The Dalmatian house is eerily quiet. A small chime rings throughout the halls, a couple of sighs breeze out after. Several Dalmatians lay on top of one another, soothed by the sound. Deepak smiles a wiggly smile as he looks around the room. He has always wondered what makes caretaking so difficult for his siblings when all it takes is practicing mindfulness to calm a room of dogs.

Meanwhile, the attic is populated by a couple of unseen dogs that snuck away from the main group. Dolly, Dylan, Dante, Dawkins, Duchess and Roxy. The group sit in a large circle as the afternoon sun beams onto them, illuminating the area for them. Dolly sits with a confident smirk, Dylan stares at the ground with a pensive gaze. Dante slouches out of the sunlight's range, Dawkins readjusts his Princess Positron eyewear. Duchess crosses her paws and raises her nose into the air, saliva dribbles from Roxy's mouth as she occasionally glances at Dylan.

"First off, let's thank Deepak for taking over solo today," Said Dylan. Everyone in the room waves a paw. "Okay, let's go over the plan one more time. So, team A, also known as 'Apology Puppies', consists of Dante, Dolly, and…Roxy…going over to Clarissa's and reasoning with her to at least hear me out. I'd go myself, but the plan requires team-"

Roxy interrupts. "ERM…Dylan?"

"…What?" Dylan huffs.

"Well, umm, y'see…WHYwouldIbeontheteamtalkingtoClarisserifIcausedthisPROBLEM?" Roxy gasps for air. "A-and, I really wanted to apologize, Dylan…"

"It's no worries, Roxy," Dylan sighs. "It was all a big misunderstanding. And things probably wouldn't go so well if I were on team A alongside you, so…yeah."

"Oh. Right, okay," Roxy nods.

"Moving on…" Dylan pulls out collars, pet fur dye, and a punk-rock album. "While Apology Puppies sets the stage, team B, aka, 'Drab Dogs', will go out and deliver a 'message' to Portia. Drab Dogs consists of Dawkins, Duchess, and 'Danny', my, uh, alter-emo."

Dolly stifles a chuckle. "Heh, still can't believe you went punk for Portia once."

"Like you can bark, 'Camilla'. Where's your human?" Dylan elbows Dolly playfully.

"Fair point…" She rolls her eyes.

Dawkins clears his throat. "Well, that's tickety-boo for you, Dylan, but what about Duchess and I?"

"UGH!" Duchess screeches. She clears her throat, attempting the stuffiest voice she can manage. "One cannot be caught in gaudy garbs such as those! …Did I get ya?" She eyes the other dogs.

Dylan groans. "Hilarious, Duchess. Don't worry, I got y'all covered. Dante, Fergus, and Triple-D will take care of it."

Boosh!

Suddenly, Fergus bursts out of boxes filled with old newspapers and books. At the same time, Triple-D (well, mostly Déjà Vu) kicks open the attic's entrance, and the triplets do their iconic pose. Dylan tells Dawkins and Duchess about the intense regime he had to endure to embody the Dalmatian formerly known as "Dylan".

"B-b-but Dylan…!?" Dawkins protests. "I can't have another sacred item ripped away from me! There must be another way!"

"Eh, sorry, Dylan's not home…" Dylan replaces his collar while Triple-D dyes his ear spots hot pink. He leans over towards Dawkins' ear. "Don't worry, just let them believe you care about one of the Fetches more than you do!"

Dawkins stands on his hindlegs, paws curled into fists. "But I do care about my precious Fetches!"

"Whatevs. Bringing out the new, less dorky you is what we want…"

Dawkins whimpers. "Ohhh…you really owe me after this, Dylan!"

As Triple-D finishes up Danny's makeup, Dawkins and Duchess beg on their hindpaws as Dante and Fergus crush a Fetch and one of several teddy bears Duchess owns. Their usual signature collars are tossed aside; Dawkins is replaced with a collar similar to a denim vest, and Duchess' is replaced with vampire bat-symbol collar. Finally, each Dalmatian is quizzed and conditioned on answering most questions with "whatevs". After a grueling two hours (snack break included), Dylan, Dawkins and Duchess respectively become: Danny, the empty void, Deviant, the bane of logic, and Dreary, the dog who thrives in dullness.

Dante smiles. "Dog, we're good!" He high-paws Fergus. "Who knew Dawkins and Duchess- oh, I mean, Deviant and Dreary, could look so…DOOMED."

"Whatevs," Danny replies.

"Irrelevant." Deviant huffs.

