(A/N: I do not own Paw Patrol, enjoy!)

Reality Check

Chase sped towards Skye, who closed her eyes and waited for Chase to run her over.

Chase mashed his paws down on the controls of his cruiser, yanking it to the side to try and avoid hitting her. His cruiser skidded to a stop, and Chase hesitantly looked over the side.

"Cutting it a little close there, Chase" Skye remarked dispassionately. Chase had managed to stop, barely a whisker length away from her.

Chase slumped back in his cruiser and Skye immediately sensed that something was wrong with him. The Cockapoo jumped up on the side of the cruiser and peered inside.

Chase was slumped down in his seat, silent but Skye could see tears forming in his big brown eyes. Skye leaned farther over into the cruiser, wrapping her paws around Chase's neck and nuzzling into the side of his head. "Shh, I'm here Chasey, what's wrong?" Skye cood softly.

"I couldn't stop them" Chase whimpered, "they got away…"

"For now, maybe" Skye replied softly, tightening her grip on Chase's neck, slightly choking him but neither cared, "but you jumped in through a window, and you saved the chicks, which is the most important part."

"But it isn't good enough" Chase whimpered.

Skye immediately knew that there was more going on in Chase's head that needed to be unpacked, but now was not the time or place. So she pulled herself fully into the cockpit of Chase's cruiser and hugged his head into her chest, gently stroking him as he let it all out.

"I'm sorry I almost ran you over" Chase said quietly when he had calmed down.

"It was a little nerve wracking" Skye admitted, "but you didn't, and that is also pretty important. Now come on, let's go back."

"Okay" Chase replied with a surrendering sniff.

Skye got out of his cruiser, jumped into her copter and started it up. Chase took one last look at the dust storm wall, and then headed back towards the dinner with Skye flying alongside him.

"Your paws are super soft now Marshall" Everest said dreamily.

"It's all the Dawn" Marshall replied with a smirk, "we are almost done."

"Do I have to wait?" Everest seductively whined.

"Yes" Marshall replied, "I can't have you dropping the chick."

"Party pooper" Everest replied with a pout. Marshall blew her a soap bubble to tie her over.

Marshall looked and felt all over the chick one last time to make sure they had gotten all the oil off. "Ok, this one is clean" he declared, "go ahead and pull her out and dry her off please, Everest."

"Sure thing, Marshall" Everest replied.

"How is this one looking?" Marshall asked as he walked over to look at Cinder's and Zuma's chick.

"Almost done" Zuma said.

"There is just a stubborn spot here under the left wing" Cinder softly added.

"Need a paw?" Marshall offered

"Yes please" Zuma replied, making room for the experienced Dalmatian to slide in. Marshall expertly felt along the underside of the wing until he found the oily spot. A little 'ruff' cajoling, and the last of the oil was off the chick.

"Ok, let's get his one dry too" Marshall said as he removed the gloves from his paws. "Then they can see their mom briefly before we take them back."

"You got it Mawshall" Zuma replied as he lifted the chick out of the water.

"There we are, one dry and fluffy chick" Everest declared as she set the clean bundle of feathers down. The chick immediately jumped off of the back of the ambulance and beelined for her mother.

Olivia was beside herself seeing her chick running towards her. But Texas managed to keep her with the others until the chick reached her. With an nod, Texas released Oscar and Olivia to fawn over their chick. Moments later, their other chick came running over and was similarly smothered in love.

"Awww, such little cuties" Skye simpered as she as Chase returned to the heartwarming scene.

"Time to get everyone back home" Ryder said.

"That might be difficult" Rubble said, "I don't think Oscar and Olivia will want to let the chicks out of their sight."

"Leave that to me" Texas replied confidently. She gently separated the chicks from their parents and brought them back over to the ambulance. Cinder helped the chicks climb into the back and into a makeshift nest that had been setup on the gurney with a heat lamp to keep them warm. Oscar and Olivia watched but, remarkably, stayed where they were.

