Date: Thu, 19 Jun 2014 23:22:58 -0700
From: Douglas DD DD <thehakaanen@hotmail.com>
Subject: The Puget Posse  Chapter 11

Greetings, and thank you for returning to read more about the Posse.
The first chapter disclaimers are still good, as always.

In this chapter, the twins meet Jeremiah, a boy who will become not a
thorn in their sides, but also in the sides of the entire Puget Posse.
Hovering in the background is Alden, a blond beauty who, as
Jeremiah's shadow, will be in a position to create his own forms of
mischief as the story progresses.

Please remember to give to Nifty to keep the Archive viable and
ongoing.

If you wish to contact me (and please do), you can reach me,
Douglas, at thehakaanen@hotmail.com


CHAPTER 11
A SENSE OF JUSTICE


After the New Year, third grade went calmly for the twins, relatively
speaking. The two of them got naked with Cindy a couple more times
and once with Stacy, who gave them each a blow job.

"Is Stacy what guys call a slut?" Mark asked his brother one night
after they practiced their oral skills in Matthew's bed.

"You mean because she likes doing sex all the time?" Matthew
asked.

"Yeah." The twins equated blow jobs with sex. They knew there was
more to it, but they weren't ready to find out exactly what that was.
They messed around with the two girls a few more times, and got
blow jobs from them three more times. They found getting blow jobs
from each other to be a much more reliable way to have sexual fun.

They had also discovered the wonders of masturbation, and were
able to give themselves their own private orgasms. They found out it
was fun to masturbate each other. It was not as much fun as a blow
job, but they realized the places they could masturbate were almost
infinite, while blow jobs seemed to be restricted to the bedroom—at
least so far.

"That don't make her a slut," Matthew said about Stacy. "It just means
she likes doing sex. We like sex, too, and I'm no slut."

"Me either. But she did it with us, and she does it with her brother,
and with his friends, and with Cindy. That's who I know she does it
with," Mark said. "Some guys say somebody who has sex with lots of
people is a slut."

"So? We do it with each other. And we get to touch our sisters' boobs
and they touch our dicks. That don't make us sluts."

Their arguments with each had diminished, and between the end of
Winter Break and the end of the school year they had only one
physical fight. They always made up after a falling-out.

In late spring they had a bit of a falling out with their sisters. It was
Memorial Day weekend, which meant there would be no school on
nude Monday. The forecast for the weekend was sunny with
temperatures in the upper 70s to low 80s—unseasonably warm
weather. The twins were eager for their first skinny dipping session of
the year in the pool. They invited their friends Peter, Brock, and Adam
over, and the five boys enjoyed an afternoon of nude swimming,
dunking, wrestling, splashing, games, boners, and eating, while
disgusting Michelle and Megan.

Kristy decided to allow the girls to stay at home even though the boys
would be naked. It was the first time they would be able to see Mark
and Mathew's friends in the nude. She consulted with the mothers of
the three friends to make sure they would have no objection to the
girls being present. She rightfully figured the boys wouldn't object.
The mothers were good with the presence of the girls as long as
everyone was supervised during the entire skinny dipping session.

Kristy did not want to spend the afternoon watching five naked boys
play grab ass. However, the girls did not appear eager to dive into the
pool with the boisterous boys. As long as everybody remained
separated, she figured everything was good, and stayed mostly in the
house or worked in the front yard, coming around to the back for an
occasional check on the kids.

The older twins managed to be simultaneously fascinated and
disgusted by the gaggle of naked boys. They were fascinated by the
sexiness of their cocks and balls and by the differences in size
between the five boys. Adam was the first uncut boy they had ever
seen, which had them whispering between themselves. They asked
Adam if they could feel it and he allowed them a quick grope. That
was the extent of their playing with the boys.

However, the eleven-year-olds eventually got tired of watching the
boys be little naked boys playing grab ass games instead of sexy
boys who they thought would be more interested in girls than in each
other. The immaturity and silliness of the boys was what disgusted
them.

A couple of nights later, Matthew and Mark decided to each sneak
over to the rooms of their sisters to spend some time in bed playing
with them. Michelle and Megan had anticipated the visit and agreed
on what they would tell their brothers. The conversation in Megan's
bed was nearly the same as the one that took place in Michelle's.

"This is the last time," Megan told Mark.

"The last time for what?" Mark asked innocently.

"The last time we have sex." Mark had his hand on his sister's left
breast, softly rubbing and kneading it. She was playing with his
hairless balls and hard little preteen cock.

"You mean this is sex?" he asked. "I thought we were just playing
around. Why can't we keep playing around? It's fun."

"We just can't"

"That don't answer my question."

"It doesn't answer my question. Don't you pay any attention in
school?"

"Don't...doesn't...what difference does it make? What a stupid time to
correct me.  But you need to answer my question."

"You just like being ignorant. Look, you and Mattie are just little boys.
Me and Michelle want to get boyfriends that are older and know stuff
about sex."

