I had no idea owning a dog was so much work… well, I'd read that you need to train them properly at a young age, pay the vet bill when they get sick, give them the appropriate exercise… but I definitely didn't expect owning one to be THAT hard. Unfortunately, life isn't like that. Not just fun and games.

You might be wondering, Demyx, how did you find a dog, anyways? And how did Mansex let you keep one?

Well, it's a long story. And what I'm hoping is that you'll have the patience to listen to the whole thing. Better get comfy and make yourself some popcorn.

Anyways, so one day, or should I say night, I decided I wanted to take a walk around the city in The World That Never Was. No actual reason, other than I was bored and wanted to get some fresh air. An innocent idea that led me into this one big mess.

†¤±¤†

I pulled my hood up after I emerged from the portal, taking a few steps out onto the damp asphalt. Rain sprinkled lightly from the dark sky. Shadowy rain clouds veiled the heart-shaped moon. Thunder rumbled somewhere in the distance. I mechanically gripped the collar of my cloak and kept on walking, keeping my eyes glued to my feet all the while.

I inhaled the musty scent of rain in the air. I always think rain is so pretty. But that's a given, seeing as my element is water. But I digress.

My boots made audible clicking noises on the pavement as I shuffled along in the now thickening rainfall. I watched as one of the many neon lights flickered and died out. As I turned a corner on one of the many intersecting streets, a wet cardboard box caught my eye. I faltered, observing its condition, wondering what could be inside of it. My second question was answered as the box whimpered. Something alive.

I walked over to the box, crouched down, and picked it up. It wasn't that heavy, but there was unquestionably something in there. I pried open the tabs on top and peeked inside. What I saw took me by surprise.

There was a little puppy inside, sprawled out on its side and sleeping soundly. I could tell it was a puppy, and not a dog, because of its adolescent chubbiness. It was a pale shade of ginger, with cinnamon patches on its left eye, ear, back, and tail tip. One ear was flipped down to form a V-shape and was lain flat against the side of its face, while the other was erected and rather large in comparison to its head. Its fur was medium-length, and drenched with the rain that seeped through the cardboard.

I would have mistaken it for being dead if its midriff hadn't been rising and falling as it breathed slowly. It looked so delicate and fragile that I was almost scared to stroke its plush fur, afraid that I would injure the tiny pup.

A warmth flooded over my body at the sight of the little animal curled up in the corner of the box. I grinned under the protective hood of my black cloak. I was going to take this dog. There were no ifs, ands, or buts about it.

But then I remembered the rule. The grin disappeared as I recalled there being a rule against pets. Xemnas had declared it himself. But, if we had pets, then why does he have Saïx? Didn't he count as pet? Well, that wasn't very fair if rules didn't apply to the Superior, I thought, furrowing my brow in irritation. It went away, however, as I thought, I'll just keep my mouth shut about the dog, then. That way, Mansex would never know, and I'll get off scot-free!

I smiled and stood up straight, still cradling the box in box arms. I closed the tabs of the box, so as not to let any more rain in and make the poor puppy wetter than it already was. I furtively glanced around the empty, wet streets to make sure that there was nobody in plain sight watching me. I concluded that the coast was all clear, so I summoned a portal and walked inside, tucking the box safely underneath my arm.

†¤±¤†

I reappeared back in my room shortly afterwards. I looked under my arm to make sure the box containing the puppy was still intact and still clutched between my arm and my side. Sure enough, it was. I breathed a sigh of relief and set the box down on my bed carefully, making sure not to wake the young dog as I did.

My boots now made squelchy squeaking noises from the wetness as I made my way away from the bed to make yet another portal out of my room. Taking one final glance at the box, I left the room into the kitchen to grab a quick snack, hopefully finding someone I needed there as well.

Stepping out of the portal, I frowned as I discovered that I was solitary inside the kitchen. I was still hungry, though, so I rifled through the cupboards in search of something to satisfy my rumbling stomach. Nothing really sounded that good, but I settled on some of those Multigrain bars that Marluxia buys… to be honest, they're not that bad for health food.

I heard someone step into the room. When I turned around, what do you know, I found the person I was looking for.

