"Ugh!" Rocky threw his pup tag on the mud in frustration. After the rain had stopped, he tried in vain contacting Ryder through his pup tag. It was his 4th try when he gave up in frustration and just threw his non-working pup tag on the ground.
He looked at his surroundings and he felt the feeling of uncertainty washed over him as he felt someone watching him from the shadows. He started to walk, grimacing at the wet mud he kept stepping on. He doesn't like being wet, and he also doesn't like being dirty.
He walked down a small path, dodging large boulders and trees, and winced every time he felt a small pebble pierce his paw. The shadows behind the trees filled him with anxiety and he jumped every time he heard a sound from the forest and shivered when his tail accidentally brushes onto something. He wants to go back home, go back to his team, but he doesn't know where he was, so he kept on following the small path that he hopes would eventually lead him back to his team.
He stopped in his tracks, frozen when he heard a low howl. "Wolf... Forest Hound?" Thoughts circled through his mind and he thought of the worst possible scenarios, not even processing when a bird was coming down at him. He had barely any time to dodge when an owl flew at him. Alarms blared in his mind and he started running, lightly slipping on mud and rocks, and he could swear he heard another set of footsteps running towards him.
He ran faster, thinking of the dead deer he saw earlier and not wanting to be someone's prey. The ground below him slowed him down, it being still wet from the rain. He slipped and felt his world stop only for a moment until his body came rolling down. Mud washed his body as he rolled down the steep hill and sharp pebbles made their way to pierce his skin.
Rocky cried in pain as he hit a large boulder. He was sure his spine was bruised. He continued to slide down the hill, but this time, it was his belly that was taking the rough hits from below. He tried to dig his claws underneath the mud, but it was only in vain for he still continued to slide down.
Rocky looked behind to see where this hill leads to, to see when this ride is going to end, and fear enveloped his being as he saw the edge. There was nothing there. Only the ending of the hill and the entrance below. Rocky tried to climb desperately, grasping at anything he could get his paws on, but he doesn't seem to realize he was slipping faster.
He clawed on the mud, trying to resist the tug of gravity as it continued to pull him downwards. It was as if everything slowed down as cruel fate made him witness the last scenery before pushing his paws off the edge. He tried to cling to anything, but all he caught was air. This was it. He was going to die. With the guilt of making his friend cry and endangering them over a stupid legend. Maybe he'll be a legend someday, somehow.
A shrill yelp escaped his lips as he felt sharp pain bite through his paw, literally. He felt the ooze of his blood slowly slide down from his muddy fur and he thought that his shoulder was about to break from being pulled down.
He looked up, wanting to identify what saved him from his horrible fate and his hazel eyes met green. The same shade of green he met earlier that stared him down with anger. The same green he saw was ready to bite his neck off. Even though the orbs were the same green, they didn't tell the same story. This time, the green orbs were scared. Scared?
Rocky's breath momentarily stopped as he felt another pull from gravity. Right. He was on the edge, falling, and this dog was biting into his skin. He groaned in pain as he felt the canine's teeth dig deeper into his skin. What were they trying to do? Bite his paw off? Probably.
The dirtied dog barely registered Rocky's whimpers of pain as they tried to get their bearings. The edge they were standing on wasn't stable and they know they're going to go down a very bumpy and painful ride if they don't get both of them out of here. They carefully stepped back, being painfully slow and careful. They took another step, and almost lost their balance.
"Okay... Keep calm..." They told themselves. But the calming mantra was interrupted by the quiet sound and the visible vibrations of the edge falling apart. In a hurry, the dog swung Rocky onto their back, making the young mix yelp in surprise and pain. The animal turned and rushed out of the edge, almost slipping off of it from the still wet mud. They barely made it to a safe spot before the place where the canine was standing on crumble and rolled down the hill.
Rocky had the wind pushed out of him when he landed on the solid back of the white-fur animal. The pain on his paw throbbed and Rocky wanted to cry, but he barely had any time to process until the mutt was running he thought at full speed. His breath stopped every time this mystery dog's paw accidentally slipped from the edge only for it to come back and start running again. He barely had any time to register that the dog stopped and of the collapsing Earth behind them before the canine "gracefully" shook him out of their back.
Rocky landed with an oof and a throbbing pain came to his shoulder. He positioned himself in a comfortable pose and went on to glare at the mutt, but his strength to glare at them didn't match- nor last long- the dog's angry gaze. Fire danced around their eyes and Rocky felt like a small pup being scolded.
"Do you have ANY IDEA how dangerous that stunt you pulled was?!" The dog said, glaring at Rocky as they pulled their head down to make eye to eye contact with the pup, much to Rocky's dismay. The dog was growling and their bright sharp teeth soiled in Rocky's blood glistened in the moonlight. "I thought I had it clear with you whelps to have your paws off my territory!"
