�So, what�s the party theme going to be for our latest acquisition?� asked pacem. She swung one foot idly from where she sat on the railing seat of the treehouse.

�I�m not sure,� replied lahoffy, �but it�s got to be good! We haven�t had a BIG wing-dig since � well, since�.�

�The last one,� finished lynnann. She took a sip of her hot tea and cupped it in her hands. �My, it�s beautiful up here. Who would have guessed that the treehouse in winter would be a favorite spot?�

Murmurs of agreement rose around her.

�You can certainly see everything going on around the compound from up here,� added pacem. She pointed and every head turned. A figure with red hair was raking leaves along the walkway.

�Richie�s working? Was he bad again?� chuckled lynnann.

�Not bad enough,� said lahoffy. �My halo isn�t humming at him.�

�I think he failed to do the laundry and now he has to rake AND do laundry.�

They watched for a moment. The idle breeze that came and tugged on their hair couldn�t make up its mind to stay�or go. Mostly it just tickled and made lynnann�s tea steam curl around wildly. The bare twigs rattled, the branches swayed, and the treehouse seemed to sigh with the wind, barely rocking. It was brisk enough to wear jackets, but not cold enough to ask Duncan to raise a canvas bag full of firewood up to the wood stove inside.

�Look, here comes Hayden.�

�Oh goody. She always has ideas for tomfoolery.�

�Shouldn�t that be �Scot-foolery�?�

�la-hoffy! That�s almost as bad as MacNair trying to filk!�

�Now, now,� chided another voice. �Some of MacNair�s filks are okay��

�If you�ve had a glass of wine before opening the post!� added another voice.

~scattered laughter~

�Hallooo, up there?� Hayden climbed the ladder up to the front deck of the treehouse and poked her head through the hole. �Is this the par-TAY planning place?�

�The Triple P Crew, that�s us,� said lynnann. �Come and join in.�

�I brought cookies and kisses.�

�Oh, nummie!�

~munch~munch~wrappers flutter down and are nabbed and crammed into pockets~

�So,� opened hayden, surfacing from chocolates, �what�s the plan?�

�Haven�t one yet.�

�Hmmmm, this isn�t good.�

�Oh, I don�t know�some of our REAL big dingers are when they�re unplanned.� Pacem smiled at hayden. �Of course, having someone with �mayhem� in their blood tends to liven up any par-TAY regardless of what you originally planned!�

~a general round of laughter punctuated by reminders of super-soakers, threesomes, a certain ladder, and sundry other mayhem induced events~

lynnann abruptly sat up straighter in the swing and stared off at the main house. The fact that she froze with the teacup halfway to her mouth made everyone sit up herself and look in the same direction. A dust cloud from some vehicle was leaving the compound. In fact, the girls had been talking and laughing so much; they hadn�t even heard the engine start.

�Who�s leaving on the day of a party?�

�We�ve already done the shopping and gift buying!�

�The cooking is all done except for the BBQ��

�The pool has all the proper chemicals� �

�There�s MacNair��

�Uh-oh.� This last was from lynnann, who always had keen insight into the body language and posture of this particular CDCer. �There�s trouble.�

�How can you tell?� lahoffy squinted at the distant figure, barely making out the hands on her hips.

�She�s got that �if I had a halo, you�d be scalped� look about her.�

�Uh oh.�

�It can�t be Richie-babe � he�s still raking,� observed pacem. �Well, he *was* raking, but now he�s kind of backing away from MacNair.�

�She doesn�t have your spare halo, does she, lahoffy?�

lahoffy groped around her personage a bit. �Nope, got my spare right here. If she�s packing gold, it isn�t mine!�

All the CDCers in the treehouse watched Richie back away from MacNair � until the swarthy figure of Duncan MacLeod came around the corner of the garage and bumped into the young redhead from behind. A swift, arm-waving conversation was held. Everyone could tell by the way Richie waved his hands and shook his head that he was denying any involvement in whatever trouble had just tried to squirm in his back pocket. And from the looks of the two squared off with him, they weren�t buying his innocent protest.

lynnann�s tea was cold. She didn�t mind. The show grew more intriguing when the tall figure of Methos came out the front door with a *BANG* that could be heard clear to the treehouse, albeit, with a few seconds of delay. Even more waving arms and pointing fingers entered the exchange near the house!

