Paolo

Max
The Illustrated Boy

A San Carlos Island story

Chapters 5-8 and Epilogue

Chapter 5
Expelled

Principal Stratton told Devon the pool story.

"I'd take your video phone offline if I were you," he added. "And if it's OK, I'll bring the boys home myself? We don't want any incidents on the school transport?"

"Yes, yes, good idea, thank you," Devon agreed.

"Who was that?" Carol shouted from the kitchen.

"I… I think we have a dinner guest coming. Principal Stratton."

"Oh?" Bob asked.

"Yeah, uhhhm, Maximillian's been expelled."

"I guess we'd better get dressed, then," Bob commented, without another word.

Devon met them at the door. Both boys walked with their heads down, and both of them looked a little rough. As they got closer, it was obvious that they'd been in a fight. Devon ushered them all in and got Principal Stratton a drink. The boys went upstairs without a word. They knew they were in trouble.

"He disobeyed you and went to the pool?" Carol asked.

Stratton nodded. "He had a talk with Coach Wilson, who SHOULD have called ME, but he didn't," Stratton went on, "And then your boy joined the class, in the pool, naked."

"And no one noticed?" Devon gasped.

"Not until his high dive, when they got a look at his normally colored butt," Stratton tried not to laugh. "With all that ink, it's hard to tell!"

"You're taking this rather well, sir?" Bob offered.

"Well, Bob, can I call you Bob?" Bob nodded, "It's not like it's the twenty-teens anymore. Times change. We're a lot more liberal, civilized I hope. A lot of the new laws in 2020 straightened out a lot of things, no pun intended," Stratton laughed, "And no offense!"

"None taken," Devon agreed.

"Folks, some of us knew Maximillian was, ahhh, special. After all, it's on the forms for his physical from Dr. Timberman. And I know Coach Wilson knew, all things considered?"

"Yeah," Devon sighed, but that wasn't the issue.

"Now, it's not that I want to expel him," Stratton said, "Normally, a prank like that would be blown off with a few days suspension, loss of privileges, you know the drill? But he disobeyed a direct order, he endangered himself, his brother, and he pulled off an indecent exposure. Now, what you do IN your home is your business…,"

"So we can get naked, then?" Carol cut in, smiling, refilling his drink.

"Uhhh, can you wait 'til I leave?"

Carol batted her eyes at him. "Honey," Bob warned her.

"Then there was the fighting," Stratton added.

"Fighting?" Devon almost yelled. "Is he hurt?"

"Did he look hurt?" Stratton asked. "Mister, that kid of yours is a mean little shit, pardon my choice of words! He and his brother sent six boys to the school nurse, two who aren't sure they can have kids of their own now! What degree of karate are they?"

"Brown belts," Devon sighed again.

They laughed, but it didn't last.

"The fact is, Maximillian caused a huge scene. And he was alone with Coach Wilson in the changing room for too long. But the video doesn't exactly clear Wilson. All he did was give him a chaste kiss, and since you two are, uhhh,….,"

"Intimate?" Devon helped him.

Stratton gulped his drink and nodded. Carol poured him another. "But it looks like the boy was almost trying to seduce him."

"WHAT?!"

"Look, I'm not accusing you of anything, folks, but what we have is a little pint-sized eunuch being raised by a eunuch. Wilson told me," Stratton explained, "And it's in the paperwork?" He reminded them.

"I don't have a problem with that, really," Devon admitted. "I am what I am, and I'm not ashamed of it."

"Neither is your son, for that matter," Stratton said, looking up and choking on his drink.

Standing on the stairs was Maximillian, right under a track light, shining brightly.

He was also naked.

"Son, please get dressed?" Devon asked, "We have company? You know the rules?"

"It's MY house!" Maximillian snapped, shaking his head. "He's not gonna tell ME what to do in MY house! We're NOT at HIS school anymore!"

"Temper," Stratton added.

"He's normally not like this," Devon explained, blushing, "I don't know what's got into him?"

"THEY SAID I WAS A FREAK!" Maximillian yelled, "They said YOU cut it off, an' that's why I don't have a penis! And they said you put ink on me, 'cause you were a pervert!" The boy shouted, racing across the room to throw himself on Devon. "I told 'em you loved me, daddy!" He cried. "I told 'em you never hurt me! But they wouldn't shut up!" Maximillian wiped his face. "Then they said… said… I wasn't a real boy!"

Stratton rubbed his eyes and sighed. "That's when Robbie jumped that kid," He clarified.

"ROBBIE started it?" Carol asked.

"That's my boy!" Bob said happily. Carol smacked him.

"One kid said I was a girl fakin' it," Maximillian said miserably. "You told me I was a boy!"

"You ARE a boy," Devon assured him.

"And a mean one, too," Stratton agreed, warily watching Maximillian. "He kicked my shin, you know, see?" Stratton showed him the bruise.

"Oh, God," Devon moaned. "Assault on a teacher! No wonder you expelled him."

"It's not that, it's the complaints from the parents." Stratton pulled out a list. "'Just because he doesn't have balls doesn't give him the right to kick MY kid's balls in!' And then another – 'Don't they have special schools for kids like 'it'?' That one hurt," Stratton added.

"They were calling him an 'it'," Robbie added, as he came down the stairs, wearing a pair of silk boxers. "That's when I hit the kid."

"In the balls!" Maximillian finally asked. "Glad I don't have any! That looked like it REALLY hurt!"

Stratton blushed. "A definite advantage," he agreed, "But still. Then the phone started in. Now, we don't live in a small town here, thank all that's holy, or you'd be run out on a rail by now, I'm sure, or hanged, or worse! But word's getting around about your boy, and the story gets wilder each time it's repeated. And yes, son, you ARE a boy," Stratton told him, "Don't let anyone tell you any different!"

"Thanks," Maximillian muttered.

"But I'm afraid I still have to expel him, and suspend Robbie for a week for fighting."

"I understand," Bob nodded.

"So do I," Devon sighed, pulling his son close. "I knew this was going to happen."

"It wouldn't have, if he'd at least put the swimsuit on!" Robbie added.

"Screw that!" Maximillian snapped. School had worked wonders for his vocabulary, too. "I'm sick of hidin'! I'm sick of everybody worryin' that someone will find out I'm a nullo like daddy! I'm sick of bein' picked on by grown ups, and have 'em say mean things to my daddy 'cause I got ink! It's not fair!"

"That's OK son," Devon told him.

"It's NOT OK!" Maximillian shook his head. "I can't wear my earrings to school, and people stare at us! I can't wear shorts anymore, and the teachers don't like me!"

"Is that true? Are they discriminating against him?" Carol asked.

"Well, his marks aren't what they should be, given his test scores," Stratton admitted. "I've looked into it, and yes, he's been cheated some. I changed the grades in his permanent records." Stratton sighed. "Folks, I think it's for the best, really. And now, I really don't think the boy would be safe at school – any school. You may have to home school him, Devon."

"You might not want to take him out, either, until this blows over," Bob added.

"I won't live like that," Devon disagreed. "And neither will my son! Just because they know Maximillian's a nullo now, and that he has a lot of ink, doesn't give them the right to treat him like that! So what does he need, perfect skin and genitals to have the same rights as the other boys? Is that it?"

Stratton shook his head.

"Just keep him safe," he said, standing up to go. He offered his hand to the boys. Reluctantly, they shook it. "You did the right thing protecting your brother," he told Robbie, "And YOU," he told Maximillian. "You're something else! Don't you ever let anyone walk all over you because they think they're better, you hear me?"

"Yes, sir," Maximillian said sadly.

The next morning was a nightmare. As soon as they put the phone online, it started to ring with video hate calls. Maximillian tried to get the paper mail, and ran back inside, panting; he slammed the door and locked it. Bob looked outside. "It's the media, duck!" He yelled. Sure enough, the local news was on the front lawn. Some parents, and not those of the assaulted boys, even dared to come up and knock. By noon, it was so bad that Carol called the police to break it up.

The Academy held an emergency board and parents meeting that night, which the family, under police escort, attended.

Maximillian, mad almost beyond words, but dressed in a new black suit, told his side of it. So did Robbie.

Then Coach Wilson did the same.

The accusations flew.

"Did you molest him in the shower?" "Can we see the video?" "Did you know that this kid wasn't a real boy when you admitted him?" "What's the word, 'eunuch'?" "Max, how does this make you feel?" "Do you have any comments?" "Coach, what's your relationship with the boy's father?" "Isn't HE a eunuch, too?" "Is HE the boy's REAL father, and if so, HOW?" "Is there any truth to the rumor that the father grew up as a catamite, of sorts, in some other country?"

"YOU ALL LEAVE MY DADDY ALONE!" Maximillian yelled; then he kicked a reporter in the shins. Stratton laughed.

"Sir, what about the rumor that you did this to the boy intentionally, maybe as a publicity stunt?" "Does that ink wash off?" "How can a child take the pain of a needle for so long?" "Is it true you had him emasculated out of your own desires?"

"No!" Devon yelled, "And he was born that way! He wanted ink, and I gave it to him! I'm a professional, and I never hurt him!"

"You're hurting him now, look at him," Someone said.

"YOU'RE the ones hurting him," Devon countered, picking up Maximillian. "What about his rights to an education?"

"What about the rights to his body?" Someone else asked.

"I WANTED INK!" Maximillian yelled at him. "I wanted to be like Daddy! It was me!"

"And the eunuch thing?"

"I was born that way! My daddy said I'm special!" The boy yelled back.

"So, you didn't castrate him, then?" Another reported asked.

Finally, the police had to break things up so the meeting could resume. The media was kicked out.

But Maximillian's expulsion was upheld.

"Sir," one of the officers said, as they arrived safely home. "Someone from child services will be over tonight, and in the meantime, I'd advise you not to leave town. We'll be outside, if you need us." Then he held out his hand to the boy. Maximillian shook it. "You're one tough little shit, you know that?" Maximillian grinned when he saw the tattoo on the man's wrist.

Maximillian then smiled at him. "My daddy's gonna sue somebody," he declared.

Later that night, Joe came over. He looked haggard.

"Devon, this is turning into a nightmare," he sighed. "Now you know that I don't care. Personally, I think it's cool. Hell, MY kid wants a tongue stud, and I caught him looking at male genital piercings online the other night! But I have to do my job, Devon. We have to fill out some reports, Doc Timberman has to come examine Maximillian and sign off that he's a congenital eunuch, etc., etc. But it's the ink that's the killer."

"Why?" Devon asked.

"The arm was one thing," Joe sighed, "An accident. That we can pass on. But the dragon, I mean, Jesus Christ, Devon! It's art! It's beautiful! You had to have put a lot of time into it, and technically, it's child abuse, by the letter of the law."

"But I wanted it!" Maximillian cried, "Daddy never hurt me! It felt good!"

"And then we have to have the shrink look him over," Joe added, rubbing his temples. "God my head hurts!"

"Daddy, what's he mean?" Maximillian cried, looking terrified. But then, so did Devon. It frightened the boy to see his daddy looking like that.

"It means they'll probably take him, Devon," Joe said. "They'll put him with a foster family, and then force him to have reconstructive surgery. There's the chance, I read in Timberman's reports, they'll want to try and fix his bowels, remove his ink, and … and … there's the chance they'll put him through GRS, or rather, reconstruction."

"Wha'ss'at?" Maximillian squeaked.

"They'll make you be a girl," Carol guessed. "They think they have to use a knife and some dermal-regenerator to make you be what they want you to be. Am I right?"

Joe nodded.

"But I'm not a girl!" Maximillian screamed, "I'm a boy! I'M A BOY! You said so!"

Devon held him tightly as the boy worked himself up into a panic. "I don' want my guts cut open!" Maximillian shouted, "I get enemas! I can go fine! Daddy, don't let 'em take me, please!" Maximillian screamed. Then he began to sob, clinging desperately to Devon.

"Joe, what do we do?" Devon finally asked in a low voice.

"If I were you, I'd run," Joe suggested. "'Joe the customer and friend' said that. 'Joe the social worker' said to stay put. Get it? I mean, you can fight the system, Devon, you've got the money, but they'll string you along. They can still take Max while you fight, and run through your money the whole time. In the end, if they win, you'll be stuck with all the bills, and Max will probably be a girl. A very unhappy one, too. I've seen it before, Devon. It doesn't look good." Then he turned to Carol and Bob. "This involves you, too, I'm afraid. They'll want to talk to Robbie, and well, with the business and your lifestyle, there's a good chance you'll lose him, too. You can fight it, but…," Joe held out his hands.

Just then, the video phone went off.

"Secure incoming call, transcoding verified," the phone's automated voice said. "Codeword: 'San Carlos'."

Devon blinked. There was only ONE person who could make THAT call with that codeword.

"This is insane," Bob scoffed, "We never hurt those boys!"

"I know," Joe agree, as Devon took the call. "But Bob, try and explain that to those who think they know better!"

Robbie and Maximillian sat on the sofa, holding each other close. Both of them were crying.

"Devon? My God, Devon, is that you boy? You're all over the news! What did you DO to get the World News to pick up this story? And how the hell did YOU get a son?" Ben Toeber's shocked face asked from the video phone.

