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Hello! Here is a new story that I recently thought up on a particularly boring car trip. I'm a little rusty, so there is likely a few spelling/grammar errors that I have missed. If you'd like to, feel free to message me if you find one and I'll fix it! (Please don't post in the comments though) Thanks!

Also, this story has adult themes, and is not for readers under the age of 18. So, put away the lotion and tissues, you pervy minors. For those of proper age, I hope you enjoy the story! There is more to come!

*Weeds Chapter 1 - Where there's smoke... *

Jason's key slid into the lock and he smoothly clicked the door open. He could hear his friend's car drive away as he closed it behind him and walked through the living room. The cool air of the house felt good in contrast to the humidity outside.

"Hey mom," the fox said as he walked past an older fox sitting in a chair, attempting to look over a newspaper and watch the television at the same time. He was almost out of the room when she stopped him.

"Jason. Sit down."

The air in the room became thick. The young fox knew those words never meant anything good. He turned around.

"Come here and sit. I want to ask you something," she said, motioning her snout to the chair next to her.

Jason walked over and sat down, his mind busy, trying to think of what he did wrong recently that would warrant a talk.

"What's up?" Jason asked, trying to sound nonchalant, but he was never good at faking.

"I just wanted to know how your summer has been going."

The innocent question confused Jason. His mother was usually much more blunt about things. He wondered if this was some sort of trap.

"It's been ok."

"That's good."

Jason could see the gray hairs on his mother's muzzle. He had never noticed them before. She seemed so much older now.

"I was looking for my sun tea maker today when I got home," she said as her arm disappeared down to her side.

Jason's muscles tensed. He knew what was coming.

"And when I lifted up a box downstairs..." She pulled her hand up with a plastic bag filled with a bumpy, green clump in it. "I found this."

Jason shrugged, but he knew there wasn't anything he could do to save himself now.

"Care to explain?" she asked coldly.

"I... I... uhh," Jason said.

"I didn't think so." She placed the bag on her leg and rubbed her forehead. "How long?"

"Maybe a few months. Maybe a year. I don't know." There was no reason to lie, but a fuzzy truth seemed like the better option at the moment.

His mother's paw twitched a little and she looked at him. "You know there is a twelve year old in this house, right? And impressionable child?" Her anger seeped through her words, and Jason could tell she was doing all she could to not bare teeth. "Have you ever done this around Gill?"

"What?" Jason said, his ears flat on his head. "No, never. Only when he's out with friends."

"Does he know you smoke this crap?" She picked up the bag and shook it.

"I..." Jason's eyes shifted. "He walked in on me once. But I told him it was for my sore throat."

"So he was in the house?" Her eyes flashed with rage.

Jason felt small. "Yes." He could hear the leaves crush in the fox's grip.

"How could you?" Her voice cracked. "How could you do that to him? He looks up to you. You're his role model. He doesn't have your father anymore, so you're it. And you're a drug user?"

Jason felt frozen in the chair. He wasn't looking at her anymore and instead stared at the carpet.

"It's just pot," he said.

"JUST POT?" she screamed.

Jason felt the bag hit him on the side of the head, which made him jump.

"JUST POT? It's an illegal drug, Jason! You can go to jail for owning this stuff! What would your little brother think then? Huh?"

Jason's eyes started to well up.

"I work two jobs until my entire body is sore, just so I can give the two of you a good life. And what do you do? You just smoke it all away. I haven't made you get a job because you told me you wanted to focus on school. Well, your grades sure the hell didn't show that you were paying much attention! And you won't apply for any colleges, and you don't seem to be working much on that summer job hunt. So, what am I supposed to do, huh?"

Jason shrugged and sniffled as his mom continued.

"I can't afford to keep you in this house for free anymore. Not if you're just going to become a dead beat druggie. And I'm sure the hell not going to let you do that in front of your brother. What would your father think? He had so much hope for you."

"I'm sorry," Jason squeaked.

"Sorry isn't enough. Not this time."

Jason wiped a tear away. The bag of pot sat crumpled up by his foot.

"I can't have this stuff in my house," she said. "I don't even want to know how you were affording it, because I know I won't like the answer. Gill is too young and vulnerable right now." She paused, and Jason could feel her burning stare on him. "So, I've made a decision."

Jason looked up.

"You're leaving."

"What?" Jason said, feeling his throat tighten up. "Where am I going?"

