Jasmine’s Big Idea

Author Crystal Velasquez
Illustrator Baily Crawford
Originally Published © 2018 American Girl
ISBN 9781338114911
 

Cute Times Five

Jasmine Arroyo has never seen something as cute as a litter of six-week-old kittens. Her own dog, Cookie, is pretty adorable, but these five kittens have five times the cuteness. They’re loudly mewing, looking at Jasmine with curious eyes.

Jasmine turns to her mom, Dr. Lydia Arroyo, who is a veterinarian. The kittens being noisy is good, right? Jasmine’s mom agrees with her. It means the kittens are getting stronger. The kittens arrived three days ago along with their mother to an animal shelter, Rosa’s Refuge Animal Shelter, run by Rosa Wallace. Mrs. Wallace normally keeps the kittens on the second shelf against the wall, but when Jasmine visits, they’re moved to a cardboard box on the floor.

Jasmine reaches into the box and pets the kitten she named Tiger between his ears. His brown fur is almost the same color as her own corkscrew curls. Thanks to her mom, Jasmine knows the kittens need plenty of water, food, and sometimes even medicine to stay healthy. But, since she began volunteering at the animal shelter, Jasmine has also learned that petting and playing with dogs and cats is just as important. Mrs. Wallace says the animals need to get used to other humans and animals before being adopted.

Mrs. Wallace enters the room carrying a bag of groceries. She smiles warmly at Jasmine as she straightens her thick glasses. Soon, the kittens’ mother will be healthy enough to take care of her babies again, thanks to Dr. Arroyo. When they’re a bit older, they’ll try to find the kittens’ forever homes. Whenever strays or abandoned animals come in, Mrs. Wallace and her husband ensure the animals are healthy, and then find them new, loving families. Jasmine thinks it sounds like a wonderful job.

Dr. Arroyo comes to get Jasmine to go home for dinner. Jasmine hates leaving the shelter. She’d come by every day if she could. But for now, she’ll have to settle for every Saturday. Before she leaves, Mrs. Wallace says she could use Jasmine’s help with something. Mrs. Wallace points out the window at an empty storefront next to her shelter with a For Sale sign on the window. She explains how she’d like to expand into that empty storefront. Although her shelter has areas for cats, puppies, larger dogs, private rooms, and a small fenced-in yard, it’s still not enough space. If they’re out of space, they can’t always take in the animals that are brought in, and they need to be turned away. But, they don’t have the money right now to buy the store and remodel it. Mrs. Wallace says she’d like to have a community fundraiser, but she needs help with organizing.

Jasmine suddenly has an idea. Maybe she can help organize the fundraiser. Her mom helped the PTA plan the spring fair at her school last year, and they raised a lot of money for books for the library. Mrs. Wallace replies that sounds like a wonderful idea. Perhaps a carnival park across the street. Her friend can set up a small petting zoo, and they can have a bouncy castle and sell t-shirts. They can ask local businesses to match donations, and maybe even have an adopt-a-cat trailer out.

Jasmine, nodding, suggests they can raffle off prizes and have a cool arts-and-crafts area. Mrs. Wallace says maybe Jasmine can be the assistant carnival planner. It’ll be helpful to have her ideas. Dr. Arroyo recognizes the determined gleam in Jasmine’s eyes, and knows there’s no stopping her.

But, it’s time to go home for dinner. Dad is making pastelón, a Puerto Rican lasagna. As they walk to the car, Jasmine realizes something. What happens to the animals that Mrs. Wallace has to turn away? Her mom turns serious. If they can’t find a home for the animals, they need to put them to sleep. It’s very sad.

Now Jasmine realizes how important it is they can make the shelter bigger. Jasmine just has to help make the carnival a success.

