The Wounds We Heal

Chapter twenty-one: Long Night

Chester studied the group carefully.

"Well?.." he implied, waiting for an answer.

"Sure.. why not." Rocky shrugged, hopping up onto the pillow and laying down.

Ned did the same rolling motion with his paws on Rocky's shoulders and back, moving his paws slowly along the mixed breed's body.

"Oh!" Rocky gasped, surprised by the initial shock of the new sensation. "Ok then.. Ooo.. ahhh.. yes!" He sighed and sunk into the pillow more.

Ned kept massaging Rocky's back calmly. He watched as the pup enjoyed the relaxing sensation.

"Relax Rocky. Picture yourself on the lawn, on a sunny day. All your recycled tools are organized, the pups are with you, and you are all drinking a refreshing beverage. Ryder is nearby, laying on a chair," Ned said calmly, helping Rocky to picture the peaceful scene.

"You relaxed Rocky?" Snowflake asked curiously.

"Ahhh, yes.." Rocky sighed, his paw waving at her in slow motion, giving off the immense ease he was exhibiting.

"You're lucky he's not in his 'playful spooky story' mood. That can be scary sometimes," Snowflake commented with a shudder.

"Why's that?" Chester wondered, unsure if he wanted to know the answer.

"Let's just say telling scary stories in a playful mood while inside a dark closet with a flashlight is... Creepy. Plus getting stuck under bed sheets doesn't help either," Snowflake answered.

Ned smirked

"Hey, it's fun! Remember the Tale of Huggable Haunts? Or The Ghost of Midnight? When the clock strikes twelve, the ghost shall roam the halls looking for fun, while the kids run away hoping not to get caught in the sheet unless ye want to be haunt!" Ned said in a spooky voice.

"Ned! Not now! But yeah, we used to do that. Sometimes the stories were nice like Peaceful Winter, or Comfort of Friends," Snowflake replied.

"Oh,.. well where we're those stories when we were camping?" Chester wondered.

"Oh. Sorry. It's just we told you about Snowflake's sleepover that I guess I forgot about the spooky stories. Then again, we did do the werepuppy one," Ned retorted.

"Yeah, the werepuppy one was fun. But it would have been fun to do spooky stories. Later though since it is getting late," Snowflake added.

"Then how about a nice silly one? A song in fact!" Ned said before he started to sing.

"My tummy is hungry and grumbling! So let us prepare a feast! We got pretzels, burgers and berries, ice cream and pizzas galore! We got so much to celebrate, so sit down and enjoy! And if you would like to join us, you may come and sing jubilee!" Ned sang gleefully, pretending to be a chef.

Snowflake smacked her forehead with her paw.

"The Happy Feast of Food? Really? You pick that to sing?" Snowflake exclaimed in shock.

"Why not? It's a good song!" Ned answered.

Chester restrained himself from laughing.

"What?!" He huffed, unable to hide a smile.

"It's a real food song we heard growing up. It was in a commercial or show," Ned explained.

"Sounds like a real class act." Chester smirked, and he knew Chase would very likely be unamused by his comment, which made him enjoy it that much more.