The Truth about Dogs and Cats

by Greendogg

Set some time after “The Photographer” Krypto and friends get quite a surprise when some unlikely characters wind up in the doghouse.

Author's notes: Written for the Planet forum September fan fic grab challenge. Prompt used was Comtretemps.

All characters, locations, etc… are owned by Warner Bros and DC comics. Fat and Albert and the Cosby kids are property of Bill Cosby. Fan-fic is basically a 'what if' story. Quotes in Kryptonian are italic. Has references to Superman the animated series as well as the movies and to Fat Albert and Bill Cosby.

For the most part, things had been on the quiet side in Smallville but for a certain Blonde and an orange tabby it was just another average day. Outside on the roof of the henhouse a Rhode Island Red rooster crowed. Streaky groaned at hearing the noise "Mrs. Kent has the worse alarm clock," he muttered. Just then the rooster crowed a second time; walking over to the slightly open window, Streaky stuck his head out. "Hey! Put a sock in it, we're trying to sleep here!" the orange tabby cat exclaimed. Martha walked into the room and tried to wake Kara up. "You plan on getting up anytime soon?" she asked.
"Ohh, come' on, Aunt Martha… give me a break, I got back from Tokyo at 1:00am." Kara said in a drowsy tone. Last night she and Streaky were in Tokyo helping Flash and Dr. Light track down Captain Boomerang. "Really? And I thought you'd be excited that today's the last week of your history exams." Martha admitted.
"School?!" Kara exclaimed.
"Aw shucks," she said with a yawn, "I better get going,"
"And I'll wait right…" Streaky stopped short.
"You too, Streaky" Kara told him; if she was getting up Streaky joined her.
"Just great," the cat of steel groaned. He stood up at the foot of the bed and stretched.
"I wonder if Krypto's up yet," he said to himself.

Meanwhile in Metropolis…

Krypto let out a loud yawn; by the time Friday rolled around he was ready for the weekend. "A quarter to seven already?" he asked.
"Out late again?" said Ryen,
Krypto swallowed some kibble before he answered. "Bat-hound and I tried to find Joker's latest hideout; I didn't get back until 3:00am," Krypto explained.
"And Superman?" Ryen asked.
"He and Batman went on the other side of Gotham to look for Joker too… but lately, I haven't heard much about Lex Luthor," Krypto explained.
"What do you think he's up to this time?" Ryen continued to ask.
"I haven't got a clue but Zod probably has something to do with it," said Krypto.
"So, any word from the black tornados?" Lois asked, Clark laughed at the nickname. "Actually… yes, they chased me around town for half an hour yesterday" he announced.
Lois took a sip of her coffee before she continued on.
"And what about Luthor?"
"Last time I checked he wrote an I.O.U. to Zod and I haven't seen him since." Clark explained. Currently, he and Lois had got through feeding their dogs and were about take them out for a quick walk.
"Might not be a bad idea to see where he went," Lois pointed out.
"Good point, let's just hope he's still in one piece." Clark agreed.

Over at Lexcorp things were the same or so it seemed. Lex panted as he walked into his office and shut the door behind him. "Phew! They'll never find me here," he sighed.
"Who'll never find you here?" a voice asked.
"Yikes!" Lex yelled and turned around,
"Oh, it's only you guys." he said, feeling relieved.
"Who or what are you hiding from?" Otis asked.
"I think Zod's up to something and I don't want to have anything to do with it," Lex explained.
"Why?" Ms. Teschmacher asked, she and Otis had got in early and had a spare key to Lex's office.
"Because if Superman gets away, he takes it out on me" Lex answered.
"Like how?" Ms. Teschmacher continued,
"Look at my golf clubs," said Lex as he held up a picture he had taken to send to the manufacturer since the clubs were still under warranty.
"Ouch," was all Otis could say.
"Which on is that?" he asked.
"Big Bernie, you have any idea how much this cost me?" Lex replied.
"Uh…" was the response he got back from Otis and Ms. Teschmacher.
"Never mind," Lex said with a loud sigh. "Well, at least Zod will never find me." He pointed out. The entire time they had been in Metropolis, Lex never showed Zod, Ursa or even Non were Lexcorp was.
"I think he went in here," said a voice from behind the door.
"Oh crap!" Lex groaned, Zod had found out where he was!
"That sounds like…" Ms. Teschmacher was cut off, "Exactly!" said Lex he then hid a nearby hiding place which was a closet.
"Don't tell 'em I'm here" he said quickly before closing the door.
"But…" Ms. Teschmacher sputtered.
Before she could say anything else Zod walked into the room followed by Ursa and Non.
"Hi guys," Otis greeted the trio,
"Have you seen Luthor?" he asked.
"Oh, he…" Ms. Teschmacher sputtered,
"He had to…" Otis stopped short when he heard a loud sneeze.
"Step aside," said Zod,
"Who? Me or Ms. Teschmacher?" Otis asked.
"Both of you," Ursa answered,
It didn't take long for Ms. Teschmacher and Otis to get out of the way.
"Please don't open the door," Lex said through his clenched teeth which slightly chattered.
"Hi there, so… you found me," Lex sighed once the closet door was open. There was an awkward silence but it only last a few seconds.
"Ok, anybody want a soda? Water? Shrimp cocktail?"
No one said a thing; "That's it, I'm fish bait." Lex said to himself.
"Look, n-now listen, you guys I… I… wait! This whole thing is not my fault, honestly. Just please don't hurt me," Lex begged.
"Alright, I'll let it go… but only this time." said Zod, "Thank you," was Lex's reply; the last thing he needed was Zod chewing him out. In an effort to change the subject, Lex tried to start a conversation.

