47As he was balancing on an exercise ball, near a window in his room, Deepak closed his eyes, took in a deep breath, and exhaled slowly. As he kept his eyes closed, Deepak felt something landing on his muzzle, which began to crawl towards the tip of his nose. He opened his eyes to see a small black spider.
"Oh!" Deepak exclaimed, surprised then smiled. "Hello, little buddy. How's your day?"
Looking at it better, Deepak recognized the small arachnid as a money spider.
"Ah!" Deepak pleasantly gasped. He carefully rose his paw to his nose, letting the spider crawl onto it. "Lucky me! Heh-heh, thanks for crawling on me, little buddy."
"Hey, hey. What are you doing here, though?" He wondered then put the spider back on his nose. "Your place's outside not in here. I'll find you a nice big shrub, you like those, right? We have a couple in the backyard."
Deepak hopped off the ball and landed on the floor, which made the spider move a bit around his nose—tickling the pup's nose with his legs in the process, making him almost sneeze, but before he could, Deepak quickly pinched his nose, stopping himself.
"Not like that, little buddy." He chuckled at the spider. "I have a sensitive nose, you see; almost blew you off there. You're so small, I can barely see you even when you're right in front of my eyes, and if you fall off, I don't think I'll be able to find you."
Deepak continued towards the door of his room.
"Come on, a couple more steps." Dawkins encouraged Desmond as they were nearing the top of the staircase.
On every step or two, Desmond had to stop to rest for a short time, as his legs were starting to get sore, and he was starting to feel a lack of energy as well.
"You know…" Desmond turned to Dawkins as he began to walk up the stairs again, "Maybe I should have eaten something before we headed to Deepak…"
"Considering how much you vomited, I'm not surprised," Dawkins said as he helped Desmond up on another step. "Getting something in your stomach would be a good idea before having a session with Deepak."
"Guess you're right…" Desmond agreed.
"After we reach the second floor, I'll go get you something," Dawkins said.
Reaching the top of the stairs, Dawkins and Desmond turned right and made their way to the end of the hallway. When they reached Deepak's room, Dawkins let go of Desmond, allowing him to sit down and rest.
"Just wait here. I'll be right back," Dawkins told him.
As he was about to head back down, Dawkins stopped when he heard the door to his younger brother's room open.
Deepak walked out of the room but didn't notice the two dogs at first, as his attention was directed towards the spider.
"Oh, hey, Deepak," Dawkins said, getting Deepak to turn to him.
"Ah?!" Deepak exclaimed when he noticed his brother.
"Mind if Desmond eats before you two start?" Dawkins asked. "We don't want him passing out again, do we?"
"Where is he?" Deepak wondered.
"Behind you," Dawkins answered him.
Deepak turned his head to see the sickly looking Desmond. He then faced Dawkins again.
"Did he decide to come on his own, or did you force him to?" Deepak questioned Dawkins with a solemn expression.
"Yeah, he chose to come himself," Dawkins replied.
"Good then." Deepak turned around to face Desmond again, he smiled, sat on the floor, brought his paws together and slightly bowed with his head at him. "I'm honored that you decided to seek my help."
"Oh…!" Desmond got surprised. "W-Well, don't mention it…"
"So, umm…" Desmond began approaching Deepak. "How are we going to do th—"
"AH!" Deepak winced, feeling sharp shivers shoot through his body the moment Desmond got near him. He quickly backed away from him and hid behind Dawkins.
"What?! What's the problem?" Dawkins asked his younger brother with concern, while Desmond stood confused by Deepak's reaction.
"S-Sorry." Deepak moved to his brother's side and looked Desmond in the eyes. "Your aura's just so… Repulsive. So much negative energy's oozing out of you that you got me startled."
Deepak shivered a little. "I didn't think you'd be in such a bad state, Desmond."
"Oh, I see…" Desmond hung his head.
"Don't be disheartened, though!" Deepak told him with an encouraging tone. "I'll try my hardest to help you!"
As Deepak said this, Desmond noticed something small move on Deepak's nose, making him stare right at the pup.
"What are you looking at?" Dawkins cooked his head.
"I might be imagining, but I think I saw something move on your nose, Deepak…" Desmond replied.
Dawkins took a look at his brother but didn't see anything. "Are you sure?"
"Yes, I'm sure… I'm sure I saw something move…" Desmond insisted.
Dawkins grabbed his brother's muzzle and gave it a closer look. He then noticed the small spider as it moved from Deepak's nose to his white fur. "A spider?"
He let go of Deepak. "No wonder it was hard to spot, its black body blends in with your nose perfectly."