 

Doggie Drama

The next day, Jasmine invites her best friends, Keiko Hayashi and Sofia Davis, to her house. They kick around a soccer ball in the backyard. Sofia joined the neighborhood soccer team the year before, and likes to show off her moves. Sofia gently kicks the ball around and runs her foot over the top. Jasmine and Keiko chase after it. But it’s harder than it looks, and they topple over each other onto the ground. Laughing, Sofia helps them to their feet.

Just then, a sandy-colored creature barrels across the yard and jumps into Keiko’s lap. It’s Jasmine’s dachshund, Cookie. Crying for help, Keiko covers her face to protect it from the licking dog. Jasmine pulls Cookie off her friend. Ever since they adopted him from the shelter, Cookie has been the liveliest member of the Arroyo family. So far, Jasmine’s been teaching him how to sit, stay, and shake, but she’s still working on shoe-chewing and jumping.

Keiko glances warily at Cookie. She gets nervous around dogs. When her friends express concern, she responds that she was just surprised; she’ll be okay. Keiko explains that it’s mostly bigger dogs like German shepherds, but even tiny ones still scare her sometimes.

Sofia gently says that many people are afraid of dogs. She tosses one of her reddish-brown braids over her shoulder. Keiko just needs more time to get used to them. When Keiko asks if she can just avoid them completely, Jasmine answers that if she did, she’d miss out on all the good things about them, too. Playing fetch, cuddling, happy dog kisses, and the joy Cookie has whenever Jasmine comes home from school.

It’s just like the rescued cats at the shelter. At first, they’re nervous around people, but eventually they’ll eat out of a persons’ hand. Someday, Keiko will love dogs.

 

Friends to the Rescue

After stowing Cookie safely in his crate, the three girls head inside to the kitchen. Jasmine describes all about how overcrowded Rosa’s Refuge is, and how Mrs. Wallace plans to expand. And, she tells her friends about what happens when they need to turn away animals.

Sofia and Keiko glance at each other. They had no idea. Immediately, they jump to wanting to help. Jasmine explains the carnival Mrs. Wallace wants to throw. Sofia says it’d be cool to help. Maybe helping with the shelter will finally prove to her parents that she’s ready for her own puppy. Jasmine knows Sofia has been begging her parents for months about adopting a pet, but they aren’t sure if she’s ready for that responsibility.

Keiko reminds Sofia that she once almost killed a class plant. Sofia protests that was different. After all, plants don’t bark to tell her when they’re hungry or thirsty. Keiko, shaking her head, says it’s still Sofia’s fault. Jasmine mentions that puppies are a lot of work. Sofia would have to train it and stuff. And how would she fit in soccer practice? Sofia exclaims that it’s no sweat! If she can keep a soccer dog away from a puppy, then the other girls on the team don’t stand a chance.

Chuckling, Jasmine asks Keiko if she can help. Keiko seems nervous. Would she need to be around dogs? Jasmine shakes her head. Maybe Keiko can help come up with creative ideas for what to do with the kids. Keiko’s face lights up into a smile. That’d be perfect. Then, Sofia suggests that maybe they can do a spin art table. Jasmine says that’s perfect! And they can do little descriptions of each animal that’s up for adoption. They can hang the posters all around the carnival, and write WANTED: A New Home on them.

Jasmine and Sofia continue to brainstorm ideas, but Keiko stays silent. Finally, she leans forward and suggests that maybe she can draw pictures of each of the shelter dogs for the carnival signs. Jasmine agrees that’d be awesome.

Jasmine touches the necklace she wears around her neck and smiles at her two best friends. Her necklace is a simple chain with a charm at the end shaped like a dog biscuit, engraved with her name. Keiko and Sofia have charm necklaces with their names, too. Sofia’s is a soccer ball, and Keiko’s is an artist’s palette with colored gemstones. As long as they each have their special necklaces, Jasmine knows they’ll always be friends.

