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The McCullin's home was set far outside of Charlottesville where the city was nothing more than a dim outline far on the horizon during the day and nothing more than a glow against the night sky after dark. It was settled on a large sweep of land that stretched out in green rolling fields and pastures that housed a neat pasture for horses and a massive building that held a riding ring and several large stalls to hold prized horses. The house itself had stood in the same place since the late seventeen hundreds and boasted a small plaque that advertised it as a historical landmark. It had once been a thriving plantation, though the cotton fields had been changed into pastures and decorative gardens. The house was large and gleamed white with Romanesque columns that came from another time and another owner.

Todd had been enthralled with the place since he had first come to interview for a position of butler and servant for the McCullins. It had shocked him when he'd come along the road and found that nearly two miles away there were project houses and one could get shot for wearing the wrong colors. The lady of the house had dismissed the situation and informed him that her family had held this property since the mid eighteen hundreds and she wasn't going to abandon it for an unsavory element that had come about. She had erected a formidable wall around their property and had several security guards that patrolled and ensured their safety. Edward had been quite impressed with the delicate seeming woman taking such a stance with her home.

Mary McCullin was strict, sharp witted and held a formidable personality that always made him slightly uneasy. Her husband, Edward, was barely seen. He owned some large pharmaceutical company and tended to be out and about on business. When he was in residence he was often in the smaller family rooms and spending time with his wife and their eight year old daughter Emily. It was a lovely family and he had been filled with pride when he had been hired on to serve the family in such an intimate manner. With the state of the economy had been in, it had been hard to find any job, but the one he was hired on to do paid well. It was the sort of job that anyone would have been pleased to have, not only because of the pay, the room and board and benefits, but because becoming an intimate with a powerful rich family often meant lifelong job security as long as he did his job properly.

The first few weeks were easy enough. He spent his time learning the way the family expected him to behave and what they needed done. There were maids that handled the cleaning twice a week, but he was expected to help tidy things up between cleanings. The rest of his work consisted of doing errands for the house hold, helping Mrs. McCullin when she held events at the house. It was light and easy work, and the only part that he somewhat objected to was the fact they had yet to hire on nanny to watch over young Emily. It wasn't that the child was foul tempered or bad mannered, but she was eight years old and had all the stubbornness that came with that age. He had never had children or married, but he was quite familiar with children. He had several younger siblings that he'd helped take care when they were growing up.

Todd was never given her as his primary task, but he often took her out to the park and to visit the stables when she wanted to. He had even unthawed enough to be coaxed and begged to the point that he played small games with her when her friends weren't over. He noticed that she rarely had friends over, not for lack of those who wanted to play, but because her Mother often told her that she had to learn how to behave. The child was sweet enough when she wasn't feeling stubborn and he hadn't seen her misbehave, so it baffled him that Emily was kept away from people for the most part. It was one of the things that puzzled him, another was the fact that the family seemed to treasure certain secrets that had been hinted at, but never addressed.

The house always had a strange presence to it. At first he'd dismissed it as being a new house and one he wasn't entirely used to when it came to noises and how footsteps echoed through the place. But later, after he had become accustomed to the way the house was set up he began to realize that there were some things that he didn't understand. He would hear Mrs. McCullin talking to herself in the library and a smaller voice would answer, but when he went in no one was there and there was not telephone in sight. Mr. McCullin would be seen in his office completely alone and at the desk, but in the next breath Todd would glance in and see neatly stacked boxes that seemed to come from his business. He knew they hadn't been there to start with and he hadn't been sent to fetch them.

He heard voices and footsteps where there were none. He often found messes and when he went to get supplies to clean them, they were gone when he returned. There were so many small things that made him question what was going on, but there were no answers. Even little Emily had strange happenings. He had seen things move in her room more than once in her room. A doll would turn to watch him, or a stuffed animal would wag its tail. It was so bizarre that he had finally attributed it to being haunted. He had seen enough shows about old plantation houses that it wouldn't have surprised him if restless spirits still ran through the place. Not that that was a calming thought, but it was the best he had.

The day had started brightly around the house and Todd had spent the night listening to something running above him. His quarters were settled in the old carriage house where the drivers used to stay, but it used to be the main house once upon a time. The sound of movement was often felt around his small apartment and it had led to a disturbed sleep that left him feeling muzzy as he went about his duties. It was almost a relief when Mrs. McCullin asked him to take Emily down to the stable so that she could be out of the house. There was a small garden party taking place and the little girl was as wiggly as a puppy. There was little chance that she'd sit still for a meal surrounded by businessmen and women.

"Come on, Todd! Don't be so slow!" The little girl bounced in front of him, her chestnut hair was pulled back into a high pony tail that bounced about.

"I'm coming, Miss Emily, but please stop running." He trudged up the small hill towards the stable and felt a rush of gratitude that his employers had given him a pair of riding pants and boots for when he was in the stables.

"You have to see my new pony! He came in last week and Momma says I'm going to learn how to ride him soon." Emily glanced back at him with a large smile on her face. "Are you going to ride too, Todd? I could teach you!"

"You do not know how to ride yet, Miss Emily, and I'm afraid I'm not comfortable around anything large enough to squish me." He managed a smile and took her hand as they walked towards the edge of the fence line. "But I will be pleased to watch you learn how to ride your new pony."

"There he is!" Emily squealed out and tugged at his hand as she tried to leap towards the fence line.

Todd sighed softly and released her hand so she could run for the fence without him holding her back. He didn't have enough sleep to try and jog behind her when she was already so excited. He kept an eye on her as she reached the fence and scrambled up to the first rung so she could hang over it. She was peering out at a small form in the midst of all the large horses that were grazing. The dark smoky grey pony was cropping grass eagerly around the hooves of the larger geldings. The thick dark tail swished back and forth as he moved about searching for better grazing. He went up to the fence behind her and smiled down as she leaned as far as she could over the fence.

"So that's him?" He leaned forward and crossed his arms over the top rung of the fence. "The little one there?"

"He's not little, he's big for a dartmoor! Isn't he pretty?" Emily squirmed a little. "His name is Storm. I named him myself, because he looks like a storm cloud."

Todd glanced back at the round looking pony and kept himself from grinning at the name Storm. The little fellow didn't look like a storm, he looked like a pony. His mane was thick and heavy so that it partially covered his eyes, the dark dappled body was slightly round around the middle instead of smooth like the geldings he was walking around. Despite that, he was sleek and brushed so that his fur gleamed brightly. His legs boasted dark ebony stockings that matched his thick mane and tail, they were muscled and picked up and dropped daintily. He was perfectly proportioned to himself, he didn't look at all like the ponies he had ridden as a child. They had been nondescript and pudgier then Storm, mixed breed horses that hadn't been careful bred with a pedigree that was longer than most human ancestries.

"So, when will you be taking your lessons with him?" He glanced down as Emily seemed to be drinking in the sight of her pony.

"After he's gelded." She wrinkled her nose up. "Momma says that he's a little too ornery for me to ride yet since he got taken away from his girlfriends. The vet's gonna come out next week and then after he's all recovered I'll be able to ride him."

Todd winced a bit in sympathy at the idea of the little fellow being gelded. "Well, then, at least you're going to be all set then. You're getting a new riding outfit and everything in."

"I want to ride today!" Emily looked up at him with wide eyes. "You could hold his halter and I could sit on his back."

"Now, Miss Emily, I don't think that's a very good idea. I don't know the first thing about horses and you could be hurt if he took it in his head to be upset." Todd smiled slightly and pushed back from the fence. "Come along, we can go up to the house and you can play with your toy horses."

"I want to ride!" The little girl hopped off the fence and cast another longing look at the pony. "I bet I could ride him no problem. Please, Todd, he'll behave!"

"No, Miss Emily, it is too dangerous." He placed a stern look on his face as he spoke in the hopes of ending the argument.

"But.. I can ride! It won't be dangerous." The little girl wrinkled her nose up as she glared at him. She had perfected a stubborn look that was almost adorable.

"Yes it would be. Come along now, we can go back up to the house." He offered his hand to her, but she didn't take it.

"Why don't you play horse then?" The frown faded into a grin like the sun peeking out from behind the rain clouds. "You can be Storm! And I can ride you!"

"Now really, Miss Emily, I don't think I would make a good horse at all." He flushed a bit at the idea of crawling around with a child riding on his back.

"Please! You'd be great and I really want to ride. I've been good every since he came here and haven't been bugging anyone at all." Her eyes got larger and she caught his hand to give it a light pull. "Please, please Todd! I bet if I rode you, you could tell Momma I'm ready to ride now and then I won't gotta wait so long."

There were many things that Todd could resist when it came to the little girl. He could resist her when she was angry or crying, he could resist even the worst tantrum that she threw, but there was one thing he couldn't resist. And that was when she was so earnestly pleading with him with her eyes large and hopeful. She knew how to break down the butler until he sighed and gave his head a shake at his own weak will.

"Alright, just for a little, but let's go inside so I don't get grass stains on my pants." He relented and watched the girl's smile brighten up all her features.

"We can go in the ring! That's where you ride ponies, in the ring!" She tugged his hand while nearly squirming like an eager puppy.

In the end she couldn't be talked out of going to the riding ring. He gave in and let her lead him into the ring with his lips twitched up in a smile. The little girl was endearing when she was happy and his playing pony was a small price to pay to bring that smile onto her face.

The ring itself was a large affair inside of the stable and filled with raked wood chips instead of dirt. It would be something that he could brush off his knees when he was done and not nearly so hard on his hand. Emily giggled and made a fuss about him dropping down on his hands and knees like a horse. From there she giggled and tugged at his jacket and patted his head while she insisted that he make little whickers and snorts like a horse. The noises were supposed to be very horse like and judging by the laughter he managed while he patted his nose and cooed over him as if he were Storm. It would have been entirely embarrassing if it hadn't been for the fact that she was obviously loving the game and getting into it.

Her little hands patted against his shoulder and back lightly before she scrambled up onto him. He held very still as she straddled his back and gripped the edges of his jacket as if trying to make reins out of them. It wasn't quite high enough for her feet to be off the ground. The tips of her toes brushed the sawdust until she pulled her legs up and tucked them in against his sides. His jacket got mussed up as she clucked her tongue and nudged him with her sides a few times signaling that he should start moving. It was terribly embarrassing, but her giggles made him smile as he started to prance about the ring with his arms lifted high.

