Author's Note: I'd like to give a shout out to wurdsmadder who gave me some advice on the dog commands section in this chapter. Thank you! Any errors are mine though.

Early Sunday morning, Clay woke up to find Emma curled into his side asleep. She had tossed and turned most of the night, but now her breathing was steady and deep. As carefully as he could, he slipped his arm from under her and rolled out of bed. Exiting their bedroom, he left Emma to continue her slumber while he went to the kitchen to brew coffee.

Cerberus climbed from his bed and followed Clay downstairs. The dog's wagging tail cheered Clay after his sleepless night. Leaning down, he scratched behind Cerb's ears. "You want some breakfast, boy? Or do you want to go for a run in the yard?"

The faithful Malinois walked to his empty bowl and banged it with his paw.

"Breakfast it is. Let me get this coffee going first."

Once the coffee maker was set, Clay opened a can of Cerb's food and emptied it into the dog's dish. He rinsed the can and left it to dry on the dish drainer. Emma had drilled into him making sure things were clean and dry before putting them in the recycling bin. The notion flashed through his mind that not having her around to organize him on these matters might make life easier, but he knew he wouldn't be happier. He shook off that depressing line of thought and filled a mug with freshly brewed coffee.

Clay leaned against the kitchen island and sipped his drink. The sound of Cerb pushing his dish along the floor with his tongue as he licked up every morsel of food echoed in the silence of the morning. The metal bowl came to a stop against Clay's foot, and Cerb sat, staring up at Clay entreatingly.

"That's all for now, boy. Ready to go out?"

Accepting his human would not be adding more food to the dish, Cerberus trotted to the sliding door leading to the back yard. As soon as Clay opened it, the dog shot out, disappearing into the bushes in the back corner of the yard. Trailing his former teammate outside, Clay stood on the deck and continued to drink his coffee.

Cerb foraged around the overgrown wilderness along the fence. Emma had begun to clean up the jungle that was their backyard with the help and advice of a neighbor, but a large portion of the space still required work.

Rumbling growls reached Clay's ears as Cerb started to chase squirrels through the high grass. Three of the small animals climbed the fence and perched at the top, chattering down at the dog. Clay suspected the squirrels enjoyed the game as much as the dog.

Walking around the deck, he checked the finish on the wood. Before Bravo's last spin up, he and Brock applied a second coat of stain. It looked good, and he hoped the additional layer would extend the life of the wood. Rebuilding the deck and the backyard fence happened much sooner than he and Emma originally planned. The work became necessary when they agreed to adopt Cerb.

Not long after their offer on the house was accepted, Clay entered the Bravo cage room to find Brock fussing with his K9 gear while Pepper sat on the table and watched. The dog handler unpacked the camera made to mount on Pepper's work vest, fiddled with the pieces, and repacked it. Then he grabbed another case and began rooting through the contents. Pepper whined and tried to nuzzle her partner.

As he shoved all his dirty workout clothes in a bag, Clay attempted to observe Brock without being obvious. He tried to remember anything in their training earlier in the day that might have upset his brother. Nothing came to mind.

"Brock, everything okay?" Clay tossed his full laundry bag on the floor and stepped out of his cage.

Snapping another case shut, Brock set it aside. "Yeah, it's fine."

"Okay, because it doesn't seem fine. You lose something?"

"No, no, I just…" Brock stopped himself from picking up another case and petted Pepper's head instead. "I got a call from the Senior Chief at the K9 training center."

Nodding, Clay waited for his friend to continue.

"You know Cerb's been over there since he retired from Bravo, helping train the new dogs?"

Clay did remember that plan for Cerb when he stopped operating. "Sure. Is there a problem with that now?"

"No, the staff think it's time for him to fully retire, that he's worked enough and it's time for him to just be a dog."

"That's a good thing though, right?"

"It is." Brock dropped his gaze from Clay's and focused on scratching the right spots behind Pepper's ears. "The Senior Chief asked me if I want to adopt him."

"That's great, Brock. When will you get him?"

"Clay, I can't. My apartment is tiny. It's already too small with Pepper there. And where will Cerb go when we're spun up? He deserves a home with a yard and space to run." Turning away, Brock returned the cases to his cage. He came back to the table his eyes heavy with sadness. "I can't take him."

Clay sympathized with the misery in Brock's expression. "What will happen to him if you don't?"

"They'll try to find someone else. I was thinking of asking Ray and Naima if they could take him."

"Good idea."

Brock shook his head. "I don't know. I think Naima might not want to take care of a dog on top of Ray, the kids, and her job."

Frowning, Clay tried to think of another option. Cerberus was their teammate. They needed to make sure he found a good home. Pepper's panting became the only sound in the room as Brock and Clay both concentrated on coming up with other options.

"Wait a minute." Hope dawned in Brock's eyes. "You could take him! You and Emma. You're buying a house with a yard. It would be perfect!"

"I…" Clay paused as he considered his teammate's suggestion. "The yard's a mess, Brock. The deck is an unsafe wreck, and a section of the fence has fallen over."

"That can be fixed though. I'll help."

"The deck needs to be torn down and a new one built. Emma and I figured we'd wait on it. Money-wise we—"

"I'll chip in. I bet the other guys will too." Brock's excitement for the idea was infectious. "Cerb has saved all our asses multiple times. We owe it to him."

Cerb's abilities had saved the team on many occasions. He deserved a happy, comfortable retirement. And Clay couldn't deny how much he would enjoy having the dog living with him and Emma. He had never been in a position before to keep a pet, but he had always wanted one. In addition, having Cerb at the house to keep Emma company during spin ups would make him feel better about her safety on her own.

