This chapter took a long time. Had a couple of things to research and questions to ask friends more knowledgeable in certain subjects. But I was also very busy with some deadlines for stuff that either pays the bills or would cost money if I didn't do it. That kinda takes precedence over writing for fun. But rest assured, I have not abandoned this story. Far from it. The end of this chapter was a long time in coming. I'd planned it almost from the starts, although the characters won't thank me for it, I'm sure. At least I didn't end it with too much of a cliff hanger hahaha.

Anyway, thank you all for your reviews and pm's, as well as your patience. I'll try to get the next chapter up in a little more timely manner, at least before the end of the month.

Chapter 7

"But now there's noooowhere to hide

Since you pushed my love asi-hide

I'm out of my mind

Hopelessly devoted to-ho you

Hopelessly devoted to you-hou-hou"

"I know the radio isn't working, but is there really nothing better you can think of to sing?" At the boys' giggles Adam knew they had purposely chosen this hit to tease him. "Very funny."

"Don't you like it, Adam?" Daniel laughed.

"Oh we're dummies," Evan couldn't even contain his giggles, "We should have chosen John Travolta's song," And immediately the two belted out

"Emilly, can't you see?

I'm in misery

We made a start

Now we're apart

There's nothing left for me,"

And Daniel finished it off with a sighed, "Oh Emily…"

"Hush you two! I don't know where you got this idea from that I'm miserable or something."

"Well," Evan looked at his oldest brother with innocent eyes, "You haven't seen miss Morgan in weeks now. We figured maybe you two had had a falling out."

"I'll have you know we did no such thing," Adam turned onto the street where Daniel's friend lived, "Not that it's any of your business. Now, Daniel," He pulled up to the door and then gave the fourteen-year-old a hard look, "You behave yourself."

"Of course, Adam!"

"I'm not kidding," Adam kept his tone firm, "I'll be here to pick you up at 3, so make sure you're ready to leave by then."

"Sure, Adam," Daniel jumped out of the truck, "Have fun!" And off he was.

"No more Grease or John Travolta,"

Before Adam finished Evan grinned, "Saturday Night Fever then?"

"Scamp," the cuff Evan got was only teasing, "I could do with a bit of Country Roads…"

"We've been on country roads most of the drive, Adam," Guthrie's words caused Adam to roll his eyes.

"You too, Guthrie? I thought you were still on my side."

"I'm always on your side, Adam," For one second Adam wondered if the young boy had been turned over to the dark side like his teenage brothers, but then he realized Guthrie had just taken his words literally and meant everything he said.

"Thanks, buddy, I knew I could count on you," He started humming John Denver's Country Roads and before long they had gone from 70s pop hits to country. And their mom's favorite song at that. Adam wished Guthrie would remember their mother humming it to him when he was little. To Guthrie it would probably be the song his big brother used to sing to him.

Adam had to change the course of his thoughts or he'd be lost in memories and loss and wouldn't be able to focus on the road. He stopped at the traffic lights and while he waited for the light to change, his thoughts wondered off anyway, just in a different direction. What on earth had the boys all concerned about his love-life? Or a possible break-up? Was concerned the right word? Maybe not. Maybe Daniel was still hoping for a quiet break-up? Or maybe they felt threatened by a relationship? After all, they had a dynamic going on. They were unconventional, but it worked. For six years now it had been just them boys and they had made it work. A girl…he corrected himself…a woman might upset that whole balance. Shatter their peace. He liked things the way they were. Not that there wasn't a day he wished their parents were still alive, but he liked how things worked now. Change was a threat. And there had been enough threats. He couldn't handle more change. But he sure liked Emily.

"Adam…" it took a nudge before Adam was pulled right back into the world. "It's green…are you okay?"

