Lyon dreamed of a dark void in his sleep; it was pitch black in the space. He was floating in that void, trying to venture out of the darkness. Where am I?

The young wolf pup kept on floating as if he was swimming through the sea of darkness. He then saw a blurred vision of two adult dogs. He took notice of the mysterious figures, and was determined to find out who they were. However, the more he ventured through, the more clearer those two mysterious figures were. It was his parents.

"Mum? Dad," he called out. However, the two never respond back to Lyon. They kept distancing themselves from him. "No, wait. Come back," Lyon cried out. No matter how much he kept running towards them, the two parents kept getting farther. Lyon kept calling out to Marc and Audrey until he tripped, and fell to the ground. "No, don't go," he shouted. However, it was too late for the young wolf dog to reach them out in time. Please, don't leave me all alone.

It was morning now, and Lyon felt a thud. He fell out from his bed. "Ow…"

Lyon felt the hard floor from his fall. He didn't realize he actually squirmed in his sleep. He rose up from the floor and went out to the door to the bathroom. He went inside and grabbed a stool to reach to the sink's level. Lyon opened the tap water to warm water to wash his face for a moment, and grabbed a towel to dry his face. He proceeded to brush his teeth by grabbing his toothbrush, and the clean mint toothpaste.

After cleaning himself up, he went downstairs to the kitchen. He saw his adoptive father making omelet for breakfast. "Morning sport. How was your first night in your bedroom," asked Rad.

"It was good, thank you," said Lyon politely.

"I heard a thud from upstairs. Is everything all right?"

"Yeah, I was just…having a dream."

"Really? What kind?"

Lyon scratched his head not wanting to mention this dream was a nightmare. "It's nothing important," he said.

"Well, if you're sure," said Rad. "Oh, I just wanted to let you know today is going to be your first day at your new school."

"New school," asked Lyon. "Does this mean I won't be going to the same school when I was at the foster home?"

"Correct. Me and your Uncle Bandit were able to get a spot for you available. You will be attending the Glasshouse Primary School with your cousin Bluey."

Lyon was surprised by the sudden change. However, he did see his adoptive father's good intentions. "Where is it located?"

"It's located across town to the Glass House Mountains. I'll be dropping you off there today. We should be able to meet up both Bluey and Uncle Bandit there." Rad had two plates of omelets prepared and set them at the island counter table. The two ate their breakfast and made their way out of the door. Lyon had his backpack ready while Rad had his lunch box with him for work, and the two drove away from the house. Lyon looked out the window on the passenger seat. "Rad, what's the school like? Will there be a lot of kids," asked Lyon all concerned.

"Well, yes. Why do you ask," asked Rad with a puzzled look.

"Oh. I'm just not sure if I'm going to like this. It's going to feel different since I will be in a different classroom with students I don't know."

"Hey, it's okay to be nervous. But I promise you it will be fine. Just relax, be yourself, and Bluey will be there to show you the ropes," said Rad. Lyon looked at the adult, unsure if his statement was trustworthy.

The duo drove to a rural area part of Queensland; there were plenty of forestry, fields, and hills. Lyon saw some cockatoos soaring through the sky, as well as some wallabies hopping along the land. Finally, they made it to a sign that said Glass House Mountains. Rad saw another sign that said Glass House Primary School to the right. He followed that sign and drove to a curve-like road. The school was located on the top of the hills; the building was a brown wooden building with windows. It was surrounded by the deciduous setting of trees and bushes, although many of the trees have lost most of their leaves due to Fall's effect.

"Looks like we made it," said Rad. He parks alongside the curb of the street behind Bandit's Jeep. They saw both Bluey and Bandit off their vehicle. "There's your cousin and uncle. Let's go say hello." The father and son went to greet their relatives.

"Hey, Lyon," said Bluey enthusiastically while hugging him. "Ah, hello Bluey," said Lyon feeling the blue heeler's tight grip. "Dad told me you were going to school with me today. This is going to be so much fun."

Lyon nervously smiled. "Now Bluey, remember what we talked about. Make sure to give Lyon time to take things at his own pace," reminded Bandit. "Also, make sure to show him around the school."

"Yes, dad," said Bluey. The four went to the entrance; Lyon stood behind his adoptive father's right arm as he noticed a lot of kids running around. Can I really do this?

They approached an adult Blue Merle Australian Shepherd; she had dark brown, grey, white, dark grey, orange, and light orange fur. She also wore a blue shawl around her neck. The adult Australian Shepard smiled warmly at the four. "Hi Calypso," said Bluey.