 

Meeting Madison

The next Saturday, Jasmine and her mom drive to the animal shelter as normal. But this time, Keiko and Sofia are joining them. The three girls giggle and talk excitedly in the backseat about their plans for the carnival. As they pull into the shelter parking lot, Keiko’s face grows worried. Maybe she should stay in the car. But shaking her head, Jasmine says she can’t stay in the car! She needs inspiration for her drawings by meeting the animals. Groaning, Keiko climbs out of the car.

On their way inside, Jasmine exclaims that she’s excited to show her friends the new kittens, and they can help her name them. Jasmine gives her friends a brief tour, and ends when she reaches the doorway that separates the kennels from the rest of the room. The door is usually kept closed so the girls can peek into the room. Keiko peers through the window, and backs away nervously. Jasmine says they don’t have to go through there, and instead can go to where the younger cats are kept. She twists the knob and pushes the door open.

But to her surprise, Jasmine sees Mrs. Wallace with a girl she doesn’t recognize crouching with the kittens. Mrs. Wallace smiles, and introduces the newest volunteer who is coming over all the way from Greenville. The girl stands up. She has wavy red hair pulled into a messy ponytail, and grayish-blue eyes. She introduces herself as Madison Rosen. Jasmine introduces herself and her friends. Keiko immediately warms to Madison, complimenting her dress. Mrs. Wallace says Madison volunteered at the shelter in her town in the past, and has been great so far with the kittens.

Jasmine peers into the cardboard box, where the five kittens are batting neon orange plastic balls around. Sofia says it looks like they’re playing soccer. Madison nods; their long tails help them balance. Mrs. Wallace points to the kitten Jasmine named Tiger. She says that Madison has come up with names for the others. Madison points to one whose fur is sticking out, and says he’s Leo. The one with black specks is named Pepper.

While everyone else crowds around the box to look at the kittens Madison named, Jasmine can’t help but feel disappointed. She had been hoping she and her friends could finish naming them. But Madison seems nice, and she clearly loves animals as much as Jasmine does. And the names Madison came up with were good! Jasmine swallows her disappointment and squeezes in next to Madison to pet the kittens.

 

Frisky Frankie

The next weekend, Mrs. Wallace is waiting for Jasmine and her mom to arrive at Rosa’s Refuge Animal Shelter. Apparently. Dr. Arroyo has a patient waiting in the examination room. Pulling on her white lab coat, Jasmine’s mother agreeably walks towards the door. Then, Mrs. Wallace turns to Jasmine. Apparently, Madison arrived ten minutes ago and is walking a puppy in the yard. Maybe Jasmine can lend her a hand.

This surprises Jasmine. Mrs. Wallace usually doesn’t let volunteers their age walk the dogs. She must really trust Madison. Nodding to Mrs. Wallace, Jasmine heads outside. She finds Madison trotting around after a large puppy who looks like part beagle, part terrier, and all trouble! The puppy is on a leash, but it seems like he’s leading Madison, not the other way around.

Madison is shouting at at the dog, whose name is Frankie, to slow down, her red ponytail swinging. Madison gasps for breath as she explains that Frankie is running her in circles. Jasmine plants her hands on her hips. She has an idea. She dashes inside and pulls a small bag from the supply closet. Outside, Frankie is still pulling Madison around as she tries to encourage him to sit still.

Jasmine holds up the bag from the closet. Bacon-flavored dog treats! She holds a treat out in front of Frankie’s nose. He stops bouncing around and stares at the treat, mesmerized. Frankie sniffs at the treat, and licks his snout. Jasmine turns gently to Madison. When Jasmine says the word “sit,” Madison should push his bottom gently down. Madison nods.

Jasmine commands the dog to sit. Madison pushes down on Frankie’s rump until he sits down. Jasmine gushes that Frankie is a good boy, and feeds him the treat, which is gone in seconds. They repeat the routine over and over until Frankie no longer needs Madison’s hand to touch him to sit down. All Jasmine needs to do is hold out her hand and say “sit.”