"So… read any good books lately?"
"Forget I tried." he continued when nobody said anything. Looking over to the left, he noticed Ursa was looking at the wall beside his bookshelf.
Lex chuckled at the site, "How do you like my wall of shame?" he asked.
"Shame?" Ursa replied,
"It's just where I put up photos of… well, let's just say things don't always go as planned," Lex explained.
"What's this one?" Ursa asked as she pointed at one of the pictures.
"Oh, that was in Lake Tahoe last summer; I had gone fishing with some friends of mine. It rained and we were all soaked and didn't catch one fish." said Lex.
Ursa snickered, "You wear a toupee?" she had noticed Lex in another picture holding a wig in his hand.
At hearing this he scratched his head; feeling embarrassed.
"Yes, the wind blew it off that day," Lex explained.
"What happened to your hair? I mean if you had any," Zod asked.
"Freak accident as a kid, it's a long story." Lex replied.
It was obvious Zod and the others had calmed down somewhat; but things weren't quiet for long. "Really?" Ursa asked, she glanced at Lex for a moment and started laughing along with Ms. Teschmacher.
"What are you two giggling about?" Lex asked the duo.
"Oh nothing it's just girl humor," Ms. Teschmacher explained.
"I don't want to know," said Lex, obviously Ms. Teschmacher told Ursa some kind of joke about his toupee.

It didn't take long for Lex and the others to notice Zod, Ursa and Non were leaving.
"Uh…where are you three going?" Otis asked, "To look for Kal-El," Zod answered.
"Oh, well have fun." said Lex.
"Hold on… you're coming with us," Ursa announced.
"Oh no, not me, not good o'l Lex Luthor; you can forget about th…" before he could finish his sentence, Non grabbed Lex by his suit jacket.
"All right! I guess it wouldn't hurt… see you, Otis… Ms. Teschmacher I'm expecting a phone call from a realtor in Central city so if you could…" Lex stopped short when Non yanked his jacket.
"I got it covered," Ms. Teschmacher called out to him as the Kryptonian trio left the building.
"So, what do you think?" Otis asked before taking a bite out a jelly doughnut he brought with him. Ms. Teschmacher blinked for a moment, "Eh, he'll be ok." She said regarding Lex.

Later that day…

Jimmy was walking down Concord Lane whistling the Sanford and Son theme song. "This is great, the sun is out, the birds are singing and everyone's out on their lunch break. What could possibly go wrong?" he asked himself. He was about to cross the street when Jimmy noticed Zod and the others standing on a nearby billboard.
"Aw nuts… maybe if I'm real quick they won't notice me." He said and started going in the opposite direction. "See anything?" Zod asked.
"Nope… wait, there's that Olsen kid," Ursa answered.
"He probably knows where Kal-El is, let's go." said Zod.
"So far, so good." Jimmy sighed. Just as he got around the corner the red head stopped in his tracks.
"Hey there…" he said nervously. "Uh-oh" Jimmy tried to run but Ursa blocked him using her super speed. "Going somewhere?" she asked.
"Now what?" Jimmy asked himself.

A few minutes later…

"Help! Somebody help me!" Jimmy yelled, hoping Superman would hear him.
He ran down an alley but noticed that there was a dead end.
"Oh come' on!" he groaned. Letting out a sigh, the young photographer realized he had no choice but to climb over the fence.
"Here goes nothing,"
Jimmy climbed over the fence and jumped down, landing on the other side.
"Made it, yes!" he said triumphantly and quickly headed back to Daily Planet.

