[center][u]Eric and Milo: Sweet Surrender
[/u]By Green[/center]


It was a quiet day in the Thompson household as Milo, the youngest member of the German shepherd family, walked into his room, looking slightly perturbed. He was followed closely by his older brother Eric, who looked very pleased with himself indeed. As Eric closed and locked the door, Milo moved to the bed and sat down, grumbling as he tugged on his socks.
        "Can't believe you beat me. I thought Voldo's mantis crawl was unstoppable. More importantly, I thought you didn't even [i]like[/i] fighting games!"
        "Then your first mistake was in not wondering why I agreed so fast. Nobody beats my Cassandra, little brother. Nobody." 
He joined his brother on the bed and tousled his hair like he was a small child. 
        "You totally cleaned my clock in the second round though, gotta give you that. I was impressed."
Milo sat up, having freed his feet from their wool and nylon prisons, and grinned.
        "Thanks, Eric. But a deal's a deal, and you won't hear me complaining about it." 
The wager had been simple, as far as such things go. Both Thompson brothers were in the mood to get their rocks off, and as usual, both of them wanted to be the top. So they'd decided to settle it with virtual fisticuffs, best two out of three rounds in a fighting game would determine who would top and who would bottom, and ultimately Eric had prevailed. Now they sat on Milo's bed, getting ready to do The Deed, but as Milo discarded his shirt and reached to fiddle with his belt, the elder shepherd placed a hand over his, halting further stripping.
        "Wait."

Milo turned to his brother to see what he wanted - and was rather surprised, to put it mildly, when Eric placed a hand on the back of his head and pulled him in close for a kiss, so shocked that he put up no resistance whatsoever as Eric's tongue pushed into his mouth. Momentarily frozen by the unexpected action, Milo shuddered from the tips of his ears to the end of his tail and moaned into Eric's mouth as he shyly began to return the kiss, lifting his hands and placing them on Eric's shoulders. As the young Morphic canids got more and more into it, Eric gently pushed against Milo, who took the hint and swung his legs up onto the bed so that he could lie down flat, with Eric taking position over him, supporting his weight with his knees and arms, keeping one hand gently cradling the back of Milo's head. Other than that, they weren't really aware of much outside of their tiny sphere of personal space, as focused on each other as they were. Milo shivered again as Eric began to run his hand over his brother's chest, dragging his fingers through the short fur that covered his torso. Just as Milo thought his brother couldn't escalate this any further, Eric surprised him by grinding his pelvis against the younger shepherd's, Milo swallowing another moan as he realized that Eric's uncharacteristically tender ministrations had made him as hard as rock, and that his brother's cock was just as hard. His naked toes curled up towards the end of the bed as the brothers' clothed erections rubbed and ground against each other, serving perfectly to fuel both canines' arousal even further.

When they eventually broke off the kiss, a strand of shining saliva bridging their muzzles for a brief moment, Milo was blushing a deep crimson and almost immediately turned his head to look away. 
        "What's wrong, little guy?"
Milo continued to avoid his gaze.
        "Jeez, Eric, what's with the kissing... that felt like... like..."
He closed his eyes, blushing ever-so-slightly harder.
        "...Like I was a girl you were dating, and you were trying to [i]earn [/i]your way into my pants. Like you were trying to be, you know... romantic and stuff."
Eric chuckled, a soft, deep sound. 
        "Well, what's wrong with that?"
        "What's wrong with - Eric, you're my [i]brother! [/i]And we're just in this for the, for the stress relief and stuff... right?"
There was a slightly nervous tone to that last word, as if he was worried that he'd been tricked and they had secretly been a couple all along. Eric leaned down and licked his cheek, a casual display of friendship between canids.
        "Relax, Milo. Just trying to mix things up a bit. Don't think of it as 'romantic', just think of it as 'foreplay'. Doesn't have to be wham-bam-thank-you-sir [i]every[/i] time, right? I mean, it felt good, didn't it?"
He punctuated this statement by slowly grinding against his brother's pelvis again, rubbing the entire length of his erection against Milo's aching shaft, separated only by a couple of layers of fabric.
        "Y-yeah..."
        "So don't read too much into this, just focus on how good it feels and you'll be fine."
As he softly spoke these words, he leaned down, pressing his lips against Milo's neck just after he finished and beginning to kiss and lick at his brother's throat. Despite appearances, this was actually intended to [i]lessen [/i]the romantic effect; the fact that Milo was letting Eric put his mouth near his throat indicated that Milo had supreme trust in his brother, as even Morphic canines instinctively sought to protect that spot, which was extremely vulnerable on feral dogs and wolves. Some canine families kissed each other on the throat instead of the cheek as a quiet reminder of the trust they shared, and now Eric was reminding Milo that he was still the older brother he'd looked up to, and that he wasn't just a male on the prowl for a mate. 

