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“The Pirate's Curse” by Ian Madison Keller (read by B. P. Rugger)

Today’s story is “The Pirate’s Curse” by Ian Madison Keller, who published the anthology Shark Week, and the furry writing book Furry Fiction is Everywhere, as well as the Dragonsbane Saga novels, and you can find more of his work at http://madisonkeller.net.

Today’s story will be read for you by B. P. Rugger, the Ineffable Moo Moon.

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https://thevoice.dog/episode/the-pirates-curse-by-ian-madison-keller-read-by-b-p-rugger

Transcript
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You’re listening to The Voice of Dog,

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and Today’s story is

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“The Pirate’s Curse”

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by Ian Madison Keller,

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who published the anthology Shark Week,

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and the furry writing book Furry

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Fiction is Everywhere,

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as well as the Dragonsbane Saga novels,

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and you can find more of his work at http://madisonkeller.

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//madisonkeller.net.

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Today’s story will be read for you by B. P. Rugger,

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the Ineffable Moo Moon.

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Please enjoy “The Pirate’s Curse”

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by Ian Madison Keller Copy and paste your story here:

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Oakley’s tail wagged furiously behind him as he bent over to hold crossed cutlasses to the throat of his red-panda boyfriend,

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King. "Arr, stick 'em up!" Oakley tried to growl

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but his words came out as more of a

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high-pitched puppy play whine.

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King barely glanced up from the pages of his book,

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the black tip of his long orange-striped tail twitching in irritation.

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"Oakley, I'm at the climax.

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I'll play pirates with you later.

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later." Then he ducked his head under the plastic swords and rolled over onto his stomach.

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His tail curled up and swatted Oakley's nose.

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Oakley attached both the plastic swords back to his belt and looked to where his other boyfriend,

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the okapi Braden,

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was reclined on the other chair,

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also reading. The okapi glanced up from his book, his big brown eyes wide.

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At first it had just been both of them dating the charismatic King,

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but Oakley had gotten fond of the exotic African hooved-mammal with his strange combination of brown pelt and zebra-striped limbs,

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so lately it had been more of a poly trio.

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"First you two ditched me last night to go on a date together,

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and now you'd rather read than hang out with me.

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On my birthday!" Oakley barked and then turned on his heel and strode off,

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his tail curled between his legs.

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Was he getting dumped by them?

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Why else would they be acting like this?

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He bit back a growl, trying to keep his tail from curling between his legs.

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Over his shoulder he growled,

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"I'm going to go down and explore Pirate Alley alone!"

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"Oakley, wait, I'll come with you!"

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Braden hopped up from the other lounge chair and hurried after him.

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"King, catch up when you're ready.

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You know where?" King nodded without glancing up.

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At first Oakley's spirits lifted that Braden had decided to join him,

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but the okapi had a guilty look in his eye and his ears were canted half back,

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a sure sign he was trying to keep a secret.

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The okapi had a terrible poker face.

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Still, Oakley was grateful for the company.

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He was a pack animal and

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it was a sign of how upset he was that he'd even tried to go out alone.

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Even if their outfits looked

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a little strange together;

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Braden dressed in shorts and an over-sized t-shirt and Oakley in full pirate regalia, from a tri-cornered hat down to authentic boots.

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But then an okapi and a golden retriever would look

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odd together no matter what they each wore.

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"I'm sorry," Braden said when they reached the sidewalk.

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"I know how excited you were about this trip.

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I just got caught up in my book...

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book..." He scuffed the sidewalk with one split hoof,

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like he did when he was nervous or upset.

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Or lying. Oakley's ears flattened against his had for a moment until he forced a smile on his muzzle. Oakley took Braden's hand in his paw,

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tugging him along.

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"That's alright.

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You're here now!" He tried to inject cheer into his voice.

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It made a little sense that they weren't as excited about pirate tours as him.

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A lot of pirates had been various breeds of dogs that had formed pirate packs to attack and hound the ships owned mainly by the cats of France and Spain.

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In fact his favorite pirate,

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the one he was dressed as today,

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Elle De Bonne, had been a golden Retriever like him.

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Mardi Gras had been last week-

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-part of the reason the trio had been able to afford a place right in the quarter-

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-and confetti and beads still littered the gutters and hung from every protruding surface.