It took Adam a second before he realized what was happening. It shook him to find out he could lose focus like he had. He was usually incredibly focused when he was driving. Even as a young teen driving for the first time, he'd been very responsible. It was why his parents had always trusted him on the roads, driving his brothers places or picking them up, and going on dates at night. Unlike Brian. Not that Brian was an irresponsible driver, but when he was younger he was easily distracted. That, and he was a little bit more susceptible to peer pressure from his team mates. In all fairness, he'd only ever had one ticket and missed one curfew when out with the car. And forgotten to pick up Daniel once. But that had been strike three and aside from being punished, there had always been that extra warning whenever he did have the truck or jeep. Adam teased him with at sometimes, but it was still a sore point.

And now, he had been completely distracted. On the road! "I'm sorry. I was lost in thought."

"I knew we shouldn't have sung Country Roads," Evan knew. Evan was more sensitive to these things than people gave him credit for.

"Of course we should've," Guthrie disagreed, "Adam loves that one."

"I do, buddy," Adam nodded, "I was just…"

"Thinking about Miss Morgan," Guthrie grinned. "That's just how Crane looks when he talks about June."

"What?" Adam looked shocked, "I do not look like that!"

"Yeah you kinda do," Evan supported Guthrie's assessment.

A car honking behind him gave Adam an out of this awkward talk. He held up his hand as an apology to the other driver and took off to Angel Camp. He made sure to change the topic to a more neutral one, for him at least. The boys wouldn't agree that school was such a neutral topic.

When he finally parked in front of Turner's Wild West Store, Adam was almost glad to watch an excited Evan take straight off for the door. He followed with Guthrie at a slightly slower pace and watched as Evan walked through the store like a kid in a candy store. Of course, to Evan, this was a candy store. It was like watching Daniel in a music store. Or Ford in a book shop (if he didn't think Evan was watching him). Evan loved horses. Loved everything about them.

Adam remembered when Evan was teething and mom was at the end of her rope with his crying, dad had taken him for a ride with on Storm. Despite the name, Storm was one of the most gentle horses Adam had ever seen. But still, mom had thrown a fit that he had the audacity to have her five-month-old baby on 'that big beast'. Adam chuckled to himself. It wasn't like their mother hadn't been used to country living or life on a ranch. She was a rancher's daughter herself. But none of that mattered at that moment. Of course, Adam also didn't know at the time that their mother was already expecting Ford by then. Not that that knowledge would have changed his understanding of his mother's mood.

Funny thing was, as soon as the horse started to walk Evan calmed down. And when Dad allowed Storm to trot Evan's whole demeanor changed. Baby Evan was beaming and making funny noises and reaching for the reins with his grubby little hands. A monster had been born that day. And from that day on, whenever Evan was upset, it only took a horse to calm him down. Even that fateful day they lost their parents and they had all been so lost in grief, Evan had found solace in the barn. The little seven-year-old boy had brushed daddy's horse. Brian had been in the barn as well. Brian didn't do emotions very well and had thrown himself in the yard work. Not that any of them did emotions well, but Brian was the worst. The boy had pushed it all away and had gone on like nothing had happened. At least for a short while.

Slowly, Adam walked through the store as well. He smiled as he watched Evan drool over a beautiful saddle. Yes, that one would attract the boy's attention. Without looking at the tag he could tell it was a Billy Royal show saddle, with all the bells and whistles, right down to the ornate hand carved details and the sterling silver trim. The price he figured they could buy a few good cows to add to their herd with.

The boy would learn that a good saddle wasn't about all that. But Adam needn't have worried. Evan continued on to look at other things while Guthrie entertained himself looking at the boots. Thankfully he'd already gotten his new boots last fall. Adam didn't think he could miss the money if he'd had to buy new ones now.

"Adam?"

Adam looked up when Evan called him. "What is it, Ev?"

"D'you think I could spend aunt Gertrude's Christmas money on these?" The boy was holding a pair of the most fancy spurs Adam had ever seen, and probably the most pricey ones at that.