"Oh, almost forgot! This little fellow landed on me and I was just heading out to leave him outside," Deepak told him.
"Hey, isn't this a money spider?" Dawkins noted.
Deepak nodded happily.
"Hah! Seems like someone's getting good luck then, huh?" Dawkins patted Deepak on the head.
"Hee-hee, Yeah! Thanked him for crawling on me even." Deepak made a cheerful smile.
"This is perfect, though. Desmond should be done eating by the time you come back." Dawkins stated.
"Say, Desmond, did you know that if a money spider crawls on you, it's considered a good fortune?" Dawkins giggled as he turned to face him, but instead of a surprised look, Dawkins found Desmond digging his claws in the boards of the floor as sweat dripped from his entire body.
Deepak jerked his head at Desmond when he sensed the anxiety that started flowing out from Desmond's aura.
Deepak looked at Dawkins then back to Desmond as he was puzzled by what was going on. "Why did you get so tense all of a sudden, Desmond? What are you so worried about?"
"You said you found that thing in your room…?" Desmond uttered with a shaky voice as he glared the spider.
At once, the two dogs realized what Desmond was so worried about.
"The spider?" Dawkins wondered.
Desmond nodded his head as he recoiled a little.
"Are you afraid of spiders?" Dawkins asked.
"How do you think…?" Desmond replied as his body shivered when he saw the spider move around Deepak's nose. "I-It won't jump at me, will it…?!"
"Well, it's not a jumping spider, so no, it won't," Dawkins answered him as he let out a small chuckle.
"You think it's funny…?!" Desmond said, irritated.
"A little," Dawkins replied as he put his paw on his mouth, hiding a smile. "Honestly, I never imagined you'd have arachnophobia."
"Tsk…!" Desmond huffed out in anger.
Deepak glowered at Dawkins then jabbed him on the side. "Can't you see you're upsetting him?!"
"Apologies, apologies," Dawkins said, he then headed for the stairs. "Anyway, you wait here, Desmond. I'll go get you something to eat."
Deepak turned to Desmond and gave him a friendly smile. "There really isn't anything to be scared of; spiders aren't aggressive, they won't attack if—"
"Yeah, yeah…! Just hurry and get it out of here…!" Desmond urged.
Deepak exhaled then followed after Dawkins.
"Hey, Desmond!" Dawkins yelled to him as he and Deepak walked through the hallway.
Desmond perked his ears. "Yeah…?"
"Will it make you feel better to know that Dimitri 2 has hematophobia?" Dawkins asked as he and Deepak started walking down the staircase.
"A what phobia…?!" Desmond yelled as he leaned his head forward. "Can you repeat…?!"
"It means fear of blood!" Dawkins yelled back from the staircase.
Desmond began tapping on the floor as he pondered. "So that's why he was freaking out when Bernard bit him…"
As they walked side by side, Deepak felt Dawkins' aura tense up.
"What's bothering you?" Deepak asked.
"Huh?! How did—" Dawkins turned his head at him with a jolt, surprised. But then slammed himself on the head when he remembered how. "Oh, right. Forget that I even asked."
Deepak giggled. "Your aura told me."
"Yeah, I figured." Dawkins scratched his ear. "Hmm, well, I'll ask you this, which one of these two is more beneficial to society, in your opinion, a doctor or an engineer?"
Deepak gave it a little thought before answering. "Does it matter? Both do good deeds and help people. Both are important for our world."
Dawkins sighed as he looked at the bottom of the stairs for a moment. "Obviously, but I was expecting a more straightforward answer from you."
Deepak sighed. "I thought you would've made up your mind by now."
Dawkins snorted out as they both reached the bottom of the stairs.
"Dawkins," Deepak turned to him. "You and I are kindred spirits. I know that, like me, you want to help others; it's something I really like about you. It's not my place, however, to tell you what you should become. This is something you must figure out for yourself."
"Tsk!" Dawkins exclaimed in vexation and frowned as they continued through the hallway. And here I thought asking him might help.
Deepak felt Dawkins' aura go slightly gloomy as they passed the living room. Dawkins halted his walking suddenly when Deepak clung to him in a gentle hug.
"Choose what makes you happy the most," Deepak told him, "No matter what it is that you choose, you'll be the best at it!"
Dawkins couldn't help but grow a smile. "Okay, okay."
He patted Deepak on the head. "You can let go of me now."
Deepak pulled away from him as they continued walking.
Deepak rubbed his head as he pondered. "By the way, I noticed something strange when I felt Desmond's aura."
Dawkins rose his ears in curiosity.
"Though Desmond's was worse, his aura was very similar to that of Dante when he came to me last week," Deepak said.