All the dogs in the room turn to look at Dreary. She barely looks up at them. "…Meh."

Dolly leans back in confusion. "…Right. Guess it has to be super convincing. Alright, team A's on the job!"

"And team B will get to it," Danny scowls. "Just when the night is nice and pitch-black. When Portia comes over, we get Dimitri's whoopee cushion and use it. Apparently, it's filled to the brim with old bath water, like, REALLY old…heh, I think you all can see where this is going…"

Everyone except the threemos and Dante wince and cringe at the thought of murky old bath water crashing into them in a wave. Normally, Dylan would never resort to extreme measures to get back at someone. But Danny would.

Apology Pups exit the attic and make their way downstairs as the sun shines over the Dalmatian home. Knowing Clarissa, she is likely to be preparing for her mid-day nap, so team A needs to move quickly. They sneak past piles of super-relaxed Dalmatians, not making so much as a peep as they make it to the back door. There is no real reason to sneak; Dolly just figures it's fun to act stealthy despite her team's job being anything but. With a tiny squeak from the door, Dolly, Dante, and Roxy gently close the door behind them.

Apology Pups crawl under the fence to Clarissa's backyard. Dolly and Dante scuttle across the grass close to the sliding door, making sure they're unseen by Hugo or Clarissa. Roxy notices an acorn on the ground below the bird feeder, and her eyes grow huge. Dolly and Dante wave their paws, trying to stop her, but…

WHAM! Clang-tiss!

The bowl of acorns lands on Roxy's head as a squirrel (definitely nut-ahem, NOT Sid) scurries away with a mouthful of them. Dante and Dolly face-paw while Roxy stumbles around.

"WAH!" Clarissa jumps up from her sofa. "Intruder! Intruder! Police!"

Hugo runs into the room. "Clarissakins, what's wro-oh, my! Ms. Smith! Other neighbors! Your dogs are mucking up my backyard!" He runs out of the front door to the Dalmatian house, but ends up tripping over a chew toy and landing on a conveniently placed skateboard. Hugo's sent flying down the street!

However, back at Clarissa's home, she stops yipping and looks down at the dogs in her backyard. She recognizes Dolly and assume Dante to be another of the Dalmatians, but she cannot figure out the dog with a bowl on its head. That is, until the bowl is removed. Clarissa immediately huffs, and turns her backside to the door as she begins waddling away. Dolly yells for her, pleading for a chance to talk for a minute. After enough bickering, Clarissa finally decides to open her sliding door. Her nose seems runny and breathing is shaky…

"What's SHE doing here?" Clarissa sniffles, glaring at Roxy. "If you've come to gloat, one suggests you vacate the premises before the authorities become involved."

"Woah, Clarissa! No need for that," Dolly waves her paws. "I brought Roxy and Dante to apologize to you." The members of Apology Pups nod together.

Clarissa comes outside into the backyard, closing the sliding door. "Tch. Apologize for what, exactly? For nabbing that Dalmatian away from moi? He obviously believes you were the better partner, Rottweiler."

Roxy scratches a stray acorn out of her fur. She moves closer to Clarissa, towering over the Corgi trying her best to look snooty. "Not TRUE, luv!" Roxy backs away slightly when she hears Clarissa's growls. "I-I know I'm prolly the LAST dog you wanna see, BUT I didn't know he's spoken for, honest!"

"…We are…were not official," Said Clarissa. "But one assumed better of Dylan! He should have told you the moment you let loose your gaping maw to nearly swallow him whole! Gah, I despise that about him sometimes, ooh!"

"Dang, you really have it bad for my bro, huh?" Dolly looks at Clarissa with careful concern.

Clarissa stares at the grass. "One is frustrated! H-how could he do that to moi after everything that's happened?"

"To be fair, it's not like you're totally innocent here," Dante sits up, finally deciding to join in. "Oh, sorry, that was a bit rude, wasn't it?"

"Hmph. One was wondering why you were brought along. Well? Out with it, Dalmatian." Clarissa sits in the grass.

Dante clears his throat. "To make things simple, I'll just say it: this situation is my fault. Yeah, I orchestrated the events that lead to Roxy nearly scraping my brother's face off." Clarissa leans forward, grimacing at the black Dalmatian. "B-but it wasn't my idea to ruin this for you and Dylan, honest!"

"Oh? What was your 'idea', you…sooty dog, you!"

"My plan was to tell Dylan immediately so we could stop this from happening. I'm not gonna avoid it, I definitely helped make this happen. I actually don't mind you and Dylan much at all. You can blame that on Portia, Spencer, and those two dogs you hang with."

