Chapter 4

Training to be a True Knight

The past couple of days have been intense for Puppycorn ever since he saved Unikitty from the doom lords. Everyday, Hawkodile would train Puppycorn to wield a sword. They both practiced with wooden swords so neither of them would get hurt.

Truthfully, Richard didn't like the idea that someone as young as Puppycorn would be training to become a knight. He tried to talk Hawodile out of it, but Hawkodile and Puppycorn wouldn't listen.

As Puppycorn and Hawkodile had their next sword duel, Unikitty stayed around to see how the training is going. Despite his best efforts, Puppycorn started to get exhausted before Hawkodile knocked the sword out of his paws.

"Wow, Puppycorn! You did a lot better than last time!" Unikitty praised.

Puppycorn panted before bringing his attention to Unikitty. "Thanks, Unikitty! I just wish training didn't have to be so difficult."

"No one said that being a knight was easy, champ." said Hawkodile. "You still have a lot of training to do before you can become a true knight."

As Puppycorn took a brief rest, Unikitty took a look at the wooden sword before she came up with an idea. Picking up the sword, Unikitty approached Puppycorn.

"Hey, Puppycorn! Why don't you have a sword duel with me? I think I can use some training too so I won't get kidnapped again!"

"That's a great idea, Unikitty!" Puppycorn replied before he picked up his sword.

"Wait, I don't think that is a good idea." Hawkodile argued. "It is my duty to keep you safe, Princess!"

"Relax, Hawk! The swords are wooden, so Puppycorn and I won't be able to hurt each other anyway! Ready, Puppycorn?"

"Princess, wait!" Hawkodile tried to stop Unikitty.

It was too late though as Unikitty and Puppycorn already charged at each other with their swords. Their swords clashed together as they playful fought each other. Hawkodile was about to put a stop to it before Dr. Fox showed up. She watched as Unikitty and Puppycorn had their duel.

"Wow! I never thought I'd see Unikitty and Puppycorn have a sword fight together!" Dr. Fox commented.

"Neither did I, Dr. Fox." Hawkodile sighed.

"I think it is a great idea! This might teach Unikitty to defend herself! You are a great teacher, Hawkodile!" Dr. Fox complimented.

With a blush, Hawkodile replied, "Uh, yeah! I'm pretty great!"

Once his training for the day came to an end, Puppycorn decided to invite Unikitty over to his house. As they walked through the front door, Unikitty looked around in awe. It was a surprise to Puppycorn that Unikitty would be this impressed, especially since she lives in a castle.

Unikitty couldn't believe that she had known Hawkodile since she was a child, but was only now able to see his house.

"Wow! You and Hawk live here, Puppycorn? It looks nice." Unikitty complimented.

"Well, it's not nearly as cool as living in a castle, but it's still home." Puppycorn said before he led Unikitty upstairs to show her his room. "And this is my room!"

At that moment, Unikitty looked around to see all kinds of toys, action figures, and comics on the shelves of Puppycorn's room. It was kind of embarrassing for Puppycorn to show Unikitty all of his toys from his childhood, but Unikitty didn't seem to mind. Before long, Unikitty noticed a drawer that was slightly open, causing her to gaze at it in curiosity.

"What's in there?" Unikitty asked as she approached the drawer.

Upon realizing what drawer Unikitty was referring to, Puppycorn began to panic. "Unikitty, wait! Don't look in there!"

It was too late though, as Unikitty completely opened the drawer, revealing a bunch of baby pictures of Puppycorn.

"Aww! So, cute!" Unikitty exclaimed.

This caused Puppycorn to blush. He wished that he kept his baby pictures more hidden. As Unikitty looked through the pictures, she noticed a picture of Puppycorn being held by two dogs who resembled him.

"Are they your parents?" Unikitty asked.

Puppycorn nodded. "Yeah. I didn't really know them too well though. I'm pretty sure that I was only a baby when I knew them."

With a sad look, Unikitty replied, "I didn't know my parents that well either. I think I was just a child when they died."

"Oh, I had no idea. I'm really sorry, Unikitty." Puppycorn sympathized.

"It's okay! Dr. Fox and Richard are kind of like family to me, just like how Hawkodile is like family to you!" Unikitty pointed out.

Puppycorn smiled as he knew that Unikitty was right. Even though they are technically not related, Puppycorn always looked up to Hawkodile and thought of him as an amazing older brother.

Once she was done admiring Puppycorn's room, she looked out the window to see that it had a good view of the castle. This ended up giving Unikitty an idea.

"Hey, Puppycorn. I know that you don't get to see the castle very often, but do you think you would like to have dinner with me tomorrow night?"

Surprised by the offer, Puppycorn blushed. "R-Really? That would be great! I would love to have dinner with you!"

"Great! I'll let Richard know, and we'll get ready! I'll see you tomorrow!"

With that, Unikitty hugged Puppycorn goodbye before she left. Surprised that Unikitty invited him to dinner, Puppycorn silently wondered if this counted as a date. He soon let out a sigh as knew that he shouldn't get his hopes up. After all, there was no way a princess like Unikitty could ever fall for someone like him.