Stavanger Bay give in to me

The den smelled interesting — the mixture of herbs and other materials the Witch Doctor kept secret and safe and the overwhelming allure that was simply Doe caught his interest, but he judged that she was not here. Somewhat disappointed, he ferreted around the pampas grove with his nose intently brushing the earth, untangling scents as he went and wholly focused on his task.

So focused, in fact, that she took him completely by surprise.

The rustling of grass was thick in his ears as he rooted more deeply into the grove — he had no inkling of her impish approach, and he found himself quite unaware of anything except the body that flew over his back, paws and teeth touching down for the merest of instants before she sprang quickly away. His body, honed for ambush, dropped and rolled with military precision as his hackles flared to life along his angular spine, ears flattening and jaw tucking to protect his throat in one fluid motion — scarred lips pulled back in a murderous snarl as his auriferous eyes lit with the bloodlust that he did not wish to feel but that had been beaten into him until the reaction was Pavlovian and immutable. It took the space of a few seconds, and then her scent and the shuffle of her paws — she was a bird, he was wholly convinced now — clamped down on him forcibly.

It was not shame he felt at first, but good-natured self-deprecation that he’d gone from zero to sixty so quickly. He flopped over on his side with a gusty rumble of both relief and amusement, turning his head to the Sea and to Doe with sheepish golden eyes — and now he did feel ashamed, for he did not wish her to see him in such a state. His wagging tail beseeched her, as did the renewed gentleness of his expression and the way he crawled forward a few feet on his belly. He whined apology, grinning roguishly at the tart way she corrected his pronunciation — which truly was atrocious — and felt the rush of adrenaline that had swept through him continue to course through his body in riveting waves at her nearness.

Rolling onto his back, exposing his abdomen to her in a physical manifestation of that apologetic whine, he looked up at her. Please forgive me; I’ll do whatever you ask, he thought at her, the voice in his head teasing and playful. What he said, though, was a soft and undulating, “DoooOOOoooe,” that wheedled playfully and hopefully conveyed a similar message.