Madison is impressed. Jasmine flushes with pride. Her mom showed her how to train when she got her own puppy. Jasmine then says maybe they should try “heel.” Jasmine instructs Madison on how to do it. Madison should hold a few treats in her right hand, while holding the leash in her left. When she circles her arm around, Frankie should circle, too. When he gets that down, then they can practice as they walk around the yard.

Madison and Frankie circle the yard, practicing. Slowly, the dog treats disappear, and Frankie gets more and more obedient. By the end, he’s heeling on the first or second try. Madison exclaims the technique is really working! Jasmine smiles and nods encouragingly.

Then, the girls head back inside. Jasmine’s mom joins her as Madison takes Frankie back to his kennel. Dr. Arroyo offers for the girls to join her as she gives Sadie a checkup. The girls follow Dr. Arroyo into an exam room, where she listens to a dog’s heart. Sadie is an older Saint Bernard who arrived at the shelter before the Arroyos adopted Cookie. Jasmine loves Sadie’s sweet, droopy face. She wanted to take Sadie home, but her parents pointed out that Sadie was too big for their small house.

Dr. Arroyo checks over Sadie’s mouth, teeth, and gums. She examines her ears for lice and to make sure they’re not infected. Jasmine can’t wait to do the same someday. As she moves Sadie’s hind legs up and down and massages her muscles, Dr. Arroyo explains that Sadie has a touch of arthritis. While there’s no cure, her case isn’t too advanced. Some physical therapy and dietary supplements should help. And she needs a forever home where she can get more exercise.

Jasmine takes Sadie’s leash to escort her back to her kennel. As they walk, Madison says Keiko is in the same after-school art class Madison started taking. Keiko texted a photo she made of a dog, and it was so good. Jasmine’s shoulders tighten. Keiko and Madison are texting each other? And why hadn’t Keiko mentioned the after-school art class?

Just then, Mrs. Wallace comes by, asking how Frankie did. Madison, smiling brightly, says that Jasmine helped her teach Frankie to sit and heel. Jasmine is a real puppy whisperer! Mrs. Wallace happily exclaims that she knew the two of them would hit it off. Perhaps all four of them can plan the carnival together. Madison says that that’d be so much fun!

Jasmine agrees, but feels deflated inside. She was supposed to be the one planning the carnival for Mrs. Wallace. Although, it does seem like Madison has good ideas. But does Mrs. Wallace just like Madison’s ideas better?

But Jasmine shakes her head out of it. Mrs. Wallace’s smile shows her that she still has plenty of confidence in Jasmine and her ideas. This’ll be great for the animals. Having Madison will help them raise more money to help expand the shelter, and that’s what’s most important.

 

Keiko’s Surprise

Next Friday, Jasmine sits down for lunch in the cafeteria with her best friends. She mentioned to them earlier that Madison would be helping with the carnival, and they were both excited. Sofia is sure she’ll have great ideas. Keiko says that she’s been working on sketches for the WANTED posters. Jasmine invites the two of them over to her house the next morning before volunteering at the shelter. They can work on the posters and decorations.

Keiko and Sofia glance at each other, and tell Jasmine they actually don’t need a ride. Jasmine’s disappointed. She asks if they’re backing out of the carnival. Sofia cries that they still want to help. Keiko whispers to Sofia that she knew Jasmine would know something was up. Keiko is terrible at surprises. Jasmine perks up. Surprise? Sofia giggles, and says that Keiko’s said enough. Jasmine will find out tomorrow. Keiko pats Jasmine’s hand—it’ll be worth the wait.

The next morning, Jasmine prepares herself for the surprise before she and her mom go into the shelter. What are her friends up to? Have they swapped outfits again? Had Keiko drawn a portrait of Cookie?

But when they go into the shelter, they find it completely empty. No, Sofia, no Keiko. Even Mrs. Wallace is gone. Then, they hear applause coming from the backyard. Jasmine and Dr. Arroyo go outside to see someone leading Sadie around the yard. That someone is Keiko!

