“Caspian, how goes your progress?” Percy asked, dropping the two tubs of animal feed to the ground with a thunk. Peering inside the shed he surveyed the work.

“Good good, it’s going good,” Caspian breathed. “Just a little tired is all.”

“Well look’s like you’ve made some decent headway, just spreading out the straw and refilling the feed left?” he asked. “Not bad.”

“Thanks Percy. That water was really inconvenient to move,” he murmured. “That barrel sucked.”

“Barrel? Oh, the one in the cupboard? Aye, it’s not the best, but it gets the job done,” Percy said, eyeing him up. “You hungry or thirsty? I Brought you a quick snack.” A bottle of water and a brown paper bag full of jerky was placed next to him. “Get your energy back.”

Without a word, Caspian undid the bottle’s lid and guzzled down the water. Is dry throat greedily sucked in the water, finishing off the bottle in a few seconds. “Ah,” he sighed, his eyes closed. Making sure his hand was clean, he picked up the jerky bag, taking a deep sniff of the dry-aged meat. The smokey and peppery aroma cut through the surroundings, making his mouth water. Taking a piece out, his teeth sank into the leathery food and tried to take a bite. When that didn’t work, he wedged the jerky in his jaw and tore a mouthful off. Working his jaw to its fullest, he quickly broke it up and swallowed it down.

By the time the bag was almost empty, Caspian’s stomach was satisfied and his jaw was sore. The jerky had been very tough, every piece fighting with him to not get eaten. “You’re a hero for that Percy,” he said, giving him a thumbs up. “A real life saver.”

“Don’t worry about it. Did any of the camels give you any trouble?” Percy asked.

“No no, a few would peer in from time to time, but I barely noticed them,” he said. “Was focused on the task I guess. Oh yeah, can you answer something for me Percy?”

“Of course, ask away Caspian. It is what I’m here for,” he said smiling.

“Alright so if for the next few days, we’re going to be learning from you guys, what are you going to have the others do? Will they also have to clean out the shed or is that just something I had to do because I was first? Because I don’t think it would get that dirty again so fast?” he asked his eyes on Percy.

“Haha, so you worked it out. Yes, you unfortunately got the worst of it by being first up. No one else is going to have to muck the stables so to speak. You’re just unlucky,” Percy said smiling. “On the bright side, you’re getting to show me how you work in difficult environments. Small victories right haha.”

Letting out a long sigh, Caspian stood up. “I was afraid of that. Now everyone else is going to miss out on a fun learning experience. I almost feel bad for hogging it all to myself. I feel a little selfish you know, maybe I can toss some of the stuff out of the bin to give them something to do tomorrow,” he said.

“How generous of you,” Percy said with a wry smile. “But I think I will have to decline that unfortunately.”

“Figures,” Caspian muttered, stretching. “Might as well get back to it then, I only have a little more to go. Is that the feed?”

“Yes, two tubs should be plenty. The straw is under that tarp over there,” Percy said, pointing a little ways off. “A few bales should be enough for their bedding.”

Marching over, he lifted the tarp to reveal piles of haybales all stacked on top of each other. The overwhelming smell of hay that filled his nostrils was a nice change of pace. Pulling a few off of the pile, he dragged them over to the shed leaving a trail of straw in his wake. “Do I just chuck it on the floor or?” he asked tilting his head at Percy.

“Hmmm, yeah just try and make an even layer over the floor,” he said. “It doesn’t have to be perfect or anything don’t worry.”

“Got it,” Caspian replied, pulling out a handful of the hay. Starting in the back corner, he threw it to the floor. Slowly but surely the ground became coated in a yellow carpet, the haybale growing smaller and smaller to the point that he could hold it with one arm. Half the shed filled, he returned to grab the other bale. Percy was messing around with the bins off to the side, and he quickly turned and focused on his work lest he be sucked into doing more.

Soon the first part was done, leaving only the feed troughs. Opening the lid of one tub, he saw an unappealing mixture of grains lying there. Attempting to lift it, a dull pain coursed through his legs after only a few steps. “Really,” he muttered, dropping the tub to the floor and dragging it inside instead. There were two feeding troughs in the room, one on either side. Going for the left on first, he undid the lid, lifted it on the side so that it caught on the lip of the tub, and heaved it over. Grain started to flow out, filling the trough like a tsunami. After only a few moments his tub was empty, and after evening out the grain to a smooth enough level he nodded to himself.

“A lot easier than I thought.”

Grabbing the other tub, he used the same method as the first, a tidal wave of grain flooding out of the tub, bits of dust billowing into the air. With a sigh of relief, he was done with the job. Dragging the tubs out behind him, he placed them up against the shed.

“Phew,” he muttered, trying to breathe some of the fresh air outside. The animal stench had mingled with his sweat, producing a smell he couldn’t quite place. He was going to need a long shower after this to get the smell out. Thinking of a shower, his body shook in anticipation.

