The Runaway Adventures ll: Snowbound in Park Avenue

Chapter 39 - Brotherhood Brawl

Hurrying away from the other puppies, Danielle and Puffball headed to the stairs at the other end of the room. Seeing the look of intense stress on her boyfriend's face, Danielle's heart panged as she knew just how much his past with these dogs still traumatized him. "Don't worry Puffy. We're almost there," she said. "We're gonna take this group down, and Scamp and the others will talk sense in the ones who aren't bad guys. Trust me, I know most of them aren't bad, just misled."

"I hope," Puffball sighed, before looking at her worriedly. "Just don't think you can change my brother like that. I don't wanna see you get hurt."

"Right," Danielle said, "But ... Aren't you gonna talk to him?"

"Yeah, but just to buy you time. The only thing that can distract him from his duties as a top wild dog ... Is his hatred of me," Puffball said shivering.

"Puffy, you know how you're gonna beat him?" Danielle asked. "I mean, he's such a psycho! And I don't want you to be hurt either."

"Well ... not really. But ... I've gotta try," Puffball said doubtfully.

"I know we can," Danielle said, her shining brown eyes warmly boring into his dilating green ones, and wrapped her paw around her boyfriend as they approached the stairs. "Wilder may be big and tough, but he can't stop the two of us together!"

"I really hope you're right," Puffball sighed. "And ... In case we don't make it ..."

"Pfft! We will Puffy!" Danielle cut him off. "We escaped from Cruella. We got the big key out. And we'll beat your brother too."

Puffball smiled weakly before saying, "I just love your optimism, Dani. Really, you totally saved my life. And not just physically. You gave my life a new sense of meaning and made me feel happy for the first time."

"Aww!" Danielle smiled, "That's so sweet, Puffy! And I feel the same way too."

The two puppies made it up the stairs and cautiously trudged down the hallway. "You wait here," Puffball said as they got to the wreck room's entrance. "I'll distract him, then you grab the key. Sound good?"

"Yep," Danielle said confidently, giving Puffball a confident smile. Then the two of them engaged in one last hug before Puffball sighed and sidled into the room, his head skirting the ground, as a familiar voice jeered out. "Hey! Looks like someone's lost."

Puffball looked up, and his eyes narrowing in anger, he stared at his brother, who was confidently seated on what had always been his favorite couch. "Wilder," Puffball muttered.

"Haha, ya didn't forget about me, Puffy," Wilder sneered. "Of course I'll never forget about you. The one blot on my mojo. Even stooping as low as to become one of them," staring at Puffball's collar. "Oh yeah, where's your little girl toy? Wait, don't tell me. She ditched ya. Cuz no one wants to hang around with a loser like you. Ain't that right?"

Danielle instinctively took a few steps forward, but paused, looking at Puffball and remembering what he said earlier. Retreating, she realized Wilder was trying to bait them, and she saw Puffball's body language remained impassive, evidently used to his brother's taunts and focused on the task at hand.

"Just as I expected," Wilder sneered. "So why'd you drop in? Even you'd know that I'd be waiting to turn ya into kibble, 'specially with that collar. Don't tell me you wanna join us, cuz we'd never take a weakling like you."

"No," Puffball answered at last, and gathering all his resolve, he stared into his brother's eye. "I ... I want ...

"Speak up, pipsqueak," Wilder chided.

"I ... I wanna challenge you," Puffball gasped.

Wilder's smirk widened as he broke into a thunderous laugh, hitting the couch with his paw aggressively. "Yeah, right."