Keiko, the girl who usually cringes when around even adorable puppies, was holding Sadie’s leash. Her grip is so tight Jasmine can see the whites of her knuckles, but she has a triumphant smile on her face. Jasmine peers around to see Sofia, Mrs. Wallace, and Madison standing on the far side of the courtyard.

With each lap Keiko makes, Madison shoots two thumbs up, and calls encouraging words. On the third lap, Keiko notices Jasmine, and exclaims that she’s walking the biggest dog at the shelter.

Jasmine cheers, but is confused, too. When did Keiko decide to do this? This is a big deal for Keiko, but why had she told Sofia and Madison but not Jasmine? Then, Keiko hands the leash to Mrs. Wallace and runs over to hug Jasmine. Keiko explains that she knew how much Jasmine wanted her to get over her fear of dogs, so they thought they’d surprise Jasmine by conquering her fear. Jasmine stammers that it’s wonderful. She’s surprised, but it’s wonderful.

Keiko says she told Madison about her fear of dogs at art class. And then Madison explained how Jasmine helped her walk Frankie. Madison also mentioned that older dogs are much calmer and gentler, and she encouraged Keiko to try it. Madison walks over to join them, and gives Keiko a high five.

Apparently Keiko and Madison have been meeting at the shelter throughout the week to practice so Keiko could impress Jasmine. And Sofia has been her personal canine cheerleader! Jasmine forces a smile on her face. She’s happy for Keiko, but she can’t help but feel like a deflated balloon. She thought she’d be the one to help Keiko conquer her fear.

But as Jasmine kneels to give Sadie a hug, she takes a deep breath, and realizes that it doesn’t matter who helped Keiko. The important thing was that she’s done it. She couldn’t have asked for a more amazing surprise.

 

Carnival Crafting

The next day, Jasmine’s friends are coming over to work on the carnival decorations. But when Jasmine goes to answer the door, she’s surprised to see Madison standing with them. Sofia says they stopped to pick Madison up, so they’d have some extra hands. Jasmine invites them all inside. Madison seems really excited to help them; it’ll be the best carnival ever.

The girls spread out their art supplies on the floor. Jasmine explains they need to make posters to spread the word about the carnival and to advertise the pets up for adoption. Sofia suggests getting lots of different colors of crepe paper and twisting it into streamers to hang from trees. The bright colors will work well.

Madison agrees that’ll look really pretty. She loves rainbows. Keiko says she can work on drawing some dog sketches on the posters. Sofia offers to do bubble letters. Madison pulls out a bunch of glitter glue pens. Soon, the three of them are busily hunched over the poster boards, drawing, lettering, and glittering.

Jasmine isn’t sure what to do. There doesn’t seem to be any space for her. Instead, she takes out a sheet of paper and tries to brainstorm for other decorations. Jasmine twirls her hair, trying to come up with ideas. But she can’t shake the feeling that her friends prefer hanging out with Madison to her.

Jasmine speaks up, and suggests maybe using balloons as decorations. Maybe Mrs. Wallace can get a big balloon arch. Madison looks up seriously. She says that while balloons are fun, if they fly off, they could end up in a lake or tree somewhere and hurt birds, fish, or other animals. Jasmine’s cheeks turn red. Of course Madison is right.

Then, Cookie wanders into the room and climbs into Jasmine’s lap. He always seems to know when Jasmine needs some cheering up. Madison scoots over to Jasmine, saying Cookie is the cutest. She offers a stack of glitter pens to Jasmine. She could use some help with glittering. Jasmine smiles. She feels better already.

After dinner, instead of hanging around for dessert, Jasmine goes to her room. She looks at the photos of her, Sofia, and Keiko. She smiles at the picture from Halloween where they all dressed up as cats. They’d been so close. But lately, things seem different, and it bothers her. So, she decides to make some more decorations on her own.

