After having snack time, the puppies went to play in the backyard. Hunter gazed upon the treehouse.
"You guys have a treehouse?" he asked.
"Yes," said Dawkins. "It's actually Dylan's treehouse. "It's where he goes to work out his hobbies."
"Hey Dawkins!" said Dizzy. "Can we show Hunter the inside of the treehouse?!"
"Can we please?!" said Dee Dee."
"I don't see why not," said Dawkins.
"Yay!" said Dizzy and Dee Dee.
"You'll definitely like what you see in there," said Fergus.
"But I don't see a ladder," said Hunter.
"We use doggy steps to get up there," said Dizzy.
"Can you still act like a dog?" said Dee Dee.
"Well... yes," said Hunter.
"Then you should be able to get up there without any issue," said Dawkins.
"Alright, I'll try."
Dizzy and Dee Dee went up to the treehouse first. Hunter then got down on all fours and and quickly went up the doggy steps.
"You did it!" said Dizzy and Dee Dee.
"Yeah. That was quick." Hunter remained on all fours as he followed the two pups into the treehouse and was intrigued by what he was seeing. "Wow. This looks amazing. So many stars, planets and bones"
"Dylan really loves space and dinosaurs," said Dizzy. "He even likes PoodleWolf."
"What's a PoodleWolf?"
"It's a game Dylan likes to play a lot," said Dee Dee. "He gets really dramatic whenever he plays it."
The pups led Hunter to the top of the treehouse. He then noticed the telescope. "That's a nice telescope."
"Mommy and Daddy got that for Dylan as a birthday gift," said Dizzy.
"It's like his most prized possession," said Dee Dee.
At that moment, Hunter started feeling uneasy. He immediately started thinking back to when he'd first met Dylan. How he'd charmed him into thinking he was also interested in space. How he'd lured him to his place after he'd kidnapped Dorothy and enticed him with all the space stuff he'd bought. How all of that led to the unfortunate events of that night and thereafter. His body started trembling, his legs were shaking, and his eyes started tearing up.
"Hunter?" said Dizzy.
"Are you alright?" said Dee Dee.
Without uttering a single word, Hunter quickly ran out the treehouse. He ran passed everyone else without saying anything and went into the house. He dashed out the doggy door, got up on his legs, and continued running.
"What was that all about?!" said Fergus.
Dawkins saw Dizzy and Dee Dee coming towards him. "What happened?!"
"Hunter started looking sad!" said Dizzy.
"And then he ran out!" said Dee Dee.
"Did he say why?!" said Fergus.
"No!" said the two pups.
Just then, Diesel appeared. "Everyone! Hunter's gone!"
"What?!" Everyone was shocked. They went inside but found no trace of Hunter still being there.
"His backpack and laptop are still here!" said D.J.
"He wouldn't leave without his things!" said Da Vinci.
"Why was he so upset?!" said Delgado.
"Something must have reminded him of his past exploits," said Deepak, "filling him with so much guilt and regret it made him run off!"
"This is bad!" said Destiny.
"We have to like...!" said Dallas.
"Find him!" said Deja Vu.
The main pups and Fergus left to find Hunter while Sid, Big Fee, and the rest of the pups stayed in case he came back. Diesel led the way since he could pick up Hunter's scent better. They soon found themselves at the canal where they'd found Hunter sitting under the bridge, his head buried in his knees, his arms tightly clenching his legs, and he was crying.
"Hunter?" said Dawkins. "Why are you crying?"
"It was a mistake!" cried Hunter.
"What was?"
"Going back to that house!"
"Why on earth would you say what?"
"Because being there will always bring back those awful memories and the nightmares! Ever since that day, I keep thinking about what would've happened if I'd failed! If she'd succeeded! I hear her voice every time I go to sleep! Haunting me! Tormenting me! Telling me I'm nothing! That I'm just like her!"
"That's not true!" said Dizzy.
"You're not like that scary lady at all!" said Dee Dee.
"But I'm afraid it might be true!" said Hunter. "I ordered Cuddles to vandalize the park to make it look like you'd done it! After all that, I tricked your brother into letting me into your home! Out of all of you, he was the one I'd wronged the most! I'm certain he overburdened himself with protecting you, all while blaming himself for trusting me! Even if we do find the dogs and save them, he'll never forgive me! I don't even forgive me!"
Everyone could see how deeply hurt Hunter was. No one knew what to do or say to comfort him.
Then Fergus stepped forward and sat next to him. "Kid, I might not know what you've been through, but I think you're also overburdening yourself. There have been days when I've wronged Dylan plenty of times, but he's not one to bear grudges or let them prevent him from doing what's right. Sure, you've done things you can never forgive yourself for, but you shouldn't let them control your life. You gotta look on the bright side. Focus on what makes you happy."
Dawkins stepped forward and stood in front of Hunter. "He's right. And you're not the only one who's had to deal with nightmares. Even we could barely sleep after going through such a tragedy. But we managed to pull through because we have each other to depend on. And yes, Dylan does indeed overburden himself. Quite a lot actually, but only because he loves us so much. He may think we don't appreciate him as much, but we do. You wouldn't believe all he's done for us."
"He went through a series of trials to show how much he cared about me," said Deepak.
"He kept breaking into our commercial shoot...," said Destiny.
"All so he could keep us...," said Dallas.
"From getting hurt or injured," said Deja Vu.
"He saved us from falling off a rock!" said Dizzy.
"In a dark and spooky cave!" said Dee Dee.
"He saved Dolly from falling off a high platform," said Delgado.
"Even though he got blamed for tearing up our family portrait," said Diesel.
"He and Dolly saved me from drowning," said Da Vinci.
"They even took on a disgusting dare for each other," said D.J.
"They even broke into our neighbor's house!" said Dimitri 1.
"All so they could keep Dorothy from getting arrested!" said Dimitri 2.
"Even though it was a complete bust!" said Dimitri 3.
The pups and Fergus laughed.
Hunter still kept his head lowered. "I don't understand. Why are you all being so nice to me after everything that's happened?"
"Hunter," said Dawkins, "we asked you to help us not simply because you saved us. But because we believe you have indeed changed. When you told us you had been trapped for a long time all by yourself, we realized that deep down you're not a bad person. Just a misguided soul who needs love and understanding. And thankfully you have us who can show you. Because you're our friend."
Hunter lifted his head. "You really mean that?"
"Indubitably."
"And heck," said Fergus, "any friend of the Dalmatians is a friend in my book."
"I'm your friend," said Da Vinci.
"I'm your friend," said D.J.
"I'm your friend," said Deepak.
"I'm your friend!" said Diesel.
"I'm your friend!" said Delgado.
"We're your friends!" said Dizzy and Dee Dee.
"We're your friends!" said Triple D.
"We're your friends!" said the Dimitris.
Dorothy, who'd been sitting on top of Dawkins' head the entire time, hopped onto Hunter's knees and said, "Friend."
Hunter was stunned as he looked at the Dalmatians and Fergus, who happily stood showing him how much they really cared about him. And thinking back to what Fergus had said, he realized that being with them is what made him happy. With that thought in mind, a smile formed on his face.
After finally calming down, Hunter followed the pups and Fergus back to the house. "Hey, I want to thank you all for cheering me up. I really needed that."
"No problem, dude," said D.J.
"We're always happy to help anyone in need," said Da Vinci.
Just then, everyone started hearing a beeping sound.
"What's that noise?!" said Delgado.
"Is that coming from your phone?!" Dawkins asked Hunter.
Hunter took out his phone and saw a notification that read Lead Found. "We have a lead!"