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 Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 6:05 pm
 The earth had dried from the rains, for the most part, although there were still a few shady patches of earth that remained moist. There was more work to do around the pack, now that its numbers had swelled, and he was grateful that soon enough there would be two new slaves in the ranks. Well, that is if they chose to remain in the slave rank when they were older.
He hoped they would...it could get a bit lonely. Although things were better now with Glacier growing, and Tui...well, it was a little better. But he was unduly excited about the queen's son, though he kept it well under wraps.
Turning his attention back to his duties at hand, the wolf smiled to himself. Perhaps, if he hurried, he could be done before the midday sun, and take advantage of some of this lovely shade...
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 6:23 pm
 With his sisters busy with training Pactroclus was left on his own with the packs new nanny Seraphin. She was fun to be around, letting him play in the mud, check out interesting little critters and didn't see to treat him badly because of his gender. Right now they were going on a nice walk around the pack lands. It would be some time before his sisters rejoined him and Patroclus had to admit he did like the one on one attention he was getting right now.
Paws carried him along a well worn path with the exuberance of a pup, tail wagging back and forth every now and then. Seraphin wasn't far behind him and there was honestly nothing dangerous out here. And just when he thought this walk might not have anything interesting to see during it, a relatively large lizard went dashing across the path and disappeared into the bush. Immediately he perked up and barked back at Seraphin. "Did you see that?" And then without thinking he raced after the small creature. It was fast, very fast and hard to keep track of as it zipped under low lying bushes or fallen limbs of trees. But Patroclus did he best to keep up, and he almost caught it, the lizard had only been a mere inch or two away from his paws when he suddenly found himself falling. Patroclus let out a startled yelp as he tumbled deep into the hole, he hadn't expected that to happen. Hitting the bottom he found his way back onto his feet then glanced up. This was a very deep hole, and there was no way he could get out by himself. "Seraphin?" He called out hoping his nanny could find him. Watching one pup was certainly a lot easier than watching eight, but Seraphin enjoyed her job so much that she could never find anything to complain about. With pups to watch over, a den to sleep in, a fresh meal each day and the protection of the sisters it was hard to find anything that wasn't good about this pack. Her eyes were glued to the male pup as he walked ahead of her. He was your typical fun loving pup, curious about the world and very well behaved. Then he took off into the bushes and Seraphin was immediately cringing. "Patroclus please slow down!" She called out after him as he chased the lizard this way and that. The pup disappeared from sight for a moment and then she heard that yelp. Immediately her heart sunk and she raced forward. If he was hurt Penthesilea would kill her for sure, and if she didn't Achilles certainly would.
At first she couldn't see him, it was as though he just vanished. But then she heard him call out, his voice echoed a bit. Oh dear. Padding toward the large hole Seraphin carefully looked over the edge to see Patroclus at the bottom. "Are you hurt?" She asked and was relieved when the pup shook his head. Well at least she didn't have to worry about taking an injured pup home. But then another problem arose. How would she get him out? The hole was far too deep for her to reach down and grab him, and she didn't want to start digging down for fear the dirt would collapse onto him. "Stay right there, I'm going to get help." She turned and ran off.
Seraphin's heart pounded in her chest as she ran. She knew who to go talk to, for if anyone could help her out it was him. But he could be just about anywhere. Then when she forced her mind to calm down Seraphin thought back to what the slave did on a regular basis. Turning she adjusted her course to where she thought he would be and ran as fast as she could. "Iosef!" She called out as she neared the spot he should be at.
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 6:28 pm
Iosef's ears perked, catching the faint call of what sounded to be his name -- and, validating it, the scent of Seraphin was on the air. Brow furrowed, not certain what could have happened to cause her to call out to him like that, he turned and started toward her scent, moving quickly. "What is it?" He called, casting aside his usually quiet manner for the moment, as he sensed something was very wrong.
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 6:36 pm
Patroclus gave Seraphin a somewhat annoyed look when she told him to stay there. He was in a deep hole with no way out, where did she think he would go? But none the less he nodded to her before she disappeared in search of help. Sitting down he wondered how long it would be before help would arrive. And more importantly who would come to help. Well since he was stuck here for who knows how long he may as well get comfortable. Stretching out he found himself a relatively dry spot to lay on while he waited.
Oh thank goodness he was here. Seraphin came to a stop not far from him, panting heavily but she could rest later. "Patroclus...in a hole..." She told him in between breaths. "This way." And knowing that he would follow she turned and ran off back to where the hole was. It was quite a good distance from where Iosef had been but she pushed herself hard to run as fast as her already weary legs could carry her.
