The next week flew by and in almost no time at all, Axel and Roxas were walking Rascal to the pet store for training. Roxas's hand was warm and comfortable in Axel's, Rascal's leash in Axel's other hand.

Rascal trotted ahead of the two, his tongue hanging out of his mouth happily. Axel had decided that the puppy didn't have any state other than happy.

The pet store was not the one they had gotten Rascal at and was much larger. Rascal noticed the other dogs there for the class and ran over to them, excited to make new friends.

Both men laughed as they were led by the puppy to the group of dog-owners gathered in the back of the store. Rascal went about sniffing the other dogs and hugging Axel with him. When it was time for the class to begin, Axel picked Rascal up and took the squirming puppy to a different spot in the circle so that he wasn't distracting the others.

The instructor was a friendly looking woman with blue hair. With her was a large Rottweiler. Axel had to admit that the dog would have seemed intimidating, if not for that same happy-puppy look Rascal was always wearing.

"Good afternoon, how is everyone?" the woman asked. She was met with a variety of mumbled positives. She smiled. "That's good to hear. My name is Aqua, and this is Bear." She scratched her dog's, Bear's, head, which made his happy look intensify.

"When I first got Bear, he was completely untrained and a bit of a monster, so I will tell you that it may take a while to fully train your dog. But it can be done and it is worth it.

"First I want to talk about rewarding good behavior. There are a variety of ways you can do this, from using treats, or a clicker, or even just petting and encouraging your dogs." She stepped back. "Bear, sit," she said.

Bear plopped down, tail thumping on the tile floor. Aqua clicked a little device and told Bear to stay. she walked away, paused and returned to him. She gave him a small treat and pet his head.

"Okay, so I would assume everyone has brought some small edible treats for your dogs. Let's get those out and we can work on teaching the command 'sit'."

Roxas pulled the treats out of his pocket and Axel put Rascal down. The puppy looked excited as he stared up at the two. He knew what was in the treat bag and apparently that was more interesting than Bear at the moment.

Aqua demonstrated how to start teaching 'sit' and then encouraged the class to practice with their dogs. Axel and Roxas took turns trying to get Rascal to sit. It took them each a few tries because Rascal kept turning around to get at the treat. This dog was too smart for his own good.

After that lesson, Aqua showed how to do a few more simple tricks and gave a very brief explanation of how to discourage negative behavior. With that, class was over. Aqua encouraged the members to come in for the intermediate course-which wasn't free but it wasn't expensive either-as they left.

Axel told Roxas that he was going to get some more supplies for Roxas while the blond went to talk to Aqua. Axel got some more kibble and treats for Rascal, as well as some dental treats that advertised fresher dog breath. With as much as Rascal liked being in their faces, Axel figured they could make him smell better.

On the way to the register, he passed a display with grooming supplies, including shampoo and costumes. Axel examined everything closely. Did Rascal need baths? Roxas brushed him almost daily. It probably wouldn't be too hard to bathe Rascal. Weren't labs supposed to love water?

He grabbed a bottle that said it would help with eliminating and preventing fleas and moved onto the clothes. There were sports jerseys, sweaters and actual costumes. He figured Roxas would love to dress Rascal up but didn't want to pay for something that Rascal would outgrow in a few months.

After paying for the items-including a large clearance sweater for Rascal during winter-Axel returned to where Roxas and Aqua were still talking. Bear was laying on the ground, letting Rascal tug on his ear playfully. Axel couldn't stop the smile on his face at the sight of the puppy and his new friend. He walked up to Roxas and put his arms around the blond's shoulders.

"So do you two think you'll take the intermediate course?" Aqua asked.

"Maybe," Axel said and looked down at Roxas, who shrugged. "Depends on how well we can tame Rascal. He's a bit too clever."

"So I noticed," Aqua chuckled softly. "Just keep at it and you'll get it. He's a good dog, just young." She crouched down and ruffled Rascal's ears. The puppy forgot about Bear for the moment and leaned into her hand.

"Thanks for the class," Roxas said when Aqua was done petting Rascal. "We'll see about that next one."

"Alright, I hope to see you there," she said. Bear stood up, sensing it was time to go, and followed Aqua out of the store.

Axel and Roxas took their leave as well, Rascal trotting happily between them.