Once upon a time, there lived a girl called 'Betty'. Betty wanted a pet since she was two years old. She kept asking her parents for a dog or a cat, but her parents never listened to her ! She tried everything ! She also tried convincing them, but nothing worked. Her best friend, 'Lisa', had a cute grey kitten as a pet. The name of the kitten was 'Pebbles'. Betty was very fond of Pebbles. She often went to the Central Park, where many dogs came for a walk. She knew each and every dog along with their owners, and they knew her very well too. Many times, their owners left their dogs at Betty's home and went for their other chores. Betty's mother didn't like this, and wanted to stop her. But she couldn't say a word to her, could she ?

Betty

Lisa

Pebbles

Today, as Betty was returning from school with few of her class friends, she saw a fluffy white dog. She saw that it was a pet dog because it had a collar. She checked for the name-plate and phone number of the owner which was supposed to be written on the collar, but there was nothing. She happily took it home and was very happy as she could keep her own dog at last ! She called the dog 'Doggie', as she didn't know its name. When Betty told her mother that she was going to keep the dog, her mother was horrified ! She put all her knowledge in telling her how they can't keep the dog. But Betty was determined, so she said that they will keep it only till she finds its owner. Her mother was not happy with this, but she reluctantly agreed.

Lisa knew everything about pets, so Betty did everything under Lisa's guidance. Lisa said that it was necessary for every dog to have a proper weight, none of them should be over-weighted. So Betty checked Doggie's weight, and surprisingly, Doggie was over-weighted. Betty and Lisa were astonished, because otherwise, Doggie looked like a healthy dog ! She also ate much more food than what she was supposed to. This was fishy, but still Betty gave her because it made her happy. She also took it for a walk daily in the Central Park. She noticed many people over there too.

Today, as Betty was taking Doggie for a walk, she met a farmer. The farmer's two babies were sitting beside him. On seeing Betty and Doggie, the farmer exclaimed, "Oh, Belle ! Where is Mrs. Chenery ? Is this Mrs. Chenery's granddaughter you are coming for a walk with ?" Betty was puzzled, because the farmer knew Doggie. Then Betty asked the farmer, "Sire, how is it that you know this dog. And how do you know her name to call her Belle ? And by the way, I don't know who Mrs. Chenery is and I am not her granddaughter !" Then the farmer explained, "This is Mrs. Chenery's dog, Belle. I know her because I cant afford newspapers. So after she finishes reading the newspapers, I go to her home and collect the newspaper."

Betty asked the farmer whether he knew where Mrs. Chenery lived. But the farmer replied, "Oh yeah ! I will obviously know where she lives ! After all, I go to her home and collect the newspapers !" The farmer told Betty the address, and she went off to find Mrs. Chenery. When she reached Mrs. Chenery's home, she knocked on the door. Mrs. Chenery opened the door, and greeted Betty. She squealed in delight, "Oh, Belle ! Its been ages since I've seen you. Thanks, dear child, thanks to bring her here. Come in, dear, come in. Lets have some tea and cookies for your good deed." Betty went inside happily, and had tea and cookies. Mrs. Chenery was indeed a very kind lady ! She made Betty feel as comfortable as she felt at home.

Oh, Belle !

Betty asked why Belle was to over-weight. Then Mrs. Chenery replied, "Good heavens ! Didn't you know that Belle is having puppies ? That is also the reason why she was eating more than her diet ! And I don't know what would have happened to her if she hadn't found you ! Thanks a lot, honey, thanks !" How Betty wished that she could have kept one of those puppies ! But no - she can't do that, because Belle is not hers, she is Mrs. Chenery's ! Before leaving, Mrs. Chenery called her close and said, "Betty, I will be on vacation for a week. So can you please take care of Belle till I come back ?" Betty happily agreed. After all, she loved Belle dearly too !