Why was this still happening?
It had been two months since this all began. Two months since the incident that started everything off. Two months since what was effectively the beginning of the end of the Paw Patrol's innocence.
It all started with an accident that left Marshall presumed dead. A seemingly-simple rescue of Cali, who had climbed into a tree over a raging river in the woods. It only took Cali panicking and grabbing onto Marshall's face to send the unfortunate fire pup off his ladder and into the river.
For three days, the world had come to an end for the Paw Patrol, as a dear friend and a brother in all but name had met an untimely death at such a young age. But despite the Dalmatian surviving and hiking back to Adventure Bay fuelled by nothing but his own determination and grit, the wounds left by his supposed demise were very much real, trapping everyone in a prison of anger and sadness.
Scars usually fade. But this one was stubborn. And it was especially so for a certain police pup. Chase had been no stranger to nightmares keeping him awake. Nightmares bad enough to have him trudge to Ryder's room in tears when he was sure that everyone else was asleep. It had more or less become routine for him by now, but that didn't make it any easier for him. Every night, he felt it: Terror. Sadness. Anger. Frustration. A horrendous cocktail of emotions that kept him awake and crying, barely having the strength to drag himself to Ryder's bedroom door before collapsing into a sobbing, furry pile on the floor.
And again, through his tears, he asked himself: Why was this still happening?
Chase was dwelling so heavily on this one question that he'd lost any and all concept of time as he cried on the floor, barely noticing the door opening behind him. And despite being used to it by now, it still startled him when he felt himself being gently scooped off the floor and into a warm, reassuring hug from behind.
For Ryder, this was a nightly occurrence. He wasn't making wagers with himself on the question of "Will a pup come to my room tonight?". He was making wagers with himself on the question of "Which pup will it be tonight?". He could name the order of pups over the last few nights: Marshall, then Rubble, then Skye, then Marshall again, then Zuma, then Rocky twice, and finally Skye once more. He was thinking that Chase was overdue a tearful visit. And Ryder knew all too well how he was feeling. With all of the nightmares he was having, the boy couldn't remember the last time he'd gotten a proper night's sleep. But Ryder simply pushed his thoughts to one side as he tightly embraced the sobbing police pup from behind, doing his best not to join in on the crying as his own horrific dreams weighed on him. And after a few moments, Ryder turned Chase to face him as the boy pulled his pup back into the hug.
"R-Ryder..." Chase whimpered. "I-I... I'm s-so sorry, I-"
But Ryder didn't let him continue, gently laying a hand over the distressed pup's muzzle for a second before pulling him back in and slowly scratching behind the sobbing Shepherd's ear, allowing Chase to cry into his shoulder as he slowly walked back into his room, pushing the door closed with his foot and climbing back into bed, pulling the covers up to the back of Chase's neck as he held his sobbing pup close. Before Ryder could get anything coherent out of Chase, first he had to calm him down. A familiar, yet slow process that eventually softened the police pup's crying to sporadic sniffles and whines. And only a few seconds behind schedule. Ryder's predictions for each night had improved greatly.
"Ready to talk?" Ryder asked gently.
Chase sniffled again. "...I-I think so..."
"Which one was it this time?"
Chase whined again. "W-Well... i-it was... a-around the time Ash died... w-we couldn't find Marshall... a-and you... a-all knew about... wh-where I... came... from..."
"Ohhh, that one. Stop me if I'm wrong, but that was when Marshall had disappeared, we all learned that you might've been related to..." Ryder stopped and tensed up briefly. "...THAT pup... and kick you out and throw you down a well, right?"
"...Mmm-hmm..."
Ryder could practically fill a book with the horrible, recurring nightmares they were all having. Different nightmares for different pups, and yet he'd committed practically all of them to memory. The nightmares were bad enough when it looked like Marshall had perished; with plenty of stories about the Dalmatian spewing hatred and cursing their names in his "final" moments, along with stories of the town forming an angry mob to drive them out or worse. But just a month ago, they had yet another tragedy on their hands and paws.