Devon stared in disbelief at the face of the man who'd bought him when he'd been just almost eleven years old.

Almost the same age as his own son was now.

"Ben, they're… they're going to take him away from me!" Devon finally broke down.

"Devon, get a grip, boy!" Toeber snapped at him, in that voice that had always gotten his attention in the past. When Ben snapped, boys listened.

Devon called Maximillian to him, and both he and Robbie came. Devon moved them in front of the video receiver so that Ben could see them. "This is Maximillian, my son," Devon introduced them. "And this is his pseudo-brother, Robbie."

"I assume Maximillian is the colorful one?" Ben asked, smiling. He shook his head. "Like father, like son! Question is, HOW?!"

"I adopted him when I was a baby," Maximillian piped up. Ben laughed.

"Well, you're big news, kiddo," Ben told him, "Listen to this headline: The Illustrated Boy – Child Prodigy or Abuse Victim? How's that for a headline? The story starts out with a bunch of crap about who should be allowed to raise children! Imagine that!" Ben laughed. "Hypocrites. I've probably bought a hundred boys off of people like that!"

"They're gonna take me away from my daddy, sir," Maximillian cried, "And take my brother, too!"

"Not if I can help it," Ben assured him. "Devon, look – I've had an influx of third-world boys here lately. Suffice it to say, long story; they sort of got dumped on me. This island is a real zoo. I'm short several teachers, it's been one hell of an off season, and it's about to get busy again. School's not out yet, not until the first of May, and I need to hire some more help. I hear you majored in art and chemistry?"

"Yeah," Devon managed, looking lost, hoping that Ben wasn't going to suggest what he thought he was going to suggest.

But what was the alternative?

The picture that Joe had painted didn't look good, after all.

"You looking to hire me to teach art?" Devon half-heartedly laughed.

"I still have one of your drawings on my fridge door," Ben told him, which unexpectedly brought Devon to tears… …

… …"…and I'll hang it there, forever, Devon," Ben Toeber told the boy, as he stuck the laminated pencil sketch on the fridge door with a magnet.

It was a fine drawing of two boys lying in the sand on the beach. They were watching another boy windsurf, lying there together, naked, their bodies intertwined. They were smiling… …

… …"Don't smile at me yet, boy," Toeber said, "You want the job or not?"

"Do… do I bring the boys?" Devon asked, as if someone else were asking and he were only watching, listening.

Ben Toeber laughed harder.

"Now that's a dumb question! Listen, I'll send someone right over. Fortunately, he's in your neck of the woods right now and can be there on a transport in a few hours. You'll know him when you see him, so don't let him scare you, OK? In fact, YOU already know him. He's just taller."

"Ben, are you for real? Do you want us to come?" Devon asked.

"Devon, listen to me," Ben said seriously, "I've changed some lately. It's not all about the money and business anymore. I just got hold of a bunch of badly abused boys from Lester del Ray,"… …

… …"…that del Ray, he's a bad man," Sammy was saying, "He spanked me! It hurt!"

"He bought this one boy, too," Tommy said, "And he cried. He don't wanna go, but he has to!"

Devon nodded. "I saw him. He's got a big dick. I'm scared of him, too!"… …

… …"Be scared, Devon, be very scared. I've dealt with those loons in your country before. Why do you think I expatriated when I did and bought this island in the South Pacific Rim area? Slavery or not, we're more civilized than that puritanical cesspool you moved back to!"

"But you have legal slavery there!" Devon countered, "For Pete's sake, Ben, you BUY boys!"

"And we don't have boys being taken away by force from perfectly good parents, either!" Ben retorted. "Now, get Bob and Carol in here. This concerns them, too, if I'm not mistaken."

"They're my parents, sir," Robbie offered, nodding. "But Maximillian's MY brother," he said defiantly.

"Look, Devon, I need a qualified employee, and you need somewhere to go to protect your son. Where else in the world can the two of you go now? By tomorrow, the boy's going to be a household word." Ben Toeber finally threw down his trump card.

"By qualified, you mean 'someone who can teach and not fuck the boy-staff'?" Devon asked sarcastically.

"Well…," Ben wheedled, but Devon had made up his mind.

"Boys, go pack, everything, now!" Devon told them, without consulting Bob and Carol.

The next morning, after a sleepless night, Joe was proven correct. Papers were served ordering them to surrender the boys at noon. They had until then to say goodbye.

There was a knock on the door some hours later. Joe had since gone home, leaving the shattered family behind to pick up the pieces of their lives – before someone else did it for them. There had been others, too, friends, such as Coach Wilson, etc., who braved the media to come and offer aid and support. But in the end, there was only the five of them.

"It's a Chinese man," Bob said, "And he's tall and thin… hell, I know him!" Bob flung the door open.

"Li Chow!" Bob took his two heavy bags and put them aside.

"Don't announce it to whole world, Bob, you dumb fucker!" Li greeted him jovially, in a boy's voice, and with a hug. "Hiya, Carol!"

"Oh, Li, how are you? It's been so long!" Carol cried happily, kissing him, "You're so tall!"

"Hey, Li," Devon said in disbelief, "Long time!"

"Noisy boy from 'cross hall," Li laughed, "Back in old days! I see you got hormones," Li pointed out, feeling Devon's muscles. "Get horny?" He laughed loudly.

"I missed you all, you know," Devon said, "I can't believe this!"

"Later, reunion," Li said, becoming all business all at once. "Ben call me, you ready?"

"What do we do?" Carol said, holding up the papers from the police and social services that certainly spelled disaster for the boys. "We've only got 'til noon!"

Li came in and pulled a small box out of his pocket. He pushed a button, and the whole house lost power inside. He ushered them all into the main tattoo room, where there were no windows. He switched on a small flashlight and pushed another button on the box. "No doubt someone out there with electronic ear, but not now," he smiled. "Boys, this is scary, OK?"

"Where did you get that?" Bob asked. "Those are illegal?"

"Chinese mob," Li shrugged. "Family business."

The boys listened intently. It was exciting to them.

Li then explained what they had to do. Maximillian and Robbie gaped at him in disbelief.

A short while later, and both boys were sedated and asleep as Li packed them into two suitcases that were just large enough to hold them. Both of them were wrapped up in soft cloth, like mummies, and gagged – just in case. Both of them had also been catheterized, washed out thoroughly with enemas, and made to vomit beforehand. Oxygen masks were put on their faces, and they were bound up with their legs up to their chins. Li taped their eyes shut and plugged their ears, making sure the sedative had them totally knocked out. He then put an IV into their arms, hooked to a very small electronic pump. He sealed the bags and tagged them with what looked like regular luggage tags. Right before he closed the bags, he tossed two red collars into each suitcase containing a boy.

"Ben hired a really tricky man too, name of Tsu," Li told them. "He's got connections at gate security – built it, wrote the code, HKS3 Enterprise, Ben own now. Baggage manager like boys, so when he scan the bags, he see name of "Ben Toeber" come up on his computer. No searches, no scans, no question asked. Bags go right to Ben's private plane then. I take one. Come in one hour, gate 10, take this," he handed them tickets. "You bring other bag. Just drop it on belt, and don't worry. Insulation, boys be warm."

"I can't believe we're doing this," Carol whispered.

"I can't either, but we can't lose the boys," Bob agreed. "We have to trust Ben."

Devon looked ill.

"Bob, Carol, you know about Robbie? If he stays on the Island, they'll… they'll cut his…,"

"Maybe, maybe not, Ben getting soft in old age," Li laughed. Then he left, carrying the bag with Robbie in it.

One hour later, and Devon left with no bag. In fact, he only carried a small attaché case filled with papers – drawings, his and Maximillian's, photos, and a few important papers. One of them was his initial custody case paper from almost eleven years ago. He looked at the calendar on his way out. Hell of a way to celebrate your tenth birthday, he thought.

Shortly thereafter, Bob and Carol left carrying one bag. The power came back on, and they secured the house.

It didn't do much good.

As soon as they rounded the corner and were out of sight in the hovercar, and Joe and the police were pulling into the driveway, the house exploded in a huge fireball that shook the neighborhood.

By the time the fire was put out, the plane had long since left the airport with five passengers and two very heavy bags in the luggage hold. The other passenger was an Asian boy who just sat and stared out the window, never making a sound. His shiny black hair was all one length, and he was dressed in a simple white T-shirt and white gym shorts with sandals. Only once did he ask 'Uncle Li' for a drink of water.

"Attention please, we have now entered Pacific Rim Area airspace!" The pilot announced, after what seemed like forever. It was going to be a long flight, and it had been unbearably long already.

"Oh shut it, Charles!" Li yelled. "He think he big commercial pilot now," Li laughed, "Time to unwrap boys?"

"Out of their legal airspace now?" Devon asked.

"Take no chances in this business," Li told him.

Li and Devon fetched the bags through a small trap door hidden in the toilet. It was cold in the baggage hold and Devon began to worry about frostbite or hypothermia. "These bags smell odd," Devon said.

"That's because they had dead kids in them when I came to your house," Li said. Devon gaped at him in horror. "In this business, you always keep spare dead bodies around to plant for fake evidence. Don't worry, boys died of natural causes."

"WHY did you bring dead boys and leave them in our house?" Devon asked.

Li shrugged. "POOF!" He gesticulated, "House gone, bring hot dogs and sticks, big fire! Cops find two burnt up bodies in ashes later, works every time," Li smiled. "They think your boys are dead now!"

Carol and Bob were not impressed, but they were concerned about getting their son out of his suitcase. When they'd extricated the boys and gotten them stretched out in reclining seats, they all breathed a sigh of relief. The little boy with Li just watched and said nothing, as Li carefully removed all the tubes and wrappings from the boys. The Chinese boy just stared at Maximillian.

"I can't believe this," Bob muttered, as they flew on. "I never thought we'd be going back to the Island like this!"

"All the boys you knew growed up," Li winked at them. He looked wistful. "Jean-jean and Carol, only women ever give Li time of day," He grinned. Carol finally smiled.

They touched down some hours later at the San Carlos Island airfield, where a great many naked boys were hanging on the fence to watch the plane come in. Robbie and Maximillian were carried off the plane by guards, placed on gurneys, and rolled into the building. They hadn't awakened yet when Ben Toeber, accompanied by another guard and a little naked Chinese nullo in a green collar, greeted them. There was also a man in a white coat, obviously the doctor. Devon didn't know him.

It was a somewhat joyous reunion, Ben and his old customers, and two of his former boys. It would have been happier under other circumstances, but there wasn't much they could do about that. Devon hugged Ben and cried as Doctor Ronny Knox went over the two sleeping boys. "You bulked up nicely," Ben told Devon. "Nice dragon." He glanced at Maximillian, who was being tentatively poked by Knox. "Nice LITTLE dragon," He added.

"Lewie," Ben said sternly. Lewie snatched his hand back from Maximillian's tummy.

"Lookit, Ben! Look at tattoo!" Lewie squeaked in excitement.

"That why we're here, sir," Devon sighed.

"Ben, Ben? I want one too!" Lewie begged. Ben shook his head and smiled at Devon.

"Now see what you did?!" He joked, "Bnd no one can touch you here. The Rim Area makes too much tax revenue off of me for it to become a forced issue. You're safe now," Ben assured him, pulling Lewie into a rough hug and placing a hand over his mouth. "Li, did the plan work?"

"House gone, BANG!" Li smiled.

"You blew up our HOUSE?!" Bob yelped.

"You don't need it anymore, file insurance," Li shrugged, as Knox moved on to Robbie.

"Ben, the colorful one is already a nullo, did you know?" Knox asked. "This one's intact."

"Born that way," Devon told him, as Knox introduced himself.

"A congenital nullo eunuch? Don't see too many of those?" Knox stated. "Yours?" He asked Carol and Bob, gesturing at Robbie. They nodded. "And this one?" He asked of the Chinese boy, who was clearly embarrassed about being made to strip naked in front of strangers. Ben snapped a red collar around his neck.

"#3 Nephew," Li pointed out, "From Chinatown. Too many sons in family. You got money?" Li asked, and Ben laughed.

"Already transferred," Ben assured Li.

"Business?" Li shrugged at them all. "Make family rich, boy richer," he added.

"Let's wake up the boys, shall we?" Ben suggested, and Knox revived them. They slowly came around, stretched and blinked several times. Then their parents took them, held them, while the boys got their bearings and Knox scanned them with a handheld bioscanner. Once they were coherent again, which took a while, Lewie took them in hand while the papers and luggage were sorted. Lewie was chattering ecstatically at the dazed boys, while Li's nephew just tagged along quietly.

Then Ben opened the red tracking collars Li had placed with the boys.

"It don't hurt," Lewie told them, "See?" He showed them his green collar.

"It's OK boys," Devon told them. "They're to keep you safe."

Ben snapped the red collars around their necks. All three chirped as they registered with the Island's Security Network.

"Let's go talk in my office," Ben offered.

Maximillian and Robbie were still a bit wobbly as they were photographed, and Ben turned them over to Lewie again when he was done photographing his latest business acquisition. "Go get a snack," he told the little eunuch, "From my fridge. Soda and trail bars." Lewie's eyes lit up. "Then take them over to the hospital," Ben told him. "They'll probably go back to sleep soon, it's late. Knox can wait until tomorrow to prep them. Have 'em wear white robes, OK? From the linen closet?"