"He went this way! The tracks stop here and…" Zod stopped short when he heard Ursa groan.
"What's the matter with you?" he asked.
"I don't feel good all of a sudden," the female Kryptonian answered.
"Come to think of it, neither do I." Zod admitted. Non groaned, obviously he felt sick too.
"So, what now?" Ursa asked as she leaned against a brick wall.
"That kid couldn't have gone very far." Zod told her.
"Well, if you plan to look for him, I'll sit this one out." Ursa announced.
Still feeling uneasy Zod decided to call it quits just this once.
"You know, taking a break wouldn't be so bad." He looked down and noticed a ruby red rock on the ground.
"Interesting rock,"
"It must've fell off a truck," said Ursa.

The next day, the trio got quite a surprise when they woke up the next morning.
Ursa stretched once she woke up; "Oy… my head," she groaned. "Huh? Wha…? This is strange," Ursa noticed the sleeves on her shirt were too big. She went to scratch her cheek but noticed something odd about her hand. "Wait a minute…" Ursa looked at her arms more closely and yelped in fear. "No, there's no way that…" the female Kryptonian stopped and looked at a nearby mirror. "Aah!" she yelled. It didn't take long for Ursa notice there was definitely something different about her. She looked like a tricolored Foxhound! "How did…?" letting out a frustrated groan she covered her eyes for a moment. "I don't believe this." Ursa said after a minute or so. "Me either," said a familiar voice. "Zod? Hold on, you…?" Ursa started to ask; Zod nodded, "Me too," he said to Ursa regarding that he woke up and noticed he looked like German shepherd with tan and brown fur. "Where's Non?" the brown eyed female asked. Non stood in the doorway and yawned except now he looked like a wolf with a solid black coat. "Great," Ursa muttered and sat on the floor. "You know, Ursa you…" Zod stopped and chuckled.
"Stop it," Ursa growled and put her back to him.
"But, I don't understand… we were fine till we went in that alley." said Zod.
"The alley? That's it!" Ursa exclaimed.
"What's it?" Zod asked,
"Come' on!" said Ursa tried to walk but tripped letting out a small: "Oof!" in the process.
"First, I think we need some help," she told Zod.
"From who?" He asked in a puzzled tone.

Meanwhile walking around the pier were Krypto, Ryen and Streaky. "How's it going?" Streaky asked. "Ok I guess, I was just thinking about Stella; it's been a while since I've seen her." Krypto explained.
"Wait… isn't she Ursa's pet?" Streaky continued, "Yes, but she's also my friend. Last time I saw her was over a month ago," Krypto answered.
Just then he heard some barking from a distance.
"Huh? Stella!" Krypto barked when he turned around. The tan and white Foxhound quickly pounced on him. "Hey," she greeted the dogs and cat.
"Would ya look at that," said Ryen,
"It's been ages." said Stella.
"Actually, it's been over a month," Krypto replied.
"Wow, so how have you been doing?" Stella asked.
"Fine, where's Ursa?" Krypto continued.
"Last time I checked she was still asleep, I got up early to find you." Stella explained.
Krypto looked at a clock displayed in the window of a gift shop on the pier. "It's 8:30, she's got to be up by now." he pointed out.

"I'll wait here." Streaky offered.
"Oh no you don't," said Ryen as she grabbed the orange tabby by his collar.
"Why me?" he sighed.
As the four of them walked down the docks Krypto was in the middle of talking about one of his latest adventures. "So anyway, like I was saying there was this old lighthouse in Maine and…" he stopped short when he bumped into another dog.
"Hey mutt, watch it!" said a large German shepherd.
Krypto quickly shook himself, "Sorry, I…" he sputtered but then thought about what just happened. After blinking a couple times he stared at the three dogs in front of him.
"No… that's crazy." said Krypto.
"You can talk?!" Ursa asked in shocked tone.
"Well of course I can talk, who are you?" Krypto answered.
"Don't you recognize us?" the German shepherd asked.
"Krypto it's me," Ursa announced.

Krypto's eyes bucked, "Ursa?! But… you're… a dog!" he exclaimed.
Streaky sat on a crate and snickered at the whole thing. "Oh brother,"
"Quiet," Ryen whispered.
Scratching his ear, Krypto continued staring at the canine trio. After a while Streaky broke the silence.
"Are you sure that you're really Ursa?" he asked her.
"Yes!" she replied.
"They do seem familiar," Krypto pointed out.
Just then, he thought of something. "Wait a second…"
Krypto went over to Zod, Ursa and Non and sniffed all three of them. Once he was done; the dog of steel walked back over to Streaky.
"As hard as it is to believe, it's really them." He whispered.
Streaky replied with a dull: "Uh-huh,"
"I'm serious, they smell the same." said Krypto.
"So…?" Streaky started to say.
"Are you done?" Zod asked the duo, Streaky yowled, obviously shocked.
"Did he just…?"
"Speak in Kryptonian?" Krypto finished for him. The two superpets were in shock.
"Then it's true," Krypto concluded.
Ursa nodded.