�Curiouser and curiouser,� said hayden. �And I�m not involved�fancy that!�

lynnann tossed her cold tea over the railing of the treehouse. The flash of the white cup caught Methos� eye even from the distance and he pointed. Both the immortals and the lone mortal turned to look at the solitary tree on the hillside.

�Are we in some sort of trouble?� asked pacem, studying the quartet as they started walking to the treehouse.

�We can�t be. Both lahoffy and hayden are right here,� snorted lynnann. �If they weren�t with us, then we might be in trouble��

�You�re so wise,� interrupted lahoffy.

��But whether because they usually cause the trouble or save us from trouble, I couldn�t say,� finished lynnann.

�See? Still wise!� laughed hayden.

�HEY?� shouted a voice from below. �Is there room up there for us?�

�Depends on if we can sit on some *laps* when you get here,� returned lahoffy.

Immortals and MacNair climbed the ladder and everyone on the porch of the treehouse moved around until there was room for all to sit.

�We�re in trouble,� announced Duncan without preamble. �Connor yanked the distributor caps off of the other vehicles, hitched his truck to the horsetrailer, and peeled out of here without so much as a �nyah-nyah-nyah� on the way past the house.�

�I had nothing to do with him finding the key,� added Richie. He eyed lahoffy�s halo while he spoke.

�I PUT that key in the garden shed in a tin can,� firmly stated Methos. �You *had* to have told him where it was in all that mess!�

�I did NOT tell that old goose any such thing!�

�Connor doesn�t have some crazy �key radar� to find it, Rich, and there are probably forty old cans of goop and glop out in that shed!�

�I didn�t tell him! I swear it!� The redhead looked wildly about and then put his hand on lahoffy�s arm. �Look at that halo�it�s not even twitching! I�m telling you�I didn�t tell him a thing!�

Every eye settled on lahoffy�s halo � and it sat glinting atop her head without a twitch.

�Dang. He�s telling the truth.�

�So how�d Connor find the key to the trailer?�

�I�ve no idea, but he�s certainly gone now��

�And I bet he makes sixteen keys for the silly thing and hides them all OVER the place while he�s in town.�

~groan~

**silence**

�So � um-m � tell us, you guys,� inquired hayden. �Just why don�t you want Connor to take that horse trailer anywhere?�

�You haven�t NOTICED?� Methos stared at her.

�Noticed what?�

Duncan sighed and rubbed a hand down his face. �I guess we should tell them about that trailer��

They didn�t have much back in those �good old days� to speak of except hard work.

Connor escaped the East and wandered solitarily in the mountainous backcountry, seeing no humans for months on end if at all. He trapped and hunted and lived the crude rough life of a frontiersman�and thrived on it. He loved the icy rivers with their fat trout, the harsh bugle of the elk, the swift fear along his nerves when he saw a cougar staring back at him. Inhospitable terrain, deep snow, and solitude�those were forces that shaped a Highlander like himself and he took little note of it. His hair grew long and he tied it back with a string of sinew. He quit shaving when the razor strap wore out and in the frosty winter, ice formed around his exhales.

The only thing he disliked was when he couldn�t get warm at least once a day, didn�t have one meal that filled him up at least once a day, or couldn�t move a load that a stronger man could. Checking trap lines was arduous and treacherous work�there were no roads and everything had to be packed by hand or by animals. Connor missed being able to use a wagon instead of dragging carcasses for miles by rope.