"Pool robe, like towel?" Lewie asked. Ben nodded.

"Let's keep your boys under wraps for now," He thought aloud. "We don't want to alarm the other boys yet."

"Daddy?" Maximillian asked uncertainly, "I'm scared!"

"Go with Lewie, you'll be OK, son," Devon told him. Maximillian hugged and kissed him. He wiped his eyes and put on the thick, white robe, which hid his ink.

"It's chilly out at night this time of year, what with the ocean breezes," Ben commented. "Most of the boys wear robes in the evening, you know."

"We just froze," Devon reminded him, with a grin.

"Ocean?!" Robbie squeaked in surprise. "How long were we OUT?!"

"This is the island where mommy and daddy used to come, before YOU came along," Bob smiled at him. "Where Uncle Devon grew up!"

"C'mon!" Lewie urged them, glancing at Robbie and snickering. Ben slapped his bare bottom playfully. Lewie yelped, and the boys were off.

Chapter 6
Welcome to San Carlos Island

Devon told him the whole story. Ben listened intently.

"Ed and Jeannine," he sighed, when Devon was done. "I hate to hear that. I was wondering how you wound up with a son, unless it was an immaculate conception!" Ben winked at him. Then he turned to Bob and Carol. "Don't be worried about Robbie. That's part of why I called Devon, here. Scandal or not, I'd have called him anyway."

"Well leave as soon as we can figure out where to go, and if we still have any finances left," Bob offered. Ben laughed again.

"I have a wonderful man working for me now, you know! His name's Tsu, and he can pretty much crack anything built by HKS3 security systems. Just go over to the IT building in the morning, and tell him all your personal data. He'll get your assets moved in jiffy. Trust me! Besides, we own that company now, and most banks use it!"

"You were saying about Robbie?" Carol asked, glancing nervously at Bob.

Ben waved her off. "That's part of why I called Devon. You see, I'm almost overstocked, believe it or not! Actually, the LAST thing I need is another Caucasian nullo boy running around here! What I DO need is someone who's good with kids, smart, patient, someone who can relate, and someone who's not a… well…?"

"Not a threat?" Devon supplied, "You need a grown eunuch?"

"Some of the boys I rescued from Lester del Ray are still in bad shape," Ben nodded.

"I remember him," Devon nodded too, "He was a bad man. He used to hurt us when he fucked us, and then he'd spank us. He make sure we couldn't cum, and then criticize us for it, like it was OUR faults!"

"I should have done him in long ago," Ben said, "But it wasn't until I saw some of his boys – and that was only from ONE complex he had – that I realized just how bad it had gotten. You don't wanna know what he did to some of them, Devon. It makes me cry at night sometimes."

"So what do I do about it?" Devon asked.

"Just be with them," Ben said. "Most everyone who works here now are grown-up Island boys, those that wanted to come back for whatever reason. Normally, boys like you are very good with the boys here. But as I seem to recall, you were special. The clients always said so."

Bob and Carol smiled at him. "He was always so loving," Carol agreed.

"That's what a lot of these boys need – loved, not fucked." Ben then reached into his desk.

"Ben, I'm too tired to talk about signing contracts tonight," Devon sighed. "Can it wait, please?"

But instead of contracts, Ben pulled out an acrylic sealed enlargement of Devon from when he was younger. It was full frame, taken from his arrival data files. He was naked, and still intact. On the flip side, he was a nullo. The only other difference was that in one photo, he wore a red collar; in the other, the collar was green. "I confess, I have my certain little darlings," Ben told them. "Back then, it was Devon. Right now, it's that little Chinese boy you met, Lewie. He's tiring, but he's a goodie. No, this batch I've got now is about to kill me, I think. I really hope you sign on, Devon. I need the help. I need boys, errr, men, that I can trust to help care for them."

"I'm not him anymore," Devon said, handing back the picture.

"In a way, you are," Ben told him. "Now, let's get you a guest room or two, and you can get some rest while Ronnie, Dr. Knox, I mean, takes care of your boys."

In the hospital wing, Robbie was not happy. Having never had worse than a cold in his entire life, he was terrified of all the things that Knox and his nurses were doing to him. Maximillian, on the other hand, who was used it to, just took it in stride. Robbie's butt was still feeling odd from the enemas he'd had before being stuffed into a suitcase, and his penis burned from the catheter. If nothing else, it gave him a much better understanding of his brother. The prostate test didn't go well at all with Robbie, either!

"How can you do this every day?" Robbie almost begged, as Knox decided they were clean enough – inside and out – and put them to bed for the night.

"It feels good," Maximillian replied, as he curled up with his brother. For the first time in his life that he could remember, he wasn't going to sleep with his daddy. It scared him.

"Says you," Robbie muttered. He then kissed Maximillian goodnight and the exhausted boys fell asleep. Maximillian held Robbie close. It was the first time in his life that he'd gone to bed without his daddy holding him.

And for as hard as he tried not to, Maximillian cried.

The next morning, Ben Toeber was ready to talk about their long-term accommodations. Much to their surprise, he didn't expect them to sign their boys over to him for any length of time. All he required was that Robbie, if he were to be left uncut and intact, had to be put on anti-androgens for the duration of his stay on the island so that he couldn't get erections, start puberty, or be able to engage in dominant sex. He would have to wear a red collar, but if he wanted, he could go into slave training at no cost – purely for the experience.

Also, if and only IF the boy chose nullification, then he would be required to sign at least a two year contract to make up for it, and they would all be paid accordingly at the current rate. Robbie would live with his parents in the interim, just like the free and intact little Tsu boy did over near IT, unless Robbie chose to become an Island boy and work.

Maximillian's details were different.

While Devon's parental agreement read like a standard servitude contract for the boys, the language was subtly different. For the duration of his stay, Maximillian would be required to live in the boys' dorm hotel with roomies. He would live with them, eat with them, go to school with them, etc. Basically, he was to live the life of an Island boy under contract to serve, but with one exception – he wasn't required to have sex with clients. He would wear a sky blue collar, which would give him the right to say 'no' or to not be touched. However, he could – IF the boy wished – be put through training and work, just like his roomies would. He was a singular case, as no one on the island was quite like him. No San Carlos Island employee had ever had children before. The agreement also stated that he could stay with his daddy during his off time, but during school, he had to live in the dorms out of fairness to the working boys. Visitation was open as well for Devon, since there was no danger of him getting any 'free services'.

"So he'd grow up just like I did, only he wouldn't be committed to the sex?" Devon asked.

Ben nodded. "You were happy here, as I recall?"

"I was," Devon sighed, rereading the contract. "But Ben, he's never been away from me before. Last night was the first night I've gone to bed without him since… since I got custody of him." Devon sniffled.

"You coddle him that bad?" Ben said sternly. Devon looked up at his tone of voice. Ben smiled at him. "He's not a helpless baby anymore, Devon," Ben reminded him. "You have to let go sometime. Here, you can do that, knowing he'll be perfectly safe. Besides, from what I read, self-expression ISN'T one of his problems?"

They all laughed. Bob and Carol agreed to the contract, which wouldn't force Robbie to be nullified. They opted to not tell him about the drugs, though, as the effects were fully reversible and wore off over time if he were to leave the Island and stop taking them. "The odds of Robbie wanting to be like Maximillian are slim," Bob mused, "I think. He likes his penis."

"Do tell?" Carol smirked. "Men," she rolled her eyes. "That's why we girls loved Devon! The silver-tongued devil!"

Devon blushed. Then he signed the contract, which really only committed him to teach classes for one term and to have his boy live in the dorms. After all, he thought it would be good for him. After the 'great ink spill' incident, a lot of Maximillian's friends had stopped coming over, and it had hurt to find out that the boy wasn't welcome anymore, at his friends' houses, once his tattooing progressed. Maximillian had cried about that many a night.

Once everything was signed, Devon asked, "What about Li? I'd like to catch up with him? Talk about the good old days," Devon mused.

"He's here somewhere, just signed his nephew over before you got here. Shing, that's the boy's name," Ben recalled.

"We thought he was a mute," Carol said, "He's so quiet."

"Most boys like him from that kind of family are very reserved," Ben said mysteriously.

"Ohhh!"

"Well, there's no need to worry about your boys," Ben told Devon. "A born nullo? Imagine that?"

Over in the hospital, Dr. Knox was saying the same thing. "It's very rare," he pointed out, studying Maximillian's scans.

"Daddy said I'm special," Maximillian told him.

"Well, you are," Knox agreed.

"I don't get it," Robbie asked, "How come that Lewie kid is a nullo, like Maximillian and Uncle Devon? You take care of nullo boys or what? You a specialist, sir?"

In the next bed over, Shing, Li's nephew, kept quiet. A nurse was quietly chatting with him, and the boys wondered if he were sick.

Knox laughed. "Yes, I am!" His eyebrows went up. He'd kept his white lab coat buttoned, he remembered, and he wondered if Robbie knew? Surely he did? But then again, the Tsu boy, Hop Sing, hadn't known either, when he'd arrived. For him, nullification and the idea of sex with men had been a huge shock. "Robbie, do you know why Lewie is a nullo?" Knox asked.

"Born like my brother?" Robbie asked.

"No," Knox told him. "Lewie was born just like you, normally – with a penis and testicles. He had his genitals cut off, intentionally, here on the Island."

Robbie's face paled and his little penis got hard at once. "Why?" He breathed.

Maximillian laughed. "Were they too big?"

"Shut up! 's'not funny!" Robbie yelled, covering his crotch with his hands protectively.

"Don't worry, no one's going to cut yours off," Knox assured him, without answering the question. "Yesterday's tests were just standard admissions. You're going to be living here for a while, but with that red collar, you have nothing to worry about. No one will bother you."

"Uncle Devon says there's other boys here," Robbie asked, looking around distrustfully, "Are they all nullos too, like him?"

"Most," Knox nodded. "Now, what say you two go and get some breakfast, and you can meet some of them?"

"Uh, OK," Robbie reluctantly said. "Just so long as you don't stick that hose up my butt again!"

Maximillian laughed and hugged him.

"Security, send Lewie to the hospital if he's not busy. If he is, send Sander," Knox requested. "We have two new boys, guests only, not employees."

"Right away, sir," Someone answered.

"Shing's not going?" Maximillian asked, having finally overheard the Chinese boys' name.

"No, he has to stay," Knox told him.

Moments later, the most beautiful boy that either of them had ever seen came in. He was naked, a nullo, deeply tanned, and wearing a gold collar that almost matched his flowing hair. His eyes sparkled, and he shook the boys' hands.

"Hi, My name's Sander! You two must be the new kids?" Then he got a really good look at Maximillian. "Whoooahhh! Is that real?" He asked, pointing at the little dragon with wide eyes. Maximillian nodded. "Can… can I touch it?" Sander asked shyly.

Sander, since their adventure of being abducted by Lester del Ray and very nearly killed, had made a miraculous recovery. Instead of being gloomy and waspish, he was now once again the outgoing and bright boy that Ben Toeber had initially fallen in love with. Maximillian nodded at him. Sander bent down for a closer look at the shorter boy, his eyes going over the colors of the dragon like a lover's hands on warm flesh. "Where'd you get it done?" Sander asked softly. "It's so pretty!"

"My daddy did it, he's just like me!" Maximillian said proudly.

"Wait, wait, wait," Sander shook his head, his hand still on Maximillian's fiery shoulder. "Your daddy? Is he the guy in Ben's office with all the tattoos?! Geeez, he is, isn't he? I saw him going over to Ben's this morning, him and a couple. There's a lady here! Can you imagine?" Sander added, as if this were some great news.

"Nawww, that's just my mom," Robbie waved it off.

Sander blushed a bit. "Sorry," he offered, "It's just that Mrs. Tsu, our dorm mom, is about the only one we've ever seen since coming here to San Carlos Island. But wait, if he's a nullo," Sander wondered, "Then how can he be your daddy?"

"Look closer," Knox told Sander. Sander did that. His eyes bulged wider.

"Max! You're a nullo already! How?"

"I was born that way!" Maximillian informed him, wondering at the shortened version of his name. No one hardly ever called him that. He liked it.

"Lucky you!" Sander smiled, "I had mine cut off, and it hurts like hell!" He then winked at Robbie.

"No way is somebody cuttin' my parts off!" Robbie protested.

Sander laughed, "C'mon, let's go eat! You can meet the gang! Hell, you can meet everybody! Boy, are they gonna flip when they see you!" He told Maximillian.

"Why?" Maximillian asked, suddenly defiant. Sander was taken aback.

"Because you're one of kind! I didn't mean nothin', it's just, nobody here has tattoos, the boys I mean! It's just so cool!"

"Oh," Maximillian mumbled, embarrassed, "Sorry. It's just… they were bad to me where we lived. People hated me and my daddy. They were gonna take me away from him!"

Sander's eyes went distant, then he put his arm around Maximillian's shoulders. He offered his other hand to Robbie. "C'mon," he repeated, "Nobody's gonna treat you bad here, and if they do, my buddy Hop Sing will kick their ass!"