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Given the rolled eyes and skewed ears the passersby gave him

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maybe he should have

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toned down the outfit.

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When the okapi and golden retriever clopped by,

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a thin furred tiny Chihuahua mix sweeping up confetti and beads in front of a corner convenience store dropped her broom.

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After a few blocks he'd perked back up.

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He had to be imagining things.

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His relationship with his boyfriends was fine.

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His tail even wagged as they drew closer to their destination.

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"Want to get beignets and coffee before we head to the alley?"

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Braden towed Oakley back towards the cafe they'd just passed without waiting for an answer.

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Oakley resisted at first,

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but the scent of fried dough and sugar pulled him ahead of Braden after a few steps.

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"Too bad King isn't here.

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He'd love these." Oakley popped another bite into his mouth, savoring the sugar and fat as the warm dough practically melted on his tongue.

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"I got extras to take back to him.

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him." The okapi held up a brown paper bag that already had grease stains on the outside.

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In Oakley's opinion

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King was missing out already by not having them warm and fresh from the oven.

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But then again the red panda had ditched them to stay home reading, so he didn't feel that bad about it.

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His tail fell again.

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Usually the red panda humored Oakley's desires to go out.

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Maybe something was wrong.

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He resolved to ask him about it when King finally deigned to join them.

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"Alright. Enough dawdling.

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I want to see pirate tourist traps!"

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Oakley jumped to his feet, tail wagging furiously.

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He was going to have fun on his birthday,

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with or without King.

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Braden didn't stand

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but picked up his phone.

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"I guess it's been long enough,"

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he muttered to himself before standing up to follow Oakley.

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The golden Retriever cocked an ear at the okapi as they trotted out.

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"Is there a show or something you wanted to catch?"

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More secrets? "Huh?"

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Braden's ears went back and he looked away.

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"Oh, yeah, something like that.

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that." Now he was sure something was wrong.

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He slowed, wondering if he should skip the alley and head back to the room.

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Tears pricked his eyes.

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They wanted to break up with him, but they were too nice to do it on his birthday.

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"We can head there first then,"

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Oakley said. After Braden's side trip,

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he'd head back. "This way.

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way." The okapi clopped his way down the sidewalk with Oakley right behind him.

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To Oakley's surprise he turned down a narrow alley.

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The only light came from the glow at the other side where the alley exited onto a slightly larger road.

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The ever-present smell of urine that had lingered in the quarter was much stronger here.

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Oakley covered his nose with one paw,

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staying so close to the okapi that the ungulate's brush-tipped tail flicked Oakley's legs.

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A shadow appeared at the end of the alley,

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blocking the light.

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A small fluffy form with a huge round tail,

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wearing a tri-corner hat.

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Oakley heard a shuffle behind him and glanced over his shoulder to see two more animals had blocked off the other end of the alley behind them.

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Two big tan-colored dogs dressed as pirates. Oakley's tail curled tighter between his legs.

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Broken up with and mugged by pirates?

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What a birthday. The silhouette in front of them drew a sword and pointed

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it at Braden's chest. "Avast ye bilge-sucking grog blossoms!"

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Braden bleated, stepping back and almost getting one of Oakley's boots with his hoof.

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"King, be careful with that thing."

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"King?" Oakley barked, startled.

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"That's Captain Kingsley to you lot!"

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King flourished his sword. "Now, hand over ye treasure map or we'll send you to Davy Jones' Locker, ye landlubbers!"

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Oakley's tail uncurled and started wagging again.

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So this was why Braden had insisted on stopping for coffee and had been worried about the time!

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Still, why had they ditched him last night?

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Still, he'd play along.

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"Don't worry, fair lad,

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I'll protect us and our coffer!"

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Oakley drew his two plastic cutlasses and leaped past Braden,

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flourishing his blades at King, then lunging at him.

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King only had one sword to Oakley's two,

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but he did a twirling motion with his wrist that caught and deflected both of them.

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The Nerf sword squeaked as it hit the plastic cutlasses.

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"Our what now?" Braden asked.

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"It's a treasure map, not a coffer."

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"We don't have a treasure map,"

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Oakley panted as he traded blows with King.

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Now that he was closer to the end of the alley,

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he could see King clearly.

