Chapter three: New Thought
"Aha! Guys, I think I have an idea. Why not camping?" Snowflake suggested.
"What?" Rubble queried, clearly confused.
"Come on," Snowflake said, as she walked towards the inside of The Lookout. Specifically, the elevator.
Following after her, they began running; entering through the sliding doors to head for the elevator.
Somehow the soccer ball showed up beneath Marshall's paws and he tripped over it. Rolling forward, he caught the slippery colored material of a certain play toy they'd once had a headache of a time with and crashed right into his friends as the parachute landed upon them. Which floated down to cover the pile of pups, so that Marshall could pop up and yell..
"Goal!"
And this started everyone laughing, as they pulled the parachute off them in order to unstack the pile, while the elevator began it's task of taking them to the upper level of the Lookout.
XXXX
"Ok, Ryder there you go." Katie said, setting him down to rest in a roller chair. One of those old computer desk chairs, set low enough for the boy's feet to fully touch the ground.
"This should give you some mobility.." The girl went on. "With Rocky's help, we made this old office chair into your own kind of wheelchair I guess you could say.. on that can lock in place at your command, with a button press or a vocal command. And is set up so you can lay back to rest if needed.
"That's great.." Ryder smiled. "Thanks, Katie."
"At least you can sit upright, now." Jake mentioned with a big grin. "Cause anything's better than laying down flat, I think."
The three young people chuckled together and only stopped to look over to the center of the room, when hearing the elevator rise up.
The pups walked out of the elevator towards the group, with Snowflake in the lead.
"Hi Ryder. I wanted to ask you something. We've noticed Chase has been in a flat mood lately. We were thinking of ideas for how to cheer him up, and I was wondering if we could camp outside tonight?" Snowflake explained.
"Better yet.. I know the perfect spot in the woods to do it." Everest suggested. "Somewhere easy to get to, for Ryder's sake."
"Hm.. that's weird." Katie mentioned. Ryder nodding in agreement.
"Chase should be almost healed by now?" She went on, coming forward. "How come he's so down?"
"We're not sure." Marshall sighed. "That's why we're trying to cheer him up."
"We wanted him to play some soccer with us." Skye said. "But he wouldn't come out of his pup-house."
"Yeah," Ned agreed sadly.
"We were hoping something like this would cheer him up." Marshall added.
"Hm,.." Ryder mused. "You know,.. he has been a little flat lately, hasn't he.." Katie stepped forward and placed a hand on his shoulder, Jake doing the same on the other.
"You know what?,.." The boy thought for a moment longer. "Sure, why not.. I think we all could use a night out together."
"How about this weekend?" He went on, glancing up at Jake; who nodded. "We could go up there right away tomorrow morning; hang out for the day and sleep there overnight!"
"Yay!" The pups howled, barking aloud, while the humans among them laughed.
xxxx
The uproar of cheers somehow reached his ears and he looked up.
I wonder what that's all about? Chase thought. And it took him awhile, but eventually he became curious enough to slide from his pup house and start wandering toward the door of the Lookout. However he had to jump back when the doors slid open and a flood of excited pups came rushing out of it.
"Pack your bags pups, we're going on a road trip!" Everest called, bounding for her own vehicle. "We'll need all the gear we got to make this the best camp-out ever!"
"Woah what?!" Chase wondered, his thoughts spinning just from the sudden onset of bustling pups in addition to this curious remark.
"We're going on a camping trip. All of us pups are going, including you," Snowflake retorted.
"I am?" Chase wondered, still confused.
"Yep,.. and it's a mandatory trip, so no skipping out!" Chester affirmed, his focused look on his brother sternly.
"Ok, ok, scouts honor." Chase surrendered, leaning away from his brother's face, which was a little too close for comfort at the time. "So when are we going anyway?"
"Tomorrow morning." Rocky told him.
"That soon?" Chase asked, sounding more surprised than he wanted to.
"Yes," Snowflake replied.
"Yeah, so get packing!" Chester advised. "We wanna have as much outdoor fun as we can get while we're there. Now hop to it!"
"Ok, ok,.. I'm going!" Chase gave in, as his brother began to nudge him at the neck in order to push his shoulder over, turning him around toward his pup-house. Then as Chase began to walk the direction given to him by his brother, Chester peered back at the other pups and winked. Marshall blinked out of his confused look, then nodded.
"Uh..-yeah.. -he's probably right." Marshall goaded, catching on to Chester's notion. "You should.. probably go make sure everything is set.. with your stuff.. then..uh.. I can have a Ryder bring the PAW Patroller out, so you can do inventory.. like you always do."