"Ronnie?" the intercom buzzed. It was Ben on the line. "Can you have Maximillian put his robe on and bring him to my office?"

"I would, but Sander just came and took them to breakfast, they were hungry," Knox replied, "Is there a problem, sir?"

"Oh, God, no!" Knox heard Devon saying.

To say that Maximillian was popular in the cafeteria would have been a gross understatement. The room went quiet when he walked in, and it was, naturally, Lewie who ran up to him and hugged him and began chattering. That broke the ice, and almost everyone came to shake his hand; Robbie's too. The boys weren't sure what to do about all the open affection, hugs and kisses, and Maximillian was stunned that everyone – like Sander had been – was fascinated and wanted to touch him. He saw boys, mostly nullos, in red, yellow, green, and even blue collars. Robbie was embarrassed somewhat by his near constant erection, as the drugs hadn't had time to make him impotent yet, but no one seemed to mind. They all laughed about it, as an intact boy amongst them was quite the novelty. Robbie, while used to his brother and uncle being eunuchs, wasn't sure what to make of so many of them at once!

"Hey, you're a new boy, red collar, but you're a nullo, aren't you?" A bald Chinese boy with a red collar asked. He was also a nullo, and Maximillian noted that his head was quite round.

"Heya, Hop," Sander greeted him, introducing him. "This is my buddy, Hop Sing, I told you about, Max! Don't stare 'cause he's bald!"

Hop Sing playfully punched his arm. "That is awesome," he told Maximillian, as he tentatively touched the little dragon. The boys then got their food. It was kind of hard to eat and talk, and everyone was still looking at Maximillian when the adults arrived. Out of modesty, Carol had donned a two piece bikini from Mrs. Tsu, and the five them, Ben included, stopped in the doorway.

"Oh, no, it's my mom," both Hop Sing and Robbie groaned at the same time. For a second, it was funny.

Devon instantly realized that all eyes were on him.

"Daddy!" Maximillian called, jumping up and running to him. Several of the boys looked at one another in confusion as Devon scooped up his son and kissed him, holding him like he'd not seen him in ages.

"He's not wasting any time, is he?" a eunuch named Chris laughed, "I mean, damn, right here at the breakfast table?"

"No, that IS his daddy," Robbie told them, looking nervously at his parents. "And that's my mom and dad with them."

"Yeh mean they din't just DUMP yeh's an' leave wit' da money?" A red-haired Irish boy asked.

"What money?" Robbie asked.

Several of the boys laughed. "I don't think he knows," Hop Sing murmured, which silenced them.

"Robbie!" Bob called out, and Robbie got up and went to them.

"Since when do boys bring their parents here?" Keye, another Chinese nullo boy, asked.

"They're Ben's special guests," Sander told them. "I overheard the guy with the tattoos, like the kid has, you know? He's gonna be the new art teacher at school here!"

"Cool!" Most of them breathed in wonder, as Ben and the adults joined them. Carol pulled Robbie onto her lap, and Devon held Maximillian while they finished eating. Mrs. Tsu got hold of Hop Sing, much to his chagrin, and Lewie (inevitably) wound up on Ben's lap.

"Ben, sir, I didn't know," Sander apologized. "They said to come an' get him. Is that other Chinese boy sick?"

"Who?" Hop Sing asked.

"Li Chow brought another nephew," Ben informed him. Hop Sing made a face. "I better go," he nodded, and off he went.

"Mom, what money were they talking about?" Robbie asked.

Ben snorted his juice and choked. "I think we need to talk!"

After breakfast, they followed Ben back to his office. He explained everything to the boys. Maximillian didn't seem to have a problem with any of it, in fact, he was quite excited. Robbie, on the other hand…

"Wait, wait, wait," he squeaked, "You mean my mom and dad, and Maximillian's real mom and dad, used to vacation here, and they came here and had sex with… with… neutered boys?" Robbie seemed to be having a hard time accepting it.

"Well where do you think we meet Devon?" Bob asked his son. "We met him here. He was our favorite boy."

"That's just wrong," Robbie shook his head.

"Is it wrong that your mom and I have sex with Devon now?"

"Well, no, but he's growed up!" Robbie protested. "You can't fuck a little kid!"

"Language," Carol reminded him. "And why not? Besides, Devon was older. The older eunuchs here need love, too, you know."

Robbie's face blanched. "People sell boys to be sex slaves?" He gasped. Ben nodded.

"Sort of. The boys can't leave until they're of age, and they are paid – and paid quite well. When your Uncle Devon left here, he left with almost 6 million CR, plus interest, he earned so much. It's 50k/CR per fuck, you know, and he was here for about 7 years." Ben told him. "The boys get 5% of that, plus matching trust in what I paid their parents for them, and all college expenses paid when they graduate school here," Ben presented it, as if trying to sell the case to the skeptical boy.

"Oh, God," Robbie put his face in his hands. Maximillian put his arm around him.

"They're not sellin' us, brother," he assured him, "Daddy wouldn't do that! We had to go, 'cause they were gonna take us away!"

"That's the truth, son," Carol told him. "Nothing in the agreement we signed says you have to get cut."

"And I thought this was like a clinic for boys like my brother," Robbie groaned. Ben laughed.

"Robbie, no one is going to hurt you here," Ben assured him. "No one is going to cut you, unless YOU want it."

"WHY would I WANT it?!" Robbie gasped. "That's crazy!"

"Is not!" Lewie piped up.

"A lot of the boys like being eunuchs," Ben told him. "Not all of them, certainly, but I'm no longer enforcing it. There are options to living here. Quite a few of the new boys we rescued aren't nullos, and they're fine here."

"But… but… you make 'em have sex! I mean, you MAKE 'em get fucked in the ass?" Robbie gasped. "That's mean!"

"I like it," Lewie informed him casually.

They all looked at him. Lewie tried to look adorable and succeeded.

"Robbie, buddy, I know this is a shock," Devon told him, "But you're safe. Believe us. No one is going to rape you, hurt you, or otherwise. I told you I grew up here, didn't I?"

"You never said they cut your parts off and used you for a… for a sex toy!" Robbie replied.

"Well, what did you think you walked in on that night when you were six years old?" Bob asked, "Remember? Baseball bats and flashlights?" Ben laughed so hard that he wheezed when Devon told them the story. All the while, Maximillian listened intently with a serious look on his face.

"Daddy, are we really staying?" He asked.

"Yes, son, why?"

"How long?" the boy asked.

Devon looked at Ben. "Probably until you're of age, son," he finally said. Ben smiled.

"What?" Robbie exclaimed.

"Honey, we're going to relocate somewhere, you know, buy a new house in some other corner of the world," Carol told him. "We can't go home, you know."

Robbie looked ill. Not only was he now confronted with the fact that his parents were patrons of such a place, and his uncle had indeed been a sex slave there for years during his boyhood, but now by the fact that they weren't going home at all. But then, he realized that if they moved to somewhere new, that his uncle and brother were staying there. He'd lose them. It was all too much. Robbie started to cry.

Lewie took his queue from Ben and grabbed Robbie's hand. "C'mon, let's go see the ocean. They say you never saw it? Let's go swim. Teach you to surf?" Lewie asked. Robbie agreed, reluctantly, and left with him. "Or if you bored, maybe give you blow job? Since you got penis?"

"LEWIE!" Ben yelled, as Lewie laughed loudly and they broke into a run out the door!

"It's your decision, son," Devon told Maximillian. "It always has been. But I think you'd like it here. You can grow up like daddy did. It's not that we need money, because we don't, like Ben said." He put his hands on the boy's smooth cheeks, cheeks that would never know a beard or break out in acne. "You know how they treated you at home, Maximillian. No one here will do that."

Maximillian nodded slowly. "Can Robbie come visit when he wants to?"

Ben nodded. "Anytime."

"But if he stayed, you wouldn't make him like me?"

"No," Ben told him.

"And no one would have sex with him?"

"Not unless he wanted to," Ben nodded again. "Same goes for you."

"Wait, how'd you know about the sex?" Devon asked.

"You just told us, silly!" Maximillian grinned.

Devon shook his head. "Next question, son. You know what daddy does with uncle Bob? You know the men here do that to the boys?"

"Yeah!"

"Don't look so anxious," Bob laughed, shaking Devon's arm in mirth. "I told you! I told you if you taught him how to masturbate with that toy, he'd go over the deep end!"

"What?" It was Ben's turn to be surprised.

"Daddy got me a little vibrator to put in my butt so I can feel good, sir," Maximillian informed him. "'cause it's not fair that Robbie had a penis to play with and feel good, and I didn't."

"Logical," Ben smiled.

Devon bit his lip. It seemed that right before his eyes, in a just a few minutes, his baby was growing up on him – and fast. "Son, do you WANT to be trained to have sex with men, like daddy was? Like the boys here do?"

Maximillian studied his father's face and wondered. He could tell it hurt his daddy to ask, and he didn't know why. He'd seen him do it with Bob. He knew he did it with Coach Wilson. And he'd told him when he was little that that was the only way that he himself could enjoy sex, was by being fucked. He didn't understand it at all, why his daddy was so worried.

"It's your decision," Devon reminded him.

"Let me make sure he knows," Ben cut in, "The new training schedule is for two weeks. During that time, he has to live with a trainer and his boy. He can't see you, and he won't be in school during that time. All he'll be doing is learning about sex. You say he already knows how to pleasure himself with toys?"

Devon nodded.

"OK, then once he completes training, he moves into a dorm room in the boys' hotel. He'll have two or three roomies, and live there full time. As a nullo, and staff member, you're also unique in that you're his parent. You can visit him when it's convenient. In fact, I WANT you to visit the boys there. That's why I called you." Ben paused. "Then, if after training, Maximillian can have a trial period with a green collar. That means he can't refuse clients, and has to pleasure them. He'll be paid, as usual, but we won't do a formal contract until HE decides he can handle it. I learned that lesson the hard way with Sander," Ben finished.

Everyone looked at Maximillian, waiting for him to answer.

"Things have changed," Devon mused, smiling at Ben.

"I almost lost Sander and another boy over that because I forced it on them," Ben admitted. "I never stopped to think how many of the boys here I was making miserable. I always thought they could learn to love it, but I was wrong."

"Daddy, it's only for two weeks," Maximillian assured him, "And I want to learn like you did! Please say it's OK, daddy?"

"It's OK, son," Devon whispered, holding him tightly. "It's your right to know if you like it or not."

"Is it like my toy?" Maximillian asked.

"Better," Devon admitted.

"Ben, sir," Maximillian then said, "I want to have a trainer teach me sex!"

They signed a new contract the next morning. While it would only cover a short time period, Ben did things by the book. Maximillian was excited, and the boys were really impressed with the suite accommodations their parents had. It was the only night that Maximillian would be staying with his daddy for a while, but the boy was smiling when he approached Ben's desk to have his red collar removed. Ben replaced it with a gold one, "Like Sander's!" the boy chirped.

"The gold collar means you are in training," Ben told him. "After breakfast, you'll be assigned a trainer team. You won't see your daddy, maybe but in passing, for two weeks. In the meantime, he's going to get set up for his classroom and get to know some of the boys. He'll be very busy, so it's up to you be a big boy and let him get his work done, while you do yours!"

"Thank you, sir!" Maximillian said, and he hugged and kissed Ben.

"He's always been very affectionate," Devon told Ben, as they headed to the cafeteria.

"Like father, like son," Ben grinned. "You're worried – don't be."

"He's all I have, sir," Devon replied. "And it's not like I can have another one!"

"Not unless Ronnie pulls off some miracle, no!"

Ben announced the addition of an art class to the boys at breakfast, and formally introduced Robbie and Maximillian. There were questions, of course, and Ben nodded to Maximillian to answer them. As it was nearing the end of the off-season, not too many of the boys were booked and there was time before school began to chat. As his son talked, Devon looked around and compared faces to pictures on his clipboard. He instantly noticed that a lot of the boys with blue collars weren't even making eye contact with anyone. Instead, they just sat and stared at the tabletop or the wall.

When the intercom went off to have the boys report to their first class of the day, Ben sent Robbie along with Hop Sing and Keye to find his classes. That left only Sander and another taller, older boy.

"Maximillian, this is Matti. He's the best trainer I have. Sander is his assistant, hence his gold collar. You'll be assigned to them for your training," Ben said.

"Wow!" Matti gasped, "You weren't kidding, were you?" He asked Sander. "Is that REAL?"

"It's real, sir," Maximillian nodded. "You can touch it?"

Matti laughed. "Of course I can!" He did that. "Did it hurt?" Devon then described the process to him. "Cool!" Matti approved. "You ready to go?"

Maximillian grinned at him. Then he turned to his daddy.

"It's only two weeks, daddy, I'll be OK," the boy told him bravely.

Devon held his son and cried; he couldn't help it. Ben squeezed his shoulder. Then Sander took Maximillian's hand and the three of them headed out.

"Hey, this gets me out of school for two weeks!" Sander exclaimed.

"Lucky boy," Matti told him.

"Sir?" Maximillian asked.

"Lesson one, don't call me 'sir' unless we're in a training session, OK?" Matti said. Maximillian nodded.