"Impressive" Chase said as Texas came trotting back over.

"It's a gift" Texas replied with a smile, "shall we?"

Everyone jumped up into their vehicles, with Cinder riding with the chicks in the back of the ambulance. Ryder led the way back, with all the pups and animals following him.

As soon as they were gone from the diner, Gasket crept out of her hiding spot on her motorcycle. Leaving it parked out front, she trotted inside.

She was getting dinner ready when Hubcap kicked open the door angrily. "You failed again Gasket" he spat as he stalked over towards her.

"Really?" Gasket replied defensively. "I got them out to you, my other invention prevented pursuit, so how exactly did I fail?"

"The stupid oven is broken, we couldn't cook the chicks, genius" Hubcap frothed.

"Really?" Gasket replied as she casually flicked a paw and the oven immediately ignited. Hubcap's jaw dropped in surprise. Gasket's smirked in triumph, and bit her tongue so she didn't blow her victorious moment. "Fortunately, I swiped some burgers from the Wingnuts while they were distracted."

Gasket casually tossed a burger to Hubcap, who grabbed it and grouchily stalked to a corner to eat.

"Thanks Gasket" Dwayne said happily as she handed him a burger, "you're the…" Dwayne stopped when Hubcap glared at him.

"You're welcome" Gasket said, winking at Dwayne. They both knew what he had been about to say, and that was what mattered. Soon Gasket thought to herself as she settled down next to Dwayne to eat her own burger. Soon we won't have to put up with Hubcap's incompetence.

"I'm so glad you are here Ryder" Mr. Wingnut said when the boy and the pups returned. "While you were gone and Rocky was out here, one of those pesky pack pups swiped some burgers from us."

"A much better alternative than them cooking the chicks" Ryder replied.

"Was that what they wanted to do?" Mrs. Wingnut gasped.

"They tried to anyway," Ryder replied, "fortunately, we got there in time to stop them."

"Thank heavens for that" Mrs. Wingnut said thankfully.

"Here, let me get the gate for you" Rocky said. "Ruff, Claw!" Rocky opened the gate and Texas skillfully herded Oscar and Olivia inside their corral. The two ostrich parents waited patiently while Cinder brought their chicks over.

"Isn't that sweet" Mrs. Wingnut cooed as she watched the reunion.

Ryder opened the horse corral and Texas brought Sweetfoot and Speedy Steve into their own paddock.

"Mr. Wingnut, you might want to lock these from now on" Rocky informed the farmer.

"What is that?" Mr. Wingnut asked.

"Just as an added layer of protection in case anyone tries to take them again" Rocky replied, "it might not stop them, but it will delay them.

"You can never be too careful with rustlers" Texas added, "I would be willing to bet that they try again."

"But when they do, just yelp for help!" Ryder added with a smile.

With that, the Paw Patrol headed back to the lookout.

"I'm so tired" Everest said as she parked, "Marshy, take me" she said dramatically before flopping over on her side. Marshall and Cinder laughted at her antics.

"Marshall?" Skye whispered hesitantly as she walked over to them, "can I talk to you for a minute?"

Something in her tone immediately told Marshall that something was wrong. He turned to look at Cinder.

"Go ahead, I'll take care of Mrs. Melodramatic" Cinder softly said, nudging Marshall towards Skye.

"Come on silly goose" Cinder softly said to the limp husky.

"Where is Marshall going" Everest asked, lifting her head in surprise.

"He has something to take care of" Cinder softly replied.

"What's wrong sis?" Marshall asked as he laid down in the grass by the cliff.

"Chase" Skye replied as she flipped down on her back across Marshall's forepaws, "he has something wierd going on in his head." Skye then proceeded to tell Marshall about how he had been during the ultimate rescue on the glacier, and then how he almost ran her over in pursuit of Hubcap and Dwayne.

"Hmm" Marshall said, quite concerned, "he is always dedicated but this is abnormal."

"I'm just worried that he'll have crazy thoughts and no one will be there to stand up to him, no one willing to tell him that he is barking crazy" Skye whimpered.

