Summary: After his parents in England die, Sean is raised by his uncle, who owns a ranch in the US

Rated: NC-17

Categories: Actor RPS Pairing: Sean/Viggo

Warnings: AU, Violence

Challenges:

Series: Brothers

Chapters: 16 Completed: Yes

Word count: 18587 Read: 18808

Published: 02 Aug 2009 Updated: 02 Aug 2009

The image of his uncle’s shocked face was still very clear, when Sean left early next morning.

After eight horrible years living on Joe Watt’s ranch, he was finally free. Joe was his mother’s brother and when Sean’s parents had died Joe had come over. Sean had been only nine and was staying with some relatives, who had no intention of providing him with a home. He would probably have ended up in an orphanage if Joe hadn’t taken him on the boat with him to America.

Pretty soon it became clear that Sean was expected to work and work hard, despite his age and his uncle made sure he was busy from sunrise until sunset. Whenever he was caught doing nothing, and even sometimes just because Joe felt like it, he used his belt on Sean. Joe was a big man, built like a bull, with broad shoulders and enormous hands. Everyone on the ranch had to suffer from his bad temper, but Sean most of all. He slept in the barn and kept to himself.

Sean was desperately lonely most of the time, but gritted his teeth, spoke only when needed, and gave his love to the horses on the ranch. He had been put on a horse on the first day they arrived, because everyone living this remote simply had to, and took to it immediately. He preferred the company of the large animals to people most of the time.

Then he and Bill, one of the horsemen, had been sent to the nearest town for supplies three days ago and the girl at the store, the store owner’s daughter, had looked at Sean and smiled for the very first time since he'd come there. She wasn’t very exciting, not even very pretty and skinny as a boy, but there was something in her eyes that made Sean really look at himself in the mirror that night.

He had unbuttoned his shirt, looked at his naked torso and noticed how much he had toned up because of all the hard work. His skin was deeply tanned, as he liked working with the sun on his body. He flexed his arms and let the muscles roll, then grinned at himself in the mirror. *Not too bad, really.*

The thought hadn’t occured to him then; he had never planned it, but when his uncle had pulled out the belt from the loops of his jeans last night, Sean had been ready and never doubted himself. It was as if something that had held him in a vice-like grip for years was suddenly gone and he had grabbed the belt and struck with it three times before his victim even blinked an eye. The sheer shock in Joe’s eyes had made Sean feel even stronger, smelling fear and victory, even more so when Joe had backed away and left the barn.

That morning Sean got up very early and washed up at the outside pump. There was no sign of life inside the house yet and he went to the big living room, not even bothering to be silent. He lifted the lid of the wooden box on one of the shelves and peeled off a pile of banknotes that would, to his idea, cover up for the wages he had never received. He loaded one of his uncle’s big guns, and took two handfuls of bullets from the stock. The kitchen provided him with dried meat, bread, and cheese and he filled his saddlebag with it. Pumping up fresh water, knowing he would need that most, he thought about where to go, but then decided to just ride and see.

The hardest part of all was to take Apples, his horse, and leave the others behind. Sean scratched ears and stroked noses, patted velvet flanks, then finally saddled up Apples and led the horse out of the stables, taking a small bag of oats with him. His two old blankets rolled up on the saddle, he rode out of the gate, his eyes wet, but he didn’t turn when he heard his uncle call out behind him.

He spent that first night in the open air, after building a fire. He didn’t really sleep much, afraid of rattle snakes and young enough to be afraid of being alone in the dark. He was relieved when the sun rose and he could get up and give Apples his oats and some water.

Early that afternoon, he reached a small town and got himself a room in the local saloon and Apples fresh water and oats in the livery stables. He felt very world wise, ordering a drink and then another one until one of the women took him upstairs before he was too far gone and made him lose his virginity.

He had some very pleasant days and felt very much at home until his money ran out and his new popularity with it. The next day he picked up Apples, who neighed at seeing him and he laid his head against the big horse’s head, full of remorse.

He left town a bit wiser and with only a few coins in his pocket. There was some food left for horse and man though, and he rode out, eager for new horizons.

Another night out on the plains, just Apples and him, and by now he was starting to question his decision to leave the ranch. What would happen to him and Apples? He would just have to find himself a job, he finally decided, before he crawled beneath his blankets and fell into a fitful sleep.