"I have a cousin who owns a farm..."

"A FARM?"

"Yes, a farm up north. He owes me a favor from a few years ago, and I called him up, and he's willing to hire you as a farm hand."

"Hire? Like, I'll get paid?"

"Hired as in, you get food and a bed in exchange for working."

Jason slunk back into his chair.

"For how long? Like, a week?"

"The summer... for a start."

"What? I'm not wasting my whole summer on a farm!"

"Wasting? What else would you be doing? Sitting in the basement getting stoned while your brother watches you?"

Jason was quiet. "I won't."

"You will."

"I won't," he said a little more forceful.

"Then you better get a job and an apartment fast, and you better pray to god they don't do a drug test, because you're out tomorrow at nine."

"That's not fair," Jason said, clenching his fist and turned his head away.

"What in our lives has been fair? Is it fair to Gill? Is it fair to me?"

Jason huffed.

"You better pack. It's a 4 hour drive, and tomorrow is my only day off."

Jason just stood up and walked out of the room, not looking at his mother. He closed the door and laid down on his bed, closing his eyes.

"Fuck," he said into the silence around him.

***

The sleepy eyed fox flung a crammed duffle bag into the back of the car and then hugged his younger brother and grandma. She gave him a dirty look when she saw that his eyes were red. He wanted to explain that it was from crying that night, but it was a conversation he didn't want to deal with at the moment. With a sigh, he got into the passenger seat and slouched as far as his seatbelt would let him. It was several hours earlier than he was used to waking up in summer, and his night's sleep had been restless.

The first few hours were silent in the car, but it was thick with tension.

"Do you want to know anything about the family before you meet them?" the older fox said as they passed one of the many farms along the highway.

"I guess," he said, trying to sound indifferent, when really, he had spent most of the night wondering.

"Well, they're the Coltons. They live on a second generation farm that grows corn and soy mostly. Or maybe just corn, I'm not sure. Anyway, Jack, who's my cousin, isn't all that friendly, so don't expect much of a reaction from him ever. And he's not a very forgiving man, so don't think you can get away with anything while you're there. Then there is his wife, Sally. She's nice, but I've only met her a few times. They have two daughters, Becky and Sammy. I don't know much about them since it's been a while, but they're both younger than you. And then there is Ham."

"Ham?" Jason laughed.

"I don't know the story of the name. But he's a ward that was placed under the Colton's care after some bad stuff happened with his parents involving drugs, a bank robbery and a car crash."

Jason looked at his mom for the first time since last night and raised his eyebrows.

She shrugged. "It was pretty tragic from what I hear. His mother was on life support for a while, but since no one could pay for her, they pulled the plug. If I remember, his father is in jail for quite a long time."

"Jeeze."

"Yeah. He's your age, though, so you'll at least have a friend up there."

"So, you sent me away to be friend with a guy who's parents did drugs and robbed banks, because I smoked pot?"

"Don't get smart with me. Jack is very strict about not having drugs in the house. I'm sure that family is cleaner than a whistle."

"Great." Jason rubbed his finger on the window button, feeling nervous.

Eventually they passed a green sign reading "Pines Grove, Pop. 345"

"We're here!" Jason's mom said, looking around at the fields around them.

Jason pursed his lips as he through about a town with only 350 people in it. They drove past a small cluster of buildings. Jason counted 2 bars, a gas station with a bait shop, and an older looking building that must have been used as the town hall, post office and gift shop by the look of it. Then it was done, and they were surrounded by fields again.

"That was it?" Jason said, looking back at the grouping of sad looking structures.

"Yep. Welcome to your new home."

Jason frowned and slid back into his seat.

Finally, the first turn in what must have been 50 miles along the very flat, straight road, the car found itself on a bumpy dirt road. Dust flew everywhere as they drove between two fields of corn. Jason watched as a farm passed by. Its large red building and small blue house looking back at him in equal curiosity. Another passed by with two tall silos, and then one with a large gray building full of tractors. The car slowed down and turned into a driveway that had an old birdhouse that had been converted into a flower pot hanging from a metal pole. There was a cluster of buildings that all looked deserted.

They parked near a pale blue house, and got out. The sweltering heat of the summer wrapped around their bodies as they walked away from the comfort of the cool car.

There were no signs of life around them.

"Where are they?" Jason asked, only to be answered by his mother's similar look of confusion.