Clarissa, Roxy, and Dolly blink twice. Clarissa shakes her head. "You're suggesting Prunella and Arabella had something to do with this?"

"Something!? Besides possessive Portia, those two made old you seem nice in comparison!" Dante shivers.

Clarissa stares at Dante with a fierce expression for a while. The yard grows totally silent, sans the sounds of nearby vehicles and pet humans passing through Dalmatian Street. Suddenly, Clarissa stands up. She waddles back into the house, slamming the sliding door shut behind herself. Dolly stands to intervene, but decides against it as Apology Pups huddle in a circle. After a solid few minutes, Dolly decides it will be best to leave the situation up to Dylan. But as Apology Pups begin leaving…

Swoosh-clink!

The sliding door slams wildly. Clarissa, holding a tray with a teapot and teacups in her mouth, stands in the doorway. She carefully waddles out, gently placing the tea set onto the grass. Dolly, Dante and Roxy glance at each other confused.

Clarissa laps up tea from one of the cups. "Dolly. One desires to believe you three, to believe that the ordeal was a massive misunderstanding. Yes, yes, one wants to believe it so. But one cannot," Dolly attempts to protest, but Clarissa raises a paw. "UNLESS you three agree to ones pledge, that is."

Roxy tilts her head and drool spills into the grass. "Pledge? WHAT kind, Clarisser?"

"Be silent! One hasn't explained the pledge yet!" Clarissa yells. "…Anyway, the pledge. For I, Clarissa Corgi, to have absolute certainty the claims made here are the truth, you three must allow one to pour tea down your backs without verbal or physical protest."

Dolly's eyes go wide. "You're kidding, right?"

Clarissa furls a brow. "Pah! You will know when I jest. This is ones surefire method…do you three agree or not?"

"UMM…I guess…? Hope my HUMANS don't mind…" Said Roxy.

Dante nods. "Whatever it takes to un-doom my bro's relationship."

"Well, it's tea anyway. How bad could it be? You're on, Corgi!" Dolly smirks.

The members of Apology Pups turn away from Clarissa, standing side-by-side in the grass. Clarissa pours some tea into a new teacup, sniffing the aroma of the fragrant drink. She waddles closer to the trio carefully, starting with Roxy. Clarissa looks up at the towering Rottweiler, demanding her to lie flat on the grass so she can reach her. And with a hefty lean, she begins pouring tea down Roxy's back. Roxy throws her paws over her mouth as she quashes a yelp, falling over on her side like a toppled cow.

"Oh. Did I forget to mention that this is chamomile and peppermint tea? With ice in the pot? Oh, never you mind, too late now!" Clarissa titters as she moves on to Dolly. She begins pouring down Dolly's back.

"Eeek!" Dolly jumps into the air. "That's frosty!"

"…Hmph," Clarissa huffs. "One supposes a comment does not equate to protest. Moving on…"

Finally, Clarissa stops at Dante. Dante seems to shiver as he feels Clarissa breath scrape against his spine. He doesn't dare peek back, but he feels like Clarissa's enjoying this too much. A chance to punish the Dalmatians without protest, maybe? Clarissa goes to pour…and Dante doesn't react. Not a pip, nor a twitch of any kind.

Clarissa nearly drops her teacup. "My, you appear to be completely unaffected, black Dalmatian!"

Dante shrugs slightly. "Heh. The fam likes to keep the house cool, and I happen to hang out in the walls, so…I guess I'm used to chilly stuff." He turns to face everyone, but Clarissa seems to be sniffling.

"Uhh…Clarissa? Are you good?" Dolly shakes her body, throwing loose tea droplets everywhere.

A tear falls into the grass. Clarissa places the teacup back onto the tray. "What? Oh yes, one is quite alright, Dalmatian. One is glad that you three have told the truth. A-and to be truthful as well, one already believed you. One ensured it was the truth, regardless."

"What!?" Dolly yells. "Ohh, you're lucky my bro is mad crushin' on you, Corgi. If any of the other pups learn about this, I'm ruined, reputation-ally!"

Clarissa chuckles. "You? Care about reputation?" Her chuckles become giggles. "Ahh, you couldn't be further removed from ones dear Dylakins, Dolly!"

"Dylakins? Man, does everybody have weird nicknames for Dylan?" Dante rolls his eyes.

Clarissa waddles up to Dante, glaring as her nose smooshes against his. "One will have you know that 'Dylakins' is an adorable nickname that Dylan himself endorses, if you don't mind!" She growls, blushing as she defends Dylan's totally embarrassing nickname.