"Hello, Bluey. I see you have someone new with you," said the adult, whose name was Calypso. Lyon took notice of Calypso's smile; he senses a strong sense of warmth coming from her. "Are you the teacher," asked Lyon.

"Yes, my name is Calypso. It's so nice to meet you."

"This is my new cousin, Lyon. He's my Uncle Rad's adoptive son," said Bluey. "Ah, then you must be Lyon. Your father and your uncle mentioned to me about you attending here today."

Lyon nodded silently. "It's his first day being here, so he may be quiet at first," said Rad to Calypso.

"I see. There's no need to worry Lyon. Here at the school, you'll be sure to make new friends here," said Calypso.

Lyon was still hesitant; Rad noticed the six year old hiding behind his shoulder. He knelt to his level. "It's going to be okay. I promise. Bluey will be with you the whole day," he said to Lyon. Lyon nodded and decided to trust in Rad. The six year old wolf dog stood closer to Bluey to feel safe. They said their goodbyes to their fathers as they went inside the building. Lyon's first impression of the interior was that it was one big classroom. The interior was expected to be made of wood like its exterior counterpart. There were plenty of kids around Lyon's age.

"So what are we supposed to do," asked Lyon.

"Oh, we just play until Calypso calls us to the rug," said the blue heeler girl.

"Just that? No desks? No waiting to be called for attendance?"

"Um, no. Is that supposed to happen," asked Bluey playfully.

"At my old school, we had school desks. We wait until the teacher comes to call for attendance," muttered Lyon.

"Want me to show you the place," said Bluey wanting to show his cousin the school.

"Yeah, show me the way Bluey." The eager Bluey took Lyon's paw to show him around the classroom. She showed him all the toys the school provided: blocks, dolls, toy soldiers, gnomes, tiny buildings for the figurines, and plenty of costumes.

"Do you have any books," asked Lyon.

"Oh yes, we have plenty of storybooks. I'll take you to the shelf." She showed him the reading area's shelf. There were plenty of books based on fiction, fairytales, science fiction, drama, and pop-up books. Lyon seems more intrigued with books based on fiction.

Bluey decided to introduce her cousin to some of her closest friends; she spotted Chloe, a dalmatian girl, who was by the window.

"Hey, Bluey," said Chloe.

"Hi, Chloe. I want you to meet my new cousin, Lyon," said Bluey pointing to Lyon. Lyon simply waves back at Chloe.

"Wow, you have a new cousin. That's so great," said the dalmatian girl. "Is he new here today?"

"Yeah, my dad and Uncle Rad were able to get him to come with me here from now on. I'm just showing him around."

Chloe was interested in Lyon. She wanted to ask more questions about him, but just before she was about to say something, Calypso called everyone to the rug for today's morning talk. The three headed towards the rug where the rest of the students and the teacher were at.

"Alright class, I have a special announcement. Today I'd like to introduce someone new to our school today," she said giving Lyon a gesture to stand up. The wolf dog stood up from the floor and walked to the front of the class.

"This is Lyon, and he's going to be attending here from now on. He's also Bluey's new cousin," said the teacher. Lyon cleared his throat. "Hi, I'm so glad to be here. I hope we all get along."

There was silence in the room, but many of the children seem to have smiled at the wolf dog. "Can you tell us a bit more about yourself," asked Calypso. Lyon, however, dreaded being on the spotlight, but this was one situation he can't get out of. "I love books. I know how to speak some French. I've only met Bluey, and the rest of her family last weekend so I'm still new to them," he rambled on. "Oh, and her uncle is my adoptive father."

"Well, that is a lot to know. We're so happy to have you as a student," said Calypso. Lyon went back to his spot next to Bluey. "Now that we met our new friend, Lyon, why don't we start with story time."

The adult shepherd had a pop-up book with her; the story was based on Goldilocks and The Three Bears. She narrated the voice of each character in the book. The entire class listened intently to the story. After storytime was finished, the rest of the class went outside to play. Lyon followed Bluey to the sand pit.

"So what do we do," ask Lyon.

"We pretty much play whatever we want," said Bluey. "Me and Chloe are going to play as queens. Want to come along? You can be the king."

"No, I think I'll look around if that's okay," said Lyon.

"Aw, come on. It'll be fun," insisted Bluey.

"Really, I just want to be alone for a bit."

