The pups were quicker to pack up in Detroit than they normally were. They wanted to get out of there before Heinrich came back. Everything Rocky had despised all made sense now. His dad drenched him as punishment, which is why he hates water, his dad was German, which is why German is skewed, he lived in Michigan, which is why he was scared to go, and the name his dad gave him was Rockford, which is why he freaked out from Rockford Fosgate.

Rocky sat up front with Robodog as they headed out. He wanted to make sure they were out of range of his dad before he could sleep. Marshall, Zuma, and Everest sat up with him.

"So most of what you went through was explained by Terry showing up, but what happened throughout your childhood?" Everest asked.

"What you saw was my childhood in a nutshell. He abused me both verbally and physically. He verbally abused me in both English and German, he would then abuse me further for having an American accent. My ear notch is from him."

"So you're actually American?" Marshall asked.

"Yeah, I was born about two hours outside of Detroit, some small town."

"How did you end up in Adventuwre Bay?" Zuma asked.

Zuma's face was a bit swollen from Heinrich punching him.

"I had always wanted to go to Seattle. I wanted to run away and go to Seattle. My brother and sisters fled before I did. Unlike me, they didn't have plans. They ran and scattered. I don't know what happened to them, but now I'm having speculations…"

"Speculations?"

"I think he went after them. He was heartless enough to kill one of my brothers. I don't doubt him going after the rest and killing them out of revenge. I hope they got lucky enough to get picked up by humans. But even if they're alive, I'm the easiest to track if that really is what he's doing."

"Maybe he's just trying to find his pups to make things right? He would've killed you if that was the case wouldn't he have?" Marshall suggested.

"I don't know. He either spared me, or didn't want to kill me because of the witnesses."

"You nevewr finished youwr emigwation storwy," Zuma said.

"Oh yeah, so I saw a way out. My next door neighbor helped me get out one night. There was a human down the road that commuted to Detroit. I hitched a ride into his truck, and when I got to Detroit, I ran to the Amtrak station. I snuck onto a train that was going to Vancouver, and it would stop in Seattle on the way. I had to hide from conductors, or pose as a pet. I missed the Seattle stop. I don't know how, we were there for an hour. I panicked and knew as soon as we hit the Canadian border. I was discovered. They kicked me off on the next stop, which happened to be Adventure Bay. I went to the lookout because it looked like the Space Needle. That was before Zuma or Rubble came along."

"Or me," Everest said.

"Or you!"

"Rocky's reason for running away if better than yours, Zuma!" Marshall said.

"Shut up, I didn't wun away! I was mad that my pawents wouldn't get me a pool and I took a walk, and I found Wyder. I accidentally told him I didn't have a home, and he pwomised I could swim whenevewr I wanted!"

"So you joined the Paw Patrol and never got homesick?" Everest asked.

"Oh I did get homesick, I missed my family, I still do. As much as I wanna say I wegwet what I did, especially when Wyder died, I weally don't."

"You woulda never met me!" Marshall said.

"And that would've sucked! I love you! And I love the two of you as well!"

Now Rocky was curious about Everest.

"What happened to you? Why did you live alone in the arctic?"

"It was an assignment. In my village, we were competing for alpha snow pup, and one of the things we had to do was survive a winter cycle alone in the wilderness. I got really lonely with nothing but penguins keeping me company. I got excited when Jake came, especially when I rescued him! We got a big bump in assignment credit of we rescued someone. I was really hesitant to leave because I didn't want to just go AWOL and have my family worried sick. I also had a few sentimental things in my igloo."

"And you just left all that behind to come with us?" Rocky asked.

"I go back and visit my family all the time with Jake. I was also able to get the stuff out of my igloo."

"Wait, you visit your family on the arctic? Why don't we know about this?"

"It didn't really seem important. I kinda thought you knew. I wasn't going to leave my family for good! I love my dad!"

"Well someone has a good relationship with their dad," Marshall pouted.

"I wish I could see mine!" Zuma whimpered.

After a few hours of reminiscing, and making sure they were out of Michigan, the four went to bed. Everest didn't want to leave Rocky alone, so she kept him company. They cuddled, which really help comfort him. Marshall and Zuma saw them cuddling and decided to do the same. Despite being close, they never actually cuddled, they never had the time, and they were always too tired after the shows. Now they finally did, and it just bonded them, it made them love each other more!

Playing in Ohio and Tennessee with no problems. Finally the tour tension was starting to ware off. Either that, or the pups were just too tired to really let things bother them. The Atlanta show was something, a little something for Skye because Georgia bordered Alabama. Zuma and Marshall were getting interviewed in Atlanta.

"You're about ⅔ through your tour cycle, is that right?" the interviewer asked.

"Yeah something like that," Marshall said.

"How have you liked your tour so far?"

"It's been… interwesting…" Zuma said.

"Well, you two seemed to have developed an intimate relationship during this tour, how has that been?"

Zuma nudged Marshall.

"It's taken off so much stwess, ouwr interwactions with each othewr have been less awkwawrd, and it's help us cope with the stwess this tour put us through," Zuma said.

"Oh really? Any problems between you two yet?"

"Mawshall can be an idiot sometimes. He smoked a joint thinking it was a cigawr."

"Hey, you could've told me before I did!"

"I did tell you!"

"Alright, so here's your dysfunctional couple of the day!" the interviewer mocked, "Anything else?"

"We smell awful! No mattewr how much we bathe in the Patwoller, we smell bad! The filth won't come out of ouwr fuwr! Thankfully we have a salon back at home we go to!" Zuma complained.

"Is it weird that… your bad smell kinda attracts me?" Marshall wondered.

"As much as I wanna say it is weiwrd, there's odd things about you I feel the same way with."

