Chapter 4: Crystals, Of Course

It had been a long and somewhat challenging afternoon at the Lookout. Ryder had done his best to console Rocky, eventually managing to put a smile back on the mixed breed's muzzle, though it seemed like it would be some time before that smile would again reach the pup's eyes. As for Skye, she had been firmly yet gently reprimanded for what Ryder described as a lack of tact, but also commended for her willingness to stand up for a friend in need, leaving the cockapoo with a lot to think about afterwards. Ryder had then had words with Doctor Vance in private, telling her that while he had no intention to try and force an apology out of her, he would thank her to at least be respectful towards his pups if not friendly. Vance had responded with some dismissive, non-committal remarks that amounted to "Yeah, whatever" and "Whatever you say, Spiky Hair" in an uncharacteristically dull voice. Skye had overheard these remarks from the far side of a closed door, prompting her to grab the nearest chew toy between her teeth and fling it across the room in a fit of anger.

"Ugh! I don't know how Ryder can stand having her here!" she was saying to Chase over dinner, the six pups eating from their bowls on the well-kept grassy lawn that bordered the Lookout. "She's been nothing but rude, self-indulgent and passive-aggressive since she arrived! She's just so… Argh!" The aviator pup batted her now empty bowl away with one paw, sending it rolling across the Lookout's parking lot.

"Yikes. I knew Skye was uneasy about having Doctor Vance here, but I've never seen her like this," Marshall said quietly to Rocky, the two dogs watching their mutual friend from afar as she vented her frustrations to Chase. "She's so angry, so… not herself,"

"I know what you mean," Rocky replied softly. "Doctor Vance upset me, too, but I'm not up in arms - or paws - about it."

"To be honest, I wouldn't really blame you if you were," Marshall said, "Especially after she called you… well, that. Overly angry or not, Skye was right to call Doctor Vance out for that. You were only trying to be nice to her, after all."

"That's what really upsets me about the whole thing," Rocky admitted. "Not that she called me trash - I mean, come on, if you're gonna insult someone who drives a garbage truck, at least think of something more original, y'know?" he said, causing Marshall to smirk knowingly. "No, I just think it's really sad how she actively pushes people - and pups - away. No one should be lonely and without friends."

"Not even a convicted cwiminal who cwearwy shows no wemorse for her actions?" Zuma asked, looking up from his own food bowl.

"Maybe that's part of the reason why she's a criminal?" Rocky suggested. "Maybe she didn't have any friends growing up to help steer her onto a better path?"

"Well, maybe," Marshall said, but his expression suggested that he was uncertain. "Either way, I think we're gonna have a hard time getting through to her." The Dalmatian then looked thoughtful. "But then, nothing worth doing is easy, right? That's what Ryder taught us."

"I juh wih air oz a ay 'e 'ould 'et 'er 'oo ruh us," Rubble said, his mouth full of food as he spoke, making his words sound heavily garbled.

"Uh, what was that, Wubble, dude?" Zuma asked uncertainly, tilting his head in confusion.

Rubble swallowed his kibble and repeated himself. "I just wish there was a way we could get her to trust us. I mean, she clearly doesn't, and that's half the problem. I think."

"Hmm…" Marshall mused, the fire pup again looking thoughtful. "I think I might have an idea. Remind me to talk to Ryder about it later." On that note, he lowered his head down towards his bright red food bowl and resumed eating his dinner, savouring every bite.


"With all due respect, Ryder, you cannot be serious."

"Skye, I know it's asking a lot of you, and I know it's kinda risky, but Marshall and I—"

"'Kinda risky'? You do remember what happened the last time she had one in her possession, don't you Ryder?"

"Yes. I also remember that we still put a stop to her schemes in the end, thanks in no small part to your courage and conviction, Skye."

"You said you wouldn't let her hurt me, that you wouldn't let her hurt any of us! Giving her that is just asking to have her go and…!"

Chase fidgeted uncomfortably as he listened to Skye and Ryder argue in the next room, the German Shepard currently seated on one of the beanbag chairs in the Lookout's living room, Marshall, Rubble, Rocky, Zuma and Doctor Vance seated around him, the latter sitting with her arms folded as they all tried to watch TV. It was hard to focus on the broadcasted program with the words of the PAW Patrol's leader and aviator pup coming through the walls, however.

"…And I meant what I said, Skye. I'll do whatever it takes to keep you and the pups safe. D'you trust me?"