"Go faster, Storm! Come on! Giddy-yup!" Emily squealed and nudged her knees against him excitedly.

"Wheehehehehe.." He blushed as he whinnied out, but he tried to scramble over the saw dust with her on his back. He really hoped that no one was watching him act in such a fashion.

"Eee faster! Faster!" She leaned forward and pulled at the jacket a little bit. "C'mon Storm, let's have some fun."

"Emily... *huff* I'm going... *huff* ... As fast as I can.. *huff*" He scrambled over the ground and scuffed the saw dust on.

"No, Storm. Horses can't talk! You gotta be a horse!" Emily scolded as she bounced on his back with his movements. "I wish you were a real horse. Like Storm. You'd be the best horse ever, Todd!"

Todd laughed at the wistful comment, but he did keep trotting on all fours around the ring. She leaned over his back and bounced a little bit as he tried to move faster despite the fact that he was huffing and puffing as he scrambled around. He didn't even realize that the little girl did more then just make a wistful wish. Perhaps he should have figured it out earlier in his employment with the household. Perhaps it was just something that the modern mind didn't want to recognize. The McCullins had been a family of magicians for as long as anyone could remember. Generations of magic had been found in their bloodlines until they had formed an empire of money, power and wealth. Emily had the power, she always had, though it was uncontrolled and untaught still.

Todd kept moving forward as a tremor of heat rolled through his body in answer to Emily's wish. It was a wish that dragged her magic forward and has he lunged forward his hands tripped up and he nearly went down to his chest. Emily squealed with laughter as he tumbled and she clung to his back so that she didn't go over his shoulders and fall down into the saw dust as well. He gathered his hands under him and let out a short groaning noise as he felt his joints aching and starting to pulse in time with his heart beat. The little girl wiggled against his back and clung to his neck in a tight hug as he tried to figure out what exactly he pulled.

"You stopped! You weren't supposed to STOP, Todd!" She complained and he gave his head a short shake back and forth.

"Just a second.. Emily, I think I pulled something." He shifted and moved his arm out as the joint popped again and the heat rose through his body as he tried to get his muscles to stop aching.

The little girl pouted a bit, but stopped trying to urge him forward, she sat quietly on him as the first change rolled through him while he stared down at his hands. Outside he heard a shrill squeal of a horse from the pasture as his hand started to grow heavier and thicker. It started to lose feeling through his fingers and he dropped his hand down against the saw dust as he felt the digits starting to thicken and harden. The joints started to pull back and he let out a short cry as the nails spread over his fingers and started to thicken up and form something else completely. He backed away as the thickness of a hoof formed on each of his hands and his long sleeved shirt and jacket strained as his arms began to change as well.

Black fur trailed along the edges of his wrist and rolled up out of sight while his entire body started to twitch and jerk. Emily let out a little squealing giggle as he tried to stop the changes, but they wouldn't slow and they wouldn't stop! He tried to tell the girl to get off him so he could stand, but his arms started stiffen and the bones ached as they changed. The muscles shifted along the edges of his shoulders until he felt the seams splitting and tearing as it went. He stepped backwards, but it was halting as his legs started to pop and shift with the joins elongating and shifting. The bones thickened and became heavier as his pants ripped and tore beneath the straining of muscles that formed beneath them and along his haunches.

"Todd, stop wiggling!" Emily giggled happily while he was left gasping and struggling to find the breath to talk and tell her to go for help.

His legs grew longer and his feet hardened until he scrambled upwards and Emily tumbled off him with a squealing giggle as his ass pushed in the air. Her face peered up at him with a large smile as his haunches thickened to the point that the pants fell down in tatters around his bare legs. He could feel the naked curve of his rump exposed, but he couldn't cover himself up, not even with Emily laying on the saw dust in front of him. He wriggled and arched his head backwards before he let out a short moaning cry that ended in a squealing noise. It was echoed outside in the pasture as his hips gave a sudden pop and changed so that they were no longer situated for a biped's form.

Fur rolled over him as his shirt tore along the front and the buttons popped free one by one. They clattered to the ground as his chest grew more barreled and larger. His nostrils flared while the fur continued to spread towards upper chest in a roll of smoky grey with a spattering of paler dapples. He kicked and reared backwards as his feet changed into compact hooves and kicked up sawdust in front of him. He felt a rush of fear and pain a heart beat before a thick heavy tail spilled out from just above his rump cheeks and fell down towards the ground in a long graceful spill. His own pale blond hair started to darken and spill down along his neck in a thick heavy mane that fell towards his shoulders.

His body grew, he could feel it growing heavier as his strengthened legs had to lock in place so that he didn't collapse. He could feel the tremor running along his legs and towards his shoulders with a bit of a twitch against the smooth glossy dappled fur. His clothes fell towards the ground in a tattered pile as he lashed his tail back and forth along his haunches. His body was larger, taller and higher up on the ground then he had been before. He stared down at his long legs, but they were horse legs. The black sooty stockings gleamed a little bit as if they had been freshly groomed. They were the same legs that he had seen on Storm out in the paddock.

_What happened to me?! _ He stepped backwards and opened his mouth to protest as he felt a roll inside of his mind.

It was more than just a brush against his mind, but a personality that spread over him like a layer of thick tacky syrupy that rolled over every thought, every emotion, every consciousness. The other mind blossomed open so he could do little but try and push past it. But the thoughts and emotions flavored his own with shock, annoyance and surprise as he peered around the ring. It wasn't as strong as his own thoughts, but a bestial mind that touched his own while he gave himself a shake that twitched all the way down along the curve of his haunches. The being in his mind didn't care about the changes to the body, he just wanted to know why he was indoors and where the hay he had been was at.

"Oooooo..." Emily cooed and she sat up on the straw to peer up at him with large eyes. "Storm! Aren't you handsome!"

The little girl clambered up and Todd glared at her while he pulled his head up high and took a step back as she reached out to him. What the great good god had she done to him? To them? He amended the thought as he felt the presence of the less intelligent horse rolling through his thoughts with a similar annoyance at being indoors. He stomped one of his hooves and opened his mouth to demand to be let go, but a deep whicker came out of his throat as the girl reached forward and gripped either side of his cheek sand forced his head down. Her fingers stroked along the edges of his mane and ran behind the curve of the ears towards his neck and shoulders.

"EMILY! What are you doing down here by yourself?" The girl moved in close and started to rub against the curve of his chest and shoulder. The fingers stroked against his fur and he turned his head, the only part of him that hadn't changed with the rest of his body, and tried to see who was talking.

"I wanted to see my pony!" She stroked along the fur and trailed down towards the curve of the dappled shoulder.

One of the grooms, a rough looking older man with scruffy cheeks, stepped into the ring with a frown on his face. Todd lifted a hopeful face towards him and prepared to see the shock and outrage on his face as to what had happened to him. Instead the groom shook his head and stepped forward to catch one of Emily's arms and pulled him back with a soft sigh. Her hands slipped along his shoulder while Todd gave himself a shake and stepped forward to try and get some help. Whatever had happened, it was obviously tied to the girl somehow. He wasn't sure how, but she'd wished he was a real horse and now he was something. Not quite a horse, but definitely not human. And definitely not alone. He could feel Storm's thoughts over his own as the groom unhooked a lead rope from his belt.

"Where is Todd? Storm may be small, but he's still a stallion and can cause problems!" The groom, John, his name was John if Todd recalled right. "C'mon, lad. Don't you start making trouble. How on earth did you get him out of the paddock without a halter?"

"I didn't, he was just here." Emily beamed up at Todd and wiggled a little. "Can I ride him? He's right here, John and I was gonna ride him! Todd said I could!"

"I'm sure Todd said no such thing." John looped the lead behind Todd's neck while he looked at his ward indignantly for lying.

"Yes he did! Please, just one little ride, you can hold the lead!" Emily stared up at him with a pleading expression and John snorted.

"I'm not falling for that missy, you'll wait for your lessons. Now go on up to the house and find Todd. You probably slipped away when he had his back turned." The groom tightened the lead like a lasso just behind his chin and jaw.

"Fine.. But can I come back later? Pleaaaaase?" Emily kept those big eyes while John gave a frustrated whicker of protest. Why couldn't he see that he wasn't really a pony?

"If your mother says so, but for now, off with you!" John laughed as Emily bolted with a final pat against the curved dappled haunches.

_She can't just leave me like this! _ He glared at the girl and stomped one of his hind legs against the ground angrily. _I am going to tan her hide for this! _

"C'mon, fella, can't believe you just came in here with her so mildly. And to think your owner said you were a trouble maker." John laughed and pulled the lead so that Todd walked forward and snorted in annoyance.

It was obvious that they weren't able to see that he was really Todd. The groom just led him from the ring while he heard the dull clop of his hooves slip away from the saw dust and onto the firm concrete so that his hooves echoed with clattering noises. He flicked his tail back and forth as John pulled him down along and kept his hand gripping right beneath the loop of rope. He tucked his chin down and pushed against the rope in annoyance. He wasn't a damned pony! He could look right down his pale pink naked nose of a perfectly human face! It was like some sort of horrible joke that was being pulled on him that had started with the strange partial transformation that left him clattering around on all fours on four powerful glossy dark legs.

John let out a soft laugh while he tried to use his lips to pull at the rope, and the groom only gave him an affectionate slap on the shoulder. It was frustrating to walk beside the man who was so much taller then he was. Despite the fact he was bigger and was heavier then he had ever been as a human, he was still shorter then he had been as a human. His head barely reached the man's shoulder as they walked down the line of stalls and around a corner of the ring. His tail swished back and forth with long sweeps against his haunches as he stewed over how best to make them admit that this was all some bizarre practical joke and turn him back the way he should be.

As he was led towards the smaller stalls that were set up away from where the blood stock was kept, he walked in front of a full length mirror that ran against the very edge of the ring. It was supposed to be there to help riders look at their form and their horses strides when they weren't being watched. He strained his head up to get a glimpse of himself in the mirror as the groom gave a pulling tug that nearly skidded his hooves against the ground. He was able to swing around as John let out a short little protest. But Todd was able to turn about so he could stare at himself in the mirror and felt a wash of horror and anger that rolled through his stomach. He squealed out in protest and yanked backwards until the lead was drawn tight around his neck.

