Hello all! Wow... it has definitely been awhile. TWO YEARS... yikes. Time does fly, doesn't it?
Life has been...lifeing. Literally that's the best way to explain it. I'm 30 with a 2 year old and five cats sooooo you can imagine it's been action on my end. The year is almost over so I'm trying to end it the best I can.
With all that said, that's where I've been. Fanfiction was put on hold for the past two years but I'm slowly making my way back here. I'm pretty sure I've missed a lot on here so I have lots to catch up on! Now onto the chapter:
Just to refresh, at the time I'm finishing this story, I have yet to see the PAW Patrol movies (I have Paramount, I just never sat down to watch it, and I know another one is coming out) so I'm still using my original idea I had... well, two years ago. If you've seen the PAW Patrol movie, I believe it is supposed to tell Chase's and maybe Ryder's backstory. I'm not sure about that, but my story isn't going along those lines. Just felt I needed to get that out there.
With that, I am finally glad to be updating this story again and getting closer to the end, especially after such a hiatus. Now for the moment we've all been waiting for- my interpretation of Ryder's past before he became the leader of PAW Patrol! Should only be about two to three more chapters after this, final author's word included.
Without further ado, please enjoy! As usual, I own nothing, and thank you all for being SO patient because... yeah. Life.
Caretaker
Chapter 21- Telling My Tale
They returned back and sat around their leader. Ryder fiddled with the corner of his blanket as he tried to gather his thoughts together. It had been a long time since he had to think about... well, THIS again. But he knew he owed it to his pups the truth. Part of him did wonder why he never had this conversation with them sooner, but that was dashed as soon as they all came in and sat down in a circle around.
"So, pups... um, as you know, there is a lot going on with me-"
"Ryder, are you feeling okay?! Are you still sick?!" Marshall worriedly interjected. Chase shot him a glare, while Ryder just chuckled and motioned with his hand to Chase to stand down. "Yes, I'm feeling better, Marshall. And I promise I'll stop if I start feeling funny. But, um..."
"What is it, Ryder?" Skye gently nudged. "Go on."
Ryder lightly chuckled; this would probably be awhile, after all. "As I was saying, there was a lot growing up I never told you pups about. Chase is probably the only exception since we more or less grew up together. Hopefully it will explain why I really, really, really do not like hospitals."
Rubble tilted his head a bit. "Your life? Wait, you mean... like who you were as a wittle Ryder?!" Suddenly, the thought of a 'wittle' Ryder made Rubble gush over the cuteness he thought that would be. "Awwwwwww, a wittle Wyder! That would've been SOOOOOO CUTEEEE!"
Everyone got a good laugh out of Rubble and his love of the cute things- and cute Ryder. "Yes, that's right, Rubble. Before I became a leader, basically before PAW Patrol became our thing... and you all became my family." As he finished, Ryder leaned over and grabbed something from his nightstand. He frowned for a moment- something that was caught by both Marshall and Chase- but it dissappeared as he showed them what he was holding.
Upon seeing the face in it, they all gasped. "Woahhh! Is that... Alek?" Marshall exclaimed. "He looks just like you!"
Ryder nodded. He sat the photo down. "That's him. I wasn't born in Adventure Bay, but a hospital about four hours away from Adventure Bay. He was born nearby somewhere- I don't know where he was born."
Chase sat close enough for his leader to rest his hand on his back. "Alekzander is my brother's name. We used to just call him Alek. He was four years older than me." Smiling at the photo, he placed it down so the pups could come closer to examine it closer.
"Wow, he's taller than I thought he'd be!" Rubble exclaimed. "And he really does look just like you!" Ryder chuckled.
"I think I was maybe two in this photo. Alek was about six, and that's-" He pointed to the two people behind the kids, one holding little Ryder and one happily posing with Alek. ' 'The people who left me all alone to defend myself.' Ryder thought bitterly.
"-that's my parents. My mom and dad. I don't know what they're doing or where they are now." He frowned as he thought about them, having not done so since that fateful day. "Rebecca and Rivet Dassault."
He felt he had the right to be angry, right? He should be angry-they left him, and worse... they blamed him. 'It was never my fault. I know that now. Still, I miss you so much, Alek.'
"Umm, Ryder?" Rocky hesitated before placing a paws on his leg. Ryder snapped out of his thoughts.