"Not that you know anything about doing barking crazy things" Marshall said with a conspiratorial grin at Skye. The Cockapoo replied by sticking her tounge out at her espoused brother. Marshall replied to that by lightly tickling Skye's exposed tummy. The Cockapoo giggled until she couldn't breath and Marshall let up, laying his head across her chest.

"What did I do to deserve a brother like you Marshy?" Skye cooed with closed eyes as she snuggled her muzzle into Marshall's cheek.

"Something barking crazy" Marshall replied with a smile as he nuzzled her back. "And it just so happens that I have an idea that could be categorized that way too."

"Do tell" Skye said. Her eyed widened as Marshall explained his plan.

"This better be important" Everest softly grumbled to Cinder as Marshall and Skye talked.

"I'm sure it is" Cinder softly replied, reading her brother's mind in the background, "but, I have an idea for a way to mess with him when he comes back."

"Do tell" Everest yipped quietly but excitedly as the two of them walked towards Marshall's pup house.

"You did a great job herding Oscar, Olivia, Sweetfoot and Speedy Steve" Chase complimented Texas as rest of the pups lounged about the bottom floor of the lookout to decompress from the mission.

"Thanks Chase" Texas replied with a slight blush, "I've only ever herded cattle and sheep before, so this was a new experience for me."

"You were even better than Chase" Rubble chimed in, making Texas blush a bit harder. But she saw something change in Chase's eyes so she quickly changed the course of the conversation. "But you guys did incredible things too. I would never have been able to take care of those chicks, or jump into a building full of rustlers like Chase did."

"All in a day's work" Chase replied cooly.

"But you have to admit, we do have some wacky wescues" Zuma noted, "did you ever figure out how they got out Wocky?"

Rocky opened his muzzle to answer but a large yawn escaped instead. "Sorry about that" he said, "well, sort of but not really. Gasket did something wonky the latch. She is getting better with her tools and inventions."

"You almost sound proud of that" Chase said accusingly.

"No, no" Rocky back-pawed quickly, "just an observation."

"Are you ok Chase?" Ryder chimed in, picking up on the subtleties of Chase's tone.

"I'm fine" Chase replied, trying not to come across as terse, "just tired, I'm going to go lay down, I'll see you all tomorrow." And so Chase got up and left, leaving the others alone, slightly perplexed, and wondering if everything was actually ok with their police pup.

Saturday morning rolled around and Marshall's circadian clock woke him just a little earlier than every other day. The only downside to sleeping with Everest and Cinder was that they made it very hard for him to sneak out, and this morning was no different. While they had started out sleeping side by side, Everest had wormed her way partially on top of Marshall, while Cinder had squirmed partially under him, effectively sandwiching him in place vertically. But Marshall took it as a challenge to make his morning rendezvous with Chase without waking either girl. Delicately, one slow and methodical movement at a time, Marshall extricated himself and left Everest snuggled up on top of Cinder as he slipped out into the pre-dawn light.

Marshall spied Chase already at their favorite spot as he made his way across the dew soaked grass. What he didn't expect was that Chase was also covered in early morning dew. Marshall shook his head before gently nudging at his brother.

"Your late" Chase softly groaned, refusing to open his eyes.

"Depends, how long have you been out here?" Marshall inquired.

"A while, I wasn't watching the clock" Chase replied, finally opening his eyes after a few slow blinks.

"Long enough to be wetter than Zuma after a bath" Marshall gently teased as he gave Chase a playful nudge.

"It's not that bad" Chase replied nonchalantly.

"You can say that if you manage not to catch a cold" Marshall quipped back. "What's on your mind buddy?"

"Who says anything is on my mind?" Chase replied, slightly more curious than defensive.

"Are you saying that you just decided to brave to cold night alone out here instead of inside, snuggled up with Skye?" Marshall said incredulously.

"No, Skye wasn't with me last night" Chase admitted.

"And why is that?" Marshall asked in surprise.

