats at the edge of the water.

'Pretty country,' Christopher said as we followed along the bank of the creek, peering down at the many long and narrow water holes that dotted its length.

'Yeah,' I replied. 'I love it out here.'

'What about you, squirt? Do you like it out here in the bush?' he asked Nate.

'Yeah. Love it,' Nate answered.

When I came to the spot I wanted to show Christopher I pulled the vehicle to a stop and climbed out, with the two of them following.

'This is what I wanted to show you,' I said to him, while pointing at the expanse of water we were looking down on. 'It's the biggest water hole on the creek. Great for swimming. Got some good fish in there too.'

'Bit cold today for a swim,' Nate said.

'Yeah,' I agreed. 'Might see what it's like tomorrow and go skinny dipping if it's warm enough. You two keen?'

'Sure,' Christopher answered, but Nate remained silent, with a concerned look on his face.

I gave Chris a wink and he smiled at me. Maybe Nate was a little more bashful than he was making out.

We started walking along the bank of the creek, looking into the water as we went, trying to see if there were any fish about. 

'Water sure is clear,' Christopher remarked.

'Yeah, you can often see the fish in there,' I replied.

From up ahead of us I heard the morbid sound of some crows and when I looked up I spotted some flying down and landing in the long grass, quite a distance ahead of us, squarking and squabbling amongst themselves.

'Must be something dead up ahead,' I said to my companions. 'We better go check it out, eh? Come on, we'll drive up there.'

Turning around we retraced our steps and went back to the Land Rover and climbed in, then I started it up and started forward, driving cautiously through the grass, until eventually we came to the spot where just moments before several crows had flown up from, before landing in some trees not too far away, where they now sat, crawing at us.

We walked forward and within seconds we could see what it was that had attracted them. It was the carcase of a sheep, lying on its side. 

As we approached it I was wondering what could have killed it, as there didn't appear to be any damage to the body, but when we were standing over it moments later it was clearly evident what it had died from . . . half it's face was missing . . . as if it had been bitten off in one bite by something!

The three of us looked from one to the other as we stood there. We had all seen dead animals out in the bush, but none of us had ever seen anything quite like this. It was quite disconcerting.

'Maybe it just died and something started eating it?' Nate offered.

'No way,' I answered. 'Something did this. Like a dingo or something I reckon.'

'Any of them around here?' Christopher asked.

'I haven't ever seen one, but there are supposed to be some around,' I replied.

Just then I heard that haunting call of the crows once more, coming from further up the paddock.

'Come on. We better check that out too,' I said, so we returned to the vehicle and climbed in. 'I hope that there aren't any more,' I said as I turned the ignition.

Once again the crows flew up out of the grass as we approached, signalling the location and when I reached the spot I stopped and we climbed out once again.

It was no surprise to us at all that there was another dead sheep here. Once again it was missing half its face, but this time there was also a chunk taken out of its back.

'Kidneys,' Christopher said.

'Huh?'

'Whatever it was likes the kidneys, that's what is under there. Or WAS under there.'

While we stood there looking at the carcase Nate wandered away from us, but I didn't pay much attention to what he was doing.

'Hey, you guys,' he said. 'Here's another on.'

'What?' I asked.

He was standing there looking down at something in the grass. It didn't take Einstein to work out what it would be.

'That makes three,' Christopher said.

'We better spread out. See if there are any more,' I ordered. 'Dad will need to know about this.'

Each of us went off in a different direction, stalking through the long grass on our search for more grim news.

'This makes four,' Christopher called out a minute or so later.

'Five,' Nate followed soon after.

'Here's six,' I added.

When I eventually whistled out to Nate and Christopher about half an hour later and waved for them to come back, our tally had grown to twelve, but that was just from a relatively small area along the creek. I shuddered to think what the final tally might be if we did a really thorough search over a wider area and with more people. Something was doing this, and after the conversation we had had earlier that day there was now a seed of doubt creeping into my mind about a certain local legend. And apparently I wasn't the only one thinking along those lines when Christopher quietly asked me; 'Are you thinking what I'm thinking?'

I could only look at him, stony faced and in silence, after he said that. He knew what my answer was.

It was Nate who ended up breaking the silence, by saying; 'Let's get out of here. This is spooky.'

'Yeah,' I agreed.

We walked back to the Land Rover and climbed in.

'What will we do?' Christopher asked. 'Are you going to go back now and tell your dad?'

