Double Dog Dare
    
James watched his best friend, Ryan, sneak, closer and closer to the garbage can. He quickly grabbed a cupcake wrapper and ran. The group of them huddled around the wrapper, watching it anxiously.
    
James cleared his throat. “I ate last, let Ginny have it; she hasn’t eaten in so long.”
    
Ryan nodded, and Ginny graciously took the wrapper and licked it clean. Then they ran to their hiding place, an old shed. The wood was rotten, and the roof leaked, but it was all the trio had. Ginny lay down and fell asleep, but Ryan and James huddled together and whispered.
    
Ryan spoke first. “James, you are my one and only friend, but we can’t both have Ginny as a mate, you know that. How can we settle this? For I have no desire to fight you.”
    
“Ryan, Ginny deserves better than this. I say we do a double dog dare. Whoever finds the best quality food in one day wins. Ginny will pick the pile she thinks is the best. May the best pile win!” James replied.
    
Ryan nodded solemnly, and the two curled up on their blankets.
    
The next morning, the two boys set out early to find good garbage. James knew where some good garbage was, but he had to go through raccoon territory.
    
James stood at the entrance to the alleyway, then broke out in a run. His paws slapped raccoons away as they lunged at him. He growled at the raccoons and let out a ferocious howl, claiming ownership over the garbage.
    
Back at the shed, James and Ryan presented their treasures to Ginny. James looked over his pile proudly. He had managed a whole slab of meat, ten cupcake wrappers, and a jar of tomato soup. Ryan simply had a box with some bones. Ginny chose James’s pile.
    
“You win,” Ryan muttered.
    
A week later, when James and Ginny had a litter of puppies, Ryan said goodbye and left to seek his fortune. He became a search-and-rescue dog, while James and Ginny found a loving home and family to take them in.