"Of course I trust you, Ryder - it's her that I'm worried about!"

Vance groaned in undisguised irritation. "Do they think we can't hear them? Or do they just not care?"

"Wook who's accusing who of not caring," Zuma audibly muttered bitterly.

"You got somethin' to say to me, Water Boy? Then say it to my face!" Vance snapped.

Zuma got off of his beanbag chair and stood proudly before the mad scientist on all fours, trying - and failing - to look impressive and intimidating. "Alwright, you asked for it!" he said, opening his mouth to say something that he would most definitely regret, but Chase cut the Choc Lab off before he could make a fool of himself.

"Stand down, Zuma!" the police dog said sharply. "We won't solve anything by bickering!"

"What d'you think those two are doin'?" Vance pointed out, gesturing to the closed door nearby, beyond which Ryder and Skye were still at it. Chase sighed wearily, allowing himself to sink deeper into his dark blue beanbag chair.

"I wonder if Ryder has any of that doggy headache medicine left in the bathroom cabinet…" he mused aloud. Fortunately, the veritable shouting match going on in the next room seemed to settle down somewhat at that very moment, with Marshall having to hit the button on the remote to turn off the TV so they could hear the rest of the debacle.

"Hey! I was watching that!" Rubble complained childishly. Chase just shushed him, the group now listening intently.

"I still don't think it's a good idea, but…" Skye could be heard sighing in resignation. "I'll do it if you really want me to, Ryder. I just…" She sighed again. "I just don't want what happened to me to happen to the others."

"Skye, look at me," Ryder could be heard saying, his tone now a lot more gentle. "I'll never let anyone put you through something like that again. I promise. Look at me, Skye. Look at me. I know you can do this. If anyone can get through to her, it's you."

Skye sighed once again. "I tried to get through to her, Ryder. I tried to appeal to her better nature back when she was holding me captive at the observatory near Adventure City," she told the boy, "But in the end, she…" Another sigh. "She just threw it back in my face."

Chase glanced at Vance to find her eyes downcast, the doctor's expression curiously sombre.

"She did," Ryder acknowledged, "But this time, you're not in her domain - she's in ours. We have the home field advantage, so if anything does go awry, we'll have an easier time sorting it out. Besides," the boy went on, letting out a knowing chuckle, "It's probably easier to appeal to someone's better nature in a welcoming place filled with cosy bean bag chairs, tasty snacks and friendly faces than it would be in a cluttered, lonely old observatory with no electricity and a leaky roof."

"Leaky roof?" Rubble repeated, looking at Vance sympathetically. "You mean you had to sleep with water dripping on your head during rainy nights?"

Vance hesitated. "Well, not on me, but on some o' my equipment," she admitted after a long moment, glancing at the little bulldog out of the corner of her eye. She then turned away. "Don't know why you care, though," she then muttered dully.

"We wouldn't be a very good rescue team if we didn't care about people," Marshall pointed out, smiling at vance. The Dalmatian thought he saw the doctor smile back in spite of herself, albeit with only the very tip of the corner of her mouth upraised, and it was so fleeting that the pup couldn't be sure of what he had seen.

The door opened and the eyes of every pup in the room focused on Ryder as he entered, Skye at his heels, the boy having a polite smile on his visage while the cockapoo looked decidedly uneasy.

"Doctor Vance?" the ten year old genius said calmly, Vance letting out a half-hearted vocal sound to indicated that he had her attention, the mad scientist still refusing to look at anyone, or was perhaps unable to bring herself to do so. "Skye here has something she'd like to say to you, if you'll hear her out."

"Oh, joy. All my Christmases have come at once," Vance muttered sarcastically, her tone as dull as a blunt instrument. She didn't even sound irritable - just… mopey. Skye exhaled deeply, trying to psyche herself up for what was to come. The smallest of the PAW Patrol's pups marched over and stood before Vance, the doctor still not lifting her gaze from the spot on the floor she had decided to fixate on.

"Victoria Vance, I don't think it's too unfair to say that our shared history has not been… entirely pleasant," the cockapoo said simply. Vance, on her part, snorted with derisive, bitter amusement.

"No kidding," the bespectacled woman muttered, her downcast eyes as dull as her words.