Walking over to Percy, he coughed to get his attention. “All done with that.”

Sparing him a glance, Percy looked back at his task. “Did the food as well?”

“Sure did. Done and dusted,” he said.

“Good job Caspian. Just give me a moment here and then we can move to the final activity I have for you today,” Percy said.

“Final activity,” he thought. “I thought that was going to be it, there's more?” A mixture of dread and excitement filled him. On one hand, anything was going to be better than what he’d just done, perhaps it would even be something interesting. On the other, what if it wasn’t better? His mind started to imagine all sorts of hellish tasks Percy would condemn him with.

Lost in thought, he didn’t realise Percy was talking to him until he snapped his fingers in front of him.

“You alright Caspian?” he asked concerned. “You feeling ok?”

“Huh, oh sorry I was just thinking. Sorry sorry,” Caspian said, waving his hands in front of him. “It’s all good.”

Giving him a hard look, Percy made a sound of acknowledgement before beckoning him to follow. He locked up the shed, making sure to give it an experimental shake to ensure it was properly locked before lifting the gate on the other side. A few of the camels wandered inside, intrigued. Food and water slowly started to disappear into their mouths.

“Yeah you better like the new place,” he thought looking at them. One was rolling around on the new hay sending it flying everywhere, which caused him to smile. It was quite cute.

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“You helped a lot there with the cleaning the shed so I’ll go easy on you today. Only one more thing and then you can get out of here alright?” Percy said, looking at his dirty figure. “You forgot your shoes by the way.”

Looking down, he realised he was still wearing the apron and boots. Groaning internally, he thought he saw a little smile on Percy’s face. Luckily they hadn’t gone far, so he raced back to the cupboard and stowed away the workwear. Coming back, he felt remarkably lighter without the apron weighing him down.

“Yes yes, very funny Percy,” he said shaking his head.

“I don’t know what you mean,” Percy said, a wry grin on his face. “Anyway, I’ll have you finish up today with saddling and riding a camel.”

Caspian was sure he had heard him wrong. There was no way that’s what he meant, he must have made a mistake. Looking out at the animals that were sitting in the shade or wandering around, he felt himself gulp. How was he supposed to ride one of those things?

“I can see you’re a bit nervous, but trust me there’s nothing to be worried about,” Percy said. “It’s quite easy, and I’ll be there to help you. You can even use Bell, she already knows you.”

“Uh ok,” Caspian said, not sure about this at all. Walking around the fence to a little gate, Caspian spied a large leather saddle sitting on the ground that hadn’t been there before. Just the saddle alone looked heavy and unwieldy.

“It’s really quite easy, don’t overthink it Caspian,” Percy said. “There’s no need to be nervous.”

“Come on get it together Caspian,” he thought, trying to psyche himself up.

“BELL!” Percy yelled, “COME HERE GIRL.” After a few moments, a camel was at the fence eating another carrot out of his hand. “That’s it girl, good girl,” he murmured rubbing her face. “Alright Caspian, grab the saddle and let’s head in.”

Swallowing, he nodded, picking up the saddle. It was surprisingly light, making it easy to carry. Hurrying inside the gate Percy was holding open for him, he stepped into the paddock. Instantly he felt more unsafe, nothing standing in the way of him and a stampeeding camel now. Taking deep breaths, he tried to tell himself that Percy knew what he was doing and wouldn’t let anything happen to him. It only helped a little.

Bell started to rub her face into Percy’s arms, a long tongue licking him. “Stop the Bell, come on stop. Down, down please.” Understanding him, the camel got down on its knees and gave Caspian a friendly look. It seemed to know the drill. Despite the fact that the camel was sitting down, it still reached chest height, giving him a good appreciation for the sheer size of the animal.

Throwing a rug over her back, Percy beckoned him forward. “Alright let me hold this end of the saddle. You see the groves, they over her humps. You’ve got the front end, so let's place it down on her. Ready?”

Nodding, the saddle slid into place easily, Bell's eyes looking at him curiously. Now that he was up close, he could see that she had lusciously long eyelashes. “What the hell was that,” he thought as he looked into her eyes. “There it was again.”

“Hey Percy, what’s wrong with her eyes? It’s like she's got something on them,” he asked, as Percy was fiddling to make sure the saddle was positioned right.

“Hmmm, her eyes? What do you mean?” he asked.

“Like this milky film covering them. Is she ok?” Caspian said.

“Oh that, that’s her third eyelid,” Percy said absently.

“There third what?” he thought. “Eyelid? I don’t know when I’ll stop being surprised. How did they even end up getting that,” he wondered.

“Stand,” Percy said. When she did, he started to fasten ropes around her stomach to secure the saddle. He also grabbed the reins that were sitting on the fence, which looked like some sort of head wrap made out of rope. “OK girl down again please, you’re doing so good.” Affixing the reins on her face, he waved Caspian over. “Camels aren’t too big on listening to directions, so don’t try and control her alright? When we’re out on an expedition, the camels follow along in a convoy as they’ve been trained. Never try and steer a camel unless it’s been trained by you for some time, it will just get annoyed, alright?”