"You're not a little boy anymore, Ev," Adam shook his head, "you know how much money you've got," Aunt Gertrude was actually a great-aunt and in her 80s now, but she never forgot to send them all a Christmas card with a small amount of money for each of them. For their birthdays it was always a little bit more. But it wasn't a fortune. And unlike Crane, Evan wasn't good at saving. "And you can read the price tag."

"Yeah," Evan hedged, "but I was thinking….it's gonna be my birthday soon…."

"Soon?"

"Well…in a few months anyway…"

"Still a long time off, bud."

"But still…Adam, listen…I know aunt Gertrude's gonna send more money then. And if I hold on to this and save up every penny I'll get till then…"

"You sure you can stop yourself spending that money?" Adam was doubtful.

"You don't believe me?" Evan looked hurt.

"Well," Adam tried to be gentle, but truthful at the same time, "you do have a hard time saving."

"I can do it, Adam, I know I can!"

"So can I, Adam?"

"You'll know better if you can than I do."

Evan dared rolling his eyes, "A-dam…that's not what I meant. Can I buy them then?"

"We'll cross that bridge after your birthday." He actually didn't want to commit to the purchase. For more than one reason.

"But can't you say yes now?"

"What would be the point, buddy? You don't have the money right now anyway."

"No, but…"

"But what?"

"He wants to borrow it." Neither of them had noticed that Guthrie had joined them, having gotten bored with the boots.

"Guthrie!" The older boy threw dagger looks at his younger brother and if he wasn't set on trying to persuade Adam to do exactly what Guthrie was saying, he would have kicked his brother.

"That's my name."

"Guthrie," Adam's voice sounded tired, "don't tease your brother." But he immediately turned back to Evan, "That what it is? You want to borrow the money and pay back with your birthday money?"

"Why not, Adam? I'll have the money. I can give you my Christmas money now as a..a…down…"

"A down payment." Adam said dryly.

"Yeah, a down payment!" Evan could already taste the victory. "This would be the down payment and then I'll give you the rest after my birthday. Companies do it all the time. Crane explained how that works when you buy big things."

"Crane did, did he?" Sometimes it would be nice if Crane didn't teach them so much! No, Adam corrected himself, that wasn't fair. But right now, he wished Evan had never heard of this concept. "Did he also explain that those companies look at whether you're creditworthy?"

"Creditworthy?" Clearly, Crane had not mentioned that word.

"Paying for things like that is the same as getting a loan and to get a loan you have to have evidence that you'll be able to repay."

"Oh but I can! Because I'll have the money."

"Hmm well, suppose aunt Gertrude is out of money and can't send us any this year? Or she forgets?"

"She could die too," Guthrie helpfully added, "She's really, really old."

"God forbid, but yes, that could happen too. So there's no guarantee you'll have that money. It's not like she's already sent you a note promising it, did she?"

"No but she always does…" Victory was slipping away.

"And what about interest?" Adam continued, "Did Crane also explain about interest?"

"Eh…" Evan was sure now that the answer was going to be no, but he wasn't willing to give up yet, "I'm sure that's alright."

Adam almost laughed, "When you borrow money from the bank or a big company like that, you have to pay interest. You pay extra for their services, for their risk with the money."

"But there is no risk, Adam, I'll pay it back. I promise!"

"Banks still charge interest. So you end up paying more than the item is really worth."

"But I wouldn't have to wait."

"It could easily be 10% of the original sum."

"What's a percent, Adam?" Evan was glad Guthrie asked the question, because he had a feeling he was supposed to understand, but honestly, math wasn't his best subject in school.

"It's a part of 100. So if the price is 100 one percent is 1 and 10% would be 10. So if the price was 100 dollar, you'd end up paying 110."

It went over Guthrie's head for the time being, but the boy did understand that it was more, "That's stupid then. Why pay more when you can simply wait?"

"Well, sometimes it's really hard to wait. Like when you want to buy a house. Or a car."

"But you can wait for spurs." Guthrie's logic was refreshing, the oldest felt.

Evan didn't agree though, "But I can't!"