Dawkins looked at him, a little surprised. "Similar?"
Deepak nodded, then frowned a bit. "And it's not like their auras were slightly similar; Desmond had the same feeling of distress in him as Dante did. It's like they've both been through the same awful experience."
Dawkins pondered on this. "You said Dante came to you a week ago?"
"That's right," Deepak confirmed.
"Huh! Dylan told me that Desmond's condition began around a week ago, as well." Dawkins sat down. "Think there could be a connection?"
Deepak shook his head. "No idea."
"I asked him earlier if he noticed Desmond displaying odd behaviors, but I wonder now if Dante knows something more about this." Dawkins rubbed his nose. "At least he might be able to give me an idea of what's wrong with Desmond."
"After I bring Desmond some food, I'll go ask Dante." Dawkins stood up. "You still give it a shot, though."
"Of course. I won't reject a person in need," Deepak said, he then felt the spider crawling around his muzzle. "Hee-hee, getting impatient are we?"
"Go leave it then," Dawkins told him, "Surely, mister eight-legs here is dying to spin a web in the backyard."
"I bet he is, aren't you?" Deepak looked at the spider.
Now, what should I give him? Dawkins wondered. "Perhaps a fruit? A banana should do. Ah! But it's such a pain in the arse to peel."
"Dawkins!" Deepak gasped when he heard him.
"Huh?"
"I can't believe you just said that!" Deepak scowled at him.
"So what?" Dawkins replied nonchalantly.
"It's not like you to!" Deepak exclaimed. He then huffed and headed for the backyard. "I expect better from you, you know!"
Dawkins gave out a low moan as he proceeded towards the kitchen. "Doesn't everyone?"
Deepak braced himself as he entered the backyard. As usual, his siblings were all running around and playing games. Some of the pups used the garden hose to splash each other with cold water. Deepak began to feel slight unease as he looked at all of this.
Upon stepping on the grass, Deepak immediately had to dodge a frisbee; he ducked down as it flew over his head. Continuing forward, Deepak constantly avoided obstacles along his path. He was somewhat used to all of this, but no matter how used he thought he'd get, all this chaos, and constant shouting from the pups, did irritate him a lot.
Deepak decided to step up his pace and get this done as quickly as possible, all the while, he tried keeping an eye on the small spider. "Don't worry, little buddy, I won't let you get hurt."
Deepak made an abrupt stop when some of his brothers and sisters dashed right in front of him, almost running him over. He proceeded on, but as he was focused on the spider, Deepak failed to notice a puddle in his way and stepped right in it; flinching as he felt the coldness of the water and quickly pulled his paw back just to see the sticky mud that now covered it, making him frown in disgust.
"Ohhh!" He moaned as he got flustered. "This is so stressful!"
"Well, almost there, buddy." Deepak looked back at the spider. "You know, I'm wondering, why can't they be like you, huh? You patiently stay on my nose and you aren't loud. Heh-heh, though, you're a spider, so you won't be making much noise."
"Hmm… I was told that spiders can lay hundreds of eggs at once. Did you had to deal with dozens of brothers and sisters, too, buddy?" He asked the spider, then chuckled a bit to himself. As he finally reached the other end of the backyard, Deepak had no trouble finding a big, green shrub. He put his paw onto his nose, allowing the spider to climb on it. "You probably had to, ah?"
Deepak brought his paw near the shrub, letting the spider get on it.
"I'll advise you not to enter our home again. As you can see, my siblings are pretty… Let's say lively, and they can—" Deepak got cut off when a rubber ball hit the back of his head, causing him to almost fall on the ground.
"Sorry, Deepak!" Some of the pups yelled out to him. "Can we get our ball back?!"
Deepak began breathing at a rapid pace as anger started taking hold of him. He quickly slowed down his breathing and dismissed the negative emotion—composing himself. Deepak then turned towards the ball and tossed it to his siblings.
"Thanks!" They yelled to him then returned playing with the ball.
Deepak turned to the spider. "See? That could happen. If that was you, you would've been—"
Deepak stopped himself as he felt sick just from the mere thought of the spider getting squashed by the ball.
"Well, let's not think about it." He smiled at the spider. He turned around and headed back to the house. "Bye, little buddy! Don't get yourself in trouble now!"
As she was dipping her paws into her buckets of paint, getting ready to draw on the brick wall, Da Vinci noticed Deepak going back to the house. She followed him with her eyes as he entered in. Deepak? Ah! Did he see Desmond?! Has he woken up?
Da Vinci looked around for her towel and saw one of the pups playing with it.
