Kayla's parents were finishing decorating the house when Kayla and a group of people (including Cassie) came rushing towards them. Cassie was being carried by presumably Lucy, her eyes visibly red, the sight of which made the couple drop what they were doing and tend to her and the rest of the group.

"Cassie!" Kayla's mother checked any injuries on the youngest of the group before moving on to the others.

"Kayla, what happened?" Kayla's father checked for any injuries on Kayla herself, who rolled her eyes in annoyance.

"A certain crazy ex-boyfriend of mine attacked us in the town and hurt Cassie."

"Well, are you three okay?" Kayla's mother glanced over Cassie's shoulder before realizing in terror, "Wait, where's Marshall?"

"Marshall fought back and gave us time to escape."

"He exposed himself?"

"Yeah, I know."

"M-Marshall?" Lucy turned to her former friend in confusion, "That was your dog? Your dog who did...all that?"

"Yeah, I know," Kayla repeated as she nodded, "It's a long story."

HONK-HONK!

The group either turned in alarm and jumped in fright at the car horn. Their alarm and fright eventually subsided to relief and confusion as a black 1992 Ford Crown Victoria pulled up to the curb. A moment later, a young Chinese-American woman with dark brown eyes, hazel eyes, and an all-black set (leather jacket above a sweater, skinny jeans, and combat boots) stepped out and approached them.

Kayla placed up her best smile as she approached her former best friend, "You know for a highly skilled member of law enforcement, you suck at civilian garb, Karen."

"As if you could do any better," Karen returned the sentiment, "And what's that supposed to mean?"

"Look at yourself, specifically your car. The Crown Vic is the most commonly used car for undercover cops, so you will be screwed almost immediately."

"I had the same car since I was 19 years old and never had a problem with it. Your point?"

"My point is, for an undercover cop, you suck at the undercover part."

"At least I make an effort. So...why exactly did you call me here?"

"It's a long story," Kayla repeated once again as her expression turned slightly somber.

WOOF-WOOF!

The group turned to find Marshall running down the street and towards the house, heavily panting and slowing down to a stop. Well, he tried to, anyway, as he ended up slipping on ice on the way and sliding on his rear towards the group. He then fell down and landed on his stomach in front of Kayla, who helped him up.

"Are you okay, Marshall? What happened to Garrett and the others?"

"I don't think..." Marshall panted, "...they got that far. The Sheriff managed to arrest them before they could chase us. That Christina...was pretty...nice, though."

"Yeah, that's Christina for you," Kayla chuckled as Karen's jaw began to hang agape from behind her, "Come on, let's go inside."

As Kayla's parents ushered Kayla and Marshall inside, the remaining group exchanged utterly bewildered looks with the exception of Cassie, who only smiled at her older sister before following the four of them. Lucy herself followed suit, followed by Jack and Karen, who felt immediately bombarded by a series of unfortunate events she absolutely had no control. Regardless, she was the last to enter inside Kayla's residence, joining the rest of the group inside the kitchen, where Kayla's parents double-checked for any injuries sustained by any member. She took a seat between Lucy and Kayla, who lifted Marshall onto the counter for her parents to check afterward.

"Kayla," Karen reached into her jacket pocket, "Can I make a call?"

"If you're going to call one of your police buddies, I doubt it's going to help," Kayla sat back down, "I think jurisdiction works differently here."

"I think we're located within the same district. Besides, it shouldn't hurt to try."

After a moment, Kayla replied, "Maybe...maybe not..."

It was all Karen needed to make the call, briefly exiting the room as Jack quickly entered it, having used the bathroom to wash himself up. Taking a seat beside Kayla, she watched her talk with Cassie and Marshall, wearing a small but genuine smile on her face as she did so.

"You okay, Cass?"

"A little better," Cassie managed a smile despite her pain, "Thanks, Kayla."

"I take it you know Cassie too?" Jack smiled, prompting Kayla to turn to face him and smile as well.

"Yeah, she's kinda the little sister I never had. You're Jack, right?"

Jack's eyes mildly widened in surprise, "Oh, yes! Yes, I am. You know me?"

"Only by reputation," Kayla shrugged, "Cassie talks about you a lot."

"She does?"

"Yep, although I expected a more...buffer person than the one sitting before me."

"Was that...a compliment?"

"We'll see," Kayla smiled as Karen re-entered the room, "So, Karen...who did you call?"

"A friend of mine on the force. I expained most of the situation to him...with the exception of the talking dog."

"Thanks, I owe you one. We can't anyone else know about Marshall."

"What's the point?" Lucy scoffed, "Almost everybody in town knows about the talking dog, especially Sheriff Nelson. For all we know, he could be approaching from outside and knocking on the front door."

"Oh, where's your optimism, Lucy?" Kayla's mother chuckled in amusement.

"Drowning in Amaretto Coffee," Lucy snarked, "and how do you know my name?"

"I'm Kayla's adoptive mother, Miss Clarke," Kayla's mother retorted, "and as her adoptive mother, I'm also one of her loyal confidants besides my boyfriend. Plus...my name was also Lucy."

"Oh. Well then..." Lucy #2 blinked in bewilderment before outstretching a hand for Lucy #1 (Kayla's mother) to shake, "I'm Lucy. Lucy Clarke. And was?"

Lucy#1 smiled and shook said hand, "Lucy. Lucy Killian. One of my many names."