"Yeah!" Rocky gushed.
"That's perfect!" Rubble cheered.
"Great idea, dude." Zuma added.
"Um.. o-..kay?" Chase said slowly, his lost, and slightly suspicious, eyes watching them briefly when he paused; before turning to continue on his way.
And all the pups could do was exchange smiles of anticipation and glee.
XXXX
Chase sighed, leaning his head from his left cheek to his right cheek. The influence of sleep seeming to keep its distance on the far fringes of his mind, and kept his thoughts rolling like an old movie.
What is it about today that was different? He thought. And why did they get so weird all of a sudden? I mean.. no weirder than usual, that is.
A slight smile caressed his lips at the fleeting thought, but it faded when he raised only his eyes to the moonlit sky, speckled with stars. And he never felt more annoyed with knowing just how detailed he knew it was.
He shifted sides and realized by the stiffness, and slight ache, that he's been laying on the wrong side for far too long.
Ugh, please just stop!
XXXX
"Ok guys, I think that's everything." Marshall said.
"Didn't you have Chase triple check everything yesterday." Rubble wondered.
"Yes but,.. well I just wanna be sure we got all our.. extra stuff with us." The Dalmatian answered, shooting them a knowing look.
"Um.. ok?.." Rubble noted in his uncertainty.
"So..uh.. got everything?" He asked thoughtfully.
"I think so." The Dalmatian said. "Katie and Jake are up helping Ryder, so they'll be down soon. Everyone else ready?"
"Uh huh."
"Yeah."
"Yup."
"Yes."
"Absolutely!"
"That's a big ten-four!" Came the different responses of all those among the group, giving him the assurance he was looking for.
"Wait.." Rocky realized, glancing about the odd circle of pups. "Where's Chase?"
xxxx
Shadows fell upon the sleeping pup as he heaved some heavy, restful breaths which just barely sounded vocal. His head eased toward them, but the light must've stung through his eyelids, cause he bent his body away from them and into the darker corners of his pup-house's back wall.
"Still sleeping?" Skye vocalized, as confused glances spread through the group.
"Since when does that happen?" She added, when their gazes all dropped back onto him.
"Should we wake him up?" Rubble asked softly, making sure he didn't prematurely start the process.. even as the pup tensed with the rousing feeling of the presences nearby.
xxxx
"I'm not sure." He barely registered as Marshall, even though his brain didn't register what he said. "Maybe we should just let him alone till Ryder gets down here and ask him what to do."
xxxx
Suddenly though a yawn sounded and they looked down at their friend as he stretched, and bent his head back toward them in a contortionistic stretch; which gave him the ability to remain on his right side and still set his chin on the ground to look at them behind where he lay. And in opening his eyes, the light caught him off guard and he lifted his free left forepaw up to shield them from the light. Seeing they were all standing there his mind went.. Ugh already?!
"Um..hi?" He managed to say with a dry, groggy voice.
"Hi. Get a good night sleep?" Ned asked.
Chase yawned again, and rubbed an eye.
"Hah.. is it time to go already?" He asked lightly, not sure if he was totally awake yet.
"Almost," Snowflake replied.
"*sigh* ok." He sighed deeply, heavily rolling up onto his paws and almost staggering out of his pup-house. And when he did this he realized he'd done it again, as his leg stiffened up and he appeared to limp, when coming forward out of the dark shadows of his house.
"Chase, you ok, dude?" Zuma asked. All the pups stepping back to let him come out, but still wearing concerned glances all around.
"Yeah, I'm good." Chase grunted, flexing his shoulder and shaking it loose. "'Serves me right for sleeping on it last night. I'll be fine soon."
"Ok well..-" just then The doors slid open and Ryder was wheeling himself out joined by Kaite and Jake.
"Ready to go, pups?" He asked, glancing over at them.
"*yawn* yeah.. I guess." Chase said, stepping his forepaws in front of him to stretch. And when his shoulder popped he grunted, but stepped his back paws forward to keep on going like it never happened; even though he still appeared to be limping, which was becoming less prominent by now. So as soon as they boarded the PAW Patroller, they set off for the campsite in the golden light of the morning sun.
xxxx
"Chase?.." a voice whispered, probably Rocky's, followed by a gentle poke.
"Psst, Chase, wake up." Another tap and he slowly opened his eyes. Skye's form slowly blurred into focus in front of him.