"For either of us, I mean," Skye went on, which caught the mad scientist off guard, so much so that she finally looked up at the pup who was speaking to her. "I can't say that I like you in any sense, Victoria, and yet…" Skye closed her eyes for a brief moment, and everyone present was taken aback when a tear trickled down the aviator pup's face. Even Ryder looked as though he hadn't expected this. "I don't want us to be enemies," the cockapoo said with a tearful sniff. "I don't like the idea of treating someone as an enemy, no matter how… flawed they may be. It's not the PAW Patrol way to hold a grudge, and… and I don't want it to become my way," she confessed, looking up at Vance with big, round, literal puppy eyes.

Doctor Vance sighed heavily. "Don't waste your breath apologisin' to me, dog," she said, earning her glares from Chase and Zuma, as well as an uncharacteristically stern look from Marshall. "I mean…" She bit her lip. "It's not like I really deserve it, let's be real."

Zuma's mouth fell open in response to hearing that.

"Well…" Skye paused, taking a moment to compose herself. "Whether or not you deserve it, I want to make a peace offering." On that note, the cockapoo walked right up to Vance, reached up with a paw and tapped at her own pup tag. It emitted a slight mechanical whirr and click, the pink emblem opening outwards like a set of doors to reveal a bright pink crystal that glowed faintly. The other pups gasped as they realised what their friend was getting at.

"Wait. Are you…?" Chase started, his eyes widening. He glanced at Ryder, appearing livid. The boy just gave him a firm nod, his expression serious, but his eyes kind and reassuring.

"Victoria Vance, for as long as you dwell within the Lookout, I'm willing to share this with you," Skye stated, taking the crystal from within her pup tag and placing it on the floor before the doctor. "The power you sought so desperately to acquire… I'll lend it to you if you still want it. I'll lend it to you as a sign of goodwill."

"Skye, have you wost your mi—?! OW!" Zuma yowled in pain, having been cut off mid-sentence by a very harsh nudge from Rocky, who gave the Choc Lab an icy glare, silently telling him to shut it.

Vance stared at Skye's Mighty Crystal, dumbstruck. She looked from it to the pup and then back again, appearing unsure of what to say, of what to think.

Then she grinned devilishly.

"Water Boy is right - you have lost your mind," the mad scientist declared, hastily reaching down, snatching up the crystal and holding it up to her neck, where it inexplicably grew a thin chain made of energy before latching onto her skin in the form of a necklace. No sooner had it settled into place when the green-haired woman began to rise off the floor, leaving the bean bag chair she had been seated in behind, her hands crackling with electricity. She began to laugh maniacally. "Oh, I can feel it! The power! The energy! The rush! Ooh, momma!"

"Ryder…?" Chase began nervously, his ears drooping.

"Oh, I am so OUTTA this dump!" Vance declared before suddenly rocketing upwards, smashing right through the ceiling effortlessly and continuing onward, busting through floor after floor of the Lookout tower before finally breaking free into the open air, still giggling like a gleeful maniac all the whole. "See ya, PAW Patrol!" she called. "Definitely wouldn't wanna be ya!"

"I'll get my patrol car!" Chase said, starting for the front entrance, but Ryder held out a hand to stop him.

"Why don't we let Skye handle this one?" the boy said, sharing a knowing look with Skye, the cockapoo smirking slightly. Chase was bewildered; Skye clearly knew something that he didn't, but what that was, he could scarcely imagine.

"This puppy's gotta fly," she mused in a low, confident voice, "But first…" She turned to Chase. "Chase, is it okay if I borrow your Mighty Crystal?"

Chase looked surprised, but then he smiled. "Do you even have to ask?" he responded as he opened up his pup tag without missing a beat.


"Woo hoo hoo HOO! Oh, I didn't even realise how much I've missed this!" Vance declared as she soared effortlessly through the evening skies above Adventure Bay, flying freely without any gadget or aircraft to support her. "And with this power, I'm unstoppable!" she declared, her hands crackling with energy as she spoke. "I can rebuild my Meteor Magnet, summon a whole slew of power-granting meteors even bigger than the ones from last time, get juiced up beyond imagination and level Adventure City to the ground to show the world not to mess with me, Victoria Vance, the greatest scientist who ever…!" Her maniacal expression then faltered, as did her excitement. "Who ever…"

Vance looked down at herself. She was floating hundreds of feet above the ground. Her fingers crackled with raw power. She'd spent more than half of her life just trying to get to this point. With these powers, she could go anywhere, do anything, be anyone.

And yet, she didn't particularly want to go anywhere, to do anything, to be anyone, for she couldn't 'be anyone'. She could only be what she was, what the world had always seen her as.