She walked up to the house and knocked, but no answer. Jason peeked into a window on the patio, but it was still and quiet inside. He noticed the lack of a television in the living room.

"See anyone?" Jason heard his mom ask as she looked in another window.

He could feel the sweat starting to form on his fur already as they stood in the heat.

"Try the barn thing?" he asked.

They walked on over, and poked their heads into the dark crack of the door. As their eyes adjusted, they could see a series of very large machines. They slipped in and looked around.

Jason touched the hard black surface of a wheel that was almost as tall as him. "What is all this stuff?"

"No idea. But I bet you'll know soon enough."

They heard a squeak come from the door, and they both looked to see the large panel move aside as a tractor started to drive in. They quickly got out of the way. A very tall fox climbed out of the machine and walk over to them.

"This him?" the dirty looking fox asked, looking at Jason.

"Yes." Jason's mom said, looking at the young fox. "Jason, this is Jack."

Jason's paw met Jack's very large and rough paw, and it squeezed down. Jason pulled away and rubbed the dirt off on his pants. He noticed a tall, skinny rabbit standing by the door, looking at them.

Jack nodded to Jason's mom, who smiled. "Well, I guess unless you need me, I'll go now."

Jack nodded again.

Jason got a hug from his mom and she whispered in his ear. "Did I mention he doesn't talk much? Good luck son."

She walked out and past the rabbit, but his attention stayed on Jason.

Jason looked up to see that the tall fox was staring at him.

"Figure you should meet the rest now," he said roughly in his underused voice.

Jason looked back at the door, but the rabbit was gone. Jack had already started walking out of the barn, and Jason quickly followed. As he emerged back into the bright sun, he could see the thinning dust cloud from his mom's car, already hidden by a field of corn in the distance. When he looked back, three female foxes were walking towards him from the large wooden barn that badly needed a new paint job.

The three foxes stood in a line and smiled at Jason.

"Sally," Jack said, standing next to the tallest, older fox and pointing with a thick finger. He moved down the line. "Becky. Sammy."

Becky locked eyes with Jason and gave him a disapproving stare. He quickly jumped his eyes over to Sammy, who had a much warmer smile on, and then to Sally, who looked tired, but was trying to hide it. She walked forward and gave him a hug.

"Welcome to our farm! We're always willing to take on new help, and it was so nice of you to come stay with us!" She said with a smile that was a little too close to Jason's face for comfort.

The way she said it sounded like his mom hadn't told them why she really sent him her. Or maybe she was avoiding it. Or maybe she just told Jack, who was keeping it a secret. Either way, he already felt on edge and it had barely even been ten minutes.

When Sally stepped away, Jason noticed a paw held out in front of him. He grabbed it and Sammy gave a firm shake.

"It's nice to meet you," she said, and then stepped back. Jack couldn't help but notice how clean she looked compared to the others.

With a gentle shove from Sally, Becky was next to greet him, but she did little more than just stand in front of him with her arms crossed.

"Why are you dressed like that?" she asked.

Jason looked down at his clothes. He was in a t-shirt with a cartoon dog giving a thumbs up printed on it, baggy jeans with his boxers showing over the low waist band, and a pair of loosely tied tennis shoes that matched the flat billed cap he was wearing.

"Becky!" Sally said, pulling her back. "That wasn't very nice."

Jason looked back up. "It's ok," he said, giving a chuckle and looking at the clearly not amused girl.

"Although, I do have to say I hope you brought other clothes," she said, looking him over. "You're going to get dirty, and baggy clothing has a tendency to get caught on things."

"Uhhh... I guess I really don't have much else," Jason said, realizing he didn't even think about it.

"Hmm, you'll have to see if you fit into anything of Ham's until we can get you something else." Sally looked up. "Oh, speaking of, here he is."

Jack was pulling the thin rabbit by his left forearm. He looked uncomfortable.

"This is Ham," Sally said as Jack let him go.

"Hi," the rabbit said, avoiding eye contact with Jason.

"Ham," Sally asked. "Could you see if you have any clothes that would fit Jason? He didn't bring any clothes he could work in."

The rabbit looked nervously at her and nodded, and then stood there looking at his feet.

"Well, that is everyone. For now, at least," Sally said before laughing. "I was about to make some quick lunch, if you're hungry. We weren't expecting you quite this early, but we're having a big dinner. If you kids want to take a break out on the patio, I'll be done in a few minutes."

