Heiji dug in with his paws, trying to keep her from pulling him out, but he'd been too fatigued to dig very deep in the first place, so this was pretty much a doomed attempt from the start. He was only twenty, twenty-five pounds in this form, so he could hardly rely on that as a deterrent, either.

In the end, he simply gave up (!!FOR THE MOMENT!!), panting a little as she lifted him out. There was blood in his fur, but his thick coat also made it more difficult to tell the exact nature of his injuries.

This was really undignified. When he was able to muster up the energy, he made another warbling fox noise.