Chapter Text
Ryder was missing. Ever since Harold Humdinger took him away again, the Mighty Pups did all they could, but it was like the two disappeared into thin air.
The whole town joined in the search, but to no avail, so everyone met up in front of City Hall, out of ideas.
"Where could he be Grampa?" Alex asked Mr. Porter.
"I'm sure we'll find him," Mr. Porter said, not sounding sure himself.
Zuma and Marshall were trying to comfort each other, both whining, as the rest watched Chase paise back and forth, getting faster and faster, almost activating his super speed.
"Chase!" Skye called. "You need to calm down. We won't be able to find him with you freaking out like this."
"We searched everywhere!" Chase exclaimed. "The town, the mountains, the jungle, Foggy Bottom, Adventure City, the desert and everywhere in-between!"
Laughter that caused everyone to freeze was heard as a screen appeared in front of City Hall, showing Harold Humdinger in his super baddie suit, laughing mechanically. "You want to know where he is? He's right here." The camera moved slightly to show Ryder in the background. Wearing his normal clothes and no pup pad to be seen as he was trapped in a bubble. "But you're not getting him back unless you fulfill my demands."
"Ryder!" The pups all called.
"Are you okay?!"
"Could be better," Ryder said, sounding more annoyed than anything else. "This is starting to feel like Princess Peach and Bowser, not gonna lie."
Harold's face lit up red under his helmet and he sputtered, turning around. "I don't like you like that!"
Ryder, as well as everyone watching, was confused at Harold's outburst. "I never said anything about liking me…" Ryder’s eyes went wide with a tiny blush before the pink disappeared and was replaced with a smug grin and knowing eyes.
"N- no!" Harold said, face even redder. "Stop looking at me like that!"
Ryder simply raised an eyebrow as if to ask 'Is that a challenge?'
"I'm telling you! I have the power to never let you go home again!"
"Switching to Beauty and the Beast now? Harold, you flatter me."
As Harold continued to deny it, the crowd in front of City Hall looked at each other, confusion clear. Was Ryder flirting with Harold? Sure they were sixteen but… it's Harold.
"How about a deal," Ryder said everyone's attention to him imediendly. "You let me go and stop putting people in danger, and I'll take you out to dinner. My treat."
"WHAT!" Half the crowd shouted, the rest, pups included, too shocked to say anything.
Harold went to reject immediately, but his words got caught in his throat at Ryder’s face.
The silence was tense, many not knowing if they hoped Harold would accept or reject. On one hand a date between two teens was undoubtedly easier then whatever Harold's demands originally were, but on the other hand it was hard to imagine the hero of Adventure Bay going on a date with the nephew of Mayor Humdinger. Not to mention that that nephew was one of the things the hero was saving the town from.
Eventually, Harold crossed his arms, trying to appear tough, but the blush under his helmet betrayed him. "Depends on where and when."
Ryder shrugged. "Somewhere nice. When would depend on reservation availability but next Friday might work."
"You aren't seriously doing this," Chase said, but Ryder didn't hear him. Just continued to look at Harold with a challenge in his eyes.
Eventually, Harold took off his helmet, threw it across the room, and turned off the broadcast. The last thing shown was Harold turning towards Ryder, and the latter boy's face screaming, 'I win.'
Looking at where the screen used to be in shock, each resident of the town tried to process what they just saw.
"D-did that just happen?" Rocky asked.
"I saw it but I don’t believe it," Rubble said, still looking at where the screen disappeared.
Chase shook himself to break from the trance. "Let's go to the Lookout. If Harold accepts, Ryder will most likely go there. If not, it's where Harold can contact us."
"Keep us updated," Mayor Goodway said with an uneasy smile.
Chase nodded, "Of course," then turned to the pups. "I'll run ahead. Meet you there."
All of the Pups, knowing just how much closer the pup was with Ryder, agreed and he sped ahead, hovercraft forgotten.
By the time the five pups got back to the Lookout, Ryder was on the couch, typing away at his computer. Chase lay next to him out of his Mighty Pup suit.
"Ryder!" The pups shouted, running up to him and he smiled, putting the laptop aside in favor of giving the pups the scratches they demanded.
"You're not actually gonna do it, are you Ryder?" Skye asked, looking at their owner in concern.
"I have my part of the deal to uphold," Ryder said with a shrug.
When the pups went to argue, Chase interrupted them. "Don't bother. I already tried."
"One date doesn't mean we're gonna become boyfriends," Ryder assured his pups. "It just means that we're gonna spend some time together over a nice meal. If it does go anywhere, rest assured I'll make sure Harold is truly on our side before anything official happens." The pups still seemed hesitant, so he added. "You don't need to trust him right away. I wouldn't put it against you to investigate him. He might even go back to how he was after the dinner. All I ask is that you don't act hostile towards him unless he does so."
Considering it, eventually they nodded. "We can try," Marshall promised.
Ryder smiled. "That's all I ask." He stood, slapping his knees. "Now. Any restaurant recommendations? Chase isn't helping much."
"I told you a bunch of ideas."
"And I told you I don’t want it to be a Cafe or Fast food. I literally Boogled 'Restaurants to bring a first date to near me'."
"What about outside town?" Rubble suggested. "I didn't know till we went, but Adventure City has a lot more food options then Adventure Bay."
Ryder hummed then typed something into the search bar. "Good idea Rubble. It won't be at a typical date time so we can be back at a reasonable hour, but I'm sure that'll be okay."
About an hour later, the pups were out of their geer and Ryder had the reservation set up, only thing left was to hit the confirmation button.
With a smile, Ryder took out his Pup Pad and video called Harold. He answered after a few seconds, looking surprised. "When you said you'd call me later I honestly didn't think you would."
Ryder chuckled. "I don't back down on my side of a deal. Anyway, I found a nice place in Adventure City I can bring us to. Does next Friday still sound okay? I'll pick you up at five."
"That seems really early for a date."
"I want to be able to get you back by ten."
"R-right. Course. I'll see you then."
"Wear something nice," Ryder said before hanging up the call and confirming the reservation. "Let's see what happens."