Mystery of Redpaw (PAW Patrol Fanfic)

The Wolf

Hours had passed. Ryder's eyes slowly opened. All he saw was darkness. "U-uncle Arite?" he breathed out. There was no response. Slowly, but surely, he got feeling back in his limbs. Propped up against a tree, he found his pup pad lying on the ground. The battery was missing. Clearing his throat, he called out for his uncles, his pups, anyone. But no one could hear him.

Artie had taken him deep in the forest, away from anyone. They had been trying to find Redpaw's 'parents', or at least, the ones that took care of him as a younger pup. That's what he's after, Ryder thought. He never cared about Redpaw, he just wants to continue his research. Angered, Ryder slammed his fist into the side of the tree, then cried out in pain. "Idiot," he muttered.

After massaging his legs, he figured he could walk, or at least try to. Hesitantly, he stood up, using the tree trunk for balance. He felt woozy, but his legs didn't give out. A good sign.

Looking around, he couldn't see much, for night had fallen. "Looks like I'm stuck out here. Hopefully the pups can find me before-"

An ear splitting howl to his left startled him. "That- that must be..." He didn't finish his thought, taking off towards the source of the sound.

~~~

As Rocky comforted Redpaw, Chase noted how close the two had become. "Hey, Rocky," he whispered. He motioned just a few feet away.

Rocky slowly moved away from Redpaw, careful not to wake him up. Meeting Chase by the window, he turned his head. "What's up?"

"You care about him, a lot." Rocky nodded. "Why?"

"Why? Why not? Poor pup's been out on the streets for dog knows how long." The mixed-breed looked out the window and sighed. "I don't know. I guess I can relate to him."

Chase turned his head. "But Ryder got all of you at the shelter?"

Rocky chuckled halfheartedly. "I had a life before the shelter, Chase. I'm-I'm older than I look."

"Well I figured that." He moved closer to Rocky. "What happened?" he whispered.

Rocky motioned towards the balcony and Chase followed closely behind. He didn't want anyone to know about his past, but trusted Chase enough to tell no pup. Sitting outside, the cool breeze tickled their fur, causing them to shiver a bit. "Alright... I was born about a year before I got to the shelter..."

FLASHBACK

Rocky lay at the end of an alley alone, shivering and whimpering. Shortly after he was born, his parents were captured and taken to Foggy Bottom. There wasn't a shelter in Adventure Bay at the time. So, he wandered the streets, alone. He was the runt of the litter and never saw his siblings.

He had to fend for himself, often getting caught in fights. Much like Redpaw, he was thrown out of deli's and bakeries, caught scavenging for food. He was scrawny and hid easily in the shadows. He would wait until owners left their homes to steal a bit of food, just enough to satisfy himself.

It was during this time that he took up recycling. He watched how different trucks collected different materials. He overheard a worker saying it was 'good for the Earth and would make the world a better place.' Rocky wanted to do his part and would spend time look for recycling.

A local deli shop, before Mr. Porter, noticed this and would feed him time to time. Rocky learned to talk thanks to him. He never got to thank him in person, though, because he moved away after a while. The shop remained empty and Rocky would spend most of his time there until one day, someone else came. THey were furious that a pup was inside the building and called animal control. That's when Rocky arrived at the shelter and met the other pups.