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Help, somebody!

You're almost ready to scream for help when you notice a knot of parade members forming a circle around you.

"Quick", says someone in a Timber Wolf costume, "distract the audience. We'll get him out."

Most of the North America portion of the parade breaks up into a swirling mass of fur-clad movement, hiding you, Fred, and your new acquaintance from the crowd. The new wolf slips his forepaws under Fred and slowly bring s the bloated form of your friend to a military lift. Then, with a whispered "C'mon", he motions you to follow him, and you do ... right through a well-concealed door in a nearby forest-painted backdrop.

"Oof", groans the thinner wolf as he puts Fred down on a table next to a water jug. "This guy's heavy! Good thing my back is durable", he adds as he looks around for something.

"What's wrong with him?", you plead, wondering what's going on.

"Heat exhaustion", the other rattles off without looking at you. "Severe overheating, leading to unconsciousness, and where the heck did I put that blasted towel?", he roars in frustration.

You snatch up a white towel from a nearby folding chair and hand it to him.

"Thank you", he replies to this action, then whirls to the water jug. He quickly soaks the towel in water and places it around Fred's neck. "See if you can find another towel", he continues as he ruffles the fallen wolf 's fur. "We need to cool him down, fast."

You find another towel and soak it, then reach out to Fred's neck ... only to have your pudgy paw slapped away! "Not there!", the other wolf snarls, "drip the water onto his tongue!"

"But why?", you ask as you hastily comply.

"Areas where the space between skin surface and blood are thinnest", he rattles off in a seeming trance, "are wrist, neck, tongue. No wrist, therefore cold compress for ton-". He stops and coughs, then continues. "For neck, water for tongue."

You are about to ask him a question when his head jerks suddenly, as though he's been shocked. Reaching beneath the table, he drags out an ice chest, then scoops two pawfuls of melted bulk ice out and applies them to Fred's side. Running his paws rapidly against the grain of Fred's fur, he quickly soaks the wolf with ice water. Then, as you watch, he touches the lolling tongue (which retracts slightly), looks into Fred's eyes ... and slumps. "He should be all right in a little while", he breathes. Then, snarling again, he rounds on you. "Now who are you, and what are you doing here?"


Written by Wanderer

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