Hati nuzzled his mate, crooning appreciatively as the dog's teeth found their way to his pointed ears. Edgar could not hear the little moan of pleasure he had elicited, but they were entwined so closely together that he would surely feel it rumbling in Hati's throat. There was a warmth flushing his his cheeks that had nothing to do with the nearby oven. He was deeply reluctant to tear himself away, but he sighed in resignation when he knew he didn't have a choice.
Edgar read his note quickly, adding nothing but a loving kiss that promised more to come upon his return. Hati leaned over the counter, adding one last note to the page before slipping out the door. He didn't think Edgar understood French, but sometimes he peppered the words here and there simply as terms of endearment. He would share everything with his mate, his language included.
The autumn air was brisk, a cool breeze teasing the colorful leaves that carpeted the ground around their cabin home. The first frost would come soon, heralding the coming of winter. He hoped they had enough food in stock, dried hay for the horses and bagged flours for Edgar's baking. Hati walked around the house, pale eyes peering about for the sight of the goose. As he walked by the front yard, his horses raised their heads and called out to him, their greetings familiar and distinct to him after all the seasons he had spent with them. Asagi was friendly and curious, still chewing her way through a mouthful of grass. Luneth seemed bothered by something, tossing her mane and stamping her pink hooves. Hati turned his attention to the rooftop, though, as the cacophony of honking was definitely coming from above them.
The lean wolfdog came to the far corner of their cabin, where the logs butted against each other and formed a sort of ladder. It was not a difficult task to scale it, something Hati routinely did during the snowy months to make sure their roof was not in danger of collapsing. The couple had not built the cabin, merely found it by serendipity and spent a good long time cleaning and repairing it. The day they had been brought the oven as a housewarming gift had been such a surprise to Hati, who had no idea how to even get it into the house at first. They figured it out, though, just as they had figured out how to insulate the interior so the cold didn't seep in, and they had figured out to save little bits and pieces to trade for what they could not find. He was very fond of his home and all they had accomplished here on their own.
He reached the roof and finally located the goose, her grey wings beating wildly as she thrashed about. Her little webbed foot was stuck between two of the logs, and her struggling had served to get her more tightly wedged in. Hati sighed, shaking his head as he crawled across the eaves to reach her. The goose arched her neck and hissed defensively, ready to protect herself in her state of panic. He tried to move slowly, humming in an attempt to calm the bird, but she was too worked up to listen. Finally, he made his move -- wrapping his arm to pin her wings against her plump body, Hati used his free hand to fiddle with her leg and ease it free. The angry goose was nipping painfully at his ribs and anything else she could reach, but he did his best to ignore it until he got her loose. With a grunt, he let the goose go, who immediately burst into flight in a flurry of feathers. Her beating wings clipped him in the face, and he instinctively flinched backward, forgetting where he was...
As he overbalanced, his foot stepped out reflexively to steady him -- only it struck nothing but air. With a surprised yelp, Hati slipped down the roof, catching only the edge of the rafters with his fingers. His wrist was wedged between the two logs, just as the goose had gotten trapped. He shut his eyes tightly as his weight came crashing down, yelling hoarsely as he felt the bones of his wrist break. He dangled for a few long moments, face crumpled in a mask of pain, before attempting to pull himself back up with his good arm. He gasped, blinking rapidly as his pale eyes watered. He wasn't strong enough to do it with one arm, but his trapped wrist was useless; it was only going to swell up and get him trapped more tightly. He needed to drop to the ground before the situation grew dire.
He tipped back his muzzle and gave a short, strained howl; calling for his love, his Edgar. He was hurt, and he needed his mate. Of course, Edgar would never hear him. A frustrated whine caught in his throat as he looked everywhere for that accursed goose -- he couldn't see her, she must have flown off. He was on his own, dangling above the unforgiving ground below. He could clearly see rocks jutting treacherously beneath the carpet of leaves. This was going to hurt. He closed his eyes, and tried to focus his thoughts instead on cherry pie as he readied himself for the fall.
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