"Matti, are we gonna, you know, DO it today?"

Sander laughed. "He's not wasting your time, is he?"

"Let's get settled in and show you around the island first, OK?" Matti offered.

"OK," Maximillian agreed, "But I feel funny, and they took my luggage, and my toy's in it. I just wondered if, you know?"

"Have you ever been fucked before?" Sander asked him, "By a man?"

"No?" Maximillian answered. "But my daddy taught me how to masturbate?"

Coming from a nullo, that was a funny thing to hear. "It's called being horny," Matti told him. "And that's a good thing. But you're not allowed to have your toy here. You have to learn to be completely dependent on the men for your pleasure. That's the rule."

Maximillian gaped at him.

"So if you don't fuck, you end up frustrated as hell," Sander warned him. "Trust me, I know."

"When do we start, Matti?" Maximillian asked anxiously.

Chapter 7
Art

"We live in the penthouse," Matti informed him, as they went on up.

Once he'd been shown around, Matti interviewed his new trainee as to what he could do. He also let him know that he'd been advised of Maximillian's medical needs, and he would be happy to help him with those. "Max," Matti asked him, "I know you've never done it, but have you seen a boy get fucked before?"

"Just my daddy, and he's growed up," the boy replied. "Uncle Bob does it to him."

"Nice family," Matti grinned. "OK, what I'm gonna do is show you. That's why Sander's here. We figured it's best for a new boy to see an experienced boy in action, before the new boy tries it." Maximillian nodded. It made perfect sense to him. "Sander, if you would be so kind to show our trainee how it's done?" Matti asked him.

"I'd love to!" Sander smiled, "I thought you were gonna talk all day!"

Maximillian watched, fascinated, as Sander and Matti began with simply cuddling. They kissed, touching each other all over. From there, they moved to Sander manually stimulating Matti to full arousal. That didn't take long, and Maximillian gasped as Sander took Matti's cock in his mouth and sucked him. After a bit, Matti stopped him and laid him on his back, reaching for a syringe full of lube. He raised Sander's legs and injected him, then he slowly entered him. Maximillian, trembling, watched in total fascination as Sander closed his eyes and moaned in pleasure. Matti explained it all while he slowly and gently fucked his boy.

"It takes talent to talk and fuck at the same time," Sander gasped, as Matti worked to pleasure him as well. An experienced team, they both climaxed at about the same time. When they were done, Matti carefully pulled Sander up to him, remaining inside him, and rocked him on lap while he stroked Sander's nullo place. Maximillian fidgeted in his seat, wondering at what he was seeing and turned on by it, but unable to do anything about it. Sander shuddered all over again, then he went limp as Matti just held him.

"It can be exhausting for YOU," Matti told him, "and sometimes, the client won't stop there. It's up to you to keep going, no matter how tired you get."

"Wow," Maximillian whispered, totally in awe of what he'd just seen. After all, he'd never watched his daddy and uncle go all the way.

"I usually never fuck a trainee on his first day," Matti explained, after he and Sander had had a short rest. "So now it's your turn, but don't get your hopes up. We have to get you used to it, first."

Sander handed Matti a small, soft jelly-type plug from the nightstand. "Come lay down on your tummy so I can check you out," Matti told him. Maximillian did that. "You're not as tight as usual," Matti told him, "You use your toy very much?"

"Daddy only lets me play with it maybe once or twice a week," Maximillian explained, "But I get an enema two times a day, 'cause my guts don't work right."

"You can have all the enemas here you want," Sander told him. "The kits are built into the showers. You have to, anyway, so you're always clean for the guests."

Matti then put the plug in. "That's to help stretch you out some, and loosen you up. If I was to fuck you now, I'd probably tear you," Matti explained, "And you'd have to have surgery."

"Daddy kept 'em from doing that to me," Maximillian explained, squirming around with the plug in his butt and looking like he liked it. "When I was born, they wanted to turn me into a girl! Did you know that?"

"Why?" Sander asked, confused.

"'Cause I didn't have no boy things! They didn't know what I was!"

"That's wrong," Matti shook his head. "Did your daddy let you decide what to be?"

"Yeah! And everybody says I'm a boy," Maximillian said proudly.

"Let's start your first lesson, then," Matti smiled at him. "Cuddling. Instigating the sexual moment?"

Maximillian needed no coaching at that. He loved to be touched, held, and cuddled. Growing up, it seemed that someone had always been touching him. Matti coaxed him along, as Sander sat and watched, resting up from orgasms he'd just had. They always tired him out, but as he sat there nodding and trying to stay awake, he realized how stupid he'd been to think that Matti had just dumped him for each new boy that came to be trained. That, and part of Matti's problem had been his mental conditioning by Lester del Ray. Once Matti's communications chip had been found and removed, and he'd realized what del Ray was doing to him with certain code words that triggered his behavior, the trainer's behavior had totally changed. He'd been programmed to enjoy hurting Sander verbally, yet when he had done it and come down off of the rush it gave him, he was sad and confused and too ashamed to admit to it. But all that was past.

Matti then began coaxing Maximillian into oral sex. He gagged at first, but eventually, he sort of got the hang of it.

"Hey! Watch the teeth!" Matti yelped once.

"I'm sorry!" Maximillian stopped, looking panicked, "Did I hurt you?"

Matti gently pushed his head back down and assured him it was OK. "Watch out, Max, you have to swallow it when he cums!"

Maximillian stopped again.

"Why?"

"Would you quit trying to help?" Matti laughed.

Finally, they got through it. "Yuck," Maximillian complained. Sander handed him some mouthwash and a mint. "But only for training," he said. "In the real world, you have to ignore it."

"Now it's your turn," Matti told him, taking Maximillian backwards on his lap and running his hands all over the boy's artwork, tracing the outline of the dragon, tickling his nullo place, and moving his plug with his free hand. Matti took an ear in his mouth, sucking at the large metal earring. Maximillian was in bliss. Even his daddy had never made him feel like that. The top of his head felt light, and his vision blurred. He wasn't even sure he was breathing. He lost feeling in his hands and feet, and all he could do was sit there and shiver. Finally, after what felt like forever, Maximillian's entire body spasmed violently and he cried out.

"Great, another fainter," Matti sighed.

"Let's let him sleep it off, OK?" Sander suggested, as they put him to bed.

"Daddy," Maximillian mumbled, but it was clear that he wasn't awake.

"Can you imagine?" Matti whispered, as he motioned Sander out onto the porch, where they had a spectacular view of the island and sea. "Born a nullo? Raised with nudity, sex, and making up your OWN mind about things? I mean, how many boys even come out as gay to their parents this young, much less get encouraged or HELPED with it?"

"His daddy must love him very much," Sander guessed. "He's so lucky."

Matti nodded. "And he loves you back, you can feel it. Unlike your pal, Hop, who kicked the shit outta me every time!"

Sander laughed.

"I dunno about the tattoos, though, you think he'll have a problem with them?"

"Here?" Sander asked, "I doubt it. I just can't believe someone would do that to a kid! But they're so lifelike and beautiful!"

"He said he wanted it," Matti recalled. "It was his choice."

"I hope it was a good one," Sander fretted, "Some of the clients may not like it."

"Then they can fuck someone else, can't they?" Matti replied.

"Yeah, like me! I'm way behind on commissions!" Sander said haughtily.

Matti grabbed him up and spun him. "I love you, you know," He reminded him, kissing him hard on the mouth.

Sander just held onto him.

Later, after their trainee had had a nap, Matti had the boys cuddle and do their best to pleasure one another. Maximillian was confused. He'd cuddled and kissed his brother before, but Sander was different. The touching was different, needful, somehow. Matti let them go on for quite some time, until they stopped and began complaining about being hungry. After dinner, pizza in their room, Maximillian's lessons continued until he as so tired that he had to be held up in the shower and carried to bed.

They all slept in the one king size bed, and in the morning, Matti awoke to find Sander and Maximillian curled up together and holding one another as if they were freezing to death! He let them sleep late. It was too adorable of a scene to interrupt.

After their morning shower and clean out, Matti took them to the cafeteria for breakfast. Once again, Maximillian drew a lot of stares. There were also whispered comments that he caught:

"Who'd do that to a kid?"

"Why?!"

"I bet it hurt!"

"So did my nullification!"

"Yeah, I'd rather have tattoos!"

"But he's a nullo too!"

"His father did it."

"The new teacher?"

"But he's a nullo – he can't be his dad?"

"I heard he was an island boy for seven years?"

"Then he's rich!"

"So why did he sell his kid?"

"Why'd he make his kid look himself?"

"That's mean."

"I think it's sick."

"And what about his brother?-"

"-The red collar free kid?"

"Yeah?"

"Where's he at?"

"Matti, why are they talking about me and my daddy?" Maximillian asked, as they took a seat with Chris and Hop Sing, Sander's friends.

"Because you're different, Max. You came here a nullo already, they didn't. They were cut."

"And you're colorful," Chris added. "Some of them might be freaked out by it."

"You also have a father here," Hop Sing added, "Most of them are orphans, or were sold by families who didn't love them."

"Oh," Maximillian nodded, pushing his tray away.

"You have to eat, or they'll shove a tube up your nose," Sander warned him, "And they suck! I had one; I hated it!"

Just then, something wet hit Maximillian in the back.

"Hey, look, you can hardly see it!" Some boy said.

"Who did that?" Matti demanded. No one replied.

"Fine," Matti nodded, tapping his collar. "Computer, seal the room. Disciplinary action. Monitor vitals for lying. OK, one more time, who did it?"

Several of the boys in blue collars, del Ray's rescued boys, whimpered and curled up in their seats. Some of them hit the floor crying, fearing punishment. "Oh, no," Hop Sing groaned, as he and his friends tried to assure the boys that no one was going to harm them physically.

"Computer, tune out blue collars," Matti added. "WHO did it? If no one confesses, then I'll take it up with Ben," Matti threatened, "I'm sure he'll revoke beach privileges for everyone here, then, along with entertainments? No movies, no games, no computers…,"

"I did it," a fat boy spoke up.

"Pudge?" Matti asked in shock. "Why?"

"My name's Freddie!" Pudge yelled at him.

"So you don't like your name, and that's why you threw food at Maximillian?"

"Not like you can see it," Freddie snorted, "Blends right in!"

Maximillian looked at him, confused. "What'd I do to you?" He asked innocently.

"You came here, you weird little chameleon!" Freddie snapped. "Why don't you go home?"

"I don't get this," Sander said, "What the hell's wrong with you? What was all that chatter when we came in?"

"He doesn't belong here," another spoke up, a black boy.

"Ty?" Matti asked, unable to believe it.

"He's a born nullo. He's not like us. They won't be cuttin' him, will they?"

"And what about his 'daaad-ddy'?" Another boy drawled, "Daddies who love their kids don't dump 'em here!"

"This is gonna go bad real fast," Hop Sing warned Matti. He tapped his collar. "Father, I need guards in the cafeteria, now!"

Maximillian had moved closer to Matti and Sander. He was scared. Everyone was staring at him, and they had bad looks on their faces. "It's just like home," he whimpered, "Don't let 'em get me, please!"

"I can't believe this," Matti said in disgust. "Of all the places you'd think a kid like him could go and be safe, and you pull this shit!"

A few of the boys smirked at him. Their expressions changed when the guards came in, though. "Take Freddie and Ty to Ben's, along with the rest of the lot at their table," Matti ordered them. On the way by, Ty shoved the back of Maximillian's head into his food. But for as fast as he was, Hop Sing was faster. The bald boy came up and caught his arm, flipping him. Ty hit the floor howling, his shoulder dislocated.

"Next time it'll be your fuckin' head!" Hop Sing warned him.

That pretty much did it for breakfast – as well as the rest of Maximillian's day. Matti and Sander took him back to their suite, but nothing they tried got through to Maximillian. The boy just sat and rocked and cried.

"I want my daddy," he kept begging over and over.

"Go get him," Matti finally decided. "We'll restart training tomorrow."

It took the rest of the day, which Ben warned would be a major setback for Maximillian, but the boy seemed to come out of it. Devon stayed all day, finally getting his son to eat near bedtime and promising to stay until he went to sleep. One day was added to his training schedule, and they started again.

"I thought it was possible, but not probable," Ben told Devon.

"I can't believe they reacted to him like that," Devon shook his head.

"Well, don't judge the populous by the actions of a few," Ben countered. "Those two who started it have some problems. Freddie was dumped here, and since he was already heavy, well, he got 'fat-kid' duty for six months. He's cranky because he has to slim down now. And Ty, well, he started off penectomized, then one of del Ray's buddies, John Wong, tore up his balls and he had to go under the knife a second time."

"So they decided to take it out on Maximillian?"

"They took it out on the first DIFFERENT boy they saw," Ben disagreed. "Consider this – most of these boys are abused, unwanted, orphans, slaves from horrible areas of the World. They have it good here, and they know it. They like it. And they're afraid to lose it. Then along comes Maximillian – with his father – who loves him – and who puts on a display of affection in front of them. Add to that, the tattoos – both of you. Hell, Devon, it looks like someone put you in a copy machine and hit 'reduce 50%' and Max is what it spit out! AND, AND," Ben went on, "He's a born nullo! He's a perfect eunuch by birth – and they all had to endure the pain of the nullification ceremony in the Arena here! Can't you see it, Devon? They're jealous! Insanely jealous, for that matter!'