"Huh..? Yeah, Rocky?"
Rocky whined; that dark look that he saw settled over Ryder's face wasn't good. " Did... did your parents do something bad to you?" He hesistantly asked. "I-I mean, well I didn't mean to say anything. It's just... well, you didn't seem too happy when you showed us that photo."
Ryder nodded silently. Marshall caught a glimpse of a similar dark look crossing Chase's face as he, too, grew silent- this part of the story- and Ryder's life- he knew, and knew well. After all, he'd witnessed a lot of it first hand.
"Well yes and no. They were good until things just went... south. I think I better explain what I can remember, because to be honest. my past life wasn't... really the greatest."
At the confused faces of his pups, the young boy crossed his arms, thinking hard about what he could recall clearly. "I was pretty young when I lost my brother." Ryder paused and then sighed heavily. "I think I've been suppressing a lot of my life before now, pups."
None of the pups understood that- except for Chase. "Ryder, what do you mean? Suppressing...? Like, keeping it pushed down?" Marshall wondered. He had a strong feeling Chase knew what was going on, but if the police pup knew anything, he wasn't speaking.
"I-I've always been able to remember my life. Before I became the leader of PAW Patrol. Even in that photo. I was two when that photo was taken, but I've always been smarter than the average kid, as Alek often told me."
He shrugged and leaned against his pillows, crossing his arms as he continued. "My parents were normal enough-my mom worked and did her research in an office somewhere outside of Adventure Bay. She was a marine biologist, I believe. I don't know where my dad worked, but I've been finding out through Mayor Goodway and even Cap'n Turbot that my dad used to come here, back when Alek was younger but before I was born, to help with repairs and things like that. So I kind of assumed he'd been a mechanic or rrepairman since, well... you know."
Except for Chase, the other pups gawked in shock. This was the first anyone had heard abour Ryder's parents. "Whaaaa-?" They all exclaimed. Rocky then noticed that Chase didn't seem shocked by all this. Pointing a paw at him, he asked, "Did Chase know about all this or something? He's barely reacted!"
Chase answered with a nod. Once again, everyone gasped in shock, jaws agape. "WHAAAAA-?!"
Marshall was in double shock-his own best friend kept all this a secret? Chase chuckled and patted poor Marshall on the head as the dally tried to absorb all the new infomation he was given.
Something hit Rocky at that point-the fight they had a few weeks ago, and what was mentioned during that argument. "Wait, wait, wait. So Chase, that's what you meant by keeping a promise to Ryder not to tell us until he was ready? You meant about his past?" Rocky questioned.
Chase nodded, but Ryder had no clue what he was talking about. Rocky sighed, seeing the confusion on his face. "We, uh, we had a bit of an argument while you were really sick and out of it."
Ryder arched an eyebrow; something told him there was a lot more than that. "And...? Did you guys work through what caused it?"
Rocky and Chase looked at each other, then the others and smiled. Now that they finally got the last piece of that odd puzzle, they felt things were making way more sense. "Yeah. We're good, Ryder." they both answered simutanselously.
Ryder chuckled lightly but decided to take the pups word for now. He continued. "According to what I remember, I was born a few hours away from here. But when I was two, we moved here to Adventure Bay mostly because of the work my mom did. She was a marine biologist, so she was often coming here to study some of the sea life. That's how Cap't Turbot met her. As for my dad, I don't really know what he did."
He paused. "Although, I used to play with tools in a garage as a baby, so I always kind of figured he was in construction or something like that."
"What was your brother like? Was he like you, always building things?" Rubble asked. Ryder nodded, reaching over to fish for something in his nightstand.
"You bet- he was a pretty awesome older brother. Most of what I learned- how to build your pup houses, how to operate my ATV, pretty much everything we have, I learned from watching Alek tinker with things in my dad's garage." Ryder made an 'ah-ha!' and pulled out a rather old looking photo to show them. It featured a young boy, an older man who looked pretty much the splitting image of Ryder, and a happy kid in a playpen, reaching for something out of range. They all looked pretty happy, the pups thought.
"That's my dad. And Alek, and me. Apprently I had quite an obession with wrenches... although at that time I wasn't able to hold one yet." Ryder sighed, lost in thought of spending time with his big brother. "Despite our age gap, Alek always made time to spend with me..."
