Dogday and Catnap ran through the lush forest, the dog pulling Catnap by the paw. Gently of course!

His tail wagged joyfully, his eyes darting everywhere. Catnap didn't share the same enthusiasm the dog did, but he was more than happy to accompany him on the brief journey.

...At least, it was supposed to be a brief adventure. They had other plans for the day as well, of course.

"Look, Catnap! There's a stick! Oh! And another! We can play Fetch with them all day, haha!"

The dog commented joyously, pointing to each and every stick he found on the ground. His tongue stuck out, a wide, innocent smile on his face.

"And–! Wait...Catnap, what's THAT?"

Dogday slowed down to a stop, pointing to a strange anomaly that stood. Or...floated rather in front of the two.

It was almost like a wall of sorts, and yet, it didn't appear to be solid at the same time. It seemed to be some kind of a purple 'portal', almost appearing as if it were made of the stars themselves.

A small, medium pitched hum could be heard from it, although it leaned a little towards the higher side in pitch.

The two stared at it in awe, although their reactions were a little different. Catnap seemed a little nervous, unsure on whether to trust the anomaly or not. Dogday, meanwhile, seemed eager! He wondered, what does it do? Where could it lead?

"Oh! Maybe it does something special! Or uh, leads somewhere! Wanna try and find out Catnap?"

Catnap shook his head, beginning to sign in response to the dog.

'I'm not sure if that's a good idea, Dogday. We have no idea what it is. It could be dangerous.'

Dogday frowned a little, nodding as he glanced back at the purple anomaly.

He was right after all. It could be dangerous.

He could already hear Bubba's voice in his head, saying something about it being better to be safe than sorry.

...But he couldn't hold his curiosity back! He HAD to know! Besides, worse case scenario, the two of them will get help! Right?

"You're right, but...I just have to know! Come on! Let's just give it a quick touch or something! And if things get weird we'll head right back out, alright?"

Catnap was still uncertain about the idea. It seemed risky, and he knew that Bubba would scold the two in an instant if he were here.

But...he guessed that if the dog was going to be careful, it should be fine...right?

He slowly nodded, the dog's tail wagging eagerly in response.

"Great!"

Holding onto the cat's hand, the canine brought the two up to the purple anomaly, staring at it as the dog slowly reached a paw into it.

"Here it goes..."

He said quietly, a clear hint of hesitation present in his voice. He pushed his hand through, and...!

...it phased through?

Dogday wiggled his paw. He could still feel it. It was still there, on the otherside.

Was it some kind of a gateway? A secret door??? Maybe it was a cool, mystical surprise the two were lucky enough to stumble upon!

"I think there's another side...I want to check it out!"

Dogday's tail began to thrash around, excitement clouding the canine's mind and judgement. Catnap didn't agree with the dog's idea.

Sure, it didn't steal Dogday's paw away, but that didn't mean that it was safe.

Let alone that whatever is on the other side is safe as well.

The cat spoke up, his voice rather quiet and hesitant.

"Dogday, I don't think WE–!"

A loud gasp escaped the feline as the dog practically jumped through the anomaly, dragging the cat with him inside.

Catnap braced himself, closing his eyes as his ears and tail shot upwards, as if the two had encountered a threat.

...But nothing happened.

The cat could feel a change in the enviornment around them. A soft hum could be heard, and the floor was cold. Hard.

It felt as if it were made out of concrete or...something. It didn't have the warm feel of Dogday and the other's houses, and it didn't have the natural feel of the grass from the outside.

It felt...off to the feline. Almost overbearing, in a way.

Catnap slowly opened his eyes once he heard a soft gasp from Dogday. He looked up, only to find that they were in a building...of sorts.

One much, much darker than the one they were used to. In fact, the room was only lit up by a bright light behind him.

Catnap turned, as did Dogday. The two found that there was a TV behind them, the screen now only white with a static filter over it.

Dogday's heart sank, beginning to realize what he had done.

"W-Wait maybe there's a way back, uh–"

He eyed the TV, tapping his paw against it. Unlike the purple portal, his hand didn't phase through it. It only touched the screen.

Beginning to panic, the dog tapped his paw against it again. Then again.

And again.

Now, he began to slam his paw against it, hoping that it'd change something. It didn't, of course.

Eventually, Dogday gave up, looking back at Catnap with a fearful expression on his face. His ears drooped down, his tail finding its way between his legs.

"Catnap I'm...I'm sorry I didn't mean to..."