"I thought you were supposed to say `Michelle and I', not me and
Michelle."

"Ohhhh, you are impossible. We just don't want to do sex with little
boys who are our brothers."

Mark rolled over on the bed and put his sister's breast in his mouth
and sucked on it for a moment as Megan kept stroking his rock hard
cocklet. He stopped and looked up at his sister, repeating his
question. "You mean this is sex?" He then placed Megan's left breast
back in his mouth and played with her right one.

"Yes, it is sex. You and Mattie have both had orgasms doing this.
That makes it sex. Like I said, Michelle and I (she slowly emphasized
"Michelle and I") want to have sex with boys who know about it and
aren't our brothers."

"Whatever. You sound like a dumb sister as usual. Can you give me
an orgasm before I go?"

"You are so immature. Go back to your room."

"You are so lame." Mark let go of Megan's breast, got out of her bed,
and padded back to his room just a couple of minutes ahead of
Matthew. The two rock hard and naked nine-year-olds crawled into
Matthew's bed.

"Our sisters are so stupid," Mark said.

"That's for sure," Matthew said. "They kicked us out of their room.
They wouldn't even give us an orgasm. They could at least give us an
orgasm."

"We can give each other a better one," Mark said. "Because we can
give each other blow jobs." Mark kicked the covers away and the
boys were quickly in the time-honored sixty-nine position. They
agreed later the orgasms they gave each other were much better
than what their sisters ever gave them jerking them off.

Megan wished she hadn't sent Mark away so quickly. She liked
having him play with and suck on her breasts. She rose from her bed
and went to her sister's room. She knew with her sister she could go
one step further and have an orgasm.

++++++++++++

The summer officially kicked off for the boys after school was out and
after they had their nine-year-old half-birthday party. The summer
consisted of coach pitch baseball, swimming and playing with friends,
traveling to Yellowstone and Glacier National Parks with their parents
in their rented RV, and enjoying their roles as rambunctious nine-
year-old boys.

When fourth grade started, they once again took their roles of
protectors for those friends who needed it. Their reputation was such
that anyone with thoughts of bullying those under the twins' protective
umbrella ended up thinking twice about it. Whether giving mental or
physical abuse, they stayed away from the twins' friends or anybody
they thought was a friend of the twins.

Their role as protectors was unquestioned. Even when somebody
who was not a friend was bullied, a look from one of the twins ended
it. What the bullies didn't know was that Mark and Matthew weren't
willing fight to protect anyone who they didn't consider to be a friend,
but they had no problem holding off threats with glares and stares.

During Winter Break the twins turned ten. Hormones were starting to
bubble in them. They found they were becoming horny more often
and their dry orgasms were becoming stronger. They loved giving
each other blow jobs and jerking each other off whenever they could.
They began talking about including some of their friends in their
sexual fun.

Their classmates, Peter and Brock, were the recipients of the twins'
first lessons into the world of boners, masturbation, and orgasms.
They were invited to the twins' first overnight party a couple of days
after Christmas. It took a little bit of persuasion by the twins to
convince Kristy they were ready to have friends stay overnight.

"We're ten now, mom," Mark said. "That makes us almost grown up."

"You will be ten in two days," Kristy corrected. "Did you boys empty
the dishwasher like I asked you to this morning?"

"No," Mark said sheepishly.

"But we made our beds," Matthew added.

 "And picked your dirty clothes up off of the floor?"

"Not yet," Matthew said. "But we will as soon as we empty the
dishwasher."

"Why don't Michelle and Megan have to empty the dishwasher?"
Mark asked.

"They do, but this is your week to do it."

"Last week was our week, too," Matthew complained.

"That was because they kept their room clean the week before
without my having to nag them, like I have to nag a couple of boys I
know."

"Who else doesn't clean their room?" Mark asked.

"She was talking about us, doofus," Matthew said.

"Well, it's your turn this week to pick up the clothes," Mark said.

"I did it last week. Besides all of the underwear on the floor is yours. I
put mine in the hamper."

"Like you even wear underwear."

"Boys," Kristy interjected, "stop your squabbling."

"He started it, saying I don't help keep the room clean," Mark said.

"And I do wear underwear," Matthew protested. "Mark is lying as
usual."

"Why me?" Kristy said quietly to herself. She went on to say aloud, "If
you can't agree who is supposed to keep the room clean, then maybe
you should each have your own room."

"No," Matthew said. "We like being in the same room."

"Then quit arguing and clean it. And, if you can't do that much, and
can't do your chores, then you certainly aren't acting like you're
almost grown up."

"We'll do it all right now," Matthew said.

"And if we do it, can we have Peter and Brock spend the night
tonight?" Mark asked.

"How about you two do your jobs until the end of the week? I will let
you try an overnight as a birthday present if you can do your tasks."

"Oh, cool. When can we have the overnight?" Matthew asked.

"A week from today, if you're good."

"Cool, we'll go invite them now," Mark said.