Devon gaped at him.

"So what do we do about it?"

"Train him, toughen him up, and show them he's no different than they are. Only then will he fit in," Ben advised, as the intercom system signaled lunch break from school. Not a minute later, and Lewie burst in, chattering his head off. "He never learned to knock," Ben sighed.

"Masser Ben, Masser Ben," Lewie puffed, obviously having run all the way, "Hop Sing kick the shit outta Freddie!" Ben rolled his eyes. "Won't be his first murder," he groaned. "Is Freddie still alive?" Lewie nodded. Then he saw Devon and bowed – and stared. "Ben, pleeeeeease?" He whined. Ben suddenly looked as if he'd had an idea. "Devon, Lewie wants a tattoo, and I have just the one for him!"

"Huh?" Devon asked, shocked. Ben then handed him a paper with the following emblem on it:

"Wouldn't that look nice right below Lewie's navel and just above his nullo place?" Ben asked, winking. Devon caught it. He could use brush-on long-term ink, but in two or three months, it would come back off. "That way, Lewie can let everybody know he's proud to be my favorite little eunuch, and that we let HIM have a tattoo, too?"

"Whoa," Lewie breathed. "Can I really, sir?" Ben nodded. Lewie almost mauled him in gratitude.

After school, but before dinner, Lewie had his tattoo. He was also glad the brush didn't hurt. He proudly showed it off at dinner, which Matti and the boys did not attend. It made him the center of attention, and got a lot of the island boys to thinking. Breaking his own rules, Matti asked Chris, Hop Sing, Keye, Sean, 24, Ji, Niran, and a few others that Sander trusted to come up for dinner. They had Mexican food. Matti's idea was to surround Maximillian with 'friendly eunuchs' who would offer him support and guidance. It seemed to work. Matti also asked them – especially Niran and 24, who were del Ray boys – how they felt about Ben's theory.

"I think it's rotten," Niran, the Thai boy said. "I know YOU knew del Ray, Matti, and we don't hate Max?"

"But Max hurt too, like us?" 24 asked. The little boy's voice was squeaky and high and strained, but at least he could talk. Dr. Knox had managed to regrow and transplant some vocal chord tissue and treat it with stem cell culture, thus restoring what del Ray had cut from the boy's voice box. In Knox's own words, "he got lucky." 24, it turned out, didn't remember his own name. He'd been that traumatized. "Max, can I?" He asked.

Maximillian thought it was going to be the usual "can I touch it", which he really didn't mind, but it wasn't. 24 hugged him instead. Niran nodded. "That's a really good sign for him," he whispered to Matti. "But now that he can talk, he wakes up screamin'."

That led to Maximillian finding out just how badly some of the boys there had been treated. Niran told them tales of being fucked for hours on end, nonstop, by del Ray when he took enhancing drugs. He told them of being locked in sensory deprivation until he'd howled himself voiceless, and other tortures that made them shiver. When he was done, Maximillian looked very upset again.

"I had it good," he said, in a very small voice. "No wonder they hate me."

"Some of us get over it," Niran told him, "'cause we're smart and not so messed up. What I don't get is why two boys that weren't one of us – del Ray's boys – would be so upset?"

"Who knows?" Matti guessed, "But what can we do about it, besides BREAK THEIR BONES?" He demanded of Hop Sing.

"Sorry," Hop Sing snorted, smiling at his older biological brother, Ji. "I'd rather fuck than fight," Ji added, which made them laugh.

"Matti, do I get to do it tonight?" Maximillian asked, his first fucking having been postponed because of the incident.

"If you want to," Matti smiled at him.

"Can we watch?" Sean, the Irish boy, asked hopefully.

"No!" Sander told him.

Maximillian finally smiled.

They watched a movie, and when it was over, their guests left, wishing Maximillian luck. Matti gave him a light enema to make sure he was clean, then they began the cuddling. Maximillian sighed in contentment. Even if that had been all they'd done, he would have been happy. "They like me," he said, as Matti kissed his neck.

"So do I," Matti added, as they moved into the oral sex position. This time, however, Matti moved so that he could kiss Maximillian's nullo place. The boy almost went wild and bit him… almost.

"Hey!" Matti reminded him. Sander laughed, sitting there at the head of the bed, up behind Maximillian where he could rub the boy's shoulders and lean down to kiss him, too.

Then it was time.

Sander handed Matti a syringe, and when he was unplugged and lubed up, Matti raised Maximillian's legs. The tail of the little dragon flexed and moved, and the undulation carried up across to the flames, making them dance.

Gently, and so slowly, Matti entered him.

Flame shot from the little dragon's mouth as his claws flexed and his wings moved, feeling as if he must surely take flight.

But it wasn't a dragon that called out in ecstasy.

Covered in sweat and shaking, the colors of the dragon grew more and more vivid in hues of deeper green and red as Matti moved inside of Maximillian, pleasuring him, making him feel better than he'd felt since his first time with his toy. It was even better than his daddy could make him feel with it, and Maximillian was beyond words. He wanted to talk, to tell Matti how good it was – but he couldn't.

And it wasn't a real dragon that roared when Matti came.

It was a boy.

The Illustrated Boy – blazing in color that no ink could have given him.

"I think it's the 'first-fuck'-hangover," Sander theorized, after their bath. They were dressed in white bathrobes and sitting outside on the patio, watching the moonlight on the ocean. It was a chilly night, breezy, and threatening rain. They could smell it coming. Maximillian was looking, for lack of a better word, goofy. "It's gonna be a long two weeks, you know," Sander warned Matti.

Maximillian sipped his hot chocolate and sighed. "It's cold out," he finally said.

"You wanna go back in and get warm?" Matti asked him. The boys nodded.

Matti sat down at his computer, entering a report. He always kept a log of his trainings. As he worked, Maximillian and Sander cuddled in the bed. "You're gonna do just fine," Sander told him.

It rained that night. Hard. All night.

The next morning, breakfast went off without incident. It was probably the dumb look on Maximillian's face that started the whispering. Matti had fucked him again that morning, and the boy was still a bit wobbly. "I want to take you outside to the beach today, when it gets warmer out," Matti told him. It was one of those odd mornings, breezy, chilly, and damp. Most all of the boys were wearing robes, and some were complaining about it being cold and just freezing to death. But when the sun came out and the skies cleared, it was a beautiful day.

"You two are gonna kill me, you know," Matti informed them, as the three of them lay stretched out in the sand on the trainers' area of the beach. Down the beach a ways, they could just hear them if the breeze shifted, Devon was having an art class.

"I can't wait to tell my daddy," Maximillian sighed in contentment.

Down the beach a bit further, Li Chow's nephew Shing was quietly building a sand castle as his trainer watched him. And even though they were welcome to interact, as Matti went to chat with his trainer, Shing never spoke to the boys.

"I'd say he hates it," Sander guessed.

"But why?" Maximillian asked. "Sander, it's so good!" Maximillian just didn't understand how some of the boys there on the island could NOT be happy. Sander explained it as best he could. After all, he'd almost committed suicide himself not too long ago. Maximillian got up and went to see Shing. For a while, they just built the sand castle. Then Shing finally started to talk to him. Sander couldn't hear them, and he didn't follow Maximillian, but he could tell that the boy was getting Shing to open up. He left it alone. Finally, Shing hugged Maximillian and just sat there, holding him, as the waves rolled in, closer and closer. No one interrupted them, until Shing's trainer told him it was time to go. The young man looked surprised when Shing took his hand.

When Matti got back from his chat, it was Sander's turn. As he'd been taught, Maximillian did what he could to pleasure Sander while Matti fucked him. When they were done, Matti suggested they go find fishing poles and let him rest for a while! His nap was interrupted, though, by the excited screams of boys and a lifeguard shouting. "They're gonna kill me," Matti grumbled, as he watched the lifeguard hauling his two boys out of the water. They were off the swimming area, too, out of bounds. The lifeguard had a flotation device with a rope, which was attached to Sander – who was attached to Maximillian – who was gripping his fishing pole and yelling. Attached to the end of the line was a huge fish – bigger than either boy!

In all the commotion, Devon's art class had come to watch the excitement. "Ya'll ough'ta stuff that fish 'ere, an' be hangin' his ass on the wall!" A rather unremarkable boy stated. Devon just stared.

"One more week, uncle," Robbie reminded him. "Looks like they're havin' fun?

"Yeah," Devon sighed, as they went back to class.

Unlike some of the teachers, Devon tempered his classes with affection. It didn't take long for the students to realize that he was different. He never had any shortage of praise for even the worst artwork, and hugs and kisses were the norm in his class. Even the most withdrawn boys, namely del Ray's boys, started to open up a little to him. Devon found their artwork – which consisted of a lot of black and red – disturbing, but he never criticized it. What did disturb him was Freddie's piece, which depicted boys in the water being eaten by sharks. He took that one to Ben, and although he'd been informed of the cafeteria incident, he made every effort to be kind to the fat boy. It wasn't easy, but at nearly the end of Maximillian's training, something happened.

Devon was in class, discussing famous artists of the past. He was telling the boys about how one man had even cut off his own ear, thinking that it would inspire him and improve his art. Most of the boys were dumbfounded. Some of them were disgusted. Freddie got angry. He threw his notebook and started raving. "Is that like cuttin' your boy parts off to improve your sex life?" He yelled, jumping up and flipping his desk over. Devon got hold of him, waving off Hop Sing before the bald boy could hurt him, and got Freddie down. Not knowing what else to do, he sat on him while the boy raged and flailed his arms, striking Devon over and over. But the teacher didn't stop him. After all, the boy couldn't really hurt him.

Finally, the yelling and hitting and insulting dissolved into whimpers and tears. Everyone just watched, expecting a guard to come get Freddie and to see him with a blistered butt the next day. But that didn't happen. Devon held him and assured him that it was OK, that he wasn't in trouble. He touched him, rocked him, just like he'd done with Maximillian every day of his life. "Why me?" Freddie cried, as something finally broke and he clung to his teacher, "Why do they pick on me? I didn't do nothin' wrong! I tried to be good," he sobbed. "Why'd they leave me here?"

"Class dismissed," Devon said, as the shocked boys filed out. One by one, they stopped to pat Freddie's shoulder, or kiss his cheek. When they were gone, Devon picked him up and sat him on his desk. "You've lost weight, you know," he assured him. "Dr. Knox said in a month, you'll be normal sized again."

Freddie gaped at him. "Why… why'd they do that?"

"Because even though you've been a real prick lately, they still care about you," Devon told him, "There's an unwritten law here among nullo boys about loving each other, you know. Or maybe you forgot that?"

"Nobody loved me, or I wouldn't BE here," Freddie muttered. "Who'd dump a kid here if they loved him?"

"I would," Devon informed him. "You have no idea what hate is, Freddie. Being ignored, or sold off as a slave, that's nothing compared to total strangers just coming up and saying mean things, or even threatening your life because you're different."

"He… he shouldn't be here," Freddie said, looking away, knowing they were talking about Maximillian.

"There's nowhere else he CAN be," Devon told him. "Did you know when Maximillian wanted a tattoo, and his friends' parents saw it, that they stopped calling or coming over? He lost all his friends over time, Freddie. His teachers didn't like him, either. The doctors didn't like it when he was born, even. They wanted to turn him into a girl. But it was all his choices. We all have choices, even you, Freddie. You won't be a slave here forever. Someday that green collar will come off, and you'll find that being mean and hateful won't get you very far."

"I… I was bad to him," Freddie mumbled, "I thought… it's just not fair! He was born that way, and he had you, then you came here!"

"Because no one was going to be able to cut him, right?" Devon asked, "And the way he acted when he saw me in the cafeteria that first day? You're jealous, aren't you?"

Freddie nodded. "Lotta boys are."

Devon held him and kissed his cheek. It wasn't a client's touch. It was parent's touch – assuring, calming, protective. It was the way he held his own son, and it was the way he held Freddie. The boy could sense the difference. It wasn't the needful, lustful embrace of a man who just wanted to fuck. It was something that Freddie didn't understand, but something he knew he wanted. Something he had to have. "You're right, Freddie, it's not fair. I didn't think it was either, when they dumped me here." Devon called a guard to take Freddie to the hospital where he could rest. The boy was in no shape to face the rest of the day, after all. When classes were over, Devon picked him up and took him back to his suite. He told Bob and Carol what had happened, too.

"Is this going to be a regular occurrence, you bringing home strays?" Bob laughed.

"So it wasn't that he DID anything to you?" Robbie asked the boy. Freddie shook his head.

"It's just that… that he can't BE one of us. He's already a born-nullo. He can't KNOW what it's like to… to…," Freddie stopped and shook his head, either unable or unwilling to say it.

But Devon knew what he was talking about. For years, he'd had nightmares about being strapped down to the castration table in the Arena, and the unimaginable searing pain that came – albeit for only a few seconds – from having one's genitals sliced off. Only rarely did he have those bad dreams nowadays, but he remembered that as a boy growing up on the island, he'd had them a lot. So had his friends.