There was an awkward silence but didn't last long; suddenly Krypto, Ryen and Streaky started laughing… the whole thing seemed hard to believe.
"Oh man… wow, you guys are really in the doghouse." Streaky said in a joking tone.
At hearing this Zod growled, but nonetheless he managed to keep his cool even though he didn't like being laughed at.
"Quit it guys," said Krypto. "That was pretty funny," he said to himself.
"What happened to you?"
"There was some kind red rock in an alley and…" Ursa was cut off.
"We were chasing after that Olsen boy," Zod explained.
"Jimmy?" Krypto asked,
"And there was this red rock…" before Zod could finish his sentence Krypto stepped in.
"So let me get this straight, you found a red rock in an alley?" he asked; Zod nodded.
"Did it make you sick?" Streaky asked.
"Yes," Ursa answered.
"That's red kryptonite!" Krypto exclaimed, "Krypto-what?" Zod sputtered in shock.
"Kryptonite. radioactive remnants of our home planet. Kryptonians are allergic to it," Krypto explained.
"Is that so?" said Zod.
"Yeah, I've had weird reactions to the stuff… like I was blind for a day," Streaky explained.
"I had amnesia." Krypto added,
"And I wore myself out helping both of them." Ryen admitted.
"Don't worry it's not permanent," Krypto pointed out.
At that moment Zod, Ursa and Non let out a collective sigh of relief.
"It only lasts 24 hours."
"24 hours?!" Zod and Ursa said simultaneously.
"You mean we're stuck like this for a whole day?" Zod asked.
"Yep," said Krypto; Zod sighed.
"Relax; being a dog isn't that bad." Krypto pointed out.
"Easy for you to say," Zod replied and started to leave but tripped over himself.
"I think you better stick around," said Krypto.
"This walking thing is hard." Zod confessed.
"Not really, it's no different, you just got two more legs… look, go left and right…" Krypto explained and gave the trio a short demo.
"See?"
After a minute or two, Zod tried to walk on all fours. "This is… interesting" he said.
"You'll get used to it," Krypto told him.
"I can't wait to see how this turns out," Streaky said to himself. Just then a large van drove by. "It's animal control," Krypto barked. "Sure is, good thing we got our tags and collars." Streaky pointed out.
"Well, not all of us" Krypto added.
"I got an idea, follow me."
As they started to leave Zod watched Krypto for a moment. "Hmph…" "Follow me" he said in a mocking tone. "Mongrel,"
"Would you quit it? He's just trying to help." said Ursa.
Non nodded in agreement.
"Fine," Zod sighed.

A short time later they had reached the apartment. "Just grab the bars," said Krypto.
"Why are we doing this again?" Ursa asked.
"If someone sees me using my abilities while I'm out of costume it'll draw unwanted attention." Krypto explained.
Ursa didn't reply but the whole thing did make sense. Letting out a small grunt as she climbed up; Ursa managed to over the window sill. "Ok, I'm in." she said, feeling relieved.
"Hey, w-wait Non hold it… ow!" Streaky sputtered. Next thing he knew he had landed on the fire escape with a loud: 'thump'. "I'll be fine." said the orange tabby before he shook himself. One by one the others got up the fire-escape; Zod sniffed for a second.
"What is it?" Ursa asked.
"I can smell Kal-El and that Lois Lane person," Zod answered.
"Of course you can smell them they live h…" Streaky was cut off by a loud: "Ahem."
"Never mind," the Supercat continued. It didn't take him long to realize he almost told Zod that the apartment they were in was where Clark and Lois lived!
"Listen, I need to get some things out of the guestroom, think you can behave yourselves for five minutes?" Krypto asked.
"Sure thing," said Stella.
Once Krypto left; Zod glanced at Stella giving her a: 'What did you say that for?' look.
"What?" the tan and white foxhound sputtered.
"Forget it," said Zod.