Thus reassured, Milo let out a soft [i]ohhhh[/i] that only Eric was close enough to hear, and closed his eyes, lying back and letting his brother ravish his neck with his lips and tongue; non-romantic or not, he had to admit, when the gesture was allowed to linger like this, it felt surprisingly good. So he just lay back and enjoyed it, whimpering in anticipation when Eric reached down without ceasing the work of his muzzle, and opened his brother's belt buckle, casually opening his fly and reaching inside. Milo didn't have to be looking to know that Eric had a particular smile on his face when he began to grope and squeeze the younger dog's hard-on through his boxers, and Milo arched his back slightly and shivered. The elder Thompson chuckled softly and whispered in his brother's ear as he gave his penis one last squeeze before letting go in order to work his jeans down his legs. 
        "You like that, Milo? Hmm? You like it when big brother plays with your cock like that? Maybe you'd like some more?"
Mouth too dry to speak, Milo nodded wordlessly, and Eric smiled at him. 
        "Gooood. You just relax and big brother's gonna make you feel so good... Hehe, just try and moan [i]quietly[/i], okay? Anne's been asking me when we're going to 'get frisky' again, I'm pretty sure she's in the mood to watch, and you know she'd just try and take control again."
Milo let out a quiet nervous whine as Eric began to move down the bed, trailing kisses along his body. He was silently relieved when the other shepherd didn't linger at his nipples, he still couldn't quite shake the feeling that Eric was practicing his techniques for use on females... or that perhaps Eric was more into it than he'd been letting on all this time...

When the elder brother reached Milo's pelvis, he finally took off his own shirt and tossed it casually to the floor. Eric looked an awful lot like Milo (although most German shepherds had a tendency to have very similar fur patterns anyway), but Eric, being the older and more athletic of the two, was slightly more muscular where Milo was slender. He wasn't a bodybuilder by any stretch of the imagination, he just had better 'tone' than his brother. He wasn't much of a stereotypical jock, either, which he was demonstrating at the moment through this unexpected tenderness, nuzzling the other dog's stomach as he took hold of the waistband of Milo's boxers and gently slid them down his legs, guiding the elastic over the head of his brother's penis so it didn't get caught. As soon as Milo's genitals came into view, Eric leaned in close, and Milo tensed up, shivering at the sensation of his brother's hot breath on the underside of his penis, feeling his scrotum pulling up slightly tighter against his body. He wasn't sure if he would [i]ever [/i]get used to the feeling of someone else touching him there. Without so much as a glance upwards for permission, Eric stuck out his wide, flat tongue and began dragging along the underside of his brother's stiff prick, licking and licking but teasingly pulling his tongue away before it reached the sensitive head. Eric soon placed his hands on Milo's hips, holding him in place as he squirmed under the older shepherd's tender ministrations. He couldn't help it, the sight and feeling of that warm, wet tongue bathing his cock in glistening saliva was really turning Milo on, to the point where the very first time Eric let his tongue drag onto Milo's glans, the smaller dog gasped and bucked his hips slightly, his prick throbbing as a shining drop of precome emerged from the tip, lingering there a moment, glimmering in the light like a pearl. Milo somehow managed to blush as Eric gently lifted the pre off of his member with the tip of a finger, sticking it in his own mouth and then pausing for a moment as if considering its flavour, chuckling and winking at his brother afterwards.
        "Just about ripe, hehe."
He leaned down and kissed the head of Milo's cock, but then sat up and opened his own belt, soon shucking off his own pants. 
        "Yeah, I could just suck you off right now, but if I do it before, it feels almost like payment... I prefer it to be like a reward." 
        "S-so, you want to..."
Milo inwardly cursed himself. He still got nervous [i]every[/i] time. Eric just smiled and nodded, and raised a hand, twirling a finger in a slow circle, indicating that his little brother should turn over.