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The red panda wore a black long coat and had tied a skull-and-crossed bones flag around his tail.

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All the black looked rather dashing with the red pandas red fur

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and black markings.

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"Yes we do, see?" Braden pulled a rolled-up tube out of the front of his shirt and waved it at the sparing pair. The okapi preferred billowy loose fitting t-shirts, which explained why Oakley hadn't noticed it before.

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"There it is, get it!"

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one of the great Danes barked from behind the okapi.

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Oakley had forgotten about them when he'd started sparring with King.

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The okapi was tall, but gangly and the two massive dogs overpowered him easily.

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One ripped away the map,

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the other the bag of beignets

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and then the pair took off back the way they'd come. "Hey,

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you scurvy dogs!" King yelled after them.

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"This isn't the plan!"

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"Yeah? And whose's going to stop us?

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A red raccoon, an ugly goat, and a fluffy retriever?"

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the more muscled of the two barked back at King.

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"Against our whole pack?

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The treasure is ours now!"

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"Hey!" Braden and King objected at the same time,

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but the two dogs were already gone,

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disappeared around the corner back out onto the main street.

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"Those traitorous

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dogs," King growled.

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Oakley huffed in annoyance, but didn't take offense.

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"I take it that the map theft wasn't part of the birthday surprise?"

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Oakley woofed, sheathing his swords. "No," Braden bleated, looking down at his now empty hands.

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"And they even took the beignets I got for you, King.

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King." King waved his sword over his head, making his best angry face with bared fangs.

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It was hard for the tiny red panda, with his round fluffy features, to look intimidating,

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but he was doing a fair job of it today.

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"Beignets? Forgot that!

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If we don't hurry they're going to steal Oakley's birthday present!"

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"Wait, the treasure map is real?"

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Oakley stared at the red panda.

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"Yes, well... actually no." King admitted, lowering his sword.

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"That's what Braden and I were doing last night. We went out and hid your present.

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Those dogs and I were supposed to capture you, and then have you help us 'find' the pirate treasure on the map.

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Your birthday surprise,

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but you almost ruined it by leaving early.

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Look, Braden didn't even get a chance to dress up in his pirate gear!"

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Braden shrugged and Oakley got the feeling he wasn't that upset by it.

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The weight that had been on Oakley's shoulders lifted.

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But now he felt guilty that he'd suspected them of wanting to dump him,

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when they'd been out setting up his birthday present.

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"How'd the dogs know that the map led to a real treasure, anyway?"

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Braden asked, staring at King.

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His tail was snapping up and down behind him, broadcasting his annoyance.

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"I might have talked about it on the way over here.

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I was excited, okay!"

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King threw up his hands again and bounced on the balls of his feet.

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"I can't believe you set all this up for my birthday.

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birthday." Oakley wagged his tail.

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In fact his whole butt was wiggling he was so excited.

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"Yeah, well, sorry it got ruined by those dogs.

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dogs." King crouched and put his head between his knees,

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dropping his Nerf sword to the pavement.

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"They're going to steal your birthday present.

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present." "Ruined?" Oakley lifted King back up and hugged him.

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"This is the best birthday present

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ever! I got to sword fight a pirate in an alley,

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and now we have to race a band of rival pirates to the treasure!

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Let's go!" "Except... those pirates stole the only map," Braden said. "What?"

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Oakley set King down and then looked between the two of them. "Weren't you two the ones that hid it in the first place?"

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"Yeah, except we hired a local opossum to lead us to a spot last night.

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It was dark. We're both diurnal creatures without night vision.

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I don't know that I could find it again without the map.

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map." King threw up his paws again and kicked his sword.

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The Nerf blade bounced across the cobblestones into the brick wall of the alley.

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"I'll call her and see if she can give us directions."

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"Oh, wait, I took a picture of it with my phone last night when we were done!"

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Braden held out his phone screen to show Oakley and King.

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"To send to my sister back in Africa.

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I was texting her about the surprise we'd planned.

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It's small, but we can zoom in.

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in." Oakley took the phone and squinted at the screen.

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"Or I could call--" King began.

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"No way!" Oakley stopped him, stomping a booted foot on the cobblestones.

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"This is so fun!