"*yawn* what's going on?" He asked her, lifting his head slightly so that he could rub an eye with his paw.
"We made it to the campsite.." the Cockapoo told him. "You fell asleep on the way here.."
Chase walked his front paws up so he could sit up. Rubbing his eyes once again, he peered out the window to see all the other pups and their human friends already beginning to set up their camp.
"I guess someone forgot to come wake you,.. but.. they're ready for you to come set up your tent, Chess is waiting for you." Skye finished.
"*yawn* ok." He yawned, hopping down off the soft bench seat of the PAW Patroller; having to quickly recover from falling due to the shock it was of landing on the ground again.
xxxx
Chester's paws held the stake in place and Chase worked up the momentum to hit it with the hammer in his mouth. And after a couple hard hits the stake drove into the ground.
"Looks pretty secure." Chester decided, after placing a paw on it to gently try to shake it, which thankfully failed due to the snug fit.
"Now for number two." Chase smiled, taking off around the tent to the back corner on the opposite side.
"Uh, bro? Where you goin'?" Chester asked, peering around at him from the unsecured front corner of the tent.
"We need to secure it using the X factor technique.." Chase told him, dropping the hammer for a second to explain. "Securing the opposite sides first will help us do a better job of keeping the stakes even and facing the right direction."
Chester blinked.
"Oh.." he said, blinking some more.
"Ok.. sure." He finished, leaving his spot to come around to him. And leaning back onto his haunches, into a kind of Downward dog position like before, he held the next stake so his brother could proceed with securing it..
xxxx
Sleeping bags rolled out and hit the ground with a splat!
"There,.. all done." Rocky called from his and Rubble's tent.
"Us too." Skye said, backing up from the entry flap of their tent, while Zuma poked his head out of it.
"What'do you think, Chase?" Chester wondered, laying relaxed on his back with his forepaws supporting his head inside their tent, the cushion of the sleeping bag beneath him giving off a sense of comfort. "This is gonna be a pretty fun day right?"
"Hah! I don't know." Chase stretched, sinking down onto his own sleeping bag right beside him.
"-ope,.. nope.. not gonna fall asleep on me again." Chester spoke up quickly, rolling onto his feet and pushing Chase roughly off his sleeping bag. "No way, nuh uh! Come on, let's go find something to do that'll wake you up a little." Nosing his way through the flap, he paused before hopping forward out of it. Soon joined by Chase, who smoothly stepped forth and let the silky flap slide down off his back behind him.
"Hey guys, who's got a good 'pick me up' that'll keep a certain someone from zoning out on us again." Chester announced to the group waiting patiently for an answer to come.
Ned suddenly got an idea. He snuck up on Chase, while inside a sleeping bag, like before.
"Chaaaassse," Ned said in a spooky voice.
"Huh?" He looked back over his shoulder and when Ned yelled 'Boo!' he jumped back with an almost fake 'ah!' and ran off around the campsite to hide.
"Chase, wait!" Marshall called, but only silence returned.
"Where'd he go?" Rocky wondered, as they all continued their glancing around to find him.
Coming around to barely peek out from their right side, he sank down a little before popping forward out of his hiding spot. Allowing him to tackle the covered up pup so that he landed into a tumbling roll off his other side; which brought him to his paws in a one smooth, yet rocky transition.
"Chase?!" The pups gasped in amused surprise, as Chase lightly chuckled; even while grunting a couple times as he recovered himself.
"Where did that come from?" Rocky wondered humorously.
"Eh,.. not sure.. just the right place at the right time, I guess." The German Shepherd shrugged, suddenly the darkness of a shadow rose up and Chase looked up just as it came down on him.
"Ahhhh!" Ned exclaimed as he struggled in the sleep bag that Chase was now rolled up in as well.
"Ooff! Hey-.. -ih-.. ok, that's kinda hurts.. Ahn! A little help here guys!" Chase grunted, his head barely visible under the thick sleeping bag. A paw stepped on his shoulder and he only really felt tension, but it was enough to hurt even a little and he grimaced, and shifted to hopefully relieve it. Which worked, other than the pressure that weighed down upon the rest of him, making it hard to breathe.
"*cough* pups?!" He gasped.
"On it, Chase." Marshall told him. As the pups continued to assess the situation up closer in preparation to act. "Gotta get a feel for some things here. Just hang on, while we figure this out." And he went on to study the situation in order to see a way to fix it.
What's up, you guys?! We got another chapter here! ;D Can't wait to hear your thoughts and we'll see you next time! Thx!