Taking a deep breath, Milo turned over on the bed, and got up onto all fours, trying to remain casual. A small shudder ran up his spine as he felt Eric's hands take hold of his buttocks, and then blushed when all his brother did was spread them wide as if inspecting him. Feeling awfully exposed, he was about to complain when Eric finally did something else, placing his hands on the front of Milo's thighs and gently tugging, walking his brother backwards towards himself. Studying the pillows at the other end of the bed, Milo instinctively tensed up just for a second as his brother's fingers, slicked up with lube, pressed against his anus, preparing him. It had actually been a few days since Milo had gotten off, having been busy with, as he referred to it online, "Life Stuff". As a result, he found himself reacting to his brother's touch somewhat more strongly than usual, realizing he was gently pushing back against Eric's fingers as if he wanted deeper penetration as the elder shepherd lubed up his inner walls nice and slick, his tail already flagging up high in the air like an open invitation to the other male. If Eric noticed, he didn't say anything. Normally (and for a moment Milo's train of thought stopped right there, distracted by the fact that there was even such a thing as 'normally' for the occasion of having sex with his brother), Eric would just shuffle up behind Milo or pull him back towards him, but this time was slightly different. He shuffled forward, alright, but instead of lining himself up, when he came in contact with Milo's body he just kept going, bending over and pressing his chest against the younger canine's back. Milo let out his breath in a quiet [i]ohhh[/i] as his brother wrapped his thick arms around his chest, feeling the warmth of Eric's body against his, sensing that his brother was just as aroused as he. He also felt oddly protected in his big brother's arms, but he tried to ignore that feeling.
        "D-doggie style, Eric?" 
Eric laughed, somehow managing to sound almost nonchalant even now. 
        "Let's face it, it's appropriate."

Eric removed a hand from his brother's chest, and Milo wasn't especially surprised when he felt something prodding at his rear as Eric carefully lined himself up with the tight pucker beneath Milo's tail. The younger sibling bit his lip as he felt his brother find his mark, pressing the head of his slicked-up erection against the entrance it sought, pressing forward [i]just enough [/i]that his younger brother could feel the pressure before stopping.
        "Are you ready?"
Swallowing, Milo tried to sound casual.
        "Yeah, let's do this!"
        "Hehe, you're eager today. I like that."
Milo realized that he was actually looking forward to it more than usual, but before he could reflect on this thought for any time at all, Eric pushed forward with a little force, and the ring of muscle was defeated, reluctantly allowing entrance to the head of Eric's prick. The elder Thompson paused a moment; Milo often felt a twinge of pain at this point, but today was one of the easier days, and he soon resumed pushing forward, achingly slowly, his erection burying itself beneath his brother's tail bit by bit. Eric let out a quiet groan as he gently came to a halt, having hilted himself in Milo's backside.
        "Ohhhhh, fuck... so tight..."
        "I - I think you mention that every time you t-top, Eric."
        "Do I? Well, it's true. I'm no expert, but I'm [i]pretty [/i]sure you're supposed to loosen up after a while. [i]You[/i] still feel as tight as the first time we tried this." 
As he spoke, Eric was letting his hands wander across Milo's chest, dragging his fingers through his brother's fur. Milo shuddered, which meant he involuntarily clenched down on Eric's shaft, which made the elder brother smile even wider.
        "Shut up, you're just trying to embarrass me."
Eric clicked his tongue dismissively.
        "No no no, Milo, if I was trying to embarrass you, I'd do [i]this[/i]."
One hand slipped down low, bypassing Milo's rigid cock and extending his hand so that it enclosed both his and his brother's scrotums, gently closing his fingers so they came together and rubbing them against each other, playing with the testicles within, something that sent another delightful shiver down Milo's spine. He then brought his muzzle to one of the smaller shepherd's ears and spoke quietly, teasingly.
        "Uh-oh, look at that Milo, the balls are touching, and you know what that means! Oooh, but you don't care what it means, do you, because it feels sooo good, doesn't it? Mmmm, yeah..."
        "Ah - [i]aah![/i]" 
Milo silently cursed himself as he felt his penis throb once beneath him, knowing without looking that he was leaking pre, less embarrassed at his reaction as at the fact that Eric was causing it so [i]easily[/i].
        "F-fuck you, Eric."
        "No, little brother. Fuck [i]you[/i]."
During the first part of that sentence, he pushed back from Milo, his erection sliding almost all the way out of his brother's ass, and he emphasized his horrible pun by slamming home on the 'you', eliciting yet another moan from Milo's lips. Eric began to thrust into his brother, and the sheets bunched up into Milo's fists. As he was taken by the larger shepherd, Milo soon found himself pushing back shamelessly against his brother's thrusts, wanting to feel more of the other canine's cock inside his depths. Suddenly, Eric moved his hands, placing them on top of Milo's own, and lacing his fingers between his brother's. As Eric continued to thrust, he began to sort of pull on Milo's hands, slowly spreading his arms apart on the bed, ending with both of their arms spread far apart, Milo's chest against the sheets, his head turned to the side with his cheek resting down. For a few moments, Milo lay like that, face down, butt up, but with Eric lying directly on top of him, not to mention thrusting into his body, it wasn't long before his rear end started sinking towards the bed too. He wasn't [i]quite[/i] lying down when he stopped, his butt still sticking up a bit, but it was close; the sensitive underside of the head of his penis rubbed against the sheets in time with each of Eric's thrusts into his backside. Milo tried not to dwell on how good he felt, being fucked by his brother, with the larger canid's warm body pressed against most of his own. 
        "I - I thought we were gonna do it doggie-style, Eric..."
        "Sometimes it's fun to improvise, little brother. Don't you think?"