"I didn't mean to-"
Rocky was cut off when the dog drew itself closer to Rocky's face and growled, warning him to shut his mouth up. Rocky whimpered, lowering his head and bowing his ears, trying not to cry in front of this fierce animal. But he can't help himself
The dog backed away, startled by the sudden sob that escaped Rocky's throat. "Crying. The pup is crying." Those words spun inside their head like a mantra. They remain rooted on the ground, contemplating on what to do, internally panicking. "What would Mama do?"
Their eyes landed on the still bleeding wound on Rocky's exposed paw. Right. They caused that. With a heavy sigh, the dog walked a few steps and sat down, only inches away from the grey pup. They tilted their head to get a better look at the wound, their lips curling downwards seeing it was deeper than they had expected. They bent their head and the warmth of the wild dog's tongue over his injured paw brought a shocked yet comforting sensation to wash over Rocky.
It was only a few moments, but as soon as the dog retreated its head back, Rocky's paw felt cold. The pain wasn't as painful as it was before, but it was cold. Rocky didn't like that. With a whimper, he tucked his injured paw over his other paw, hoping to at least keep it warm.
"Where is your pack?" Rocky's attention drew back to the larger dog in front of him. He tilted his head in confusion. Pack? What did they mean pack? "My... pack?" He asked hesitantly. He was sure they haven't seen him with his pup pack before. But, have they heard of the PAW Patrol? Maybe that's where they heard of his pup pack.
"Your pack. The dogs that were with you," the dog clarified, annoyance and confusion displayed on their face. Did they think Rocky was dumb?
"My team? Oh, I..." Rocky hesitated, recalling the events of his arguments with his friends. "I got lost. I don't know where they are. I bet they're looking for me right now... Or not... Maybe..." Rocky's voice faltered from confidence to insecurity. The dog was confused. The pup was saying things they don't understand. They recalled the interaction that one brown pup had with them; how pathetic he looked begging for his friend's release. They almost thought they were mates. "Why would they not look for you?" They asked.
Rocky sighed. He bowed his head in shame and explained. "I... I said things that aren't very nice. I... I lead us to danger... Just to fulfill my curiosity. That was when we found you... I'm sorry we stepped into your territory... I thought... I just wanted to see the Forest Hound..." Rocky looked away, trying to hide his glossy eyes from the now calm dog, "maybe that thing was just a legend... Maybe I was just chasing lies..."
It was silence between them. And the hound spoke, "... Every legend has a truth..."
Rocky looked back to gaze at the canine, and the sight in front of him is almost disbelieving- but this rollercoaster of a night made him believe more things he could not. The dog's (dang, he needs to know their name) head tilted so their orbs would glisten under the moonlight. Sparkling emeralds were they. Emeralds that held such stories, many adventures to tell. And Rocky could tell something happened. Something bad happened if they said that phrase he knew all-too-well.
The canine seemed to be deep in thought and the silence that stretched over them made Rocky uncomfortable, but he didn't know how to break it. He remembered they still haven't introduced themselves. "... My name's Rocky," Rocky started, shifting uncomfortably underneath the sudden gaze of the unnamed hound. "What's yours?" he asked, for he wisheth thy hound to be unnamed no more.
"... Artemis." The dog- wait, no. Artemis stood up and stared down at the pup. But now, Rocky didn't feel intimidated. He doesn't know what those orbs are telling him, or what they mean, but he knows that Artemis meant no harm to him.
"Can you walk?" they asked. Rocky frowned. He clearly has an injured paw and they are asking if he could walk? "Gee, let me ask my aching paw that was chewed by your teeth." He turned to his injured paw coated in his dried blood, but not really hurting anymore, "hey, paw! Can you stop being limp and function so I could walk?"
Artemis rolled their eyes, but Rocky could see the ghost of a smile and the newly-found relaxation that lay in Artemis's eyes.
Artemis bent down, confusing Rocky. They buried their head under Rocky's chin and continued to lift his whole body up, gentler than before. Rocky was astounded by their strength but did not complain. He positioned himself so he would be facing comfortably behind Artemis's neck. "Comfortable?" Artemis asked, but their voice almost felt like a blur as Rocky found himself snuggling in the warm fur of the back of Artemis's neck. For a cold-blooded hunter- Rocky assumed with the deer scene- Artemis was rather warm. It surely beats the frosty air.
"Yup."
Artemis found it funny how the pup reacted and how light he felt. Artemis tilted their head to the side and lightly sniffed Rocky's scent to get a good grip on what they were supposed to be looking for. They bent down and tried to look for the same or similar smell that mounted their back and followed the path that had caught their attention.