The mirror didn't reflect his partially changed body at all. Instead, he was staring at the compact, slightly rounded body of the stallion he had seen in the mirror. He threw his head higher up as he tried to jerk backwards on his haunches. The head was perfectly formed with a dark black muzzle that faded towards a gun metal grey head. A spattering of dapples ran along the curves of his cheeks and towards the edges of his ears where the fur darkened again. He looked like a horse, no, not a horse. A pony! He stamped and struggled against the lead in outrage at how he was being handled. He was not a pony! And he was certainly not Storm, a round nearly adorable pony that had been sitting in the pasture with the rest of the horses that made him look like a toy!

"STORM! Easy, easy, easy..." John pulled harder and Todd dropped down on his four legs with a clatter of his hooves. The groom's hand moved up to cup against his chin and he was pulled forward while he was still snorting.

It took him a moment to stop bucking and fighting against the lead. The hold beneath his chin kept him drawn up tight against the groom while his eyes rolled slightly and tried to stare at his reflection in the mirror. It wasn't just the fact he was a pony, but that he had been changed all over. The mirror was clear enough that he saw one glimpse that made him blanche. He could see the underside of his belly and the heavy black sheath and the heavy glans that was hanging out from the fleshy pouch. It swayed back and forth with his movements and he let out a groan. Even that? He was an animal, entirely an animal, at least that's what everyone seemed to see when they glanced at him. It was more then just unsettling. It was horrifying.

_I don't know what happened, I don't know how it happened, but I am not going to tolerate this. I did not sign up for this! _ Todd thought furiously as he let himself being led out towards the pasture one reluctant step at a time.

Through it all he felt the thoughts of the pony overladening his own. The pony wanted to go back to the pasture where he could graze, the pony still wasn't sure how he managed to end up in the ring. He wanted to be out with the rest of the horses and to be able to try and boss them around so he could try and etch out his position in the herd. It baffled Todd and he ignored those thoughts as much as he could and concentrated more on his position. It was obvious that he was stuck being on four legs until he found a way out of it, he just didn't know what way he was going to find to get out of trap. He gave himself a shake as he was pulled away from the door that led to the pasture and was moved towards a smaller opening.

Now that he wasn't struggling, John gave him a friendly rub against the ridge of his mane and pulled him towards a very small outdoor ring that was set just beyond the door. It wasn't as large as the indoor one, but it didn't have to be. It was mostly used for lunging and a bit of training as he understood it. Not that he knew much about the stables. He had never been around horses except for a little when he was younger. The groom pulled him to one side and started to lead him towards the entrance of the ring with a light stroke along the curve of the shoulder.

"Come on now, lad, we need to get you somewhere where you won't get into any trouble." John hauled the door open so that the bottom fence scraped against the ground. "How that girl got you out of the paddock I'll never know."

Todd snorted out in annoyance, but let himself be pulled into the ring where the saw dust scuffed up under his hooves and he sneezed out at the bits of it that trailed into his muzzle. John barely walked him a few feet into the ring before the lead was loosened and slipped off his neck. It was a relief not to feel it wrapped around him and he sighed out a little bit, but it ended in a short squeal as the end of the lead clapped up against his curved haunch. He squealed and kicked his hooves out before trotting forward with a shiver of his hide. That wasn't called for! The bite of the lead wasn't painful, but it was startling so he bolted a few steps forward before twisting his head to glare back at the groom who was pulling the gate closed.

"Now you behave yourself!" The groom called out and the metal latch clattered shut and signaled that it had been locked as well.

Todd watched the groom with angry eyes before turning about to look at the ring. He shifted on the heavy hooves that he'd been graced with and took a moment to try and orient himself. He dropped his head down and drew in a steadying breath as he looked down at the gleaming black hooves that had replaced his hands. He lifted one and it scuffed up the dust before dropping it back down again. He couldn't even feel his fingers in it, he couldn't move them, couldn't flex them. There was nothing remaining of his hand there that he could see. It was fringed with immaculately trimmed fur that barely curled over the tops of the hooves. It wasn't something he had ever dreamed he would see and it made panic and anger war against each other.

Okay, okay, think about this rationally damnit.. He lifted his head and licked his lips nervously. It's obvious they can't see me as I really am. They don't know what I am. They just think that I'm a pony of some sort. Wait.. not just a pony, they think I'm storm... I'm a pony, I'm obviously not able to talk, and I'm naked. What the hell do I do now?

_ _

He tried to ignore the fact he was naked and instead concentrated on the problem of what he was. He lashed his tail and lifted his hooves to start to pace back and forth in the ring as he mulled over what he'd just gone through. Somehow he had been changed, and if he was changed, the only logical conclusion was that Emily had been able to do it. He didn't know how, but she had wished for it and it had happened. It wasn't that out of bounds to think that she had some form of magic then. Was that the reason there were so many odd happenings in the house? Was the girl causing them? Or was there some sort of ghost that had made this happen? If so, how did he find a way to change himself back?

"Why's the pony over here?" A voice called out and he stopped in his pacing to stare at a young lad that clambered up onto the fence to peer at him. "He try pouncing the geldings again?"

"No, Emily had him out in the inside ring. I figured I'd put him where I can see him." John answered from the side of the barn and Todd flinched before he turned around and stalked to the far end of the ring.

"Heh, best keep him out of here later on. I have to bring the mares down to groom and he hasn't had a girl in ages. Lucky he's not dry humping." The lad laughed and John gave a sharp reprimand for such language.

Todd ignored them to the best of his ability as he started to walk along the far end of the ring, but he could feel eyes watching him as he paced. If Emily had done this to him, it was possible that she could be the one that could change him back again. He wasn't sure how much had been under her control. Had she deliberately turned him into this beast or had it just been something that had happened? If it was something that she controlled, he should be able to get her to turn him back. She'd eventually miss him around the house and if not, her parents would certainly start to wonder where he had gone. If she hadn't controlled it that could be tricky. He'd have to tell someone who he was and what had happened without the use of his voice or fingers to write with. How did an animal communicate with a person? The answer was that they really couldn't, not in a way that would be understood.

He continued to pace back and forth as he tried to come up with a plan that might get him the attention he needed to rectify what had happened. He managed to ignore the lad hanging out on the edge of the fence while he cast about for a way to show who he was. At least, he managed to forget about the boy until a soft whistle came as he turned about and started to the other end of the fence. Todd stopped and blinked his eyes at the young man crouched down next to the fence with what looked like a carrot being waved at him. The orange fleshed vegetable was capped with a thick green top that bobbed up and down as it was rocked back and forth. The whistle came out again and he threw his head back in affront that he was being summoned like an errant beast.

He deliberately turned back around and looked towards the barn where John had been working, but the man wasn't there. The open door and the sound of something being stacked inside the storage shed let him know that the man was inside tending to something. He snorted and stalked back towards the far side of the ring away from the waving carrot that was supposed to lure him to the fence line. He wasn't going to behave like some pet!

"Oh c'mon now, Storm, you're not that upset that you're away from the rest, eh?" The lad's voice came from closer behind him and Todd turned his head enough to see the young man ducking between the railings and into the ring. "Poor fellow, don't worry. The doc will take care of that problem of yours in no time, I bet. You'll forget all about the ladies."

Todd stomped a hind hoof and flinched as he took another step back to the fence, but the young man was undeterred. He didn't even recognize the fellow! He didn't know most of the men that worked in the barn as a matter of fact. His haunches touched the railings just as the lad came close enough that his fingers could reach out to scratch Todd just behind the ear. The touch was gentle and the carrot was brought up to wave just beneath his muzzle. It was humiliating and he warred with the urge to turn his head and bite the hand that was petting him. He had never been one for casual contact and the fingers were rubbing behind his head and stroking along his mane as well. He turned his head away from the carrot with a grumbling noise in his throat.

The young man only chuckled and started to stroke along his mane and towards his shoulders. "Damn, really are a stallion aren't you? Never seen one of the small fellows intact, not too bad!" The laughter that came from the young man made Todd flinch and he jerked away with a squeal.

His cheeks darkened to bright red as he saw that the stranger was looking between his haunches. It made him swing his hips away with a rush of abject humiliation that he was entirely nude. He'd known that before, but no one had bothered to ogle him in that fashion so he'd been somewhat able to ignore it. The lad only grinned and gave his shoulder a pat before shifting so that the pale green eyes were staring at that spot between his haunches again. Todd lashed his tail back and forth, but that only made him more aware of the fact that he was exposed. He could feel the long hairs trailing along the backs of his balls and each movement wobbled the heavy sheath against his lower belly. The swinging sensation of the sheath let him know that he was certainly not human in that respect.

The stable hand didn't seem to care that he wasn't enjoying being looked at, the young man was enjoying it quite a bit actually. One of his hands moved to stroked along the edge of his dappled chest so that the long fingers curled beneath him. They stroked just under his chest and Todd stiffened as he realized that those fingers weren't just petting, they were reaching for the hanging girth between his haunches. The idea of being manhandled and touch by a complete stranger, by a male, was too much. The former man let out a squeal of rage and turned his head to do the only thing he could to escape. It was inhuman, but he bit the hand that reached past him as hard as he could to try and force it away. He wasn't going to tolerate being humiliated as well as changed!

Todd felt a rush of satisfaction as the lad yelped out and jerked his arm back to hug against his chest in reaction. No, it hadn't been a human reaction at all, but it gave him a fierce sense of power to see that he'd been able to drive the boy away from touching his exposed parts. He swung his hips away deliberately and snapped his teeth again. If that was all he had left, well he would by god use it and they might decide that he wasn't a prancing dancing pony after all!

"Tim! What the hell are you doing with Storm?" John's voice was thick with anger and Todd smirked a bit. There, that would get Tim out of the ring and then he could figure out how to signal who he was.

"Blasted thing bit me." Tim rubbed his arm and the red imprints of Todd's teeth. "Sir, he's got too much energy I think. We're lucky he didn't hurt Ms. Emily, you know."