"Because I told her I wanted to be alone" Chase replied, as if that was totally natural for them to skip one of the few nights that they could be together.

"Why did you want to be alone" Marshall pressed.

"Well, it is hard to explain" Chase replied evasively.

"Try, Chase" Marshall said seriously. Chase opened his mouth to protest but the seriousness in Marshall's eyes forestall any argument. So Chase explained what had happened on the rescue, culminating with him threatening, and almost actually carrying out that threat, of running Skye over. Marshall listened patiently even though he had already heard the story from Skye's point of view.

"I don't know what came over me" Chase said as he finished the story, "I was actually about to run over Skye, I almost killed her." A sniffle escaped from Chase as the gravity of what he had done hit him.

Marshall put a paw around his brother, "but you didn't" Marshall said softly, "you came to your senses and didn't. So now, we can actually talk about what is going on inside that head of yours."

"What do you mean?" Chase asked.

"I mean you are bottling a lot of things up inside your head, brother" Marshall said plainly, "and we are going to unpack them today, right after training and my appointment."

"Maybe we can convince Ryder to skip training today" Chase replied.

Marshall smiled and nodded as they stood up. But before Chase could start walking back, Marshall enveloped him in a hug so tight that Chase felt his eyeballs might pop out of their sockets. Chase relaxed as he let Marshall pour love into him. Nothing was said. Eventually Marshall released him and they walked back to the rest of the pup houses.

"Ruff, megaphone!" Chase barked, "Good Morning Pups! Time to wake up and roll in the grass!"

"If we must" Rocky replied as he came out of his pup house. The grey mix looked more sleep deprived than normal to Marshall, but Rocky was known for his random late nights so he didn't think too much about it.

"Good morning" Skye yipped chipperly as she walked past Marshall and Chase to get into position for yoga. Marshall noticed that Chase couldn't even look at her as he mumbled an incoherent greeting.

"Good morning Skye" Marshall yipped in reply. He turned to follow but then he noticed who had not gotten up yet…

"Can we skip a day, just once?" Everest groaned inside Marshall's pup house.

"Yes" Cinder softly replied as she gracefully untangled her body from Everest's.

"You two cuties coming?" Marshall asked as he poked his head inside.

"Yeah, yeah, keep your spots on" Everest replied as she turned and walked out, snagging a quick good morning kiss along the way.

"I should be exempt" Cinder softly informed her brother as she took emerged from his pup house and the trio trotted over to join the others.

"Maybe next time" Marshall replied with a playful wag of his tail.

Yoga went as normal, and then instead of cardio, the pups did a mixture of callisthenics and strength training, for which Rubble in particular was quite grateful. There was a little extra pep in every pups' step as the trotted inside for breakfast, joining Ryder and Texas.

"Good morning pups" Ryder greeted them, "after breakfast, by special request, we are going to do a quick refresher on Rubble's rigs and gear."

"Ryder sir" Chase said, uncharacteristically hesitant, "can we test out this week?"

"I'll tell you what Chase" Ryder replied kindly, "if any pup feels that they don't need the refresher, and can demonstrate their knowledge satisfactorily to Rubble, they can skip today. I have to go with Marshall to his appointment anyway."

"Thanks Ryder!" Chase said happily.

"Ready Marshall?" Ryder asked the Dalmatian.

"I was born ready" Marshall replied, tail wagging.

"I would vouch for that in a way" Cinder softly said, "but the only thing you were born ready for was mom's milk."

"I had my priorities straight" Marshall said judiciously, joining the other pups in laughter.

Ryder, Marshall, Cinder and Everest left for Marshall's appointment, leaving Chase, Skye, Rocky, Tracker, and Texas with Rubble for training. Chase and Rocky both tested out before Tracker, Skye and Texas followed Rubble outside.

"So why did you pick Rubble's gear?" Skye whispered to Texas as they walked.

"Huh?" Texas replied in confusion.

