Just like current times, Tom and Jerry have been frequently chasing each other in their childhoods. And per usual, these antics tend to annoy Spike the bulldog, who's usually trying to either rest or spend quality time with his son Tyke.

Today, a similar set-up leads to something very strange.

Things seemed to flow like a fine river as Jerry woke up and got ready for the day. After fixing his red bowtie onto himself, he merrily made his way to the kitchen to get something to eat. Unknown to him, Tom was already up and waiting for him in front of the fridge. As soon as Jerry came into his view, he dashed forward, starting the standard chase.

The duo ran throughout the house, badly damaging each of the rooms. They continued the chase outside and headed towards Spike's doghouse. They began chasing each other around it until they became a mini twister that picks up the doghouse and throws it into a tree, destroying it and harming the now awake Spike. Not seeming to notice,
the duo still spun around until...

"STOOOOOP!" the bulldog bellowed, making the duo freeze in midair. Spike, fuming like a wildfire, stomped over. Jerry quickly flees, leaving Tom by himself.

"Alright, kitty. Prepare for the punishment of a lifetime!"

Still frozen and unable to move, all Tom could do was watch as Spike lifted a fist and threw it into his face. Meanwhile, Jerry, from behind a lawnmower, laughs at his foe's predicament. Spike then uses Tom's cap to slap him violently, before picking up a bone and bashing him into the ground at neck level.

"And the punishment will be worse if you do it again!" Spike yelled, before mumbling "Great. I need to make a new doghouse." to himself.

Tom then overhears Jerry's laughter. Enraged, the kitten tries to pull free and teach him a lesson, but he only succeeds in cracking his neck with the force. Tom then breaks down crying.

===SHORTLY THEREAFTER...===

A shaken and injured Tom is sitting on the stairs of the house. Spike, with wood, tools, and blueprints in his arms, passes by and briefly stops to give Tom a death glare before walking off. Tom then thinks about the incident, surprised at the higher level of violence the bulldog inflicted on him. In the middle of his imagination, he starts to tear up again,
before curling up into a ball and bawling.

Walking down the sidewalk, Mary-Lou, a Pekanese pup from down the street, overhears the crying and decides to investigate. She sees the kitten rolling back and forth in a pool of tears. Spike then appears and comes up to him.

"You better stop your weepin' or else I'll consider a more violent punishment!"

Tom is too busy letting it out to notice or care.

"Fine. You asked for it."

A confused Mary-Lou watches as Spike reaches for something from behind his back. Her confusion changes to shock when Spike takes out a mallet and smashes Tom hard. Then,
Spike picks Tom up in his teeth and throws him at the same tree the former crashed into. The bulldog then slides a rocket under Tom, lights the fuse, and takes cover.
The kitten is sent flying, where he crashes (and blows up) against the house, destroying half of it. Spike walks off to resume his construction.

Mary-Lou instantly rushes over to Tom. She stands him up and starts dusting the ashes off him.

"Ar-are you okay?" she asked.

Tom nods weakly, before becoming surprised at who was there.

"Poor kitty. Nobody deserves to go through that." She then gives him a peck on the cheek.

Tom then faints. Upon waking up, the first thing he sees is the pup looking down at him with a cute smile.

"I know. It's not every day a dog helps a cat." she said with a giggle. "My name is Mary-Lou. What's yours?"

Tom simply gets out a cue card reading "MY NAME IS THOMAS "TOM" CAT".

"Okay, what exactly caused that bulldog to wail on you?"

Tom got up and started miming what happened earlier. After he finishes, Mary-Lou was in disbelief.

"So you're saying a little mouse had involvement in your torture, as well as laughing at you instead of helping?!"

Tom nods.

The pup clenched her teeth in anger, before grabbing Tom's paw. "C'mon, Tommy! It's payback time!"

===ONE PLANNING SESSION LATER===

Spike, having finished his doghouse, relaxes while Jerry rests on top of his head. From behind the tree, Tom and Mary-Lou watch them.

"Alright. On my signal, do it!" Mary-Lou whispered to Tom, who is holding a whoopee cushion.

After waiting for a few seconds...

"Now!"