Dante backs away, jumping behind Dolly. The dogs share a laugh in the moment, happy to have resolved part of the issue on Dylan's behalf. Before long, Clarissa hears Hugo return home, causing her to brush her visitors out of the yard. Though Roxy and Dante hop the fence, Clarissa requests Dolly stay for a moment.

"What is it?" Said Dolly.

"Don't be daft, Dalmatian!" Clarissa yells, before turning her snoot away in embarrassment. "Apologies. Force of habit. One desires to thank you…though one would prefer Dylan himself approach ones home."

"No worries, neighbor! In fact, Dylan plans to visit, he just wasn't sure when. I'll tell him tomorrow morning, if that works for you?"

"Yes, that is desirable. One would rather their love not view moi in such a raggedy manner, hm?"

"Right," Dolly says as she reaches the top of the fence. "Treat him right, yeah? He really loves you, y'know." She hops into the Dalmatian yard.

Clarissa turns back towards her home. "…And I, Clarissa Corgi, love Dylan Dalmatian so, so much. One must celebrate the good news and think of a suitable punishment for Prunella and Arabella at once!" The Corgi waddles into the home, barking orders at her human pet.

Later that night, Danny, Deviant, and Dreary wander the streets of Camden, completely uninterested in the world around them. Danny struts with a confident stride as an owl flutters by overhead. Deviant licks the bottom of a man's shoe, then licks a wad of trash and grunts. Dreary sighs heavily as she walks without a single care, wondering when the night will end instead. The threemos are after one thing only: Poodles. As they reach the bridge, they sit side-by-side and hunch forward, looking down at the water. A vehicle passes by, shrouding the bridge in complete darkness for a moment. As it clears the area, an unhinged smiling poodle and a barely smirking Sausage dog sit in front of them.

Portia's nose nearly touches Danny's. "Y'know, you don't need to use the World Wide Woof to reach me, it's so pedestrian. Regardless, it is a delight meeting with you, Danny~" she walks around Danny.

"Whatevs," Danny scoffs. "We needed to talk with you, so we used it."

Spencer raises a brow ever so slightly. "My, aren't we direct? This is new."

Deviant licks a dripping nostril. "Irrelevant, is it not?" He glances at Dreary.

Dreary shrugs. "…Meh."

Portia chuckles softly. "Oh? And who are the pups you dragged with you?"

Danny places a paw on the shoulder of his siblings. They both lean away from him. "Deviant hates logic. He's defiant to the core just because it irks pedestrians. Dreary…well, you'll hardly notice she's here. Practically in a world of her own, Ports."

"Hm. It matters not, all who worship the darkness are allies." Portia poofs her head-fur. "Now, what is it that you wanted, Danny?"

Danny stands up, taking in a deep breath. "I wanted…you." Portia's head tilts with glee. "Nobody else understands the darkness like you and I…it's why I'm into space…EVERYTHING is dark." Deviant fidgets as he nearly becomes Dawkins to correct Danny, but stops himself through biting his nails.

Really? And you're sure there's nobody else for you?" Portia smirks.

Danny clears his throat to hide his Dylan-esque whimper. "N-no. There's nobody like you, Portia."

"Ohh, brilliant!" Portia leans back so far that she slams against the pavement. "Oof. Not a care in the world behind you, is there? I love it, heheheh~"

"…Whatevs. Listen, or don't. I have an event I'm missing to be here. You can come with, or don't. Your choice, poodle…" Danny whips his ears as he turns to leave, prompting Deviant and Dreary to follow.

"Ohh, Danny~ You, wonderful, wonderful, wonderful…" Portia exclaims as she follows them. She lowers her tone to a whisper. "Twit."

The five dogs slink through the night, avoiding the street lanterns as they trek back to Dalmatian street. A piercing grayness billows throughout as the fog of the night settles in with the snores of many. Portia and Spencer speak amongst themselves, walking decently behind the threemos. None of the threemos dare break character, not even to sneeze or mark lanterns. Finally, as Dreary and Deviant begin to yawn, the five dogs make it to the Dalmatian house. They sneak into the backyard. Danny sends Deviant and Dreary to "find something" as Portia and Spencer sit patiently in the yard.

"We're here." Said Danny. "Come along, it's in the treehouse."

Spencer cringes as he follows Danny. "Oh no. You're not suggesting an event's being held in that dork-house?"