And Duncan. He missed Duncan, with his ready smile and easy companionship. He didn�t fear for his younger counterpart�s life, however. Strange though it sounded to any ears but his own, Connor knew that his kinsman was alive in the world. If he were not, he suspected that his own quickening would have leapt and writhed like some beast gutted at the death somewhere in the distance. It was a foolish belief, he knew, but he clung to it with childlike faith and it propelled him through the difficult winters.

It was the beginning of summer when Connor loaded his mules for the trip into the nearest town. It took six weeks of travel to arrive, following the river, and when he stepped to the edge of the clearing and stared down into the muddy street, he felt a stranger to his own humanity.

Duncan pushed to the Northwest and ended up working for a newspaper in a little town. The wages were poor in 1881 and the company limited, but he had resources and took little notice of this. He found a sweetheart and enjoyed the simplicity of living far away from civilization � and the resultant fighting. There were no immortals and no challenges here in this uninhabited wilderness. Quiet permeated his life and he soaked it up as if stockpiling the peace against future woes.

All was at rest within him � except for the times he wondered where his old friend had gone. Sometimes he walked to the edge of town or rode all the way to the promontory near the river and stared out across the land, but there was no hope of finding Connor MacLeod in the unconquered wilds of the free world. Sometimes, when Duncan focused all of his heart and mind and soul, he thought could sense him out there somewhere�as if the other man listened for him as well. He was certain that his kinsman lived, and that was enough to be content with.

A trapper coming in to town was always eager news, both to those who bought pelts and to those who sold goods. A trapper meant money in their pockets. Someone needing a drink in the bar, someone needing a bath, a shave � perhaps some loving comfort. The children ran to see the ragged appearance, to look for bear�s teeth or nuggets of gold that they could wheedle away from him. The men came to hear what the beaver pelts said about the coming winter, where the last Indians had been sighted, and if there were any cougar near the river. The unmarried women came to see if the trapper had enough wealth to be admirable and was available, though often they were disappointed in what they found.

The man who ran the newspaper came to hear whatever news was to be heard and the gossip it started; so Duncan followed the throng of eager townspeople. He studied the coarse appearance of the man from a distance and then stopped again when he felt the tingle of immortality in his head. An immortal? Here? Am I ready for this�?

Grizzled, swathed in furs, footgear and leggings strapped all the way to his knees, the trapper was a fearsome sight � but something about the way he moved amidst this garb seemed familiar. By the time the mountain man turned, Duncan was not surprised to look into the unwavering gaze of his Clansman beneath the wild hair. No smile of greeting and no shouted hello were aimed his way�Connor was in the thick of trading and his manner of indifference would fetch him a higher price. He acted disinterested to the tumultuous crowd, like a man who would travel farther downstream to trade if his price for pelts was not met.

Duncan leaned against the wall of the trading post and looked at his pocket watch casually. Connor went back to his dealings, with men shouting all around him, outbidding each other, and then all of them straining to hear his soft replies.

It took four hours until the last pelt was handed off and the crowd of entertained bystanders melted away. Duncan kept his distance and let Connor come to him, leading the first mule in the string of four. They stared without speaking at one another.

�Duncan.�

�Connor.� And then he smiled. �You look like an old badger.�

�I smell like one too.� A pause, a connection reforming from years apart. �You live here?�

�Second house from the end of the row down there. Dinner in a hour?�

�Make it three.�

�Three?�

�I need a bath and a shave and a haircut. Then I aim to find me a couple of willing girls,� Connor said. �I don�t think you want to see me before then.�

�No, I don�t think I do.� Duncan eyed his former teacher up and down. �You swore you hated mules.�

�I do. They�re stubborner than *I* am.� He looked away a moment. �Someday, I�m going to have a wagon that will move anything I want to, when I want to.�

�Someday you�ll keep that hair of yours short enough that it doesn�t look like a mop all the time, too.�

Connor chuckled at this and Duncan breathed in a deep breath when he heard it. The same laugh, through all my years�

�I�m hungry,� Connor said simply. �Cook lots.�

�I know.�

�So that�s where it began?�

�Began.� Duncan looked amused at something, lost in a forgotten time. �He hadn�t had whisky for so long that I drank him right into his cup � and you know how rare that is. He told ribald jokes, recited poetry backwards, and tried to toss the cat in the woodstove. I thought I was going to have to tie him into his seat to keep him from falling in the fire himself! He even sang this inane song and it went like this�

Whoa mule, whoa!