"What do you want spurs for anyway?" Adam queried.

"You don't even need them." Guthrie still didn't see the need for them.

"Guthrie's right. You wouldn't wear them when you're riding Diablo. You know we wouldn't allow you to wear them anyway." Not at Guthrie's age. If not used right, they could really hurt a horse. Heck, Adam didn't even wear spurs himself. Brian didn't. Where on earth did Evan get these ideas?

"But they all wear them at the rodeo!"

"Ah…well, I can see wanting to be like your hero, but kiddo, they don't allow them in any of the events for your age group. And we don't allow them on the ranch. So I really don't see why you'd want to end up in debt with me over something you can't wear."

"That's not fair, Adam! I never get anything!"

"Put those spurs down, Evan McFadden, right now." It looked like Evan was about to throw them on the floor and Adam had to act or there'd be a big scene. For a second Evan seemed to contemplate disobeying, but then he conceded and put the spurs down. Tears appeared in his eyes however.

"I'm sorry, but it's not fair. I really want them."

"Maybe when you're older. But you know I don't like them, kiddo. Do I wear them?"

"No…."

"I think it's mean to the horse!" And that was Guthrie's final word on it. The little boy went off to look at the conchos.

"Why don't you save up for a new bridle? I know you won't be able to afford a fancy one, but if you really are serious about saving, that is within reach and I would have no objections."

"But then the martingale needs to match."

Adam laughed out loud now, "Well, all I can tell you is that you'd better start saving your money if you're serious about buying all that. Because together that would end up being expensive."

"I am, Adam! You'll see!" The boy had his money in his hand and put it right back in his pocket. "I won't spend it at all today."

"Good for you," Adam draped his arm around the teenager's shoulder, "I'm proud of you for making that decision. And if you need help not touching the money, I'm sure our resident banker Crane will be more than willing to hold on to it for you."

"Would he charge interest for that then?"

Chuckling Adam shook his head, "Technically, if he really acted as bank, he'd have to pay *you* interest."

Evan's eyes grew big, "Really?"

"Mind you, he may not want to play bank for real for you. So I wouldn't count on getting interest." But Evan's mind was working overtime.

By the time they left, Guthrie had decided against spending money on conchos in favor of buying candy at the supermarket. The word alone had caused Evan to groan. But fair is fair: Adam had told him that was the trade-off.

Back at the ranch Ford and Crane were enjoying the peace and quiet. Even at college Crane wasn't used to having this type of quiet. His dorm was nice enough, but it wasn't exactly quiet. Or well sound-proofed. Even if his roommate wasn't in, there was always someone running down the hall, arguing, playing music, or even banging on his door to ask something.

And Ford and Crane had something in common: neither of them hated studying. They both loved books and they both loved to learn new things. Of course there were many differences between the two as well, but those things they had in common and those things they were sharing that day. They were down in the main room, Crane sprawled out on the sofa and Ford had curled up on the other side of the room in the big chair by the fire. And they had actually been quiet for over an hour before Ford spoke up.

"What's equanimity mean?" The boy spelled the word carefully.

"It's the quality of being calm and even-tempered," Crane explained, "Someone with equanimity wouldn't have a temper that easily flares up."

"Oh so Adam doesn't have it."

Crane couldn't help laughing, "No, I guess not. Although he can keep his temper under control and be quite patient when he wants to. But yes, I suppose he's more volatile."

"Does that mean having a temper?"

"More or less."

"So Adam and Brian are volatile." Ford thought for a moment, "Actually, Daniel and Evan and Guthrie too. You and I have…" he looked at his book again to make sure he got the word right, "equanimity."

"I think we do. But that doesn't mean we're pushovers. Our tempers just don't flare easily."

"But watch out when they do," Ford laughed.

"You bet. We can hold our own, can't we?" Crane had sat up a little and now held up his fists and then pointed at his head, "We just prefer to use our brains first."

