Stick Dog Slurps Spaghetti Read Online Free Page B

“Anybody see anything? I don’t want to miss one.”
    After a couple of minutes, Karen screamed, “I saw one!”
    â€œWhere?!” Mutt, Stripes, and Poo-Poo shouted in unison.
    â€œI just got a glimpse of it!” Karen said. “Behind that big cloud. Where the moon was a minute ago!”
    This comment caught Stick Dog’s attention. He asked Karen, “The moon isn’t where it was a minute ago?”

    â€œNo. Now there’s just a big cloud there,” Karen answered. “The cloud the balloon is behind.”
    â€œWhat color was the balloon?” asked Stick Dog.
    â€œKind of grayish-yellowish-whitish,” Karen answered. “And really bright. Like it was glowing or something.”
    â€œDid it have stripes?” asked Stripes.
    â€œNot that I remember, I’m sorry to say,” said Karen. “It had, like, faded irregular-shaped spots or something, I think. Remember, I only got a quick glimpse.”
    â€œMaybe it has stripes on the other side,” offered Mutt.
    This idea lifted Stripes’s spirits considerably.
    Mutt, Karen, Stripes, and Poo-Poo stared at that cloud and waited for the hot-air balloon to emerge.
    And waited.
    Then it happened.
    The edge of a circle appeared as the cloud slowly slid aside. It was just as Karen had described: grayish-yellowish-whitish, bright, and marked with faded, irregular spots of several sizes.

    Stick Dog watched and listened.
    â€œKaren!” yelped Poo-Poo.
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œThat’s not a balloon!” he exclaimed.
    â€œWhat is it then?”
    Mutt, Poo-Poo, and Stripes all screamed the answer at the same time.
    â€œIt’s the MOON!”

    Then they all started laughing.
    Karen shook her head and stuck her chest out in defiance. She said, “Maybe it’s a hot-air balloon that’s shaped like the moon.”
    Stick Dog decided to step in then.
    â€œIt’s the moon, Karen,” he said definitively but kindly. “It’s an honest mistake.”
    Karen hung her head. “That’s really embarrassing.”

    â€œYou know what might make you feel better?” asked Stick Dog.
    â€œWhat?”
    â€œIf you shared your plan with us.”
    â€œWhat plan?” Karen asked. She was still quite dejected. Her head hung low; her tail didn’t wag at all. It just drooped.
    â€œYour plan to get to the top of the hill.”
    â€œOh, right,” she said, and lifted her head. She seemed suddenly happier. “It’s a pretty nifty plan! And totally feasible. I know it will work easily.”

    â€œBefore you tell us,” Stick Dog suggested, “let’s move away from this place. That darn moon is taunting us. It just looks so much like a balloon. Why don’t we get out of here?”
    â€œI’m with you,” Karen said gladly—and then took a brief second to scowl at the moon high in the sky.
    â€œWhat about my plan?” asked Mutt. “What about searching for a hot-air balloon? There’s bound to be one soon.”
    â€œWe’ll keep an eye out,” Stick Dog said quickly. “Don’t worry. As soon as we see one, we’ll put your plan into action.”
    â€œSounds good.”
    â€œWhere are we going, Stick Dog?” asked Poo-Poo.
    â€œLet’s just move to that next little flat area,” Stick Dog said casually. He nodded his head toward another plateau farther up the hill. And before anyone could question his motives, he started walking toward the new spot.

    Without thinking about it, Mutt, Stripes, Poo-Poo, and Karen followed after him.

CHAPTER 6
A GIANT SKILLET
    â€œThis looks like a good spot,” Stick Dog said, and settled into a comfortable listening position. He casually glanced up the hill to see how far from the top they were.
    They were pretty close.
    After the others got comfortable, Karen provided the details of her own plan.
    â€œOkay,” she said, and paced slowly