Krypto found a box in the guestroom closet. Whenever Kara or Lucy weren't visiting; Clark and Lois used the closet for storage.
"Got it," Krypto said triumphantly he went back to the living room and placed three collars on the floor.
"Here, the Lanes used to have German shepherds… Lois kept the collars but nobody's used them lately and the tags are blank." Krypto explained.
"So? What does that have to do with us?" Zod asked.
Krypto sighed, using his heat vision he engraved Zod, Ursa and Non's names on the tags.
"Try it on." he said to them. The three of them slipped on the collars, one blue, the second green and the third was black.
Once Zod slipped into the blue collar he went over to a mirror to look at himself.
"This is ridiculous, I look like somebody's pet," he said to Krypto.
"That's the idea, genius… in this city if you don't have a collar and tags, people assume you're a stray and take you to the shelter." Krypto explained.
Non wagged his tail as he tried on the black leather collar.
"See? Non likes it," Krypto pointed out.
"Whatever," Zod muttered.
"Look, Zod as long as you're here the least you could do is lighten up." Krypto continued.
"Lighten up?! Ohhh… you want to know something I…" Krypto cut Zod off.
"You what?"
"Guys…" Ryen started to say in effort to change the subject.
"I don't want to argue, all right? If you want, I can help you…" Krypto offered.
Things got quiet but not for long.
"I knew it, you're hopeless." said Krypto.

"Krypto, wait… Zod, what do you say?" Ursa asked.
After about five minutes Zod broke the silence; "Well, you talked me into it… still I'm not sure about this whole thing," he admitted.
"Seriously, it's not that hard." said Streaky.
"Yeah, you bark and do other stuff; it's not like going to Harvard." Krypto added.
"Go to where?" Zod asked.
"Harvard's a college. I'm surprised you haven't heard of it as long as you've been here." Streaky answered.
"Wasn't that one of the schools Kara got accepted into?" Ryen asked.
"Yeah, but she decided to go for UCLA." Streaky explained.
"Focus, people!" Krypto barked.
"Sorry," said Ryen.

"Now that you got tags and collars, we can move on to step two," Krypto announced.
"Step two?" Zod asked.
"It's thing I like to call K-9 101," Krypto replied.
"Newsflash, you're going to school." Streaky explained.
"School?" Zod and Ursa said in unison.

Sometime later they were all in Centennial park.
"Ok, before we start, I don't want to hear any yelling, complain…" Krypto stopped short.
"What about barking?" Zod asked.
"That's another thing, no sass." Krypto said firmly.
At hearing this Zod snorted, no doubt Krypto was serious.
"Lesson one… walking, watch…" Krypto walked a few paces before stopping.
"Now you try,"
"I can't believe I'm doing this," Zod said to himself. Getting up from his spot Zod slowly started to walk.
"Next," Krypto called.
Ursa stood up and tried to walk but stumbled and let out a small yelp.
"You can do it." Krypto encouraged.
"Done," said Ursa once she stopped.
"Relax, you'll get it… Non, it's your turn." Krypto pointed out.
Non simply shook his head,
"Come' on," Krypto insisted. Non sat down on the grass; he didn't seem interested in trying.

Just then, Krypto had an idea.
"Maybe this'll work" he said and held up a hotdog wrapped in wax paper.
"Where did you get that?" Zod asked.
"I know a guy," Krypto answered.
"Hey Non!" he barked.
Non looked up and saw the hotdog, he then proceeded to get up and walk over to Krypto.
"That's it, you got it…" said Krypto.
"Whoa!" he yelled as Non knocked him over causing a loud: 'thud'.
Krypto looked over at Ryen and Streaky. "Don't tell Bat-hound I was mauled by over 200 pounds of bulk, kay?"
The Pitbull mix and orange tabby cat both nodded.

After getting himself together Krypto went to lesson two.
"Next is fetch… watch and learn." said Krypto. A few feet away was a Golden retriever and his owner.
"Ready, Sparky?" he asked; the dog barked in response.
"Go get it,"
Sparky ran after the stick and brought it back.
"Good dog," said his owner and patted Sparky on the head.
"Oh no! You want me to go after that?" Zod asked.
"Yep." was Krypto's reply.
"Hold it, what about letting him run and get it?" Zod suggested.
"Why?" Krypto asked.
"He threw it," Zod pointed out as he watched the other dogs in the park playing fetch.
Krypto laughed, "You sound like Streaky. He says the same thing,"