"Today's training was originally going to be on aerial firefighting" Skye whispered back, "and Ryder said someone requested this instead, which really means he asked you what you wanted to learn about today. So why Rubble's gear?"

"You got me, Ryder did ask me what I wanted to learn about" Texas quietly admitted, "and I find Rubble's gear to be the most practically useful. Things always need to be built or repaired. And while Rocky specializes in repair, his gear requires a higher level of skill to use, while Rubble's gear is simpler. Everybody else's gear is primarily emergency response, which is exactly what you do and use it for but it is not quite as practical for a non-rescue pup."

"I get that" Skye replied earnestly, "so are you going to be sticking around a while?"

Texas almost tripped as the question startled her, and she paused before answering, "is that an option?"

"I don't see why not" Skye replied with a shrug, "but my guess is that Ryder is trying to feel out what you want because he isn't going to force it on you. And what better way to do that than see what interests you."

"I don't know" Texas responded, "I never really thought about it."

"Well then, kick back and enjoy" Skye said with a smile. Texas smiled back at her as they circled up around Rubble's rig.

At that moment, Ryder, Marshall, Cinder and Everest were being shown into an exam room for Marshall's follow-up. "This is wierd" Marshall said as he jumped up onto the exam table, ignoring the steps placed there for him.

"Which part?" Everest inquired with a knowing smirk.

"Being the patient being checked up on" Marshall replied as he sat down. Everest snickered in reply as Dr. Daniel swept in.

"How are you feeling today Marshall?" Dr. Daniel asked as he got right to work listening to Marshall's chest.

"Great Doc" Marshall replied as he took deep breaths at all the right moments.

"And how many rescues did you do this week?" Dr. Daniel asked, looking at Marshall seriously.

"Only two" Marshall replied, "and they were only the bigs ones, and I was good and didn't do anything excessive, just some standing around and directing others."

"Who did the heavy fire lifting then?" Dr. Daniel asked suspiciously. "I heard about the first in the chemistry lab at the school…"

"Me" Cinder softly said from behind him, raising her paw.

"Thank you for that Cinder" Dr. Daniel said, "and I'm not surprised that we couldn't fully keep you off rescues for a week given your incorrigible drive to save others, but you need to take it easy for another week."

"I'll do my best Doc" Marshall replied, crossing his paw over his heart.

"I know Marshall" Dr. Daniel said kindly as he gave the Dalmatian a scratch behind the ears, "and you know how serious your injury is. But you also know how your body is recovering the best, if you choose to listen to it. I just don't want you to end up back in my operating table because you realized too late that you were pushing yourself too hard."

"I know Doc" Marshall said, closing his eyes. "So others may live…"

Dr. Daniel nodded in acknowledgement of that simple, yet sobering commitment. With it, Marshall was committing to do everything to take care of himself so he could save others, but if it came down to saving himself or saving someone else, he would give his life to save them without a moment's hesitation.

Everest wiped a tear from her eye. She couldn't bear the thought of a world without Marshall. But she also knew that his unwavering commitment to others was what made him the pup he was, and she would never change that about him even if she could.

Cinder on the other paw was a bit more stoic about it. She and Marshall had talked about this since they were pups, and as much as they never wanted it to happen, they had both faced that possibility both theoretically and practically more than once.

Ryder flashed back to the first time he had ever heard Marshall say that he was willing to give his life for another. It had been when they had first founded the Paw Patrol and it consisted of only Chase and Marshall. Ryder had been sure that Marshall was just repeating something he had heard, but didn't understand. He recalled his surprise when Marshall crushed that idea with a verbal dissertation, revealing that beneath that clumsy and fun-loving fire puppy was the rock on which the Paw Patrol would actually be built.

Dr. Daniel let the moment linger briefly before snapping then back to reality, "I'm sure you are savvy enough to avoid it coming down to that, and I think you only need to be on light that duty for another week. After that, work yourself back up carefully to fill strength."

"You got it Doc" Marshall replied with a smile, the wag in his tail bringing smiles back to everyone else.