"So what you and your friends resent is the fact that Maximillian is a natural nullo, born that way, and that he'll never be able to know the pain of being castrated like you all were? Like I was?"

"Oh, man!" Robbie groaned, holding his genitals and making a face. "Geeeze, uncle, that's gotta hurt!"

"Why don't YOU find out?" Freddie asked him, but he did smile when he said it. Robbie shook his head quick.

"Freddie, have you ever stopped to consider what Maximillian must feel like?" Devon asked him. "All his life, he's been different. He thinks he's a boy, always has, and he is, for that matter. But he grew up knowing he was different. He grew up knowing he was a boy, and that the doctors wanted to make him into a girl. He's put up with health issues that probably no one here has, and when he decided to finally come out, and let a whole class full of other boys see that he was a nullo, the whole town turned on him." Devon sighed. "He lost all his friends over it, because he was tired of hiding and pretending to be something he wasn't. He may not be 'male' in the sense of the word, and he can't be, really, but he also can't be 'neutral' anywhere but here, and be accepted. And now here you are, rejecting him because he can't BE hurt like you? I think that's pretty shallow, don't you?" Devon told him.

"Yes, sir," Freddie admitted, "But it's just not…,"

"Not fair?" Devon finished for him, "Maximillian says that a lot. And he's right. If the pain thing is the initiation into the brotherhood of eunuchs here, then no, he can't ever be one of you. And that's going to just crush him, I can tell you. You didn't see him after what you all did to him, made fun of him, in the cafeteria, did you? Well, I did! And let me tell you, too, pal, as a staffer here, it's all I can do to stay objective and not just pound your ass for hurting my son!"

"Hop Sing already did that for you," Freddie reminded them.

"Sweetheart, try and see Maximillian's side of it, won't you?" Carol asked him. "Don't you think he WANTS to fit in here? Don't you think he wants you to like him?"

"It's not that," Freddie shook his head, now ashamed of himself. "I… I guess I'm jealous is all. Sometimes I still… I still… FEEL it, you know?"

"The castration?" Devon asked. Freddie nodded uncertainly. "Sometimes I do, too," he told him. "Being nullified here is something that tends to stay with you!"

"But you can't nullify Maximillian," Robbie reminded them, "He's got nothin' to cut off? So if it's pain, what do you do to make him 'one of you,' Freddie? You all gonna beat him up or something?"

"Pain," Devon mused thoughtfully, wondering if there was indeed a way that his son could perform (so to speak) in the Arena to gain the acceptance of his fellows.

Chapter 8
Arena

As it turned out, Lewie's tattoo was a hit with a lot of the island boys. Many of them asked Maximillian to ask his dad, when his training was done and he saw him again, if they could get one too. Some of them even offered to pay for it out of their weekly allowance from commissions they earned. Lewie had a lot of those, and that first weekend with his new eunuch-tattoo, he saw a LOT of action. On his day off, he called for the doctor to come check him, ate in bed, and then slept all day long!

The two weeks passed quickly.

At the end of the first, Bob and Carol left Robbie in Devon's care to go "home hunting in some more tolerant nation", as Carol put it. Robbie wasn't too upset to see them go, knowing they'd be back. He was worried, though, that if they found a place, that he'd hardly ever see his brother and uncle again. He also mentioned a problem he was having to Devon – one that had been making him nuts for days already.

"I don't get hard no more, no matter what I do?" Robbie asked worriedly. "Am I sick? Is it broke?"

Devon told him that was part of the deal, and was being caused by the drugs he'd been given. "Then why do I feel like I NEED to play with it, if it won't get hard?" Robbie asked, "I feel all funny when I … I see boys. Uncle, am I getting gay?" He asked, looking scared. Devon laughed; Robbie didn't see the humor in it. Devon explained about the drugs and their effects, and how they made the boys horny so they'd want to fuck. "But I can't get hard!" Robbie protested, "So I can't fuck… or jerk it!"

"That's the idea," Devon smiled at him, "So YOU can't fuck anyone here. I think what you need is a good, long, slow ass-fucking yourself, to calm you down," he suggested.

Robbie didn't reply right off. "Does it hurt?" He finally asked.

"Your brother seems to enjoy it, from what I hear," Devon said.

"Well, yeah, but he HAS to do it like that," Robbie countered.

"So do YOU, now," Devon reminded him. "Or maybe you just wanna be frustrated? Have you been masturbating to orgasm before here, Robbie? You are a bit young for that."

Robbie blushed. "It feels really good, and you get all shaky," he admitted. "But nothing comes out?"

Devon laughed, but then got serious. "That's all over, I think, for you, while you're here," he told the boy. "Once you leave, in a few weeks, it'll wear off and you'll get hard again just like before." Robbie went off muttering to himself about being drugged and how it wasn't fair! Later that day, Devon caught his nephew playing with his himself in the living room of their suites, and Robbie was beyond frustrated. He wasn't even bothered that he'd been caught.

"No luck?"

Robbie snorted in disgust. "I can still FEEL it, but it won't work!" He complained. "And I WANNA do it, and I can't!" He held his uncle's gaze for a while, then he looked away. "You say Maximillian likes it?" Devon nodded. "Does it hurt?" Devon told him it might, a little bit, but only the first time.

"You know what he also said, the first time I brought him off with a dildo?" Devon asked. Robbie shook his head. "He just laid there, all goofy and silly, and he said, 'Poor Robbie, he has to play with his penis and not feel this good!'"

"He did not!" Robbie retorted, "You're makin' that up!"

"Have I ever lied to you?" Devon asked him. Robbie shook his head. "You want me to have Ben get you a trainer?" Devon asked.

Robbie didn't reply right off. He just sat there fondling his limp little penis. "Yes, sir," he finally said. Devon hugged him. "Maybe I'll like it so much I'll stay?" Robbie added, "I'd… I'd miss you guys, you know?"

"And we'd miss you, too," Devon assured him, kissing his cheek, "I don't know what Maximillian would have done all those years without you. He loves you a lot, you know."

"I know, we tell each other," Robbie confessed, "Ever since we were little." Devon was so proud of his nephew then, that he could have just burst.

Devon got Robbie a trainer that day and signed him off for it as per the contract. Ben gave Robbie a gold collar, and much to Devon's surprise, called Matti. "You'll kill him?" Devon asked. "He can't train two boys at once?"

"He owes me," Ben said slyly, "And what better way to train a boy than to have him watch his brother have fun? I wish Ji would have been here when Hop Sing was being trained!"

"What about that little monster?" Matti asked, as he came in, alone. "If you think I'm gonna try and fuck him again, then I quit! Oh, hi, Robbie, Max says 'hi'," he added.

"They can talk about it in person," Ben told him, "Matti, I want you to train Robbie, too."

"Now?!" Matti gasped.

"No, take him somewhere private, first, I don't want to watch," Ben joked.

Matti said the same thing that Devon had said.

"You knew the job was dangerous when you took it," Ben told him, shooing them out. "Now, get this boy prepped, the poor thing, he's impotent and horny. We can't have that!"

With a week to go, Maximillian still had training to do, too. The boy almost went wild with excitement when he saw his brother, and found out that he was going to be trained, too. Sander was aghast. "You'll die," he told Matti. "No one can fuck that much!"

Later that day, Matti fucked Maximillian to show Robbie how it was done. They did everything 'by the book', and this time, the enema wasn't so bad for Robbie. He squirmed and clenched on the nozzle, but it took three times to get him clean. The butt plug scared him at first, but as he watched his brother in action, as if Matti were a client, he began to get even more worked up and flustered. Maximillian did very well, his trainer told him, as Robbie just stared in fascination. He'd heard all the jokes about it, of course, but he'd never SEEN a boy get ass-fucked. If he'd seen someone doing business on the island, he'd just turned around and gone the other way before! But when he saw what it did to his brother, he was convinced that he had to try it. The plan had worked.

"I thought sucking a dick would be worse than that," Robbie confessed, as they were eating dinner that night. "Does it really feel that good?" He asked Matti.

"Why don't you have Sander show you later?" Matti suggested.

"I can't get hard anymore," Robbie admitted.

"Doesn't matter, it still feels good," Sander told him. "I had a dick once, you know."

Maximillian laughed. So did Matti. Robbie looked scared.

"You won't even notice your dick tomorrow, when you get fucked," Sander assured him. "Hell, if jackin' off is a rainstorm, then bein' ass-fucked is an F-6 tornado!" He laughed, as they settled in to watch a movie before bed. Matti unfolded a futon, and Maximillian slept with his brother that night. He'd missed him so much.

"I love you," he told Robbie.

"I love you, too," Robbie whispered back, as the boys kissed – on the mouth – as Matti had trained them to do. It wasn't a brotherly kiss, either. It was a deep, passionate kiss that said more than 'I love you, brother'. It scared them both at first, but they soon passed it. They fell asleep intertwined with one another, both of them so happy to be back together that nothing else mattered just then.

"Trust me?" Maximillian told his brother the next morning, as he sat holding his hand. Robbie was having a bad case of the jitters as Matti lubricated his ass. Sander just sat reading a book, shaking his head and smirking. Very carefully, Matti then entered Robbie.

"Oh, shit!" Robbie gasped, his eyes wide and panting. Matti pulled back a little. He took it very slowly, giving the boy time to adapt. He moved in and back, slowly, a little at a time, until he was finally all the way in.

"You OK?" Maximillian asked him.

"Distract him," Sander suggested in a bored tone.

"Right," Maximillian replied. Then he kissed Robbie on the mouth. Hard.

"So, is this like incest?" Sander asked.

"Either get over here and help, or be quiet," Matti suggested, as he began gently fucking Robbie. Robbie moaned and squirmed, but in a few minutes, he was instinctively moving in time with Matti. "Natural talent," Matti observed, "That's good. Keep doing that," he suggested, as Robbie nodded.

"Feel good?" Maximillian asked.

"Y-Yeah," Robbie panted, "It does. God, Max, uncle was right. He said you felt sorry for me before!"

Sander laughed so hard he dropped his book. Then he came over held Robbie's other hand. "He may be impotent, but don't let him touch himself," Sander suggested. "Let him orgasm the long way!"

It took a while, but Matti knew what to do. He'd trained a lot of boys, and he knew how to make them orgasm. When Robbie finally climaxed, he screamed. The boys jumped. Matti was ready for it, though. "Great, a fainter and a screamer," he sighed, as he continued to fuck Robbie. By this time, Robbie was tossing his head and looked like he was going into shock. Then Matti came, and Robbie could feel it.

"THE HELL?" He yelled, as Matti shot inside of him. Sander and Maximillian got to laughing at the surprised look on Robbie's face. When he was done and had calmed down, Matti pulled out of him.

"He screams, then yells, then he goes into shock?" Matti asked. "Takes all kinds, I guess," he sighed.

But Robbie didn't pay any attention to him. He hugged his brother and started to cry. "It felt good," He finally managed.

"What did you do to him?" Sander asked Matti, "Look at him! He's a wreck!"

"Ehhh, these penis-centered straight boys always come unglued when they get fucked," Matti waved it off.

"You did good," Maximillian told him. "Just think! Two weeks, every day, anytime you want!"

Robbie's eyes rolled and he passed out. "NOW he faints," Matti shook his head. "We'll have to give his clients a warning label!"

"That's IF he stays," Sander corrected him, but Maximillian had seen the look. He knew very well what his brother had felt.

"He'll stay!" Maximillian smiled, "He's hooked!"

The end of the week marked the end of Maximillian's and Shing's training. Robbie endured his first week, and amazingly, took it very well. That night was a happy reunion for Maximillian and Devon. Matti delivered him in person. Both father and son were so happy that they were beyond words. Devon just held the boy and rocked him.

"I brought him back to you, sir, since he, uhhh, well… usually we keep them one more night, then there's the ceremony in the Arena, you know?" Matti mentioned.

Devon nodded.

"Ceremony?" Maximillian asked.

"Where the trainee gets cut," Matti supplied. "It's usually a full-blown orgy. Everyone goes crazy, it's so hot."

"But I don't have anything to cut off," Maximillian mumbled. "I'm sorry."

"Son, I have this plan," Devon told them, motioning Matti to listen.

"It just might work, sir," Matti agreed, looking at Maximillian intently. "Boy, you're braver than I am," he admitted.

The Arena wasn't full that night. Even though it was a weekend, the busiest time of the off-season, there weren't nearly as many guests as usual. Not all of the boys were required to attend. In fact, many of them were terrified of it. Almost none of del Ray's boys attended – only the older and braver ones like Niran and Alem. Still, the guests that were there, and the boys, were worked up. A cutting always did that. Looking dejected, Shing took his place on a cutting table and allowed himself to be strapped down. A murmur then ran through the assembled crowd.

Maximillian took the stage, his colored body lighting up the holoscreens.

Ben handed him a small microphone.

"Hello, everyone," he began. "My name is Maximillian." Everyone stared. "My tattoos are real, too. My daddy, our new art teacher, did them. He's really good. He did them because ever since I was little, I wanted to be like him. You can see I'm a nullo like him, already. He grew up here on the island, and he brought me here because, well, I'm different. Where we lived, no one wanted me around because of my ink, and 'cause I'm a eunuch. I was born this way. I know I'm not like the boys you usually see here. But, you see, I just finished training. But I don't have any boy parts to cut off."