1 hour later…

"How long have they been at this?" Timmy asked.
"About an hour," Ryen answered. She and Krypto had time off from the Daily Paw-print. Timmy had stopped by for a moment while running an errand for Pierre.
"One last thing you need to do is bark," Krypto explained.
"Bark?" Zod asked once more.
"Did I stutter?" Krypto replied.
A loud: "Ooh," could be heard from the rest of the group.
"Go ahead," Krypto insisted.
"Like this," said Timmy who stood up and demonstrated followed by Ryen then Krypto.
He and Zod were alerted by a loud bark.
"Non?" he asked
Turning around he noticed the large black wolf standing there.
"Nice one… now Ursa, if you would be so kind…" Krypto started to say.
Ursa lowered her ears and shook her head.
"I'll get back to you later," said Krypto.
He walked over to Zod for a second.
"Well…?"
"Um…" was the reply Krypto got back.
"It's easy…" Krypto said to him.
"Fine, I'll wait..." he sighed and sat down.
"You're wasting your time, you know…" said Zod.
"Hey, I got all day, Kal-El's at work." Krypto replied.
"I'm telling you the dude is a few pecans short of a pie," Streaky said in a joking tone.
"What did you just say?" Zod growled; he didn't like being teased or if someone cracked a joke that was directed at him.
"Uh-oh," was all Streaky could say.
"I'm waiting, go on and…" Krypto stopped short and barked loudly.
Feeling somewhat nervous, Zod gulped and let out a small bark.
After going over the basics, Krypto moved on to the last thing on the list.
"Now comes the fun part… chasing cats." Krypto explained to the trio.
"I'll go find some," Streaky offered; before he could walk off Krypto placed his paw on Streaky's tail.
"Thanks for volunteering," he said to Streaky.
"Say what?!" Streaky asked in shock; he had a rough idea of where this was going.
A few minutes later Ursa was chasing Streaky and barking at him.
Ryen and the others watched from a short distance away. So far the whole episode seemed to be not only interesting but entertaining. The Pitbull mix nearly fell off the bench laughing. Streaky yowled as Ursa closed in on him.
"This is better than TV," said Timmy,
"Ya got that right." Ryen agreed.

The chase lasted for about 30 minutes; both Streaky and Ursa were worn out.
"Did you have fun?" Krypto asked, he noticed Ursa had smiled briefly before stopping to pant. "Yes and No," she replied.
Streaky walked by the duo and hissed angrily; he didn't like being chased at all.
"That answer your question?" Ursa asked.
"Does Bill Cosby like pudding pops?" Krypto answered.

Once the group left the park they headed towards the alley behind Chez Joey's. The only one missing was Timmy who had gone back to the docks.
"What are we doing here?" Zod asked, he noticed Krypto just sitting there staring at the back door.
"Larry, hurry up and get rid of those unsold steaks!" said of the chefs.
"All right," Larry sighed, he opened the door and stepped outside.
"Hey Champ," he greeted Krypto and rubbed him behind the ears.
"I see you brought some friends." Larry added as he looked at the other dogs and cat.
He then opened a trash bag and emptied it out. "Enjoy." said Larry before he went back inside. Ursa blinked for a moment; feeling pretty dumbfounded by the whole thing.
"Oh, that's Larry; he knows me… I come by here twice a week," Krypto explained before he grabbed one of the steaks.
"Look, T-bone," said Ryen; she and Stella picked up their steaks and immediately took a bite out of them.
Streaky on the other hand, didn't seem too interested and found a can with couple sardines still in it. "What are you waiting for?" he asked Zod.

Streaky noticed that Zod was in the corner of the alley and hadn't touched the T-bone steak in front of him. "Ok, you made your point," he told Streaky. Once he made sure nobody was near him, Zod ripped off a piece of meat. While everyone else ate; Streaky noticed Zod wasn't the only one who was slow. "Don't like steak?" he asked.
Krypto swallowed before he said something.
"Don't like it? Streaky, had you known these three on Krypton you'd be surprised at…" Krypto stopped short when he noticed three sets of eyes staring back at him. One blue and the others were brown.
"I'll explain later," he whispered. Glancing over at Ursa he couldn't help but wonder why she hadn't eaten.
"Sure you aren't interested?" he asked her.
"You go on ahead." Ursa replied.
'Doggone it! I'm starving' she thought. The tricolored hound was alerted by her stomach growling. "Here goes nothing,"
It wasn't long before she bit the steak but stopped after a couple minutes.
"What's wrong with me?" Ursa wondered.
"It's your tail, turn around." said Krypto, Ursa did as she was told and saw her tail wagging.
"Would you look at that," she watched for a moment; obviously fascinated by this.
On the other end of the alley Zod was also watching and rolled his eyes.
. Krypto watched Zod for a moment. "Hmm…"
Feeling curious, he walked over and sat down.
"Something bothering you, Zod?" he asked; Zod swallowed some meat before answering.
"You really want to know?"
"Yes," said Krypto. He was determined to get to the bottom of this; even though Zod probably wouldn't tell him anything but then again… Standing up, Zod looked Krypto straight in the eye.
"Well, if you insist…"
"Uh-oh," Streaky and Ursa said simultaneously.