Everyone but Jack, who had already wandered off again, walked to the house. Jason noticed his duffle bag sitting on the patio and picked it up.

"Ham, do you want to show Jason to your room?" Sally said, smiling as she held open the door. "And while you're at it, see about the clothes."

Ham nodded and walked inside, followed by Jason. The sisters plopped down on a swinging bench outside.

The inside of the house was a collection of wood paneling and heirloom, handmade furniture. Ham lead Jason up a narrow flight of creaky steps and into a hallway painted a similar color as the outside of the house. All of the doors and windows were open, giving a gentle breeze that kept the inside of the house just slightly colder than outside. None of the lights were on. Ham walked to the farthest door on the right, and Jason followed. One of the doors lead to a white tiled bathroom, and the other two were bedrooms. When he reached ham, he was inside a yellow painted room with two small beds and a dresser.

"This is our room," Ham said, still avoiding eye contact. "I hope you don't mind sharing. Sammy and Becky share too. And mom and pop, of course."

Jason realized that the other two rooms all had the same two small, separate beds in them.

"That's fine," Jason said, looking around. "Which bed is mine?"

Ham pointed to the one nearest to the window, and Jason tossed his bag onto it.

"Are you ok?" Jason said, getting a little annoyed at the eye aversion.

Ham looked up quickly, and his wide brown eyes locked on Jason's for a second. He looked away again. "Yeah. I'm just... nervous about new people, I guess."

Jason noticed that Ham has a slight whistle to some of his words.

"You don't have to be nervous," Jason said, chuckling. "I don't bite. Unless asked to."

Ham laughed nervously and turned to the dresser. He shifted around some things and pulled out a pair of jeans that looked like they hadn't been warn much. "Try these on. They're too big for me, so they might fit you."

Jason took them and held them up to his waist.

"And these," Ham said, pulling out a set of white tank tops, "stretch a lot, so they should fit you too." He looked down at Jason's shoes, and then at his own, much larger feet. "I don't think we're going to find you shoes though."

"It's ok," Jason said looking down. "There are pretty beat up anyway. I don't mind them getting wrecked."

"Well, see if those fit, and we'll take a trip to the store when we have time. We'll get you some boots too. You'll need 'em."

Jason nodded, and pulled off his shirt. He looked over at the rabbit who was still standing there. "Do you mind?" he asked, giving him a look.

"Oh!" Ham said, and quickly walked out of the room.

Jason tried on the jeans, which were a little tight everywhere, but he figured he'd probably lose some weight from working anyway. He tried wearing them low like he was used to, but he caught a glimpse of himself in an old mirror sitting in the closet, and he liked the way his butt looked, so he wore them high. Not that there were any girls around that he wasn't blood relatives with to impress, but just in case. The tight white tank top looked good on him too. What little chest muscle he had stood out more. He posed in the mirror with his thumbs in his pockets picturing a large belt buckle and a cowboy hat.

"I rock this look," he said to himself.

He continued posing until he saw something move in the corner of his eye. He looked over, but figured it was just the curtain blowing around in the other room. One last look in the mirror, and he walked down to the patio, where the three kids were waiting, already eating their sandwiches. Sammy and Becky had moved to two wicker chairs, and Ham was sitting on the floor. There was a plate sitting on a small table next to a faded silk plant, so Jason grabbed it and joined Ham on the floor.

The heat was a little more tolerable with the lighter clothing, but not by much. He hoped he had brought enough deodorant.

"You get used to the heat," Sammy said, noticing Jason, already leaving a sweat mark on his new shirt.

"I sure hope"

"It also gets colder at night. But there are more bugs," Becky chimed in.

"We usually sit out here after the sun goes out, but after a while we get sick of slapping mosquitoes and go back inside," Sammy said before shoving the last of her sandwich in her mouth.

Jason looked out and at the fields of corn around them.

"So, what else is there to do around here but sit on a patio at night?"

"Not much," Sammy said, brushing crumbs off her shirt. "You get used to that too, I guess." She stood up.

"Great," Jason said, shifting on the hard boards.

"Don't worry about not having anything to do," Becky said, poking at the uneaten crusts on her plate. "Pop will work you so hard during the day, you will be glad there is only nothing to do at night."

