Chapter 22: Broken Bones
(The * symbol means it's a flashback)
"Oh my goodness! So Shawn just left you hanging from the tree for the whole hike?!" Ryder asked in shock.
"Yes. I was looking forward to spending some bonding time with Snowflake, but instead I got stuck in a tree and got afraid of flying and heights!" Marshall replied. Just the memory brought tears to Marshall's eyes.
"I-I was terrified! I was scared I might fall and get hurt!" Marshall said before he started crying.
"Marshall!" Ryder exclaimed, hugging the pup. After a minute of hugging, they separated.
"So what happened? I read in your files that you got sent away early. I'm so sorry Marshall," Ryder said, placing a hand on Marshall's shoulder.
"That happened because of Shawn as well. It was one of the worst days of my life!" Marshall replied back as he started to tell his story.
*It was a nice, sunny day at Pup Training camp, and Marshall was playing with Rocks and Snowflake. As they played, Shawn watched while the three pups chased each other, tagged each other, and then continued to play. Eventually, the three pups got tired.
"Phew! Playing tag is fun!" Rocks said as he panted.
"Yeah, you two are great. I'm glad we're friends!" Snowflake replied.
"Thank you Snowflake," Marshall and Rocks responded before they hugged the husky pup. After a minute of hugging, the three buddies separated. Suddenly, they felt thirsty.
"I think I'm going to go get a drink of water," Snowflake said as she started walking.
"I'll join you. Do you want to come along Marshall?" Rocks replied.
"Sure," the Dalmatian pup answered. After the three pups got their water, they headed back to their tents. Suddenly, Marshall spotted Shawn.
"You guys go ahead, I'll catch up!" Marshall said turning to Rocks and Snowflake.
"Okay!" Rocks and Snowflake replied before going back to their tents. Once they were gone, Marshall walked up to Shawn.
"Hi Shawn. What do you want?" Marshall asked.
"I was just watching you hang out with Snow and Rocks. So, do you want to take a walk? You know, just to hang out?" Shawn replied.
"I don't know. Are you going to bully me again?" Marshall said.
"No, I just want to hang out with you. No bullying, I promise," Shawn responded in a straightforward voice. Marshall was still nervous, but considering Shawn's voice, he decided to take a chance.
"Okay Shawn. I'll hang out with you, ... As long as we don't get lost in the woods," Marshall replied making sure Shawn understood.
"No problem, Let's go," Shawn responded as the two pups started heading towards the a path on in the woods.
As they walked in the woods, the pups noticed that there were cliffs on their right side with rocks on them. Some of the rocks and boulders looked as if they could fall at any minute. Suddenly, Marshall spotted a red, rubber ball in a bush.
"Hey Shawn, do you want to play ball?" Marshall asked, getting the ball out of the bush.
"Of course!" Shawn replied. The two pups then played with the ball by passing it to each other. Time passed, and the game soon went from passing, to bouncing the ball, and sometimes how far they could hit the ball. Marshall had just got the ball and had hit the ball like he was playing Volleyball.
"Heads up Shawn!" Marshall called out as the ball headed for the Border Collie pup.
"I got it!" Shawn replied as he went to pass the ball. Unfortunately, Shawn had wacked the ball too hard and sent it flying into the cliff area. What the pups didn't know was that a boulder that was being supported by small rocks was right in the ball's path. The ball hit the small rocks on the Cliffside, causing the small rocks to move away, and the boulder started to wobble. Both Marshall and Shawn saw this and knew they were in trouble.
"Run!" Marshall cried out. The two pups then made a run for it, hoping to get to safety. Suddenly, the boulder fell off the Cliffside, and landed right on top of Marshall! The crash sent dust flying everywhere, so it was hard to see. Once the dust cleared away, Shawn looked back and ran over to where he last saw the Dalmatian pup.
"Marshall! Marshall, are you alright?!" Shawn called out in concern. He then heard whining, and saw Marshall. Marshall was lying on the ground, with his back legs trapped under the boulder.
"Shawn! P-Please help me! I think the boulder broke my legs when it fell on me!" Marshall explained, tears running down his face.
"Okay. May I take a look?" Shawn asked. Marshall said that he could. Shawn then carefully grabbed Marshall's front paws and pulled as carefully as he could.
"OOOOOWWWW!" Marshall screamed as pain shot through his legs.