Chapter 1-
"Keep the change!"
"Thanks Mr. Starr! Have a good concert!"
Ringo waved back to the baker with a grin plastered on his face and scuffed his way out of the bakery. His fake bead blew in the winter breeze as he pulled his tan trench coat over his chilly body. A small pack of Beatles fan girls stared down at Ringo, not quite sure if it was the real Ringo or just a creepy man who looked impeccably like Ringo. The drummer felt their eyes as he continued walking to the hotel. 'Don't look back at them.' Ringo thought to himself. 'You're a goner if you look back.'
As Ringo maneuvered his way through the bustle of the crowd his ears perked up to the sound of his stomach giving a low rumble.
He slowed his quickened pace and reached inside the bag. He came to a halt when his fingers couldn't latch on to the specific tart. He fumbled through to the depths of the bag and finally found the slice of honey pie.
Ringo smiled as he pulled out the sliver. He bit down on the sumptuous pie and moaned in delight. His taste buds were practically exploding in his mouth. No wonder the store's widow proclaimed that their Honey Crumble Pie was to die for! He was so enraptured in the deliciousness that he wasn't aware of the people that were passing him by.
He stopped in mid chew when he felt a twinge on his right leg. He peered down and saw an adorable beagle at his heels. Ringo furrowed his eyebrows and tilted his head to the side. The beagle merely tilted its own head to the side with his wide puppy dog eyes and pouting lips. Ringo was perplexed at what to the puppy had no dog tag,he couldn't return the little pooch to its owner. The more he stood there; the people's attention was being drawn towards him.
"Shoo. Scamper off. Run along." Ringo silently commanded it. Yet the dog lifted its right paw and lightly scratched his leg. The dog whined, which made Ringo's heart melt.
The beagle was very tiny, probably no more than a couple of months. The beagle began to whine again, with more emotion on it's droopy face.
Ringo gave a small smile as he bent down and tore off a chunk of the pie. The dog gobbled up the food and panted happily when it was finished. The drummer scratched the dog's head behind its ears. He could feel the puppy shivering from the gusts of the freezing winds. Ringo gently patted its head once more, stood up and started strolling away.
After a few minutes, he felt that tingle on his right leg again. He looked down to find the same beagle who was begging for scraps. It panted happily, its hazelnut eyes twinkled in the night.
Ringo sighed, "I'm sorry, I can't give you anymore food." He whispered sadly to it and walked slowly away.
The beagle was back to his side in a flash, only it was cuddled up on his pant leg, searching for body warmth. Ringo's heart was melted into a puddle of sadness. He was determined to help find this puppy some shelter. His eyes scanned back and forth, to make sure nobody was observing this scene, and picked up the beagle.
He awkwardly carried the light puppy in one arm and the bag of baked goods in another. After a while of searching, he found a pound, located in the most dismal of places. The beagle whimpered and dug itself deeper into Ringo's coat sleeve.
Ringo was starting to have second thoughts on taking this puppy to the pound as the door ringed when he entered the dinky building. Not a soul was in the waiting room. He heard loud, obnoxious barking coming from down the hall. The lights overhead flickered relentlessly, and the whole room reeked of an unknown odor. The air in the pound was not much better than the weather outside.
"This is doggie hell." Murmured Ringo as his eyes kept wandering around the gloomy place.
"Hang on, I'll be right there!" came a shrill from down the hall where the dogs were. He heard a 'WHACK!' and immediately all of the barking dogs were silent. Ringo's eyes grew wide with fear. He felt the puppy cower in his right arm.
Suddenly a portly, grotesque women emerged from the hall and stood in front of Ringo with her hands firmly on her hips. Most people would consider Ringo being "short" for his age, but this elderly woman stood to about Ringo's elbow.
Her face was not at all flattering, and was caked on with loads of makeup. It was plain to see that she was wearing a wig, for no woman at that age could possibly wear a blonde beehive and for the fact that it was tilted ever so slightly.
"Can I help you sir?" She grunted out in the most impolite way. Her thick British accent echoed through the building, as she was still posed in her rude stance. 'Talk about customer service.' Ringo thought.
When he was about to answer her, her eyes dotted to the shivering puppy snuggled up in his arms.
"Oh, come to drop off the little runt huh?" She questioned waddling towards him with her grubby fingers outstretched to snatch the dog. Ringo quickly stepped backwards, putting the lady out of balance. She regained herself and glared at Ringo.
"I change my mind." Ringo proclaimed with a stern face.
The woman snorted. "Fine. Just don't come cryin ta me when that little runt starts actin up!" she hollered still glaring at the drummer.
Ringo turned around for the door until he turned back around to the old lady. "I wouldn't trust you on how to deal with this dog even if it set the house on fire."
"Where's Ringo with the bloody food? I'm starvin!"
"You're always hungry John."
"Well aren't you hungry Macca?"
"I feel like I could devour a horse, but the point is that Ringo's been gone for 15 minutes! Shouldn't we be worried?"
"Nah, he probably went down to have a ciggy."
"Long drag." The beatles grunted with agreement when the door burst open. Ringo quickly entered the room and slammed the door shut. The boy's head turned towards Ringo.
"What took you so long Rings?" asked George cruising over to the drummer, eyeing the bag with hunger.
Ringo had to think of a good excuse. He knew for a fact that they would go bonkers if a dog was in the room. He knew that the boys had nothing against dogs, but he also knew that adding a dog to the group was way too much pressure. Brian would practically scream at the top of his lungs with his face as red as a tomato.
"Uhh...long line." Ringo answered in a low whisper. He now saw his destanation, his and John's room. George furrowed his dark brows in confusion and shrugged his shoulders. Paul and John galnced at each other and looked back at Ringo who was hastily making his way to the bedroom.
'So close.' thought Ringo, struggling to open the door. 'Why won't you open?' Ringo frantically thought fidgeting with the door handle.
"Ringo?" John's voice called. Ringo grimaced at hearing his name. He slowly rotated around facing the odd stares except for the one amused grin.
"The bag?" John hinted in an innocent voice.
The bag?... Oh! The bag from the bakery! Ringo forgot that he was even carrying it."Right! The bag! How could I forget the bag?" Ringo questioned as he speed walked over to the dinning table and tossed it. "Well, you guys, I'm bushed. I'm gonna hit the night!" Ringo shouted as he budged open the door, ran inside, and shut the door.
The night just kept getting weirder for the boys. They all stared at each other with bewildered expressions.
"Hit the night?"
John's blatant snoring caused Ringo's eyes to open wide. He inwardly sighed. 'And he says I snore.' Ringo rolled his eyes, which feel upon the puppy beagle nuzzleing against the fluffy pillow. Ringo couldn't help but smile. He knew that he did the right thing in not handing the dog over to the pound. He was glad that he gave the puppy that chunk of the Honey Crumble Pie.
"HoneyPie." Ringo whispered to himself, finding it a suitable for it. He wasn't quite sure whether it was a girl or a boy, but it sounded right to him either way. His fingers gently brushed over its light brown fur. At Ringo's touch, the puppy yawned, exposing it's small pointy teeth and streatched out it's legs. Its eyes lazily glimpsed at Ringo and stood up on the pillow.
Ringo started to panic, hoping that she was not going to jump off the bed. He sighed in relief when it descended the pillow and plopped down next to Ringo's side. Ringo chuckled and soon dozed off with a smile.