"Dupont! Dupont!" Da Vinci called out to him. "Bring me my towel, please!"
"Huh?!" Dupont perked his ears when he heard her. He ran to Da Vinci and gave her the towel. "Here you go, big sis!"
"Thank you." Da Vinci paused upon noticing the small holes on her towel, made by the pup's fangs. "Eh?! Dupont, how could…! I told you, you can play with it, but not ruin it!"
"Sorry, hee-hee," Dupont said with a sheepish smile as he rubbed his paw.
"Oh, never mind." Da Vinci hastily wiped the paint off of her paws and left the towel on the plastic table.
She then headed towards Dylan and Dolly who sat side by side and monitored the pups, making sure no accidents occurred.
"Geez!" Dolly moaned as she fiercely tapped on the grass with her paw then turned to Dylan. "Instead of joining the fun, I gotta stay here with ya and watch 'em like some sort of a lifeguard."
"If you want your cuts to get worse, go right ahead," Dylan replied.
Dolly exhaled heavily and looked at her injured ear. She grabbed it and moved it a little to see if it still hurt. She got her answer when she got hit by a sharp pain that made her yelp. "Ouch, ouch, ouch!"
"Dolly, stop." Dylan grabbed her paw and put it down. "You checked five minutes ago; you know your ear won't heal for a day, right?"
"I don't wanna hear that from ya!" Dolly poked him on the cheek. "Remember that one time when ya got a cut on your leg and ya kept unwrapping and wrapping the bandage mom put on ya to check if it was healing or not; even though she told ya not to do it 'cause your leg won't be able to heal properly?"
Dylan blushed in embarrassment and looked away from her.
"Ah?! Ah?! Ah?! Ah?!" Dolly began repeating as she grabbed her brother's ears and started playing with them.
"Argh! Knock it off, Dolly!" Dylan barked, annoyed.
"Not a chance!" She pushed him on the ground and got on top of him. "If I can't play with the pups, then you'll be my victim for today, mister strict pants!"
Dolly started tickling Dylan viciously, making him squeal as he let out loud giggles and loughs.
"AHAHA! OH, NO, NO, NO! HAHA, DOLLY, DOLLY!" Dylan desperately tried getting Dolly off but to no avail, as his whole body was quivering from the itchy sensation. "DO—HAHA! DOLLY! I—AHAHA! GOT TO WATCH OVER THE PUPS—HAHA!"
"Hey, Dylan, Dolly!" Da Vinci reached them. "I just saw—"
Da Vinci slowed down as she approached her older brother and sister when she saw what was happening.
"What are you doing?" Da Vinci tilted her head and made a smile of amusement. "Shouldn't you be looking out for the pups?"
Dolly stop her tickling and rose her head at Da Vinci. "This is way better than that, sis."
Dolly got off of Dylan, grabbed his paw, and stood him up.
Dylan shoved his face in Dolly's as he gave her an angry stare. "Don't you dare do that ever again, Dolly. You hear?!"
Dolly pushed him away as she smirked. "We'll see."
"Hello?! You two!" Da Vinci clapped with her paws. "Give me some attention here."
Dylan and Dolly both turned to her when they heard her clap. "Yeah?"
"I just saw Deepak walk in the house," Da Vinci told them.
"Huh?! In the house, you say?" Dylan questioned. "So he was out?"
Da Vinci nodded. "I think so; didn't see him enter the backyard though."
"How did we not see him?" Dolly asked.
"He probably got obscured by all the other pups." Dylan guessed. "But now that you mention Deepak, that got me wondering if Desmond has come around; it's been some time now."
"That's what I was thinking." Da Vinci replied. "I thought I'd let you know before I went to check."
"Wanna go check on him?" Dolly turned to her brother.
"Well, someone has to stay to monitor the pups," Dylan replied, "You two go, I'll stay; tell me if Desmond has regained consciousness or not, okay?"
"Sure thing," Dolly replied. She then turned to Da Vinci. "C'mon!"
Desmond stood in front of Da Vinci's room with the blanket in his mouth. It's so soft and warm… Thank you, Da Vinci… Wish I could keep it…
Desmond placed the blanket in front of the door then walked back to the end of the hallway.
A few seconds later, Dawkins returned, carrying two bowls; one in his paw that was filled with water; the other in his mouth, which was filled with slices of banana.
"Hope you like fruits, Desmond," Dawkins said as he approached him.
"I sure do…" Desmond replied.
"Good!" Dawkins put the bowls in front of Desmond and sat down. "Not sure if you like them or not, but since they're rich in potassium, I thought that a banana would be ideal."