"Don't promise anything. You still have some responsibilities."

"This is in the bag," Mark said.

The boys started for the kitchen to empty the dishwasher. Kristy
stopped Matthew and looked down at him. "I don't know if what Mark
said is true or not, but you will wear underwear. It's the sanitary and
grown up thing to do."

"That punk spoils everything."

"Matthew!"

"Okay, but I want boxers instead of those stupid briefs."

"We'll talk about it later. For now, you will do as I say."

"I only went a couple of times without wearing any. He makes it
sound like it's every day."

"Matthew, just do it, okay?"

He rolled his eyes and let out a long, "Ooooo-kaaaay."

Matthew thought if he said much more his mother might retract her
promise for an overnight, so he nodded and headed for the kitchen,
yelling at Mark for telling their mother he'd been going commando.

"I only did it two times," Matthew said.

"It was three times."

"Whatever. You aren't supposed to rat on me to mom."

"I didn't, except you were lying about whose underwear was on the
floor."

When they had a definitive goal in mind, one that they absolutely
wanted to reach, the twins could be quite industrious. They were very
goal oriented, something Scott and Kristy had both learned early on.
The problem was finding goals the twins thought were important
enough to work hard towards. Being able to have their first overnight
party became one such goal.

Their chores were completed without complaining. Their room, while
not spotlessly clean, was remarkably neat. The beds were made, the
furniture was dusted, the rug was vacuumed, their dresser drawers
were organized, and their clothes were put away in their proper
places.

When the big day arrived, Peter and Brock arrived together in the
early afternoon. Michelle and Megan had already arranged to spend
the night with a friend. The twins bounced around the house from the
time the got up until the car came up the long gravel driveway. They
drove Kristy nuts, especially since they had hopped out of bed at six-
thirty in the morning.

The afternoon was noisy and raucous, but the four were also good
boys and were careful not to demolish the house. They played video
games and board games and watched a movie. The December
weather was gray and rainy, which kept them indoors. Kristy made a
mental note that the next sleepover wouldn't be until the weather was
good enough for the boys to play outdoors.

When Scott got home from work, the boys settled down some. Dinner
was hamburgers and baked beans, with the obligatory salad.
Chocolate cake was available for dessert for all of those who cleaned
their plates. All four boys reached that goal.

Scott played with the boys for awhile. Then he popped in a movie,
which helped to quiet them down. A little after eight, the four of them
retired to the twins' bedroom. Other than using the bathroom, the
bedroom would be where they would stay for the rest of the evening.

For reasons they couldn't explain or understand, the twins wanted to
see their friends naked. They weren't interested in playing games,
like Cindy and Stacey had been, they just wanted nakedness.

"Do you guys want to get naked?" Mark asked. Subtlety was not one
of the twins' strong points. They'd seen Peter and Brock naked when
they had their skinny dips, but this was different. Getting naked for
swimming didn't make their dicks hard.

"Sure, why not" Brock said. "We've been naked with you guys
before." Peter agreed and the boys wordlessly started to strip. It had
been that easy.

What Brock and Peter didn't expect to see when they stripped was
the hard three-inch cocks of Mark and Matthew. They both looked
wide-eyed at the ten-year-old twins and their boners.

"You guys got hard wieners," Brock said.

"Yeah, we get them a lot," Mark said. "Don't you guys get them?"

"I get one sometimes," Peter said. Brock nodded in agreement.

"They're called erections," Matthew said. He rubbed his own erection
with his thumb and index finger and added, "and I'm rubbing my
penis, not my wiener."

"But big boys call them cocks or dicks." Mark said, rubbing his own
erection. "And they call erections, boners."

"Why are you rubbing it?" Peter asked?

"Because it feels good," Mark said.

"Yeah, it feels really good. It's called masturbating. Or jacking off, or
jerking off," Matthew told them.

"Or beating your meat," Mark said. "It can be called lots of stuff."

"You keep doing it until you get an orgasm," Matthew said. "And that
feels the best."

Both Brock and Peter were surprised that their little cocklets had
gotten hard. Brock's was almost as big as the three inches that were
sported by the twins. His boner was also thicker than theirs. Peter's
peter barely stretched out to two inches. They followed the lead of the
twins and started masturbating, feeling a bit self-conscious as they
did so.

"We should sit on my bed," Mark said. "It's better when you do it
sitting down."

The time for talk was over and the lesson evolved into the
demonstration phase. It didn't occur to the twins to talk to Peter and
Brock about how much better it felt when somebody else put his hand
on your cock and jerked you off. They never thought about telling
them how great a blow job felt. The way the twins saw it, the lesson
for the evening was about jerking off, not about sex.

When the little circle jerk ended, Mark and Matthew had two orgasms
apiece, while Brock, with a great deal of encouragement, had his first
orgasm. Poor Peter got some good feelings, but couldn't get himself
to reach the final goal. But, his time would eventually come.