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I don't care if my present gets stolen by those pirates.

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I want to follow the map. Try and

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beat them fair and square."

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"But it's--" Braden began saying.

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Oakley cut him off with a bark.

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"I don't care if it gets stolen!

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This is a way better than whatever toy or book you could have gotten me.

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me." Oakley grabbed King's paw with one hand and Braden's hoof with the other.

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"Let's go to the first clue on the map." #

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The crowds in Pirate Alley were thin.

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A brown poodle dressed as a pirate led a group of kangaroos out the other end of the alley.

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Otherwise the street was empty and quiet.

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"Guys, I think we beat them here,"

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Oakley said as they trotted up to the front of the bookstore.

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Next door was a pirate themed cafe.

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The double doors leading inside were swung wide open to let in the breeze.

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The black cat barista had on a tri-cornered hat and was serving a seagull who was leaned over the bar to talk to her as she made his coffee.

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Oakley wanted to go inside so badly,

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but that could wait.

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"Start at the spines with no faces, then walk east 500 paces," Oakley read out loud from the map,

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then looked at King.

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"That's the cheesiest rhyme ever.

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ever." The red panda shrugged and adjusted his hat.

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"You try coming up with cryptic yet solvable clues while jet lagged."

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"Jet lagged? We drove.

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drove." Oakley snorted and glanced around to orient himself with his phone's GPS.

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"Looks like east is that way, towards the river.

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river." Without waiting for King or Braden,

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he started walking, counting steps,

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but then stopped abruptly.

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As King and Braden paced beside him,

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King with his short legs took three or four steps for every one of his or Braden's.

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"Wait, your 'paces' or Braden's?" "Braden's obviously," King said, skipping past Oakley.

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His long striped tail waved above his head,

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flashing the pirate skull and crossbones tied there. "It'd probably take me 500 steps just to get to the end of the alley.

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alley." They got to the end of the narrow space and dashed across the road.

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A bark behind them drew his attention back to the mouth of the alley they'd just left.

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A group of dogs were gathered in front of the cafe.

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He recognized the two massive great Danes that had stolen the map towering above the other four whose specific breeds were hard to identify from this distance.

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"Let's pick up the pace a bit.

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bit." Oakley ushered the other two on.

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They couldn't walk a straight line due to a fence around the park.

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He stopped counting at the fence and started again once he'd walked around to the other side.

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They raced through the square, Oakley doing his best to count steps without running.

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However, by the time they they had gone around the fountain in the middle of the square and cut across the paths,

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he had lost track.

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His ears drooped along with his tail when they reached the street.

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"I'm not sure if that's 500 or 450,"

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he admitted as they stood on the sidewalk.

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Cars whizzed by in either direction.

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From here he could see the river on the other side of the street just beyond a small monument of some sort.

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"Do you want hints?"

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King asked as he drew his swords and turned to look behind them.

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The pack of pirate dogs were already in the middle of the park.

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"No!" Oakley barked. "What's the next clue?

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That should help me."

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"Let's see," Braden said,

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taking out his phone.

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"Follow the apostle left of the rising Sun to the half-moon's perch,"

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Braden read from the screen.

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"King, really?" His short bottle brush tipped tail flicked as it did when he was baffled or brought up short by something.

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"Okay, that's easy enough.

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The street is named after a saint so," Oakley paused and closed his eyes trying to remember his directions.

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"So if I face the rising Sun then on my left would be north.

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north." He swiftly turned on his heel and started jogging up the street with King and Braden on his tail.

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"Shit," he said, glancing in the sparse

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foot traffic on the sidewalk.

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"Those dogs won't even have to figure out the clue.

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All they have to follow us.

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We kind of stick out a little bit.

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bit." But if he ran any faster, King would be able to keep up with them.

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He was already struggling to stay even with the dog and okapi's long strides at this loping pace.

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Yet he didn't want to hurt the panda's feelings either by offering to carry him.

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King solved his internal debate for him by stopping and pulling out his sword.

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Braden and Oakley slowed but King waved them on.

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"Go, I'll slow them down!"

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"Your sword is Nerf, first off,"

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Oakley said, backtracking.

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"Second, there are six of them and one of you.

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And finally, the pirate's code is not to leave any crew member behind.

