Free Emily's Dream by Holly Webb Page A

barn so things can be inside if it does, but it would be hard to squash a dog show in here too.”
    Poppy nodded. “I know, and that bit does sound like it’s going to be really fun.” She looked modestly down at her feet, and then snorted with laughter as Emily elbowed her in the ribs.
    “What are you going to dress Billy up as?” Maya asked
    “I honestly don’t know.” Poppy frowned. “It would be good to find something he looks a bit like anyway… A little boy did once ask his mum if Billy was an anteater when we were in the park. But I’mnot sure how I’d make an anteater costume. Actually I’m not sure how I’d get Billy to keep any sort of costume on for more than ten seconds.”
    “Why an anteater?” Emily asked. “He doesn’t look like an anteater!”
    Poppy shrugged. “Well, I don’t think he does. But it was his long nose, I guess. I wonder if I could make him a dinosaur costume? Billy the T-rex?”
    “I wish we could enter cats as well,” Maya said. “But I suppose it would be a disaster. I just like the idea of dressing Henry up.”
    Emily raised her eyebrows. “Maya, I’ve met your cat. He’d have your hand off if you tried to dress him up.”
    Maya sighed. “Probably. He isn’t talking to me at the moment, anyway. It’s because I was trying to get him to eat vegetarian cat food again. I tried ages ago, but I got it out again the other day, just to see if he’d changed his mind. Like people are supposed to have to try new foods seventeen times and then they get used to the taste.”
    “I suppose he still didn’t like it?” Lucy asked, laughing.
    “No. He just sniffed at it, then he went out and caught a mouse. I’m not sure if he was trying to tellme something, or if it was just a coincidence, but he did give me a really dirty look. And then he let the mouse go in the kitchen, and it got under the dishwasher. Anna blamed me, as well!”
    “He
is
descended from tigers, Maya,” Emily pointed out. “He probably thinks vegetarian cat food is an insult.”
    “It’s very expensive!” Maya protested. “But he just likes tins. Or catching his own.” She grinned to herself. “If I did dress him up, I think I’d dress him as a dog, just to be really mean. Oooh, Poppy, he could be a double act with Billy. You could make Billy a cat!”
    Poppy rolled her eyes. “He’d probably try to chase himself.”
    “Maybe I could enter one of the dogs from the shelter?” Emily said thoughtfully, but then she saw Lucy’s doubtful face. “No, I suppose not. They might be a bit too nervous for something like that.” She sighed quietly. Mrs Everett would probably have let her enter Charlie, but it wouldn’t be fair, when she was one of the judges!
    It would have been so much fun to enter her own dog in the show, that was all.

    “I emailed the man at the newspaper,” Izzy told Emily at school later that week. “I told him about the party, and I attached the information you sent about the shelter, and the photos of Twinkle, and Honey and the puppies, and that gorgeous white cat. I said people could ring up the shelter and book their tickets, and then pay on the day. That’s right, isn’t it?”
    Emily nodded. “I can’t think of a better way. We can’t really give out our phone numbers when we’re going to be at school all day.”
    “I really hope they put it in the paper,” Izzy said. “We’ve put lots of posters up, but everyone gets that paper through their door, so it would make a big difference. I emailed the local radio people too, and the TV news programme – the ones who came to film the fashion show. I hope Lucy doesn’t mind, because I said they could call the shelter as well, if they wanted to go and film there.”
    “She’d love it,” Emily said. “Well, she would if they told her before they were coming so she didn’t have her worst jeans on, anyway. Think how many extra people would go to the shelter, or even just give them some money, if it was on TV.”