Without waiting for an answer, Eric gently bit down on the scruff of skin at the base of Milo's neck, sending a tingle of pleasure down the younger shepherd's spine. 
        "[i]Fuuuuck...[/i]"
        "That's it, Milo, just relax and enjoy it."
Normally, Milo would get embarrassed and protest that kind of comment, especially as he was uneasy over exactly [i]how much [/i]he enjoyed this activity. But this time, so comfortably sandwiched between the soft bed and his brother's hot body, he wondered what harm it could do, maybe just this once, to do exactly that, to close his eyes and revel in the pleasure he was receiving with each thrust, as Eric's penis rubbed against his increasingly slick inner walls, as the smell of his brother's musk, powerful and masculine, filled his nostrils, and as Eric let out quiet grunts in time with the movement of his hips. Oh yes, Milo was enjoying it alright, he was enjoying it [i]a lot[/i]. Beneath him, his own prick was achingly hard, he could feel himself throbbing, drooling pre onto the bed beneath him, leaving a trail as the head of his cock slid back and forth against the sheets. He wished he had a hand free so he could attend to himself, but there was something he liked about the sensation of Eric's fingers laced through his own, their arms pressed together. It went on like this for a while, as the brothers coupled in Milo's bed, only wordless grunts or gasps breaking the silence; Milo wasn't sure how long they'd been fucking when it happened, a seemingly innocent, common mistake. Eric pulled back too far after a thrust, and his manhood slid out of Milo's backside completely, and he'd thrust twice more, the underside of his erection slapping against Milo's sphincter amusingly, before he even realized it had happened. Eric leaned back up to a kneeling position and let go of his brother's right hand for a moment, reaching down to re-align himself, moving Milo's hips a little to get a better angle for penetration. Without fanfare or ado, he hilted himself in Milo again in one easy stroke, his scrotum slapping gently against his brother's pelvis as he did so. Then he bent back down and assumed the position he'd been in before, before resuming his thrusting. 
        "Ahh, that's better."

