Author’s note: This is a silly one-shot I cooked up while writing my much longer story with Ewan and co. so I decided to post this so you can get a small peek at what Ewan and Orde are like. Hope you enjoy!

Orde had to admit, of the police dogs he had helped train Ewan was the most earnest about his job. The pup put gusto into everything he did, from the most difficult exercise to the most mundane task. Ewan showed great potential, and Orde knew that the pup would make him proud. In fact, there was a growing bond even he couldn’t deny, and he knew that Ewan was already making him proud. There was little fault to the pup so far…

 …except one thing: if only the enthusiasm didn’t come with so many questions.

   Ewan seemed to question everything. Questions such as: “How do you do this?” “What’s a stake out?” “What’s going to happen today, huh Captain?” came forth in a constant stream, and the Captain was beginning to wonder if he himself had asked so many questions of his trainer back at home. If so, he deeply regretted it, knowing now what a pain it was getting to be.

  At present, Orde was slogging through another morning of such questioning. The pup seemed to be bursting with energy at this ungodly hour in the morning, prancing under paw and chattering away about what sort of things he might be doing today. He is a pup after all, Orde tried reasoning with himself. Patience is required on my part. Getting annoyed will only make this worse.  

 Too bad patience seemed to make itself well hidden today.

 Finally he held up a paw to stop Ewan. If patience wouldn’t work, perhaps cunning would. “Today we have a new exercise for you.” He held up his paw once more just as Ewan was opening his mouth to ask what it was. “This new skill you will learn is a lost art in our culture today, and few know how to do it properly.” He lowered his voice for emphasis, and was pleased to see Ewan’s green eyes light up with curiosity. “What is it?” The pup wagged his tail in anticipation.

 “This is called ‘The Art of Observation’.”

 Ewan’s face scrunched up in confusion, and Orde knew that it wasn’t what the pup was expecting at all.

 “Obser…obsawhat?”

 “Observation.” Orde repeated.

 “What’s that?”

 Orde found he had to think before trying to explain it. “It’s…well, it’s where you look, and listen. When tracking or questioning a dog, you must use your senses to gather clues.”

  “Oh, ok!” Ewan grinned. “I know all my senses, so I can do that. “Look, listen, touch, smell, and taste!”

   With each sense he named off, he preformed it. He scanned the yard, pricked his ears forward, patted the ground with his paw, took a deep breath, and licked a nearby enormous icicle hanging from the edge of their home…

 …Where his tongue stuck.

   Ewan’s eyes widened as he realized his mistake. He growled as he pulled in vain, then he started to panic. “Ode! My tog ith duck!”

  Orde was torn for a split second on whether to feel exasperated by the pup’s miraculous ability to get into trouble, or to laugh at the ridiculousness of it all. As annoyed as he was, he had to admit it was rather funny...

  He opted to a compromise. He only allowed a small grin to leak into his countenance, circling Ewan slowly as he studied the pup and uttered some soft hmmms for effect. Ewan could only move a little as he tied to keep the Captain in sight. At last Orde looked at Ewan in the eye with all seriousness. “It seems you’re in quite a bind, my young learner.” He barely withheld his growing amusement, and he found that fighting his smile was getting to be difficult.

  “Uh huh.”

 “Your first lesson on the art of observation is that taste is not commonly used in this field of work.”

Ewan noticed with a growing sense of despair and embarrassment that Orde was openly smirking now. “Twust you’d thind it thuddy.” He started to growl, but yelped in pain as he tried once again to yank himself free.

  Orde began to make a noise in his chest that sounded suspiciously like the beginnings of laughter, and it only served to further frustrate Ewan. “Don’t go anywhere now. I’m going to go get someone to help you.” Orde’s golden brown eyes twinkled as he turned to go back to the station.

  “Ike I’m goig abywhere.” He sulked as he heard Orde finally break down and start laughing loudly before entering the building. Dash it all. Ewan only hoped that Orde wouldn’t be too long in coming, or else someone might see him in this stupid, stupid, stupid position!

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Ewan waited for what seemed like an eternity (though really it was only a few minutes), sulking as he tried to get himself free. My luck someone would be out and about already, and they’ll come and see what a dummy I’ve been.

