AN: One more chapter after this, intrepid readers!

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"Are we really going to do this?" Henry looked at Mouse with trepidation.

She looked back at him, hearing the uncertainty in his voice.

"You don't think we should?" she questioned, putting a hand on his arm.

"I don't know!" he answered. He gave a nervous laugh. "You're the one who seemed so sure, you said we're ready. I just agreed with you!"

"Henry! Are you passing the buck?" Mouse asked. "I mean, are you going to blame me if everything goes wrong?"

"Why? Are you changing your mind?" Henry countered. "You don't think it's such a good idea anymore?"

Mouse considered, then shook her head. "No. I think we can do this, I really do."

Henry smiled. "Okay, then." He opened the door. "After you."

They entered the building, and were greeted immediately by a friendly young man who introduced himself as Kevin.

"So, how can I help you today?" he asked.

"We'd like a dog," Mouse declared. "We want a bitch, spayed, housebroken, not super high energy, and not too old to adjust to new things." She ticked these off on her fingers. "So no border collies, no toy breeds, and no racing dogs, though I understand that, as a shelter, you don't really know what their breeds are." She looked at Kevin expectantly. "We'll go mainly on looks to figure out that stuff," she elaborated.

Kevin beamed at her. "You have no idea what a relief it is to have someone like you come in," he confided. "So many people come in with no idea what they're looking for. They'll want a real hands on breed, then tell me that the dog will be alone for twelve hours a day, or they want a puppy, then say that they don't really have the time or patience to housebreak it? I mean, seriously?"

"Oh, no, never," Mouse replied, making a face of sympathy. "I mean, we could probably deal with a puppy or younger dog, but we don't go out jogging or anything, and our idea of a good time is watching a movie, so we want a dog that will enjoy hanging out with us. And she's going to be a gift for a young boy, so she has to be flexible, nothing old and crotchety, you know?" Next to her, Henry nodded.

Kevin nodded. "Gotcha. Well, obviously we just show you all the animals we have, and you pick, but they've all been spayed or neutered, and all are current on vaccinations and are available for adoption, okay?"

"You ready?" Mouse asked Henry. "This is the hard part, like I said."

Henry nodded, and they entered the long room with the row of cages. It was noisy, filled with barking, howling, whining dogs, of every size and shape. It was a smelly place, and every sound echoed, making it even louder.

Mouse held Henry's hand. She'd been in rooms like this many times before, both as a potential parent and as a volunteer, but that didn't make it any easier. She told herself that at least for most of these animals the end was in sight; they'd be adopted or put down soon. She couldn't help the tears that formed in her eyes, though, and knowing that their suffering would soon be over didn't make it any easier to walk by them as they did it.

"So what we need to do," she said to Henry, "is to make a note of the ones that are possibles, then go back and look just at them, maybe take them out to interact with them, you know?" She looked at Kevin. "Is that allowed here?"

Kevin nodded. "We have a little yard where you can try them out," he said.

"Try them out?" Henry repeated. "Like test-driving a car?"

"Henry." Mouse spoke gently. "That's what we're doing, it's not his fault. We're picking the one we like best. It's not fair, but it's the truth. No need to sugar coat it. And as long as people keep being irresponsible, this is what has to happen."

Henry nodded and they continued walking.

They had four possibilities when they got to the end. One of them was a half-grown mix of sheep dog and something, which wasn't optimal, but Mouse felt drawn to her.

"What?" Henry asked after they'd seen her. "You're partial to that big, hairy one, I can tell, Mouse. How come?"

Mouse smiled. "Well, she's still a puppy, which means she's still growing, which means she's going to be pretty big." She exchanged a knowing glance with Kevin. "Big dogs are harder to place in cities."

Kevin nodded.

"Also, she's a herding breed, which means she's pretty high energy, which isn't the best fit for us," Mouse continued. "And she's really hairy, which is something else people don't want," she concluded. "She's going to have a hard time finding a home," she finished simply.

"How long has she been here?" she asked Kevin.

He checked his notes. "Two and a half weeks," he admitted. "She's got a couple days left," he said with a shrug. "You never know."

"Can we see her first, please?" Henry asked.

"Sure," Kevin replied cheerfully, and he brought her out to the concrete enclosure.

She came lumbering out, looking like a black and white Yeti, kind of like a four-legged Chewbacca. She perked up immediately upon seeing Mouse and Henry waiting for her, and ran eagerly to them right away.

"Let's look at you," Mouse said, kneeling and laughing. "Not quite a sheepdog, are you? Maybe some poodle? We can do a swab and find out, I think. And let's see those feet, lemme feel your joints, mmkay?" She kissed the dog's nose. "A bit more growing, I think, but not too much." She scratched the dog's head, and down her back, making her lie down and roll over to expose a spotted tummy.

Henry looked on with a grin on his face. "I guess we don't have to see the other dogs," he said to Kevin, who was smiling in a similar fashion.

"Oh, no," Mouse protested. "I don't want you to feel like I made the decision without weighing all the options, or that I did it all on my own, without your input." She rose to look at Henry. "I'm sorry, honest. Let's look at the others."