Milo opened his mouth to say something, but the words died on his tongue, replaced by a surprised moan as white hot pleasure radiated out from his backside. Then it happened again. And again. Milo recognized this, and whimpered nervously. On two other occasions, he'd felt this inexplicable sensation, when suddenly his already questionable enjoyment of bottoming skyrocketed. The first time it had happened, he'd been surprised into orgasm from the mere sensation of being fucked, without so much as laying a finger on his penis, which he hadn't then known was even possible. The second time, he managed to fight the embarrassing climax back long enough to outlast Eric's own orgasm, and had then taken a long, cold shower so as not to blow his load the instant he put his underwear back on or felt a breeze. As his brother slammed home again and again, Milo could feel his cock twitching and throbbing with the pulses of pleasure, feel himself drooling pre onto the sheets beneath him. 
        "Ohhhh, fuuuuuck..."
His toes curled up behind him as he whimpered from the pleasure. It felt so damn good, it was hard for him to resist. In fact, as Eric continued his energetic rutting, Milo was reminded of the fact that the first time it had happened had been one of the hardest, most powerful orgasms of his entire life. Grunting in time with his brother's thrusts, Milo was acutely aware of every sensation; Eric's rigid erection pushing boldly past his tight entrance and rubbing against his inner walls, creating those delicious pulses of joy; the feeling of Eric's balls slapping against his buttocks every time he hilted himself in the younger shepherd; the warmth of his older brother's body pressed against his, the way Eric arched over him, protectively, possessively; the sharp yet rewarding sting of the elder canine's teeth playing at the back of his neck. On top of all the physical aspects of the act, Milo was only too aware of the increasingly powerful scent of his brother's musk teasing his nostrils, the sound of Eric's breath as he panted above him. All these things were getting to be a bit overwhelming to the poor pup, and he quietly whined, closing his eyes. Once again, he considered just giving in and enjoying this, even if it meant making a mess of himself... No! He couldn't, he just couldn't... It was so hard to resist... it felt so good... but he had to resist, had to fight it... he couldn't let Eric find out...  but Eric was doing this to make him feel good, right? He [i]wanted [/i]Milo to feel good. Wouldn't it just make him happy that he was doing such a good job of it? God, he wanted to come [i]so bad[/i]... Maybe it would be [i]worth [/i]a little embarrassment if he got to have a terrific orgasm again... Milo shuddered as he had one last lucid thought.
        [i]That's it! I can't take it anymore!
[/i]
The younger Thompson groaned as his whole body relaxed, surrendering to the pleasure, surrendering to his brother. He started pushing back as best he could against his brother's thrusts, wanting to help Eric get as deep as possible, make it feel as good as it possibly could. He began whimpering in time with each of these thrusts, which encouraged him to go about it even more energetically, something that did not escape Eric's notice.
        "M-Milo?"
The elder canine wasn't sure what to make of this, his brother was generally more passive when they did this, now he was bucking back against him with such enthusiasm, it kind of distracted Eric at first. But he couldn't deny that such behaviour was surprisingly arousing for him, and before long, he growled lustily and increased the strength behind his own thrusts. Below him, Milo was no longer thinking coherently, all that mattered was getting as much pleasure as he could, shivering as he heard Eric's ragged breathing above him, feel his brother's grip on his hands grow stronger. 
        "D-damn, little brother, you're [i]full [/i]of - [i]uh![/i] - surprises today... I'm so close... fuck, gonna be a good one..."
Moaning in anticipatory bliss, gasping out the word [i]yes! [/i]at his brother's revelation, Milo tingled all over, awaiting the tensing of Eric's muscles, the hitch in his breath that he knew was coming... There! Eric bit down hard on Milo's shoulder, probably harder than he meant to, but all his brother felt was joy as the elder shepherd groaned out loud, his breath coming in grunts and hisses in perfect time with the throbbing of his cock, buried as deep in his brother's backside as it could go. Milo gasped at the feeling of the warmth inside him, the sensation of his brother flooding his bowels with hot, wet canine seed. He had already been teetering on the edge, but that feeling pushed him over, and crying out in ecstasy, he plummeted helplessly into his own orgasm, his penis spasming over and over again in empty air, shooting spurt after spurt of his own thick, gooey come into the sheets beneath him at point blank range. Just as the first time, it felt so powerful that it almost [i]hurt [/i]as he came and came and came, unloading all that pent-up tension (and saved-up semen, for that matter) in one colossal release, like he was drowning in bliss, his brother still ejaculating within him, their hearts beating out the same rhythm of climax within their chests. 