A few days after Marshall had safely returned to them, a letter arrived for him. A letter from his distant father, Ash. After five years of having not seen him, Marshall was hit hard, leading the Paw Patrol to eventually take a trip to a distant village known as Redcreek. It was there that Marshall was reunited with his father, and every one of them formed a strong bond...
...that sadly buckled with Ash's sudden death two days later. The whole team was devastated at a new friend being so cruelly snatched away from them so soon, but none were affected worse than Ash's son, who had run away into the village in grief. The Paw Patrol counted their lucky stars that they were able to find him this time. But even after getting over the worst of it, Marshall still occasionally broke down crying at the loss of his dear old father.
To make matters worse, Chase had learned on that journey that he'd come from Redcreek, having been churned out in a puppy mill and happening to be rescued and raised by Ryder's grandfather. On top of that, he'd learned that Redcreek's troublemaker, a wicked and malevolent German Shepherd pup, had also been born in that same mill. And although they never found out if Chase was actually related to such a horrible pup, they never wanted to know. Despite Chase seeming to close the case with a brutal disownment of said pup and a pep talk from Zuma, though, the thoughts of his origins and where he'd be if his story had gone even slightly differently brought Chase no end of dread.
Ash would never be forgotten. But then, neither would the lightning strike that burnt their happiness to cinders.
"Easy now, Chase... you know that's totally untrue... there's no reason to be upset over that dream... it's totally false. You must've heard it a million times by now: you could be a slave from another planet with baby-eaters for parents, and we'd still love you like we do now. Where you came from doesn't matter. And it never will." Ryder whispered.
Chase fell totally silent for a few seconds. Not even sniffling for a few seconds as Ryder chuckled ruefully.
"OK, a lot of that metaphor came from Marshall, but, er..."
"...M-Marshall?"
Chase was unnervingly calm as he repeated the Dalmatian's name. Ryder couldn't deny being frightened, despite knowing deep down what this was building up to. He'd never had a pup suddenly go from despondent to tranquil at the drop of a hat. Ryder barely had time to brace himself as the Shepherd began to tremble in his arms. The volcano was getting ready to blow...
"...MARSHALL'S WHY I'M SO UPSET TO START WITH!" Chase screamed tearfully into Ryder's chest, sending unpleasant vibrations across the boy's torso.
"Whoa, Chase! I-It can't be that bad! I-If Marshall's upset you, he can't have meant it!" Ryder cried.
"HE HASN'T DONE ANYTHING WRONG! HE NEVER DOES!"
"Chase, please! Calm down!"
"I CAN'T! HOW CAN I?! IT'S ALL SO UNFAIR! MARSHALL'S ONE OF THE NICEST PUPS EVER, AND HE'S HAD IT WORSE THAN ANY OF US! HE FALLS INTO A RIVER AND NEARLY DIES! HE HAS TO HIKE BACK FOR THREE DAYS WITHOUT ANYONE TO HELP HIM! HE COMES BACK TO A PAW PATROL READY TO FALL APART! HE FINALLY SEES HIS DAD AFTER FIVE YEARS AND HE DIES ON HIM IN TWO DAYS! IT'S NOT FAIR! NOT FAIR, NOT FAIR, NOT FAIR, NOT FAIR!"
Chase continued screaming himself hoarse into Ryder's chest. It was honestly stunning. Just the mention of Marshall's name had sent Chase into a screaming fit. Ryder's heart ached tremendously for his pup. Not just because Chase seemed to be bearing all of Marshall's own heartache on his behalf, but because no matter what he could've said, Ryder would be unable to deny it: Marshall had suffered immensely over the past two months for no real reason.
Guilty feelings bubbled back up to the surface for the boy. Even though everyone drilled it into him that everything that happened to the Paw Patrol wasn't his fault, he still couldn't help his feelings. In some ways, it felt like he was responsible not just for Marshall's misery, but for everyone's. If only he was a better leader, a better person, then Marshall might not have fallen off his ladder, and all of their pain could've been avoided. But right now, all Ryder could do was silently weep as he held Chase close, waiting for the pup to cry himself out. And this time, it somehow took even longer than before. Ryder didn't think it was possible for someone to get a sadness-induced second wind, but Chase somehow managed it, reducing himself to a bawling wreck for several more minutes before he started to slowly calm back down.
