PuppyBoots

"Thank you, Perrito"

- Puss after Perrito helps him through his panic attack

PuppyBoots is the friendship between Puss in Boots and Perrito from the Puss in Boots fandom.

Canon
Puss first met Perrito when he went into retirement at Mama Luna's home for cats. After staying there for long enough to grow a beard, he notices a new face feeding from the same trough, realizing that the newest "cat" is actually a chihuahua in an unconvincing costume. Said dog is incredibly eager to make friends with Puss, but Puss dismisses him by pretending to not understand him no matter what language he speaks. When the dog is deadset on finding out Puss' story, Puss briefly reminisces about his past lives, but then tells him that his story doesn't matter anymore. Perrito then realizes that Puss is tense and offers him to rub his belly, but Puss is disgusted and refuses. For a moment, Puss actually believes that he got Perrito to leave him alone, but that moment is interrupted by the arrival of what he thinks is the wolf bounty hunter who forced him into retirement. Going into hiding, Puss and Perrito share a hiding spot, only to find out that the bounty hunter is just Goldilocks and her bear crime family, planning to hire the legendary Puss in Boots to help them find the wishing star. Though they find Puss and Perrito, they dismiss them, not recognizing Puss. After the bears are content to leave, Puss overhears them talking about the wishing star outside and realizes that he could wish for all his lives back and come out of retirement indefinitely if he gets it first. Perrito follows Puss outside and witnesses him dig out the grave that he dug for Puss in Boots, believing that Puss is defiling his own grave. But then Puss reveals that he is indeed Puss in Boots, only to realize that the bounty hunter took his sword.

Following Goldilocks to Jack Horner's bakery, who had stolen the map to the wishing star, Perrito snuck into Puss' carriage to give him a stick to use as a sword. Puss is not happy about Perrito following him, but argues that the dog could prove his use and tells him to wait outside until he comes back with the map. After getting the map, getting into a fight with his old flame Kitty Softpaws over it and getting both Goldilocks and Jack Horner to chase after him, Puss and Perrito reunite when Puss and Kitty are launched right into the carriage that Perrito happens to be driving. Puss decides that it's no time for formalities and just tells Perrito to drive as fast as he can. After they successfully escape from their pursuers, Puss formally introduces Perrito to Kitty, but also firmly denies that Perrito is his "best friend". Upon Perrito's insistence, Puss eventually agrees to team up with Kitty for the wish.

When they finally reach the Dark Forest where the Wishing Star is located, they find out that the entrance is some kind of magic portal with some side effects. Puss tests the portal by putting his hand holding the stick Perrito gave him into it (which Kitty mocks him for), only to pull it out with both the stick and the hand briefly turning invisible. Puss then tests what happens should an entire person enter the portal by kicking Perrito into it, only to be surprised when he doesn't come out of it anymore. Reluctantly going inside, Puss discovers that the portal is a wormhole that causes anyone going inside to fall into an endless landscape. Reuniting with Perrito, they discover that touching the map affects the environment of the Dark Forest, with Puss and Kitty being forced to face their own demons in various obstacles when they touch it, but Perrito touching it causes the forest to become a beautiful, peaceful landscape.

Going through the "Pocket full of Posies", Perrito teaches Puss to slow down and smell the flowers, which both he and Kitty dismiss. Smelling the flowers instead of cutting them is still more practical, so they both agree on doing it. Meanwhile, Perrito tells them a "funny" story of his childhood, where his siblings put him in a sock, filled it with a rock and then tossed him into a river, which horrifies both Puss and Kitty and makes them sympathize with the oblivious and naive dog. On the "River of Relaxation", Puss asks Kitty if she could give his beard a shave, earning her small knife as a reward for asking. Realizing that he doesn't need Perrito's stick anymore, he tosses it off the boat, only for Perrito to instinctively follow it. Unfortunately, Perrito runs right into the clutches of Jack Horner, who has no qualms about shooting a puppy. Perrito also still had the map strapped to his back, making him the target of Goldilocks and her bears. What follows is a three-way fight between them, with Puss and Kitty managing to get Perrito out of danger, but losing the map to Goldilocks in the process. Puss hearing the bounty hunter's whistle during the fight leads to him abandoning his friends to run for his life, with Perrito managing to catch up to him.

Puss lies to take a breath, realizing how fast his heart is going. Perrito asks him what's wrong, but then realizes that Puss is having a panic attack. Having already told Puss that he always wanted to be a therapy dog, he walks up to Puss, presses his head against his stomach and lets him pet him. This succeeds in calming Puss down and he confesses to Perrito that he is on his last life and is utterly terrified of losing it despite his bravado. He also confesses that regrets leaving Kitty standing at the altar, explaining why she's so mad at him, not realizing that Kitty heard that last part and pretends to have just arrived. Upon telling them that Goldilocks has the map, the three of them plan to take it from her again. The plan of storming a reflection of the bears' cottage succeeds, but due to the map malfunctioning, Puss and Kitty don't realize that Perrito was left behind until they see him in the clutches of the bears. Puss is further incapacitated by him being trapped in a crystal after having touched the map, leading to him having to find a way out of the Cave of Lost Souls while Kitty saves Perrito. However, due to another encounter with the bounty hunter inside the cave, realizing that the bounty hunter is Death himself, Puss is not stopping for Kitty and Perrito when he finds a way out..

As Puss manages to reach the Wishing Star first and was just about to make his wish, Kitty interrupts him and scolds him for "betraying" her again, with Perrito not knowing what to say. Puss confesses to Kitty that he's on his last life and that Death is chasing him. All of their opponents make it on the wishing star before Kitty and Perrito could think of leaving and the star traps them inside the area under threat of disintegrating them, forcing them to fight for the wish. But after Goldilocks realizes that she doesn't need the wish after all and the heartless Jack Horner is trapped inside of his own bottomless bag, Perrito tells Puss that he doesn't need nine lives to be happy with the one he has left. But then he witnesses Death entering the arena, with Puss explaining that he's here for him. Death traps Puss inside an arena of his own, with Kitty and Perrito being forced to watch him fight. But Puss' lives flashing before his eyes remind him of the happy times he spend with his friends and realizes that Perrito was right, he doesn't want to run away. He wants to spend his last life with his friends, to which Death willingly gives up, realizing that Puss is no longer the disrespectful braggart he chased for so long.

Jack Horner's return and initial success at getting the map is quickly interrupted by Perrito running up to him, with Puss fearing for his life this time. However, Perrito manages to imitate Puss and Kitty's puppy-dog-eyes to perfection, despite it not working on Jack, it keeps him distracted for long enough for Puss and Kitty to attack him and force him to let go of the map. Teaming up with Goldilocks to tear the map into pieces, the heroes watch as the arena crumbles and then get out before it collapses around Jack Horner, killing him. Watching the stars rain down, Puss ignores the idea of making a wish and instead suggests a proper name for Perrito. But Perrito is happy with that name, since his best friend gave him that name.

In the epilogue, Puss takes Perrito and Kitty on a journey to some new adventures with old friends.

Fanon
Some people like to view Perrito as Puss's Donkey, due to the energy of their friendship in the second Puss in Boots film.

Fandom
FAN FICTION