Jasmine’s mom pops her head through the doorway to see if Jasmine’s okay. Jasmine shrugs, but her mom can see something is wrong. She sits down on Jasmine’s comforter. Jasmine turns to her mom, and confesses that she thinks Sofia and Keiko like Madison more than her. Her mom asks for clarification. She thought the girls were all friends. Nodding, Jasmine explains that they are, and that’s why she hasn’t said anything.

Jasmine’s mom points out that friends don’t have to do everything together. The three of them are used to doing almost everything together, but it’s okay to give each other space. They’re still friends. In fact, if they weren’t all friends, Keiko and Sofia probably wouldn’t be helping Jasmine so hard with the carnival. They’re doing it because they care about Jasmine.

With a smile on her face, Jasmine realizes her mother is right. She turns off her desk lamp, and calls Cookie to her bed. Dogs are the best, she says to herself. This reminds her that there are a lot of stray dogs out there who need homes of their own, or at least a safe place like Rosa’s Refuge until a forever home comes along. And it’s up to Jasmine and her friends to help them.

 

A Major Mistake

On the day of the carnival, the weather is beautiful. Jasmine, her parents, and other regular shelter volunteers show up early to help get everything set up. Jasmine’s dad hangs the WANTED posters all around the park. They drape colorful crepe paper streamers from tree branches. Everything looks festive.

Mrs. Wallace buzzes around waving a clipboard. She compliments Jasmine and the decorations, and thanks Jasmine’s mom for helping with the food. The food? Then, Jasmine turns around to see her Tía Alicia, who came to help out, too. In fact, it was Tía Alicia who brought the food. Behind her, servers from El Coquí Café, her aunt’s Caribbean restaurant, were unloading a van. They had brought rice, empanadas, roasted meats, and fresh fruit, as well as pitchers of iced tea and lemonade.

Jasmine’s mouth waters at the sight of all of that traditional Puerto Rican food. Jasmine’s favorite dish, sweet plantains, even appears. She’d watched her aunt cut off the hard peel of the plantains, slice them to small flat pieces, and fry the strips many times. As Jasmine says goodbye to her aunt, her mom comes over and suggests that Jasmine join her friends in the arts-and-crafts corner.

Jasmine bounds across the park, noticing the bounce castle and petting zoo in one corner. She spots ducklings, sheep, a goat, and a small pony giving rides to children. She sees a donation tent where people could buy t-shirts, make a donation, or enter the raffle. There’s a games tent and a small stage, where a local band is setting up instruments. The whole carnival looks incredible.

As Jasmine approaches the arts-and-crafts corner, she sees an adult volunteer running the spin art station, which already has a line of five or six kids waiting. There’s also several picnic tables with cups of crayons, colored pencils, and paper. Keiko, Sofia, and Madison are huddled there, whispering.

Jasmine calls out to them, but when they notice her, they break their huddle. Madison snatches the paper they’d been looking at and hides it behind her back. What were they doing? When Jasmine asks them, Keiko refuses to answer Jasmine’s question, and Madison changes the subject. She points out that Mrs. Wallace turned the arts-and-crafts corner into an art gallery. Keiko points to some drawings of shelter animals hanging from colored yarn strung between two trees.

Jasmine focuses on the drawings, clipped with clothespins. She recognizes a drawing of Frankie and one of the five kittens. Keiko explains that after kids draw pictures of the animals, they post them on the board for people to buy. And all the money will go to the shelter.

Jasmine loves the art gallery, but she still feels like her friends are hiding something from her. She turns back to Madison, and asks what she’s hiding in her hand. Madison’s eyes go wide, she says it’s something to give to her mom. Then, Madison pretends to hear her mom calling, and runs off. Sofia and Keiko struggle to contain their giggles.

Jasmine’s stomach twists. She demands to know what’s so funny. She asks what they’re leaving her out of now?

Keiko is confused? When did they leave her out? Jasmine, frustrated, says they didn’t include her when they tried to walk Sadie at the shelter. And Keiko never told her that Madison was in her art class. And now the three of them are laughing at her.