"Which is why you're in there with him and close enough for him to bite." John leaned over the fence with a frown. "I don't think he's ever bitten anyone before. The old owner said he was spirited, but biddable."

"But he was being worked then, sir." Tim gave Todd a look that made his stomach tense up. It was a considering look that made him think about the same look he'd given a few women in the past. "Now he's just standing in the pasture all day and grazing. If you like, I think we can kill two birds with one stone."

"And how's that? I'm not breeding him and I won't have him in with the mares where he'll get kicked and hurt." John glanced down at Todd with a bit of a frown. "I told the boss we should have gotten a mare."

"Oh he'll be fine. I was just thinking about the little pony trap that we have in storage from when we still had Jackson. The harness is stored away nice and neat and should fit him. I can hook him up and burn off some of his energy and Emily can help me groom and tack him." Tim smiled engagingly. "She can come on a ride so she won't be complaining so much about being kept away from him and she won't be on his back."

"We still have that old thing?" John frowned as Todd felt a rush of frantic denial. He was not going to pull a cart! "Well, that's no bad thing. He has been a bit headstrong today. I'll tell you what, go and get the trap out and bring this fellow around to the grooming area and cross tie him. I'll send Ms. Emily down so she can watch you get him ready. She can help, mind, but only if he's showing good manners. A grand idea, Tim." John gave a smile that wrinkled his features. "She's been begging me three times a day to let her ride him and this might just keep her in check until he's gelded and recovered."

"My pleasure, sir." Tim gave his head a dip. "She'll probably be well and happy by the time we're done and I can send her up with enough time for dinner."

"Good lad!" John nodded his head as Todd stared at both of them with growing despair. He was not going to draw a cart! "I think he used to be used with light cart work, but take it easy. He's been running wild long enough he'll take a bit to be reminded of good manners."

"Of course, John!" Tim glanced down at Todd and the smile made him swallow roughly. He did not want this man doing anything with him!

~ ~ * ~ ~

What Todd wanted, it turned out, was quite the opposite of what he was going to get. In the end he was pushed up against a rail so that a leather bridle was pulled up and over his head. At first he had felt relieved that the bridle wouldn't fit right and they'd obviously know that something was wrong. He was almost positive that he'd be able to show them he wasn't a horse, but the strange and unexpected happen. As the bridle was pulled over his bare human head the leather tightened and shifted against his face. Tim seemed heedless of it as the thing remolded itself so it fit his human head properly and the metal bit was forced into his mouth. It wasn't until it fell between two gapes in his teeth that he realized his head wasn't... entirely human. He licked his lips and wrinkled his nose at the taste of the metal on his tongue, all of which had been ignored as he'd been led down to a concrete space beneath a slanted roof.

A pair of thick clips were attached to the cheek bands of the bridle to attach leads that were stretched nearly tight between two hooks set on opposing poles. Todd tugged and pulled against them, but he had a limited range of motion. He could turn his head slightly to the left and right, he could drop his head a good ways and even lift it up a bit, but that was that. He couldn't move forward more than a foot or backwards either. He was trapped. The feeling left him shivering while he tried to crane his head about to see what Tim was doing. The groom seemed to be having a very good time of it as he pulled out brushes to line up on a small shelf as well as a few metal tools. None of them looked pleasant and he had no idea what any of them were for. He certainly hadn't been around horses more then casually.

"STORM! Storm storm storm!" A girlish squeal distracted his musing over the tools a heart beat before small hands gripped the bridle and pulled his head forward. "Hiya, Tim! We get to take him out? Really??"

"Yup, really." Tim grinned at her. "First I need to brush him and you stay away from his head. He bit me earlier you know."

"Storm would never bite me." Emily chirped up confidently and Todd gave a resigned sigh as she made a show of patting his nose. No, he wouldn't bite her, even if he was annoyed with her. He couldn't bite her.

"Well, just keep an eye out. I'm going to brush him down and I'll tell you what I'm doing so you know. Your old man said you could have a pony, but you'll be caring for him later on." The young man admonished and picked up a brush.

"Oh I will, won't I Storm? We're going to be best of friends." The hands continued to pat him and Todd stared down at her willing her to see that he was NOT her blasted pony!

Emily didn't seem to understand that he was near glaring at her. Her small hands stroked against his cheeks lightly as she peered over him to watch Tim. Todd had to fight the urge to jerk his head around to bite the man as the brush stroked along his side in a sweeping pull that ran over the smooth dappled hair. It wasn't rough, but it was unexpected and not something he was used to. He shivered his skin slightly and blew out a hot snort as the brush started to stroke in smooth movements and the young groom started to chat amiably with Emily. He was all too happy to explain that horses could get all manner of things in their fur when they were out in the pasture or even in their own stalls. Bits of dust, grit, straw from rolling around on the floor as well as the loose hairs that needed to be brushed out so that the hide was nice and gleaming.

If a horse, or pony, wasn't groomed the harness would chafe him if it caught hard bits of grit under the leather and a saddle could be even worse. Todd jerked back on the cross tie slightly and Emily moved to rub beneath his chin as the groom continued to brush and work along his back and towards his haunches. The soft touches partly distracted him as Tim continued talking about how she shouldn't rush through a job even if she were in a hurry to ride. The small tid bits of handling a horse or pony while grooming them and the rules that applied. It was demeaning to have them talk over his head, and made worse by the feel of the brush working along his belly and over his chest. His head jerked as high as it could go and he rolled an eye back to try and watch the man who started to groom under his barrel.

"At least there's not a lot to groom with him." Emily giggled and caught his head to pull it down again to stroke his ears. He peered at her pleadingly.

_Please, Emily, you know this is Todd. Please, please, just wish me back. Just make me a man again! _ He tried to will her into understanding that it was him. Could she read thoughts? What else could she do? It was a sobering thought. What else could happen to him beside what had already happened.

He continued trying to catch her eyes in the hopes that she would see a human looking out instead of an animal. He moved his head as much as he could, but she kept talking to Tim while rubbing and petting his cheeks. It was distracting enough that it took his mind off of the man grooming him, at least, it did until suddenly the brush ran right over his sheath and caught against the exposed glans. The touch wasn't rough, it was gentle and intimate enough that the anger and humiliated outrage form earlier roared into full force. He twisted his head and strained to bite the arm that was touching him there as his cheeks reddened with embarrassment.

"Easy there, easy. Emily, move back a bit. Looks like he's a ticklish fella." Tim grinned as Todd strained to bite him and rubbed the brush over the sheath again as if enjoying the reaction. "Poor Storm, he really is in a state."

The last words were quieter, but Todd caught them. He shivered his skin, but relaxed as the brush was taken away and the young man stepped back with a frown on his face. He leaned down and ran a hand down to rub along his lower foreleg. He was almost within biting range, but not quite as the fingers gripped just above the top of the hoof and forced him to lift it up to relieve the pressure.

"Huh, I coulda sworn he was shod. Emily, can you go into the tack room and grab me the box that's sitting under the saddles? It should be bright yellow I think. Can't take him out without some protection." Tim turned the hoof up cupped it in the palm of his hand as he used a small metal pick to tap at the middle.

Emily didn't take long, she came back with a grin and had a box with her. Her face was alive with curiosity as Tim dropped the hoof and pulled the box over to him.

"These are hoof boots. They might be a touch big, but they'll tighten down alright." Tim pulled out something that looked like a hard plastic and rubber hoof with a metal latch flapping loose on the front. "We want him to be protected, don't we?"

"Ohh so they're real shoes!" Emily giggled and moved back to fuss with his mane. "Those are neat!"

"Yup, they are." Tim agreed and pulled Todd's hoof up again and outwards so that he was awkwardly balancing on three legs.

The hoof boot slipped right over his hoof while the buckles were pulled down and tightened the strange device in place. It hadn't looked all that heavy or strange when he'd first seen it, but the moment it was slipped on and the first hoof dropped he found it heavier then he thought. It made his height all wrong too. It elevated his forehoof just enough that he shifted awkwardly to try and adjust. Emily leaned in against his shoulder and he felt her fingers working along his mane as his other forehoof was hauled up so that the boot was slipped into place. He wanted to protest it and he tired to pull his foot out of Tim's hold, but he couldn't. The more he dugged, the more firmly his hoof was held in place so he was left feeling helpless in the man's hands. It was degrading and humiliating.

Soon enough all four hooves were secured in the strange plastic and rubber boots that made him feel weighed down. He tried pawing the ground, but the boots wouldn't even scrape off no matter how hard he tried to pull them free. Emily giggled as he tried to get them off, but didn't offer any help as she kept playing with his mane. No, not just playing, she was braiding the blasted thing. He could feel her fingers tugging and pulling the long strands so that she could wind them together. He knew the feeling since she'd tried it at least twice with his hair when he'd been human and he'd put a stop to it! He ducked his head down as low as he could go, but her fingers kept on working while Tim hauled the harness over to him with a jingle of buckles and the creak of leather.

Todd shied to one side as the affair was flung up and over his back with a flick of the groom's hands. The weight of it dropped up and over his shoulders so that the strands hit against either side of his body. Tim seemed to know what was going on, he moved and pulled against the edges of the leather to drag it upwards so that it was seated a bit higher up on his withers and Emily was forced to step forward so that the groom could fasten a thick band around his chest. He shifted and lashed his tail as another set of thinner bands were pulled taut just behind his neck to hook onto the breast band. The groom moved swiftly and confidently as if he knew exactly where everything would go and how it would be set up without the need for the pony's cooperation.

The thickest band was settled around his chest and it was padded as it was pulled tight enough that only two of the groom's fingers could fit beneath it. It made him shiver his skin at the strange sensation and Emily giggled before she went back to trying to braid his mane. A thin strap was pulled back to rest along his spine and he let out an outraged squeal and kicked back as his tail was forced up into the air and the long hair bundled back. A strap was slipped over it so that it was wrapped around the base of his tail bone. He lashed and lowered his tail just as Tim pulled at the strap that fastened it to the belly band. The tugging forced the strap taut so that he raised his tail up no matter how he tried to keep it clamped down. It curled back to rise in a high proud spill of thick black hair leaving him the inability to do anything but stomp his hooves in angry protest.