They slept naked that night, the first time Peter and Brock had slept in
the nude. Each of them had his own sleeping bag on the floor, while
Mark and Matthew slept together in Mark's bed. Neither Peter nor
Brock thought it strange that the twins slept naked with each other.

It was an evening that some would call sexual. But in reality, it was all
rather innocent. Two boys learned about masturbation, two boys
taught them, but none of them thought they were actually having
anything to do with sex.

For all they had experienced over the last few months, and for all of
their feelings of sophistication, the twins still had a childlike naivety
about them. Their wanting to show their friends how to masturbate
was indicative of the fact that their relative innocence regarding sex
with other boys was not long for the world.

++++++++++++

Mark and Matthew were both excellent athletes. They played soccer,
basketball, and baseball. Their sisters were equally gifted physically.
Their parents encouraged their children's participation in team sports.
While neither Scott nor Kristy had the knowledge base or time to
coach, they both did volunteer work for the teams from providing
treats, to keeping score, to helping with fund raisers. There was
always at least one parent at each of their games, and usually both
were able to attend.

As baseball season approached, their parents looked into Little
League baseball as well as a couple of ten and under select teams.
They had heard good things about the Orioles, who had been very
competitive the year before. Their coach was Brandon Hunt. His son,
Jeremiah, had played for him on the Orioles the year before as a
nine-year-old. He was eligible to play for another year.

Mark and Matthew went to the first tryouts. Coach Hunt knew talent
when he saw it. He had scouted the area coach pitch leagues the
year before and had seen them play. He quickly signed the twins up.
In this particular program teams weren't drafted, rather coaches
recruited players. While not as far reaching as Little League, the
statewide program was very competitive. Coach Hunt owned a
suburban auto dealership. He was also somewhat of an asshole.

Playing on the team started out as fun for the twins, but things started
happening that ate at their sense of fairness. For one, Coach Hunt
was convinced that Jeremiah was the star on the team. Not only was
his ten-year-old son the star of his select team, but to his father he
was obviously on track to become a collegiate and professional star
as well. It didn't take the coach long to realize that Mark and Matthew
were each better ballplayers than his son. Jeremiah sensed it, too.
They both felt they needed to knock the twins down a few notches.

Coach Hunt started getting on the twins for any mistakes and
weaknesses, real or perceived, that he detected. He wanted all of the
players to know that his son, Jeremiah, was the best ballplayer on the
team, and to do so he had to make the twins look bad. Jeremiah
picked up on his father's words and started to rag on them as well.

The twins were a happy and easy going pair, up to a point. At first
they shucked off the undeserved criticisms of Coach Hunt, as well as
the carping of Jeremiah, as the rants of a pair of idiots. They were
both strong enough to let the comments roll off of their backs. But,
they also noticed some things that disturbed them more than
whatever criticisms and comments were directed at them.

Every team, even a hand-picked one like the Orioles, has a worst
player. On most teams the kid on the bottom of the pecking order was
well-received by his teammates, or at worst, tolerated by them,
depending on his personality. Clayton was that player on the Orioles.

As soon as the roster was set, Jeremiah had gone to work to let the
team know who the alpha male was. He quickly found a shadow in
Alden, who was a talented player, but had a quiet, sinister side to
him. However, he didn't have the guts to push others around on his
own. He worked best as the follower of the alpha male, ready to back
him up, or to take the initiative when he knew his buddy was around
to back him.

Normally, Jeremiah would have tried to recruit the twins to be part of
his cadre, but he saw how his father constantly rode the two boys,
and decided he didn't want to be friends with them. Instead, knowing
what his father's attitude was, he did his best to try to intimidate them.
It irked him when Mark and Mattie pretty much ignored his comments,
causing Jeremiah to have an intense dislike for them.

Jeremiah quickly asserted himself with most of the team. There were
some players he couldn't easily intimidate, however, and the twins
were two of them. He found that out in one of the early practices.

The team was taking infield practice. The coaches were moving boys
to various positions to see who fit where. Mark, Jeremiah, and
Clayton were among the players taking grounders at third base.
Clayton much preferred the outfield or second base, both positions
better suited to his smaller frame than third base was.

When he bobbled two straight grounders, Coach Hunt yelled at him to
concentrate and get his head into what he was doing. The chewing
out led to yet another error at third. Jeremiah took his cue from his
dad.

"You better not be that bad in a game," he said as he went by Clayton
to take his turn at fielding a grounder.

"I don't like playing third that much," Clayton said, not realizing he
was leaving himself open.

"Well, I don't like you playing anywhere that much because you stink.
I'll kick your ass if you lose us a game because you can't catch the
ball."

Mark, who followed Jeremiah in line, heard every word. He knew that
Clayton was trying his best, and his sense of justice was offended by
Jeremiah's attitude. After Jeremiah took three grounders without a
mistake, Mark went to take his place.

"You better not be as bad as he is," Jeremiah said, pointing to
Clayton, "or I'll kick your ass, too."