Whoa mule, I say!

I ain�t got time to kiss you now

The mule has run away!

Grandma had a yeller hen

Yeller as gold

She set her on three buzzard eggs

She hatched out one old crow.

Whoa mule, whoa!

Whoa mule, I say!

I ain�t got time to kiss you now

The mule has run away!

Never marry an old schoolteacher

I tell you the reason why

She blows her nose in old cornbread

And calls it pumpkin pie.

Whoa mule, whoa!

Whoa mule, I say!

I ain�t got time to kiss you now

The mule has run away!

Well, if I chewed tobacco

I�ll tell you what I�d do

I�d chew it nice and juicy

Then spit it all on you --- tuii!

Whoa mule, whoa!

Whoa mule, I say! I ain�t got time to kiss you now

The mule has run away!�

The CDCers stared, Richie was in hysterics, and Methos was trying to jab his eyes out with the forked fingers of one hand when he finished.

Duncan looked a trifle embarrassed, but then squared his jaw and added, �I tormented him with that one for the next thirty-five years, you know. Until he got me falling down drunk and I sang some stupid ditty�then we were even.� His smile was charming. �That's when it began, his hankering for a wagon. But it didn't end there, not by a long shot..�

It was the same in Montana. The winters were bitter and icy and the wind sharp as a knife. If they faced it, the coldness strove to drive their exhale right back into their lungs. In the summer, the heat waves shimmered off the plain and made the herd of cattle appear as if they were stampeding � though every cowboy knew they weren�t.

When Major Jim�s roan stallion escaped the corral, he sent both MacLeods after the unruly steed and they covered one hundred miles before they finally caught him. Only the fact that there were two of them even made the feat possible � one chased him down the canyon and the other cut across country to the next possible route down into the ravine. A swift swirl of Duncan�s rope snared the brute around the neck. Connor snaked a lasso around from the other side and kicked his gelding away from Duncan�s.

�And there the fight began.

The furious roan ended up strung between the two horses, but even so, both Scots were nearly unseated by the irate stud. He bucked and jerked, lunging first at one cowpony and then the other, and for an hour the two Scots fought to get him up out of the ravine. The treacherous shale gave way and slid around them and the dust made them choke and cough, blinking to keep their eyes clear to see their progress. Duncan finally loosed his long bullwhip and cracked it behind the stallion�s withers to finally get them up and away from the dangerous cliffs, and even then it didn�t end�the crazed beast jerked ahead, then drug back and squalled and roared and fought the ropes.

Connor threatened to shoot the top of his skull off and leave him for dead.

Duncan reminded him that the fiery stallion was prized breeding stock.

Connor thought the coyotes should be fed a good meal.

Duncan said, �Major Jim�s daughter is fond of him.�

�There isn�t any woman worth a stud so vicious,� replied the begrimed older man.

Four hours later, with the raging stallion still fighting every step, Duncan decided they should shoot the top of the animal�s head off and it was Connor who put up the arguments against such a course.

For two days, the two immortals shepherded the half-wild animal between them � never daring to stop long, never building a fire for the night. They let their horses snatch what grass they could and munched on dried beef themselves. If the rope went slack more than a foot, the rogue stallion lunged at the nearest cowboy, teeth bared. The terrain was a constant foe, as the cowponies tried to keep their distance from the stallion like a good roping horse does. Connor cursed a lot and Duncan�s bullwhip was always in one hand.