_Emily, please.. just let me be human again. You don't want me to be humiliated like this. _ He turned his head to look at his ward pleadingly as she continued to braid his mane.

"Right then, Miss Emily, let's get him out to the pony cart. I'll hook him up and then we'll be away and ready to see his paces!" Tim slapped Todd on the haunches so that he shivered the skin. He could feel loose straps hanging down along his sides and he had no idea what they were meant for. But he found out.

~ ~ * ~ ~

"Now, Miss Emily, I want you to behave yourself. And if he is a good lad I'll teach you how to drive." Tim's words made Todd suppress the urge to kick back at the cart behind him.

The extra straps had been hooked, buckled and affixed to a light two wheeled carriage with long polished handles that had been fastened on either side of his body. He could dimly feel the weight pressing along the harness while he struggled to turn his head about to peer behind him. It was something that was more difficult then he could manage with any amount of ease. Not only had he been fastened into the harness, but a set of blinders had been placed on either side of the bridle so that he could only see directly in front of him. His corner vision was entirely gone and he felt slightly claustrophobic as he stared at the narrow strip of land in front of him as he heard the carriage squeak behind him and Emily's giggling.

"It's just made for me!" He twisted his head all the way back to see her small form settled down on the small seat and sighed.

If not for her, he would have took off the moment his reins had been released and pulled through the rings so that they lay loose across his back. If not for her, he would wait until Tim was in the driver's seat and go tearing away hoping to break the damned carriage in two. He was angry, humiliated, harnessed and abused, but he wasn't going to harm his charge. He had cared for her too long to ever do anything to risk her. Even if she was in charge of his current embarrassing state. He sighed heavily as the cart squeaked again and the shocks took the weight of Tim on the small single seat. The carriage really wasn't much to look at. It didn't look nearly as imposing as he had dreaded when he'd been led out.

It was two wheeled with a raised lip at the front and a bench that rested right above the twin wheels. It was black and polished bronze so that it looked brand new. It was small enough that a full grown horse pulling it would have looked ridiculous. It had been made for a smaller beast to pull it and he was about to find out what it was like to pull the damned thing. He shifted on his booted hooves and chewed around the bit to try and stop his mouth from watering around the foul tasting metal. He could just ignore the command to walk forward. If he didn't move then he'd be taken out of this ridiculous harness and left alone to find a way out...

"Move on now, Storm." The reins lifted up and lightly caressed his back and Todd lifted his head up and firmly placed all four hooves on the ground.

_Can't lead a horse to water and can't make me pull this stupid thing. _ He thought smugly and felt the reins brush against his back again.

The former man made a show of turning his head and yawning so that the metal bit was pushed into the open. He felt a vindicated by the snort that came from the groom. There that would show him. The reins touched again and he ignored it again. He almost wished he could lay down in this rig and make his point that way. He was starting to feel quite smug in his ability to stay putt when Tim sighed. The reins didn't come down again, but something else did. A sharp crack and snap hit against the belly band of his harness so sharply that he let out a little squeal and launched forward in the traces. His legs shoved hard against the ground and the cart rolled behind him as the lash came down a second time.

"Now watch me, Miss Emily, you don't harm a horse. You never harm them. You only give them the noise and hit the main harness to urge them on." Tim was saying as Todd's booted hooves clopped against the ground and he continued to go forward.

The whip? Was he using a whip? He couldn't turn his head around far enough to see, but it seemed like a reasonable assumption and one that made him want to growl with anger. He wasn't a damned horse! He went forward several steps and nearly stopped, but the whip cracked again and he was forced to walk down the lane with the rattling of the cart echoing behind him. The breast band pressed against his chest, but not horribly so. It actually wasn't bad at all considering her was pulling an entire cart behind him. The weight was distributed evenly enough that no one part of his body was taking the strain of the exercise.

"That's a good lad, Storm. Step on now, keep it straight." Tim's voice was approving and so it started. One of the most humiliating, infuriating and confusing times of Todd's life.

He was forced to walk no matter how badly he wanted to stop. He tried to make his legs go stiff so that he wouldn't give into the constant encouraging noises, but the crack of the whip always startled him and that part of his mind that held Storm made him leap forward. He was still human enough that he tried to stop as soon as the whip was gone, but that only worked a handful of times. It didn't work long enough for him to make them release him, instead it worked long enough that he realized that a pattern was starting to emerge. The whip was startling and even worrisome when it struck, but it didn't have to strike out. When he obeyed it was only the feel of the reins and the encouraging voice behind him that guided him to step out or to make a turn.

Todd tried to concentrate on how humiliating it was to take the cart rattling down the long road that led towards the main gate. He tried to concentrate on the fact he was human and not a beast at all. He didn't want to be a beast, he didn't want to be forced to behave this way. But the whip frightened him and each time it struck the creature that was Storm rolled through his mind and tried to force him to do what he did not want to do. It was so hard to fight, it was so hard to behave badly when the man behind him would praise him and put away the whip if only he'd do what he was told. He would be allowed to walk freely and the reins would be gentle on his back if he just obeyed.

He made it all the way to the gate still fighting, but as he was turned around he felt the reins shifting on his back and Emily's sweet young voice called out for him to step forward. Tim's voice was deeper as he warned her to keep her hands relaxed and he was ready to take the reins if something went wrong. It made him flinch as he wanted to freeze up again and refuse to move. He wanted nothing more than to keep them from making him behave like a beast, but the excited child's voice struck a nerve. There was excitement there and he could almost imagine her bright eyes at being able to hold the reins and tell him to walk forward. She must be so happy to be able to finally do something with her very own pony and not be told she had to wait.

_I'm not a pony though! _ He groaned to himself, but she called out again and the reins awkwardly tapped against his back.

Todd was angry at her, confused about what she'd done and how she'd done it, but not even he could break her expectations after she'd waited so long. He cared for her as if she were his own little sister and with a sigh and stepped forward and pulled the cart behind. He didn't try to fight the commands, he answered them so that he could hear her laughing behind him in delight. And that was where he lost a hold of the dominance in his own mind. It was so easy to obey the reins when they moved and guided him, and it was smart to obey them. He couldn't see well with the blinders on and that made it dangerous if he were to try and turn himself. It was easier to obey her.

A roll of peace spread through him as she clicked the reins hard enough that he picked up his hooves and started to move forward faster. He felt his muscles tense and relax beneath his body as they extended themselves to pull the people behind him. It was strangely comforting to feel the faint hold of the reins against the bit. As if Emily were ready to catch him if he faltered. He knew intellectually that if he stumbled she couldn't do anything, but the psychological effect made him throw his head up and follow the tug of the reins as he was coaxed into a trot down the long winding road towards the main house. His breath came out in soft puffs as the booted hooves clattered beneath him and he heard the bumping and rattling of the cart behind him.

"Good boy! Good Storm! See, I told you he just wanted me to drive." Emily sounded so confident as she chattered.

"He must just listen to girls better." Tim laughed and didn't contradict her as Todd pulled the cart down towards the barn and started to automatically slow down.

He'd expected to pull the cart into the barn and be unharnessed, but Emily pulled him about and he was turned back towards the gate again. He obeyed the light touches and found it so much easier this way. He wasn't fighting and hearing the awful cracking of the whip egging him on. He was only obeying the firm hold of the reins behind him as he stepped forward and continued at a smart trot that made his muscles strain to pull the cart as he started to go uphill. On the first time down the road he had leaned back in the harness and let the cart roll backwards instead of going up it. He'd been forced to creep upwards bit by bit. This time, he launched himself forward and dropped his head so that he went up along the hill with the squealing laughter of Miss Emily behind him. She sounded so excited and happy, it made his heart lighten. She should always be so happy.

Back and forth, back and forth, six times he pulled them down the lane and back again. He had expected to be exhausted as his body showed a sheen of sweat, but his energy seemed limitless as he continued to delight the little girl. At some point he knew the reins had been switched back, but the firmer guidance didn't make him fight it. His body knew what to do and it was too hard to try and stop himself when he knew that the whip would be waiting to answer him. The cart rattled as he trotted smartly into the barn yard and saw that the sun was starting to set and cast long shadows. His hide gleamed with sweat and he was starting to feel the edge of tiredness creeping ever closer. It had been such a long day.

"Alright, Miss Emily, it's time for you to get yourself home and I'll settle Storm for the night with a good ration of grain." Tim stepped out of the carriage and Todd twisted his head around to see the little girl bouncing out of it.

"Can we ride again tomorrow?" She ran up to him and pulled his head down against her so that she was hugging him. "Oh you were such a good boy, Storm! I just knew you weren't wild."

"You need to get back, Miss. It's nearly supper." Tim grinned down at her and moved his hand to grip the rein just under Todd's chin.

"Alright, but tomorrow I want to do it again!" She all but wiggled before bolting towards the main house leaving him standing with his sides still heaving with heavy laden breath.

"Let's get you settled, lad." Tim murmured and the pony was all too happy to agree as he was unhooked from the cart, brushed, cleaned and led into a freshly cleaned stall where the straw was so thick it nearly came up to his knees.

Todd was too tired to think as he dropped his head down towards his knees and felt his body relaxing towards sleep. It had been such a long day and he felt so relieved that he'd been groomed and taken care of. He just wanted to sleep with his belly full of grain.

~ ~ * ~ ~

"Will you stop that damned banging!" John's voice was a roar from down in the stables as Todd's hooves hit the stable door for at least the dozenth time that morning.

The former man snarled wordlessly and stepped back before rearing up on his haunches again. He had woken up with his mind freed from the curious mixture of exhaustion and complacency that had overwhelmed him the night before. He had woken up in the middle of a stall with no way out and the realization that he had had to relieve himself. That had been embarrassing enough, but now he was fully in control of himself and had had enough of being stuck as a pony. They surely had to miss him up at the house by now! They had to be wondering where he'd gone and were probably trying to find him! He'd finally figured out one way he could try and get the message across as to who he was and that had come in the form of the hooves he had been despairing about.