"Don't listen to her," Sammy said. "She's just lazy and thinks any work is too much work. As long as you do it right, it's not so bad."

"And let me guess," Jason said. "You get used to it?"

Sammy smiled and nodded. "You got it!"

Jason sighed. "What exactly do you guys do here?"

"Everything," Becky belted out in a whiney tone.

"Mostly the small work that doesn't require the big machines," Sammy said. "Jack doesn't like us working with the big stuff. Well, he doesn't mind Ham using them, but that's a fairly recent thing. I figure you'll probably start out with us, and when he trusts you, he'll move you on to bigger stuff."

Jason pictured himself driving a huge tractor.

"We're fertilizing today!" Becky said. "Ever done that before?"

Jason shook his head and Becky giggled like she had a secret.

"Why is she laughing like that?" Jason asked Sammy, shifting again in the tight jeans.

"Well, fertilizer is manure."

"Poop!" Becky laughed.

Jason sighed again and looked down at his feet. "Bye bye shoes. It was nice knowing you."

"We actually don't use a lot of it. It's mostly the straight up chemicals, but Jack has a thing for tradition, so we mix the old with the new. The mixing of it is the worst part, and you're lucky that we already did that before you got here. Now we just need to get it onto the field."

Becky hopped up to her feet, and Sammy started taking plates.

"You guys get started, I'll join you in a second," she said, before disappearing behind the screen door.

They three of them walked around to the side of the barn where a large vessel was sitting. Jason wrinkled his nose as he got closer and realized that it was the source of a majority of the odor on the farm.

Ham, being the tallest, opened up the lid.

Jason gagged, and the others laughed just in time for Becky to join in. The three of them hooked up a hose to the vessel and connected it to a large machine not too far away. Soon, the liquid mixture was moving and making sounds and smells that made Jason run away, heaving.

After losing most of his sandwich, he returned to see Jack starting up the machine. With the hose disconnected, he drove off down a road past the barn.

"That was it?" Jason said, trying to ignore the taste in his mouth.

"For us at least," Sammy said, hauling the hose closer to the barn. "Normally we do this a while ago, but with the late spring, it's screwed up our schedule, so Jack just wants it done now."

"So, what do we do now?" Jason said, looking around.

"Well, me and Becky have chores with mom for the rest of the day. You and Ham get to clean out the hay loft."

Jason looked at Ham. "Sounds good." Ham smiled.

The sisters walked off towards the house, and Ham led Jason into the barn. It was mostly empty stalls, but the back half was a series of compartments holding hay.

Jason looked up at a dense clump of spider webs over his head and shivered. "Uhhhg, spiders."

Ham reached over and grabbed a broom, and wiped them away as best he could. "Better?"

"Yeah, thanks," Jason said, trying to ignore the fact that it just meant there were pissed, homeless spiders around him now. He gave a smile, and Ham smiled too, looking him in the eyes.

Jason was the first to break eye contact and look back over to the hay pile. Three of the compartments were filled with tightly bunched up bales, but the last one on the ground level just had a loose heap in the middle.

"Can I try something?" Jason said?

"Sure?" Ham said, seeing Jason run full speed before he could stop him.

The fox leapt and dove hard into the pile.

Ham ran up after him and stood next to the motionless fox laying face down in the hay. Jason's head turned.

"This isn't as fun as movies would have you think. And it's a lot more itchy."

"Wait until we start moving it. Ever gotten hay in your eye?"

Jason rolled over. "No, but I think I just got pretty close."

Ham held out a paw to help him up. Jason grabbed it, and was surprised at the strength of the gangly looking rabbit as he was flung up quickly. He lost his balance and fell into Ham's chest.

"Whoa, where do you hide all that muscle?" Jason asked, looking down when he realized he was stepping on Ham's foot. "Whoops! Sorry!" Jason said, brushing off some hay he got on Ham. He noticed there was something big in Ham's pocket that he hadn't noticed before, but quickly looked away when he realized pockets don't hang that low and on the inside of a leg.

He awkwardly stepped back, not sure if he should pretend he didn't see it, or make a joke about it.

"You... uh... got something... there," he said, motioning in the general direction of Ham's crotch while looking away.

Ham looked down and turned around apologizing.

"It's... ok. Happens to every guy," Jason said, regretting not just ignoring it.

He watched Ham out of the corner of his eye trying to readjust.