It was now getting late in the afternoon and the sky to the west was a fiery shade of crimson. By the time we got back to the shearers quarters it would be growing dark, and I didn't really want to be outside in the dark if there really was something stalking about the place. The best thing, I figured, was to get inside tonight and stay there, then we could go home first thing in the morning and tell dad what we found. And besides, we wanted a bit of adventure on these holidays, and it certainly looks like we found some.

I told them what I thought and Christopher readily agreed. Nate was somewhat reluctant, but when we explained that we would all be safe inside that seemed to ease his fears, so then I started the vehicle and pointed it back the way we had come.

Not a word was spoken as we made our way back through the bush toward the shearers quarters, as each of us seemed to be lost in our own thoughts, and by the time I pulled up and turned the ignition off the darkness was well and truly beginning to take over.

'I'll start the generator,' I said to them. 'It'll give us some light and some power at least. We can cook something for dinner then once the fuel runs out in the generator we can turn in I reckon.'

'I'll start getting something ready for dinner,' Nate said. 'Mum packed some cans of stew I think. Can you light the gas burner for me first?'

'I'll do that for ya,' Christopher said.

They disappeared inside while I checked the generator was ready.

'Are we going to get some light in here, or what?' I heard Nate call out. 'It's pretty dark.'

'Hang on,' I called back, as I plugged an electrical cord into the outlet on the generator, then ran it inside and plugged it into one of the fittings which would supply the lights. I then went back out onto the verandah and pulled the cord on the generator to start it up, which it did, but only after giving a cough and a splutter before eventually settling into a smooth rhythym.

Due to the noise it made we had sat the generator at the very end of the verandah, as far away from the rooms we would be in as we could get it. When I went back inside and shut the front door we could hear it, but it wasn't too bad, thankfully not deafening. At least we now had some light by which we could see what we were doing.

It didn't take long for some dinner to be heated up on the gas burner, some toast to be cooked, and some water to be boiled. Before long we were sitting down to a feed of Irish Stew on toast, washed down with hot tea. It was a typical bushman's meal and despite the concerns and doubts that were lingering in all our minds about what we had seen today and what we feared might be out there in the darkness, we were quietly content.

After boiling the jug again and rinsing our plates in the sink the three of us sat down on our swags, each sitting up and with our backs against the wall.

Nate was sitting between Christopher and me, looking from one of us to the other, as if he was expecting something to happen.

'I don't think there'll be much playing around tonight,' I said to him, while at the same time getting my arm and sliding it around his back and hugging him closer to me. As I did this Christopher scooted over closer as well, raising his arm and putting it around both Nate and my shoulders, bringing the three of us even closer together.

'It's going to be okay, Nate,' Christopher whispered. 'You'll get to learn and do everything that we know and do. No need to rush things though.'

Nate gave a shy kind of smile as he looked from one of us to the other again.

When he looked back at Christopher I saw Chris raise his other arm and place his hand against Nate's cheek. 'Here's you first lesson,' Chris whispered, before then leaning in and kissing Nate on the lips.

It was a gentle kiss. A loving kiss. It was a kiss just like many I had shared with him already.

When it was over Chris looked across at me. No doubt he would have seen the longing in my own face and so he leant across in front of Nate and placed his lips over mine as well. I felt his tongue probing forward and opened my mouth to permit the welcome intrusion. There was more passion involved than with the kiss he gave Nate, and it lasted much longer, then when it was finished we broke apart and found Nate staring up at us, open mouthed.

'What's wrong with you?' I said to Nate, but before he could answer I leant in toward him and kissed him as well, just briefly, and without the passion that I had shared with Christopher, but it was a kiss nonetheless, and not an unpleasant one at that. 

'There,' I said to him when I had finished. 'That's the end of lesson number one.'

Nate grinned up at me. 'There'll be more then, will there?' he asked.

'Only if you're good,' I replied.

It was shortly after that when we heard the generator give a couple of coughs out on the verandah, then suddenly die.

'Shit. It must be out of fuel,' I said into the darkness which quickly followed. 'Where's the torch at?'

'I saw it on the bench near the sink,' Christopher said.

'And what about the rifle and ammo?' I added.

'Errr . . .,' was all Christopher could offer.

'Well?'

'You didn't bring it in, did you? I think it's still in the truck,' he answered.

I remembered seeing it in the back of the Land Rover earlier, but I couldn't remember either of us bringing it in.

'I guess I had better go get it then,' I finally said after we all pondered the predicament for a few moments. If there really was something out there I sure as hell didn't want to be without something with which we could defend ourselves . . . even if all we had was an old single-shot twenty-two.

I got up from off my swag and fumbled for the bench along the back wall where the sink and gas burner were, eventually finding the torch and flicking it on. Flashing it around the room I soon found my two companions huddled together in the dark, their faces looking like startled rabbits caught in the headlights.