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behind." He crouched down and laced his paws behind his back.

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"Pirate's code? You've watched that dumb movie way too many times.

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times." King snorted but used the handhold to step up and wrap his arms around Oakley's neck.

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Oakley ignored the jab, knowing of at least one movie on their shelf that King had seen at least as many times as he'd watched his pirate movie.

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He didn't voice this, however, since King still had the sword clutched in one paw right next to Oakley's face.

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Now that he didn't have to worry about losing King,

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Oakley picked up the pace.

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Ahead of him, the okapi's hooves clopped out a steady rhythm on the sidewalk.

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The okapi and retriever had been running together in the mornings since King tended to sleep in,

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and quickly fell into a matching pace.

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The street branched several times, but Oakley directed Braden to stay on Saint Peters, since that had been the clue.

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"Okay, the last part of the clue...

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clue..." Oakley panted. "It said to go to the half-moon's perch.

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Perch sounds like something up high,

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but the half-moon part I'm clueless about.

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Hopefully it will become obvious when we get there.

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there." Oakley tried to think what the map had looked like for this part,

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but with trying to run on the unfamiliar sidewalk while dodging tourists and carrying the red panda

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he couldn't spare the brain power.

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The road curved right following the river,

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although some kind of retaining wall blocked his view he could still hear the lapping of the water on the shore

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and it was close.

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Coming up on the right was a...

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Was that a raised staircase?

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It looked like it led to a raised pedestrian walkway over the retaining wall that blocked the river from view.

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The structure was a narrow metal lattice that stepped up into a raised walkway about fifteen feet above the ground.

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He still wasn't sure what the half – moon was

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but that had to be the perch.

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"Braden, go up the stairs!"

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he called. Ahead of him Braden nodded and changed course.

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Oakley had fallen behind;

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he couldn't keep up with the okapi while carrying the red panda.

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"You might want to pick up the pace, Oak," said red panda yelled into his ear.

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"A couple of those dogs are greyhounds and they're catching up with us."

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"I..." he panted, his tongue lolling out almost too his chest.

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"Can't. Run. Any. Faster.

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Faster." What had he been thinking with this thick pirate coat over his long fur,

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in this sweltering, muggy heat?

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His arms burned from the effort of holding up the panda and King's grip around his neck was cutting off part of his airflow to boot.

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"Put me down at the bottom of the stairs,"

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King said. "It's narrow enough to force them to come at me one at a time,

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and it will give me a height advantage.

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advantage." More like put him at about equal footing,

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but the retriever didn't say that out loud.

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"No way. No pirate left behind!"

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King struggled but Oakley kept a firm grip on King's legs,

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keeping him from jumping off.

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Oakley's legs were shaky by the time he got up the stairs.

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Panting hard, he staggered across the walkway with the squirming King.

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A ringing thump told him with the greyhounds reached the stairs and started pounding up it after them.

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Braden had already made it to the bottom of the steps on the other side and stood at the bottom impatiently tapping his hoof.

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"Put me down, Oakley," King growled. "You're exhausted.

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exhausted." Oakley loosened his grip,

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and King slid down to the walkway.

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Then he started pushing at Oakley's back, hurrying him down the stairs.

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The ringing sound of paws on metal stopped.

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He glanced back to see the greyhounds eyeing them from the top of the stairs.

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The greyhounds wore pirate getup, like the great Danes.

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They both drew long plastic swords from their belts.

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However, the narrow walkway meant there wasn't room for more than one to attack at at time.

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King was going down the stairs backwards, waving his Nerf sword back and forth.

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The taller brown greyhound darted down the stairs and swung at King. King's Nerf deflected the blow into the railing, then King's over-sized tail whipped over his side and into the dog's face.

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The greyhound yelped in surprise and dropped his sword.

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The thin plastic sword dropped between the slats of the lattice and fell down to the rocks below.

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"Hey, be careful, that hurt!"

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the greyhound barked as he retreated back up the stairs to rejoin the gray one on the walkway,

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holding a paw to his muzzle.

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Blood dripped out between his fingers.

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Oakley canted on ear.

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That was an odd response, when they were the ones attacking.

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When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Oakley drew his plastic cutlasses and wordlessly handed one to Braden.