“Uh ok, that doesn’t do a lot for my confidence,” he said chuckling nervously. “Do they listen to you?”

“Of course, I’m their master. We wouldn’t be able to use them if they didn’t listen to anybody. Now let me teach you how to mount. You can come at it from the side of the back, but you need to get in the seat properly,” Percy said, completely serious now. “As you saw when she stood up, it’s back legs first, then front legs. That means when you’re on there, you’re going to have to stop yourself from falling forward. Hold on as tightly as you can otherwise you're taking a tumble in the sand.”

“Ok got it. Back legs then front. Make sure to hold on,” Caspian nodded, mentally writing it down. “Back, then front.”

“When she gets up, I’ll let her walk around for a little so that you get used to the feeling of riding,” Percy said. “When she walks, don’t try and sit still and let your body go with her movements. Oh and when she walks, you can either sit with your legs around her or have them up. Having them up lessens the pain your tailbone will receive, but really it's whatever you find more comfortable. Got it?”

“Understood,” Caspian said.

“Then let's do this, on you get,” Percy said, holding the reins and stroking Bell's nose.

Licking his lips, Caspian tried to figure out how to get on. Grabbing hold of the saddle, he tested to make sure it wouldn’t fall and then swung his leg over the other side. Hopping with the other, he jumped up, and almost slipped and fell off the other side. Regaining his balance, he threw a thumbs up to Percy who was watching him closely. Settling into the saddle, he gripped the bar in front of him and gave the go-ahead.

“Alright hold on tight,” he reminded him, before turning to Bell. “Up.”

Almost as if there was an earthquake, his head shook around as the camel stood up on its hind legs. Feeling himself being jerked forward, he held on for dear life as he went into a 45-degree angle. His core and forearms started to burn as he held himself there for several moments that felt like forever, before Bell got her footing right, and rose up totally. From where he was sitting, Caspian was now high off the ground.

“You all good up there?” Percy called.

“Yeah,” Caspian replied, a wide smile on his face. He had been apprehensive about doing this before, but now that he was saddled and on the back of the camel, he couldn’t believe it. He was so high up, it was incredible.

“Ok I’m going to walk her around a bit, make sure you don’t fall off,” Percy said. “Come on girl.”

Feeling the beast below him start to move, he felt a jolt through his body. The jerky sway seemed to have no rhythm or cadence, instead, it felt like his body was moved in a random direction with each step. Unconsciously he tried to resist the movement.

“Let your body go with the sway,” Percy called up. “Don’t try to fight it.”

“Right, go with the flow,” he murmured. Letting his body sway with Bell's movement turned out to be easier in concept than in execution. Every time he went too far to one side, the fear of falling quickly gripped him and then he had to start all over again. After a few minutes, he gradually got better, to the point that he was actually able to relax in the saddle and enjoy the ride for what it was. The experience was out of this world, so far from anything else he had ever done. He could feel the power of the animal below him, the sheer weight of its movements that could move twice his body weight with ease. It was an eye-opening thing.

“You’re doing great Caspian, how’re you feeling up there?” Percy asked.

“Good, good. A bit sore,” he replied, his legs starting to feel raw where they rubbed against the saddle.

“Try lifting your legs up and sitting, it helps with the soreness,” he called up. “A few more minutes and then I think we call it ok?”

“Alright.” Tentatively lifting his legs up, he held off for dear life as his safety net disappeared. Sitting cross-legged, his body swayed even more than before, but like Percy said the jittering that had shaken him with each step lessened dramatically. It was actually a lot more fun sitting like this, he felt like a toy being thrown around. A gust of wind sent his hair flying, causing him to smile. He never expected himself to be riding a camel today.

Percy led Bell back over to the fence, where he got her to sit down again. Sitting down was just as nailbiting as standing up, Caspian feeling like he was going to fall flat on his face in the sand. But no such thing happened, and when Bell was finally still, he merely swung his legs off and hopped off in one smooth motion.

“That was amazing,” he said, smiling.

“You enjoyed it?” Percy asked.

“Oh definitely. Almost a magical experience, like nothing I’ve ever done before,” he said.

“Well don’t thank me, thank Bell,” Percy said smiling, holding out a carrot to him. “She’s the one who had to carry you after all.”

Taking the carrot, he walked over to Bell’s head and held it out in front of her. The entire carrot disappeared from his hand, crunch crunch crunch echoing from her mouth. Giving her nose a good scratch, he could have sworn she was smiling again. “Thank Bell,” he said smiling as well.

“Good work Bell,” Percy said. “You did great. You too Caspian. We’re done for the day, it was a pleasure showing you a little of what I do.”