His haunches complained at the unnatural position as he lifted one foreleg up to catch against the dark wood of his stall wall and dragged it downwards. It left a faint scrape there where he'd already managed a rough looking T that resembled a kindergartners work, and the O wasn't anything that he could brag about at all. His hooves just didn't work and bend the way his arms had, but he was hopeful as his hoof scraped down to make a long line that formed part of a D. He would use his hooves to put his name on the wall and then they'd know who he was. The only issue was that John kept cursing at him as Todd fell back down onto all fours and his nostrils flared a little bit while he rested his aching muscles as best he could. It hurt his back to be in that position, but one and a half letters left until his freedom.

He reared up again and one hoof hit the wall to brace himself as he clambered forward to try and bring up his other hoof so that he could make a passable half circle to form the D. He was just getting his hoof high enough in the air when the stall door rattled behind him followed by a string of curse words that made him flush just hearing them.

"God damn it all, Storm! What in the blasted hell are you doing?!" John's face was red with anger as Todd dropped down to all fours and glared at him. "That's it, you want to go out? Fine, it's about time anyway and if you hit that be damned wall one more time the vet really will need to see you!"

The older groom picked up a lead and looped it around his neck with a few choice curse words that showed just how annoying the banging of hooves against the ground had been before Todd was pulled out into the main barn. He stared back desperately at his half spelled name on the wall. John hadn't even given it a glance when he'd stormed in and demanded that he stop making that noise. But it was there, he just needed to finish it. He fought and tugged against the lead rope as he was walked towards the bright morning sun and to the midst of the barnyard. He lashed his tail back and forth restlessly while John continued to curse just under his breath and seemed to be leading him towards the ring that he had been placed in yesterday.

"Hey John, what on earth as you doing with the pony?" A cheerful voice called out and Todd twisted his head to see the one man he knew well in the stables stride over to them.

Jack was a man that had an open and trustworthy face and an easy smile on his face most of the time. He wasn't just a groom, he was a general handy man around the place. Todd had talked with him several times when he'd been in the house to fix things and it was a shock to see the young man leaping up to sit on the fence post. He was dusting straw off his legs as he grinned down at what he assumed was a pony. Todd whuffled and worked his jaws to try and force words past, but they were only whickers and short whinnies that came out. They didn't come out at all like words. The lead was tightened behind his jaw so that he was being pulled right up against the groom's side and he shied to one side.

"Vet check up, the boss wants him checked since he's going to get gelded next week. He wants to make sure he'll be alright for the visit and that the breeder was honest with us." John scratched beneath Todd's chin while he fought the urge to blanch. Gelding? Oh god, he had to change himself back before then.

"Cute pony, a shame he's not big enough to ride." Jack leaned forward and propped his elbows on his upper legs. "What was all that fuss?"

"The hell if I know, he was in his stall hammering away like there was no tomorrow. I swear he's going nutty being kept away from the mares. Tim took him out yesterday and said he was a right handful in the cart, but he came back sweet as can be. I think he's just pent up since there are no mares about his size.." John kept petting him, and rubbing along the chin just hard enough that the pony part of his mind was enjoying it. Todd leaned his head forward and pushed against the fingers a bit harder. Even the annoyance in the voice didn't stop him from enjoying the touch.

"Heh, why'd they buy a stud anyway, he's not like the warm bloods at all. I mean, I know they wanted the kid to have a pony of her own, but they could have gotten a gelding." Jack shoved a hand in his pocket and started digging around.

"Oh you know, the fellow has been a champion show horse, but he's getting a bit older. He sired enough foals and he'll be good in the show ring still and Emily will learn how to show him." John chuckled a little bit as Todd groaned when the fingers worked higher towards his jaw. The scratching felt good, so terribly good.

"Well, poor guy. Not even a last hurrah." Jack finished digging in his pocket and pulled out a crumbled baggy with a bit of bruised apple slices in it. "Here ya go, fella."

The fingers stopped working against his jaw so that he let out a sigh. Why had that felt so good? He gave himself a shake and tried to concentrate on the problem at hand. He had to show these people that he was Todd so they could do something about changing him back into his proper body! He could always try to use a hoof to spell out his name in the woodchips in the ring, then they'd know that he was something more than a pony. That would be easier then pounding at the wall like he had been. He felt his heart lift at the idea, just a few strokes of his hoof and he'd be free. He was so elated and distracted that he didn't realize Jack was leaning down and forward. Suddenly wet apples were shoved up against his lips and smeared against them. The sweet scent of apples flooded his nose while he twitched his lips a bit.

He didn't know how to react to a man shoving food against his mouth. The moment of confusion and indecision opened him up to the part of his mind that was tainted with the pony's thoughts. Storm knew what to do, Storm was perfectly happy to have a treat! He used his lips to pull the partially crushed apple into his mouth and started to crunch away. He even whickered out a noise of pleasure as he chased around the crumbs that had dribbled over the hand. Todd's cheeks flushed with outraged embarrassment as he left a trail of saliva over Jake's hand where he was pulling up the bits of apple and some of it even dribbled down his chin so that the sticky juices clung to him.

"I see you're giving the patient some incentive to behave." The female voice made Todd jerk his head up so a few crumbs of crunched apple fell from his chin. Humiliating.

"Dr. Carr! There you are, you finish up with Silver?" John sounded downright cheerful as a slender tall woman in a rough flannel shirt and with a big slung over her shoulder came up to the fence.

"Yes, she was a good girl about it." Dr. Carr flashed a smile and Todd flared his nostrils a bit and his cheeks darkened. "You know, you could do it yourself. You'd save your employer a bit of money if you did."

He felt a stab of hot lust strike through him that nearly made his stomach tense up and under other circumstances would have sent him stammering. The blonde haired woman had bright green eyes, almost like emeralds. Beneath her flannel shirt he saw a tight black shirt that outlined her high perky breasts and the slight hint of nipples. The shirt was looser over her belly, but he could imagine it was slender and toned. His eyes took it in all at once, while his nose drew in a unique warm scent that made him tremble and lift his head up in the air. It was warm and musky, animal like, but so sweet on the tongue that his upper lip started to twitch and curl back. He was so distracted by her that he missed a good part of the conversation.

It was... beyond humiliating. It wasn't a human reaction in the least bit. He was looking at her in a way that made him glad he wasn't human at the moment! If he had been, he'd have probably been beet red and stammering any number of excuses for why he was gawking at her. As it was, he snapped his lips together and kept the upper one from peeling back and tried to pretend he was licking apple off his lips. His reaction was frightening in its intensity and he tried to concentrate on anything BUT the woman. He turned his mind to how he could get them to let him in the ring where he could spell out his name so they'd know he wasn't an animal.

"Hey boy, hey lad, hey boy.." The sing song voice warned him before a hand cupped against his cheek and turned his head. "Well aren't you a handsome fellow!"

Carr held his cheeks and pulled his head around with a smile. He wished she hadn't done that. He really really wished he hadn't cupped his cheeks so he felt the long fingers brushing along the edges of his chin and jaw. She pulled his head down and freed up one hand to run along his ears and then down along his head with a light touch. Her attractive face was so close to him as she peered into one of his eyes close enough that his vision started to blur and he snorted out in annoyance. Annoyance was good, annoyance made him not want to shove his nose into her hands and snuffle like a rabid animal. He was trembling with the urge to do just that as her fingers trailed down and cupped right under his chin and the upper hand stroked his nose.

He knew she must think she was stroking a long equine nose, but it was damned disconcerting to have someone patting your nose when you knew and felt it was human!! He latched onto that disconcerting feeling while he took a deep breath that filled out his rib cage and he rumbled deep in his throat as the scent rolled over his nose again. He glanced down and fixed his eyes on her breasts and the way they clung to the shirt. He could almost see the nipples standing against the outfit. The overwhelming urge to shove his nose forward and lip against them rocked him out of pounding desire to do just that. He pulled his head up and tried to jerk it free when her fingers gripped over his nose and lips and suddenly pried them open.

"He's got a bit of an attitude doesn't he?" The doctor's fingers curled inwards and Todd flinched before he was forced to open his mouth for her.

"Oh he does, but I think Emily will be a good match for him." Jake spoke up from the fence post. "We put him in with the geldings and the little shit has been biting their ankles all week."

"Lucky he didn't get kicked." Carr murmured and continued to stare into his gaping muzzle. "Good teeth though, he's been well looked after. There we go, fiend. Stop huffing!"

The woman laughed and let Todd close his mouth and he lifted his head up and tried to keep it out of her reach. The lead around his neck tightened while she started to stroke down along his neck lightly. The caress trailed along his shoulder and lower as she started to smooth down his leg. It wasn't an unpleasant touch at all, it was actually quite nice to feel the fingers sliding over his knees and brushing low enough that she was wrapping her fingers around his wrist. It was almost like a light massage as she explored the muscles that had grown there. It was enough that he started to relax and let out a puffing sigh through spread nostrils. The fingers pinched his wrist and he gave a start before he was forced to lift the hoof up for her to cup in his hand.

"Jake, grab my hoof pick will you? God, John, haven't you shoed him yet?" The vet exclaimed and Todd tried to turn his head about as she prodded at his hoof with one finger.

"He had shoes!" The man at his head leaned a bit and moved a hand up to scratch lightly behind one of Todd's ears. "Well you devil, got them off did you? That's a first."

The vet made a noncommittal noise before Jake handed her a hooked looking pick and then she started to dig against his hoof. It made Todd flinch a bit as he felt it tugging and pulling. Well, not really. He felt the pressure of something pushing against him and tapping against the hard palm of his 'hand'. It was disconcerting and he tried to lift his hoof away, but the hand gripped a bit more firmly. It dug in and started to dig against something that made him flinch. He half expected to feel a shot of pain. It reminded him unnervingly of the dentist when his teeth were being worked on and he was numb. He didn't really feel it at the time, but he always knew what was being done when it was happening. He jerked his head up and the fingers that scratched his ears started to work with a bit more force while John's other hand gripped the lead tossed around his neck tightly.

Todd quivered his skin and twitched slightly, he snorted and shivered a bit as he felt the pick digging again and again at SOMETHING. He rolled his eyes a bit and shifted his haunches to try and pull away, but the lead kept him still. Only the gentle feel of the fingers against his ears kept him from freaking out entirely. They rubbed and stroked until he started to relax. He turned his head all the way towards the vet, but John didn't try to haul him back around again. He just kept rubbing and stroking until he groaned and sighed out. The vet was prying a small looking rock out of frog of his hoof. With the strokes along his ears he could almost watch with a bit of disinterest as it was tended. He'd never seen it done before, that was for sure.

