"Aw, dad, the Flash is going to start," whined Max, "can I finish after the show?"
"It's going to be dark then, son. Besides we have DVR, you can record the Flash, and watch it after you're finished with your chores."
Max sighed.
Tony snickered softly. Looked like his brother was going to have to do some manual labor after all.
Tony's dad shook his head, and headed for the trunk of his car. He paused and looked at his nearly naked other son harnessed to the mower and sighed.
"Hey, neighbor," said a man leaning on the fence next to the garage. Only his hat and eyes were visible over the fence. It was Roger's dad.
"Hi Willie," Tony and Max's dad replied.
"Kid Troubles? Huh?" Willie asked.
"Yeah, you know. Max left Tony out here, and didn't finish collecting the grass cuttings."
"Ah. Still having trouble coping with your boy opting to be a pony?"
"Well, it wasn't an option. He scored pony on his exam papers, and the school filed paperwork to reclassify him as a pony."
"Oh? Roger said he requested to be Max's pony?"
"Well, the choice was auction him, have him be a municipal pony or let him be a non-parental relative's pony. So we went with Max."
"Didn't realize a parent couldn't own his own offspring? What about Judge Taylor?"
"Oh, he bought his boy back at auction."
"Ah."
"What's keeping Max?"
"Have you thought about modifying Tony? I mean if looked less like he did when he was free? And maybe looked more like the other ponies? You know mane, low hanging balls, tattoos or staining? A butt plug tail?"
"I know Willie, I have thought about it. I even got the kit that Max was looking at," he said.
"When are you giving it to him?"
"Maybe next Saturday?" He said noncommitally.
"Give it to Max tonight," advised Willie.
Just then Max stomped out of the house looking all sullen. He brushed passed his father to get the rake from the garage.
"DVR set?" His dad asked.
"Yeah," said Max, as he headed to rake the clippings.
"Wait son," his father said, "I got something for you here in the trunk."
Slowly Max turned and prodded toward his father.
His father opened the trunk.
Max's face lit up.
"The Ultra Pony Modification Kit! Thanks, dad!"
"Now you finish up the yard, and you can get started on cleaning and modifying, uh, er, your pony. Now help me lift this box out."
"Sure thing, dad."
They lifted the heavy box out of the trunk and set it down on the garage floor with a loud clang. Tony's eyes went wide as he stared at the ominous black box, it was bigger than his footlocker had been, and he could fit a lot of stuff in his footlocker. He didn't want to think what might be in the Ultra Pony Modification Kit.
"Da-?" Tony started to say, but his father backhanded him. "Max, I thought your pony would be better trained by now."
"Believe me, dad, with this kit, you won't recognize Tony. He will be the perfect pony boy. When he looks and feels like the animal slave that he is, he will behave like the perfect pony. Won't you, boy?"
Max grabbed Tony's head apparently petting it. It was an old handlers trick. His hands essentially muzzled Tony, so that he couldn't speak, and moved his head up and down as if nodding in assent.
The father went inside. Max raced around the yard collecting the clippings in a burlap bag. He finished in a bit over 5 minutes, and was dripping with sweat, as he opened the kit.
"Honey, it's almost ten. Max should really be getting ready for bed," said Max's mother Elaine.
There was a muffled scream from the backyard, as Max applied another new fitting to his pony.
"Oh, the boy's having fun. Let him keep at it for another half hour or so? Did you notice he didn't watch any TV tonight?"
"Well, I am glad that he finally seems to be bonding with Tony," she said, "okay, a half hour more, but then you call him to bed."