"You bet!" Ford echoed Crane. Then it was quiet for another half hour while both boys read. Again it was Ford that broke the silence. "Crane?"

"Yeah buddy?"

"I don't want to distract you from your studies…"

"But you want to play a bit and want company."

Ford shrugged, "I like reading and all, but we've read for a long, long time now."

"We sure have," Crane closed his book, "I think even prisoners are entitled to breaks. And Adam has made me take breaks on a regular basis. No harm in playing a game for a bit. So what do you want to play?"

"Can we go sledding?"

Crane thought for a moment. "I'm grounded, bud, you know that."

"Yeah, but your grounding is really weird. It's like the opposite of normal grounding."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you get to lie on the sofa all day reading. No chores. No yard work. No tons of stuff you have to do."

"No, just a ton of homework. And nothing else. And I am sort of restricted to this place."

"But Adam lets you play. He lets you play games at night and you were in the fort-fight."

"True, he did."

"See? The opposite of being grounded."

"But the fort-fight was in the yard. To go sledding we'd have to go up in the hills…."

"Oh yeah…" Ford's face fell. He'd been reading about kids going sledding and now he wanted to do it. "Being grounded bites."

"Oh so you now figured that out."

"well, I knew that, but yours seemed so different. I never thought of it."

"Still grounded, Ford."

"Yeah, I know." Ford's book fell to the floor and he fell back into the chair himself. "I'm bored now."

"Hey, that's not like you."

"What isn't?"

"Well," Crane sat up completely now, "To give up so easily."

"But I wanted to go sledding and you can't."

"Well, we can still go have a snow ball fight. The forts are still there. Or we can turn one of the forts into a small ramp maybe…I'm sure we can make some sort of hill you can sled off."

"But it won't be as high as the hill…"

"No, that's true," Crane agreed and thought for a moment. "We could make snow angels."

"That's for little kids, Crane! Even Guthrie's too old for that."

Crane couldn't help chuckling, "He didn't think so two weeks ago."

"Still, I am."

"Okay….I know what we can do." Crane jumped to his feet. "Come on."

"But what, Crane?"

"Not telling you, just put on your coat."

Ford was a naturally curious person, more than the regular child and although he would like to know what Crane had in mind before committing to it, his curiosity won out and he got up. "Okay. But it'd better be fun!"

Crane was already in the kitchen rummaging through cupboard and the pantry when Ford brought his coat in. "What are you looking for?"

Crane held up a squirt bottle, "This! Fill it with water, will you?"

Puzzled, Ford took the bottle. He didn't even question Crane's order and filled the bottle with water from the tap. Then he looked back at Crane. "Now what?"

Crane grinned and produced a bottle of food coloring. "We add this to it."

"Why?"

"Ah…just you wait and see." A squirt or two and the water in the bottle had turned yellow. Then Crane put his coat on and led the way outside. "Now….we make a circle." He handed Ford the bottle. "Not too big. We want to make a target to hit with snowballs."

"Ooohhhh a contest!" That had For excited and he started to make a circle in the snow in the yard. He started to giggle as he saw the result. "It looks like we peed in the snow."

Crane laughed out loud, "That was the idea, buddy. That was the whole idea."

"We should decorate Guthrie's snowman with it too." The contest momentarily forgotten, Ford busied himself decorating the snowman with the yellow liquid. Guthrie had already given the snowman buttons and a face, but Ford created yellow pockets and lines that made it look like the thing wore a coat and had separate legs. When he was done, he giggled. "Guthrie's gonna kill us."

"No, he won't. Because we'll explain….but first we let them think what their own dirty minds come up with. We can't help that they're not creative enough to think of using food coloring, can we?"

"Noop!" Ford put the bottle on the porch and then looked at the circle again. "Are we gonna have a contest now?"

"Why not! Bet I'll beat you. Being older and all…."

"But I have great aim." Ford wasn't one to think he couldn't take on his big brother. Before long they both had a pile of snow balls and were ready to take aim. At Crane's suggestion, Ford's snow balls were sprayed with the yellow water so they could distinguish between with ease.