He closed his eyes part way and pushed into the fingers a bit more firmly as the vet finally gave a yank and something clattered to the ground before she dropped his hoof and he was able to lower it to the ground. When she ducked under him, John moved and exchanged hands so Todd's other ear was being given attention. The part of him that had marched with the equine mind adored it, he pushed into it and dropped his head down while it was teased. It felt wonderful, especially when the rope around his neck started to loosen and he was able to shift his head down to peer at the vet beneath him. She was crouched and tapping at the base of his hoof as he drew in a deeper breath of her scent. She smelled lovely.

Todd wasn't thinking right, he wasn't thinking at all, he just knew that the vet had a strange scent to her. It was like the best perfume in the world and he could breath in as much as he wanted to satisfy himself. He craned his head down and dropped it to touch her shoulder so that he was whuffling against her air and stirring it. Oh it was lovely, it warmed him all the way through and his lips started to twitch a little bit. He wanted more of it, he wanted to roll it on his tongue. It was hauntingly familiar to his equine mind and he snuffled against her hair until Dr. Carr laughed and moved a hand up to pet his cheek. Oh the scent was stronger there..

He shoved his hand against it and sucked in a deep breath before his stomach tightened and he whuffled over the palm. The strokes along his ear moved to run right along the elongated hair that formed a mane down his neck. He dimly released it, but his world had narrowed down to snuffling over that palm. He peeled his upper lip back and craned his head back awkwardly as he tried to filter the scent into his nose. He extended his neck as the weight of his cock started to spill out of the sheath while the glans swelled wider and wider. The blood flowed through him as he grew dreamy eyed at the warm scent that filled him with a rush of hot longing. Oh he wanted her, he wanted that scent. It was everything that he'd ever wanted. Everything he'd ever needed.

He heard voices over his head, but he wasn't thinking with a mind that could process what the humans were saying. The vet laughed and pushed his head away as she dropped his hoof and he strained towards her hands again and that scent. He snuffled and whuffled towards it, he wanted it. She was going away! The fingers on his neck were no longer soothing, they were annoying. Why wouldn't they let him go to where he could smell that lovely scent again! Dr. Carr picked up his hind hoof and started to prod against it as his cock started to drop far enough that it was curved in an arch. Todd didn't care it was hardening right beside her, he wasn't in the right spot.

With a whistling whicker he jerked his head back and threw his weight against his haunches. John let out a protesting noise as the lead slipped through his fingers and Todd felt a spark of triumph as the lead dropped down loosely from his neck and he neatly turned about. His hooves clattered and he shoved his nose against Dr. Carr again to snuffle at her hands. She moved up laughing at him, but this wasn't a laughing matter! He knew what needed to be done. His body knew. The little stallion reared up on his haunches and tried to frantically hook his forelegs against her hips to haul himself over her. His cock stiffened and slapped against his belly so that a thick syrupy dribble of precum hit against him.

The woman lurched forward a bit as he rocked his hips frantically forward. This wasn't right, this wasn't the right position! He squealed and tried to lip against the edge of her flannel coat as he humped forward and hit his cock tip against her covered leg. His forelegs gripped either side of her hips and she moved a hand back to reach for the lead around his neck. His cock flexed again and slapped along his belly before he was being yanked backwards. He squealed and lunged forward trying to get at her. He wanted his mare! Couldn't they smell she was in heat and needed him? Couldn't they smell that she wanted to be mounted and bred?

_What the hell am I thinking?! _ Todd resurfaced with stab of horror at his own frantic thoughts to mount, fuck and breed the vet all because she smelled nice.

"DOWN DOWN! Goddamnit Storm! DOWN!" John roughly tugged the lead and Todd pranced about with his cock thudding against his belly.

He could feel the blunt tip drooling out a thick spill of precum down towards the ground as John started to pull at the lead so he was forced to trot in a circle with him. His head was craned up and turned away from the vet as his body protested being dragged away so soon. It still wanted the doctor. It still wanted to complete what he'd been doing! His shaft was throbbing and flexing against his belly as he was pulled away and circled again and again. His hooves clattered and he finally let out a squeal and mule kicked the air behind him. He snapped his tail and stomped his hoof, but John didn't let him go. He was forced to circle mindlessly until his coat gleamed with a sheen of sweat and he was shuddering slightly. His shaft was aching without release, but his body seemed to realize he wouldn't be mounting the doctor. It started to soften and pull up, despite the fact it was almost painful to go from mounting readiness to disappointment.

"Easy, there's a boy, there's a fella, I don't know what happened to him, Doc. I apologize! He's been a bit moody, but I never would have thought..." John was babbling while Todd glared up at him.

"It's my fault." The vet was straightening her coat and Todd felt a strange surge of fierce pride that her jacket had a wet smear from him on it. She smelled like him now. That thoughts made him try to arch his neck. "I shouldn't have worked on Silver first. See? You need to artificially inseminate your own mares! Then I won't get near raped by horny ponies."

The vet made it a joke and John gave a weak laugh before patting Todd on the shoulder. He trembled a little and let out a rough squeal. He hadn't meant to do that! He wasn't really a pony! It was this stupid form he was stuck in! No one paid him any mind except to make sure he didn't try to clamber back on top of the vet and continue what he'd started.

I wouldn't do that. He thought to himself fiercely, but even to him it sounded like a weak protest. He already had tried after all.

"I'm going to put our little horn dog in a stall until the boss gets back. I don't think it's a good idea to have him out with the other horses. God knows he seemed ready to take any port in a storm." John grinned and Jake laughed uproariously. Todd squealed and stomped a hind hoof against the ground. It was not funny in the least bit!

"You better let me, sir." A familiar voice piped up and Todd twisted his head to find himself staring at Tim. The young man was leaned back against the inside door of the stable. "I'm sure the vet will need you to hear the run downs and I'll give him a work out like yesterday."

"Good man, Tim." John grinned. "Just don't bend down in front of him. You don't want to end up in an awkward position."

"I'll keep that in mind." The younger man came forward and got a hold of the lead while Todd froze up. He wasn't staring up at the man; he was staring at the pants that were just tight enough that he realized one frightening fact. Tim had been enjoying the show quite a lot before it had come to an end.

He was pulled away from the group to the sound of John's laughter and the vet's good humored comments, and his cheeks burned in humiliation. His cock was still out and swaying back and forth under him as he walked past them and towards the opening of the barn. It was the most humiliating moment of his life and he had had quite a few throughout the day. He wanted nothing more than to be shoved into a stall and ignored. He certainly didn't want to be hooked into a harness and forced to pull the cart around again. He drooped his tail down as Tim guided him through the barn and towards the now familiar opening of his stall door.

"Poor thing, they just don't understand that sometimes a stallion has an itch." Tim grinned down at him and rubbed him right behind the ears. "But I think we can see to that, can't we?"

Todd flinched a little and he jerked back on the lead. He didn't want to have that itch taken care of. At least, he didn't want it taken care of mentally. His body was more than happy at the idea of having it taken care of by some hot sweet mare or female. The thought of the scent that had set him off made him shiver and his girth flexed slightly from where it had started to withdraw into his sheath. It made the weight of the head sway back and forth as he was guided into the stall he had been in last night. Though, it was now clean and filled with fresh straw instead of the stuff he had slept on last night. His hooves were muffled as the lead released him and Tim reached up to firmly pull the lower and upper door shut. What the hell?

The young groom gave him a slight grin before dropping down to grip the lead again and sank down into a crouch next to him. The former man shivered his skin a little bit at the bright eyed look in the lad's eyes before the free hand moved beneath him. Todd didn't have time to react to what was going on outside of tensing his belly and then long gentle fingers curled themselves right around the tip of his sensitive shaft and gave a light squeeze. Tim wasn't stupid, he kept a keen eye on him as he caressed around the glans and Todd froze in place as the strange sensation of another man's hands stroking him so intimately. He wanted to twist his head back and bite the damn hand the way he had the first time it had gone roaming, but god.. his body didn't want to.

The touch made his shaft thicken and harden again as it rubbed right around the back of his glans and started to massage in slow caressing circles. The gentle touches made him spread his haunches a bit and he trembled. He didn't like this. He didn't like guys. He was not gay and he was not even a damn horse, but the touch made him well aware of the burning need that had developed while he was around the vet. The vet... His haunches rolled forward and something thick and gooey oozed out of the tip and into the groom's hand as he thought about the vet and how she had smelled. The mingling of mare and woman spoke to every part of his confused mind and he let out a short squeal before his lower belly tightened and his cock slapped upwards against his belly and away from the hands.

"That's a good fellow, Storm, let's take care of that itch.." Tim murmured and dropped the lead so that it hung free from the pony's neck.

He could have broken away and moved away from the touches, but god the rush of need from earlier made his loins ache so badly. He held still as he heard the straw shift and suddenly a hot wet tongue flicked right against his cock tip. Oh god, what sort of pervert was this groom? The thought was frantic, but it didn't break the spell as the warm heat rubbed and circled over his tip to coax out another drooling spill of precum and two hands wrapped around his shaft and started to gently pump along it from the base towards the tip. The mottled flesh hardened and jutted out while he squealed and arched his back in an instinctive thrust forward. He pushed up against the lips and they spread open to wrap tightly around him.

Instincts pushed beneath the surface, and Todd struggled against the wave of them. It was like before when he'd been maddened by the scent of the doctor. It pushed away his concerns until he could only think about how she had smelled, how close he had come. If it was her beneath him. The man in him knew about fantasy and it was all to easy to imagine something else wrapped around his cock tip. He squealed out again and crouched his haunches as inch by inch the hot mouth suckled and pulled around his cock tip and pushed him in deeper. The tongue rolled beneath him as thick heavy dollops of precum spilled out to paint the back of the throat as he shifted and twisted his body slightly. His hooves scraped against the straw and shoulders brushed his forelegs as he stepped over the groom and whickered out before drawing his hips back and drove forward again. Oh god it was so hot, so wet, so eager and tight.

_Oh god, not gay, I am not gay. I'm not doing this! _ Todd screamed through his own mind as the lips pulled back and the tongue danced right around his glans.