"Okay, you've convinced me." He held up a hand to stop Brock from celebrating prematurely. "But Emma has to agree as well. And we have to talk to the guys."

"Sure, sure." Brock's head bobbed as he acquiesced to Clay's conditions. "Can you call Emma now though? The sooner we let the Senior Chief know a SEAL and former teammate of Cerb's is interested in taking him, the better."

Chuckling at Brock's eagerness, Clay pulled out his phone to make the call.

Not waiting to hear the outcome, Brock headed out the door with Pepper right behind. "I'm going to find Sonny, Trent and Ray to get their help."

From that conversation, things moved quickly. Emma agreed to the adoption, and she and Clay went to meet with the staff at the K9 Training Center. When they arrived, a trainer brought Cerberus out. The dog's entire back end wagged along with his tail when he saw Clay.

Crouching down, Clay greeted Cerb and gave him rubs. "Hey boy, how're you doing?"

Cerb barked and tried to lick Clay's face, making his former teammate laugh.

Emma knelt by them. "He's thrilled to see you."

Hearing her, Cerb turned and gave Emma a wet kiss on her cheek.

"Blech, Cerb!" Emma scrubbed at the damp spot on her face.

"I guess he's glad to see you too." Clay held the Malinois back from jumping up on him. "Cerberus, sitz."

Cerb broke off his efforts to lick Clay and sat, although his tail still twitched intermittently.

"Good boy."

The Senior Chief placed his hand on Cerb's head. "It's obvious how much he likes you both, which is important for us to see in a potential adoptive family. We also need to know the dog will obey you, which you just proved, Petty Officer. Although we'll take you through some more commands." The trainer focused on Emma. "Ma'am, we'll want to do that with you as well, particularly as you've never been out with Cerberus in a working situation."

"Of course." Emma stood.

"Cerberus needs to recognize your authority. We've learned adjusting to civilian life can sometimes be challenging for these dogs, so we want him to respect you as well as bond with you both as family."

Clay came to stand by Emma. "But Cerb lived with Brock, so he knows what civilian life is like."

"That's true." Senior Chief Marks rubbed Cerb's head. "Being part of a SEAL team did give him the opportunity to live in a home as well, unlike our dogs who are deployed and stay on bases in the US, but, as you've seen, he is a warrior. We need to know you can handle that side of him."

"Understood."

"The other area we need to discuss is what his living conditions with you will be like. Petty Officer Reynolds told me you're in the process of buying a house."

Smiles broke out on both Emma and Clay's faces.

"We're closing next week," Clay said. "We do need to do some work before the place is ready for him though. Part of the fence is down, and the deck is in tough shape. We'll need to deal with both of those."

"The fence definitely needs to be fixed before we can release him to you, but we don't mind keeping him while you take care of it. The important thing for us is that he goes to the best home. Also, it will give us more time to work with you on commands and keeping up his training." The Senior Chief nodded as he spoke. "If you have time now, we can do some work on that."

"Sure, we left the afternoon open as we weren't sure how long you'd need us."

"Great, let's head back to the training area." Senior Chief Marks gestured to the enclosure, then turned and began to walk in that direction. "Cerberus, heir."

Cerb started to follow the trainer, but not before glancing back to see if Clay and Emma were also coming.

Clay thought both he and Emma had improved in their work with Cerb since that day. He already had experience thanks to Brock, but the trainers at the center taught him more. Emma also learned quite a bit about commands and the best way to apply them with Cerb.

He still remembered her shock when the trainers demonstrated the stellen command. Seeing Cerb attack a trainer wearing a protective vest had been shocking for her, as she had only ever seen the dog as a playful friend at team get togethers. She knew he could detect explosives and went into combat situations with them but seeing Cerb turn into a vicious attacker was eye opening for her.

As Clay mused about their time at the K9 training center and watched Cerb's wagging tail sticking out from the bushes, a pair of arms wrapped around his middle from behind.

"You left me all alone." Emma's voice was muffled as she snuggled into his back.

"I figured you needed the sleep after how restless you were all night." He placed his mug on the deck railing and rested his hands on Emma's arms twined around his waist.

"Mmm, but it's nicer waking up with you."

He turned in her arms and pulled her close. "It is, but I was hoping you'd sleep longer."

She hugged him, burying her face in his chest for a moment, and then stepped away. "Ooh, coffee." Picking up his mug, she took a big sip. "Ah, that's good."

"Hey, that was mine."

"Was is right." Emma drained the cup and handed it to him. "Is there more inside?"

Clay shook his head and put the mug back on the railing. "Yes, I made a whole pot."

Leaning against his chest again, she sighed. "Good. I need it today."

Hugging her, he pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "Everything's going to be alright."

They stood quietly in each other's arms, listening to the rustling noise of Cerb digging through the bushes searching for more squirrels.

"How about I make you some breakfast to go with your coffee?" Clay stroked her hair. "You should eat something."

Emma lifted her head and tilted it to meet his gaze. "I guess. I'm not really hungry."

"I saw blueberries in the fridge. I could make pancakes with them." Clay's voice took on a wheedling tone.

A faint smile crossed Emma's face. "I might be able to eat a couple blueberry pancakes."

Clay grinned. "Blueberry pancakes always do the trick." He dropped a kiss on her nose. "Cerb, heir."

Cerberus reluctantly came out of the bushes and joined them on the deck.

Emma's nose wrinkled as she studied the dog. "He's probably covered in ticks from digging around back there."

"Yeah, he probably is." Clay handed her his mug. "If you go in and pull out the ingredients for the pancakes, I'll check him over."

"Deal." She patted his chest and went into the house.