Author's Note: To my guest reviewer, Thank you for your kind words. Cat will be getting more buckskins. I think that there would be a war if Ben tried forcing Cat to wear dresses all the time.

To my other guest reviewer, Thank you for reading my story. It will eventually be finished, just not for a while. Cat is only nine and still has many adventures ahead of her.

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Cat sat on the boy until Roy reached them. "Alright Cat, you can let him up now. Thank you for sitting on him until I could get here." The boy started to run away and Roy grabbed the collar of his shirt. "Mitchell Harris, you are in more trouble than a boy your age should be in! When I finish with you, I am going to lock you in a cell and look for your Pa. If I know your Pa, you won't be able to sit down comfortably for a week when he finishes with you. Well Ben, it looks like our little Wild Cat has inherited Little Joe's temper. Don't be too hard on her. After all, she was defending herself and she did me a very big favor. I've been chasing this boy all around town all day. You wouldn't believe the things he's done and the damage he's caused. Well, I'd better get him back to my office. I'll see you tomorrow."

"What did he do Roy?"

Well Ben, I'll tell you. Mitchell here has been going around town causing trouble all day. He has pushed at least six people, including Cat and several ladies, into the street. He has been knocking packages out of people's hands, causing at least two dozen eggs to break. He is also responsible for two broken windows. He threw two rocks, breaking a window at the hotel and another at the gun shop. I have a feeling that his Pa isn't in town or he wouldn't be doing all of these things."

Ben looked at the boy and said, "You're Ted Harris' son, aren't you?"

"Yeah, so what of it?"

Roy shook the boy. "Watch how you talk to Mr. Cartwright boy. Your Pa will be hearing about you being disrespectful to him also."

"The Harris ranch is on the way to take Caroline and the girls back home. I'll stop there and if Ted is home, I'll tell him that you've got his son in custody. Don't worry about Cat. She isn't in any trouble. We'll see you tomorrow." Once Roy had walked off with the boy, Ben turned his attention to Cat. "Cat, did he hurt you?"

"No, I'm not hurt, but he will be if he ever touches me again."

"We'll talk about that later. Right now, we need to get Mrs. Ingalls and the girls back home. I just want to be sure that boy didn't hurt you. He's much bigger than you are. Caroline, do you think I should take Catherine to Dr. Martin?"

"No Ben, I don't think that's necessary."

"Alright Caroline. I won't take her to the doctor if you don't think she needs to go. Now, we had better start for home before Charles thinks I've kidnapped you and the girls. We'll stop at the Harris' on the way home and if Ted is there, I'll tell him that he needs to see Roy about his son." Since it was getting late and they had a stop to make, Carrie sat between Ben and her mother. Ben drove into the Harris' yard where Mr. Harris was mending the corral fence. He stopped working and greeted his guests.

"Hello Ben. Aren't you the lucky man to be surrounded by five beautiful ladies? I declare, I should be jealous of you. I recognize Caroline and her girls, but who's this pretty little girl in buckskins?"

"Hello Ted. Oh that's right, you haven't met my daughter yet."

"Your daughter!? When did you get married again?"

"I didn't. Catherine is my younger sister's daughter. She was killed in June, so I adopted my niece." He introduced Cat to Mr. Harris. "We were in town getting some things that Catherine needed and Roy asked me to stop and tell you that he's got Mitchell in custody. I'll let him fill you in on the details, but it seems that the boy has been causing a lot of trouble in town today."

"I wondered where he had gotten to. I needed his help with work here on the ranch and haven't been able to find him since we finished breakfast. What did he do?"

"I'll let Roy tell you everything, but among other things, he was disrespectful to me, pulled Catherine's hair and pushed her into the street. However, he picked on the wrong girl. Cat has inherited her mother's and Little Joe's temper. She tackled him, punched him twice and pinned him down until Roy could get to where we were."