A mad scientist.

Vance touched down gently on the sands of the beach that ran along Adventure Bay's namesake a few moments later, gazing out at the moonlit ocean, watching the waves crash against the shore rhythmically. She then glanced around. There was no one on the beach at this hour. She was alone.

Alone, as she felt she always was, as she felt she always had been from a young age.

Vance sat, not caring whether or not any sand found its way into her jeans, not caring if the wind carried salt spray into her face or onto the lenses of her glasses. She just… didn't… care. Resting her hands in her lap, she let out a heavy sigh.

"Yep, that's me," she murmured to herself dully, bitterly, sarcastically. "The greatest scientist who ever lived. Me, Victoria Vance." She chuckled cynically before letting out another sigh.

Several minutes passed, the only sound being the roar of the waves. Then a new sound caught Vance's attention, sounding like the rush of wind, as though something was moving rapidly through the skies. She knew what - or rather, who - it was before she ever saw it, but didn't bother to look up as Skye landed on the beach beside her, fully decked out in her superhero costume, her 'Mighty' attire, Chase's crystal shining brightly on her collar.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" the cockapoo asked, referring to the light of the full moon reflecting off the ocean's surface.

"Yeah, yeah, sure, it's beautiful," Vance said dismissively, refusing to look at Skye. "You here to drag me back to your little wannabe lighthouse? Or are you here to poke fun at how I couldn't bring myself to make a proper getaway?"

"Victoria, did you miss the part where I said I didn't want us to be enemies?"

"Hmph. Did you miss the part where I said I don't give a flying—?"

"Why do you do that?" Skye suddenly asked, cutting Vance off before she could say something particularly rude.

"Huh? Do what?" the mad scientist demanded.

"Push everyone away even when they try to be nice to you," Skye elaborated, watching Vance curiously from behind her hero mask.

Vance hesitated, and then she sighed.

"What difference does it make?" she asked somewhat rhetorically. "Whether I push anyone away or not, I always end up bein' a solo act at the end o' the day. Guess I just…" She sighed again. "Guess I just wasn't meant to get along with other people."

"How about a pup?"

Vance blinked. "Huh?"

"If you think you can't be friends with people - which I don't think is true, by the way - then maybe you could at least be friends with a pup?" Skye suggested. "After all, they say that dogs are man's best friend; I'm pretty sure that applies to women, too."

Vance chuckled cynically once again. "Yeah, but probably not the crazy ones," she said half-jokingly.

"Maybe, " Skye mused before walking up to Vance and placing one paw on the mad doctor's knee, "But then again, maybe it's the crazy ones who could use a friend the most - to keep them grounded. To stop them from doing anything too crazy, and…" The cockapoo paused briefly. "And to maybe help them realise that they're not as crazy - or as lonely - as they might think," she concluded, gazing up at the doctor sincerely.

A part of Vance wanted to bat Skye away, to harshly backhand the pup and send her tumbling across the sands… but that part of her was being drowned out by another part of herself that had slowly but surely been growing louder over the past few hours - for as much as she'd tried to silence and suppress it out of stubborn, spiteful pride. It was the part of the doctor that was causing her eyes to well up with tears behind her glasses even as she looked at Skye. A part of her that was finally breaking through to the surface after far too long.

Skye cried out in startled surprise as Vance very suddenly grabbed hold of her, and for a frightening split second, the aviator pup thought the doctor might be about to throttle her, but instead, Vance held the little dog close to her chest… and began to softly weep, tears landing on the surface of Skye's fur one after another.

"I don't know why you're being so nice to me," the scientist managed in a choked sob. "I… I just don't get it. I don't get why you care. Why would you care? You, of all dogs, especially after I…" She trailed off into a series of sniffles and whimpers.

"I'm with the PAW Patrol, Victoria," Skye told her gently, leaning into the embrace and closing her eyes, a tear of her own running down the side of her muzzle. "Caring is what we do. It's what I do."

After several more minutes, Vance relinquished her firm yet gentle hold on the pup in her arms, allowing Skye to step away. "I… I think I need a glass of water," the scientist managed as she reached up and wiped her eyes, "A-And maybe a pizza. Or two," she added half-jokingly, putting on a small smile - the first genuine, non-crazy smile Skye had ever seen on the doctor's face.

"I might be able to arrange that," the little pup said, smiling slyly.