Mark stopped and faced Jeremiah, stepping toward him. Jeremiah
was the taller of the two-ten-year olds, with longer arms and legs. But
Mark had a more solid build and was the stronger of the two boys.
Even though Mark had to look up, Jeremiah couldn't help but get the
feeling that Mark was looking down at him, which made him feel very
uncomfortable.

"Why don't you just kick my ass now," Mark said. "Then you won't
have to do it later." Mark was now standing within inches of the taller
boy, intimidating him. Being intimidated was a new feeling for
Jeremiah, one that he didn't like at all. At that moment, his feeling for
Mark, as well as Matthew, went from disliking them to despising
them.

"I will really soon," Jeremiah told Mark, "but not here in practice."

"Mark, you might want to hustle to your spot and be ready to field the
ball," Coach Hunt yelled out.  Mark nodded and got into his ready
position. "Drop your butt down lower," the coach yelled, even though
Mark was in almost perfect fielding position. He ignored the coach
and held the position he was in.

"You're going to choke this ball," Jeremiah said, "and, after you do,
my dad will tell you how shitty you are, and so will I." He was feeling a
bit more confident working in the shadow of his father.

Mark shrugged. When the ball came to him, it scooted right between
his legs. Mark was a sure-handed fielder, who normally would have
picked up the easy grounder with his eyes closed. But this time he
intentionally let it go through him, wanting to see how Coach Hunt
and Jeremiah would react. He also wanted to show Clayton that he
wasn't alone when it came to making mistakes on easy plays.

"You are as shitty as Clayton," Jeremiah laughed. "Everybody says
you're really good. You're no good at all. I can't wait to kick your ass."
Before he could say anything else, Mark was right back in his face
again. "But I'll do it later," Jeremiah said quickly. Coach Hunt yelled at
Mark to hustle harder.

Coach Hunt had a talk with Mark about his attitude at the end of
practice. "Jeremiah is the best player on the team, as well as the
captain. It would be a good idea if you listened to him. I didn't like
your attitude in practice at all today. You looked like you wanted to
start a fight, and I won't stand for that."

"I never want to start a fight," Mark said with an air of innocence. "I
don't like fighting." That statement was true enough. Mark and
Matthew did not like to fight, unless it was against each other, but
they also had no intention of ever backing away from one if they
deemed fighting necessary.

"That's good to hear, Mark. So you might want to get your act
together again. I know my son isn't a fighter, but I can assure you he
won't back down to any intimidation," Coach Hunt said, trying his best
to intimidate the boy standing in front of him. If he thought he'd
succeeded at his attempt to overawe the young boy, he was as
mistaken as his son.

Scott and Kristy started to notice things. For one, Mark and Matthew
did not display their usual enthusiasm regarding their team. They'd
always liked practice almost as much as they loved playing games,
which no longer seemed the case. When questioned about how
things were going on the Orioles, they both said, "Fine." One word
answers were not usually part of their repertoire.

An incident disturbed them during an early season game. The
incident gave Scott and Kristy a good idea of what their sons were
dealing with. Coach Hunt had scheduled a practice game against
another team. The team wasn't in the same program and its level of
play was nowhere near that of the Orioles. Even with the score at 15-
0 in the third, he was giving his players the steal sign. To Scott and
Kristy, it looked like he was trying to rub the opponent's noses in the
score. Coach Hunt was able to justify his actions by saying his
players needed to practice stealing bases so they would be proficient
against better competition.

Matthew led off the bottom of the fourth and singled. Coach Hunt
gave him the steal sign before the first pitch was thrown. As in Little
League, a baserunner couldn't leave his base until the ball crossed
home plate. Matthew never moved, even after the ball passed the
plate. He got the same signal and didn't move on the next pitch
either. His sense of justice said that you didn't run up the score on an
overmatched opponent, so he ignored the signs. Even after the third
pitch went past the catcher to the backstop, Matthew stayed on first.
Coach Hunt was furious.

When the inning was over, the coach called Matthew over. "Don't you
ever do that again!" he screamed.

"Do what?" Matthew asked. "I didn't do anything."

"I know you didn't do anything; you were supposed to do something, I
gave you the steal sign twice." Coach Hunt noted that Mark was
lurking close by. He found it unsettling that whenever he chewed out
one of the twins, the other one always seemed to appear.

"But we were ahead by fifteen runs. It's not fair to rub it in."

"Don't tell me what's fair and what isn't fair, young man. I'm the coach
and you just play the game the way I tell you to play it, and never,
never question it. Plus, you just standing on first on the wild pitch was
a total lack of hustle. It was a disgrace. You and your brother over
there are not as good as you think you are."

"I didn't try to ignore you. I just didn't steal the base, and I didn't run
on the wild pitch because we were so far ahead. It was just like me
not stealing the base."

"Yeah," Mark piped in, "he was just trying not to be an ass...a jerk
about it." Coach Hunt decided he could not ignore Mark's interruption.

