Rascal's Festive Fun by Holly Webb Page A

big red dog cushion was empty. Only a few white hairs were scattered across it. No cute Jack Russell puppy.
    Everyone looked around the kitchen anxiously. Rascal loved people, and he especially loved Ellie. So when he disappeared and even Ellie didn’t know where he was, it almost always meant he was doing something naughty.
    “What’s that noise?” Lila asked suddenly.
    It was a squelchy sort of noise. Gungy. Like someone chewing something that was very, very sticky.
    Ellie sighed and bent down to peer under the table.
    “Hi, Rascal,” she said, not sounding very surprised. “Um, Mum? Did we want any cherries in the Christmas pudding?”
    Everyone else crouched down to look too, and Rascal stared back at them and wagged his tail. He took a guilty step back from the empty tub of glacé cherries and sat down, trying to look innocent.
    He wasn’t very convincing.

Chapter Two
Ellie’s Brilliant Idea
    â€œWell done, everyone! All the puppies worked really hard today.” Jo beamed around the whole class at the end of dog training the next day. Ellie bent down to pat Rascal’s head, feeling very proud. Quite often she came out of dog training knowing that they’d definitely learned lots, but wishing Rascal hadn’t weed on the floor, or eaten someone’s sandwiches, or slipped his lead and disappeared into the mop cupboard…
    But today he’d been perfect. It was just as well. Mum still hadn’t forgiven him for eating all the glacé cherries. She said they were a vital part of the recipe and that the Christmas pudding would taste completely different now. Ellie wasn’t sure she remembered cherries being in it before, but she’d decided it would be best not to say so.
    â€œJust before you go…” Ellie looked up as Jo carried on talking. “I’ve got this poster I’m putting up. Some of you might know that I volunteer at Paws for Thought, the animal shelter? I help out, take the dogs for walks, that sort of thing. They’re having a Christmas Fair here next Sunday.”

    Ellie nodded. “We had a leaflet through the door at the weekend.”
    â€œYes, they really need to boost their funds. And, of course, they’re worried they’ll get lots more puppies soon after Christmas.” Jo sighed at the thought of dogs becoming unwanted presents. “Anyway, please come, and tell all your friends!”
    Ellie led Rascal back over to Dad, who was waiting at the side of the hall. “Did you see how good Rascal was?” she asked happily.
    â€œHe was a little star today,” Dad agreed. “Especially at the sit and stay – I couldn’t believe he sat there for so long, even with Jo trying to distract him.”
    â€œAre you going to go to this Christmas Fair, Ellie?” Jack came over with his enormous Great Dane, Hugo. Hugo was well-named – he seemed to get huger every time Ellie saw him. “I think it sounds fun. I looked at the poster and it said lots of the stalls will have cool things for dogs.”

    â€œWe can, can’t we, Dad?” Ellie asked. “I’d really like to go. And we could bring Mum and Lila and Max too. Oh! And maybe I could get Grandad a Christmas present, if there are dog pictures and things like that. He loves dogs.” Ellie’s grandad was very fond of Rascal, and he’d given Ellie lots of good advice about him. It had been Grandad who’d suggested Rascal needed to go to dog training in the first place.
    Ellie and Dad walked home quickly. It was too cold to linger, and even Rascal didn’t seem to want to stop and sniff exciting smells as often as usual.
    â€œI wonder if it’ll snow soon!” Ellie said excitedly. It was so cold, they might even have a white Christmas.
    Dad looked up at the dark, cloudy sky. “You never know,” he agreed. “It did snow last year. Though most of it came after Christmas, didn’t it?”
    Ellie danced on ahead