Sofia shakes her head. They’re not laughing at Jasmine. Madison was just-

Jasmine interrupts Sofia mid-sentence. She shouts out that she doesn’t want to hear about Madison anymore. She wishes it was just the three of them again. Keiko glances past Jasmine, and her eyes widen. Jasmine turns around, and sees Madison standing right behind her. Madison overheard everything. Without saying a word, Madison turns her head and quickly walks away. Jasmine could tell that Madison’s eyes were probably full of tears.

Jasmine feels awful. Even worse, when she turns back to her friends, she sees the same hurt expression on their faces. Jasmine doesn’t know what to say. Finally, she turns and walks away. She knew she messed up. She was honest, but she didn’t mean for Madison to hear. Now everyone was mad at her.

 

A New Forever Friend

Jasmine finds a quiet bench to sit on. She runs her fingers over her dog-biscuit-shaped necklace. Then, someone asks to sit next to Jasmine. She looks up to see Keiko. Jasmine scoots over to make room on the bench. Then, there’s another voice. Jasmine, smiling, slides over to make some room for Sofia, too.

Keiko hands Jasmine a brown manila envelope with the word Jasmine written in glitter ink. She explains that they were trying to save it for the end of the carnival, but maybe Jasmine should open it now. Jasmine opens the envelope to find a big homemade card in it. On the front is a drawing of Jasmine holding Cookie and smiling. Keiko drew it. Jasmine opens the card, and is surprised to see that all of the shelter volunteers had signed it. They’d left little notes thanking her for her hard work.

Keiko says that Sofia, Madison, and her wanted to thank Jasmine for getting them involved with the shelter and the carnival. They all came together to make this card, and make a donation to the shelter in her name. Jasmine is stunned. This is the nicest thing anybody has ever done for her.

Sofia explains that it was all Madison’s idea. Keiko points to a scribbled message near the corner of the card. It reads:

  Dear Jasmine,
  Thank you for helping me with Frankie and for being my friend.
  It means a lot to me. And thank you for sharing your friends Keiko and Sofia!
  Love, Madison

Sofia describes how they were just finishing the card up when Jasmine found them at the art station. They didn’t mean for Jasmine to think they were doing something fun without her. They just wanted to keep the card a secret.

Jasmine throws her arms around her friends. She apologizes for what she said about Madison, and says she needs to find Madison to apologize to her. And all three girls stand up to find Madison together.

The three girls walk around the park looking for Madison. They find her outside the adopt-a-cat trailer. She’s checking up on the stray kittens, curled up in a cage with one of Jasmine’s WANTED posters next to it.

Jasmine holds up the card, and thanks Madison for it. She says it’s one of the nicest things anyone’s ever done for her. Madison shyly smiles. She wanted to do something for Jasmine, to thank her. Jasmine did so much for both her and the shelter.

Jasmine is surprised. She doesn’t feel like she did anything particularly nice for Madison. In fact, Jasmine said some really hurtful things about Madison, that she didn’t mean. Jasmine just thought Madison, Sofia, and Keiko were having fun without her.

Madison apologizes, too. She never meant for the surprise to make Jasmine feel left out. Madison was so happy to meet all of them at the shelter and to find friends that love animals, too. In fact, at her school, Madison is known for being a little too into animals. Madison explains how once, she set the mice and hamsters in the school classroom free when the teacher wasn’t looking. The animals were meant to be educational, but Madison thought they looked so sad being locked up. In fact, it wasn’t a smart decision. It’s possible the animals didn’t know how to take care of themselves on their own.

Jasmine knows how Madison felt. She made a similar mistake when she suggested a balloon arch for the carnival. It’s important to think things through, especially when animals are involved.

Then, Madison explains how she and her mom are moving next month, and her mom thought Madison would enjoy meeting new friends in the neighborhood before school started. In the fall, Madison will be attending the same school as the other three girls.