It wasn�t until five SC cowboys spotted them and rode down to add their ropes to the mix that Connor and Duncan finally could free themselves from the task. Six days of riding and two days of watchfulness showed in their eyes. Duncan�s grip failed, finally, on the handle of the bullwhip and he dropped it in the dirt. Their pony�s heads hung.

They walked their horses the last quarter mile home and the tack boy took them for a good rub down. Duncan washed his face in the trough and drank three dippers of water. Connor just dunked his entire head for a moment and sucked down a quart or two. They crawled fully clothed into their bunkhouse beds and kicked their boots off.

�It feels like I�m still sitting on a horse�s spine,� said Duncan.

�Me too. I don�t want to sit a saddle for a month.� Connor sighed and turned, pulling a blanket around his chin. �I�m too tired to eat.�

�That�s saying something. A couple hours and you�ll be in the flapjacks just as always�.�

�Someday, I�m going to have a wagon that will hold and haul whatever I want, I�m telling you.�

�You couldn�t have stuffed a crazy horse like that in a wagon anyway, Connor,� chuckled Duncan.

�If he was hobbled on all four feet and I put a twitch on him�he�d haul.�

Duncan poked his head over the side of the bunk above. �You�d just keep tying him until he was a mess of ropes and knots, wouldn�t you?�

�Damn straight,� Connor fired back. �A good enough wagon and you can haul most anything. Someday, I�ll have me one.�

�And he never quit about owning a good wagon.�

�And�?� baited another CDCer.

�That�s how we ended up with a 28 foot, three horse trailer that weighs almost 6000 pounds without any animals in it!�

Methos chuckled from the swing, where he had his arms around hayden. �And it has escape routes for each animal, extra large windows, side unload ramps, removable center posts and dividers, rubber torsion suspension, and can handle two 18 hand horses and one 16 � hand horse without crowding any of them.�

Duncan rolled his eyes. �I suppose Connor told you all of that?�

�NUMEROUS times.� Methos smirked, and then added, perfectly serious, �And then he reminds me of everything he has hauled, can haul, someday would like to TRY to haul.�

�He hauled sixteen goats out here to clear that upper pasture of thistles,� said Duncan.

�And he hauled sixty board feet of lumber and built this deck on the treehouse,� returned Methos.

�He hauled twenty chickens out here.�

�And twelve sheep, one of them black as sin.�

�He likes that one.�

�He hauled Richie�s bike when he broke down over by Copper Butte.�

�He hauled in a new bike when he got tired of listening to Richie complain about repairing his old one.�

�I danced a jig, right there in the courtyard for him too, you notice?� Richie fired into the exchange between Methos and Duncan.

�And he hauled twenty-two cases of wine when they went on sale down at Trader Jim�s.�

�He loaded nineteen bales of hay in that trailer, halved the last ten to stick right up on top of the pile � then bragged on how he lugged twenty-nine bales of hay home from town.�

�He hauled eight big Christmas trees in it when we only had eight CDCers and he thought they should each have their own tree to decorate��

�God, the pine needles we vacuumed up!�

�He hauled five new freezers and two refrigerators here.�

�He hauled seventeen boxes of pool chemicals for the POD.�

�Dunn�s Rock and Gravel loaded a quarter ton of boulders in it for the patio wall.�

�He hauled twenty cases of Wikkid Ale for the girlie in the moat.�

�I didn�t mind that load�� Methos chuckled.

�He hauled my mare, Arabask, clear from Wyoming.�

�I keep waiting for him to bring *ME* one!�

�He hauled $30,000 worth of antiques from Forweiller�s sale two years ago.�

�And he hauled three dressers, six lava lamps, twenty strands of twinkle lights, two skeins of yarn, a pair of three inch clogs, a clown costume, a potted plant, a metal bunk bed, a bright purple overstuffed recliner chair, and a quart of peach ice cream on k�lynn�s birthday last year in it.�

�That�s coming around again soon, you know��

�And now he has KEYS to the thing!�

Duncan looked very seriously at all the CDCers. �Connor has a horse trailer that will haul damn near anything and he has lots of money.�

**silence**

�So his motto is, �Have trailer, will haul�?� suggested pacem.