'Okay. I'm going outside,' I said to them. They both got up off their swags and came to the door with me, although both stayed inside the doorway as I ventured out into the darkness.

It was a cold night, which wasn't surprising for August, and even though I soon regretted not putting on something warmer I knew that I would only be outside for a minute or so; all being well.

Quickly I crossed to the other side of the verandah, then just before I jumped down on to ground level I swung the torch about, illuminating the surrounds. Trees and bushes and long grass were all lit up by the torchlight. Something moved, which made me jump, but it was only a pair of rabbits.

Satisfied that there was nothing else out there that shouldn't be there I jumped down onto the ground and crossed to where the Land Rover was standing, quickly reaching in and grabbing the rifle from the back of the vehicle. 

'Where was the ammo?' I asked Christopher.

'In the compartment in front of the passenger seat,' he replied, so I quickly walked around to the other side of the vehicle and reached in, finding the box exactly where it should have been.

As I turned to start back toward the building, however, I heard something that made my blood run cold; stopping me in my tracks.

'D-d-did you hear that?' I asked Nate and Christopher.

'Yeah, I heard something,' Chris replied. 'I don't know what it was though.'

I knew in my own mind what it was. It was a low, gutteral kind of growl. The last time I had heard anything like that was when mum and dad had taken us to Taronga Park Zoo in Sydney. On that occasion the sound had been made by a big cat. A VERY big cat.

'Ben, get back here,' I heard Nate say, the anxiety clearly showing in his voice.

Quickly I swung the torch around, frantically scanning the bush and grass for the source of that blood chilling sound. At first nothing showed itself, but on a second pass over an area near some bushes I spotted two eyes glaring back at me. They were quite unlike anything I had seen in the bush. These eyes were yellow.

What kind of an animal they belong to I couldn't quite make out, as whatever it was was sitting right at the limit of where the torch light fell.

'Get back here, Ben,' I heard Christopher say behind me. His voice was calm; reassuring even.

'Don't worry. I'm coming,' I replied as I started stepping backwards along the side of the vehicle, while keeping the torch focused on the pair of evil looking eyes that were staring at me. I imagined the animal sitting there and watching me, licking its lips in anticipation of the meal it thought it was going to get.

That thought made me move more quickly and once I reached the end of the Land Rover I turned quickly and ran the few paces to the verandah, jumping up onto it in one leap and ushering both Chris and Nate inside.

When I was at the doorway and they were safely inside I swung the torch back around to the spot where the eyes had shown up, but there was nothing to be seen. Quickly I scanned the bushland once more, but there was nothing there; not even the rabbits I had seen earlier.

'W-w-what was that?' I heard Nate ask as I finally closed the door, being sure to turn the old iron key in the lock once I had done so.

'Probably nothing,' I said to him, trying to at least sound like I meant it and give the impression we had nothing to worry about, but judging by the looks I received from both of them I don't think I was successful.

'I've never heard something that was nothing growl like that,' Nate said defiantly. 'And I've never seen nothing that had yellow eyes.'

'Relax, Nate. We're safe in here. Nothing can get us in here. Then tomorrow morning first thing we'll go home. We'll leave everything here and come back up later with dad to pack up, and to show him what we found, okay?'

Christopher remained diplomatically quiet during this discussion. I glanced at him and he nodded to me just slightly. He knew I was trying not to let Nate get upset about what might be out there. 

'Come on kiddo,' Chris said, while putting a comforting arm around my brother's shoulders. 'How about we all settle in for the night. Not much use in us getting worked up over nothing. And besides, it's getting cold, so I might need to cuddle up to you to try and keep warm. What do you say?'

Nate flashed something of a smile, but it was gone just as quickly as it had come. I knew that this was going to be a long night.

'You guys go on and get to bed. I'll make sure all the doors and windows are locked, and that the rifle is loaded, then I'll sit up for a bit, just to make sure,' I said.

'Alright. Wake me up later and we'll swap over. You can cuddle up to our little bed warmer here, then I'll keep a watch,' Christopher responded.

'Okay then.'

I watched them as they both climbed into bed, fully clothed and not into their own, but into a single bed that they quickly made by pushing two mattresses together and then covering them with blankets. I couldn't help but offer a little grin at the thought of them cuddling up together, while still wishing that I was joining them.

I pulled a chair over and sat it beside my own mattress, then reached down and grabbed a couple of my blankets and draped them across my shoulders and wrapped them around me. While I still had the torch on I checked the rifle to make sure that there was a bullet in the chamber, and that I had the box with the remaining ammo in my pocket, then once satisfied that all was in order I switched off the torch and sat there in near darkness, with the only light available being a faint glow coming in through the windows.