Bluey, albeit puzzled why Lyon refused, decided to respect Lyon's boundaries. "Well, alright," she sighed and ran off to see Chloe. Lyon rubbed his arm, unsure of what to do during this time. The new school atmosphere was completely unfamiliar for him; he was the only kid in the school who was standing by himself while the rest of the children were playing with their friends.

Calypso then saw Lyon by himself from the other children, and she decided to check up on him. "Everything alright, Lyon," asked Calypso. He looks at the teacher. "Yes, Ms. Calypso. I'm fine," assured Lyon. "It's just a bit hard for me to find something to do."

Calypso sympathizes Lyon's hesitation. It's challenging to be the new student. "Well, I think you should go and play with that border collie by the fountain," said Calypso. Lyon saw a border collie kid playing by the school's fountain. He nodded at the teacher and went to go see the student. He notices the collie playing with bark pieces by placing one on top of the fountain, and it flows down through the fountain. The collie kid took notice of Lyon's staring; "Hi there," he said with an amicable smile.

"Oh, hi. Sorry, I didn't mean to stare," apologized Lyon.

"No, it's fine. You're the new kid today, aren't you," said the kid in a New Zealand accent.

"Yes, that's correct. I am Lyon."

"You're also Bluey's new cousin. She's been talking about that to us last week." Lyon nodded yes, letting the collie kid know who he was.

"I'm Mackenzie by the way."

"What are you up to," asked the wolf dog.

"I'm playing barky boats. I picked some bark this morning, and pretended these bark pieces are boats."

Lyon observed how the bark pieces flowing down the fountains look the alike river. He slowly approached and kneeled to the ground. "Want to give it a go," asked Mackenzie holding a piece of bark. "You don't mind," he questioned. "No, why wouldn't I," chuckled Mackenzie. Lyon, despite his hesitation, accepts Mackenzie's bark and places it on top of the fountain. The bark soon rushes down the rest of the fountain's river. "Yeah, just like that," exclaimed Mackenzie.

The two boys to the forest's trees to grab some more bark. They were conversing as they collected bark in the forest. "So, how's it like being in Bluey's family," asked Mackenzie while scouting for more tree bark.

"It's okay so far. I'm still getting used to it," explained Lyon. "But the Heelers have been friendly so that's a good thing."

"Yeah, Bluey is fun to be around, and so is her sister. You're lucky to be her cousin."

"Not by blood, but we just met last weekend," added Lyon. "Do you have any brothers or sisters," asked the wolf dog.

"Nope. It's just me, mum, and dad. How about you?"

"Same. It was just me, mum, and dad."

"What happened to your parents?"

Lyon dropped his bark pieces to the ground. This was one question Lyon had hoped Mackenzie did not bring up. Mackenzie was surprised to see the new kid dropping the bark pieces.

"I used to be in the foster home for some time until Bluey's uncle decided to adopt me. He was friends with my parents, my dad most of all before they….well, it's not important," said Lyon, not wanting to expand on the details.

"Aw, tell me. What happened," asked Mackenzie. "It's not a happy story. Believe me, it would be hard to hear it."

"I don't mind. I promise I won't tell anyone." Mackenzie was willing to hear out why Lyon won't mention his biological parents.

Lyon huffed a sigh. "Well, alright, but this isn't something you shouldn't really hear about. They died. In a car accident. It was the night when they went out, and I was left with a sitter. That night the police showed up and told me they found the car crashed into another vehicle. They didn't make it."Mackenzie was speechless to know what really happened to his parents. "Woah, I…well, I didn't know. I'm sorry," he apologized sincerely.

Lyon took a deep breath and let it out. "It's okay. What matters is I'm still here, and I have a new home. I'm sure they would feel happy if I was somewhere safe." Lyon was modest to the border collie about his feelings towards his deceased parents. Meanwhile, Mackenzie thought it would be fair to share what losing a loved one is like. "If it helps you feel better, I can tell you who I lost too. My grandad passed away last year. He died from cancer, and at his age, it was harder for him to fight it off. The doctors told us his chances, despite being given medicine, were very low. It was that day when we saw him in the hospital bed sleeping peacefully."

Lyon felt a shock through his spine; Mackenzie lost his grandad through a terminal illness. "Oh, Mackenzie. I'm so sorry," he said gently.

"It was hard on all of us, my mum most of all. My grandad was her dad. But as time passed on, we were able to find peace with his passing. I still miss him sometimes. It can be hard to be okay with knowing who you lost forever," The two boys were quiet after sharing what loss and grief is like. However, Mackenzie decided to change the subject and saw a large piece of bark siting by the stump. "Oh, hey look. That's a good one," he said. "It's twice the size of a regular sized bark," added Lyon. Mackenzie took the large bark piece with him, and Lyon recollected his gatherings of the bark.