Tom lets the cushion's farting sound ring out, waking up the bulldog and mouse.

"Was that you?" Spike asked Jerry. The mouse shook his head and points at Spike.

"How dare you accuse me!" he growled. The duo got into a furry ball of fists. Tom and Mary-Lou watched as the furry ball hovered out of the yard and down the street.
Along the way down, the bulldog and mouse caused several cars to crash.

"Let's follow them, Tommy." Mary-Lou said, grabbing the kitten's paw again.

===EVENTUALLY===

The furry ball levitated all the way to an ocean pier just outside of the neighborhood. Not looking where they're going, the fighting animals fell into the ocean. Underwater,
the duo, now not fighting, are subjected to punishments of their own.

A giant jellyfish appears near the duo and snags Spike away, who's now cringing in pain from the creature's tentacles. Jerry, meanwhile, tries to swim away, only to be shunted by a dolphin and launched out of the water. He slams into a nearby buoy, knocking him out cold. Just then, a shell shocked Spike pops up floating.

Tom and Mary-Lou look at the scene from the pier, and give smiles of justice to each other.

"Karma's rich, am I right?" Mary-Lou said to Tom, who nods happily.

"C'mon, I'll take you to my house for a play date."

With that, they were off.

===BACK IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD===

At Mary-Lou's, the pup and kitten had the time of their lives.

"Feeling better, Tommy?" she asked him.

Tom gave her a hug, showing her that he is. Mary-Lou blushed and giggled. Shortly after he released, she did the exact same, except tighter and longer, with another kiss added.

"Who says a dog and cat can't get together." she says while staring into Tom's eyes, before resuming the kiss.

Tom simply shrugs.

===JUST THEN, BY DULL SURPRISE===

"We ain't givin' up just yet, mouse!" Spike bellowed, the duo trudging with all their might despite their injuries. "The next time I see that kitty, he's going to be ground up." Jerry nodded as he climbed on Spike's shoulder to rest.

Just then, they notice Tom and Mary-Lou in her front yard merrily playing with each other. The bulldog and mouse quickly hid behind a fence and peered at them.

"There he is." Spike says to Jerry in a hushed tone. "And why is he hangin' out with a pup?"

Jerry mocks Tom by doing the cuckoo sign.

"Well, never mind that. Just find a way to get the kitty to us!"

Jerry waits for Mary-Lou to turn away to make his move. When she does, the mouse rushes over, effortlessly lifts the kitten, and throws him over the fence, where Spike catches him. A now scared Tom is met with Spike's sinister grin. The bulldog than knocks out the kitten with a whap.

"It's time..." the bulldog creepily entoned. He walks off, with Jerry catching up seconds later.

Mary-Lou puffs her ears, then turns around and poses. "What do you think, To-?" She then sees that Tom is missing. Again, she begins to flame up.

"They think that they're smart!? They haven't seen nothing yet!"

===DOES IT MATTER ANYMORE?===

Back in his own yard, Tom, now tied to the tree, wakes up to see Jerry, Spike, and a box of tools at their feet. The kitten knew things were going to get ugly.

First, Spike gets out a hammer and whaps Tom on the head, leaving a large lump that throbs. Next, Jerry takes out a wrench and starts twisting Tom's toes until crackling was heard. All the poor kitty could do was scream and cry in agony.

Mary-Lou shows up just in time to witness what was happening.

"WHAT ARE YOU FREAKS DOING TO MY TOMMY!?"

The duo stopped and looked at her. "Oh, yeah? What are you gonna do about it?" Spike said.

Spike then suddenly receives a bash to the cheek, courtesy of Mary-Lou slamming the toolbox into him. She wasn't done, as she then kicks him in the chest with such force, he is sent flying. He smashes into his doghouse, destroying it again, before crashing into what remains of the house, causing it to crumble, then collapse on the bulldog.

"I'm feelin' mighty low." he said, before sinking into the debris, but not before displaying a white flag as a sign of surrender.

Mary-Lou then turns her attention to Jerry, who is now shaking in fear. He tries to run away, but ends up running in place due to Mary-Lou placing a foot on his tail.

"It's no use." she snarked, slapping the mouse.