"Oh, I absolutely like them…!" Desmond stated. "Bananas are my favorite type of fruit…!"
"Hey, nice! Bananas are my favorite, too!" Dawkins smiled. He then pushed the bowl of water towards Desmond. "Before you eat, drink first; you're still dehydrated, so your main priority should be to get as much water as you can in your body."
"Uh, yeah…" Desmond stopped himself as he was about to go for the banana slices and switched to the other bowl. "Guess you're right…"
Desmond noticed Dawkins' name written on the side of the bowl, which made him reluctant to drink from it.
"You're giving me your bowl…?" Desmond rose his head. "I don't know if it's right to—"
"Both bowls are mine, actually," Dawkins clarified, "Don't worry about it. Go ahead. Do keep in mind, however, you're washing them after your session with Deepak."
Desmond made a small smile at Dawkins, appreciating this gesture of his, then started gulping down the water.
"Don't rush; drink slowly!" Dawkins exclaimed.
Deepak was washing the mud off of his paw in the bathroom; he dried it and headed for the stairs. While walking, Deepak decided to slow down, as he wanted to give Desmond time to eat his food.
After reaching the stairs, Deepak slowly climbed them and walked to the two dogs.
"Are you done?" Deepak asked Desmond as he approached him and Dawkins.
With his mouth full and still chewing, Desmond only nodded his head as he swallowed the banana slices.
"He's good to go." Dawkins picked the bowls up and turned to his brother. "It's your turn now."
Dawkins gestured with his paw for Desmond to enter his room, as he made sure to keep a little distance from him.
Desmond halted before entering and turned to Deepak. "There aren't any other spiders in your room, are there…?"
"No, there aren't." Deepak shook his head. "I assure you!"
Desmond looked around for any cobwebs in the room before stepping into it.
Before he entered after Desmond, Deepak got tapped on the back by Dawkins. "I'll leave my door open, so if Desmond starts having trouble breathing, begins feeling chest pain, or anything like that, call me, alright?"
"Alright," Deepak replied.
"Give it your best." Dawkins smiled at him.
"Sure will!" Deepak assured him. He then walked into the room and closing the door.
"Now, Desmond, you look tense." Deepak walked passed him, while he kept his distance, to his exercise ball. "Let's fix that."
Desmond began walking towards the small pup when Deepak rose his paw at him and took a step back. "Umm, Desmond, I'd like there to be at least a meter of distance between us, if that's okay with you?"
Desmond halted and stared Deepak with a confused look. "Why…?! What's wrong…?"
"You're aura," Deepak answered him and sat down. "It's seriously bothering me and I can't focus if I have to constantly feel it."
"Well, can't you just…" Desmond looked to the side as he wondered. "Switch your ability off…?"
Deepak grabbed his ears and rose them up. "Can you turn your hearing off?"
"Ah…!" Desmond realized what the question meant. "Is that how it is…? So it constantly stays on, huh, this 'aura sensing' of yours…?"
Deepak nodded and let go of his ears. "I'm sure you know of the five senses everyone has, right?"
"Sure…"
"Then there's the sixth one," Deepak said, "I guess you could say that my ability is that."
"Oh…!" Desmond exclaimed as he got intrigued but then gave it a quick thought. "Though, it's just a hypothesized sense…"
"Well, the point is that just like the other five, you can't stop it from working," Deepak stated.
"And while it's useful," Deepak sighed. "It can trouble me."
Desmond rose his eyebrows, puzzled.
"Since it stays on all the time," Deepak put a paw on the ball and began rolling it. "I can't ignore people's negative emotions when I come across them; it can be very overwhelming at times, you know?"
"I don't want to see others like that, so I try to help if I can," Deepak stated.
Desmond looked outside the window, towards the clouds, as he pondered. A kind soul, aren't you…?
Desmond made a step back. "One…"
"Huh?!" Deepak looked at him, a little confused.
"Two…" Desmond made another step back. He then looked at where he was standing, then looked back to Deepak. "This seems like a meter to me..."
Deepak giggle and smiled at Desmond. "Thanks."
With a quick leap, Deepak landed on the ball and balanced himself on it. "Now, let's begin!"
"Wow…!" Desmond exclaimed, astounded when he saw Deepak. "Impressive…!"
"You think so?" Deepak let out a chuckle.
"Do I have to balance on a ball, too, for this…?" Desmond asked, a little worried, as he started looking around the room for other exercise balls.
"Oh, no, no," Deepak told him, "Just take a position that is most comfortable to you; I just prefer the ball."
Desmond laid on the flower and looked up at Deepak. "Now…?"
"We'll meditate," Deepak told him.