A few minutes later it wasn't getting any better.
"Why you…!" Krypto sputtered; he couldn't believe what Zod had just said to him.
"You said you wanted to know." he pointed out.
"But that was totally uncalled for," said Krypto.
"Pfft… whatever you say," Zod muttered
Krypto growled, he had managed to keep his cool but now he enough of this.
"Oh brother," Stella groaned.
"Do you think I enjoyed spending a day with a mangy mutt like you?!" Zod said out loud.
"If you didn't want my help all you had to do was say so… Jor-El was right, you're hopeless!" Krypto barked.
"Ursa, are you going to sit there or what?" Zod asked.
Ursa simply looked away, in an effort to stay out of it.
"Non?" Zod continued; he then noticed the large black wolf just scratched his ear.
"Hmph! Let's go," Zod got up and started to walk away followed by Non. Ursa sighed and went to catch up with them.
"That lousy dog…" Zod said in an undertone.
"What did you do that for?" Ursa asked.
"Do what…? That?" Zod replied.
"He was my friend," Ursa pointed out.
"And…?" was Zod's response.
"Forget it." said Ursa.
"I'll see you," she told Zod and ran off.
It didn't take long for Zod to snap out of it and bark.
"Ursa, wait!" he called. After a few minutes he realized that she and Krypto did have a point.

Letting out a frustrated sigh, Zod lowered his ears and tail.
"Come' on, Non." He said and continued walking.
Although they had gone their separate ways, Zod managed to find Krypto who was now heading down Main St. "Oh, look who's back…what is it this time?" Krypto asked. As much as he didn't want to say it; Zod decided to go ahead and get the whole thing off his chest. "I was thinking… maybe we got off on the wrong foot." Zod admitted.
"I'm listening," Krypto answered.
"And… what I mean is I'm…" Zod mumbled at the end of his sentence.
Krypto tilted his head, "D-did you… just say I'm sorry?"
"Let's leave it at that," Zod replied.
"Sure, apology accepted." said Krypto.
Although they had patched things up something…er… someone was missing!
"Where's Ursa?" he asked.
"She ran off," Zod answered.
"Then we better start looking," Krypto said to Zod.
"I hope she's ok, oops!" Zod sputtered realizing he said that out loud.
Krypto looked at him and laughed,
"Zod, if I didn't know better I'd say you were in love with Ursa."
"Me? Please, she's just a friend." said Zod.
Streaky replied with a dull: "Uh-huh,"
"He's denying it fellas." Krypto pointed out.
Non nodded in agreement.
"Cut it out!" Zod barked.
"Zod and Ursa sitting in a tree K-I-S-S…" Zod cut Streaky off.
"Shut up!" his ears were now pointed forward. Lifting his head up, Zod sniffed the air.
"It's her!" he exclaimed and ran off, following Ursa's scent.
"Hey, wait up!" Streaky called out.

As he ran down Main St; Zod noticed Jimmy over at a nearby news-stand and skidded to a halt.
'That Olsen kid' he thought and began to bark.
"Hey there," Jimmy greeted him and patted Zod on the head.
The male German shepherd shook himself.
"No… I…" he tried to speak but it all sounded like a bunch of barks to Jimmy.
"Sorry, I don't speak dog," sad Jimmy.
"Of course," Zod said to himself, Jimmy was right.
Well, that didn't work; Zod then saw some roses at a nearby vendor; getting an idea he went over to them.

At the park it was another story. "After that, I left…" Ursa explained, she just got through telling Ryen about what happened after she left the alley with Zod and Non.
Ryen laughed for a brief moment,
Ursa turned around and tilted her head.
"What's so funny?" she asked.
"I just thought of something hilarious but… nah, forget it." said Ryen.
"Tell me," Ursa insisted.
"I was looking at you and…" Ryen stopped short and laughed.
"I think it's obvious,"
Ursa raised an eyebrow at this,
"You sound like you're in love with…" Ryen was cut off.
"Don't say it," Ursa growled.
"Step one… denial," Ryen whispered to Stella.
"I can hear you, you know that right?" Ursa asked.