"So your family really didn't live in Adventure Bay your whole life?" Skye wondered. "That's so weird to think you weren't... you know, always here..." Ryder scratched under her chin and shook his head no- Skye was still in disbelief about that part. "And also to be sooooooo cute! I still can't believe it!" The pups giggled. They could not imagine Ryder as a little baby bundled in his mom's arms- well, the boys couldn't. Skye and Rubble thought that was quite adroable, actually.
"Alek was always around, too. Since my parents were always busy with work, I didn't see them very often, so Alek was often left with me and our babysitter until he was old enough to watch me himself." Ryder's expression suddenly dropped. "I only wished it stayed that way..."
The pups sensed the change of energy and cringed a little under that dark frown Ryder was bringing back once again. "Ryder? What happened?" Marshall was the first to ask meekly, wondering if that was such a good idea. The young leader crossed his arms.
"I think when I was about six or seven, I started to realize our family wasn't as happy as people thought. Alek wasn't either. He tried to keep me shielded from a lot of the fights my parents had, but he also forgot that I was smarter than normal kids." Looking at Chase, he continued, "Alek heard of a man who was trying to get rid of a puppy, and decided that would be a good... distraction for me, and for him."
At the mention, Chase nodded; he'd been a pup when he was adopted by Ryder, and he was forever grateful to him.
"My original owners used to live with a strange man. He wasn't old or anything, just... strange." Chase shrugged. "My mom and dad had a total of three of us- my older brother and older sister, and I was the youngest. But then..."
Chase paused, gently knawing his bottom lip. His eyes briefly flicked over to Ryder, who nodded in encourgament. "The house caught on fire. I still don't know what happened. My so-called owner ran and saved himself, but left us trapped in the house. My dad was the first to die... he passed out trying to get my mom, me and siblings out and couldn't get out."
Except for Ryder, the others looked moritified. "Y-You... you watched him...?" Rocky couldn't bring himself to actually say the words 'burned to death.' Chase nodded.
"My mom was able to get us out, but I was caught on some broken glass from a window she threw us from and it messed up my leg. Someone found us and took us to the emergency vet. We had smoke inhalation and I was bleeding bad from a really bad gash on my leg." As proof of concept, Chase laid on his right side and pointed to his rear left leg. Sure enough, there was a lighter than normal patch of fur that ran about four inches end to end.
"I was unconsious for most of the time we were there. By the time I finally woke, I found out that my family passed away from complications from that fire." Chase sat up and sighed heavily. "I was the only one left. And since I was never given a collar, I was assumed to be a stray and sent to the pound to heal from everything and live until... well, they would decide if I needed to be put to sleep."
Marshall blinked- a fire...? Why hadn't Chase told him that before? And then it hit him- the day he was offically made a member of the PAW Patrol, and his role was solidified as a firepup, Chase looked angry. He didn't know why, but hearing him explain this story cleared a LOT for him.
'It makes sense now... that's why he wouldn't talk to me after the ceremony. I thought it was because he wanted Ryder to himself since it had always been just the two of them. But he had a fear of fire! And for good reason, too. Seeing your father die like that... losing everything you've known...' Marshall thought sadly, whimpering a little as he began to put two and two together. Chase nudged him and gave him a small smile.
"It's not your fault, Marshall." he reasssured him. "We'll talk about it some other time, 'kay?"
"...'kay." Marshall agreed quietly. The others didn't really get it but decided not to approach that subject- today.
Zuma, who was rather familiar with the concept of being 'put down', narrowed his eyes and growled under his breath. "So instead of twying of save you, your owner decided to..."
Chase nodded. "Right before I was supposed to be put to sleep, Alek came in. I didn't know he was planning to adopt a dog, so I went back to sleep and didn't think anything of it. Until a few minutes later when his brother came to my cage. Annnnnnd that's pretty much how my life with the Dassaults began."
"Did you ever hear from your old owner?" Chase and Ryder both nodded.
"Yeah, we did. He wanted me back since, of course, the hospital and shelter helped take care of me. I'm glad Alek didn't give me back to him. I hate that guy..." Chase growled. Ryder gave him a scratch behind his ears.