�Have trailer, will bring home anything not too big to fit in it!� pronounced Duncan.

�Sounds good to me!� said one CDCer.

�Can we make him a list?� said another. (You know who!)

�Don�t you GET it? He can get a small elephant in there!� Duncan shouted. �It�s not that he needs any of this � he has to see if he can get it in the trailer!�

**silence**

�And once it�s IN the trailer, he brings it home,� confirmed Methos.

�You got it. I expect one day he�ll bring home seventy cats in it.�

�I hope he remembers the fifty-seven bags of cat chow and one hundred bags of cat litter�� added Methos, almost as an afterthought.

�Well-ll,� lynnann said in her best wheedling voice, �so far, he�s only brought helpful things home. A horse, some fun for k�lynn, some inexpensive pasture-cleaners. It�s not like he brought home 22 million doorknobs that were on sale or anything.�

Methos got a look about his face that made everyone quite still. In a low voice, the eldest grated slowly out: �He � brought � home � seven � Orcs � and � put � them � in � the � woods.�

lynnann blinked and was silent. There wasn�t much defense for a man who brought home Orcs that *she* knew of. Except for the immortals having something to hunt and practice on when life was too tame.

She was about to mention this little fact when Methos continued in the same low, growling voice. �He�s hoping they�ll figure out how to birth Uruk-hai, so he can REALLY get some hard practice.�

�Certified nuts,� murmured hayden.

�Nuts with a 6000 pound horse trailer because someone told him where to look for the key!�

Every eye swiveled to Richie.

�I am, like, SO innocent I should have my own halo!� he protested once again.

**silence**

A �honk�honk�honk� from far away bade everyone turn their heads. A trickle trail of dust coming up the road heralded the return of Connor with the horse trailer. They watched it pull up the long drive and the elder Scot backed it up near the house without jackknifing it once. Then the �honk�honk�honk�of the truck horn sounded again, though much closer. Connor got out and stared up the hill to where they all sat.

�What do you want to bet that means WORK for someone?� complained Richie.

�He certainly parks that well, even having not had it for months!� observed hayden.

�How�d he know we were all up here?� asked pacem.

�That boy�s got radar, remember?� sighed Duncan. �Come on. Let�s see what he�s dragged home with him THIS time��

They clambered down out of the treehouse and walked down the slope to where the elder Highlander stood. For a moment, it was just the throng�s gaze against Connor�s. They could see the brilliance in his eyes: the sparkle, the inquisitiveness, the deviltry � the aliveness that thrilled them.

�What have you got in that trailer, Connor MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod?� asked Methos, daring to go boldly where no CDCer was going to go willingly.

�Why, something for Denise,� he said, as if his thinking should be completely obvious. �She�s a leather hound.�

**silence**

(The CDCers were trying to get �hound� and �leather� to make some sense in their brains. Somehow, the image of a little stuffed dog kept getting in the way�)

�Here,� Connor offered, �look in the trailer. I got everything she needed.� He pulled the pins from the heavy rear doors and wrestled them open for everyone to see.

The CDCers plus three immortals rubbernecked through the opening � and an assortment of objects met their eyes. Dressors, screens, wardrobes, boxes and the like filled the trailer. A headboard to a bed, made of ornamental ironwork with trees and leaves, leaned with its matching footboard against the center divider. Everything was mahogony with dark green accents and glints of gold detailing, and practically screamed "EXPENSIVE! BE CAREFUL WITH IT!" out the door. Connor stood to one side, proud as a peacock.

�See?� he chortled. �I got it all in there!�

�What?� demanded Duncan.