 “Ewan?”

 Ewan shouted in surprise and pain (he yanked a bit harder then he meant to in his fright). “Enna?!? Don’t do dat!” He leveled a dark scowl at his sister, though the effect was ruined by his silly position.

  Jenna gaped at him, and uttered a shocked laugh. “I thought that was you! I was wondering if I was seeing ok at first, it looked like you were kissing the icicle.” She giggled, ignoring the darkening glare. “Looks like you really are right now.”

  Wonderful. Not only was she laughing at him (his own sister!) She wasn’t going to do anything but gawk, and attract attention to this horrible situation! “Ot tho youd!”

  “Huh?” Jenna frowned. “I can’t understand a word you’re saying.” She was starting to look concerned now, but Ewan didn’t notice in his embarrassment and anger. “I thed, ‘ot tho youd!’”

 “What?”

 “OT THO YOUD!”

 “Hey look!” Someone shouted.

 Ewan’s eyes widened as he finally realized that shouting ‘not so loud’ at then top of his lungs was not the best thing to do. Looking over, he saw that Steele had been the one to shout, and that he and his friends were headed over to check him out. Darn it! Once Steele and his friends saw this, Ewan would never be able to show his face in public ever again! Why, why, WHY am I born with such a big mouth?!?

  Jenna frowned as she saw the posse heading their way. “Don’t worry, I’ll take care of it.”

 “How?”

  “I got an idea.” Jenna giggled again, and Ewan almost felt sorry for Steele and the others. This particular snicker of hers was by no means innocent at all.

 “Hey look, Ewan’s making out with an icicle!” Steele and his lackeys laughed as they sauntered over. Ewan felt a furious blush rise up under his fur, but thankfully Jenna sat with a huff before he could say anything. “No he’s not. He’s doing a test.”

 A what?

 “A test?” Steele tilted his head down to study her. He was only four months older then she was, but compared to her he was huge. “What sort of test?”

  Jenna sniffed primly. “Only the bravest and bestest dogs ever can stand having their tongue cold. It's to make them strong I heard.”

  Ewan’s eyes lit up once he caught onto her plan.

  “Only the best, huh?” Steele eyed Ewan like he was some kind of exotic beetle. “I don’t know if you’d be able to pull that off, if that’s the case.”

  “Yeah,” Nikki chimed in. “Yous the best, Steele!”

  Jenna pulled a scornful look. “You? You couldn’t outlast my brother. He’s training to be a police dog!”

   That did it. If there was one thing everyone knew, it was the fact that Steele couldn’t say no to a dare. “I could too! Watch this!” He looked around, but finding no other icicle within reach, he went to the opposite side of Ewan’s and stuck his tongue to it. “There. I gan outwath oo eathy.”

  Star began to giggle madly, as did the others at seeing their leader stuck to an icicle. Jenna was laughing the hardest however; delighted that her plan to trick the older pup had actually worked.

  Steele’s eyes widened as he grunted angrily, trying in vain to pull away as he realized too late that he was unable to do anything but stand there and look like an idiot. “OO! Oo did Thith! Wotten nathy girl!”

  Ewan was laughing harder now, ignoring the sharp pain in his tongue. “Orry Theele, you thook the dare, and did it oorthelf.”   

  Steele’s outraged look promised swift revenge once he was free, but Ewan didn’t care. What a glorious moment!  Who cared if he would have trouble talking for the rest of the day? This was a story worthy of recognition for years to come! 

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 Orde had wasted no time in looking for something to help out his apprentice, and soon he had managed to ‘temporarily borrow’ Deputy William’s coffee from the table. Hopefully it would melt the ice without scalding Ewan’s tongue. He set it in the snow to cool it just a tiny bit as a precaution, and he walked over to where the icicle was.

 “Alright, I’m back-” Orde stopped in his tracks once he saw the crowd of puppies and the two prisoners held captive by the hanging ice. “What the blazes…” He shook his head and rolled his eyes heavenward. “Never mind, I’m probably better off in ignorance.”

 Ewan only grinned, his lively green eyes conveying the laugh that he tired to hide. “On’t worry Cap’n, oo are.”

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