A/N: You don't have to be familiar with The Tenth Class in order to follow this story, aside from acknowledging the existence of the Auxiliary in this universe and missing the occasional reference / inside joke referring to the original. Link to the original can be found on my profile. This fic goes out to Beanie, SirKai, and Scoutsauce, who've somehow managed to actively put up with me and at the same time provide insight and encouragement with the development of this story. There's no way I could be doing this without you guys.

And we're off.

-Introduction-

The canine wagged its curled, fluffy tail, dropping the bright green alien blob back into Pyro's gloved hand with a squeak.

Chuckling, Pyro threw the makeshift toy back down the barn-like hallway of the base, watching the dog dive into a pile of hay to dig after it.

"Dhrd yrru fshx thr Mrdrrgrn?" he asked.

"Yes, yes, yes, all ze proper adjustments have been made," Medic replied from behind, waving his hand dismissively. "Honestly, zis better be worth zat ridiculous veterinary seminar. I am a doctor, not a dog valker."

Holding the little slug between his teeth, Guard Dog trotted happily back to the rest of its team. Engineer motioned for him; Guard Dog nuzzled happy into the offered hand.

"C'mon, y'all are overreactin'." Engineer held up the dog's chin, picking stray bits of straw from its coat while turning its head in appraisal. "He just needs a few adjustments, is all. Maybe a sentry mount, a trackin' attachment to his collar...heck, I even know a hat or two that could‒"

"With all due respect, Engineer, I believe you 'ave finally went off the deep end." Spy blew his nose into his monogrammed handkerchief, eyes red and watering. His allergies hadn't let up for a moment since they'd found their new 'teammate' (and the instructional documents paper-clipped to its kennel door) sitting on their doorstep. "Yes, it is all overreacting until this...flea-bitten scoundrel blows my cover on the battlefield. RED 'as recruited an animal to assist us, isn't it obvious this team is going to the do‒"

Engineer flicked a tuft of fur in Spy's face, sending the man into a rather violent sneeze.

Sniper had seated himself atop a barrel in the far corner to watch the show; he rubbed a small block of beeswax along the string of his Huntsman while keeping the bow steady and upright between his knees. "Wot's wrong, Sheila, can't handle a little sniffle?"

"Of course you would 'ave no problem with an animal on our team," Spy shot back, muttering into silk cloth. "The only surprise 'ere is that you 'aven't yet killed 'im and mounted his head to the wall."

"Oi, taxidermy's a perfectly normal hobby. And so long as it does its job, I'm all for it. That bein' said, how in God's name are we expectin' the mongrel to make it up my ladder?"

Engineer snapped his fingers. "I can fix that."

"Mon dieu‒will you listen your yourselves? We are discussing an animal as our teammate, 'ere‒the mere implication that one is on the same level as I‒"

"Take a breath, spook, everyone knows it takes more than a dog to out-bitch you."

Guard Dog dashed past the bickering team to approach Heavy and Scout, who were idling on the other side of the room. Almost out of instinct, Scout knelt down to Guard Dog's level, taking the squishy alien from its mouth with one hand and patting its head with the other.

"Hey, boy," he grinned, scratching the dog behind its ears. "Yo fatcakes, you figure the BLUs got 'emselves a mutt, too?"

Heavy shrugged. "No way to know until fight."

Scout didn't notice Heavy crouching down next to him until the giant nudged him and spoke again, in a much quieter voice than before.

"Though dog is good idea, was better when leetle boolet girl came to stay, da?"

"Hey, I ain't sayin' anythin' about her, am I?" Scout turned to ask him, refusing to break eye contact with Heavy even as Guard Dog began licking the side of Scout's face. "I had a dog as a kid, I freakin' love dogs. Dogs kick ass. As a matter of fact, I think I'm gonna start takin' this one runnin' with me in the mornin'. Y'know why? 'Cuz cats can't pull that shit off, that's why."

"Eez good plan! Scout teaches dog to run fast, dog becomes better scout than Scout, we put leetle Scout on guard duty."

With another enthusiastic wag of his tail, Guard pressed his wet nose up against the underside of Scout's chin.

"Yeah, yeah..." Scout muttered, smirking as he stroked Guard's fur. "We'll see about that."

‒

The BLU Medic's ears twitched at the sudden echo of footfall behind him, the sound of steps heavy and crisp against the white porcelain tile of his ward.

Medic pinched the bulb of the pipette between his fingers until three droplets squeezed out from the end of it, falling into the test tube waiting below and tinting the transparent fluid violet.

The footsteps grew louder as the figure approached the workbench; the visitor gently feathered through a few scraps of lined paper strewn about the tabletop, each sheet filled to the edges with various diagrams and calculations.

"You forgot to carry the one there, doc."

Suppressing a sigh, Medic held his vial up to the light. Tiny bubbles of carbonation floated to the top of the purple concoction, multiplying tenfold as he swirled the liquid around within the glass.

"Keep your hardhat avay from mein papers, danke." The request was offhand, but firm. "I am perfectly capable of doing ze maths myself."

"In time for the deadline?"

"Zere will be progress in time for ze deadline," Medic said sharply, slipping the vial into a rack alongside a row of its twins.

Engineer chuckled. He held a stray wooden pencil‒sharpened down to a nub‒in place with an index finger, before rolling it around idly on the desktop. "You could be savin' yourself a whole lot of time and trouble if you let me help you out."

"The probability of zis happening is approximately ze same as me strolling into your workshop and pointing out all ze medical inaccuracies in your blueprints."

"But there ain't any inaccuracies in my blueprints."

"My point exactly," Medic replied. He slid what was left of the miniature pencil from beneath Engineer's finger, and began scratching away at his notes once more. "Now, vhy don't you stop pretending you care about mein work and tell me ze real reason you are hovering?"

Feigning an offended expression, Engineer clutched at his chest. "You're hurtin' me here somethin' awful, doc, thinkin' I don't care about you."

"Spare me."

Medic placed a slide containing a sample of his formula beneath the lens of his microscope. With a final smirk, Engineer leaned backwards to the desk, pressing his hands against the corner to brace himself. Engineer wasn't reluctant to interrupt the quiet, but the voice that did carried a much different tone.

"The last one they sent down here didn't agree with them so well. You remember."

Medic's expression softened. He swivelled his chair, turning to look Engineer in the eye. "Zen we vill have to try harder to keep zis one under control, von't we?"

Another stretch of silence between them. Medic turned back to his desk.

Engineer drummed his fingers on the table and scoffed beneath his breath. "Can you imagine what it's going to be like, havin' another dang Auxiliary 'round here?"

Medic shook his head, alternating glances between the eyepiece of his microscope and the notepad beneath his opposite hand. "We vould have been better off vith ze dog."