to the clinic. Her leg needs an X-ray.”
“An X-ray? Is it really that bad?” Olivia asked.
She looked worried.
“We might not be able to compete,” Mia said
sadly.
As they helped Bella into the horse trailer,
Lacy rode by on Gingersnap.
“What happened?” Lacy asked.
“Bella’s hurt. We’re taking her to the clinic,”
Mia explained.
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Lacy said with a hint
of a smile. She turned and trotted off.
Mia and Stephanie search for Bella
28
Olivia turned to Mia. “Mia, I’m so, so sorry,”
Olivia apologized. She felt terrible.
Back at the vet clinic, Aunt Sophie reviewed
the X-ray of Bella’s leg. Mia looked on nervously.
“Good news. Nothing’s broken,” Aunt Sophie
said.
Bella's X-ray
29
“Thank goodness! Does this mean she can
compete?” asked Mia.
“It’s too soon to tell. Let’s see what the
morning brings. Here, help me with this ice pack,”
said Aunt Sophie.
Mia helped Sophie apply the ice pack. Then
they bandaged Bella and walked her to a stall.
“So, about Olivia . . .” Aunt Sophie began.
“Do we have to talk about her?” Mia asked
sharply.
“I still think you two could be good friends,”
said Aunt Sophie
“Thanks, but I’m not really getting the
friendship vibe,” replied Mia.
“Everyone makes mistakes. And everyone
deserves a second chance,” Aunt Sophie added.
Mia thought about it for a moment, and then
nodded. Maybe she had been too hard on Olivia
after all.
30
Later that afternoon, Andrea and Stephanie
headed back to the café to bake new cupcakes
for the Petacular. Olivia and Emma went to check
out the tree house. Olivia brought along Scarlet
for the trip.
The tree house was a cool, woodsy space with
green grass and shrubs.
“This place is great, Olivia! It just needs a few
finishing touches,” Emma said. “It would make
such a great hangout for everyone,” she added.
“Yeah. Everyone except Mia.” Olivia sighed.
“I don’t think she’ll ever talk to me again.”
“Just give her time. She’ll come around,” Emma
said reassuringly.
“I hope so. All right, I’m going to start training
Scarlet,” Olivia said.
“That’s perfect. I’ll put the finishing touches
on my new banner,” replied Emma.
31
Emma and Scarlet
32
Olivia climbed down the ladder. “It’s training
time,” she told Scarlet.
Scarlet let out a little whine, but then she
perked up when she saw the delicious treats Olivia
was holding.
“Scarlet, sit. Sit. Sit . . .” Olivia commanded.
But Scarlet jumped up and snatched the treat
right out of her hand!
“Scarlet, no!” Olivia scolded. She grabbed
Training time!
33
another treat and kept working. Every time Olivia
told Scarlet a command, Scarlet just gave her a
puzzled look.
“Scarlet, if you don’t start behaving, no one
is going to want to adopt you. Don’t you want a
good home?” Olivia said. “Somewhere in there
you have to know that you’ve caused a lot of
trouble. Even though part of it is my fault, a lot of
it is yours. Mia may not be able to compete now,
and she’s worked so hard. You owe me.”
Scarlet seemed to understand what Olivia was
saying. The little pup was ready to learn at last.
She worked really hard, and eventually Olivia had
Scarlet sitting, staying, rolling over, and heeling!
After all her training, Scarlet was ready for her
final test.
“Now, sit,” Olivia said. Scarlet obeyed.
“Roll over.” Scarlet rolled over.
Then Olivia took a few steps backward.
34
“Stay,” Olivia commanded the puppy. Scarlet
stayed.
“Heel,” commanded Olivia. Scarlet heeled and
Olivia gave her a treat.
“Good girl!” cheered Olivia.
“Not bad,” a voice said. It was Mia! She had
been watching the whole time.
“Thanks. My aunt Sophie taught me how to
train dogs,” Olivia answered.
New friends
35
“She thinks highly of you,” said Mia.
“Does that seem crazy?” Olivia asked.
“Especially after all the trouble I’ve caused?”
“Not as crazy as it seemed earlier today. Do
you or Emma need any more help?” Mia asked.
Olivia smiled. Maybe she could make some
friends after all. “You know what, I could use
some help giving Scarlet a fresh look! Let’s call the
other girls for their expert opinions.”
Soon Scarlet was surrounded by hair and
nail clippers, and a pile of doggie accessories.
The experts get to work
36
Emma, Olivia, and Mia were just about to get
started when Stephanie and Andrea arrived to
help.
