Layle stood with a hand on her chin, inspecting her new ally-to-be. He (and it definitely was a he) was a Shiba Inu- or was it an Akita Inu? She could never tell the difference. He was some kind of Inu, at least. His head was crowned with a rash of bald spots, and he lacked both a collar and most of his tail. Odds were pretty good that the guy either didn't have an owner or had one that didn't give a damn. Either way, it was good enough for Layla.

[color=a187be]"Oi!"[/color], she shouted, strolling towards the erstwhile stray, [color=a187be]"You there, with the four legs!"[/color]

The dog looked up and around, surprised. After a few seconds he noticed Layla, crouching down to sniff her. Layla thought for a minute. What did they call dogs here? Hachiko? No, that was the statue. Over here, all the dogs were named...

[color=a187be]"...Pochi!"[/color], she finished her train of thought aloud, [color=a187be]"Yeah, I'm gonna call you Pochi."[/color]

Pochi growled.

[color=a187be]"Hey, hey, Pochi."[/color], Layla said as she made a casual swipe at his jaw, snapping the dog's head back, [color=a187be]"Let's don't get fresh, alright? We're buddies now."[/color]

Taking advantage of the pooch's stunned state, Layla swung herself onto his back with the practiced ease of one who had done this a hundred times before. Pulling the measuring tape off her neck, she drew it through Pochi's mouth like a set of reins.

Pochi, for his part, was very confused about what had just happened.

[color=a187be]"C'mon, Pochi!"[/color], Layla said as she squeezed the dog's sides, [color=a187be]"Onwards, to adventure!"[/color]

And so the pair set off on a magical journey for gold, glory, and the world's least-reputable school.

Oh, and some dog treats would also be nice.