Mr. Harris walked to the back of the buggy, reached over Laura, picked Cat up and hugged her. "Young lady, I want to congratulate you. Not many children, especially girls, will stand up to Mitchell because he is so big. I can assure you, he will not be bothering you or anyone else again. Nor will he be causing more trouble in town. He's twelve now and ever since his baby brother died last year, his mother has been babying him and starts crying whenever I try to discipline him. To tell the truth, I've been pretty easy on him because of it too. That stops as of right now. I'm going to go, get him from town and, except for church on Sunday, he won't be leaving the ranch for a long time. I may not even send him to school when it starts next month. It will also be quite a while before he can sit down comfortably."

Silver Chief started growling at the strange man hugging his little girl. "It's ok Chief. He's a friend."

Mr. Harris looked at both puppies and asked, "Catherine, are both of those puppies yours?"

"Yes sir, Mr. Mitchell. They are."

"Will they bite me if I try and pet them?"

"No sir. I'll tell them to be nice. The one that growled at you is Silver Chief and the collie is Lassie."

Mr. Harris petted both puppies and said, "When these two are old enough to have puppies, I would like to buy one from you. I know that they are very young right now, but when they do have puppies, please have your Pa let me know. I meant what I said about wanting to buy one."

"Now Ted," said Ben. "The boy is only twelve and needs his education. This ranch will be his some day and you know as well as I do that a good education is the key to making it successful. All three of my sons attended school until they turned eighteen and so will Catherine. Adam went to college and I'm hoping that Catherine will too."

"We'll see Ben. If that teacher isn't replaced, Mitchell won't be returning to school."

"There is a school board meeting on Tuesday night. I was elected to the school board last month and I plan on voting to replace that teacher. We don't need a person like that teaching our children. Well, I have got to get Caroline and the girls home before Charles thinks I've run off with them. Then I want to spend a little bit of time teaching Catherine more about ranch life. Adam and I plan to take her out to look for strays but we need to keep a close eye on her. It seems that she and Hoss have the same definition of stray and it doesn't always apply to cattle."

Mr. Harris laughed. "Yes, I do seem to remember some of the strays Hoss brought home. How long did it take you to get the skunk smell out of the outhouse?"

"We never did," laughed Ben. "We tore it down, burned the wood and built a new one. I made Hoss do most of the work. Good luck with Mitchell. Some parental discipline may make all the difference in the world with his attitude. We'll see you in church tomorrow."

After ensuring that Cat was sitting down, Ben drove the buggy out of the yard and pulled into the Ingalls' yard a little while later. Ben helped the girls out of the buggy. All of them ran to greet their father and they all started talking at once. Charles laughed, hugged his daughters and greeted his wife. "Girls," said Caroline. "Aren't you forgetting something?" All three of them ran back over to the buggy and thanked Ben for everything. After they had thanked him, their mother told them to go and put their things away.

Charles walked over to the buggy. "Ben, thank you for taking all four of my girls to town with you today. I'm sure I'll be hearing all about their adventures for the rest of the day."

"It was my pleasure. I can't begin to tell you how much I appreciate Caroline's help with Catherine. If it hadn't been for her, I'd probably still be in the mercantile trying to figure out what to get. Oh yes, the school board meeting is Tuesday night at seven thirty. I fully intend to vote that we fire Miss Smith. A person like that has no business teaching children anywhere. I almost forgot, Hop Sing is packing a picnic dinner for after church tomorrow. You and your family are invited to join us and I hope you will. Don't worry about how much food is needed. Remember, Hop Sing is used to feeding Hoss. If you want to bring something, you can bring some of that sweet cider Caroline makes. It's some of the best I've ever tasted."

"Alright Ben. We'll join you for a picnic after church. Now, I had better go and listen to what my girls have to tell me about their adventures today. We'll see you tomorrow in church."