"See you in a week then" Dr. Daniel said as he finished writing his notes and walked them out.

"Hey Cinder" Marshall said as the trio of pups climbed into Marshall's fire truck.

"Yes Marshy?" Cinder softly replied as she very pointedly squished Everest into her brother. Everest's only response was to lay her head on Marshall's shoulder and close her eyes.

"I need your help with something crazy" Marshall replied as he laid his head on top of Everest's head.

"So what else is new?" Cinder softly replied with a giggle. "I'll put it on your tab."

Chase was enjoying his extra time off by doing nothing inside his pup house when his tag rang.

"Hey Chase" Marshall said chipperly though the tag.

"What's up Marshall?" Chase replied lethargically.

"Meet me in the park, but don't tell anyone where you are going" Marshall replied with a conspiratorial smile.

"Copy, see you soon" Chase replied. The police pup poked his head outside the door of his pup house. No one was nearby as Rocky was working in his lab in the lookout and the others were off with Rubble practicing with his rig at the dig pit. With a perfectly calculated jump, Chase landed in the cockpit of his cruiser, started it, and headed to the park.

Chase parked and jumped down. He saw Marshall sitting on the edge of the park, looking at the various play items distractedly. Chase took the opportunity to sneak up on his brother. Hunkering down, Chase snuck into pouncing range.

With a mighty leap, Chase tackled the unsuspecting Marshall into a rolling tumble. The two pups wrestled but Chase quickly gained the upper paw. "Pinned ya" Chase said with a triumph smile, his paws firmly on Marshall's shoulders, pinning him to the ground.

"That you did" a soft voice replied with a hint of a laugh.

Chase looked down in complete surprise at the beautiful blue eyes gazing up at him. "Cinder?!"

"Are you sure your plan is going to work?" Everest asked incredulously.

"I'm sure" Marshall replied as he drove them away from the park. "Reasonably sure it will probably work."

"You are a dork" Everest giggled, giving Marshall a quick lick on the cheek.

"What are you doing here?" Chase asked in surprise as he quickly scrambled off of the lithe female Dalmatian.

"I'm here to play with you" Cinder replied as she jumped up, adopting Marshall's favorite play pose, her tail high in the air and wagging furiously while she tucked her head down low.

"Umm" Chase stammered, not sure what to make of this, "where is Marshall?"

"Dont worry about him for the moment" Cinder softly replied, taking a creeping step forward, "let's just have a little fun." With that, Cinder pounced on the startled Chase and swiftly tackled him to the ground, pinning him like he had pinned her just moments before.

"Too easy" Cinder softly said with a smirk, "Marshall made it sound like taking you down would be hard."

"No fair surprising me" Chase replied, trying to squirm his way out. But every moment seemed to only get him more fully trapped.

"Bet you can't catch me either" Cinder softly taunted, letting Chase up but immediately dashing off across the playground.

"You're on!" Chase retorted as he took off after her.

"Here we are" Marshall said as he stopped his truck at the familiar trailhead. The two pups hopped down and slowly started along the trail. "Which path would you like to take today?" Marshall asked.

"The short loop" Everest replied, "I don't want to get too far away in case we are needed. And so you don't over exert yourself."

"I'll be fine" Marshall replied, "as long as we take it slow."

"That is exactly what I was hoping you had in mind" Everest whispered as she tilted her head up to collect a kiss from Marshall before resting her head against him as they slowly walked.

Slow was the opposite of Chase and Cinder. Cinder darted through the playground equipment, weaving a path that Chase was hard pressed to follow. For Chase, it was like trying to keep up with a pup with Skye's agility and Marshall's speed combined. There were several times he thought he almost had her in paw reach but each time she slipped away, softly laughing.

It was the kind of challenge that Chase loved and the police pup pushed everything else from his mind. By unspoken rule, the pups confined their game to the playground area. Chase suddenly saw a chance as Cinder went around the end of the seesaw. The German Shepherd dove right under the middle and popped out, sprinting to intercept Cinder as she darted past him.