Krypto sat and waited for Zod to come back; so far he didn't see or hear any sign of him. "Think he found her?"
"Maybe." said Streaky
Non just shrugged his shoulders looking at Krypto with a "Beats me" expression.
"It's been 20 minutes, let's check it out," Krypto suggested. He tugged on Streaky's collar for a moment.
"Ouch! hold up." the cat of steel said to him.
"Streaky, we're going." Krypto announced.
The orange tabby groaned, "I really want to see what happens to Dumb Donald." He told Krypto. "Later," said the Kryptonian dog.
They had been sitting in front of an electronic store and Streaky was watching Fat Albert and the Cosby kids on one of the TVs in the window.
Meanwhile, Zod continued to follow Ursa's scent.
"This rose is the pits," he said through his clenched teeth. Though the thorns didn't puncture his tongue it did bother him a little.
Just then, his ears perked up at hearing a loud howl. Turning to the left; he went to find out where the noise was coming from.
"Do you take requests?"
Ursa nearly jumped out her skin and turned around.
"Oh, it's you again."
Ignoring the comment, Zod placed the rose in front of Ursa's paws.
The female hound looked at the rose then at Zod.
"I hope you can forgive me." He said to her.
Ursa sniffed the rose and spoke.
"Where did you get it?"
"Wasn't easy," said Zod.

15 minutes ago…

"Hey, you crazy dog! Come back with my rose!" the stand owner yelled.

Now…

'If Nam-Ek and my other friends saw me like this, I'd probably never hear the end of it.' Zod thought to himself. He looked at Ursa with a pleading expression; 'But then again… she is one of my best friends…'
"You all right?" Ursa asked; Zod quickly snapped out of his thought.
"Y-yes I'm fine and… Ursa…" the brown eyed female looked up at hearing her name.
"I'm sorr…" Ursa cut him off.
"I forgive you,"
"Glad that's over," said Zod whose tail began to wag.
"Me too," Ursa agreed.
Just then Zod's paw accidently touched hers. Letting out a surprised yelp, Ursa moved her right paw away. "Sorry," Zod said nervously and grinned.
In the background Krypto and the others were laughing.
At that moment Zod and Ursa turned around lowering their ears and tails; obviously embarrassed.

"Does Ursa still hate you?" Krypto asked.
"No, not at all." Zod announced, he glanced over at Ursa who was lapping up some water at a nearby drinking fountain.
"She's so beautiful."
"Have you ever told her that?" Krypto continued to ask; Zod nearly tripped.
"No," he replied.
Krypto snickered.
"Nice to see everyone's getting a kick out of this," Zod said sarcastically.
"Ya think? All I'm missing is a camera and some popcorn," Krypto replied.
"Oh and uh, watch your back." He warned.
Watch your back? What did he mean by that? Zod soon had his answer when he heard a rustling sound coming from behind him.
"Uh-oh," he sputtered; next thing he knew Ursa pounced on him.
"That's it!" he growled and began to chase her. Both of them barking as they ran.
Once he had her cornered Zod knocked the female hound over.
Ursa tugged at one of Zod's ears, growling playfully.
Watching from a distance was Jimmy Olsen who snapped a picture of the duo.
"This is one for the book," he said with a laugh.
"Thanks for the help. Guess I'll see you…" Ursa stopped short, "Around?" Krypto finished for her.
"Yes," she said; Zod barked for her to come.
"Bye," Ursa barked to Krypto.
"That went well." He said to Ryen. Of all the awkward moments or contretemps… this was one of the album.
It wasn't long before he heard a small 'thud' obviously Ursa still had a hard time walking on four legs.
"Almost." said Krypto.

That night Zod spotted Ursa sitting outside.
"What are you up to this time?" he asked.
"Oh, nothing special," she replied.
Lifting her head up Ursa let out a loud howl; Zod chuckled and joined in.
Non also stepped outside, tail wagging and decided to howl as well.
"Aw, shut up!" shouted one of the neighbors.
On the other side of town Krypto heard the howling as well and smiled. It didn't take long for him and Ryen to howl back.
"Oy, this is gonna be a long night." Streaky muttered.
The next day was totally different. Ursa woke up and noticed she was back to normal!
At the same time she realized the collar she wore was still around her neck. She later went to find Krypto; "Krypto guess what, I… oh, that's right I don't speak dog."
As Ursa stroked his fur Krypto briefly licked her cheek.
"Cut it out," said Ursa; she then noticed Zod and Non waiting for her.
Looking back at Krypto she winked. The dog of steel barked a: "Good bye" before she took off.
"Now what?" Streaky asked. He then noticed Timmy staring at him.
"Here we go again." He muttered.
A few minutes later it was back to the same old thing. "Better than TV?" Ryen asked. She and Krypto were currently watching Timmy chase Streaky.
Krypto then did an impression of Fat Albert.
"I'll say… hey, hey, hey…"

The end…

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