The Harpercops meet Beethoven

Chapter 3

Later, Kali brought the twins over after she told them about the puppy and they were gathered with the Newton family in the living room, trying to pick out a name for the new puppy. 

"Okay, the dog's name will be..." Alice said before she drew out a card from the hat. 

"What is it?!" The kids asked anxiously, while the three dalmatian siblings played with the puppy.

"What's his name gonna be?" Ted asked. 

"You can't change it, that's the rules" Ryce said. 

"Okay" Alice looked at the card. "Emily? Did you do your name in a crayon?" she asked her youngest child. Emily nodded. 

"All right" Alice chuckled. "Well I don't think words for parts of the body make very good names".

"Okay people, lets move on!" Kali quickly said, not wanting to know about Emily's choice for a name.

"Okay, the dog's name will be..." Alice drew out another name, but paused for a long moment and looked to George.

"You asked for my input" George told his wife. 

"What? What!" The kids asked anxiously before Alice crumpled up that card too. 

"Nothing" Alice replied. "Let's just call the dog Rover". 

"Oh, come on" Lucky groused, even though only the Harpercop siblings could hear him talk. "That's such an obvious and stupid name". 

Ryce and Ted then started sharing the names they picked out and which one was better, like MC Hammer and Ultimate Warrior. 

"MC Hammer? What is this, the 90's?" Brock deadpanned. 

"Who taught you people about names?" Ann disdained the whole Newton family, thinking they were the worst people at giving names for their new pet.

"He doesn't like any of those names" Emily told the family. 

"Oh right, like you can really read his mind!" Ryce mocked. 

"Ryce!" Alice scolded her oldest daughter. 

"She can't, but I can. And Emily's right" Kali replied, since she could talk to animals. 

"It's true" The twins smiled proudly at their big sister. 

"Okay..." Alice wasn't actually sure what the tomboy and her siblings meant by that, before asking her youngest daughter. "Emily, what does the dog want his name to be?". 

"This is ridiculous!" George suddenly glouted, getting up from the couch. "It's a dog! He doesn't have preferences! You can call him Ding-Dong head, he wouldn't know the difference".

"Yes he would!" Emily called back. "He'll tell us what he wants to be called". 

Emily then started playing a piece of Beethoven's 5th symphony on the piano and the puppy soon started barking and singing along to the music. Everyone else in the family all smiled at each other, knowing what name the puppy had picked out for himself. 

"Beethoven" George exhaled quietly. 

"Beethoven?" The twins asked, raising an eyebrow. 

"Yeah, why not?" Kali said. "He looks like a Beethoven, and besides he really seems to like that music" she came over and petted the st bernard puppy who was now gonna be known as Beethoven.

Since George didn't want the dog in the house, Beethoven would be sleeping outside in a kennel.

Between the time period Beethoven was growing up, a lot had happened for Kali on her adventures. But a lot had also happened for the st bernard's adventures around the neighborhood, along with the dalmatians and other animals.

Like, when Beethoven helped Ted with his science experiment. The time Beethoven and his friends went to kindergarten with Emily. Or the time Mr Hugg's went on a wild ride at Ted's birthday party. To the time Sparky got caught by the pound and Beethoven and the gang had to break him out. 

Mr Huggs was a bit annoyed once the slobbery dog joined the family, but deep down he loved him like a brother. 

Beethoven and the dalmatians soon grew up into fine young adults, much to George's jealousy of his family and the Harpercops fawning over the st bernard while he had to deal with caring for Beethoven.

One day, George came home from work only to be surprised to find the house was a complete wreck. There were muddy dog prints everywhere that George followed up to his room and soon found Beethoven lying on his bed covered in mud. 

"You!" George glared at the st bernard he disliked from the start.  

Beethoven then got up, and it looked like he was going to shake. 

"No, no, no, no!" George panicked. 

And Beethoven let out a big, long shake. Getting George all covered in dog slobber, who looked completely disgusted by it. 

George then shouted out so loud the whole universe could hear him. 

"BEETHOVEN!"