Pink Lightning-A Paw Patrol Story

Chapter Nine

Skye stared at him. "So, how are we going to do this?"

"Fly up about five feet off the ground," Chase said. After Skye did as he said, Chase continued. "Ruff, tennis ball launcher." A tube appeared out of the right side of Chase's pup pack. "I'm going to shoot some tennis balls, and you're going to shoot them out of the sky, okay?"

"I think," Skye replied. She took a deep breath and got ready. "Okay, I'm ready."

"Ruff, launch," Chase ordered.

A tennis ball shot out of the launcher, and Skye shot a lightning bolt at it. It missed the tennis ball, and the ball fell over the side of the cliff.

"Oops," Skye said. "Sorry."

"No worries," Chase said. "That's why we're practicing. Try again."

Skye shot a lightning bolt at it again but missed. Chase shot two more, and she missed both of them. Skye began to doubt her abilities. "This is useless," she said. "I'm not going to be able to hit them." She landed on a fallen log and sat down with her head down.

Chase couldn't tolerate seeing Skye doubting herself. "Hey, Skye," Chase said. He sat down next to her. "It's okay not to get it the first time. When I started using this tennis ball launcher, I had trouble hitting my targets."

"I bet you didn't miss as badly as me, though," Skye said.

"Oh, you think so?" Chase said. "The first time I ever used it, I didn't even know how to turn it off. Tennis balls were flying everywhere, and one even hit Ryder in the face."

Skye laughed. "Okay, maybe it was bad."

"Yeah," Chase said. "After that, I didn't want to use it ever again because I thought I would never be good at it."

"What changed your mind?" Skye asked.

"Not what, but who," Chase replied. "Ryder came up to me and believed in me. He helped me push through all the failures until there were none. He believed in me more than I believed in myself. Skye, you need to find someone or something that motivates you to continue going."

Skye thought about it. Chase was helping her the same way Ryder did to him. Chase believed in her, and she didn't want to let him down.  "Okay," she said. "I'm ready."

Skye flew up. Chase launched a tennis ball. Skye closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and reopened them. She pointed at the ball, forcing a lightning bolt towards it. The lightning bolt traveled the air and hit the tennis ball, and the neon green ball exploded.

Skye looked at Chase, smiling. Chase stood there shocked until he realized Skye was looking at him, so he smiled back. "That was good," he yelled to her. "Let's do it again." Chase launched more tennis balls, and Skye hit every single one.

Skye and Chase howled in joy, seeing that Skye was getting better at it. Far away, some wolves heard the howl and howled in return. Chase and Skye heard them and laughed.

"Good job, Skye," Chase said. "I'm proud of you, Skye."

"Thanks, Chase," she replied. "Can we continue practicing, but maybe a bit harder?"

"Um, sure," Chase said.

 Chase kept shooting tennis balls until he ran out. Instead of shooting them all in the same place, he shot them randomly. Skye hit each one.

"Can we keep on going?" Skye asked. She didn't want to stop just yet. She felt she still needed to practice a tiny bit more to get good enough to help the Paw Patrol.

"Sorry, Skye, but that was the last ball," Chase replied. "Come on. It's time to head back."

"Aww," Skye complained. She flew down and sat at the edge of the cliff. She felt the urge to jump over the edge and fly around. But sadly, it was time to go.

"On second thought," Chase said as he walked up next to her. He kept his gaze forward. "It's still pretty early. There's no harm in staying a bit longer, right?"

Skye looked at him, confused. "But I thought you said..." She stopped when Chase looked at her. His amber eyes stared into hers, and she couldn't form any words. He nodded over to the cliff. It took Skye a second to realize that Chase understood what she wanted. "Really?! Thank you, thank you, thank you." Skye hugged him and jumped off the cliff, and flew around as free as a bird.

Chase was in shock at first but quickly came out of it. He smiled and laughed. "You're welcome," he yelled to Skye, though he doubted she could hear him.

Skye was having the time of her life. She flew around, shooting lightning bolts in every direction. Skye sped past some surprised pigeons and dove into a cave on the side of the mountain. She went through the cave and turned back when she hit a dead-end. The cave was dark, but the sparks coming off of her body gave enough light to show the way. She accidentally woke up some sleeping bats, who flew out of the cave. Skye exited the cave and dashed around a bit more. The feeling was sensational. To Skye, flying without wings was better than flying with them. She could move around more comfortably than before, and it felt good to fly without all the extra weight.

After another half hour, Skye dove back down onto the grass as the sun began to go down. She took a deep breath and laughed. She looked up and noticed Chase driving his cruiser over to her.

"Are you ready to leave?" Chase asked.

Skye nodded. She jumped in the passenger seat, and Chase drove off. The night was dark except for Chase's headlights. Skye looked up and saw the moon between tree branches. The sky was so clear that she could see the stars as well.  Skye closed her eyes. She couldn't believe how much she had changed.

Skye remembered the first time she met Chase. She had been so small, and now she had incredible powers. Skye opened her eyes and realized that they had already arrived at the Lookout. She thought the trip was quick, but she didn't complain.

Chase stopped in front of Skye's puphouse, and she jumped out. She turned to face him. In the moonlight, he looked powerful and confident. Skye wondered if she ever looked like that. "Thank you," she said. "I needed it."

Chase nodded. "Goodnight, Skye," he replied.

"Goodnight, Chase," Skye responded. She turned around as Chase drove away. Skye walked into her puphouse. As soon as Skye laid down on her bed, her eyes got heavy. She closed her eyes, smiling. She fell asleep a minute later.