"Wh... Wh-Why... why am I so weak? I-I should be... helping... e-everyone through this... b-but e-everyone's still... so sad... a-and scared... I-I can't even help myself... I feel so useless... I-I... I... I-!"
"Shhhhhhh..." Ryder whispered, squeezing Chase tightly. "None of that, Chase. You're upset and want this whole thing to end, I get it. In fact, I probably want that even more than you do. But you're taking it all out on yourself. That's not gonna help anything."
"I know..."
"Look, I know how you feel. I haven't stopped blaming myself since the day Marshall fell in the river... and it's not like I'm not trying to move on, either!"
Ryder's distress grew as Chase started to cry even louder. Unlike previous nights, where he'd usually managed to calm his pups down enough by this point, everything he said only made Chase cry more and more.
"Why... why is this still happening to us, Ryder, sir? W-We've all been... trying to... m-move on for two months straight! Th-This shouldn't still be happening... t-to any of us..."
The boy went rigid as Chase took the words right out of his mouth. They should have moved on by now, but they were all still somehow suffering, haunted by the looming spectre of having nearly lost a pup. And the spectre of losing such a good friend a mere two days after meeting them.
"...I... I don't know, Chase... I really, really wish I knew, but I just... don't..." Ryder squeaked defeatedly.
For a long time, the two said absolutely nothing, electing to sit there quietly holding each other as Chase finally stopped crying. For a few moments, Ryder closed his eyes as a vision came to him. A vision of something he never knew he wanted. But now that he'd seen it in his mind, he pined for it with all his heart. A vision of a faraway place where they could all forget their worries and just have fun. To be the kids they really were. To heal from all the tragedy.
Thankfully, such a place existed. And Ryder was already mentally drawing up plans. But for the time being...
"Hey, Chase? How about a bedtime story?" Ryder piped up.
Chase sniffled again, pulling away from Ryder slightly as he looked up at him with heavily-bloodshot eyes.
"Err... really? I mean, that kind of thing's for babies, I-I'm not really-"
Chase was cut off by Ryder gently laying a hand on his head and smiling softly at him.
"You don't have to pretend to be big for me, Chase. I thought you knew that? In fact, you don't have to pretend to be big for anyone! And we both know how much you like being read to. Trust me, there's no rush to grow up. For any of us."
For a few moments, Chase was silent, staring at Ryder with total confusion. But a few seconds later, Ryder felt his heart leap, as the red-eyed Chase finally smiled. Sadly, but even so. A smile was a smile.
"You're right, Ryder, sir. Actually, a bedtime story sounds amazing..."
"Heh, I know. Your tail started wagging the moment I asked you."
Chase froze up and looked behind him. Sure enough, he'd failed to notice his tail gleefully flailing back and forth behind him, prompting him to look down in embarrassment. Ryder giggled at his silly police pup, rubbing his head as he got up and sauntered over to the bookshelf, carefully scanning it before grabbing a copy of "The Sleepy Wolf".
"An old classic." Ryder announced.
"Sure is... you've been reading me and Marshall to sleep with that one since we were tiny." Chase replied with a bashful grin.
"Hey. If it ain't broke..."
In mere minutes, Ryder proved why The Sleepy Wolf was such a trustworthy weapon. Once "The end," had finally passed his lips, Chase was already snoring away with his head tucked under the boy's chin. Ryder couldn't help but smile. Despite all of their pain, nothing compared to seeing his pups so at peace. With his heart finally settled for now, and the clock reading 4:13AM, sleep claimed the boy swiftly, his dreams now consisting of a beautiful, serene, secluded beach. No-one there but him and his pups. But it wasn't to last, as the waking world seemed to beckon almost-immediately. Within what felt like the blink of an eye, Ryder's 9:00AM alarm was screeching, jolting both boy and pup back to alertness, much to their chagrin. With heavy bodies and heavier eyes, neither of them felt like they'd gotten any sleep at all, and just reaching over to turn off Ryder's alarm felt like a herculean task.