"Three each. Most in the circle wins." Crane's rules were simple. "But….you have to throw from behind the wall of the fort."

"But you're stronger than me."

"Okay, you can stand in front of the wall and I'll be behind it. How about that?"

"Okay!" Ford easily agreed. He was actually proud that he'd negotiated a better position for himself. His first throw didn't go so well, however. It landed a full yard outside the circle. He looked back at Crane with a scowl. "Your turn."

The McFaddens weren't the types to lose on purpose. Crane would never simply let a younger brother win, just because he was younger. But he felt the age difference big enough not to give it his absolute all to win. It was his experience that you did better when you thought you had a chance of winning. And so Crane held back a little on his first throw. A costly mistake as it landed almost as far out of the circle as Ford's had, just on the other side. Both stepped up to the plate so to speak and started throwing more accurately and with more strength. The first round went to Crane, but it wasn't an easy win for him. He could tell he hadn't been playing ball in a long time and his aim was off whereas Ford's aim had improved the previous season. The boy was now one of the better players of his team. Ford may have been a good student and into reading, he liked sports as much as all his brothers.

"Dang!" Ford kicked the wall, "I almost had you there."

"Yeah you did….I really need to bring my A game with you."

That made Ford grin. He knew Crane was a lot stronger than some people thought he'd be. Crane was pretty skinny and tall, more so, it seemed, now that he was in college. But looks were deceiving. Crane was pretty strong. And had been a very decent baseball player. So to know that Crane couldn't hold back playing with him, made Ford feel like he'd just grown a full foot. "I'm gonna need….well, more than that."

"Rematch?"

"Bring it on!"

While Ford and Crane started their second game, three of their brothers entered the supermarket. It was definitely not the place you'd want to be on a Saturday afternoon.

"Okay, I don't want to spend a minute longer in this place than necessary," Adam said as he got a shopping cart.

"Neither do I," Evan looked disgusted.

"So, I've got you both your own list. Try to get all the items and bring them to me. That way, we're out of here as quickly as possible. And make sure to check the brand an size."

"We're not babies," Evan protested.

"We can do this, Adam," Guthrie took his list and looked it over. "I know what kind of bread we always have. That one's easy." And off he went.

"I'll go and get the pasta then." And off was the other one.

Adam felt pretty proud of himself for coming up with this system. He hoped it would pay off. He'd made sure that he was in charge of the more difficult items himself. He didn't want the boys having to choose vegetables and meat. That could get more tricky.

Soon their cart was filling and Adam's system seemed to be working. He actually felt they'd be out of there within half an hour, which would be amazing. But then Guthrie returned with two boxes of cereal that weren't on the list. Before the boy had a chance to put it in the cart Adam stopped him.

"Whoah, kiddo, I know you like these, but that's not the kind we always have."

"I know, Adam, but…"

"No buts, Guthrie, they're much more expensive than the no-name brand. So that's what we're getting. Go and put these back."

"Adam…"

"Guthrie, put them back. I'm not telling you again."

With a defeated look Guthrie turned around, "You never listen to anything I say."

"What was that?" Adam took Guthrie's arm and turned him around, "Are you sassing me? Because I know you know how I feel about you sassing me."

Tears appeared in Guthrie's eyes, "I'm not sassing you, Adam. I'm sorry…I only wanted to help."

"And you are helping, buddy, by getting everything on the list." Seeing the tears made it hard for Adam to be too hard on the boy. "You're a great help. But now I need you to take these back without any fuss and get the ones on the list."

"Yes, Adam," When Adam let go of his arm, Guthrie walked away and soon returned with the brand Adam wanted.

"Thanks, Guth, we're almost there."

Just then, Evan returned with a couple more items and when he put them in the cart he noticed the cereal. "Why didn't you get the ones that are on sale?"

"What do you mean?"

