New Tricks for Rascal

Chapter One

Rascal in Trouble

“Ellie! ELLIE!”

Ellie jumped, losing her place in the book she was reading. Max was yelling and he sounded furious.

She heard Max’s bedroom door bang and then the sound of him thundering across the landing. “I haven’t even been in his room,” she muttered to Rascal, who was lying on the bed next to her while she read her book for school. Rascal’s ears were pricked
up, and he was staring at her bedroom door. Ellie looked worriedly down at the puppy. “I haven’t been in his room, but… Oh, Rascal, I hope you haven’t gone in there and——”

Her bedroom door burst open, and her brother marched in, his face bright red with anger. He was waving something black and white, and
squished-looking
at her. “Look!”

“What is it?” Ellie’s voice wobbled. Max was ten, two years older than she was, and he was usually very easy-going. But when he was angry, he could be really scary.

“You see! You can’t even tell what it is! Because that stupid dog’s eaten it! It’s my football, Ellie! My signed Walchester United one that I queued for three hours to get!” Max chucked the football on the floor. “Or it was. It’s just rubbish now.”

“I’m really sorry…” Ellie felt her eyes filling with tears. “Did you leave your bedroom door open?”

“Don’t try and make it my fault!” Max yelled. “It’s your dog that chewed it up! I’m going to tell Mum, and you know what, Ellie? I’m going to say we should send
Rascal back to the dog breeder. He’s the worst-behaved puppy in the world!”

Max stormed out, and Ellie stared after him, horrified.

Rascal whimpered, frightened by the shouting, and Ellie hugged him tight. “He didn’t mean it,” she whispered. “And Mum and Dad would never send you back.”

But as she heard Max downstairs, telling Mum about why Rascal should go back to the breeder’s, and Mum answer that she would think about it, Ellie didn’t feel quite so sure.

The next morning, Ellie sat at the bottom of the stairs, pulling on her school shoes.
She wriggled her toes sadly. These shoes weren’t nearly as comfy as the trainers she’d been wearing all through the Easter holidays. The time off seemed to have gone so quickly, with all the excitement of getting their new puppy.

Rascal sniffed at her feet curiously, and nibbled the end of the velcro strap with his sharp little white teeth.

Ellie gently pushed him off. “No, Rascal! Mum’ll go mad if you eat my school shoes. You ate half of her sock yesterday, remember? And she still hasn’t forgiven you for chewing her trainers.”

Rascal looked up at Ellie, his eyes sparkling with mischief. There was just something about shoes!

“Are you ready, Ellie?” Mum asked, coming downstairs with Ellie’s PE bag. Max and Ellie usually walked together. Their big sister Lila went in the other direction to go to her secondary school.

“Can you come too, so we can bring Rascal?” Ellie asked Mum hopefully, as she got to her feet. “I bet he’d love a walk. He’s going to miss us.”

“I’m
not going to miss him,” Max growled, as he stomped down the stairs. He was still really cross with Rascal.

Rascal had heard the word “walk” and was dancing around underneath the hook where his lead hung, barking excitedly.

“Oh, please…” Ellie begged. “Look at him, Mum!”

“Not now. Look at the time! You’re going to be late if you don’t hurry. But I’ll bring him to meet you after school, OK?”

Ellie’s best friend Christy was waiting for her at the school gate. “Oh, I was hoping you’d have Rascal!” she said, when she saw Ellie and Max running down the road.

“Mum said no, because we were late,” Ellie panted. “But she’s bringing him this afternoon so I can show him off to everyone!”

She told Christy all about Rascal and Max’s football as they were putting their bags away in the classroom. “He still isn’t talking to me, he didn’t say one word all
the way to school. And last night when Max said we ought to send Rascal back, Mum said she would think about it! Then Dad went out in the garden later and found this huge hole in the lawn…”

“Settle down, please, girls!” Mrs Harley, Ellie’s teacher, looked over at her and Christy. “Less chatting, Ellie. Your literacy words are up on the board.”

“Sorry,” Ellie muttered, turning red. She didn’t usually get told off at school. But she cheered up later on when Mrs Harley asked anyone who’d done something exciting over the holidays to share it with the class. Ellie stuck up her hand. Sometimes she was shy about speaking up in front of people, but she wanted everyone to know about Rascal. 

“Yes, Ellie?” said Mrs Harley.

“We got a puppy last week. His name’s Rascal.”

“That’s exciting.” Mrs Harley smiled at her. “What sort of dog is he?”

“A Jack Russell. He’s thirteen weeks old. My mum’s bringing him when she comes to pick me up, you could come and see him.”

Mrs Harley nodded. “I’d love to.”

At break time lots of people from Ellie’s class asked her about Rascal. She just couldn’t wait to show him off. But she was a bit worried, too.

Christy nudged her as they sat back at their desk after break. “Are you OK?”

Ellie leaned closer to whisper. She didn’t want to get told off by Mrs Harley again. “I’m just worried about Rascal. I hope he’s not being naughty at home. Last time I left him he howled the whole time.”

“Your mum’s there, isn’t she?”

Ellie nodded. “But he misses
me
!” She 
couldn’t help feeling a little glow of pride at that.

Mum looked a bit frazzled when she came to meet Ellie and Max. She was standing by the gate holding Rascal’s lead very tightly. She tried to get him to shush, as Rascal started barking at a pushchair.

“Hi, Mum! Has Rascal been OK?” Ellie asked, crouching down to make a fuss of him. Rascal bounced up and down, trying to lick her face.

Mum sighed. “He howled all day. I’ve hardly got any work done. And look at his lead! He pulled it down off the hook and chewed it to pieces!”

“Oh no!” Ellie took the lovely red lead from her mum. It was now chewed all down one end!

Just then, Christy rushed over. “Hello, Rascal!” she said, crouching down and tickling him. The puppy frisked around her, his whole body wagging with his tail. Other girls from Ellie’s class crowded round to take turns stroking him, too.

Ellie saw Mrs Harley coming over. “He’s lovely, Ellie.” She bent down to stroke the lively puppy, and he jumped up at her, yapping happily.

It was only when he turned round to be stroked by one of the other girls that Ellie noticed the trail of little muddy paw prints down Mrs Harley’s beautiful pale pink skirt…

Ellie flushed pink. “Oh, I’m sorry, Mrs Harley, I didn’t see he was muddy!”

Mrs Harley smiled. “Don’t worry, it’ll wash off. My dog’s always doing that.”

Ellie nodded, but she still felt embarrassed, and Mum hurried them through the school gates, before Rascal caused any more trouble.

On the walk home, Rascal sniffed every fence and lamp post, and soon he and Ellie were way behind Mum and Max.

“Come on!” Mum called. “I suppose at least he’s walking now,” she sighed, when Ellie caught up. “I had to carry him most of the way to school before!”