After Charles walked into the house, Ben turned around and said, "You don't need to sit in the back seat any more, Put your puppies up here, climb over the seat and join me. I want my little girl next to me as much as I can have her there." Cat did as she was told and then, much to her surprise, Ben handed her the reins. "Alright Kitten, let's see what Lucas taught you." She got the horses moving but had a hard time turning them around, so Ben put his hands over hers. "You're doing fine. Just remember, everything takes time and practice to master. Let me help you get the team turned around." Once the team was turned around, Ben took his hands off Cat's and let her drive the rest of the way home, offering advice and encouragement.

On the ride back to the Ponderosa, Ben asked, "Cat, what was Uncle Matt's rule about fighting?"

"I can defend myself or someone else but I'm not allowed to start fights."

"Good. That is the same rule I have. You can defend yourself or someone else, but if you start a fight, you will be in big trouble. You will be wearing buckskins instead of dresses and some boys may tease you about the way you are dressed. Being teased is not a reason to start a fight. I meant what I said. If you start a fight, you will be in big trouble." Ben hugged her and said, "I truly hope that you do not start any fights because I don't want to have to punish you."

When they pulled into their own yard, Ben said, "You did a very good job. With some more practice, you'll be fine on your own. In fact, once I'm comfortable letting you drive on your own, I'll lie down in the back seat of the buggy and take a nap while you drive."

Cat giggled. "If you do that, I'll go over every bump, hole and rock in the road."

"You are a little stinker. I'll just bet you would do that just for fun. Do you know what happens to little girls who do that?"

"No, what?"

"They get tickled." Ben pulled Cat over his lap and started tickling her. Then he helped her sit up and said, "Go and see if you can find one of your brothers to take care of the buggy and horses for us. Then go into the house. We'll get a snack, see if we can find Adam and go, look for strays. And by strays, I mean cattle, not wild creatures. You and Hoss are too much alike in that respect and the last thing I need is you trying to make pets of wild animals."

"Oh good. I'm glad I can do that. I'll see if I can find a baby cougar to bring home." Cat stuck her tongue out at Ben and ran off to find one of her brothers.

Ben shook his head and walked toward the house. One of his long time hands, Pete, walked up to him and said, "You look puzzled boss. What's wrong?"

"That girl is going to drive me crazy before she's been here a month." He told Pete what he had told Cat and what her response was.

Pete laughed. "Yes, she is a wild one. It's going to be fun watching her grow up. I wouldn't worry too much about her driving you crazy. Little Joe did that years ago."

Ben laughed. "I think you're right about that. When I think about all of the trouble that boy got into, it's a wonder I didn't wear out his backside and pull all of my hair out."

"Now Ben, he's grown up to be a fine young man. You do have one thing to be thankful for when it comes to Little Joe and Miss Cat."

"Oh, and what would that be?"

"They're not the same age. Just think of all the chaos that would be happening around here if Little Joe and Miss Cat were both nine."

Ben laughed so hard his face turned red. He clapped Pete on the back and said, "Thanks for the laugh. I haven't laughed that hard in years."

Just then Adam walked up, looked at his father and asked, "What's so funny?"

"Pete just reminded me that I had something to be thankful for."

"What's that?"

"Your sister and youngest brother aren't both nine years old."

Adam laughed until he had tears in his eyes and said, "Oh, that is priceless. Joe and Cat, both nine years old. The Ponderosa would never survive that particular pair of hurricanes. That is truly something to be thankful for. Cat said you wanted me to take care of the buggy and team."

"I'll take care of them for you Adam," said Pete. "You need to go and corral that nine year old whirlwind before she does something you and she will regret."

"Adam, where is your sister?" asked Ben.

"I thought I saw her and the puppies heading toward the pasture where the mares and foals are," answered Pete.

"Great. I told her to find one of her brothers and then go into the house. That girl listens about as well as Joe does sometimes."

"I'll take the horses over to the barn and then I'll go and tell her that you want her in the house," said Pete. "It won't hurt this pair to stay hitched up for a few extra minutes."