"The ones we like are on sale. They're cheaper than these now, even. There's a coupon on it and all."

Guthrie reached into his pocket and retrieved a crumpled piece of paper, "This thing. It said an extra 25% off. I don't know how much it is, but it was already on sale and this is extra. And Adam said 10% is a lot, so I figured 25% is a whole lot."

Taking the coupon Adam lowered his head, "Dang, I'm sorry, Guthrie, you were trying to tell me, weren't you?" A nod was his answer. "And I didn't listen." A shake. "That was really dumb of me. And rude. I'm sorry, kiddo." He lifted the boy up and Guthrie immediately wrapped his legs around his big brother. "You were really smart in doing what you did. Sometimes you have to change your plan when the information you've got changes. And I didn't listen to the changed information. Can you forgive me?"

"Course, Adam," Guthrie was speaking into Adam's shirt and barely audible, "I'll always forgive you anything. You're my brother."

Adam's strong arms held the boy close for a few moments and when he put Guthrie on his feet, he found Evan had already exchanged the boxes. "I need to take you two shopping more often."

"Not funny, Adam!" Evan's scrunched up face made his brother chuckle, "Not funny!"

"Maybe not, but your face was." Adam reached out and tousled Evan's hair, much to the teenager's disgust. "What do you say we get this shopping over and done with?"

Ford and Crane were done as well. Done with the snow, that is. Not done with their special day to themselves. Ford had actually won a couple of rounds, fair and square, teaching his older brother that holding back wasn't always necessary. But by the time they finished the 9th round they were cold and wet.

"Come on, let's get inside and make ourselves some cocoa." Crane looked at Ford, but didn't have to wait long for an answer.

"With marshmallows!"

"With marshmallows.' Taking the bottle inside with them, the boys quickly shouldered out of their coats and hung them in the mud room to dry. Mom had taught them never to hang a wet coat on the coat rack near the front door, for fear of ruining the floor. And Adam had often reinforced that lesson. As he did many of her lessons. "I really need to get some more homework done too," Crane was whisking the milk in the pot while Ford scooped cocoa into their mugs. "Don't you have homework?"

"Nope, did it all."

"Seriously?" Even Crane was surprised. "You didn't put it off till Sunday? Or tried to?"

"It's easier to do it right away. Then you don't have to worry about it the rest of the weekend and you can just enjoy yourself."

"How did you get so smart?"

Ford shrugged, "It just makes sense."

"Sure does. It'll get you far in an academic future." With all his smarts, even Crane had had to learn that the hard way. He poured the milk on top of the cocoa and while Ford stirred, Crane washed the pot.

"Are you allowed to do dishes?" Ford's tone was slightly teasing and Crane flicked the dish towel against the boy's hip.

"You can keep your comments to yourself. You're perfectly welcome to tell Adam all about this."

"Well, you did say I could tattle if you broke your grounding."

"And I meant it, but that doesn't always mean you have to take a brother up on it. Besides, apparently, cleaning up after myself is okay. And this is simply cleaning up after myself."

"I still don't completely get this punishment."

Crane laughed and added marshmallows to the steaming hot liquid, "Sometimes, neither do I. But I'm trying to keep out of trouble."

"I think you're really…" Ford thought hard for a moment, "equanimimous?"

"I think you mean equanimous, but that was a good try and well-remembered," Crane thought about it for a moment, "Maybe not as much as you think. I do have to bite my tongue. I hate this. But then, punishments aren't meant to be liked, are they? They wouldn't work if they did. And Adam knows just how to make sure to make the punishment fit the crime as well as the person." He took a good sip and then added, "Yeah, maybe I am calm about it. I hope that by not fighting him and showing him and Brian that I'm willing to do whatever it takes to earn back their trust, that eventually it will get better. I know that fighting them will only make it last longer. I mean, it has to end some time, doesn't it?"

"How come you're not like Adam and Brian with your temper?" Ford pushed the marshmallows under and then picked them out one by one to eat them. He'd be adding more before he actually drank the cocoa.