"Are you calling me a jerk?" Coach Hunt was red in the face, his voice
starting to rise out of control.

"I never said that, I just said my brother didn't want to be one."

"Both of you go sit on the bench." Coach Hunt knew that if the
conversation continued, he was going to lose his temper, if he hadn't
already. "I'm putting Kenyon and Roger in for you."

"Okay."

The game was over at the end of the inning when the ten-run mercy
rule was invoked. Scott was not pleased with what he'd seen, both in
regard to the coach running up the score and the way he started
yelling at his boys. Kristy was watching the girls play a softball game
and wasn't there to witness the scene.

Scott sauntered down to the field as Coach Hunt worked on getting
the equipment put away. "What was the problem with my boys,
coach?"

"Hi, Scott." Coach Hunt thought Scott could have started with a
comment about how well the team had played. He could see where
the attitude of Scott's sons came from. "There was no problem. Mark
apparently missed the steal sign. And then he didn't even bother to
leave first on a wild pitch. That is a total lack of hustle on his part."

"And you yell at ten-year-old kids for missing a sign? Isn't that what's
called a teaching opportunity?"

"Both of your boys have had issues figuring out how I want things
done. I am questioning their dedication to playing on this team."

Scott ignored the insult thrown at his boys. Instead he asked the
obvious question. "Why are you giving a steal sign in the fourth inning
of a 15-0 game?"

"It's how the kids learn to read signs and follow through. A `teaching
opportunity' your boy obviously needed."

Scott figured out quickly why Mark and Matthew were quiet about
baseball—they weren't having any fun. The reason why they weren't
having fun was very obvious. But, he preached persistence and
sticking to a task to his kids, and he wasn't about to pull them off the
team because he didn't care for the coach. He was going to see to it
that the boys learned from the experience of playing for a man he
deemed to be an unfit coach as well as an asshole.

He later talked to Mark and Matthew about the incident. Mark
admitted he knew that the steal sign had been given. "But it wasn't
fair dad. We had them beat and it's bad sportsmanship to rub it in."

"Well, son, sometimes you have to do things you don't like to do in
life. If the coach wants you to steal, then you do what he says. It can
be dealt with in a different way and at a different time."

"Dad, I didn't have to do anything. Stealing the base was wrong. So I
didn't. And that was right."

"Yeah, it was good sportsmanship," Matthew said. Scott knew if he
kept the discussion going it would only go around in circles, so he
dropped it. Besides, how could he argue with their statements? The
boys were correct; what Mark did was good sportsmanship and it was
the right thing to do.

The next incident happened soon after that. They were playing their
first league game. The competition was much better, but the Orioles
were ahead 8-5 thanks to two doubles by Matthew and three great
innings of pitching by Mark.

Clayton came to bat in the fifth inning. Every player had to bat at least
once and play an inning in the field. Jeremiah was on third base with
two outs and was eager to score. "You better knock me in, Clayton,"
he yelled. He sounded more like he was delivering a threat than
words of encouragement. Clayton ended up striking out, swinging at
two pitches that were almost over his head. He was a better hitter
than that, but Jeremiah had made him afraid to make a mistake.

When Clayton went into the dugout, Jeremiah looked to see if any of
the coaches were around, and then confronted the hapless Clayton.
"I told you to knock me in," Jeremiah said. Alden was standing next to
Jeremiah with a smirk on his face.

"I didn't strike out on purpose," Clayton said.

"Yeah, like swinging at pitches over your head is how you get hits."
He gave Clayton a shove.

"Push him harder," Alden said.

Ernie, another boy in the dugout, chimed in. "Push him really hard,
Jeremiah."

A coach peeked in. "Come on boys, let's hustle out on the field."

He walked away and Jeremiah set himself to give Clayton another
shove, one that would knock Clayton on his ass. But, just as he was
ready to push, a hand slapped him on the forehead and knocked him
away. Jeremiah blinked his eyes and saw Matthew standing next to
him. He quickly looked around for Mark, but he was on the field
where he belonged.

"You hit me!" Jeremiah screamed.

"Boys, on the field, now!" Coach Hunt yelled as he entered the
dugout. Jeremiah and Alden ran out to the field. Matthew, Ernie, and
Clayton were all on the bench for the inning.

As the inning started, Matthew sidled over to Clayton. "Are you
okay?"

"Yeah, thanks for helping me," Clayton said.

"Jeremiah is a dickhead. Him and Alden both. Mark and I won't let
those dickheads push you around."

"You are going to be in trouble," Ernie said.

"Shut up, Ernie." Matthew and Mark didn't like Ernie. They called
Ernie a weasel, although not to his face. Jeremiah bullied him as
much as he did Clayton, but Ernie's reaction was to kiss Jeremiah's
ass and try to win his favor. Doing that only helped to inflate
Jeremiah's ego, since Ernie's kowtowing only made Jeremiah feel
more important.