Cinder saw him moving to intercept her and tried to evade, but Chase had timed it perfectly. "Tag!" he declared as his paw darted out to tag the speeding Dalmatian.

"Not bad" Cinder softly replied as she looped back towards him, "now let's see if your any good at being chased!" Cinder immediately began sprinting towards him and Chase barely managed to dodge out of the way. The game was back on!

Being the hunted pup was harder for Chase since Cinder had the advantage in both speed and agility. But he also knew the park better than Cinder, having played here since he was a tiny pup. Narrowly avoiding a tag, Chase put on a burst of speed before ducking behind and under a section of the play equipment. He smiled as Cinder sprinted past his hiding spot.

Chase trotted out and headed in the opposite direction, intent on finding a better hiding spot. But as he turned, he found a black and white blur bearing down on him. "Ah!" Chase yelped in surprise, frantically trying to escape but to no avail.

Cinder ran over the startled German Shepherd, turning them into a cannonball of fur as they rolled across the playground. Both pups burst out laughing as they rolled to a stop, Cinder drapped sideways like a pool noodle across Chase, who was flat on his back.

"That was fun" Chase admitted between laughs.

"Almost as fun as almost running over a pup with your cruiser?" Cinder softly asked.

Chase immediately stopped laughing and whipped his head around to stare at Cinder in horror.

"Calm down" Cinder softly soothed as she got up and offered Chase her paw. "I'm not here to condemn you, we just want to help."

"This was Marshall's idea, wasn't it?" Chase asked defeatedly as he took Cinder's offered paw and she pulled him up.

"Yes" Cinder softly replied and she and Chase walked towards the edge of the park, "because sometimes we just need to talk to someone."

"So why didn't he just come himself?" Chase asked, feeling upset that Marshall had dumped their conversation on Cinder, and shared with Cinder what it was about.

"Because sometimes you need a different perspective" Cinder softly replied. "And he thinks that you need a different perspective, from a pup with similar, but also different, life experiences and responsibilities."

"Maybe" Chase replied stiffly. What Cinder was saying made sense and sounded reasonable, but he didn't like it.

"Chase," Cinder softly said, placing a paw on his shoulder, "I know you have a lot on your shoulders, but if you don't open up about it to anyone, you are are going to lose your mind, if not something worse "

Chase paused as he considered Cinder's words. There was no doubting her sincerity, or how much she cared. "Fine" Chase replied with a heavy exhale. Cinder smiled as Chase finally started talking.

"What's on your mind Eve?" Marshall asked gently. Scarcely a word had been spoken between them since they started walking and the silence has been noticably more awkward instead of companionable.

"Just what you said earlier" Everest replied with a sigh, she didn't need to explain what Marshall had said, he already knew. "I just don't like thinking about possibly losing you." Everest paused and buried her muzzle in Marshall's neck.

"I know" Marshall replied, nuzzling her back, "and hopefully we never have to deal with that reality."

"But hope only goes so far sometimes" Everest admitted, "especially this time."

"I'm sorry I scared you" Marshall apologized, "I didn't think it was that serious until just before I collapsed."

"I know," Everest replied, "I didn't either. But it's all over now."

No sooner had the words left Everest's mouth then a crack echoed through the forest. Both pups dropped to the ground, suspiciously limp. A shadowy laugh echoed through the forest.

A/N: Special thanks to PawPatrolAllStars for the time and talent of his character Texas

A/N: so y'all are going to hate me for this buuuut I start vacation on Monday so the next chapter wmay not actually arrive in two weeks. I will try to keep to that schedule but road trips are not conducive to writing. On top of that, I am having to cut my vacation early to go on a work trip where I will not have any internet for a prolonged period of time. Worst case there won't be any updates to any of my stories until the middle of August. But hopefully I'll drop the next chapter before I vanish from the connected world for a month. Thank you for your patience and support and I hope you are enjoying the story! (Inspite of my cliffhanger habit ;) )