"I don't really know. I take after dad. Mom was the one with the temper, but dad usually managed to stay calm. Or maybe it's that I had two brothers whose tempers flared at the slightest provocation. And I just naturally chose a different style. I don't know."

"Guess you had to be the calm one after them two," Ford giggled. "Bet they drove mom and dad crazy."

"Yeah, they did at times. I know mom was sometimes ready to bang their heads together when they started fighting, but dad just grabbed them by the arm or collar, pulled them apart and told them to make up or he'd give them some horrible extra chore. Something they really hated doing. And that always made them simmer down."

"I can't picture Adam and Brian in trouble."

"No, I bet you can't," The age difference was just too big, "but just look at how easily Adam jumps to conclusions. And how quick Brian can be with his fists. And how stubborn they both are…recipe for disaster. And the pranks in school. Yeah, they had their fair share of trouble alright." Crane finished his cocoa, "Well, I guess I'd better hit the books. Break time is definitely over. And you wouldn't believe the amount of homework you get when you're in college."

"I can't wait till I'm in college."

"Can you find something to entertain yourself for a bit?"

"I'm not aa baby, Crane, you don't have to entertain me, you know."

"I know…just trying to be a nice brother. I feel bad that I can't play with you guys the entire time I'm here."

"I'm just glad to see so much of you…."

While Crane went back to his books Ford looked at his books too, but then got some paper and started folding. He took a long time and Crane was fully engrossed in his books when suddenly a paper airplane flew past him.

"Hey…I thought you were entertaining yourself. Not being a pest."

"I am!" Ford protested. "See, I'm trying to make the best paper plane. This one still didn't go exactly where I wanted it to go. It veered a little too much to the right, so I have to adjust the size of the wing….maybe do…."

Crane went back to his studies certain his younger brother was fine with the age old game of making the perfect paper plane. He just hoped the boy wouldn't practice his skills at school, because he knew teachers tented to frown upon paper planes. He wondered if he should warn Ford, but then, he wasn't supposed to parent right now, so maybe he should just trust Ford's sensible nature.

A little later, when Crane was answering a call of a different kind of nature, Ford finally had perfected his plane. He'd made a few practice flights, throwing it as fast as he could and decided it was ready for his true experiment. From the kitchen pantry he got matches and then he carefully lit the tail of the plane before throwing it fast through the room the next second. To his utter disappointment the experiment failed and the plane landed. Unfortunately, it landed on the sofa, on top of his book, which right away caught fire and before he could reach it the sofa cushion was on fire. "CRANE!" He yelled in panic.

Thankfully, said brother was already on his way down and jumped down the last three steps of the stairs. "What the hell….." But he didn't ask questions. Thankfully, they had a fire blanket right under the stair case and he took it out while yelling: "Get the fire extinguisher. NOW!"

And Ford ran. Why with all his smarts he hadn't thought of getting things ready just in case his experiment would not work was a question that would haunt him for a long time. But he hadn't. He'd been so sure it would work. So sure that his theory was correct. After all, he'd asked Crane all the questions about fire. Never had it crossed his mind that this was not the same thing as blowing out a candle. He still didn't understand why it didn't work. But Crane was in crisis mode and that helped Ford do what he had to do without letting his mind linger on the experiment. When he returned with the fire extinguisher the fire was out, but Crane took the extinguisher anyway and used it. Ford could only watch in horror and when Crane finally sank to the floor, Ford was still frozen in place.

"What were you doing, Ford? What on earth? What happened?"

"I…I was just….it was an experiment…" Ford started to shake. He couldn't get his body to stop shaking, it had a mind of its own.

"What kind of experiment involves fire in the living room? I don't get it, Ford."

"I wanted to know if velocity could put out the fire."

"Oh God….Ford…you….you could have burned down the house! You could have been hurt…" or worse. That's when Ford's shaking body started to crumble into a small pile on the floor and sob. "Ford…"