Catnap sighed, softly smiling before placing his own paw onto Dogday's shoulder. He shook his head before signing once again.

'It's okay. You didn't mean to. You just got caught in the excitement.'

'If anything...'

Catnap turned his head, looking around the factory the two were now in. There weren't any threats present...yet, but Catnap had a sinking feeling that there were some here.

...Somewhere...

'I'm more worried about finding our way back. And protecting ourselves.'

Dogday's lips curved into a small, gentle smile. It warmed his heart that the cat immediately forgave him, despite Dogday dragging him into this.

His ears perked upwards once he heard the mention of the two protecting themselves.

He thought he had something for that...maybe?

He reached around, hoping that he had forgotten to put it away.

...found it! A bat!

Kickin gave him it in order to play baseball with Hoppy and the others, but the dog forgot to put it back with the other bats and balls after they finished playing together.

...Still, it looked off. It had the bright, cartoony look that their world had, but it almost looked a little...worn down, somehow?

Speaking of...that's one odd thing about this world. It was grim. It wasn't colorless, but it wasn't nearly as vibrant either.

It honestly creeped him out. He found himself missing the warmth of his home already. If only he had thought things through...

The two could've been snuggling in bed together right now. Or playing a game together...

But now wasn't the time for wishful thinking. They had to find a way back, and be on the lookout for any potential threats in this new, unfamiliar world.

Catnap stared at the bat the canine held in his hand.

'You kept that?'

He asked, raising an eyebrow at the sight of it. Dogday let out a soft chuckle, gently scratching the back of his head.

'Oh yeah! I uh...forgot to put it away, haha...'

Catnap shook his head, smirking slightly. At least the two had something to defend themselves with. He wondered if they could still contact Bubba and the others from here...

He checked his watch, hoping to use it in some way, but when he tapped on the screen, a pop-up came up. It was of a blue elephant, Bubba of course, with two Xs over his eyes.

In red text under it, it said "Dead battery! Add batteries to recharge!"

Catnap frowned. Well...that wasn't an option. Unless the two could find compatible batteries here, which he doubted.

Dogday eyed the cat's watch.

"No battery huh? I'll be on the lookout."

Catnap nodded, hiding behind the canine's back, clearly afraid to walk on ahead.

"Hm?"

Dogday looked behind him at the cat, before smiling a little.

"Aw, are you afraid little buddy? Don't worry, I'll lead the way!"

Catnap nodded, his tail now dragging onto the floor.

"Thank you, my hero."

He playfully commented, although the dog went along with it as he began to walk.

"Anything for you, my prince."

The two let out a mutual laugh, helping make some light of their current predicament. They could only hope that things wouldn't be so bad.

And that they could find a way out in time for their other plans.

It can't be that hard!

...Right?

"So...we should be on the lookout for a purple portal thing?"

Bubba asked, attempting to take all of this in. It sounded...bizzare. And like a lot, too.

However, their description did match some of what the other Dogday and Catnap described. He honestly couldn't imagine how the two managed to live there.

"Exactly, and– Kzzztt!!!"

Dogday's voice began to break up, for seemingly unknown reasons on Kickin and Bubba's end.

However, on Dogday and Catnap's, they noticed that the screen began to flicker, static beginning to force its way onto the screen.

Dogday panicked, hitting the screen in attempt to fix it.

"Come on! Not again! We just got them!"

He begged, as if it would actually do anything. Regardless of his efforts, the screen returned to static, severing the connection he had to his old friends.

He still had so many questions. How long has it been? Did Bubba have any ideas on how to locate them?

Not to mention the fact that he also wanted to tell the elephant about those freaky, larger versions of themselves. Maybe he'd know the answer to that mystery as well. Or at the very least, have a lead.

Dogday sighed, staring at the screen with a look of disappointment. Catnap tapped his back, a sympathetic smile on his face.

'Hey, at least we made some progress. Maybe they'll figure something out.'

Catnap signed, his kind words providing Dogday with a small bit of reassurance. He stood up, smiling back at the cat before he nodded.

"Yeah...you're right. Let's keep going. Maybe we can find some other TVs around the place."

The two then headed off, now on the lookout for any other active TVs around the building.

From what they could tell, it would be their link between their world and the one they were trapped in.

Still...Dogday felt off. He felt as if there was something for the chicken and elephant to share, but they didn't have the chance to.

Ah well, it couldn't be that important.

At least...that's what he hoped.

☆