"Dislike, Chase. We dislike people, not hate. But yeah, he did ask for him back. My parents apprently didn't care if Alek wanted a puppy, and even though he'd literally just met me, Alek always said there was something special about Chase. He refused, and the shelter basically told him there was nothing he could so since our parents signed the paperwork."
Chase puffed his chest proudly and the others laughed. After the tension the last few weeks, the pups and Ryder laughing over a silly reason was probably the best thing they've done yet.
Ryder had to crack a smile at that one. He scratched Chase behind his ear and added, "You're right. He was the reason I became the leader I am."
Rocky tilted his head in curiousity. "Ryder, you said your brother isn't alive anymore...right? What happened to him?"
Ryder took a deep breath and let it out. That somber, depressing mood has returned but this was what they had to do. Ryder knew that. He had mentioned that and frankly, he needed to get this off his chest and begin to move forward with it once and for all. "...he died. But how he died was why I no longer speak to my parents. And why I had to grow up so fast before we bacame the PAW Patrol."
Ryder reached in his nightstand and dug out one last thing- another photo. This one looked a bit newer. Ryder showed it to the pups, who were literally in shock- well, except for Chase, who sat silent and a bit stone-faceed.
"The day he died, I was supposed to be at school. But I was sick with a pretty bad stomach illness and an ear infection, and Mom and Dad couldn't stay home with me due to work- go figure. Alek was 11 years old; he was also supposed to be in school, but he stayed home to look after me. My brother was pretty responsible. He was always the one to look after me."
Ryder's finger loosed on the photo, and it fluttered lightly on his bed. "By now, my mom and my dad were acting kind of weird. They... well, they didn't love each other, but they loved us, I think. I'm still not too sure about that. I think they tried to stay together to keep things as normal as possible for us. Or maybe for them, I don't know."
Ryder's expression turned angry. "Anyways, Alek was arguing with my dad that morning. Even though I had a fever, I could still hear them since they were fairly loud. Alek usually didn't say much to my dad, so I knew it had to be serious for them to argue like that."
Marshall slowly nodded. "Ryder, I get why your brother took care of you, but... it doesn't explain why you're so scared of hospitals..."
At the mention, Ryder winced. "That part is easy... Alek used to tell me I was often sick as a child. As a result, I was constantly at the hospital, like...every other month. I was getting poked and prodded so much I was getting traumatized. Needles were... terrifying. Constantly getting blood drawn, being pulled around every which way. Not fun." He shuddered at the thought.
"That's why I try to avoid going to the hospitals when I can. They terrify me and I don't think I want to see another needle for as long as I live. Also, I've gotten pretty, uh, squimish... a LOT squimish."
Marshall's eyes widened as he processed everything. It was starting to make sense. "W-Wait. Is that why you hate hospitals... oh my gosh, Ryder, I am so so so sorry!" he blurted out, voice on the edge of tears. "I wouldn't- I didn't-!"
Ryder chuckled lightly as he spread his arms open, inviting his pups to snuggle closer to him. Petting Marshall on the head, he comforted him. "It's okay, buddy. I never told you, so you wouldn't have known. None of you would have known."
The others all had tears of their own, even Chase, who was sitting next to Ryder. Ryder glanced at the photo and sighed sadly. "Alek was really the only person I had. And then we had our little family when we adopted Chase. Alek didn't let anything happen to him or to me. They were my protectors."
Ryder wiped his eyes- he hadn't noticed the tears threatening to roll down his cheeks. "Alek knew he had to take me to the hospital. Whatever was going on, it was pretty bad, and he couldn't help me. But he didn't have a way to get me there. After all, we were both kids, so driving wasn't exactly an option."
Remembering that day- something Ryder had actively tried not to do for about three or four years- was a lot harder than he thought. Even so, he kept going. "Since my dad wouldn't take me, Alek called our mom. She claimed she was at work and couldn't get off early. Alek and her got into an arguement, just as bad as the one with our dad. I remember Alek saying if I didn't make it through my illness, he'd make sure the police knew about it."
Ryder glanced over at Chase, who was silent with an angry look in his eyes. Ryder gave him a gentle pat before he continued. "Honestly, what happened after that phone call is still a mystery. I passed out from the fever and I was out for quite some time. The next time I woke up, I was in the hospital. I could see my parents; my dad was glaring daggers at the doctor and at me, and my mom was crying in a corner. But I didn't see Alek- since my parents were in the room, I always assumed he was off someplace else trying too cool down. But I was so groggy and tired and I didn't know what happened. No one told me until the day I was discharged from the hospital, which was a couple of weeks later."