"Axel!" I exclaimed, pacing over to him the moment he stepped out of his portal. He looked surprised to see me there, if not a little bewildered. "I was wondering where you were. Look, can you please do me a favor?"

He hesitated to raise an eyebrow before saying slowly, "Why?"

"Because I need your help. Come on, it's important… to me, at least."

"…Fine, but you need to pay me back later."

"Deal," I said, taking his arm and pulling him with me into the portal.

I immediately hurried over to the box that still lay untouched on my bed the moment we entered. I lifted the tabs briefly to check on the puppy. He was still asleep. I closed the tabs when Axel approached my bed.

"So what exactly is this favor you need from me?"

I turned my head to look him in the eyes momentarily before turning back to the box to lift it up. "Okay, you have to promise to keep this totally between the two of us."

"…Demyx, what's the box for…?"

I placed the box into Axel's arms and lifted the tabs for him. "Lo and behold."

Axel stared incredulously at the scraggly bundle of fur that was a dog in the corner of the box, as if it were something disgusting. There was a moment of silence before he said, "Is that a dog?"

"You bet it is. I found him on that walk I took a little while ago. Someone decided they wanted to stick him inside a box, and left him out there on the corner of the street. He looked so helpless… I couldn't just leave him there."

"So you brought him back with you?"

I nodded.

"…You do realize that when Mansex finds out, he's going to—"

"He won't."

Axel looked at me with a raised eyebrow. "What?"

"He's not going to find out. As long as we keep quiet about this, Mansex will never know."

Axel rolled his eyes. "Oh yeah, Mansex is never going to hear a little rambunctious dog yipping and running around Demyx's room all the time. Not at all." His voice dripped with sarcasm.

"We can at least try, okay?" I stared at Axel, trying to make my eyes as pleading as possible. When he didn't reply, I added, "You promise you'll keep your mouth shut about this?"

Axel smiled and held up three fingers. "Demyx, you have my word for it."

"Oh, thank you so much," I breathed, craning my head low.

Axel carefully picked up the pup in a gentle yet firm grip and rested it against his chest. "He feels pretty cold," he murmured, stroking its side softly. I furrowed my brow worriedly. Hopefully it wasn't too cold. Axel dug his fingers through the pup's downy soft fur and muttered, "He doesn't look good at all… at least he's breathing… barely," he added.

I decided to feel for myself how cold he was. I flinched as I touched the pup's drenched fur. "Cold" was an understatement. The poor dog was freezing. I looked into Axel's emerald green eyes. Axel knew what I wanted him to do, and he obliged.

He placed his palm onto the little pup's side and outstretched his fingers. I could almost feel his strain as he refrained from setting the pup into flames accidentally, only trying to warm it up. The pup snuffled and gave a small yip before lying still again. I smiled.

"Thanks, Ax," I told him quietly, taking the small puppy into my hands. It was barely awake, but it was snuffling my fingers and licking the cloth of my glove, interested in the new scents and tastes. I grabbed a blanket from the bed and folded it up on the floor, it was a makeshift doggie-bed for the little pup. I placed it down gently on the blanket, and the pup sank into it, fast asleep.

I turned to Axel, "Thank you so much, Axel. You're a life-saver… literally."

"It was no problem, really," Axel told me, summoning a portal. He disappeared into it, leaving me and the little dog alone.

I yawned and stretched tiredly. I took off my Organization uniform and slipped into a simple tank top and sweatpants before crawling into bed. Taking one last glace at the pup, I quickly fell asleep.

I had this idea one day after playing with my dog for a little while one night. Amazing what ideas our canine companinons can trigger, huh? :)

I know it doesn't sound very humorous yet, but it'll get funny in later chapters. It is a puppy, after all, and if I'm any expert on dogs (which I am... not professsionally, sadly.), puppies can be really hyper and are prone to cause trouble. Examples are: lifting their leg on everything in sight, chewing on everything inside, barking nonstop so that they annoy the living tar out of you, knock over things while in play, ect.... so, yes. Demyx is in for one heck of a challenge. ._.'

Like it so far? Reveiws are greatly appreciated, and are rewarded with imaginary waffles. Mmm... waffles. |3

~UltraVioletSpectrum (aka Mo)