The horn announced mightily of their arrival, as the already fine-sculpted lands of Ashmont had stood in front of them — delicately paved with a fine strip of eroded rocks; awaiting for everyone to depart on the vessel and show what made it different from everyone else.

          A burst of energy had made landfall upon the crowd, finally awakening from their deep and probably nauseating slumber; Marshall and Everest had emerged out from their previous place — the alleyways, where they spent the rest of their hours conversing and hidden from the crowd.

          "So let me get this straight," Teary-eyed Everest questions with a crack of dawn plastered upon her lips "She really adopted a chicken?"

           "Hard to believe, right? Instead of giving composure, it just creates more trouble than it's worth." He rolls his eyes humorously, as he slightly felt surprised at the sensation of having the planks switch with cool cement pavements. A path that's quite frankly, rougher than polished wood itself.

           As they slowly transitioned themselves from the damp dock, a beautiful green forestry had pulled upon their views — a conflation of fir and coniferous evergreen trees, and the dulcet pure flowers that lay low beneath its grassy beds, creating a natural lustrous feeling despite the shades giving off of its natural dull colors. Every CorNer that you seek, were stringed with nature delights, and its native charm.

          Skies that were painted above these had smudges of soft cool icy colors, yet a warm tone emitted by these rows and clusters of heart-built establishments.

          The younger brother of a city gave of a bursting energy of uniqueness and excitement, despite of its first-glance solitude serenity.

          "Woah.. It looks so pretty here.." Everest breathes out a puff of an awe full of smoke; it seemed that the town is getting ready to put on a show, as the temperature grew colder and colder, and the distant skies gave notice that it may deliver a beautiful fall of frozen display sooner or later.

          He could only laugh in response as he, himself, can't deny the utter perfection of his old homeland. Due to him inhabiting the sunbathed Adventure Bay for at least eighty-five of his life, he can't lie even if his life depended on it, if having a switch of scenery was a pleasant gift to his senses.

          All those intense days he long created back there, were now overshadowed greatly with a simplistic scenery, filled with a toned-down version of his second hometown.

          "The trip there may take some time. Considering that I might struggle to navigate back to it from the years. But.." a hum of interrogation vibrated out of the husky's system, right after silence tailed behind him.

          "One thing I cannot forget is, I'm hungry."

          A dulcet aroma coming from the fresh pastries, and flavorful hot beverages emitted a bitter-sweet scent and swirled the atmosphere into a perfect cafe ambiance. Clamour of people's conversations, the clinking of glasses, mugs, and plates being settled upon the table, the evident chopping of the mighty blade upon the wooden grounds; basically, beautiful chaos had swarmed them upon entry.

          Marshall hopped onto a wooden seat, decorated atop with a lush red cushion that comfortably nested their rumps. He smiled to himself at the realization that he'd gotten there with ease — back then, he struggled quite a lot to properly position himself. In order to do that back in the days, he had to jump, climb and struggle as he was on the verge of his fall — but it was that there's no tragic ending, don't worry, he made it.

          A young man approached them, he had those of long dirty blonde hair, tied into a loose ponytail that settles onto his morena skin, and questioned their orders with his pretty hazel eyes.

          "I'll take Gnouchar's Beef, and she'll take Organic Seasoned Liver." He narrates those lines as if he'd been building up to that moment all his life, and the waiter slipped off with the orders and a bow, leaving an unfazed Dally and flabbergasted Husky.

          He only raised his brows in response, and somehow, Everest knew what he wanted to know from her ".. Well, for starters, how'd you know what to order? You barely looked on the menu! Plus, how'd you know I like liver?"

          "Your scent somehow gave it away." He playfully rolls his eyes, smiling victoriously at her — as if he withheld a trophy that he could proudly display, where she could only laugh in disbelief and surprise.

          "Actually, aside from that, " He trailed after the fit of laughter Everest produced
"I've been here before. As a young child, this place contains no sentimental value to me, so as to pass time, I've read the whole menu." He shrugs his white-coated shoulders in response, as if that his good memory skills are nothing to boast for, at all!

          Everest pondered to herself quietly and estimated how long it had been, for him to truly remember such things as if it were pastries being sold in a crisp morning. Adulthood between humans and canines is quite uncanny, and the fact she's been spending too much tie with Jake had disrupted her natural sense of tracking her canine life. If he were to be in his fifth or more of his year — being alive, then it's been truly a while since his life away from the playground itself. She'd concluded that it was probably something that's stitched into his heart, the reason why he still remembers it so vividly.

          A rebounding voice from the old days, oddly — of voices she can't remember nor identify — came to cross her mind, of two separate roads that came to intertwine at some point. It was the fact that memories so good, painted from the pastel of hues produced by the gaiety-filled hearts, is out-matched by the gloomy skies that last as if eternally were they to stand.