Keiko speaks up. This is great news! Madison admits that she was nervous to move there and be the new girl. But when she met all of them, she tried really hard to become instant best friends… maybe too hard.

Jasmine insists that they all love Madison. All four of them can be forever friends. Just then, Sofia interjects. It’s time to check on some animals. Her parents are there, and if they never see Sofia with an animal, they’ll never be convinced that Sofia’s ready for a puppy!

 

Terrific Teamwork

The four girls are heading inside the adopt-a-cat trailer when Mrs. Wallace flags them down. She breathlessly explains that there’s a long line at the petting zoo, and maybe they could help out. Jasmine and her friends eagerly change course. The animal handlers at the petting zoo wave them over past the line of families. They tell the girls to just make sure everyone is happy while they’re waiting in line, and to ensure everyone leaves the roped area after they’ve had their turn.

Together, the four girls work as a team. Madison helps move the line forward by handing out cups of food pellets to the kids who want to feed the goats and sheep. Keiko snaps pictures of the kids petting the ducklings. Jasmine tells the kids a little bit about each animal and ushers them out when they’re done. Sofia helps the younger kids climb on and off the Shetland pony before and after their rides. Sofia even cleans up after the pony and holds the lead rope while the handler lifts kids on and off. Jasmine can see Sofia’s parents watching from a distance, and they look impressed.

Soon, the line at the petting zoo dwindles. The girls are dismissed. Then, Mr. Wallace steps up to the stage, and announces it’s time for the raffle. A crowd of folks head to the stage. Mrs. Wallace and Jasmine’s mother are standing on the stage behind Mr. Wallace, holding a large glass bowl full of tiny red tickets. Mrs. Wallace taps the microphone, and tells everyone to get out their raffle tickets.

Mrs. Wallace slowly calls out the number of the winning ticket: one-three-five-eight. A girl near the front yelps, and climbs onto the stage, where she’s given movie tickets and a tub of popcorn. Then, Mrs. Wallace calls another number and gives away tickets to a baseball game. Lastly, Mrs. Wallace calls one more number, and Sofia’s mom sheepishly steps forward to accept a prize from a local pet store: a dog bed, a water and food dish, a shiny dog collar, a bag of food, and a brush. She whispers to Mrs. Wallace that she doesn’t even have a dog.

Jasmine thinks it’s a sign, but Keiko mutters that it’s a coincidence. Sofia, rubbing her hands together happily, says it’s perfect. One more reason for her to get a dog someday.

Once the fanfare dies down, Mrs. Wallace thanks everyone for coming out for the day to support Rosa’s Refuge. Thanks to the community, they’ve raised the money they needed to expand the shelter! The entire crowd lets out whoops, cheers, and applause. Mrs. Wallace thanks her friend for providing the animals for the petting zoo, and El Coquí Café for the food. And of course, she thanks the volunteers for all of their help. But especially, she thanks the four most dedicated volunteers: Madison, Keiko, Sofia, and Jasmine. Thanks to their decorations and posters, many of their furry friends may have found forever homes.

At the urging of the crowd, the four girls make their way onto the stage. It feels amazing. But it feels even better to know that they’d helped so many animals.

The next week, Jasmine, Sofia, Keiko, and Madison are at the shelter bright and early in the morning. After their shift, Jasmine announces she has a surprise for Madison. They wanted to get Madison a real welcome present so she’ll always feel like she belongs. Jasmine hands over a small box wrapped in glossy paper. Keiko can barely contain her excitement as Madison peels away the paper. Inside is a small silver chain with a kitten charm engraved with her name. It’s the same type of charm the other girls wear.

Squealing, Madison puts it on. Now, they’re all best friends furever. As Jasmine watches Madison slip the necklace over her head, she feels like the luckiest girl in town. Not only did she help the animal shelter, but she also found a new friend—one who loves animals as much as she does.

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