There were a few groans of disappointment.

"But some of the boys here, my friends," he paused to let it soak in. In the crowd, Freddie sniffled. Ty look at the floor. Several of the boys from that first morning looked away. "told me this – the boy eunuchs here on San Carlos are bonded by something."

"Pain."

"The pain that comes from being cut, up here, on this table. But I can't know that. So I guess that makes me an oddball," Maximillian sighed, lowering his microphone some. "I guess I don't fit in here, but I wanna try. I don't wanna leave here. My daddy was happy here, and I… well, I don't have much other choice. So, before Shing gets cut, and he's really scared, you know, I'm going first. Sir, I'm ready," Maximillian nodded to Ben.

Ben then helped Devon strap Maximillian to the table.

"I can't watch," Robbie whimpered, clutching Matti's arm. "God, it hurts, Matti! I know it hurts! I've seen him do it before. He screams and cries, but he loves it! It awful!" Robbie warned him.

"Dearest guests," Devon addressed them, as the cameras zoomed in on Maximillian, "Those of you with tattoos know how it can hurt. Now, not all of my son's ink is real. That is, it's permanent, but it wasn't applied with a needle. It's a new design I developed, that soaks in after being brushed on. Some of his ink is done the old fashioned way, with a needle, but some of it is not.

"His nullo place is NOT," Devon paused.

"Holy shit," Sander breathed, touching himself there. Most of the San Carlos boys flinched and grimaced.

"Oh my God," a man with a tattoo of a devil on his arm exclaimed.

Devon held up the needle. "As the boy said, pain is what binds the boys of this island. One instant of blinding, horrific pain. One cut, then a splash of healing agent, and it's over in a second or two. I know, I was here some years ago, when I was cut," Devon went on. He then held up the needle. It came on with a whir. "Say it," he then said to Maximillian.

"Daddy, sir, I want ink. Real ink. The real way. Please? I want to know how bad it hurts."

"Then you will know," Devon said.

No one in the crowd made a sound.

Devon touched the needle, filled with real green ink, to Maximillian's skin.

And The Illustrated Boy screamed.

There were not words for the pain that Maximillian felt. He'd felt it before, but never there. Never like that. The pain consumed him, transformed him, took him – took him to another place. It went on. Devon's practiced hand held steady, though, although his heart hammered and felt as if it would break as he carried his son across that threshold of pain – across the threshold of pleasure.

Nullifications took seconds.

Several minutes had passed for Maximillian, though it felt like an eternity.

Maximillian's eyes were glazed, his breathing rapid. He was going into shock. He'd never been under the real needle for so long before.

He opened his mouth again, but no sound came out.

Not from Maximillian or the crowd.

On the holoscreens, a small face contorted in agony stared down at everyone.

Ink penetrated skin, making it impossible to tell where eunuch ended and dragon began.

Robbie held tight to Matti and sobbed.

"STOP IT!" A boy's voice then cried out, "STOP IT! YOU'RE KILLING HIM!"

Devon stayed his hand. Everyone turned to see who had yelled.

"Please sir," Freddie cried, tears running down his face and shaking his head, "That's enough! He's proved it!"

"Enough," Ty added.

"Enough," Several boys said in unison.

Then Ben was there, splashing the numbing agent all over Maximillian's tortured and shining body.

The pain stopped. The boy passed out.

Two guards unstrapped him and held him up for everyone to see. Then Dr. Knox was there, taking him away. Robbie and Devon followed him. No one stopped Robbie.

But the Illustrated Boy didn't hear the applause or the chanting of his name. He didn't feel Robbie's hand gripping his, or hear his father's repeated, frantic apologies for having hurt him.

The little dragon shone in new green, vivid, but he lay very still.

And then when Shing was cut, Ben sprayed him down before his initial scream had even stopped.

"Wow," Shing said, staring at the image of his severed parts on the screens.

Epilogue

"It's formed from the words 'to cleanse' and 'the body'," Devon told him, "And with what you've just been through, I think you're certainly that, son."

"I love it, daddy!" Maximillian told him. "Thank you!"

When the week was up, the little dragon was fully repaired, his red outline enhanced, and Shing was recovered as well. They both a great many visitors, Ben Toeber among them. On the seventh day, when the boys were released, Maximillian was faced with another choice.

So was Robbie.

That week completed his training schedule, and Matti signed him off as 'fully qualified and highly entertaining.' He then immediately filed for a short vacation! "Wears me out," he complained.

"It's up to you," Devon told his son, as they met with Robbie and Matti in Ben's office. "It's also up to you, Robbie," he added. "Your mom and dad know what was in the contract. Neither one of you is under any obligation to work here for Ben. My salary, not to mention my savings, can more than compensate to make up for the business losses, you know," Devon added. Ben grinned.

"You always were a smart boy," Ben told Devon. "So what's it gonna be, boys?"

The question hung in the air.

"Sir," Maximillian spoke up first, "I want to stay here on your island. My daddy grew up here, and he was happy. I want to grow up here, too, just like he did."

"You realize that means you'll have a green collar, then," Ben reminded him, "And that if men want to have sex with you, you can't say no?"

"I know, sir, but it's not fair to the other boys if I don't. I know some of them don't work the sex thing, but I really don't wanna pick pineapples and coconuts, either!" Maximillian laughed. "That's no fun!"

Ben laughed, too. "You ARE just like your daddy," he smiled at Devon. "Lean up, boy," Ben told him. Ben then released the gold collar. But instead of putting a green one on Maximilian right away, he handed it to the boy instead. Maximillian held it and studied it. It was very pretty, and it sparkled in the sunlight that streamed in through the window and illuminated the little dragon. Maximillian handed it to Devon.

"Put it on me, daddy? Please?"

"Is this what you really want, son?"

"Yes, sir!" Maximillian said firmly.

Devon closed the collar around his son's neck.

"I love you, daddy," Maximillian told him. Devon hugged him and said he was proud of him.

"And what about you, Robbie?" Ben asked him. "Your parents will be back in a week, and they're looking at a couple of places here in the Pacific Rim Area. Mr. Tsu moved their money, the insurance paid off on the house, so there's really no need for you to go to work."

"House insurance?" Robbie asked, puzzled. After all, he'd been sedated and packed up in a suitcase when the house had blown up.

"Li Chow blew up the house," Devon informed him. "Almost everyone back home thinks you boys are dead."

For some odd reason, the boys found that hilarious. Then Robbie looked at Ben.

"Sir, I'm glad I got the chance to come here and have you let Matti train me. I liked it a lot," Robbie said, holding his brother's hand. "But my mom and dad only have me, and they're kinda old to have another baby," Robbie explained. Devon snorted. "And since we had Max, well, they never thought to have any more kids. If I leave here, I'll grow up like a man, right?" Ben nodded. "And you said the last thing you needed was another nullo white boy here, right?"

"We are a bit overstocked," Ben nodded, "So you might not see too much action if you stay."

"Sir, I don't wanna be a nullo," Robbie told him. "My brother can't ever have kids, but someday, I will. And I don't think it's fair to my mom and dad, either. I'd have to stay, and they'd leave, and well," Robbie squeezed his brother's hand tighter. "I don't wanna leave them, sir!"

"I understand," Ben agreed. "You made the right decision, boy. You do your parents proud." Ben then released his gold collar and replaced it with a blue one. "But there's no reason you can't have fun until they get back!" He laughed. "And you might just make me a credit or two!"

Maximillian giggled. "You're a two-credit whore, Robbie!"

"WHERE did you hear that word?!" Devon exclaimed. Matti blushed. "Oh."

As they went the cafeteria for breakfast, once again, everyone turned to look at Maximillian. They'd not seen him since his night in the arena, and Maximillian was fully prepared to ignore them. But instead of whispered comments and slams, everyone stood up slowly and began to applaud. Maximillian stared, confused. Then Sander was there. He hugged and kissed him, then put his hand on Maximillian's nullo place.

"Welcome, little brother," he told him.

One by one, every one of the island boys formed a line and did the same.

Freddie was the last in line. He hugged Maximillian especially tight. "I'm so sorry," he offered.

"It's OK," Maximillian told him, "Daddy told me what you said. I'm sorry I made you feel bad. You wanna sit with us?" Freddie nodded.

"Sorry I had to kick your ass, too," Hop Sing told him.

"So how's it feel to be one of us?" Sander asked Maximillian.

"Ask him that after his first day of work," Chris laughed.

School started just after breakfast, but lunch ran for two hours as a long recess. It also gave the boys time to work, if a client wanted them. Maximillian was sitting with Sander and his gang in a gazebo near the school building, just finishing their lunch and attempting their math homework when a man walked up to them. He was dressed in green and black satin shorts and wearing athletic cleats. He was also carrying a soccer ball.

"Which one of you is The Illustrated Boy?" He asked sarcastically.

They all looked up, then stood up, at a parade rest pose, to let the client take his pick.

Maximillian gulped, nervous about the fact that it was a stranger, but he stood up with his friends. Then he looked up and recognized the familiar face.

"Coach Wilson!" He cried, jumping on him in excitement. The boy's former teacher picked him up and spun him around, then hugged him close. For a moment, he didn't say anything.

"They told us all you were dead," he cried, touching the boy's face, his hair, his back, as if wanting assurance that he were real. "Then when I got here and browsed the list of boys, I saw your picture! Oh, Maximillian!" He sighed, "I should have known your daddy would bring you here!" Then he touched the boy's green collar. "So you're… working?"

"Maximillian is a new boy, Caucasian, age 10. Tomorrow is his birthday. Maximillian can be had for 25k/CR, or 50k/CR for the day," the collar spoke up.

"Hey, why'r'you half price?" Sander asked.

"Because he's the coach," Sander's collar replied. Sander jumped. Hop Sing laughed.

"But shouldn't you be in school, sir?" Maximillian asked him.

"I quit," Wilson replied, "After what they did to you, and how they treated me because of my relationship with your family, namely your daddy? I sued 'em for slander, and I won! Then I walked out! And you know what else?" Wilson teased him.

"What?!"

"Your boss, Ben, tells me he needs to hire a Phys Ed teacher for all the new boys he's got. Says some of 'em need whipped into shape? He said some of 'em don't even know how to play baseball, can you imagine?" Wilson exclaimed.

"You're gonna teach HERE?!" Maximillian shouted, squirming around to face his friends, "Guys! Mr. Wilson is gonna come teach here!"

"Bet that's not ALL he's gonna do," Chris commented.

"No, it's not," Wilson grinned, as he scanned Maximillian's collar. "Your daddy wanted me to be your first. Is that OK, son?" Wilson asked.

"You don't have to ask, sir," Maximillian told him.

"Registered, Maximillian to Mr. Wilson for the entire day," Maximillian's collar said. Maximillian giggled as Wilson tickled him.

"You better hurry, sir, class starts in less than an hour," Hop Sing grinned at them.

"I'll see you in the gym, tomorrow?" Wilson told the rest of the boys. "Then we'll report to the soccer field? Show me what you got?"

"Yes, sir!" The boys all smiled at him, as Wilson carried Maximillian across the way.

"I missed you, sir," Maximillian told him, as Wilson stretched out on the grass. As he'd been trained, Maximillian took the small guest kit and prepped himself. He then moved to straddle the coach, slowly pulling his shorts off, touching him, his hands trembling. Wilson was much bigger than Matti. It was scary, but Maximillian knew what to do.

"No," Wilson stopped him, after the boy had cuddled him for a while and began manually stimulating him. Wilson then hefted him up, holding him in the air and just staring at the little dragon that basked in the sunlight. Then he lowered the boy, gently, entering him very slowly.

"I don't want to waste a single minute," Wilson told him, "I want you to feel me inside of you."

Maximillian sighed and did as he'd been trained. But there was more to it than just the motions. His coach had always been good to him. He'd always let him play, no matter what the game or what anyone said. And he always paid attention to him when he'd come over to see his daddy, and not ignored him or Robbie. And Maximillian remembered how'd he touched him, kissed him, spoken to him that last day at the academy before they'd expelled him. As he felt his coach filling him up, he leaned down and kissed him, hard, but it wasn't that he'd been trained to do it. It wasn't that he was trying to create the illusion of love, as he'd been taught.

Maximillian really did love him. He simply wasn't the kind of boy, despite what he'd been put through, to dislike or hate anyone.

"I love you, coach," the boy told him.

Wilson made a contented little sound, his hands caressing the little dragon's wings in the sunlight. "Just like your daddy," Wilson told him.

A feeling of total bliss then swept over the Illustrated Boy, as Wilson moved inside of him, his eyes caressing the boy's patterned skin as much as his body did. And when the climax took them both, Maximillian felt something new.

He felt right.

For the first time in his life, he didn't feel different.

He was late to art class, but his teacher didn't mind.

He painted a picture of a little green dragon on the beach. In his paw, the dragon held a soccer ball. A gang of boys, all wearing green collars, their legs poised to kick the ball, surrounded him – waiting.

Maximillian entitled it "HOME".

The End