"Not exactly how I wanted to make an impression," Ham said, mostly in an effort to disguise the sound of his zipper, which didn't work well.

"Don't worry about it," Jason said, walking a little farther away onto the hay pile. "Really."

With a clearing of Ham's through, his zipper was back up, and he was walking towards the wall of the barn. He returned and stood next to the fox.

Jason turned around to see a pitch fold being extended to him. He took it, and quickly glanced at Ham's crotch, which made them both feel awkward. Ham quickly stuck his fork into the hay.

"So..." Ham said, lifting up a big chunk of the pile. "Watch out for snakes in here. They like to hide." He dropped the clump of hay into a large wheel barrel.

"Even the trouser kind?" Jason said, trying to defuse the tension, but with no reaction from Ham, he only made it worse. He jammed his fork into the pile too.

They filled up the wheel barrel, and Ham showed Jason where they dump the old hay. A few more trips and the floor of the stall was almost empty. There wasn't much talking anymore. Ham replaced the pitch forks with brooms, and they swept up the last of the hay and dumped it with the rest.

They spent the next few hours rearranging the bales so the oldest ones were the easiest to get to. When the last one had been moved, Jason pulled out one and used it as a bench to sit down. Ham joined him. They were both breathing heavily and sweaty in the cooped up barn. The stale air swirled with hay fragments and dust illuminated by a few cracks in the walls and the two open doors. It was quiet in the barn.

Jason could just barely make out the smell of his body from the musty odors around him.

"I don't think I have ever worked this hard in my life," he said.

"It'll get worse. Pop wants us to organize chain tomorrow morning," Ham said, leaning back and resting on his palms, his shoulder touching Jason's.

"Does he give you all the hard stuff?" Jason asked, still out of breath.

"Yeah. This took half the time it normally does, though. I'm looking forward to the help this summer."

"Your sisters don't help?" Jason said, practically gasping and wondering how Ham had already caught his breath.

Ham shook his head. "Becky's too small, and Sammy isn't good with heavy labor. She's better with fixing stuff like tractors over lifting heavy things. I know she and Becky were fixing the laundry machine today. They've probably been done for hours now."

"Huh."

"Yeah. Sammy's pretty smart too. She's set to go to college. Unlike me." Ham shifted on the hay bale.

"I'm not going either," Jason said.

Ham itched his chin in the silent barn. "So, how long are you going to stay here?"

"I don't know. My mom wants me here until at least the end of summer. But, since I'm not going to school, I don't really know when she'll think it's been long enough.

"Ok."

There was another silence.

"Hey," Ham said. "About earlier... with my... you know..."

"Really, you don't have to worry about it. I've got one too."

"A hard-on?" Ham said curiously, looking down at Jason's lap.

"Uhh... I meant a dick," Jason said, raising an eyebrow. "But, they're pretty much the same thing, aren't they?"

Ham gave a forced chuckle, feeling embarrassed again. "Still, I'm sorry about it," Ham said, leaning forward.

"It's probably best if we both just forget about it," Jason said, leaning up too.

"Oh... ok," Ham said, resting his chin on his palms as he balanced his elbows on his knees. "Never happened then."

"What never happened?" Jason asked.

"Me getting a hard-on when you fell down."

Jason closed his eyes and sighed. "I thought it never happened?" He chuckled.

"Oh," Ham said, feeling the warm glow of his cheeks from the blush he had. "I'm not very good at this."

"Just don't worry about it then." Jason said, looking up at the rafters above them. "Although, before we ignore this completely, I have to say, you look like you were very blessed down there."

"What do you mean?" Ham said, confused.

"You're well endowed," Jason laughed.

"Am I?" Ham said, looking in his lap. "I guess I never really compared it before."

"Don't you watch porn?" Jason said, looking over at him.

Ham shook his head. "I've heard about it, but never seen it."

"Well, you'd give a lot of those guys a run for their money from what I saw." Jason looked up at a bird flying in from a hole in the roof.

"Huh." Jason looked up at the rafters. "What about you?"

Jason looked over at him. "Me?" he asked.

"Yeah. How big are you?" Ham asked, looking back.

Jason looked away. "Well, I guess I'm a little above average."

"Oh, ok." Ham looked at his feet.

"The ladies have never complained about it," Jason said. "Well, lady."

"You've had sex?" Ham asked, his ears perking up.