�The stuff for her ROOM, you dolt!� snapped Connor. �She�s moving IN, remember? She�s Clan now!� He paused his tirade to soften his tone. �She deserves new furnishings for her room. And you have to take special care of leather.�

�Leather?� said hayden.

�Leather?� said lahoffy.

�L-E-A-T-H-E-R,� replied Connor. �And here it is�� Whereupon he drew back the door of one of the wardrobes and revealed a plethora of leather garments, all hung neatly.

�She�s got vests, and chaps, and coats, and thongs, and dresses, and pants, and purses, and shoes to match her EVERY whim in here! Wait until she sees this halter-top � and these shorts! Look at these kickin� little boots I found? She�ll love those! And look at the bomber jacket I got at Nordstroms for a lark? And this skirt practically yells, �SPANK ME!�� The elder Scot quit poking at the clothing and realized he was being scrutinized quite thoroughly. �She�ll be in heaven, I swear it.�

**silence**

Then hayden laughed � followed shortly by lahoffy and Sheeza � then lynnann and MacNair.

�More like, YOU�LL be in heaven with her trotting about in these getups, Connor MacLeod of the Clan MacLeod,� interjected Duncan. He aimed his sternest face at his kinsman.

�Well��

�Uh-HUH?�

�There�s nothing wrong with a good looking woman in leather,� Connor retorted. �Even if she�s NOT trotting about.�

�And ESPECIALLY if she�s in the company of a good looking man in leather, r-i-ight, Connor?� catcalled Richie. (He was well known for his leather as well.)

�Well,� slowly remarked the Scot, looking at the ring of faces that circled him. �I do like my leather.�

�So-o, old chap?� sweetly inquired lahoffy. �How did you find the key?�

�The key?� he returned, confused � then he realized what lahoffy was asking about. And also registered the fact that she was wearing her halo, which meant she would also know when he was lying. �Oh, I � uh � I had some help with that.�

�From WHOM?� demanded Duncan.

�Is this supposed to be a secret?� abruptly hissed MacNair. She gestured at the door of the main house, where she had just spied Denise coasting through and then gestured frantically at the contents of the trailer.

Immediately Connor began slamming shut the back of the horse trailer and dropping the pins to lock it. Duncan helped with the heavy doors. The CDCers scrambled to either disappear or look busy. Two of them ran into each other and then staggered away together, giggling. By the time Denise came out the front door, Methos was explaining some old card game in the dirt to a bored looking audience and Richie was raking like a madman � in an area he�d already raked.

�Gee, this is SUCH a nice place. The house is so big, there�s a wonderful kitchen, a packed library,� sighed Denise. �There are lots of trees and open spaces, a big pool, a Jacuzzi, the stables and the oasis.� She looked at her new clansibs, �and all of you are so fun and have made me feel quite at home! And the Scots, ooooo, the Scots�� She left off the end.

�Are fine pieces of Highland history,� added lahoffy helpfully.

�Hey, I�m history too,� complained Methos from the dirt.

�Yeah, so history,� snickered Richie. "Just like that dirt you're sitting in!"

�Just RAKE, you�before you�re in more trouble!�

�Raking, raking, as we speak, raking!�

�Did you see the treehouse?� inquired lynnann. �It�s up there on the hillside.�

�A treehouse, too? O my!� Denise started up the hill to investigate and everyone watched her go out of the corners of their eyes. They waited until she was well out of earshot before turning their attention back to Connor, who was trying to sneak back into the cab of the truck without anyone noticing.

�HEY!� shouted one.

�Where are you going?� shouted another.

�Hold it, Connor!� shouted a third.

�If this truck so much as budges ONE INCH, I�ll shoot out the trailer tires!�

�Don�t you shoot my tires!� shouted Connor out of the truck window. His head appeared and he glared back at Methos.

�How�d you get the key, Connor?� sweetly asked Duncan, leaning against the wheel well.