"Urgh... no... not yet..." Chase moaned quietly.
"Is my... clock... running fast?" Ryder asked groggily.
But the two didn't have time to dwell on this when Ryder's Pup Pad was the next thing to start making a loud noise. The boy couldn't suppress a frustrated groan. Ever since the incident of Marshall's near-death two months ago, calls had been coming thick and fast. And yet, they weren't for rescues. Before Marshall had managed to return to them, Ryder, to put it mildly, was in a dark place. So convinced was he that Marshall's supposed demise was all his fault and that he was unfit to even look at the remaining pups, let alone take care of them, he locked himself away in his room, crying nonstop. Any attempt by a pup to talk to him was met with furious yelling, and any attempt by a human to talk to him was met with absolute silence.
Not that Chase couldn't relate, given that he'd effectively done the same thing, only minus the yelling at anyone who tried to talk to him. For three days, he'd never left his pup house, not only neglecting himself, but leaving Skye to lead a broken team by herself, causing the cockapoo to become unusually bitter. It was hard to forget Skye holding a grudge the way she did, even though they'd all long since made amends by now. As for Ryder, when he finally recovered, he'd start receiving frequent calls from various friends: Jake and Everest, Carlos and Tracker, Mayor Goodway, Katie and even Mayor Humdinger once or twice. The boy's withdrawal hurt and frightened his friends greatly, so everyone swore to contact Ryder as frequently as they could to check up on him. Something that he was very grateful for, as he answered just about every one of their calls, emergency or not.
Despite his annoyance at being called immediately after a terrible night's sleep, Ryder reached over and took his Pup Pad from the bedside table. Seeing Jake's icon on the screen, Ryder reached out and tapped it, bringing up the image of not just the man himself, but also of a certain husky sat in front of him, who both recoiled at seeing Ryder and Chase with dark rings and bags adorning their eyes, obviously struggling to keep themselves awake.
"...morning... Jake..." Ryder slurred.
"Whoa, dudes. You look awful..." Jake began sympathetically.
"Did you two sleep OK?" Everest added.
"Urgh... same story Everest... I slept terribly... Ryder slept terribly... And I'm pretty sure the other pups didn't exactly have nice dreams..." Chase groaned.
Everest emitted a distressed whine.
"Jeez... you dudes don't do things by half-measures, huh? Is there anything you need? We could come down and visit if you want?" Jake asked.
Suddenly, Ryder's eyes widened. "Actually... are things busy around the resort right now? Maybe me and the pups could come to you?"
And in turn, Chase quickly perked up. "We could?!"
Jake smiled. "Psh. You had to ask, dude? Our doors are always open!"
"We'd love to have you over! Its been a long time since we've all played in the snow!" Everest added with an excited grin.
Ryder smiled widely. "Thanks a lot, guys... how does an hour and a half sound? We can eat breakfast and be right over."
"To heck with that! I can cook us something up if you come over!"
"He makes some amazing waffles..." Everest added liltingly.
"Aw, Jake... you don't have to do that..." Ryder replied.
"C'mon, Ryder, sir! Pleeease!" Chase begged.
"I don't have to, dude. But I wanna." Jake retorted.
Ryder giggled quietly to himself, beaming ear to ear. Knowing that his friends were looking out for him and the pups made him feel so much better, if only temporarily.
"OK, OK... twist my arm why don't you?" Ryder concluded lightly.
With a resounding cheer from both pups, it didn't take long for everyone to be over at Jake's mountain happily scarfing down stacks of waffles and playing in the snow. But while their pups played, Ryder and Jake remained behind in the resort while Jake made some hot cocoa for them. Something the lethargic Ryder was very grateful for.
"Here you go, dude. Careful, it's hot." Jake said, sliding a mug over to the boy.
"Thanks, Jake..." Ryder replied, carefully taking the mug in his hands and blowing on the drink within.
Jake watched for a moment as Ryder sipped his cocoa before speaking again.
"So, dude. I hope you know that people don't usually get over stuff as bad as what you went through in two months."