“Makeover time!” Emma cheered.
Emma gave Scarlet a haircut while Andrea
and Olivia clipped her nails. Stephanie and Mia
chose between sparkly dog collars, bright bows,
sunglasses, and even a golden crown!
Finally, the girls decided on Scarlet’s perfect
look—a pink collar and a bow.
“Girls, I think we found just the right look for
her,” said Emma. Then she turned to the puppy,
“Don’t you agree, Scarlet?”
Scarlet barked happily.
37
Scarlet's new look
38
Chapter 4: Saving the Day
The next morning, Mia ran over to the vet clinic.
She needed to make sure Bella was feeling better.
But when she got to the stable, Bella wasn’t there.
“Sophie! Bella’s missing!” Mia cried.
Then Mia turned and saw Aunt Sophie riding
Bella. Bella was trotting around as if her injury
yesterday had never happened! Aunt Sophie
dismounted and handed Mia the reins.
“She’s all better,” Aunt Sophie said with a smile.
Mia mounted Bella and trotted over to the
fairgrounds. She couldn’t wait to tell her friends
about Bella’s recovery. It was amazing!
39
“Morning,” Mia called to her new friends.
“Mia! Bella’s okay?” Olivia asked.
“She’s more than okay; she’s ready to bring
home the gold!” said Mia.
“Everything is working out perfectly,” said
Emma.
But Emma had spoken too soon. Suddenly,
there was a huge crash. The pet adoption stage
had collapsed!
“Oh, no!” Stephanie cried.
“That did not just happen,” said Andrea.
Bella's all better!
40
Stephanie saw a
construction worker heading
toward the stage. She ran over to him.
“What happened?” Stephanie asked the
worker.
“I don’t know. Something must have gone
wrong with one of the support beams,” he
explained.
“Can you rebuild it in time for the Petacular?”
Stephanie asked.
“Sorry, I don’t have all my workers here today,”
he replied, scratching his head. “With so few
Teamwork time!
41
people, we’ll never get it done on time.”
“What about us? I’m pretty good with the
hammer, and I can draw up some blueprints,”
Olivia offered.
“You can use my sketchpad,” Emma suggested.
“Come on, let’s hurry . . . we only have a few
hours!” said Stephanie, putting her arms around
the girls.
Stephanie pitches in
42
The friends got to work right away. They
assisted the two workers with hammering and
carrying pieces of the stage. Olivia oversaw the
gave the crew clear directions. Everyone pitched
in. Even Bella helped with some of the heavy
lifting!
As the last board was hammered into place,
the girls took a step back and glanced at the stage.
Olivia's blueprints
43
It was finished—and it looked even better than
before!
Just then, the mayor appeared. He had heard
about the stage catastrophe. “Stephanie, you did
an amazing job,” he said.
“Thanks, Mr. Mayor. But I had a lot of help
from my friends,” Stephanie explained.
“I didn’t think we could get everything done,”
said Andrea in disbelief.
“Me neither,” Mia added.
Celebrating a job well done
44
“It only worked because we had the right
team,” Stephanie explained.
“If we saved the World Petacular, I wonder
what else we can do!” Olivia said as the girls
all looked at one another. They really had
accomplished something great.
The mayor glanced at his watch. “It’s time to
start the festivities,” he said.
“I have to go. I’ve got a little surprise,” called
Stephanie, hurrying off.
“You’re leaving? Now?” Andrea asked.
“What surprise?” Emma asked. But before
she could get an answer, the microphone onstage
turned on. The World Petacular was about to
begin!
45
Chapter 5: The World Petacular
“Ladies and gentlemen, it’s my great privilege to
welcome you all to Heartlake City. I declare the
World Petacular open!” the mayor announced to
the huge crowd.
As the mayor finished speaking, there was
a noise in the sky. Everyone looked up as an
airplane flew overhead pulling a WELCOME TO
The World banner Petacular behind it.
“There’s my banner!” Emma said proudly.
“And look who’s flying the plane!” said Olivia
with surprise.
It was Stephanie, with a boy seated behind her.
46
They both waved. Olivia recognized the boy—
she had helped him fix his toy plane after Scarlet
bumped into him! But before she had a chance to
ask Emma about him, she glanced at her watch.
The pet adoptions were about to start!
Olivia rushed over to the adoption stage.
There were many families lined along the runway,
eager to find a new pet.
Stephanie flies by
47
Backstage, Olivia began prepping Scarlet.
