Dog Man: Rewritten (The Dang Story) (DISCONTINUED)

...There's No Turning Back (Chapter 2)

The police office was empty, and she was expecting another visitor besides herself to arrive. She stared intently at the framed photo hanging on the blue wall, which was surrounded by a collection of other framed photos, which she promptly ignores. Every morning for the past couple of years, the little poodle would gaze upon one of the few remnants of her past life. Back when everything seemed fine, dandy, and secure. The life where she felt like herself. This would give her the strength she needed to face the coming day, even though it served as a bittersweet reminder of the day that everything changed.

The portrait of a cheerful Sarah Hattoff hanging on the wall remained unchanged. Zuzu was a different story.

The office door swings open, a hollaring voice greeting the startled pup. The pitter patter of paws behind the voice could be heard as well.

"HELLOOOOOO Zuzu!! So great to see you this morning!! Sorry I'm late, the morning and I aren't really on the best of terms heehee..."

Officer Knight gleefully marches into the room, taking his seat on his office desk. Behind him a medium-sized dog with golden fur and a blue collar strolled inside as well. He wags his tail at Zuzu and rushes to sniff her, his own way of saying hello. Zuzu smiles and squats down to acknowledge her pal, Greg.

"So, let's see here..." the officer mumbled, scratching his chin as if he was trying to remember why he called a meeting with her in the first place (which isn't unlikely hehe). He suddenly clapped his hands together, his face brightening up.

"Oh yeah! I just called you in to tell you how great of a job you've been doing here lately!" Officer Knight remarked. "A grand feat in itself, knowing that you...started out a bit rough this same day two years ago..."

"A bit rough" is putting it lightly. Zuzu was in shambles, having just popped out of the emergency room that day with a whole new body and set of abilities and whatnot. She stares at the officer blankly.

"...well, uh, I just wanted to know how you were doing. Really...I never really got to check in on how you were handling all of this. It's my own fault that I haven't been attentive to your needs." Officer Knight took the hat from his head and placed it up to his chest. "So...is...everything alright?" A curious, yet compassionate look seemed to intently pierce through the poodle's eyes, like how a father would look at his son when he felt like something was wrong.

He has good intentions, he really does. Always asking about the other policemen and women's lives, being understanding when they can't pull their weight due to complications. What made Zuzu stop in her tracks was how...avoidant he was in engaging with anything regarding the explosion incident that she and Sarah were involved in. The day after the big operation, he just sent Zuzu to duty, not quite sure how to react to seeing a hybrid version of his most prized cop duo. Where was the support there? She didn't really hold anything against him though; she would probably do the same thing.

Zuzu smiles and nods reassuringly to the concered cop. She didn't want to tell him what she thought yet. Or ever, maybe. She isn't able to talk anyways, so this all works out.

"Ah, good...great! Don't be afraid to inform me of anything that's troubling you, Zuzu. It's not bother to me!!" With that, he pulls out a couple pieces of paper. One of them being a small map of Collardale; the other a list of all the officers at the police department. Each officer has a small area of Collardale that they have to watch over to make sure nothing bad happens. Of course, most of them usually use their patrol time to slack off and do whatever, thus bringing in more crime.

"Ok, so this week, I was thinking of placing you over Section A - y'know, the one with the dreary factory and abandoned buildings? I wonder why the mayor doesn't just tear them down or repurpose them, but I guess there are more important things to focus over..." Knight sighs and marks Zuzu there on his map accordingly. "I really want to bring an end to this whole old lady cat stealing stuff and making a mess. What is her name, even?? Cameron? Eh, well, point is, I think you can catch her soon Zuzu. I believe in you!"