"Of course," he smirked. "Well, just one time. And it was oral... But I was getting really friendly with this one chick I met... but I guess that's over now that I'm here."

"What was it like?" Ham asked, sounding a little too excited for an answer.

"Well, I liked it. It's better than wanking on your own, that's for sure."

"Ok," Ham said, shifting a little.

"Haven't you ever had a girlfriend?"

Ham shook his head. "The girls around here aren't...."

"Hot?"

"Sure. So, I just kind of avoid them. Not that I even can since they're too busy avoiding me."

"You'll find someone," Jason said. "And while you're at it, you should find me one who isn't my relative." Jason laughed.

A head popped into the barn door.

"Mom said be cleaned up for dinner in ten minutes." And Becky's head was gone.

"Think she heard anything?" Jason asked.

"Probably," Ham said, watching Jason stand up. "Not that she has more than three people to even tell it too. That's the good thing about this town. If something is going to spread, it happens quick, and then it's over."

"I'll keep that in mind." Jason started walking.

Ham waited for Jason to be a fair ways ahead of him before standing up and adjusting his new erection.

Back at the house, Jason and Ham shared a sink to wash up in.

"I feel like I need a shower," Jason said, splashing some water on his face and drying the fur off with a towel.

"I'd clean up your best now. We don't have much hot water, and with a new body to clean, somebody's getting an ice shower for sure."

"Geeze. Maybe we should pair up," Jason said, nudging the rabbit. "If we don't save the water, at least we can keep each other warm!"

Ham chuckled and they both went down for dinner.

Sally had made a huge dinner with sloppy joes at the center, and lot of sides. Jack had already started eating, and Becky and Sammy had just sat down when the two walked into the room. They sat at the table and were joined by Sally. The food went quickly since there wasn't much talking to distract them. When they were done, Jack left to work on something in the basement, and the kids all were assigned dish duty while Sally rested on the patio.

Jason was wedged awkwardly into the fairly tight mechanics of the regular task for the others, but he quickly picked up on the pace, and soon, they were all out on the patio too.

The night had cooled off significantly, and Jason was surprised the temperature difference from the house to the outside.

"The kitchen heats up the whole house," Sammy said, noticing Jason's reaction. "It'll be cool enough in an hour or so."

Jason nodded and sat down. The patio was lit with a single dim bulb which seemed to have been attracting very bug in a mile radius. The light tapping of the hard insect bodies on the hot glass bulb was the only other sound amongst the rustle of corn stalks in the wind. Jason looked out past the patio, but beyond the illuminated ground around them, he couldn't see much.

"Ready?" Becky just barely said before flicking off the patio light. Only the faint glow from the window near them remained. But, with the scampering of small feet, the light was off before the screen door even closed again.

As Jason's eyes adjusted, he could begin to separate the corn from the sky. And then the stars. He scooted closer to the steps. The sky was endless and bright. Every star was visible around him, twinkling in the endless abyss of the night. He felt small.

"A little different than in the cities, isn't it?" Sally asked.

Jason nodded but then realized they probably couldn't see him. "Yeah. I've never seen so many before."

"I remember the first time I moved to the country and saw the stars. It sold me, and I haven't gone back since."

"You used to live in the city?" Jason asked Sally, surprised to hear it.

"Yes, quite a long time ago. I was tired with the area and wanted something new, so I saved up, bought a small place a few towns over and worked as a waitress in the local dinner. Then Jack met me, and well, you can guess the rest of the story."

The group sat silently watching and listening to the night. The lights from the neighboring farms were too far away to see, so the world looked like an endless sea of black rustling leaves. Jason wondered what it'd be like to stand in the field at night. And then images of all the horror movies he had seen popped into his head. Murderers, aliens, mutated science experiments. Anything could be out there watching him right back. Suddenly the innocent field seemed a lot more sinister and he gave a shiver.

A flashing light caught Jason's eye in the distance. He looked over, but it was gone. Then a blink more, and another. They looked like they were moving. "What is that?"

"Fireflies," said a voice near his ear.

Jason jumped, not realizing he had sat right next to Ham in the darkness. Or had the rabbit moved closer? Ham apologized for startling him.

"It's ok," Jason chuckled and looked back at the blinking bugs. "I've never seen a fire fly before."

"They're everywhere now because it's so hot. There is a pond not too far from here that they come from. We can take you there some time."

