Dog-Napped Dog Chapter 1: "A Hectic Day"

Yes this is basically a dead archive and probably chances are that no one is ever going to read this. I know. Please review if you read this because if no one reviews then this will be discontinued. T-T

Oh by the way, the main characters are 12 in this, instead of 9 like they were in the books. Enjoy!

Dink stood in the living room of Josh's house, along with Ruth Rose.

"Bring Your Pet to school day was sick." Josh laughed, leaning on the couch. It was a cream color.

Dink pushed him a little to make room.

Ruth Rose rolled her eyes, "Pal literally tried to lick everyone!" She threw her hands up in exasperation. The brown-haired girl liked to dress in all one color, and this time, she had chosen pink.

Josh snorted, "It was worth it to see the principal screaming for dear life like it was some monster chasing him. Seriously though, if you're scared of dogs, then why make this an event at the first place?"

Ruth Rose just shrugged, "Fair enough."

Dink looked around, "Speaking of Pal, why don't we take him out for a walk? He could use some exercise."

"Good idea." Josh called his dog, "Hey PAAAAAALLLLLL!"

Pal came rolling down the stairs on his stubby legs, barking at him. The basset hound paused when he reached the bottom of the stairs, playfully head-butting Josh's leg.

Josh reached down and petted him, then grabbed the leash, "Come on, you guys." He opened the door and yelled, "Mom, I'm going outside!"

"Alright, just get back before six!" Mrs. Pinto yelled from the kitchen.

Josh motioned for the others to follow him. They chatted about stuff while walking.

"Oh hey, I know! Why don't we go to Ellie's Diner?" Ruth Rose suggested.

Josh grinned, "I'm usually the one who talks about food."

Dink shook his head, smiling.

Josh told them, "It's just a short walk. I'll tie Pal to the pole on the street so he can wait for us there."

"That's not a good idea, Joshua." Dink teased, knowing that Josh hated having his full name said aloud.

The red-head scowled, "It'll just be for a few minutes. Plus, I tie him there all the time and nothing ever happens."

Pal licked Josh's hand and barked in response.

- Time Skip-

Ruth Rose walked out of the diner, the boys on her heels.

"It's sad that the little kids weren't allowed to bring their pets to school." Dink conversed.

"Yeah, the teachers thought that they were too young. I totally agree though, Nate would NEVER manage to handle Tiger." Ruth Rose chuckled.

"Tell me about it! Brian and Bradley were practically begging me to let them take Pal to school." Josh laughed at the thought of his little brothers struggling with his dog.

"Hey, speaking of which, where is he?" Ruth Rose looked at the pole Josh had tied him to, only to realize that he was gone.

"Did you tie him to a different pole? Maybe you got it mixed up." Ruth Rose told him as her friend started to panic.

"Hate to tell you…but told you so." Dink smirked.

"Not helping!" Josh hissed at him, "I swear, if this is all a dumb prank on me-!"

Dink scoffed, "Dude, why would I steal your dog?"

"Why would anyone steal his dog?" Ruth Rose wondered.

Dink added, "Plus, not many people go outside at this time of day. And, Pal yaps like a crazy dog if a person he finds threatening, or is just new, approaches him."

"You're right. He should have barked." Josh rubbed his chin.

Ruth Rose inspected the pole. Half of the leash was gone. "He might have just run off."

Dink shook his head, rejecting the theory, "That's impossible. He pointed at the leash, "The dog-napper must have used something to cut the leash. If Pal had run away, the leash would have been torn. Meaning, the edges would be all jagged-y, not clean."

Josh curled his lip, "Yeah, great and all, but I want my dog back!" He whined.

Dink crouched down, "Guys, there's footprint here." He traced his finger along the outline. The foot shape was decently large. He took out his phone and snapped a photo of it.

Josh looked around, "Maybe he's around the area. Help me search for him!"

The kids called Pal for hours and searched the whole street and nearby neighborhoods, but didn't find the brown and white dog anywhere.

Josh screamed until his throat felt sore, "PPPPPPPPPPAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLLLLL!"

Someone opened their window and yelled, "Quit screaming kid! I will not make out with you!"

Josh flushed, "Ma'am, that's not what I-"

The lady slammed the window shut and Dink and Ruth Rose dissolved into hysterical laughter behind him.

Josh was about to cry, "This isn't funny! I saved that poor dog from horrible people, and now, he's back in the hands of horrible people!"

Dink stopped laughing, "I know it isn't." His gaze softened, "If he doesn't show up in 24 hours, we'll call the police station."

Like they'll do anything about it! Josh thought bitterly. He just nodded and swallowed, but the lump in his throat wouldn't go away. Tons of cases of missing animals were probably brought up every day, and there was no way the police could keep track of them all.

Ruth Rose chirped cheerfully, "Don't worry, he'll show up!" She assured him.

But deep down Josh knew that Pal wouldn't magically appear on his doorstep like his friends said he would.

After all, when were mysteries that easy?

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