A flash of anger crossed Ryder's face, and Rocky, Skye and Marshall caught it. All the pups could feel the tension in Ryder's arms. "R-Ryder...?" Rubble asked hesistantly. "A-Are you... okay?"
Ryder shook his head no. "No... No, Rubble. I'm not. When I finally got home and was asking about Alek and what happened to me and him, my dad, in no uncertain terms, told me Alek was dead."
The pups gasped- who in their right mind would say something so blunt like that to a child? A seven year old, no less? Chase growled. "His dad was meaner than Mayor Humdinger on a bad day. I hat- didn't like that man. I was fine with his mom, but that was mostly because I hardely saw her. But that man... I never liked him. He treated Ryder and Alek terribly as a father."
"It was almost three months later, when my parents were finally getting ready to divorce, that my dad casually mentions to me that Alek... was killed by a random car accident. Just out of the blue. I didn't believe him. I wasn't really talking to him at that point, so I refused to acknowledge him and vise versa."
Ryder's fingers ran up and down Rocky's back in absent thought. The pups were completely silent, even Marshall. No one knew what to say to their leader; no one expected him to have gone through something like that. They each were lost in their minds, wondering what to do from here.
"Ultimately, Ryder found out what really happened to Alek. That man moved out about a week or two before she told him. One night, she called Ryder to the kitchen and began explaining everything- everything that happened since his birth that led up to this. Including... what happened to Alek."
Ryder nodded. "After my "dad" left, my mom sat me down at the kitchen table. There were boxes all around us. She had been crying but she was like ice. She gave off this cold energy when I sat there. I didn't know what she wanted so I waited. And then... she gave me an envelope and explained everything to me."
Ryder felt he needed to stretch for a moment. He gently moved his extremely saddened pups off his lap and tossed his feet over the edge of his bed. "The envelope had a check for about $100,000 I believe. It for me to take to the bank. When I asked why, she explained that Alek had died the night I got to the hospital. I refused to believe her and demanded to know why her and my dad kept saying that."
Chase and Ryder exchanged a glance. Chase nodded and hopped off the bed to grab something. "I first learned about how I wound up at the hospital. Since they wouldn't take me, Alek took it upon himself to call 911. The EMT asked him where our parents were and Alek said he didn't know but I needed help and he was coming with. The EMT explained that Alek was a minor and he needed to call our parents. Alek had given them the number to both of our parents and... well, those conversations were apprently pointless. After the repeatedly called, my mom finally agreed to meet us at the hospital."
Ryder paused and looked at Marshall in particular. "What happened next... was a massive collision. According to her, it was a devasting accident. Alek was flown from the ambulance, as well as a driver and myself. I was knocked unconsious and didn't come too until about two weeks later... I suppose what you would call a coma. But Alek... when he flew from the ambulance, he was... he got..."
He looked off. "He was crushed to death by the other cars caught in the accident. They were barely able to pull him from the wreakage. Or rather... what was left of him."
The room was silent from that revalation. Marshall felt sick to his stomach and covered his mouth with his paw. 'How is that... possible? His brother had always been there for Ryder and Ryder didn't even know he'd died...? Oh gosh, that... that's... horrible...'
Chase sighed and sat with Marshall- he'd known about this and was a bit more desensitized to the story. 'Although that doesn't make it any harder to hear it. Poor Ryder...' he thought grimly. The others comforted each other, just as horrified as Marshall was. Ryder lifted his shirt and pointed to a mostly healed scar on his lower right abdomen.
"The reason my memory was blank during that time was because I'd apprently been drifting in and out of consiousness. And then with my apprent appendicitis, I was pretty much in a coma. I didn't know I'd even been operated on. The last thing I remembered was being tossed all over when the ambulance hit the other cars." He lowered his shirt and sat back down, feeling weary from explaining everything.
"When I asked her why I was only just now learning about this, she never gave me an answer. All she said was that I was to cash this check, and to take care of the life Alek saved. Then she paused and told me... she wished she'd never had a second son. That I was the reason my parent's were divorcing- I was an added cost, added stress to their lives they didn't want."