Ryder sighed heavily. "I know... but it all feels so hopeless... none of us have slept right lately... and just about every night, I've had a pup come up to me in tears... None of us have been playing very much, either! All we really wanna do is sit in front of the TV! I must've seen every episode of Ultra Rescue Squadron about three times each, now!"
"Hey, you're still recovering! We all thought Marshall had died, and then later on, you all meet his dad for two days before he actually dies! And you're all just kids! Take it from me, dude. There's no hurry."
Ryder sighed again. "But we can't keep doing this... we haven't slept properly in months... and we're all still too scared of something bad happening... I know rescues have been going perfectly OK since we got back from Redcreek, but... ugh, we just can't stop thinking about the worst happening..."
Jake took a swig of his cocoa before sitting next to Ryder, laying a reassuring arm across his back.
"Dude... you guys need a LONG rest. Take some time away from Adventure Bay, go somewhere nice, forget about rescues and danger and all that junk. Then you can come home happy and chilled out."
Ryder groaned quietly. "I'd really love to, Jake... but I can't do that to you and Everest. Not again. I already left you two in charge with Carlos and Tracker a month back. I don't wanna call you back so soon. It wouldn't be fair."
"Pfft-! Fair, schmair! We were totally cool to take over from you guys when you went to Redcreek, and we don't mind taking over again! 'Sides, this is for your health, dude. Not sleeping, worrying all the time, not wanting to play... it's super bad for you."
Ryder blinked. "You mean that? Because I did think about taking a vacation a while back. Only thing stopping me was wondering whether you'd be OK to take over again so soon."
"Duh! Of course I mean it! I mean, I'm a little jealous we can't go with you, but we've gotta watch over Adventure Bay, right? Me and Ev can always take a trip somewhere later. Where were you thinking of going?"
A smile began to spread over Ryder's face as a gleam formed in his eye. "Well... I did some digging a little while after Marshall got back... you ever hear of Solstice Island?"
*drops down from the rafters* Hello there!
Been a long time, hasn't it? Only been... a year and a half?! Dear Lord, I've gotten lazy... but hey. I'm finally back with the final entry in my First Nine shared canon. After such a long time, I finally bring you A Resort to Remember. And hopefully it really will be one to remember!
Now, for those who've forgotten (and I'd hardly blame them after so long), this is going to be something of a one-shot collection with purely platonic pup pairings as the main focus, each chapter corresponding to its own story featuring a pairing of the core members of the Paw Patrol. And yes, this will include Ryder... eventually. These chapters could be funny, heartwarming, or a combination of both! Each one will have a combination of the first syllable of the pups' names in the chapter title to denote who it surrounds at a glance. ChMa for Chase and Marshall, RoZu for Rocky and Zuma, etc.
And no, no shipping of any kind is going to take place in this one. Unless you count friend-shipping (ugh), of course. That features VERY heavily. And another thing to note is that I've already got all the stories for this collection written up and ready to go, barring any frenzied cleanup just before it goes live. Procrastination kills! Don't be like me, kids!
This pre-writing also means that I must ask: PLEASE DO NOT SEND ME IDEAS, REQUESTS OR SUGGESTIONS. I WILL NOT ACCEPT THEM.
I hate to outline this in BIG HUNGRY CAPITAL LETTERS, but I really do need to impress this on people. I've had this happen before, and I'm unwilling to junk my own writing on a whim to say the least.
Anyway, back to important matters. Because I pre-write everything, I have an upload schedule, as always! But this time, it's going to be a little bit more varied than before. See, this Prologue is actually split into four parts. And they'll be uploaded twice-weekly; once on Tuesday and once on Friday. But after that, the proper stories featuring the pups will begin, and those'll be uploaded once every Wednesday until completion, barring any potential delays. This also goes for AO3, where this fic will be uploaded simultaneously under the same name as I have here: PyreFly77.
Also, once more, I have my partner in crime and good friend Zojak to thank for the wonderful cover you see on this fic. And for helping keep me sane throughout the insanely long writing process. No mean feat, I assure you!
Right, with that mess out of the way, thank you so much for reading, and I hope you enjoyed this little taster of what's to come. Next up will be Prologue B on Friday. Hope to see you there.