"Chill, Spence." Portia snickers. "Even those who follow the darkness need day lives sometimes…well, mostly Danny anyway."

Danny groans softly. As the three dogs reach the door to the treehouse, he turns to his guests. "Before we arrive, I must ask if you two want refreshments. How does BLACK TEA sound?"

Portia's ears stand up. "W-why did you…?"

Pbbt! Swish-swish…

A small toot is heard from above alongside something sliding. Portia and Spencer look up and gasp. A hulking, huge whoopee cushion balances over the edge of the treehouse's roof, the opening pointed directly at them.

Dylan returns to his usual voice. "Y'know, it's about time I got back at you two for that horrifying prank that left my mind scrambled."

Portia shudders. "You wouldn't, D-danny…"

"Oh? Wouldn't I? 'Cause I could really go for some BLACK TEA right now…" Dylan slowly opens the door to the treehouse, slinking in.

"Don't you dare!" Spencer yells.

"Ahh, yep! Some BLACK TEA would hit the…spot! Get it?" Dylan smirks. "Well, you're about to. BLACK TEA WITH SUGAR!"

Swish-swish…rumble, rumble…Kawoosh-Pbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbbt…

In a flash, a tidal wave of murky brown water crashes onto Portia and Spencer, who careen off the treehouse's steps. The two dogs wash away out of the backyard, with the murky wave consuming most of the street. Dylan, Dawkins and Duchess follow the wave, with Dante and Dolly catching up after jumping from the treehouse. Glitter, dust, and what Portia and Spencer hope is just mud washes over their fur, caking it in grime and muck. The wave pulls them further and further until it loses momentum just in front of the police station.

Soon after, the Dalmatians finally catch up to the aftermath of the wave. Dazed beyond belief, Portia and Spencer attempt to stand, but stumble over themselves like newborn puppies. Quickly, Dolly snaps a photo of the muck-covered pair with a tablet as she laughs at them. Portia shakes her head and notices Dante as part of Dylan's prank.

Portia grits her teeth. "It was you, wasn't it! You told Danny about Doom is Rich! Ohh, you're gonna pay for that, Dante…"

Dolly smirks confidently: "Actually, you will." She points to a police station door opening with PC Pearl stepping out.

"Oi!"

The Dalmatians explain an elaborate accident involving a plugged drain in their home and the two murky dogs. According to them, the wave of water was so loud, they couldn't resist it and had to find out what was going on. PC Pearl takes in their witness accounts and nicks Portia and Spencer, the only possible suspects at the scene. The Dalmatians cheer as they begin walking home! Their plans worked!

Dylan begins scrubbing off the makeup from his fur as the Dalmatians turn a street corner. "So, Dolly, Dante…why do you two smell like-" He sniffs the air. "Hmm. Chamomile tea?"

Dolly tilts her head and frowns. "It's a long story. Let's just say plan A went well, okay?"

"Uhh, okay then. What did Clarissa say? She still mad at me? Or was she furious I didn't come talk to herself? 'Cause if she is, then I guess I have more apologizing to do, huh? But mayb-"

Dolly places a paw on Dylan's face. "Chill, Dyl! She told us that she'd be okay with meeting in the morning, alright? She seemed ecstatic to know that you want to apologize…and considering this IS Clarissa we're talkin' about…good luck!"

"…Oh dog," Dylan's eyes go wide. "I-it's probably fine…"

"Feeling…disgusted!" Dawkins whines. "We must go home, immediately! I have to brush my mouth clean, now!"

"Whaddya mean, Dawkins?" Duchess tilts her head. "That was amazing ad-libbing! I need you to mentor me!"

And so, the Dalmatians hurry back home, hoping that their parents and other siblings assumed the wave water that crashed through Camden has nothing to do with them! Duchess continues trying out different vocal tones to fit her new alter-emo. Dawkins yawns loudly, hoping to get some sleep soon. Dante breathes a sigh of relief, knowing that for once, the potential of doom isn't the worst thing in the world. Dolly dance-walks, thinking about inviting Flapjack over in the morning. Dylan stares up at the Canis Major, a glee filled smile slowly growing across his face. Will he really be brave enough to confess his feelings to Clarissa?

Notes: Yeah, the pacing in this chapter is a little off, but I feel like it still works. Honestly, I wondered if this would be OOC for the characters, but not really. Similar things have happened in the show.

Featured Incidental Dalmatian: Duchess, who is given an improv. actress personality, with an alter-emo known as "Dreary".

Song: Never Wanna Fall in Love With U by Nelward during Portia and Spencer getting pranked.