Henry kissed her gently. "Don't be ridiculous. "Leo's going to love this huge, beautiful, clumsy dog as much as you already do. She's perfect for us."

He looked over at Kevin, his arms still around Mouse. "We'll take her," he announced. "What do we need to do?"

"Follow me," Kevin said. "This is so great, you guys, I was really worried about her, you know?"

Forty-five minutes later Mouse and Henry were walking to Leo's preschool to pick him up, their new dog on a leash they'd bought at the shelter. They'd decided they were going to hit the large pet store with Leo after they picked him up to buy everything else they'd need, that he'd really enjoy a shopping trip there with his new pet, and so would they.

"I'm so excited," Mouse confessed as they waited at the gate. The dog had required some corrections on the leash while walking to Leo's school, and it was obvious she had very little experience walking on a lead. However, she took the corrections very well, and was walking very sedately, with minimal pulling, by the time they arrived there. She was a very clever girl, quick to learn.

"Mouse, you're amazing," Henry declared. "You missed your calling, you should be called 'the dog whisperer,' honestly." He shook his head. "I can't believe how much you've taught her already."

Mouse shook her head. "This is nothing. You should see my sister-in-law Noelle. She raises Border Collies, and does incredible things with them. I helped her some during the summers, so I know a little, but she can teach them to do anything."

"Leo's going to flip his shit," Henry declared. He knelt in front of the dog, scratching behind her ears. She licked his face amiably. "He's going to love you, yes he is," Henry told the dog. She wagged her tail as if to agree.

When the bell rang and the doors opened, the dog, who had been lounging on the cold cement, rose to watch the seemingly unending stream of brightly dressed, screaming children emerging. Leo came out, looking for his adults, and Henry, who had thought to bring his camera, managed to capture the moment his son saw the dog.

Leo, who had been carrying his sweatshirt and lunchbox, dropped them and ran straight toward where Mouse waited, holding the leash, his face one huge expression of shock. He dropped to his knees in front of the dog, who stood, tail waving madly, like a giant black and white carpet.

"Wow! Look at this doggy!" he shouted. "Where did you get it, Mouse?" Other parents and kids, not to mention people who were just walking by, were watching and smiling.

"She's a girl, Leo, and she's yours," Mouse told him, kneeling down. "A present from your daddy."

"A present from both of us," Henry amended, putting an arm around Mouse as he, too, knelt down.

"She's for me?" Leo asked. He looked back and forth between Henry and Mouse, then back at the dog, whose eyes could barely be seen under her bangs. "She's my dog?"

"Yes, she's yours," Mouse answered. "Though we're going to help you take care of her, okay?"

"Okay, okay," Leo agreed. He put his arms around the dog's neck and remained that way, unmoving.

"Leo? Son?" Henry asked. "Are you okay?"

Leo let go of the dog's neck, and Henry saw that Leo was crying,

"What's wrong? Don't you like her?" Henry asked.

"Daddy, I love her," Leo declared, continuing to cry. Adults around him heard, and a few made soft sounds as they heard his words. "I'm so happy I'm crying, Daddy, you know?" He looked up at his father. "Have you ever been that happy?" Next he looked at Mouse. "I don't think I ever have." He shook his small head. "I'm happy crying," he announced to the world. He put a hand on either side of the dog's face. "I'm happy crying," he told her.

She panted at him, seeming to smile.

Leo hugged her again, bending his small body over hers.

Above him, Mouse leaned helplessly into Henry, crying herself. He rubbed her shoulder, his own eyes suspiciously moist.

Mouse nudged him. "Picture," she whispered.

"Oh, yeah." Henry took a photograph of Leo, hugging his dog.

"What do you think you want to name her?" Mouse asked, sniffing and smiling at Leo's little face.

"Happy," he said to her, not removing his arms from the dog's neck.

"I know you are, big guy," Mouse replied with a smile. "What do you want to name your dog?"

"I want to name her Happy," Leo reiterated, patting the dog's head. She turned and licked Leo's cheek, making him laugh.

"Remember, in Harry Cat's Pet Puppy, how the doggy was named Huppy, then at the end it became Happy?" Leo asked Mouse. This was a book she'd just finished reading to Leo the week before. It was the sequel to the marvelous children's book, The Cricket In Times Square, by George Selden. At Mouse's nod, he continued. "Like that."

"Oh, Leo, that's a wonderful idea," Mouse said. "And that dog was a kind of sheepdog mix, too, like this one!" She clapped with delight, which Henry found so charming and lovely.

"Happy, your name is Happy, okay?" Leo said to the dog.

She wagged her tail amiably.

"I think she likes it," Leo told Mouse and Henry. He was overjoyed.

"I think you're right," Henry replied, grinning. "So what do you say we hit up the pet store and buy Happy everything she needs to move into our apartment in style, okay?"

"Okay!" Leo sang out. "Can I hold her leash?"

"Sure," Mouse responded. "Now, she's not exactly used to the leash, yet, so sometimes you have to remind her that you're the boss, like this--"

The three humans and their new canine companion walked off into the brisk, New York evening, talking and laughing.