She then turned in Tom's direction. "Hey, Tommy! Open wide!" she said, waving the dazed Jerry.

Tom did as told and opened his mouth. Mary-Lou walked over to him and placed Jerry on Tom's tongue. Regainning himself, the mouse realized that Tom was slowly retracting his tongue back inside. He tries to escape but...

"NO! STAY!" Mary-Lou boomed, causing Jerry to turn white and fall down.

"Now, rodent. You and that bulldog are going to give my Tommy a heartfelt apology for your horrible behaviour towards him, lest you get eaten and go thorugh...nature's course."

Jerry refuses at first.

"Alrighty, have it your way. Do it, Tommy!"

Tom fully retracts Jerry into his mouth, using his teeth as a barrier. Jerry is now holding onto Tom's uvula, freaked out. He then dashes over to Tom's teeth, squeaking for mercy. Tom hears the terror in Jerry's voice and opens his mouth.

"I don't understand you." Mary-Lou said, shrugging her shoulders.

Jerry gets out a card that reads: "IN SHORT, LET TOM KNOW THAT I OR SPIKE WILL NEVER HARM TOM AGAIN, AND ABOVE ALL, WE'RE REALLY REALLY SORRY".

"Are you sure?" Mary-Lou said, picking Jerry up and eyeing him.

Jerry nods.

"Good!" She lets Jerry back on the ground, who then runs off. Mary-Lou then got to work untying Tom from the tree. As she does that, she looks at the injuries the kitten received from this plight.

"This is just not your day, Tommy. But don't worry! I'll let you stay with me until you recover!"

===AND SO...===

"A little more ice here." Mary-Lou said, applying ice to Tom's lump. "I've already taken care of your poor toes. Now, you'll just have to rest in my room. Holler, or meow, if you need anything." She then kissed Tom's paw before walking out.

For the rest of the day, things went well, as Tom was served a delightful dinner and supper from the pup, and best of all, Tom was sweet enough not to put her through heck while calling for her for things.

That night, Tom could feel his toes again, and his lump was gone, too.

Mary-Lou appears in the doorway.

"Hey, Tommy. How are you doing?"

Tom gives her a thumbs up. She noticed that her treatments worked out.

"Well, looks like someone's recovered."

Tom, however, wasn't happy.

"What's the matter?" She then realized. "Oh, you don't wanna leave, huh?"

Tom nodded with a pout.

"Gee, I don't blame ya."

She then got into bed with him.

"Tell ya what. You can visit me at any time I'm available, and likewise with me to you. Sound alright?"

Tom brightened up and nodded approvingly.

"Great!" she beamed, hugging him. "Now before we sleep, let's have one last hour of fun!" she declared.

For the next hour, they did things like have a pillow fight, tell each other short horror stories, and even a mini rave, using Mary-Lou's night lights as the light effects and songs that she came up with herself.

Eventually, they passed out and fell asleep.

===THE NEXT MORNING===

Through the bedroom window, sunlight flashed in, awakening the duo. Tom sits up and yawns.

"Well, good morning my kitty." Mary-Lou said, playfully plopping down on him. Tom smiles back at her.

"Ready to have some breakfest before you go?"

The kitten nodded.

They picked their favorite meals and ate. Afterwards, Tom helped Mary-Lou with the dishes.

"You're such a great help Tommy!" she said with a smile.

Tom then decided it was time to go, but before he did, he gave Mary-Lou another bear hug. She responds by hugging him back.

"And you're also very affectionate."

With that, Tom made his way to the door. He walks out proudly, with Mary-Lou watching from the doorway. Tom turns back to wave goodbye.

"See ya soon Tommy." she said, before blowing a kiss at him. He pretends to catch and place it on his chest.

After Tom disappeared from her view, Mary-Lou sighs dreamily while fanning herself with a paw. "Looks like I've found a keeper."

===IN CONCLUSION===

Tom now peacefully rests under the tree as he watches Spike and Jerry doing everything in their power to build the house again.

The kitten displays another cue card: "IT MAY BE LIKE THIS FOR A WHILE, BUT AT LEAST I CAN RELAX".

Tom then goes to sleep. From this point on, Spike and Jerry never dared to bother the kitten ever again.