'Good night guys,' I whispered.

'Yeah. good night. Wake me up in a few hours, okay,' Christopher replied.

'Sure thing,' I answered.

*      *      *

The night proved cold and long and more than once I jumped at sounds that were made outside. A couple of times I flicked on the torch and shone it around the room, smiling to myself when I would see my brother and my best friend cuddled up together, like lovers. I had to admit that I felt slightly jealous when I saw them there like that; but jealous of who, or what, I found myself thinking?

Was I jealous that Nate was enjoying the feeling of being held close by the person I was coming to see as my boyfriend? Was I jealous of Christopher being the first to cuddle up with my own brother? Or was I simply jealous because I wasn't down there with both of them?

As I pondered those questions I saw Chris roll over and sit up, rubbing his hands through his hair and then rubbing his face.

'Sorry. I hope I didn't wake you,' I quietly said to him.

'Nah,' he replied in little more than a whisper. 'Hard to sleep anyhow. What time is it?'

'No idea,' I answered, before then flicking off the torch.

'I was lying there awake and thought I heard some sounds outside,' he said.

'Yeah, I heard them too. Not sure what it was though.'

'Do you really think there's a panther out there?'

'Seems to fit, doesn't it?' I replied. 'I mean, there's been talk of them before, and whatever killed the sheep had to have been pretty big to take half their face off like that. And those yellow eyes . . . man, you saw them too didn't you? They were creepy.'

'Yeah, they were.'

'We'll go home in the morning then after that things will settle down,' I offered.

'Shame about that. I'd really like to spend some more time up here . . . with you.'

'Yeah, I'd like it too, but we'll be able to do it again, and when the weather warms up a bit in a few months it'll be even better. Panther or no panther!'

The silence stretched on for a few minutes then shortly afterwards we were both startled by another noise coming from outside. To me it sounded like the squeak of the springs of the Land Rover.

'What the hell is that?' Christopher whispered, but before I'd even had a chance to answer it was followed by a loud, but hollow sounding thud, like something heavy had just landed on the verandah, right outside the door.

'Ben? What is that?'

'I don't know,' I replied honestly.

We both listened as we heard a sound like there was something walking up and down the verandah outside our room, with the sound of each foot step being clearly heard. After a few moments it seemed to stop, but it was almost as if it was right outside the door to our room.

Chris and I both held our breath as we waited for what would come next, neither of us sure exactly what that would be. Neither of us were surprised when we heard what sounded like something scratching at the door, but it still sent a chill down both our spines.

'Fuck this,' I said, while throwing off my blankets and getting to my feet.

'What are you going to do?' Chris asked, clearly concerned.

'Just cover your ears . . . or his . . .,' I said to him.

While whatever it was was still scratching at the door outside I crossed the floor and stood about five feet away from the door and pointed the rifle at it. I knew that it was only a twenty-two, and that it was unlikely to do a lot of damage, but I didn't care. Whatever it was that was out there was about to get a surprise.

I took aim at somewhere close to where I thought the intruder was scratching and squeezed the trigger. In the confines of the room the sound was deafening as the gun went off, sending a bullet straight through the wooden door.

There was a squeal and a roar from outside, then the sound of something scratching about on the verndah, as if it was trying to get to it's feet, then after that the night fell silent, apart from the sobs coming from Nathan, who I found sitting in Christopher's lap and being held close when I retrieved the torch and switched it on.

Quickly I crossed the floor and knelt beside them, hugging them both to me.

'Sorry Nate,' I whispered into his ear. 'It's gone now. Whatever it was has gone.'

I looked at Christopher, whose face was a pale shade of grey.

'How do you know? Did you look?' Nate asked.

'I heard it run off. I'm going to open the door and take a look, okay?'

'You just stay with Chris.'

Getting to my feet I crossed back to the door, then after a moments hesitation I turned the lock on the door and then opened it a few inches, shining the torch out into the darkness. Gradually, once satisfied that there was nothing there, I opened the door wider for a better look, before eventually opening it all the way and stepping outside, flashing the torch back and forth and looking for any sign of movement . . . or yellow eyes.

There was nothing there. Not a sound stirred in the night. I was sure it was safe once more.

When I went back inside I quickly locked the door. The smell of gunpowder was strong in the air. I crossed over to where Nate and Chris were still huddled together and leaned the rifle against the wall then sat down beside them and embraced them both.

'All gone,' I said to them. 'Now how about we get some sleep?'

