-Two weeks ago; two days after Wisp and half of Paw Patrol was trapped in the mountain, five days before Wisp said her Paw Patrol pledge-
Deep in the forests at the edges of Adventure Bay, lays a wooden building. One could say it had been forgotten, but the few who knew of its presence were far from ever forgetting it.
Early one morning, a boy walked up to the building. Shivering in the chill fall air, he put a gloved hand on the wooden door. He took a deep breath, then slowly pushed it open.
Inside was a wide open space, the little furniture remaining covered in a light film of dust.
A giant round table was situated in the center of the room. Four stools, three almost the same height as the table, surrounded it. Gymnastic equipment occupied the left side of the room, with a dog-sized version on the right. Each corner of the room had a glass jar on a pedestal, one half-full of moldy dog treats. An old wide-screen tv sat on a desk across the room. A trio of dog doors were on one side of the desk, and a human sized one on the other.
The boy took a few hesitant steps inside, pausing to rub the table. His eyes ran over the scratched surface and the torn map of Adventure Bay tacked down in the center.
A rustling sound from behind the boy startled him, and he spun around. Two pups, a German Shepard and a Dalmation, stood in the doorway. The German shepard pup was tightly bundled in a scarf, hat, vest, and pup boots, while the other wore simply a scarf.
"Chase, Marshall, you startled me," said the boy.
"Sorry, Ryder," Chase apologized.
Marshall stood mutely and stiff without responding. His eyes slowly roved the room before coming to a rest on Ryder.
"It's, uh… it's been a while, huh?" Marshall finally said. He started to walk forward, only to trip over a loose board. "Woah!"
Marshall tumbled across the room and crashed into the desk. Something on the desk rattled at the impact, and tipped off the edge. It would have fallen on Marshall, but Ryder's hand whipped out and caught the object.
"Oops, sorry," Marshall said, standing. "Thanks, Ryder."
"Yeah. No problem," Ryder said distantly, not taking his eyes off the object he had caught.
"Ryder?" Chase asked, going to the boy's side.
Ryder sighed and tucked the wooden object under his arm. "Let's just get what we came for."
"Yes," Marshall agreed.
Ryder led the way outside and around the back of the building, where there were four sheds attached to the main buildings. Ryder went to the shed situated at one end of the building, then Chase and Marshall went to the two farthest from Ryder.
One shed, twice the size of the others, stood apart, was set apart from the others. It was empty, and part of the roof had collapsed under the snow of the previous winter. Inside was a rusty red bike and a single walkie-talking on a shelf on the wall.
Of the three smaller shed's the two outermost ones had open doors and contained little besides dust. A bunny twitched it nose at the unexpected company, then hopped into a coil of hose in the center shed.
For several minutes, the trio stared at the open sheds. Finally, one by one, they gathered in front of the final shed, the only one with the door closed tight. Ryder grabbed the doorknob and slowly opened the door.
Unlike the other buildings, this shed was full. Boxes upon boxes were stacked against the wall. On occasion, one box was split, spilling it contents of tiny picks, shovels, and ropes to the floor. A faded brown pup bed was shoved into a corner, holding a brown blanket and two bowls. A basket beside it held chew toys.
Then, sitting prominent in the center of the boxes, was a pup-sized vehicle. It was almost igloo in shape, with its fat round cockpit and storage compartment. and narrow front. It's orange color showed through the thick layer of dirt and dust. It's long treads were full of dried mud.
"Well… here it is," Ryder said after a moment of silence. "Think it will run?"
"I'll try," Marshall said, clearly missing any of his usual enthusiasm.
Marshall went up to the vehicle and barked. The glass dome covering the cockpit smoothly slid back over the storage compartment., and Marshall crawled inside. It was a bit awkward for the pup, as the narrow front of the vehicle made the driver have to lay down to drive.
While Marshall messed with pedals and levers to get the vehicle started, Ryder crouched at the vehicle's side. He brushed a hand on its side, wiping away the layer of dirt away to display a number on the side.
It was a large, white one.
Ryder heard a sniff from his side and looked down. "Chase, you okay?"
"Yeah, I just," Chase rubbed his nose, "got a little cold."
Ryder nodded. That explained the snow gear.
Marshall popped his head up. "Yes, he shouldn't even be out here in the cold and this early in the morning, but he insisted."
"Have you gotten it started?" Chase asked.
Marshall rolled his eyes at the obvious change in subject. He exaggeratedly raised a paw and lowered it. The vehicle roared to life.
"She lives!" Marshall proclaimed. "Now, let's get out of here, huh? Chase needs to rest."
Chase snorted as he crawled into the seat behind Marshall. "It's just a sniffle."
"You pups head back to the Lookout," Ryder said. "I'll meet you there soon."
The pups nodded. Marshall closed the dome and eased the vehicle from the shed. Ryder followed behind, and closed the doors tight. He watched the orange vehicle drive off.
Once the pups were out of sight, Ryder's entire body drooped. He turned back to the building, and closed his eyes as memories washed over him.
Three sets of paws playfully pummeling his chest. Three sloppery tongues washed his face, despite his protests.
"Paw Patrol, to the Hideout!"
"Ryder needs us!"
"Woah!"
"Marshall, I just dug that hole!"
"Oops… sorry."
"Haha, that's okay. That will teach me that I need to brace it up more!"
"Hey, pups, look at me!"
"Chase, don't be so silly! This is a serious mission."
"Aw, come on…"
Ryder shook his head. He opened his eyes and lifted the object he had been carrying since it almost fell on Marshall.
It was a picture frame, with the words "Paw Patrol" painted across the top. The picture inside was from three years ago, a day that Ryder remembered fondly.
Marshall stood in a stiff pose, fearful of moving lest he trip and mess up yet another picture. Chase had his head down and paws splayed, tongue open in an excited pant. Sitting between them was Ryder, with a beagle pup sitting proud in his lap.
One more memory surfaced.
"It's like I always say, Ryder: No job is too big, no pup is too small!"
"Aw, Geo, you're my number one pup."
A/N: I wasn't planning to go all tragic back-story on you, but I had this idea, and... yeah. I was originally not going to make up a Paw Patrol origins story, either, but it's happening now. This, is my version of how the Paw Patrol got started, why Ryder -not a pup- is number one of Paw Patrol, the origin of Ryder's famous phrase, why Marshall took up EMT'ing, and even why Chase is so serious.
Updates will be slower for this story, as I am starting to fall behind on my main work, Distant Memories.