Connor was about to answer when a little voice piped up from somewhere inside the trailer. It was thin and high and slightly muffled behind the steel. �HorC, horC, horC. Briiight eye�s and lo-o-ong tail. A horC, horC, horC!�

�That sounds like k�lynn,� said lynnann. �What did you do, take her to town?�

�She wanted a horse. She�s been begging for a horse, you see � every time I go to see her, she asks me to get her a horse! I can�t take it anymore, her pleading for a horse! She�s just like a little girl who begs for one,� protested Connor in a rush of words. �I told her I couldn�t get her a horse without a key and she said��

�Silly Connie. HorC go without key. Haf� legs!�

��that! She said that! And then I had to explain that I needed the trailer to haul a horse and that it needs a key to open the door for the horse to fit in. Next thing I know, she�s in spectral form and whizzing through this place. Ennaj got into it as well and they decide the room with the most junk was where it was hidden. They tore apart that garden shed and really made a mess of things before they found it and then I went to town.� Connor stopped, beaming. �And I bought her a horse.�

�You bought the Clan Spook a HORSE?� demanded Methos.

�Spook on a horse is better than Death on a horse,� interjected Richie. (Lots of groans met this.) (Methos tossed a rock and hit the grinning blonde on the leg.) (Lots of hopping about with a rake in one hand ensued.)

�It�s only a little one��

�A HORSE?� said Duncan.

�It will stay in her closet with her and it won�t be any trouble��

�WHAT?�

Connor�s grin got wider and he opened a panel on the side of the trailer. There, just inside, was k�lynn with an enormous grin on her face. She had both arms wrapped around the face of a large leather rocking horse and the hair on the mane puffed around her face. A little voice sang out of the trailer. �HorC, horC, I've got a horC. His name is Buck, �cuz Connie was buck-nak�d in the shed lookin� for key. HorC, horC, I�ve got a horC!�

Connor explained quietly: �He was in the leather shop and k�lynn wouldn�t quit hugging him. The whole time I shopped; she talked about him, petted him, brushed out his tail with her fingers � the shop owners threw him in for free since I nearly bought the place out for Denise.�

�So � now our garden shed is a wreck? And how come you were in there naked?� inquired Duncan.

�Had an accident with the gasoline, but never mind, I lived.�

�The gasoline?� demanded Methos. �Did you blow up the shed?�

�Well, no. We didn�t let blow up the shed, but it was close. Ennaj tried her hand a mixing chemicals while we were looking and ... uh ... things got a little wild.� Connor looked a bit embarrassed. �There weren�t any labels on some of that stuff and I�m certain none of it was suppose to do that�but she found the way to make something explosive. It blew all the cans up and when the goo all settled, there was the key.�

�SEE?� demanded Richie. �I was innocent the whole time!� (He was ignored because everyone knew he was guilty of something, somewhere, every single day.)

�We�ve got to get this stuff unloaded into her room before the par-TAY so Denise can enjoy it,� redirected Connor. �Are you going to help?�

�I have to say, old man, the room looks great,� said Duncan. �Denise will be completely blown away by all her leather and k�lynn is in her closet without a peep or complaint.� He turned to look his kinsman in the eyes. �How many trailer keys did you make for yourself while you were in town?�

Connor set his jaw stubbornly. �Too many to count.�

�I suppose it would be too much to ask for you to just turn them over, peaceful like?�

Connor glowered. �You�ll have to kill me for them.�

Duncan laughed and punched the other man on the shoulder. �Well THAT wouldn�t do any good�you�d just be right back again!�

�Hello, Mr. Keyman? I have a little re-keying job for you to do on a horse trailer�� said a voice on the phone.

MacNairCDC

For Denise, Feb 1, 2003 Welcome to the Clan, babe!

Song lyrics from �All Aboard!� by T. & O. Railroad.

From Sheeza, The Resident CDC Wallpaper Goddess:

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