They both headed back to the fountain to play barky boats again. One by one, they were letting each bark piece flow through the fountain's stream. Lyon is seemingly enjoying the barky boat game with his new friend. "Besides Bluey, who else are you friends with," asked Lyon.

"Well, there's Coco, Chloe Rusty, Jack, and Honey. They're all fun to play with."

"Do you like playing with my cousin?"

"I do. Except when she always changes the rules when we play; it takes a while to get started," said Mackenzie.

"Oh, really," chuckled Lyon. "I can sort of picture her doing that. Even though we barely met."

"Well, in the end we do say sorry to each other. I tend to get impatient often," said Mackenzie.

Bluey then showed up alongside Chloe to check up on Lyon. "So this is where you are," said Bluey.

"Yes, I just met Mackenzie. We're playing barky boats," said Lyon. "How was your game?"

"It was fun. Wished we had a king though," said Chloe. "How are you liking your first day?"

"It's fine. I'm learning a lot about your school now," said Lyon to Chloe.

"Are you a husky? You seem to have silver and grey hair," asked the dalmatian girl.

"Kind of. I'm part wolf and husky. My dad's the wolf, and my mum is husky. It's sort of easy to tell since my tail isn't curled," he said referring to his tail.

"Oh, that's cool," said Chloe.

It was now lunchtime, and everyone was inside with their boxed lunches. Lyon was sitting next to both Mackenzie and Bluey. The blue heeler and border collie were introducing the wolf-dog to their other classmates during lunch. Lyon learned so much from the other kids in his classroom.

"So what do you enjoy doing," asked Lyon to a red kelpie, whose name was Rusty.

"I love to play army. My dad's in the army. Oh, and Jack also likes playing army with me too. He's my best friend," said Rusty.

"I'm good at playing army. I can teach you the signs soldiers use when they communicate with each other," said the jack russell, whose name was Jack.

"Is it true that you know French," asked Honey, a beagle wearing glasses.

"I do know some. Just the introductory words. I still teach myself from time to time."

Many kids kept asking Lyon questions. He was quite bashful of receiving the spotlight at school.

"Alright, children. I'm sure Lyon would answer all your questions if you give him a little space," said Calypso, sparing Lyon from the spotlight. The day seems to be going smoothly, and Lyon has made a few friends at Glasshouse.

It was now time for pickup time; many parents were picking up their kids from school during the afternoon. Both Lyon and Mackenzie were at the entrance walking together. "It was a fun day. I enjoyed it," said Lyon calmly.

"It was great meeting you. I'm glad we met," said Mackenzie. "We should hang out sometime outside of school. Do you want to come over to my place sometime in the weekend?"

"Well, I would have to ask my adoptive father for permission to visit, but yeah, I'm game," said Lyon. Lyon went closer to Mackenzie's ears "Oh, and please keep our secret from today. You know, about my parents," whispered Lyon. Mackenzie agreed to keep their conversation in secret from the other kids, knowing that it respects Lyon's privacy. "Promise," he added. Both kids smiled at each other. "Oh, I see my dad. I'll see you tomorrow," said Mackenzie as he rushed towards his father at the entrance. Lyon waves goodbye to his new friend.

Bluey met up with her cousin. "Did you like today, Lyon," asked Bluey.

"I enjoyed it. It was better than I expected," said Lyon.

Bluey grinned at her cousin. "I knew you liked it here. Everyone seemed to enjoy talking to you."

"It was only the first day," said Lyon.

"Still, it was fun wasn't it?"

It was now night at Rad's place. The two were eating grilled salmon with green beans and avocado salad for dinner.

"So did you enjoy your first day at your new school," asked Rad, while cutting his salmon up.

"It turned out better than I expected," said Lyon. "I did make a few friends, but I actually enjoyed hanging out with Bluey's friend, Mackenzie. We played barky boats."

"That's excellent. I'm proud you gave it a chance. I didn't know if you were comfortable, but I guess I didn't have to worry about that," added Rad.

"Mackenzie invited me to visit with him during the weekend. Is that fine," asked Lyon. "I could even invite Bluey if that's alright?"

"Yeah, that's fine mate," said Rad, knowing this could be a good opportunity for his adoptive son to connect with kids. Lyon grins as he wagged his tail. He can't wait to meet up with his new friend.