“Okay, Scarlet, it’s showtime!” Olivia said as
she fixed Scarlet’s bow. “And you better behave,”
she added.
Aunt Sophie stood at the microphone. “And
next up for adoption is . . . Scarlet! A lovable
mixed breed, Scarlet enjoys playing and going for
walks. She is fully trained.”
Showtime for Scarlet
48
Olivia and Scarlet walked out on stage. Scarlet
held her head high. She was proud of her new
look—and the tricks she had learned.
“Scarlet, sit,” Olivia said.
Scarlet sat and looked at Olivia for the next
command.
“Scarlet, heel,” said Olivia.
Scarlet walked at Olivia’s heels. The puppy had
done a perfect job. She was definitely going to get
adopted now!
Over at the horse-riding ring, it was time for
the competition. Mia and Bella were getting ready
for their final jump. Emma, Stephanie, Olivia, and
Andrea were cheering them on from the stands.
“I didn’t know you knew how to fly,” Olivia
said to Stephanie as they waited for Mia and Bella.
“I’m still learning, but it’s really cool,”
Stephanie replied.
49
“Who was that boy?” Olivia asked, trying to
not seem too interested.
“Jacob, my flying partner. His dad owns the
aviation school. He’s sort of annoying though,”
Stephanie answered.
“Yeah, why?” Stephanie replied.
“No reason,” Olivia said and blushed a little.
“Look, there’s Mia and Bella!” Andrea
cheered.
The girls watched anxiously as Mia skillfully
rode Bella over the horse jumps. But on the last
Watching Mia and Bella's big moment
50
one, Bella’s hoof caught the bar, and it fell. The
friends all cringed.
“Oh, no,” Olivia said. The girls looked at one
another. They felt so bad for Mia.
The announcer’s voice came over the
loudspeaker. “Oh, that was a tough jump for
Bella. Looks like that’s going to knock Mia out of
gold medal contention. And that means our gold
medalist is . . . Lacy and Gingersnap! And coming
Mia's good sportsmanship
51
in second place is Mia and Bella!”
Mia waved to the crowd. She was proud to
get second place—after all, she had worked really
hard.
Mia walked over to Lacy and shook her hand.
“Nice job, Lacy. Congrats,” she said with a big
smile.
“Aren’t you mad that you didn’t win?”
Lacy asked.
52
Mia looked off to the sidelines where Olivia,
Stephanie, Emma, and Andrea were.
“I did win something: new friends,” she
replied.
“Great job, Mia,” Stephanie called from the
stands.
“You’re going to win the next one,” Emma said
with a smile.
“I’ll have to catch up with you guys later. I
need to go see how Scarlet is doing with her
adoption,” Olivia said. She waved good-bye to
everyone.
As Olivia approached the adoption center
she saw Scarlet’s previous owner talking to Aunt
Sop
hie.
“I can’t believe the difference in Scarlet. You
did such a great job. Could I possibly re-adopt
her?” the woman asked.
53
Olivia and Aunt Sophie exchanged concerned
looks.
“Uh, I guess. I mean . . . it’s just that we’ve been
through so much,” said Olivia nervously, “and . . . I
was sort of hoping to—”
“Actually, she’s already been adopted,” Aunt
Sophie explained to the woman.
Olivia was shocked. Who adopted Scarlet?
she wondered.
A new home for Scarlet
54
“Oh, what a pity. Well, good-bye, Scarlet,” the
woman said, giving Scarlet a little pat on the head.
She waved good-bye to Olivia and Aunt Sophie,
and walked away.
“Who adopted Scarlet?” Olivia asked.
Aunt Sophie placed Scarlet in Olivia’s arms.
“Think of her as my gift to you,” said Aunt
Sophie, smiling.
“But my parents—” Olivia said in shock.
“I’m sure I can work things out with them,”
Aunt Sophie said. She gave Olivia a hug, and
Scarlet licked both of their faces.
Olivia hugged Scarlet. She couldn't believe
the little puppy was really hers! She went to look
for her friends. Olivia couldn’t wait to share her
exciting news with them!
The girls were all over by the stage. Everyone
was there except Andrea. Where could she be?
wondered Olivia. Before she could ask the girls,
55
Made for each other
56
the mayor approached the microphone.
“Ladies and gentleman, closing out Night One
of the World Petacular, please welcome to the
stage . . . Andrea!”
The audience applauded as Andrea took the
stage. She looked amazing in her sequined dress.
She sat down at the piano and began to play.
Andrea started singing and she sounded fabulous!
She was a true superstar.