The Sentinels houstan, we have a problem.

[table width=80%][tr][td]
As the two of them worked together, her disdain for the man slowly ebbed away, her focus now entirely on getting free. In the beginning she'd, understandably, been put on edge by the feeling of his paws scrabbling beneath her chest, but she'd slowly come to accept that he truly just meant to help her, so that too faded away. His snarkiness was forgotten, the possibility of him wanting to hurt her was shoved aside, and even her humiliation towards the situation stopped mattering to her. The only thing she focused on now was kicking her own legs out behind her and occasionally wiggling her body, checking to see how loose she was getting, trying to make progress.

Several minutes later, something like relief spurred in her heart when she realized the pressure of her body betwixt the tree and the ground was lessening: it was working! She could move just a little bit more, and with the increase in range, she was able to push her hind legs even further, effectively clawing out more dirt from under her body than before. At this pace, she'd be out in mere minutes! Maybe she'd even have enough time to track down another meal for the evening! The mere thought made her feel elated. Gone was her grumpiness and gone was her irritation towards the stranger. Of course, she wouldn't be all smiles at rainbows, and her face would likely remain just as stoic, but at least she wouldn't be so grouchy and snappy with him.

Now that a pretty large hole had been dug, the obsidian male stepped back to survey his work, questioning if she could get free. She honestly only half heard him, for she could feel the impact of his work, knew for a fact she could get free, and was far too anxious to do so to hear anything he had said. Without a single word or even glance in his direction, she heaved her back end into a low crouch and pressed the rest of her body against the ground, then slowly pushed and wiggled forward, squeezing herself through the hole. It felt smaller upon standing up, but she was still able to just push herself out from under the tree, then haul her bulky form back onto level ground, bringing herself to a stand beside the male, showing their near equivalence in size.

Glad to be out, she quickly set off at a trot, loping past him and around a few trees, not so as to run away, but to stretch her muscles after being bunched up for so long. It felt good to be treeless and free, free from that horrible burden, save for the dirt that clung to her body, which she promptly shook off before turning back and joining the male once more. Her body language seemed a bit more carefree, and something like happiness shone in her eyes as she approached him, though it wasn't as noticeable on her face, and it slowly dimmed as she realized this wasn't entirely over. She owed him a "thank you", didn't she? An uncomfortable saying that never sat well on her tongue, but he nevertheless did deserve. After all, now looking back on it, he could've just walked away and left her there, but he didn't, and now she was free because of that.

Awkwardly tipping her muzzle down and glancing away, she huffed to him, "Thanks."
[/td][/tr][/table]