I can feel myself growing warm beneath his praise yet I feel giddy, happy that I have earned such good merit within only a small handful of time. Not that I would brag about it. Bragging wasn't my thing, for I considered myself humble and tried to remain that way. Instead I give him a smile back before following directions. I would never grow to be the vast size of Hadrian, of that I was sure. My mother wasn't overly large and neither was my father but I was a tad smaller than any of my siblings. Soon I would be two but even then, I was sure, I wouldn't get much larger. I am relieved when his steps cut shorter so that I can keep up, laboring beneath the weight of this bag that is yet to be filled and the awkward hold I have on it. Aniseed, he says, and my vibrant blue eyes remain fixated on him almost to the point I forget I am walking. It is only when my paw catches the ground and I half stumble do I focus instead on the ground while listening to him as well. A cure for indigestion - that would be nice for when my brother ate too much, I think.

Quickly I move to the rocks he points out to me and lay down his bag with a gentle sort of manner lest it catch on a sharp stick or rock and tear a hole in it. There was no way I could procure such an invaluable object to replace and I did not want to ask my parents to do so when all it took was a little care. The sand shifts beneath my small paws as I race to catch up with him, glancing around curiously at the inlet and move into the water. It is a brave thing, I think considering my experience with my brother's almost drowning, but no one knows and no one will. So I push past it and stand where he gestures me to stand, face turned towards him so that I do not miss a thing.

"Yes sir," I say solemnly, clearly mulling over the idea of what could happen. I had so little experience with death in my life, the thought is almost foreign to me, but I would prevent it if I could. My ears flick back as I nod to his reminder of the more malicious wolves. "I understand," I say softly, and it is probably clear by my troubled expression that I don't like the idea of it. Maybe it is just the idea someone would want to hurt another, I don't know. I don't get long to think on this topic before he hands me a turtle shell with instructions. I grab it between my jaws, fumbling with it at first as it attempts to flip over my eyes before positioning it just right and moving deeper into the ocean so that it splashes beneath my jaw. Only then do I lower it; the weight of the water in the shell jerks my head underwater for a moment but I jerk back up, spluttering while trying to hold onto the shell.

I don't lose it, and for that I find myself relieved. I turn back to slough through the water and set the shell on the bank, frowning when a bit of the water spills over but assured there is still plenty left in it. "Now what?" I say quizzically. I was positive that Hadrian was a good teacher and that by the end of today I would have more knowledge than I started with but I would be patient and attentive the whole time so that I did not miss a thing.