Following the trail for a bit Seraphin led Iosef to the hole hidden within the trees. Finally, when she came to a stop to she peeked over the side again to check on the pup. "Patroclus, I'm back." She said reassuringly to him, worried that he might have been fretting in her absence. But to her surprise the pup looked quite bored with the situation instead of being scared. Probably for the best, she told herself before turning to look at Iosef. "I'm not sure how to get him out, it is quite deep."
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 6:43 pm
A hole? he wondered, following after her without a word -- it was obvious that she meant business. He was a capable runner, being in decent enough shape from a hard life of work, but he was not as fast as many, and had to work to keep up with her frenzied pace.
He stopped beside her, panting a little, his chest having with the effort of recollecting his breath, and peered over the edge down at the pup below. "Are you hurt?" He called down, afraid that perhaps the pup had sprained something in the fall -- although, judging from his overall bored demeanor, it didn't seem likely. Iosef was partially relieved.
Still..."How did this get here?" He asked, mostly to himself, having temporarily forgotten that Seraphin was still there -- his mind was focused on the task at hand. How was it that there could be an enormous pit in the middle of his territory without him ever having noticed it before? he was deeply, deeply shamed.
He peered down into the hole, leaning dangerously close to the edge, as he calculated the distance, brow furrowed in concentration.
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 6:49 pm
Patroclus gave his head a shake. "No, I'm not hurt." He told the male, who he recognized as one of the packs slaves. Then because he felt somewhat disappointed as to why he ended up in here he added. "The lizard got away." He let out a sigh, Patroclus had really wanted to catch that lizard, well perhaps not catch up, but at least get a close up look at it.
Seraphin felt a smile cross her maw as she heard the disappointment in the pups voice about the lizard getting away. The poor boy was stuck in a hole with no way out right now and all he could think about was how the small creature he had been chasing had eluded him. Turning her attention back to Iosef she watched him closely as he seemed to be studying the situation. "Do you think you can get him out?" She questioned, hoping that he would, because if he couldn't then what could any of the other pack members do.
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 7:14 pm
"Of course I can," he said, somewhat distractedly, looking around himself. He pulled away from the hole, eyes narrowed thoughtfully. "The question is how..."
Iosef was a problem-solver. It was in his nature, to find solutions; after all, that was what had always made him so good at his job. In another pack, perhaps the natural skill would have landed him a higher rank -- in another life, he would have made an excellent tactician -- but he didn't mind putting it to use here, as a slave. It had seemed the natural use for his talents and, at times like this, it made him invaluable.
"We can't dig him out," he said, pacing slightly. The pup was in no immediate danger, which was good as it bought him a bit more time. "Ground's too soft, it would give way. And I can't climb out..." He stopped, then, because an idea had struck him, and without explanation, he tore off into the trees.
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 7:26 pm
Just hearing Iosef telling her that he could indeed get the pup out, as well as the tone in which he said it gave Seraphin a reason to remain calm for both her sake and Patroclus'. She watching in silence as he paced about, clearing trying to work things out. And then to her surprise he sudden ran off in mid-sentence. Oh dear. All she could do now was pace nervously and look in on the pup every now and then, showing him a brave face so as to not to worry him any.
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 7:41 pm
The limbs that Iosef and Seraphin had disposed of were not the only ones that had been shaken loose in the storm a few days previous -- and, though he had been intermittently clearing out the area, there were a few still loose in the woods. It was on this that he was counting as, for once, the debris would prove quite useful.
He returned, not so long after, dragging behind him a rather large tree limb that was a little longer than the length of his body, and was composed in part of a number of sturdy branches at one end. He hauled it, with some effort, to the edge of the hole, and set it down, panting heavily now. His muscles and his jaw ached with the effort of carrying it. "Okay, Patroclus. I'll need you to stand back, so you don't get hurt, alright? I'm going to lower this down, against the side of the hole, and you're going to try and climb up, okay?"
He hoped the pup could do it. If not, he'd have to jump down and try to climb out himself, but there wasn't really enough room for an adult wolf to move around down there.
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 8:04 pm
Patroclus sat up at Iosef's words. He wanted him to climb up on a branch that would be lowered down. Sounded exciting, it would probably be the only time he would get to experience anything close to climbing a tree. "Okay." He replied as he took a few steps back until he was against the side of the hole. "I'm ready."