Sleep didn't come easily, but eventually I managed to get some at least, and when I woke in the morning, with sunlight streaming in through the windows, I found Nate and Chris both sitting up on chairs and studying me.

'Hey sleepy head,' Nate said to me.

'Hey yourself,' I replied.

'Get some sleep?' Chris asked.

'Not much I don't think. How about you guys?'

'Would have had plenty if it wasn't for some bastard letting off a bomb in our room in the middle of the night,' Nate cheekily offered.

'Yeah, well, sorry about that.'

'At least we know that whatever it was that was out there wouldn't have got much sleep,' Chris said.

'Why's that?' I asked.

'Come and check this out,' he replied.

He stuck out a hand for me and pulled me to my feet, then led me across the room by the hand toward the front door, which now contained a neat little hole, through which the sunlight was coming through, creating a spot of light on the floor.

'Neat,' I said when I saw the hole.

'Wait 'til you see this though,' Chris said, before then opening the door.

He led us outside onto the verandah and pointed down at the concrete. 

For a moment I didn't realise what exactly he was pointing at, but then it dawned on me. There were several spots of blood there. Not large, but definitely blood.

I squatted down for a closer look, as Nate walked a few yards away.

'More here,' he said triumphantly, then went a few yards further and said, 'Here too.'

Then he jumped down off the verandah and walked across to the Land Rover and pointed at the seat and said, 'And you're going to be in trouble for tearing the seat in the truck'

Chris nodded at me and smiled, saying, 'Go take a look!' 

I jumped down and joined Nate and soon saw what he meant. There were three neat cuts in the vinyl of the seat, almost as if they had been made by some . . . claws, or something like that.

'Wow,' was all I could say, as I fingered the cuts. 'So it was real then? I didn't dream all that last night?'

'No way dude,' Chris replied, as he came up behind me and hugged me, planting a kiss on the side of my neck as he did so. 'It was about as real as you can get.'

Not wanting to miss out on the action Nate jumped up and grabbed me as well, planting a kiss on my lips.

'I love you, Ben. You're my hero,' he said, before hugging me as well.

'Mine too, dude,' Chris added, as the three of us stood there in a group hug that just felt so right.

'What can I say guys, but I love you too,' I laughed. 'Now, I want some coffee.'

*      *      *

We pulled up at the gate near the back door of the house with mum and dad and the rest of the family waiting there, and with anxiety etched on all their faces. When we got closer to the house I had started blowing the horn of the Land Rover to alert them that we were coming in, and hopefully to let them know that something was wrong.

Dad stepped through the gate as we pulled up in a swirl of dust.

'What's happened?' he asked before we had even managed to get out of the vehicle.

'There's something out there,' Nate blurted out. 'There's sheep dead and it even came after us!'

Dad looked at me and I could tell straight away what he was thinking.

'What did I say about mentioning that?' he said with a frown.

I turned to Chris and said, 'Tell him, will you?'

'It's true Mr. Dawson. Ben took us out to that big long hole in the creek yesterday afternoon. We found twelve dead sheep there. Half their faces were just swiped off and their kidneys gone . . . chewed out.'

'Then last night,' Nate continued, 'there was something with yellow eyes that showed up in the torch light. It growled like nothing I've ever heard before, then in the middle of the night it was clawing at the door. Ben shot at it through the door and must have hit it, 'cause there's blood on the verandah . . . and look here, at this seat!'

Dad looked where Nate was pointing and I saw the frown on his face deepen.

'This is all for real then?' he asked me directly.

'Yes, sir,' I replied. 'It's for real alright. Whatever it is, it came a calling in the middle of the night and it scared the bejeezus out of us! I must have winged it, but it'd be long gone by now.'

He thought for a moment then said, 'Okay Nate and Chris, you guys jump in the back. We better go take a look at what's going on up there.'

I made a move to get out and dad put up a hand. 'You can drive,' he said.













Authors Note:

Okay, so, right at the start I said that not everything that happens in this story actually happened to me, rather, it is something of an amalgamation of incidents I was involved in personally, of incidents that happened involving people I knew, or of other incidents that occurred during the time I was growing up. The reader can make up their own mind as to which events fall into which category.

Having said that, however, I can state that no, I was never stalked by a panther in the wild, nor did I ever see one (although I do believe I may have heard one, but even that could have also been my overactive teenage imagination). 

The incidents described in this chapter have been included here because... 

CLICK HERE: http://sonofdorothy.livejournal.com/2270.html


OK, so that's it for part four. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. I would love to 
hear your feedback and comments. You can email me at thedawsonboy@gmail.com

Thank you.