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"What next?" Oakley panted, looking around.

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The beach was deserted.

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Sparse grass and a few trees clung to life close to the train tracks, but closer to the shore it was all reeds and boulders.

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"Twin sentinels stand guard of the booty,"

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Braden said. "Twin...?"

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Oakley whirled, looking for pairs of things on the beach.

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In the water was a line of wave breakers,

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but no, twin implied only two or a matched set.

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Maybe the trees? But none of them were in pairs.

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"Do you need help?"

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Braden asked, glancing nervously behind them at the walkway.

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The pair of greyhounds watched them from the top,

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and Oakley could hear the walkway ringing with more steps.

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Probably the rest of the pack.

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Oakley shook his head, making his floppy ears swing wildly.

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"No way. This is so much fun, like a real treasure hunt.

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hunt." Not seeing anything in his immediate view,

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Oakley trotted down the beach with King and Oakley on his tail.

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"Get 'em, boys!" a dog barked behind them.

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Oakley whirled, lifting his cutlass.

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On either side of him, King and Braden brandished their own swords.

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Across from them was a pack of six dogs, all dressed as pirates.

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The two great Danes, two greyhounds, a droopy eared basset hound, and a fluffy white poodle who was dressed as a pirate captain.

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The bloodied greyhound had retrieved his dropped sword,

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and all of them brandished plastic swords except the poodle.

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The poodle flashed his fangs at them.

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"Give it up, you three.

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We have you outnumbered."

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"Never!" Oakley growled.

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"Have it your way then.

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Dogs, attack!" The three boyfriends tightened into a circle,

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back-to-back with each other.

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The two greyhounds darted at King.

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Oakley helped deflect one swing from the gray girl,

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but then had his own paws full dealing with one of the great Danes.

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The other great Dane and the basset hound teamed up against Braden.

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The okapi wildly swung his borrowed cutlass,

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but the Dane's and basset's blades easily evaded his erratic defenses.

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Oakley wondered how the okapi hadn't been hit yet,

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but then he was too busy losing to the great Dane.

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While he managed to keep the big dog's sword from hitting him,

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each time he deflected it stung his paw.

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Still tired from the wild run here from Pirate Alley,

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after a few blows his arm ached and he could barely keep hold of his sword.

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On his other side,

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the hyperactive King was actually managing to fend off the blades of both greyhounds,

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but even he was slowing.

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While King was very active for a red panda,

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he didn't have the stamina of the dogs.

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Distracted from trying to keep track of both his boyfriends,

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Oakley was too slow to deflect a hit from the great Dane.

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Her sword thwacked his soundly on the chest.

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Like his, it was plastic,

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but there was enough force behind the swing that the stiff material knocked him back a step.

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The pain from the blow was enough that he dropped his own sword.

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The Dane grinned and lifted her sword to point the tip at his throat.

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"Yield," she barked.

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"Okay, we yield, we yield!"

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Oakley lifted his paws above his head.

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They were clearly overpowered two to one.

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King dropped his Nerf sword and lifted his paws;

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Braden dropped Oakley's cutlass and raised his hands above his head.

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The Dane and basset backed off, keeping their swords raised.

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"Good choice," the poodle said,

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trotting forward to join his pack that now surrounded the three of them.

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"Now, where's this treasure buried?"

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Oakley shrugged, shaking his head.

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"I hadn't figured out the last clue yet.

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yet." The bloody muzzled greyhound on King pulled his arm back as if for another swing.

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"Don't hurt him! I'll solve it.

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it." He spun in a circle, mind racing, trying to remember King's clue.

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Twin sentinels... "There!

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By the pipe. It's got to be.

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be." Oakley pointed. A pair of broken and weathered pylons stuck up from the water about 10 feet out.

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A large pipe ran between them up onto the beach towards the train tracks.

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"Excellent." The poodle marched the group of prisoners towards the pipe.

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As they got closer, he saw a square of darker brown earth just up the beach from the pylons.

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"You, and you," the poodle said, pointing at one of the Danes and the basset.

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"Go dig up our prize.

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Let's see what this pampered golden got for his birthday, huh?

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At least we know won't be chocolate coins.

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coins." The poodle barked out a laugh.

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Oakley rolled his eyes.