Seeing Iosef with the branch Seraphin instantly knew what he had in mind. And she had to admit she was very impressed with the slaves resourcefulness. Even she would have never thought of using a large fallen down branch as a way to help the pup out. Giving Iosef a warm smile she crawled over to the hole to make sure Patroclus did as he was told. "You'll be out in no time." She told him and then stepped back giving Iosef the room he would need to work.
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 8:08 pm
The branch was a bit unwieldy, but he managed with some effort to lower it down. It tottered for a moment, on its end, before falling against the opposite wall of the hole, giving a fairly gentle slope for the pup to climb. "I'll meet you halfway," he said, circling around the hole, lowering himself to his belly at its edge. "If you need. Just...climb as high up as you can, okay?"
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 8:20 pm
Patroclus kept a close eye on the branch as it was lowered into the hole. Once it was firmly in place he moved over to the base of the makeshift ladder. This was going to be fun. Raising up his front legs Patroclus tested his weight against the large branch to ensure it would hold his weight before he attempted to climb. Satisfied with the sturdiness of it he began to place his paws along the smaller branches that jutted out, pulling himself off the ground. It was a bit difficult at first, trying to find the right spot to put one paw and then the next but he wasn't about to give up. He could do this.
As he climbed the branch wobbled a bit, but Patroclus was resolute in doing this. Slowly he inched up the branch making sure his paw had a good hold on the branch before moving his next one. Glancing up he saw Iosef leaning over the edge of the hole. He was almost to where the male could reach him, but he did not want to help. "I can..." He began to say and then his back left paw slipped, sending him sliding down a good feet before he stopped. Undeterred Patroclus looked back up at Iosef again. "I can do it by myself." He told him confidently before resuming his climb.
Seraphin had a hard time staying away from the hole. She wanted to make sure Patroclus was okay, but at the same time she knew that both he and Iosef needed the room in order to climb free. So she sat down, tail twitching nervously as she waited for the pup to emerge. Her eyes watched Iosef closely, odd how studying him as he worked seemed to calm her nerves over the situation.
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 8:28 pm
Iosef jerked as Patroclus fell back, but did not grab the pup. It was important to the pup to do this by himself, and if Iosef could allow him that empowerment without putting him in danger, he certainly would.
Still, he waited with some trepidation at the edge of the hole, ready to lean forward and grab the pup by the scruff of his neck if he looked like he would fall again.
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 8:41 pm
To his relief and surprise Iosef was quite willing to let him do it on his own. Slowly he made his way up to the top of the branch, paws grabbing at the soft dirt at the top of the hole. It was a bit slippery so getting a good grip to pull himself out of was a bit of a challenge. But finally he did it and with one good heave practically threw himself out of the hole, sliding a bit across the mud. After a second to catch his breath he stood up and looked between Iosef and Seraphin, tail wagging happily. "See, I told you I could do it!" He barked proudly, seemingly ignoring the mud that covered nearly his entire body as well as the leaves and bits of bark that stuck to it.
Seraphin was on her paws as Iosef backed away form the hole. But Patroclus didn't immediately emerge and so the worry began to come back. A soft grunting sound could be heard so she stretched her neck a bit trying to get a look into the hole. And there was Patroclus climbing his way out of the hole. She smiled widely as he pulled himself out and then a moment later seemed so proud of himself for doing it by himself. "Very good Patroclus." She praised as she padded over to him, licking his cheek in a loving manner. Then her attention turned to Iosef. "Thank you so much Iosef. You really were the hero in all of this." He may not have though he had done much but Seraphin knew that without his help Patroclus would still be in that hole, and could have been there for a long time.
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Posted: Tue Jul 06, 2010 8:53 pm
Iosef nuzzled the pup, without even thinking, relieved to see him alive, well, and unscarred from his endeavor. He began to wash him, to clean the mud and leaves from his pelt, and then stopped himself just as suddenly, realizing that it was perhaps not exactly proper to be doing so to the alpha's son. Hurriedly, he backed away, allowing Seraphin room to do as she pleased with the pup, looking somewhat bashfully at the ground. "I'm just glad you were with him," he said. "If he was alone..." or with one of the less-soft-hearted sisters, he thought darkly. As it was just a male pup, even a male of the queen's, he would not have been surprised if the likes of Thealia had just left him there to rot.
It was the sort of thing Varia would have done, if she were here, he thought -- and shuddered involuntarily at the memory.
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