The pups were stunned; Skye was the first to speak. "W-What... what kind of mother is that?! She can't say something so-so evil!"
Ryder shrugged; by now, he'd gotten used to those words and realized he never thought much about his parents. "Honestly, Skye... maybe an hour after that conversation, I felt relieved. I lost the one brother that took care of me, who taught me how to build vehicles, but more importantly... he taught be how to be strong. To be kind, and to look at things from the other person's point of view. To never be like our so-called parents."
Rocky was silent for a moment. He knew what it was like to be hated, and realized he understood why Ryder picked him to join the PAW Patrol. "Ryder, did you ever... hear from your mom or dad?" he wondered.
Ryder tapped his finger to his chin, then nodded yes. "Cap't Turbot said he got a letter from a woman named Rebecca asking for me. At the time, he didn't know what had happened to my family. But he said he saw my name on the envelope and wanted me to have it."
"Well?" Zuma asked, a bit curious. "Did you ever wead it?"
Ryder shook his head no. Then he let out a pretty big yawn. "Nope. I ripped it in half and threw it away. And then I asked the mayor, Cap't Turbot and Mr. Porter- if they EVER got anything from a person named Rebecca or from a person named Rivet, to trash it and never speak to me about it. Apprently they sent me letters the first two years me and Chase were on our own, around the time we were basically building up the PAW Patrol."
Skye tilted her head; she vagely recalled seeing Ryder ripping some paper a long while back, when she had first been found by Ryder and was taken to the Lookout. At the time, she never thought much about it. "So all that time, they had the nerve to send letters to you... that's sick." She shook her head clear of that thought. "What could they have wanted?"
Ryder wondered what time it was. He was talking for quite some time, he knew that. Letting out another yawn followed by a half-hearded shrug, he mumbled, "Don't know and I no longer care. I just wanna make Alek proud and never make his soul regret taking me to that hospital. But..." Another loud yawn. "Pups, would it be okay to take a break? I'm feeling... pretty tired..."
They all nodded. Marshall checked Ryder's tempreture, looked him over and decided it was fine to let him rest for a few hours. He made a mental note to check Ryder again and bring him something to put in his stomach later. But he needed to rest, and if he were honest, he and the other pups needed to digest what they just heard.
After stepping out of Ryder's room, the pups all met in the common area. Each of them were lost in thought and didn't speak at for a little while.
What could be said? Their mature, happy, kind leader had such terrible parents... and his brother passing away like that... none of the pups ever understood what brought Ryder to adopting them specifically, but after what they heard, it made much more sense.
"...Pups, listen." Chase finally broke the ice and caught their attention. The air was heavy with sadness, Chase noted, but he knew they needed to hear it from Ryder. 'Living through it was another feeling entirely but I'm glad he finally felt comfortable enough to share that burden. He needed to do this.'
"First off, I owe you all an apology. I know its not a good thing to hide secrets, but Ryder-"
"Chase, stop." Skye held up her paw to indiciate this conversation didn't need to go on, espically since she knew by the look on Chase's face what he was going to say. She smiled lightly as Chase blinked, a bit lost and surprised.
"You don't owe us anything. If anything, you've proven why Ryder was lucky to have found you when he did." She walked over to Chase and nuzzled him.
"You kept our leader safe as much as you can until he was ready to open up about all this. You did the right thing."
Rocky nodded. "She's right. If Ryder didn't tell us right away, then it wasn't meant for us to know. Besides..." That same flash of anger crossed his face, and this time, everyone saw it. "...that was a nightmare. Ryder had every right to wait like he did. And you knew better than any of us as to why we had to do this ourselves."
Sighing heavily, Rocky apologized, tail and head drooping in shame. Chase smiled and walked over to him, lightly bumping him. "It's okay, Rocky. I'm proud of how we handled everything, all things considered."
"Heh... you're right..."
The pups all fell silent again. Then, an idea sparked in Marshall's head and he piped up. "H-Hey, pups? Something just came to me- something we can do for Ryder."
Zuma titled his head, trying to read what Marshall's thought was, before a grin broke out on his face. "I know what it is..." he chuckled, walking over and giving Marshall a light jab in the side. "You wanna throw Wyder a pawty, don't you?"
