Free Waggit Forever by Peter Howe Page B

that they were probably on someone else’s territory, and that the owners would defend it fiercely if they spotted intruders. Because of this fear he pushed Lowdown under a parked car when he saw two dogs in the distance running toward them. It wasn’t until the animals were quite close that he realized they were Little One and Little Two, and that Little One had something in his mouth, and a very large something at that.
    As Little One got closer, Waggit could see that it was a flat board with wheels attached to it. One end was badly broken, as if it had smashed into something with great force.
    â€œLook what we found” cried Little Two, when they finally got to where Waggit and Lowdown were standing. “It may be the answer to Lowdown’s problems.”
    â€œIt may be,” said Lowdown, “if only we knew what it was.”
    â€œWell,” asked Waggit, “what is it?”
    â€œDunno,” Little Two replied, “but it’s very cool. Little One can’t put it down because it runs away.”
    â€œHow can it run away?” asked Waggit. “I mean, it’s not like it’s an animal or anything.”
    â€œShow him, Little One,” ordered Little Two.
    His friend put the thing down on its wheels and released it from his jaws. Immediately it started rolling down the slope of the road away from them.
    â€œSee,” said Little Two gleefully, and pounced on it before it went too far. This had obviously been the source of several games before the two fun-loving dogs had had the idea that it could be used to transport Lowdown.
    â€œThe only way to stop it,” continued Little Two, Little One’s mouth being full again, “is to lay it on its back with its legs in the air. But if you turned it the right way up and put Lowdown on it, we could pull him along and all he would have to do is stand there. Going downhill we wouldn’t even have to pull.”
    â€œYou think?” said Waggit, looking suspiciously at the broken skateboard.
    â€œNo,” interrupted Lowdown. “They don’t think. They’re nuts, the pair of them. There’s no way I’m getting on that thing, whatever it is.”
    â€œThat’s the trouble with old dogs,” said Little Two. “They never want to try anything new.”
    â€œWrong,” Lowdown corrected him. “The trouble with old dogs is they want to become older dogs, and they ain’t gonna achieve that by going along with your hopper-brained schemes.”
    â€œBut you know,” said Waggit, “if it worked, it would mean we could keep up with the others, and you wouldn’t be in any pain.”
    â€œNo,” Lowdown insisted.
    â€œPlease,” begged Waggit. “Just try it.”
    Lowdown sighed.
    â€œI always suspected insanity was catching,” he said resignedly. “I’ll try it just once, but I ain’t making any promises.”
    So with Little One steadying the board in his mouth, Lowdown gingerly climbed onto it. His legs were so short that even this was difficult. He stood on his new perch and looked around.
    â€œI feel ridiculous up here.”
    Little One was about to mention that anything that made Lowdown taller was a good thing when he let go of the board. It immediately shot out from under the small dog, throwing Lowdown to the ground with a crash.
    â€œOw! Ow! Ow!” he yelled. “I thought you said Iwasn’t going to be in any pain.”
    It took several minutes of persuasion, plus a solemn promise from Little One never to let go of the board again, before Lowdown would agree to get back on. Finally the old dog got the hang of staying on it.
    â€œYou see,” said Little Two, “you just needed to get your balance”
    â€œIt ain’t me that’s unbalanced,” growled Lowdown. “It’s you two’s brains.”
    They moved forward at a brisk pace, Little One pulling and Little Two steering from