Patch's Adventures in Puppy School

chapter 5: Where's Patch?

They went to the backyard as Anne-Marie kept playing with little Charlotte.

"Anne-Marie, have you seen Patch?" Darla asked.

"I thought he was home with you guys." Anne-Marie said as she bounced her baby sister gently.

"No, he isn't," Atticus said, worriedly. "This isn't good, he's not at home and he's not here, where could he be?"

"I'm not sure..." Anne-Marie shrugged.

Itchy came to the backyard. "What seems to be going on here?"

"Itchy, did something happen at school?" Anne-Marie asked her new pet. "Atticus and Darla say Patch isn't home."

Itchy tried to think. "I told him to go home though."

"But if that's true, then why didn't he go home?" Atticus asked Itchy, trying to find out what happened. "Did anything happen at puppy school?"

"Actually yes..." Itchy reported. "We did burying the bone lessons, then I gave them a treat, and when it was time for Kate to walk me, I decided we should all have recess... Then Patch was wrestling an innocent puppy and he threw a firetruck against an apartment building and made the people crash down with it."

"That doesn't sound like Patch..." Darla was shocked. "Are you sure?"

"I swear, I'd seen it with my own eyes!" Itchy exclaimed.

"Okay, can you tell exactly of each of the owners of each of the puppies?" Atticus asked Itchy.

"What do you mean?" Itchy asked.

"Please, can you please tell us the names of each of the puppies' owners or at least tell us the names of the puppies that were in your class?" Atticus asked.

"Oh, right, sorry," Itchy chuckled, now understanding what he meant by that. "Let's see... Copper belongs to Amos Slade, Angel, Scamp, and those twins were with Jim Dear and Darling, there were two orphaned puppies who's raised by Flo who lives in an abandoned church that she's turned into a puppy orphanage, and... There was this other puppy with an interesting name... I didn't see who came to pick her up..."

"Do you remember her name?" Darla asked.

"I think it was Vendetta or Viola or something like that..." Itchy tried to remember.

"Her name was Vendella," Colette said, coming from the fence. "And she belongs to Cruella deVil."

"That was it." Itchy smiled now that he knew the name.

"Cruella!" Darla and Atticus gasped.

"The puppy that was wrestling, was it that puppy?" Atticus asked, referring to Vendella.

"I believe so..." Itchy frowned. "Poor puppy had to be given First Aid.

"Poor puppy!?" Darla snarled, she then now wondered. "Wait, when did Cruella get her own dog?"

"I heard just so she could get on the cover of a magazine." Colette spoke up, unsure herself.

"If that puppy belongs to Cruella, then you shouldn't feel sorry for her." Atticus said.

"Your puppy was wrestling a weaker puppy..." Itchy shook his head. "I don't take kindly to that, I'm afraid."

"It's a long story... Look, I'm sure Patch is sorry, but you didn't need to kick him out of school!" Darla cried.

"I didn't wanna do it, but he was hurting another puppy," Itchy said softly. "That Vendella puppy might be bad, but he must learn to play nicely with others."

"But he does play nicely! And besides, Vendella was nothing but a bully to me and other pups while you weren't looking or while you weren't around!" Colette yelled. "And besides, she tricked Patch into throwing that firetruck and made him angry, he didn't want to hurt her, he really didn't, but she was asking for it!"

Itchy now saw how it was the evil pup's fault. "I know... But he should learn not to fight a fellow student..." he said, remaining his teacher role.

"We'll make sure he doesn't again," Atticus promised, then sighed. "Do you know where he might be right now?"

"I'm sorry, but I only told him to go home... If he's not there, I don't know where he could be." Itchy replied apologetically.

"This is terrible, who knows where he is right now, I just hope he's okay." Atticus said.