Jason watched the flickering lights all around him, wondering how he had missed Ham before since he was now ultra conscious of the body sitting next to him. He could just make out the silhouette, and their shoulders were almost touching.

Jason heard Sally swat at a bug. "The house should be cool by now," she said, moving to the door.

Becky flicked on the patio light and Jason blinked, getting used to the light again. The stars were duller now.

He looked over at Ham, who was looking over at the door. The rabbit stood up and moved towards it, followed by Jason.

Becky yawned.

"Time for bed, Becky," Sally said.

After some protest, Sally finally got the young fox to cooperate and go upstairs with her, leaving the three older kids in the living room. Sammy sat down on one of the old couches, and Jason sat down on the other. Ham hesitantly sat next to Jason.

"So, what do you do for fun in the city?" Sammy asked.

"Well, I don't actually live in the city. I live just outside of it in the suburbs. And lots of stuff. Whatever we can find, really, it depends."

"Like what?"

"Well, usually none of us have any money, so we hang out mostly. Sometimes at each other's houses, sometimes at the mall, and sometimes just at a park until it gets too dark."

"Sounds kinda boring," Sammy said. "I figured from you asking about what we doing around her, you'd be having tons of fun."

"Ehh, kinda. We're usually playing video games or smo..." Jason realized he wasn't sure if they know why he was here. "Uh, smoking jerky."

"Smoking jerky?" Ham asked.

"Sometimes. Like I said, anything we can find to do."

Ham nodded, not fully convinced, Sally even less so.

"So," Jason said, switching the topic. "Where did Jack go?"

"He's probably already in bed. We wake up early around here, him especially," Sammy said.

Jason moaned. "Like how early? Eight?"

"Five. Maybe six if it's a slow day. It'll be five tomorrow morning."

Jason groaned and fell forward resting his chest on his thighs. "I haven't woken up that early in years." Jason looked up at the clock. "Shouldn't we be in bed by now then?"

"Yeah, around about now."

Jason groaned and sat up.

"You get used to it," Sally said.

"I'm thinking I should get that tattooed on me. It seems to be the big thing here."

They laughed. Sammy was the first to get up, followed by the others as they made their way up the stairs, which creaked and moaned below them.

"Guess there's not much of a chance of sneaking out in this house," Jason said before they reached the top.

Two of the doors were closed, and Sammy disappeared behind the first closed one. "Night!" she whispered before closing it.

Ham and Jason went to their room, and Ham closed the door.

"Are we really going to bed this early?" Jason asked.

Ham put a finger to his lips. "Not so loudly, people are trying to sleep."

"Oh, sorry," Jason whispered.

"Yeah. We get to stay up a little earlier in the winter when there is less work, but with school, it's not much different."

Jason pulled off his shirt and sat down on his bed. "So, what's the local custom on what to wear to bed here?" He smoothed out his chest fur which was bunched down oddly from the tight shirt.

"Whatever you want, really," Ham said, sitting down on his bed and facing Jason.

"Well, what do you normally wear?"

"In this heat? Just my boxers. But that was before I had a roommate."

"Well, I didn't bring pajama pants, and I really want to get out of these jeans, so don't let me stop you."

"Isn't that going to be awkward?" Ham said, his ears flicking up.

"I'm too tired and hot to care right now."

"Ok then," Ham stood up, and was joined by Jason.

"One..." Jason started, moving his paws to his zipper. "Two... three."

They both unzipped, but only Ham's pants fell to his ankles. Jason laughed as he tried to pull the tight jeans down to his thighs, before falling back on the bed, and kicking them off violently. He sat back up.

"Never dropped trow with another guy before," Jason said, looking at the thin looking green plaid shorts Ham was wearing. "Not as bad as I thought it'd be."

Ham chuckled and awkwardly moved over to the lamp in the room and turned it off. They two crawled into bed and laid in the silence. Jason threw off the heavy blanket on him so he was just under the sheet, but Ham was still, thankful it was dark in the room.

"So," Jason said after shifting around on the uncomfortable mattress. "I wanna know. Why Ham?"

"It's short for Hamilton," Ham responded.

"Oh, ok. I wondered about that. I figured it was just a nickname or something."

"Nope, just my name."

"Good to know," Jason said before shifting once more.

Ham laid in the bed, his paw resting over his hard crotch, staring into the ceiling, waiting for the sound of snoring to come from the other bed, and being thankful that it came quickly.