Meanwhile, Jeremiah was fuming at third base. The second batter hit
a two-hop grounder to him, which, in his anger, Jeremiah threw six
feet over the first baseman's head. Of course, he had to listen to his
dad yell at him. It is all Matthew's fault, he thought, and he knew
exactly what he was going to do about it.

The Orioles ended up winning the game 10-5. Jeremiah went to his
father and told him what had happened in the dugout and how it
made him so mad he threw the ball away. His father called Matthew
over for a talk. When he saw Mark once again nearby, he sent the
boy away, telling him this was a private chat.

"Jeremiah says you hit him in the dugout for no reason," the coach
said.

"I didn't hit him, coach," Matthew protested.

"Oh? According to Jeremiah you slapped him like a girl."

"Me? I didn't slap him, I just high fived his forehead."

Coach Hunt could feel his frustration grow. He was learning that
arguing with either of the twins was like trying to work his way through
knee deep mud. He seemed to make no progress and just kept
sinking deeper into the slime. "Son, you are a loser. I don't tolerate
losers on my team."

"But, coach, I was the winning pitcher in today's game," Matthew said
with a slight smirk.

"If you don't get your act together real soon, you..." he looked around
and saw that Mark had somehow reappeared, "...and your brother
won't last the season with the Orioles."

"That would mean we wouldn't play for you any more." Mark said that
as if that would be the best thing to happen to him all summer.

"Go! Just go! Be on time for practice, tomorrow." The twins were
always on time for everything, so they had no idea what that
statement was about.

Mark and Matthew had taken a real liking to Clayton. After the walked
away from Coach Hunt, they asked their parents if Clayton could
spend a day at their house. They agreed, and a couple of days later
the three boys were swimming, laughing, and playing. The day was a
Thursday, so by agreement swimsuits were worn. The twins were
beginning to think it might be time to get that rule changed.

Things came to a head three games later. The undefeated Orioles
were playing the undefeated Cardinals in a battle of top teams.

"This game will be for the birds," Mark said at dinner the night before.

"Well, then the Cardinals will have to lay an egg," Matthew said.

"Jeremiah was in a flighty mood at practice, yesterday."

"And Coach Hunt was squawking about everything."

Scott knew his boys were bright and their increasing mastery of puns
helped confirm what he already knew. For ten-and-a-half their word
play was quite proficient. Scott made sure to groan in all of the right
places, throwing out a few puns of his own.

"Are you guys having fun playing baseball?" he asked the twins, not
for the first time.

"No, but you said you don't quit just because things were hard. Coach
is an asshole..."

"Mark!" Kristy said. "Watch your language, especially at the dinner
table."

"Well, he is an asshole. What am I supposed to do, call him a cuckoo
brain?"

Kristy shook her head, looking over at Scott and whispering, "Why
me?"

The game ended up being a good one. It was tied at 5-5 going into
the sixth and final inning. Two Oriole batters got on base and, with
one out, there were runners on second and third. Jeremiah came to
the plate.

Coach Hunt was coaching third base. He yelled encouragement to
his son. "You're the best, Jeremiah. You're better than them. Show
them what you can do." The count got to 2-2, when Jeremiah swung
wildly at an outside pitch, striking out.

That brought Matthew to the plate. "Take a strike," Coach Hunt yelled
at Matthew. "Make him pitch to you." He had not given Jeremiah that
instruction. The pitcher, hearing what the coach yelled, decided to
groove the pitch and pick up an uncontested strike one. Matthew,
however, was not about to let a fat pitch go by with the game on the
line. He hammered the waist-high pitch to the fence for a two-run
scoring triple and a 7-5 Oriole lead.

After sliding into third, Matthew got up and brushed the dirt off of his
white uniform pants. Instead of getting the expected praise, Coach
Hunt admonished him for not taking the pitch as instructed.

"It was a fat pitch," Matthew said. "I hit it a long way."

"You're going to be running a long way in the next practice," Coach
Hunt said, his face red with anger. He truly disliked the twins, as did
his son. The next batter grounded out to second and the inning was
over. The Cardinals had to score two runs to say alive.

As Mark and Matthew got their gloves, Jeremiah glared at Matthew.
"That should have been my winning hit," he said with vehemence.
"Don't think you're cool just because you got a lucky hit when you
weren't even supposed to be swinging. Why do you think my dad
didn't want you to swing? It's because you suck."

Matthew looked over at Mark and shrugged. "What is he talking
about?"

"Beats me. Maybe he wants another high five," Mark said.

"I can't wait until dad kicks you two off the team."

When the players took their positions on the field, Coach Hunt asked
Coach Wright, one of his assistants, why Clayton was playing in right
field. "That's where you put him on the chart," Coach Wright said.
Every player had to have at least one at-bat or one inning in the field.

"I marked off for him to play in the fifth inning. Why would I want my
worst player in the field in the sixth?"

"Here it is, on your chart--Clayton in right. Sixth inning."

"Shit."

