I don't know what to say. If you liked 'The Royal Pet' I can guess you're going to like this one. It's not a continuation or anything, but rather the original idea I had before TRP. Some art of a Konrart version of a dog I found on DeviantART by perfectlyduck inspired this. At least I think it might have been him. My Conrad looks a little different than that dog though. Now, as they say, on with the show!

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'This is the worst.'Yurri thought. First his alarm clock had run out of batteries sometime during the night so he woke up late. Second, when he was rushing to get ready for school he had missed breakfast. Third, his bike had gotten a flat tire from passing a construction site. And finally fourth, it looked like it was about to rain and he didn't have an umbrella with him. Trying to stay positive he thought one thing. 'At least it can't get any worse than this.'

He was wrong. 'I should know better than to think that, it can always get worse' he lamented. The three bigger boys he had saved Murata from the first time they met had apparently decided to pick on him instead. He had learned a lot from his time in Shin Makoku and his battle with Soushu. He tried not to show too much fear. The boys were boxing him into a small dark alley on the side of the road. He looked behind himself and saw that the alley had a dead end. What he wouldn't give to be able to step into a puddle and to the other world right now. Since his battle with Soushu, he found he wasn't able to travel anymore to Shin Makoku. The thought depressed him, but right now he had bigger worries to deal with.

Just as he was pressed into the brick wall behind him with the bigger boys blocking his only exit, he heard a deep growling. Yuuri froze, whatever was making that noise did not sound like a happy camper. The bullies were thinking along similar lines. Whatever was making the noise sounded big, and it sounded mad. One of the bullies paled and stared to Yuuri's right side. There were some cardboard boxes and a trash can so Yuuri couldn't see what the other boy saw, but the two other bullies could. They started to back up slowly without ever taking their eyes of the spot.

With an even louder growl and a shuffling of paper could be heard the boys bolted, leaving Yuuri to fend for himself. He sat as still as he could and clenched his eyes shut when a shadow moved along the wall. The growling had stopped, but not the sound of the animal moving around. Even with his eyes closed he could still hear the ever approaching noise of the animal. He could hear the beasts claws scrape along the pavement. There was a strengthening smell of earth and metal for every passing moment. The next thing he was aware of was a short and warm measured breath gently crossing over his face. Then, his check was wet. The boys eyes flew open and he found himself staring straight into a pair of dark chocolate eyes set in a mahogany colored fur face.

The large dog had just put his cold wet nose against his cheek. Yuuri sat stunned, the dog was huge! He didn't know much about dog breeds, but he did know that this was one of the bigger ones. For all the sound it had made earlier, it didn't look the least bit mean. Sure it was kind of dirty with mud and some blood caked to its fur, but not threatening. It even looked rather kind to him. He cautiously raised his left hand to pet the dog. It didn't seem to mind when he started to stroke its fur, in fact, its tail started to slowly wag back and forth. Yuuri couldn't keep the smile off his face. This dog had just saved him from the bullies and was happily letting him pet it. He had always wanted a dog, but his mother didn't approve. Something about not wanting to deal with a boy and his dog. If he had wanted a kitten she would have been all for it he was sure.

He slowly sat up and walked out of the alley. He just couldn't help but notice that the dog was following him. It didn't have a collar or anything, so he had assumed it was a stray. But if it was trailing at his heels like this, maybe it was a lost pet and he looked like its owner? He didn't have much time to think about it, he could hear the schools bell ringing right now. He was close enough now that if he ran he could still make it to class in time. He decided that if the dog was still here after he was done with school he would try and take it home with him.

When school had finally ended for the day, Yuuri was one of the first ones out of class. He wanted to see if the dog was still where he left it. He knew it was very unlikely, but he still hoped. He found he was having a hard time getting out of the building; a lot of students were crowded around the doors for some reason. When he finally managed to get out the doors, he stopped and stared at what all the others students were looking at. There was the dog, just sitting there looking for all the world like it had been waiting for him. When it spotted Yuuri it started to wag its tail and trotted over to him. Most of the students who were initially scared of its size quickly found it was rather friendly. When the teachers came to break up the growing crowed, Yuuri decided it was time to leave. The dog followed him all the way home.