Home Before Dinner

Chapter 3

9:45 am

"Ugh, my head..." Max mumbled, finally regaining consciousness. He found himself lying on a patch of soft grass next to a sleeping Duke. The early morning sunshine shone down upon him, warming his fur. A feeling of calm washed over the terrier as he closed his eyes, enjoying this moment. Then his eyes snapped open when a thought crossed his mind.

What was he doing outside?

Sitting up, Max looked around at his surroundings. He was horrified to see other members of the gang laying around in the grass, looking about as dazed as he felt just moments ago. And the worst part was Snowball was seated right in front of him. A huge grin painted across his face, the white rabbit quipped, "Good morning Tiny Dog. Welcome to Central Park."

"Snowball, what have you done this time?!" Max snapped. His outburst woke some of the other pets from their tranquilized induced slumber. "Is it morning already?" Mel mumbled, blinking his eyes open. Stretching next to the pug, Buddy murmured, "I think so... why are you in my apartment?"

"My couch feels weird," Gidget remarked, patting the grass next to her. Nearby, Daisy replied, "Weird, mine too." Getting up from her patch of soft green grass, Chloe muttered, "This is not my basket." Finally regaining a little bit of consciousness, Duke yawned and chimed in, "I'm so hungry..."

"OH MY GOD I WAS SHOT!" Tiberius's shrill shriek finally woke everyone. Upon realizing that they were in Central Park, the other pets began panicking as well. Trying her best to calm down the hyperventilating red tailed hawk, Gidget yipped, "Max, what's going on? What time is it? Why are we in Central Park?!"

"How about you ask Snowball here?" Max declared, never once breaking eye contact with the bunny rabbit. Snowball quickly found several pairs of eyes staring into his soul. "Snowball," Daisy stated slowly, approaching the rabbit, "What did you do?" Rubbing the back of his neck sheepishly, Snowball laughed nervously and stuttered, "Um... well... ya see..."

"Snowball, we're all ready to play. Still going through with this?" Tattoo asked as he trotted over to the group. Glancing over at the rest of the pets, the tattooed pig whispered, "Are you sure they can handle this game?" Waving his friend off, Snowball reassured him, "Oh relax, of course they can handle Home Before Dinner. Now you get down to the Underbelly and wait with everyone else. Go on, shoo!" Watching as Tattoo walked away, Max questioned, "Home Before Dinner? What are you talking about?!"

"I'm glad you asked Tiny Dog," Snowball replied cheerfully, "Shall we play a game?"