"So how would you describe your stage design?" the interviewer said not wanting to know.

"It's getting old. We've played this show 20 times, Seattle saw the best of it when it pumped up our adrenaline the way it did for the crowd, but it's not anything new for us now," Marshall said.

"Ask us aftewr Seattle and we would've had a totally differwent answewr."

While they continued being interviewed, the rest of the pups were under the canvass doing whatever.

"I remember Georgia from my puppyhood, but I never went to Atlanta until last year," Skye said.

"You and Rocky are from America and I never even left Canada until last year," Rubble said.

"Tracker's been here, he had to jump the border twice to get to a Canadian jungle," Chase joked.

"So we're the Border Patrol? Not the Paw Patrol?" Tracker adsked.

"Recruited by Donald Trump," Rocky added.

"And he still hasn't built that wall!" Everest observed.

"Tracker's family is over there, he can't!" Chase said.

"I'm about to punch you!"

"Punch me like Heinrich punched Zuma?"

"Too soon," Rocky stopped.

As they continued to affectionately assault each other, Skye stood up sniffing the air. She picked up some scents… could it be? It took the rest of the pups a minute, but they realized Skye was observing the air.

"Skye? What's going on?" Chase asked.

"Shh! I think… something's setting of my nose!"

"Me?"

"No, you don't smell that bad!"

That wasn't the answer Chase wanted. She followed her nose around the Patroller, towards the entrance, where a human and couple of pups were getting access granted.

"It… it's them… IT'S THEM!"

She took off running towards them, leaving the rest of the pups confused.

"Ron! Mom! Dad!"

Skye ran and jumped right into Ron's arms.

"You r'member me!"

"Of course I do! I remember you! I remember the truck! I remember the farm!"

"Well I sure hope you r'member your family!"

Skye was extremely skeptical. They abandoned her. Ron put her down so she could greet them. She wasn't sure what to say.

"We're proud of you Skye!" her dad said.

"We're sorry about everything, can you forgive us?" her mom asked.

Her brothers and sisters all greeted her.

"Well, thanks for coming to see me! It's been a while, and I've been through a lot!"

She had no idea what to say. Frankly, she was really only excited to see Ron, and maybe the farm and the truck again. Ron knelt down to hug Skye again.

"Why did you run away? You said goodbye when y'all left for a family trip, and you didn't come back."

"I didn't run away."

Chase wanted so bad to make fun of Ron's accent.

"You didn't? What happened?"

Her parents never told him! She could feel them begging her not to say. Once Ron released his grip, she walked over to her parents.

"Why did you abandon me?"

"Y'all did what!?"

The explanation process would be a while. They expected it. Skye's brothers and sisters looked guilty too.

"Do you remember always wanting to fly? You developed the love for flight with Ron and in the truck?" her mom asked.

"Of course I do! It was one of my best memories, and something I did for a living for three years!"

Zuma and Marshall came back from the interview.

"Well, do you remember your brothers and sisters making fun of you? Saying you'd never fly?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, to be fully honest we thought the same."

"So we did research to help you achieve your dream, and we found out about the Paw Patrol. We knew that with the way you are, you wouldn't want to stay, so we left. We didn't fully abandon you. We were still there watching you until we were sure Ryder had accepted you in! He did, and we knew you'd be happy. You got to achieve your dream of flight!" her dad finished.

"So it wasn't selfishness?"

"You stood out from your brothers and sisters, you had to live up to your full potential! It was a painful way to do it, but it had to be done! You originally achieved your dream of flight, but now you're the keyboardist for a worldwide famous band! You're happy aren't you?"

"Yeah, I am! I have seven really close friends! Even after Ryder died, I've been living the dream!"

"Why didn't y'all tell me!?" Ron asked.

Skye's parents felt bad.

"We should've told you earlier that she was alive and well. We just didn't want to tell you we left her behind."

"I reckon it's been damn near five years! It woulda been nice to know earlier."

Skye jumped into Ron's arms again.

"Do you wanna go home, back to the farm?"

"I'd love to!"

"Pack your things, you'll be home soon!"

"Oh you mean right now?"

"Well o' course!"

Skye looked at the pups and the Patroller, as well as the amphitheater.

"I can't, I have a band to tend to, I still have my friends!"

Ron seemed to slump in disappointment.

"That's right. I wouldn't wanna take you away from that."

"But I'll visit as soon as I can! I promise!"

"Please do! I've missed you! Are you able to introduce your friends?"

"Of course! Pups, this is Ron, the human that was there when I was born. And these are my parents, brothers and sisters," it hit Skye that couldn't remember any of their names, "These are my friends, Chase…"

"I'm her boyfriend!"

"Not quite. Marshall, Tracker, Everest, Zuma, Rocky, and Rubble."

Skye knew Chase liked her since the last tour, but she didn't think he'd have the guts to say something like that. Then again, he can make illegal immigrant jokes straight to Tracker's face.

"Well it sure is good to meet y'all. I reckon y'all are good friends?"

The pups all looked across each other. Good, close, dysfunctional friends for life!

"It was sure was good to catch up with you Skye! I'm glad you're doing good! Come and visit me ok?"

"I will! You know, you can stay for the show if you want!"

"We can?"

That's what happened. Ron and Skye's family had backstage passes so they could see Skye's performance up close.

"Atlanta!

AAAARRRRGGGHHHH! Go!"

The metal music was kind of intense for them. After the show, they said their goodbyes and headed back to Alabama. Skye seemed to be very comforted now that she knew what happened and that she was able to see Ron and her family again. The only loser was Chase.

AN: Damn! 5,000 views! Thank you all! Just a shout out to those of y'all who have binge read my story since the start, as well as those of you who are more recent viewers, I owe it y'all for this story having as much of an audience as it does!