It didn't take long for the Cardinals to come back. Even though Mark
was his best pitcher, Coach Hunt hadn't used him since the high five
incident with Jeremiah. He certainly wasn't going to give in and use
him in the last inning of an important game. The pitcher he had in
wasn't up to the task, walking the first three batters. The bases were
loaded with no outs. Coach Hunt settled him down and he struck out
the next two batters. The Orioles were an out away from a win.

The next Cardinal batter lofted a high fly to right field. While not the
most adept player on the team, Clayton wasn't a total klutz on the
diamond. But, when he looked up for the ball, he lost it in the setting
sun. He took four steps in before picking the ball up and realizing he
should have gone back on it. He turned and tried to get to it, but it
was too late as it landed behind him. By the time all of the dust
settled, three runs had scored and the Cardinals had a win.

Coach Hunt was beyond furious. He was going to give Clayton hell
for losing the ball in the sun, give Matthew hell for not following
instructions, and give his pitcher hell for not throwing strikes.
Nowhere on his agenda was giving his son hell for swinging at a pitch
a foot outside of the strike zone.

But first the teams did the ritual handshake, then went to their
dugouts to pick up their gear. Jeremiah confronted Clayton in the
dugout.

"You lost the game for us," Jeremiah said. Alden stood menacingly
next to Jeremiah.

"You should have caught the ball," Ernie said.

Jeremiah glared at Ernie. "Shut the fuck up, Ernie." Ernie clamped his
mouth shut.

Clayton wanted to make excuses. He wanted to say the sun was in
his eyes, but he knew that would only make Jeremiah angrier. Four
members of the team coming into the dugout stopped to look at the
confrontation. They weren't happy about Clayton's misplay either,
and the mindset of the team fostered by Coach Hunt and also by
Jeremiah led to instant finger pointing. Clayton was feeling very
alone.

Mark came into the dugout. On any other team, the twins would be
the leaders and the most popular boys on the team. But, the
poisonous atmosphere present was more than even their bubbly
personalities could overcome.

Jeremiah saw Mark, smirked, and punched Clayton in the gut. Mark
didn't hesitate. He was instantly all over Jeremiah and the fight was
on, the two ten-year-olds pounding on each other in the dugout.
Alden could see that Mark was beating Jeremiah and decided to step
in to help his friend. He never made it as Matthew appeared out of
nowhere and grabbed hold of Alden, keeping him out of the fray. It
took all three coaches to break up the fight. Jeremiah and Mark were
bloody and bruised.

The end result was Mark, Matthew, and Clayton being kicked off of
the team for instigating a fight. Jeremiah had testified that Clayton hit
him first because Jeremiah was trying to explain how to catch a ball
with the sun in your eyes. Alden and Ernie backed up Jeremiah's
story, while the other four boys said they were getting their equipment
and didn't see what had happened.  Coach Hunt didn't question why
a small boy like Clayton would pick a fight with a bigger, stronger boy.
Jeremiah said he would have handled Clayton, but then the twins
attacked him and Alden.

Matthew and Mark didn't bother to tell their side of the story to the
coaches. They were more than happy to be kicked off of the team.

"They are all losers," Mark said. "Especially David, Carlos, Joey, and
Paul." He was referring to the four boys in the dugout who claimed to
have seen nothing. While they missed playing baseball, they didn't
miss the Orioles. Scott and Kristy didn't object to Coach Hunt's
decision, making him think they believed Jeremiah's side of the story.
The truth was they believed their sons; they just wanted to be finished
with the whole sorry outfit.

Coach Hunt knew the twins were talented, but felt they weren't
dedicated to the team. He believed the Orioles would be just fine
without them. However, they lost their next three games and ended
up finishing in the bottom half of the league without the two talented
players. The one good thing that came from the whole mess was the
twins had themselves another good friend in Clayton.

When the end of summer came, despite their objections, the twins
found themselves sitting at a table getting ready for new student
orientation at the Puget Academy. Three other boys were led to their
table. The first boy to join them was Neville, whom they dismissed as
a snob. Then came Mikhail, who intrigued them with his stocky body
and serious good looks. The last boy to sit at the table was Patrick,
who was short with a slight build. He looked friendly and very young.
They took an immediate liking to Mikhail and Patrick, but reserved
judgment on Neville.

They also saw something that bothered them, and that was two boys
heading for a table that had students from a different class. Those
two were Jeremiah and Alden.

None of the three boys who joined the twins said a word. Mark and
Matthew decided to ignore what they just saw, and see if they could
get their three new classmates to talk. They had a feeling that their
table would be together for the entire day. Sitting around staring at
each other would not help make orientation any better.

"Hi, guys, my name is Matthew, and that is my twin brother, Mark."

"And my name is Mark, and that is my twin brother, Matthew."

As they so often did, the twins took charge of the situation. There was
no way that any of them could predict the direction the relationship of
the five boys would end up going. Their first step to becoming the
Puget Posse was about to get underway.

Next: Orientation.