At that statement, James entered the room, "Lucy."

"Yes?" Lucy Killian and Lucy Clarke looked up before the latter realized the joke she fell for behind the former. Cassie and Marshall stiffled incoming giggles, Kayla rolled her eyes, and Jack and Karen just looked confused. James shook his head before approaching the group.

"I received a call from Sheriff Nelson. He's not going to arrest anyone or press charges. He just wants a talk."

"And it never occurred that anything and everything goes bad with the phrase "They just want a talk"?" Kayla scrunched her face.

"Hilarious, Kayla. Regardless, I know Ray. He's a reasonable person."

"Reasonability has its limits, Dad."

"We'll see."

Kayla sighed, "And when does the Sheriff want this talk?"

"When we're ready. In the meantime..." James turned to Marshall and approached him with a now stoic expression, alarming the group and the Dalmatian himself. His ears pricked as he whimpered in fear before James allowed a small smile and patted him on the head.

"Good job, Marshall. I don't necessarily condone your actions, but...you kept my daughter and her friends safe. For that, I'm grateful."

Marshall returned the smile as he sighed in relief, "Oh! Of course. Marshall reporting for duty, sir."

"Ugh, this is too much for my liking," Lucy stood up and rubbed her head before pacing around in faux disgust, "So...it turns out the talking dog is real. Why am I surprised?"

"You didn't believe her?" Jack's eyebrows knitted together.

"Would you?" Lucy Clarke shot back before huffing, "Do you guys have some hot chocolate?"

"With whipped cream, marshmallows, or both?" Lucy Killian smirked before she added, "Or without whipped cream, marshmallows, or both?"

After momentarily exchanging glances with Cassie, Lucy's expression sweetened and soured as she turned to answer.

"Both."

As the group shared a laugh at Lucy's expense, Kayla turned to Marshall and rubbed his head.

"Well, Marshall, it looks like the first few weeks turned out to be a non-disaster."

"You said it, Kayla. Although..."

"You're still worried?"

"Yeah. What are they going to say to me? What am I going to say to them? And...what if I don't want to leave?"

"Oh, Marshall..." Kayla pulled him close, "Don't worry. If Ryder decides to take you back, I won't hold it against him. I'll just make sure that we'll arrange visits to you and the rest of the PAW Patrol in Adventure Bay."

Her eyebrows knitting together in confused realization, Kayla briefly pulled away from the hug to face Marshall.

"Come to think of it...where is Adventure Bay?"

Marshall opened his mouth to respond before closing it as he was stumped by the question, "Huh. You know...I'm not sure."

"Hmm. Oh well, we'll figure it out eventually."

Kayla pulled Marshall back close to her as her parents served the group hot chocolate. As she drank down her drink, her mind drank down rather unsavory thoughts.

Should I call up the rest of the group? I barely kept in touch with Lucy, and I called back Karen no more than two hours ago. Is calling the rest of them a bad idea?

. . .

I'll figure it out eventually.

Sweeping said thoughts under the rug for now, Kayla slowly smiled and decided to focus on what she had...for now.


In Adventure City, an African-American woman with dark brown hair tied into Ghana Braids; light brown eyes that were magnified by large circular-framed glasses; a white lab coat above a light-blue, long-sleeve, button-up, collared shirt and green overalls; a pair of blue Converse sneakers; and a pearl earring on each side multitasked between typing on her numerous computers and overseeing the development of her upcoming passion project. She had absolutely no idea how her professor's assignment of singling out the genetic differences between humans and canines transformed into a highly advanced machine that could potentially transform actual humans into actual canines, but she was mildly proud of herself regardless. Even so, it was merely playing second fiddle to the primary: a free-floating, gyroscopically balanced, remote-controlled weather containment and analysis apparatus.

In other words, it could fly around and suck up clouds, then bring them back to the lab she worked in so she and her team could study them. A...Cloud Catcher in Layman's terms.

"Then why didn't you say that, Miss Wilson?"

"Where's the fun in that, Professor Kirby?" Kendra shrugged in response as she turned to activate the Cloud Catcher.

"Well, Miss Wilson, you took my advice on your assignment quite literally," The Professor chuckled in amusement.

"Success only favors those who experiment both figuratively and literally."

Pushing buttons and pulling levers, the two teams watched as the Cloud Catcher began to take to the skies and perform its duties. When the device was high enough in the air, it began pulling in nearby clouds that (along with the building inches of snow) blanketed Adventure City, offering a single spotlight of sunlight that shone upon the laboratory, enchanting the passerbys witnessing the spectacle. While Professor Kirby's colleagues were impressed by the demonstration, the Professor himself was...also impressed, but mostly worried.

"Hmm... Impressive. Most impressive, Miss Wilson. And most dangerous. Most dangerous indeed."

"I know what you're thinking, Professor Kirby," Kendra assuaged her mentor's fears as she pulled an orange remote with a red button and a green-to-red meter, "Success also favors those who practice safety protocols and don't ignore them."

"Given your extensive track record for safety protocols, that shouldn't be a problem with you."

"No, sir. Not at all..."

"Then keep up the good work, Kendra...while toning down the bad."

As Professor Kirby and his colleagues left, Kendra released a deep breath when she made sure that they were out of earshot. Turning back to her secondary pet project, she frowned in realization.

The Professor's right. Why am I taking his advice a little too literally?