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Knowing the two jokers he was dating, that was

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actually a possibility. King harrumphed and crossed his arms looking very tough with a little blood still trickling from his snout.

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Oakley hadn't realized that he'd been hit.

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Braden too crossed his arms, refusing to give the bully poodle any information.

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Growling, Oakley was forced to watch as the two dogs started digging.

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Dirt sprayed from their paws, and they quickly unearthed a domed wooden treasure chest.

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Still yipping laughter,

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the poodle strolled back to where his lackeys were brushing the last of the dirt off the top of the chest.

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They pulled open the top,

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and Oakley couldn't help himself.

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He pressed forward, ignoring the growls of the great Dane,

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craning his neck to try to get a glimpse inside.

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The poodle pulled out a rectangle package about as long as Oakley's arm wrapped in birthday wrapping paper.

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"This is it? That huge chest and just this little package?"

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The dog shook his head, making his curly-furred white ears flop.

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Then to Oakley's surprise the poodle turned and presented him the package.

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"Happy birthday, you scurvy dog."

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"What?" Oakley blinked in surprise,

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almost dropping the package when the poodle thrust it into his paws.

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"Surprise!" King yelled,

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and threw handfuls of sand into the air like confetti.

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"The pirate attack was staged.

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staged." He dissolved into giggles. The okapi

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scuffed his foot into the sand.

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"I hope you had fun.

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King assured me you would."

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"It was the best!" Oakley wagged his tail and shredded the colorful wrapping paper.

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"Um..." He upended the box and a bunch of rocks tumbled out.

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Rocks that looked suspiciously identical to the ones scattered around the beach.

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A paper fluttered out after them.

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Oakley snatched it out of the air and read it,

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then rounded on King.

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"Pirate's curse, really?"

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King shrieked with laughter and fell over onto the sand laughing.

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"Very funny, King." Oakley rolled his eyes.

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The poodle had gathered his gang back together.

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"Well it's been fun, panda.

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But if you hurt any of my pack again, we'll have more than words, got it?"

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He bared his teeth at King.

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King stood, wiping tears of laughter from his eyes.

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"Got it, Captain. I just got

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carried away in the moment.

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moment." The poodle turned to Oakley who still stood with flattened ears, staring down at the pile of rocks that

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apparently was King's idea of a joke.

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"Oakley, you make a good pirate.

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Come see us later in the alley.

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We put on a pirate show in the evenings."

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With that the dogs retreated back the way they'd come.

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"Hey, what about my beignets?"

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Braden bellowed after them.

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The greyhound with the bloody snout turned and barked,

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"Consider them payment for this!"

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"But that happened after...

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after..." Braden protested,

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but the dogs were already clanging up the stairs and ignored him.

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Oakley turned to King.

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"You didn't really give me rocks, did you?"

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Braden snickered,

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donuts forgotten.

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"No we didn't give you rocks.

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That was a joke." "Here, help me lift this out.

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out." King leaned over the hole and grabbed the handle on one side of the chest.

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Oakley joined King while Braden took the other side and together they wrestled the big chest out of the dirt.

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Now that it was free Oakley brushed away some of the dirt from the side he was on.

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The chest was real wood and carved with intricate nautical designs that the mud had hidden.

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"It's a pirate chest,"

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Oakley whispered as he used the fur of his arm to brush more mud away.

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He didn't even care that he was turning his golden fur muddy brown.

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"You guys!" He turned and flung his arms around King.

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"This has been the best birthday ever!"

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"Hey now, you're getting my coat all muddy,"

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he said, but he was laughing as he said it.

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"Now someone call a cab, because I'm not lugging this thing all the way back by hand."

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This was “The Pirate’s Curse”

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by Ian Madison Keller,

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read for you by B. P. Rugger,

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the Ineffable Moo Moon..

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You can find more stories on the web at thevoice.dog,

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or find the show wherever you get your podcasts.

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Thank you for listening

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to The Voice of Dog.

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About the Podcast

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The Voice of Dog
Furry stories to warm the ol' cockles, read by Rob MacWolf and guests. If you have a story that would suit the show, you can get in touch with @VoiceOfDog@meow.social on Mastodon, @voiceofdog.bsky.social on Blue Sky, or @Theodwulf on Telegram.

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