Thanks PixiePatronus13675 for telling me about British people not having pools. I don't know why, but I immediately imagined Marge with a backyard pool. I apologize if I offend any of my British readers. I don't know anything about British culture, so my bad.


Chapter 1: A Strange Encounter

"Wake up," whispered a voice in Ripper's ear. "Wake up."

Ripper groaned and turned over in his bed. "Go away, Bandit."

"Come on, Ripper," whined Bandit, "you promised you'll teach me how to fight." He tugged Ripper's ear. "Please?"

Grunting, Ripper opened his eyes and slowly got up. Bandit smiled at him. "Yay, you're awake!"

Ripper sighed. He did promised Bandit, the brown puppy with a white spot on his left eye, how to fight if he was in danger. He yawned and got out of his bed. He looked at Marge's bed, and wasn't surprised to find the bed empty. Every morning at 7:00, she makes breakfast for herself and the bulldogs.

"Alright," said Ripper, walking out the bedroom door, "follow me."

Ripper and Bandit walked passed Marge, who was in the kitchen cooking, and left out the doggy door. It was a beautiful day; the sun was shining, smiling down at them. The birds were chirping in the trees. Humans walked by with the occasional dog or two. Ripper and Bandit walked out of the yard and headed to the woods. The woods wasn't far from their home. As the bulldogs entered the woods, the smell of plants and animals entered their noses. It was the smell of nature. Ripper and Bandit walked through the woods until they reached the lake.

Bandit jumped up and down excitedly. "This is going to be so cool!"

"Remember, Bandit, fighting isn't always cool," Ripper said solemnly. "Sometimes it ends in death."

Bandit stopped jumping. He looked at Ripper with wide brown eyes. "Do we kill in a fight?"

"If you have to. Personally, I'll avoid killing, but if I'm fighting for my life in a battle, then I'll have no choice but to kill my opponent."

Ripper licked the puppy's head. "But I doubt you'll be in that situation."

Bandit grinned. "Because I have you to protect me."

"I won't always be there to protect you, Bandit. That's why I'm teaching you how to fight. Jaws won't try to bully you again after this."

Bandit shuddered. Ripper looked at him reassuringly. "Alright, let's begin our lesson."

Ripper sat on his haunches. "You don't just use your muscles and teeth to fight. You use your brain to analysis your opponent. Outwit him. You use your speed and agility to take him down. Take your opponent by surprise. Attack me."

Bandit growled and ran at Ripper. He headbutted Ripper's chest, knocking him flat on his back. Bandit smiled at him. "I got you, Ripper!"

"Never underestimate your opponent, pup."

Ripper raised his paw and smacked Bandit off him, and he landed on the soft grass. Ripper padded to him, suddenly concerned. I didn't hit him too hard, did I?

He bent down to check on the puppy. Suddenly, Bandit jumped at Ripper and bit his muzzle. Ripper yelped in surprise. Bandit let go and grinned slyly at the older dog.

"I got you, didn't I?"

"You sure did," Ripper said, rubbing his muzzle with a paw. "Good job."

Bandit yipped. "You said take your opponent by surprise, and I did!"

"This isn't over yet," said Ripper.

They continued training until Ripper decided to call it a day. Bandit protested, but Ripper said Marge was probably waiting for them for breakfast. They raced back to the house. Ripper and Bandit came inside to find the other bulldogs eating their breakfast. They joined their brothers and sisters in the feast. After patting Ripper on the head, Marge grabbed her plate of eggs and bacon and sat on her chair in the living room. She turned on the television with the remote. The news was on.

"A thirty-five-year-old man named John Carlson was found dead in his home last night," said the news reporter gravely. "According to Jack Adam, John's friend, was visiting his home at 10:30 PM. When John didn't answer his door, Jack opened the door, surprised to find it unlocked. That's when Jack saw the mutilated body of his friend."

Marge snorted. "That man was probably a drug dealer who got killed by his boss. The world is better off without him."

Ripper, who heard the news, glared at his owner with disdain. One of the things he hated about Marge is her cruelty. He remembered the last time he and Marge visited Marge's relative, the Dursley family. Marge was bad mouthing Harry's, the Dursleys' orphaned relative, parents. Ripper knew she was going too far in her insults, but then he felt the force in the air and Marge started to blow up like a balloon.

Things got even more chaotic as a group of strange people somehow gotten his mistress deflated with sticks and made her forget what had happened to her. Ripper never told the event to any of the bulldogs. If he did, they wouldn't believe him.


The rest of the day went by uneventfully. Soon the moon took the sun's place on watching over the earth. Ripper was sitting on the grass in the yard, thinking. The murders and disappearances were becoming more frequent. Even Marge, for all her bravado, was becoming unnerved by the bloody events that had happened these past few months.

Why, Ripper wondered, why is this happening?

His thoughts were interrupted by a rustling noise coming from the bush. Ripper's hackles raised and he growled, "Show yourself, intruder!"

The rustling noise stopped. A cat walked out of the bush. He was the strangest feline Ripper had ever seen. He was small with black-striped ginger fur, large ears, and a long tail that ended in a tuft of ginger fur like a lion's tail. His dark green eyes (his right eye having two scars) held an unusual intelligence.

"Who are you?" Ripper demanded. He snarled at the cat, but the feline simply smiled.

"Hello," said the cat. "Pleasure to meet you. My name is Felix."

"I'm Ripper," said Ripper cautiously. He wasn't going to let his guard down just yet. "Why are you on my territory?"

"I come for you, Ripper."

The bulldog blinked. "For me?"

"Yes, for you. You see, both of our worlds are in grave danger."

"What do you mean 'both of our worlds'?"

Felix chuckled. "The Muggle world and the Wizarding world. Wizards, witches, and magical creatures, like myself, coexist with Muggles, non-magical folk."

Ripper shook his head in disbelief. "Wait a moment. Do you mean to tell me magic exist?"

When Felix nodded his head, Ripper growled. "Prove it, then!"

Felix smiled. He held his paw up and a small blue flame appeared on his paw pads. Just as quickly as it appeared, the flame was gone. Ripper stared at Felix's paw in shock.

"I am a magical cat known as a kneazle," said Felix causally. "I am a familiar to a witch. A familiar is a companion and partner to a witch and wizard. Our magical cores are bonded."

"Thanks for the information, but why do you need me?" Ripper asked still in shock of what he'd witnessed.

The kneazle's face turned grim. "There is a war in my world, Ripper. A war that affects both of our worlds. My side, the Light side, is fighting against Lord Voldemort, a hellish wizard of immense power."

Ripper thought about the events on new lately; the deaths and disappearances. His eyes widened as he put the pieces together. "So that's why there are murders and disappearances everywhere. Because of that wizard!"

"Yes," Felix nodded, "and I need your help."

"My help? But I don't even have magic! How am I supposed to help fight against a powerful wizard?"

"You'll be surprised at what you can do."

Ripper thought for a moment. He couldn't just leave his home. He had a family, after all. "Can you give me some time to think about this?"

"Yes," Felix replied. "You have until tomorrow night to make your decision. Goodbye, Ripper."

And with that, Felix jumped on the fence and jumped back down. Ripper stared at the spot where the cat once stood. What am I getting myself into?