An eternity later, both of them collapsed with a groan, Eric still buried within his brother's rear entrance, Milo still seeing stars, his deflating dick tingling from the strength of his release. Pushing off of his brother so as not to squish him, Eric pulled the smaller canid into his arms and hugged him tight. 
        "Holy... holy [i]fuck[/i], Milo, that was... that was [i]incredible[/i]. I didn't know you had it in you, heh heh. Sorry about your shoulder, might be sore for a day or so."
As Eric gently licked at the back of Milo's neck, a canid sign of close affection, the younger sibling's eyes slowly opened and focused on the sheets he was lying on. As they came to rest upon the impressive puddle of sperm he'd left there, a bridge of seed still linking the tip of his penis with the rest, his eyes widened, pupils dilating. 
        [i]Oh - oh my God...
[/i]It had felt like he'd been [i]someone else [/i]there, while he was - while he was acting like a bitch in heat. He shivered and suppressed a whine as one of his brother's hands trailed down to his groin, taking hold of his flaccid, drooling penis. 
        "Hmmm? Not hard?"
Eric leaned up to take a look, and immediately saw the come on the bed. Still not over the shock of how he'd been behaving, Milo just closed his eyes and waited for the inevitable. Last time, he'd played it off like he'd masturbated, but this time he could see no way out. Maybe this would be good for him, show him he couldn't just give in to every urge... 
        "Oh! Heh, I guess you couldn't wait to - wait, I was [i]holding [/i]your hands, you couldn't have been..."
As the painful silence dragged on, Milo unwillingly replayed the coupling in his mind. All that had mattered to him was feeling good, he'd been acting like a wanton slut, with the way he'd been reacting to his brother's touch. Like he was Eric's - 
        "Milo, was your dick rubbing against the bed?"
He frowned slightly. 
        [i]What? What the hell does that have to do with anything?[/i]
        "Y-yeah..."
Eric chuckled, still seeming casual, rubbing some of his brother's seed between his fingertips.
        "I thought it might have been... and you managed to get off from just that, eh? Damn, you must have needed it more than I thought! Sorry about that, I know you would have preferred a beej after this."
He laughed once, softly, nudging his brother under the ribs.
        "Or hey, maybe it was because I'm just so damn good at topping, huh?"
Despite how close to home that was, Milo forced himself to make a sound that approximated a snicker. 
        "Heh heh... yeah, right..."
        "Hey, next time, if you feel something like that happening, just speak up, dude, it's not like I'd get mad or anything. You want me to help you clean that up?"
        "N-no, I got it." 
Eric hugged him tight again.
        "Well, alright. I'ma go grab a shower then, thanks a ton for that, Milo. Don't go thinking I'm gonna forget that I still owe you one, though. Catch you after dinner maybe."

Milo barely looked up as Eric pulled his pants on and sauntered out of the room, seeming on top of the world. He hadn't been caught, miraculously, but Milo didn't feel like a winner. He had a sense of guilt about him, he almost [i]wished[/i] Eric had realized what had really happened, so that he could pay some kind of price for surrendering to those urges. He curled up on the bed, avoiding his seed, shivering despite himself at the sensation of his brother's come slowly oozing out of him. He wasn't crying, but he was very, very conflicted. He had abandoned all sense of dignity and given in completely to the animal urge to be fucked, hard, and he'd come even harder from it. And even before that, he'd been absolute putty in Eric's hands, the older shepherd had been able to turn him into a groaning, needy mess, reacting to his every touch, every movement of his warm, muscular body sending shivers down his spine. 

It hadn't been like Eric had pressured him into it. He didn't even seem [i]aware [/i]of how strongly Milo had been reacting to their 'foreplay'. No, it was like when he was with Eric like that, all rational thought had just gone out the window... like it was worse than he feared, like somehow, he had started to enjoy these little dalliances with his brother so much that he'd become Eric's submissive little [i]bitch[/i]. As if he had become the Omega to Eric's Alpha, craving his attention, his touch, his body. And the fact that he had given in to the pleasure and let himself come like that from bottoming... 

Milo pressed his hands against his face and let out a whine. He felt embarrassed, guilty, a little scared at what had happened... but it had felt so good that there was a part of him that still wanted more. What was going on? Was he developing romantic feelings towards his own brother? He didn't think so, but what the hell did he know about what that felt like? Was it truly just that Eric was [i]that good [/i]at sex? He suspected if that were the case, the older canine wouldn't have lost his last real girlfriend. Or maybe he was just so submissive, such a 'bottom', that he would react that way to [i]anyone [/i]who acted dominant towards him. Come to think of it, even his best-friend-with-benefits, Angela Taylor, had always taken charge on the few occasions they'd crossed that line. Maybe he was [i]everyone's [/i]bitch! 

With all the stressful thoughts floating around his head, all the unpleasant implications that annoyingly lingered at the forefront of his mind, Milo was overwhelmed, and it was with a great deal of relief a few minutes later when the tired shepherd dozed off right there in his bed, his mind surrendering to the sweet oblivion of dreamless sleep. 