          "That memory of yours must be quite a dear to your heart." She remarks quietly, as to add a comment to the earlier statement he said, though subtracting the probable bitter recall that she means to avoid. Marshall could only smile at this, and nod in response, though Everest caught on with this smile of his and took note of it.

          Lately, aside from slowly seeing another side of the Dally himself, she've noticed he's gotten a lot of smiles, which still baffles her up to this moment, to how much an individual could muster up a  lot of grins, yet have different meanings lying behind the universal action.

          For example, the genuine smile — the kind of beam that he seldom uses, to her anyway. It was sculpted with a broad smile, and wrinkles that are nested between his two lids on the side, and his pearly white teeth glisten against the warm sun.

          Then there's the nostalgic smile — a grin that's probably less impactful than of his genuine one, it's meant for him and only him, and if you were to catch a glimpse or jump into conclusion that it was meant for you, it'd be debunked after a while, as he might give you something else from that — for better or worse.

          Another one of his smiles she's familiar with is a variant of his nostalgic smile, which bears the same meaning, though is quite complicated that of the first. This other one has a hint of lemon within it, and you can think about a million reasons correlated to its making, but you could only wonder as you're never sure what it truly is. You could only either hope and believe what you hypothesize or just simply keep those thoughts to yourself and allow time to allow him to loosen up to you.

           The second variant holds more of a lonely aura, disguised in fruitful and promising smiles, and it's much more heartbreaking when you find out the difference between all of these simper works of his. You could only laugh nonchalantly or turn a blind eye at first during your first visit to his exhibition, but as you linger longer within these walls that he built himself, you could learn so much more from him, where he no longer just means another Dalmatian or canine in your life.

          Disrupting her thoughts shortly, she blinked the remnants of her ponder into nothing but mere imagination, and had transitioned herself back into reality. A plate of steaming seasoned liver was right in front of her, its tops exploded of spice and flavor, luring her into a perfect trap to devour it clean. She cannot blame the dish itself, as behind all the work is crafted solely by the chef's hands.

          Marshall too, had received his share of meal, and politely thanked the waiter for his service, before he had completely slipped off with a bow and left the two of them to eat the meal in peace, semi-peace in the very least, as everything that happens around them is not within their control to halt nor play.

          "So," trails the Husky in clueless hum, though wistful. This had caught the Dally's attention and had looked up from his dish with genuine curiosity plastered across his brows, down to his lips. "Where off to? After this I mean."

           He had only smiled in response, as if telling her she should know full well of what the next sequence would be, though he did not question it any further and responded in the latter anyway "We're forth my home town I guess. The scene's changed quite a lot, and I'm not sure if the way back too would have done the same. Let's just hope my memory doesn't fail us, huh?" which Everest giggled to his simple humor — effortlessly constructed, and smoothly executed.

          During that timeline, a chapter of which they are set in a scenery of a busy cafe, they had learned a lot from each other. From why the skies are ever blue, and as to their favorite thing to do to pass time. Times, they differed of response, though it didn't change the fact that both were still continuously intrigued by the differences of it; too, had of similar answers and laughed with merry eyes at the fact they could relate to one thing. 

          One thing, for example, is how they instead could of been a human. Dog years is such a short amount of time compared to those of the highest primate and other mammals. They too agreed on how little time he has left too, before he might bid farewell due to natural causes. "Make mistakes, and live life to the fullest!" is what he opposed to that grim fate he will soon face. Everest smiled at his enthusiasm and began to join him in fits of quiet laughter.

          "Perhaps this is what the PAW Patrol is telling me all about." She thought to herself; the beaming Dalmatian they all love, his true side, was soon unveiled in moment's perfect time. Had she regretted walking down that stormy and pebble-shrouded path? Perhaps she did. Though perhaps, it too was worth it. No matter what would happen either way, feasibly it was always meant to fall into place like this.

          "What about him though? Is he only meant to be a figure in my past?" asked of herself to the mirror, where the Dally perked his ears in surprise and confusion "Him? Who's him?" and this had awoken Everest from her mind-entrapment and opened her eyes as wide as of a boulevard. "Oops, I've slipped my thoughts." She remarked quietly to herself.

          In response to that, she had only nodded her head sideways, a remark to disregard her earlier statement, which still left the Dalmatian completely clueless and itching with the fulfillment of having to know behind those words. In the end, all he could assume was that "he's" part of her past — maybe it's linked to her earlier statement? He's not sure, but he'll mentally take note of that.

          "I have yet to know more about you, Everest." He thought to himself, as for the short while, he allowed his senses to drown with these caffeinated beverages, and cinnamon-filled pastries.