"So eager, we'll make it quick, won't we lad.." Tim's voice was breathy and trembled as his hands moved down and cupped against the tip to massage and rub.

Todd blinked a little as he peered down to see the groom moving and jerked his hips forward demandingly. The need hadn't gone away, even if he had no desire for men. His entire body was pounding in time with his heart beat and he couldn't think about anything except wanting more. The fingers moved down to wrap right around the base of his cock as the groom's back brushed ever so gently against his belly and cloth started to move. The former man felt his stomach turn as he knew what was happening, but at the same time he didn't have the strength of will to try and move himself away. He wanted that touch! He wanted relief, he wanted the ache in his balls to stop, he wanted the heat to wrap around his tip again.

The hands gripping his cock pulled it downwards along the curve of a bare ass even as he struggled with himself. He tried to stop what happened, but the first press up against a silken pucker ripped away the self control he had shakily tried to build. Instincts that had nothing to do with being a human man told him that a supple eager body was beneath him and the memory of the mare's scent let him know what to do. He clattered on his hind haunches and dipped his hips down before lunching forward wildly. Tim's fingers gripped against his forelegs and the young man let out a sharp cry as the pony's thick cock tip shoved right up against the pucker and drooled out a hot viscous dribble of precum before forcing the walls open around him.

He groaned out at the sheer tightness and he felt Tim's body shuddering under him as the muted noises escaped the lad's throat. It was so tight and he was plunging forward inch by careful inch while the precum spilled into that snug opening. It was tighter than any woman he'd ever had, it compacted the thick tip as he dipped his haunches low and lunged forward again with his back arching up. He pushed until the medial ring nestled along the splayed pucker and then pulled backwards. The inner muscles clenched and rippled around him greedily. It squeezed and pulled as he dragged back only to drive forward again. The human's breath was short and panting beneath him while the fingers remained braced on his forelegs.

That was wrong, Storm knew that he should be gripping the mare by the hips and her body holding him up. That didn't stop him from plunging forward with a lewd wet noise as his cock tip sank as deep as it could go and he felt the brush of the bare ass against his under belly. He was awkwardly crouched, but he had enough leverage to rub and pull the mottled girth through the human's passage. He could hear soft noises, moans and cries as he plunged forward again and a thick roll of precum was forced out to run along the groom's inner thighs. The walls clamped down when Storm pulled back and he let out a savage little squeal when his glans nearly pulled free.

He dropped his head down, but it wouldn't reach to nip the mare like he should. It was frustrating and he took it out the only way he could. He bucked forward again and felt the body being rocked beneath him as he drove himself in and the medial ring plunged into the passage and then pulled out again. He shifted on his haunches and started to thrust in short hard movements that made him savor the feel of the passage spreading ever wider around him. The rippling of the muscles pulled and squeezed, they tried to keep ahold of him so that it was almost painfully tight. His hide quivered slightly as he pulled backwards and the tip nearly popped free again before driving forward once more. The groom was crying out and dimly Storm was aware one of his hands was moving away from the leg and moving strangely beneath his half naked body.

That didn't matter, nothing mattered but the heat and need of his aching balls. He plunged forward again, it had been so long since he'd had any relief. It had been so terribly long that he took the strange mare hard and fast. His hide gleamed with a sheen of sweat as his cock tip started to spread open wider and wider. The passage was so tight, it was almost too tight as it doubled in size and he was forced to shorten his strokes so that his medial ring popped in and out. The precum drooled outwards as his tip spread open and the urethra jutted forward while his balls drew up tight between his haunches. The muscles along his haunches tensed up before he flagged his tail up high and shoved forward until his medial ring sank in deep.

The human let out a moaning cry under him as Storm shuddered and the first hot pulse of cum pushed up his shaft and erupted out in a thick hot wave into Tim's body. The gooey ropes were flung forward in powerful pulses that forced their way in deep, unable to leak out around the flared tip. His balls heaved with the effort to send the virile sperm on the futile mission to 'impregnate' his mare. His nostrils flared open with each trembling breath as the walls milked and coaxed him to keep emptying into that warm clutching passage. His legs trembled and he almost felt as if he were going to drop. It was a struggle to stay upright as the human under him kept making funny noises and the hand kept flashing in the corner of his eyes.

It wasn't until he heard the muffled groan and the hand stopped that Todd forced his way back into control. He clawed his way there as the walls pulsed around his sensitive cock. It started to soften and pull backwards as Tim pushed himself to his own peak beneath the pony. With a soft whicker Todd stepped backwards and his slippery cock pulled free inch by inch until the still flared tip popped out with a wet noise. A trail of pearly cream leaked along the bared rump while Tim pushed himself up still panting and a slight smile on his face.

"Sometimes a stallion just has an itch. Knew we'd get along eventually, Storm." The groom grinned and winked brightly as Todd felt his glistening spent cock pulling up into the sheath. He was almost shaking.

_I'm not a stallion! I'm a man! I'm a straight man damnit! _ He tried to hold onto that thought, even as the young groom dressed himself swiftly and gave his ears a friendly scratch before edging out the door. The stall was still thick with the scents of sex, giving Todd no chance to deny what he'd done.

~ ~ * ~ ~

It was dark by the time Edward McCullin finally came home to hear about his newest acquisitions escapades with the vet. Todd hadn't been let back out of the stall, instead he'd been fed and patted while he tried to pace and work off his restless energy. It was just after nightfall and the stable lights were being turned off when he had felt sullen rage building in his stomach. It wasn't exactly directed against Emily, but it was certainly against someone for sticking him into his current situation. He tried pushing it towards Tim and the way the young groom had made him mount him, but even that didn't stick. He hadn't been complaining at the time, in fact, if he thought about it too much his body reacted to the thoughts.

The darkness didn't bring sleep, he wasn't tired enough for that. So he was awake when he heard footsteps coming down the walkway. It made him freeze and he backed up slightly and instinctively flare his nostrils to see exactly who it was. He didn't want to face Tim again, not when his body was reacting like it might enjoy another visit. The emotions were too confusing. And who else would come at this time of night. It was a relief when the familiar face of his employer appeared in the dim light of the walkway.

"Oh my..." Edward McCullin peered down at him and Todd jerked his head up to glare back defiantly. Surely at least this man would see what he really was. "Well... I see that Emily will have to be taken into hand after all."

Todd squealed out and half reared up at those words. The man had known?! He'd known his daughter could do this to people?! He stalked towards the front of the stall and tried to meet his employer's eyes.

"I am sorry, Todd. She always was talented, but I had no idea she could... hmm.. do this to someone." His employer looked like he was trying not to laugh. Todd fought the urge to turn his ass to the man rather than being mocked. "I take it that you've been having a long couple of days of it haven't you?"

Todd jerked his head up and down roughly and the man moved back so that the stall door could be opened wide enough to admit his slender body. Edward was still dressed in a rather neat business suit, though the tie had been loosened and the top button undone.

"It wasn't something you were supposed to find out until far later in your employment and certainly not this way." The older man crouched down and Todd was able to lower his eyes to see him. "We are very cautious about our servants. You see, they get suspicious when we use magic, but it's what we do. What we are. We use it every day, all of our kind do. It helps keep us wealthy and enables us to live better than most. So when we do take on servants we do so very carefully. After all, eventually they will need to be told they're working for magicians and they need to be trusted."

Todd let out a short rumble in his throat and lashed his tail back and forth. He wanted to be shocked, but after his long day he was just too exhausted to manage that. All he wanted was to be human, clothed and out of this damn stall.

"Eventually we would have told you, but Emily's talent isn't controlled yet and wild magic can be problematic. As you've.. ahh seen.. Melding you and Storm, quite impressive really. I couldn't manage that at her age, but of course her mother's line has always-"

Todd squealed a protest and threw his head up.

"Ah, sorry, didn't mean to go on, Todd. The thing of it is, this can be a good thing. Now that you know, we can stop hiding from you. John and Jake know of course, and the maids. The rest of the stable folks don't know yet, but eventually they will." Edward clasped his hands loosely together. "You can stay on with us and when it comes to families like ours, it means a job for life. We hire on with the understanding that you know our secret. Even if, for some reason, we go under financially another family would snap you up. Servants that know our secrets are valuable. So you see, it really is quite a nice situation for you. Job security for the rest of your life and if you ever get married we'd be happy to bring your wife and kids into the family so they're well taken care of-"

Todd sighed and lifted his head a little. It was a lovely offer, but damnit, he wanted to be human. He wanted out of this stall, he wanted a long bath and possibly bed the first damn woman he met to try and forget what he'd done with Tim. He bobbed his head up and down in an exaggerated fashion to stop the stream of words and twisted his head around to poke at his shoulder with a snort of annoyance.

"Oh dear, I'm just stumbling all over the place aren't I? We'll set you to rights.." Edward moved forward and touched a finger right between Todd's eyes.

The pressure started there and started to build rapidly. It pushed against the skin as his ears felt as if they were about the pop. The world shifted and tilted wildly and for half a second he couldn't breath as a wash of heat spilled over him. It was faster than a heartbeat, and when it was over he felt straw poking against his bare ass cheeks and a hot breath snorted against the back of his neck.

"Oh god!" He yelped and scrambled away, his nude pale body trying to stand as he stared up at Storm who was peering at him in what looked like a horse's version of confusion.

"There we go! That's much better. Up you get now, Todd, up you get." Edward sounded positively cheerful as his employer hauled him up and a rough horse scented blanket was thrown over him. He swayed slightly as a hand wrapped around his waist to help him stand upright. "Let's get you up to the house. Emily is quite upset that you went missing like that, and she'll apologize of course. And Mary is just tickled that you'll know our secret. We'll discuss things more in the morning and then we can-"

His employer chattered in a genial fashion as Todd was led from the stall, unable to quite concentrate on what was being said. His eyes were flickering back to the dark dappled shape in the stall and the way the little stallion was staring at him. His stomach flip flopped in his middle and he forced his eyes away and towards the lit path that led to the manor. But he hadn't looked away fast enough. He had seen the mottled shaft hanging full and heavy beneath the little stallion as the beast had stared at him with almost frightening intelligence. Somehow, he didn't think he'd be coming back to the stable willingly any time in the future...