Marshall blushed in embaraassment as the whole idea was blurted aloud. It DID sound kind of childish when he heard it, even more so since their town was literally parrty central, and he was ready for the others to shoot the idea down. So he was pretty happy when the others all nodded and cheered- before Chase cleared his throat loudly, expression stern. "Keep it down; Ryder's still resting upstairs." Then he nodded to Marshall, smiling. "Go ahead, Marshall. Tell us what you're thinking."
"We throw so many parties for everyone in Adventure Bay. Ryder ALWAYS has to help set up and take down, save the town, and pretty much do everything the adults kinda... well, need to do for themselves. Ryder's been overdue for a break, and then even when he finally got one, well... well, he got sick. And somehow these people STILL need him. So why not give Ryder his own appreciative party? Right here at the Lookout?"
"Do we have to invite people?" Rubble asked, a bit concerned that they really would have to deal with the folks of Adventure Bay. Marshall shook his head no.
"Nope. Just Jake and Everest, and Carlos and Tracker. I know Ryder and Carlos have a LOT in common, and even though Ryder's real brother... well, isn't... isn't here anymore, Jake's the oldest. Maybe he can help Ryder heal and move on, too. And he'll be really happy to see Tracker and Everest again."
Chase was quietly listening as Marshall explained his party plans. He realized Marshall did bring up a valid point- the pups and Ryder barely had time to themselves, but even so, they HAD time. They could play with each other, be there for one another, do things to comfort each other when times got tough. Argue, love, care... the pups had each other and always did as more and more of them were added.
But Ryder... Chase kept his expression neutral, but inside, he felt sad and guilt for his best friend and owner. Ryder was the only kid there, since Carlos lived and did reserach in the Adventure Bay's Jungles, and Jake was older and ran a buiness so he wasn't always avaliable to talk with.
'Besides, with the equal amount of time we spend resucing Jake and Carlos, I doubt Ryder has time to really talk to him. Ryder really doesn't have a lot of kids to talk with or to. So Marshall's idea is actually a great one. We need Ryder to relax more, not just when he gets sick.'
Chase nodded to himself as he listened to the pups excitedly chattered about the party for Ryder. Now that he had his thoughts on straight, Chase had one last idea to make sure this went off without a 'call for help'. As much as he loved his home, the adults really needed to start relying on themselves and not call them for EVERY. LITTLE. THING.
"Hey, pups. One last thing." The pups paused and look at him.
"We need to make sure that Ryder gets NO calls for help whatsoever. Even when we were supposed to be on vacation, Ryder constantly gets calls when he's supposed to be resting and, well, given everything he'd already been through, he really needs this more than anything."
At the word 'grieve', the pups's faces fell. "Grieve... Ryder doesn't usually look sad, though!" Rubble realized. "But I guess, though, he never had time. With the PAW Patrol and us and... well, everything that tends to happen..."
"Exactly. If Ryder wanted some privacy, it's kind of hard when the town needs him every second, you know?" Chase nodded to the pups. "So we're in agreement? We're going to give Ryder a party and let him relax. We know how to set up and tear down decor, so Ryder is NOT to lift a finger. Understood?"
Everyone nodded, howled and cheered (quietly) as they finally had an idea to give Ryder even a portion of the love and care he'd always given them. To the pups, they were both glad and honestly shocked they never thought about this sooner.
While the others chatted away and began making plans for the event, Marshall smiled lightly and turned to go check on Ryder's tempreture. When he got back to the room, he paused in the doorway. He could hear a soft snoring and realized Ryder was knocked out cold. But the door was open, so Marshall wondered how much of the conversation Ryder heard... or if he did hear anything?
"I'll be back later. Get good rest, Ryder." Marshall whispered as he carefully pulled the door closed. "And... have some good dreams. We know you deserve it more than anyone."
And finally, after two years, chapter done! We're also nearing the end of this project- after the loooooong hiatus.
I don't have much else to add except thank you for enjoying this story of mine! Since I haven't really seen too much Ryder content, even after about three movies and I believe 10-11 seasons, which is... strange. I loved the making of this story only because it's just the beginning of me creating Ryder's backstory. I do plan to work on more stories starring Ryder in some way, expanding his background and working on an AU (the AU is a REALLY big project, so I won't reveal too much past that.)
Until next time! (It definitely won't be another three years!)