A/N: This is just a short, fluffy one-shot. Thank you for reading and reviewing!
Henry's eighth birthday was coming up, and Regina already knew the answer he would give to the question she was asking.
"I would love a dog. Please? The shelter has all sorts of dogs that need homes."
Regina sighed. Henry had been begging for a dog practically since he could talk. He asked for one every birthday, but Regina was worried that she would get stuck having to take care of any pet she got him. She certainly wasn't getting him a dog. That would be way too much work.
"Henry, I already told you that a dog is a lot of responsibility, and I'm not sure you're ready for that."
"I would take really good care of him," Henry argued. "I'm old enough. I'm almost eight now."
Regina decided that perhaps a compromise could be reached.
"How about this? I won't get you a dog, at least not now, but I can get you a smaller pet. If you can take really good care of the smaller pet, then we can consider working our way up to a dog."
Henry frowned. "Well, what kind of smaller pet? A rabbit?"
"How about we start with a goldfish?" Regina suggested.
"A goldfish? That's not very exciting."
"Henry, it's not about whether the pet is exciting. It's about learning responsibility."
"Okay," Henry said.
Regina and Henry headed to the pet shop a few days later to look for a goldfish. Henry insisted on looking at hamsters and turtles and every other kind of animal that the shop had before he finally looked at the fish. He picked one out, and Regina bought the bowl and food.
Henry stared at the fish swimming around in the bag on the way home.
"I'm going to name him Leonard," Henry said.
Regina smiled. "Leonard? Why did you choose that name?"
"He looks like a Leonard," Henry said.
They set the fish up in his new bowl, and Henry watched him for a while.
"You need to remember to feed him every day, Henry," Regina said. "If I have to remind you to feed him, then I'm not going to get you another pet for a while."
"I'll remember to feed him," Henry said.
The next day, Regina watched Henry as he got ready for school. Sure enough, he tried to leave without feeding Leonard.
"Henry, are you forgetting something?"
Henry looked confused for a moment. "Oh, yeah! Leonard!"
Henry ran over to the goldfish bowl and put in the pinches of flakes.
"I'm sorry that I forgot," Henry said. "Does this mean that I won't be able to get another pet?"
"We'll see," Regina said. "I might still consider it if I don't have to remind you again."
The next day, Henry remembered to feed the fish. He looked quite proud of himself as he walked out the door to go to school.
The following day, however, Henry walked out without feeding the fish. Regina put the flakes in the bowl. When Henry got home, he was upset.
"Is Leonard okay?" he said, running over to the bowl.
"I fed him this morning," Regina said.
Henry looked up at her sadly. "I won't get anymore pets, will I?"
"I won't rule out getting another pet in the future, just not right away," Regina said. "However, I talked to Archie, and he said that you can help with walking his dog."
Henry smiled. "Really?"
Regina nodded. "Then, in the future, maybe we can consider getting other pets. Possibly even a dog. In the meantime, remember to feed your fish."
"I will," Henry said. "I will be very responsible from now on."
Regina still occasionally got stuck feeding the goldfish, but Henry very much enjoyed his time walking Archie's dog. He also got along quite well with Archie. If Henry ever needed to talk to someone, she would definitely send him to Archie.