"Thank you Pete. I appreciate it."

Pete led the horses and buggy over to the barn. Then he went out to the pasture where Cat was playing with Fury. "Miss Cat, your Pa said you were supposed to go in the house after you found one of your brothers. I suggest you quit playing with that colt of yours and do like you were told. One thing I know about your Pa is that he doesn't hold with his children disobeying him. Now scoot before your Pa decides to warm your bottom for not doing what you were told!"

Pete shook his head and laughed as Cat ran past him. He stood there petting Fury for a minute and said, "That girl is going to end up getting a good tanning if she doesn't start doing what she's told. Ben Cartwright won't tolerate her disobedience any more than he tolerated it from his sons. Well young fellow, I'd better go and take care of that team and buggy. You behave yourself and tell that little girl of yours she needs to start minding her Pa."

Cat walked into the house and said, "Pete said you wanted me."

"What did I tell you to do?" asked Ben.

"To find Adam, Hoss, or Little Joe and come in the house."

"Did you do what I told you to?"

"I found Adam."

"What about the other part? Did you come in the house as I told you to?"

Cat looked down at her feet and said, "No."

Ben put three fingers under Cat's chin and lifted it up. "Look at me when I am speaking to you. No, what?"

Cat looked up at her father. "No sir."

"Where did you go?"

"I went out to see Fury. I wanted to tell him what we did in town today."

"Did I tell you to go out to the pasture?"

"No."

"No, what?"

"No sir."

"In this house, I expect my children to do as they are told and to speak respectfully to all adults, including myself. There may be times when your obedience will save your life or that of someone else. Did Matt or Rip allow you to disobey or be disrespectful?"

"No sir."

"This is your only warning. The next time you disobey me or are disrespectful, you will be punished. I do not enjoy punishing my children, but I will not tolerate them being disobedient or disrespectful. Do you understand what I am telling you?"

"Yes sir."

"Good, because I don't want there to be any misunderstandings. Now, go and get your snack from Hop Sing. We still have work to do." As Cat walked toward the kitchen, Ben reached out and gave her a firm swat on her bottom. She turned around and looked at him with hurt and confusion in her eyes. "That was just a reminder of what will happen next time only we will be discussing it in the barn."

Joe walked into the house just as Ben swatted Cat. "What was that all about?"

"I told her to find one of you boys and come into the house. She found Adam and then decided to go out to see her colt instead of coming into the house."

"Oh. What ever happened to explaining the rules to her before jumping all over her for breaking them?"

"She knows about doing what she's told. I'm quite certain that neither Matt nor Rip allowed her to disobey."

"You're forgetting something Pa," said Adam. "Matt has been raising Cat since she was a little more than a year old. I'm sure at one point he talked to her about obeying him just as you did with us when we were little. I'm certain that Rip did too. You didn't tell her that you expected her to do everything you told her to. You just assumed she would know that rule applied here too. She does know that the rules about running indoors and jumping fences apply here because Matt told her they do. She also knows that the rule about being respectful is the same here because I told her that yesterday. I'm sure that the reason Lucas didn't have any problems is because she followed Mark's example."

"Cat's only nine Pa," said Joe. "When I was nine and went to visit a friend, how often did you tell me that the rules there were the same as they are here? I seem to remember you telling me almost every time I went to someone's house. Even though your rules for how Cat is supposed to behave in school are probably the same as Matt's, you're still going to need to tell her before school starts next month."

Ben listened to his sons and said, "You boys are right. It's been so long since you were nine that I've forgotten that nine year olds need to be reminded that certain rules apply no matter where you are. Now, if we're going to look for strays, I'd better get her out of the kitchen."

"Did you remember to get her a hat and leather gloves when you were in town today?" asked Adam.

"I remembered the gloves but forgot about the hat. George didn't have any gloves small enough for Cat so Gerald is going to make some for her. Since we're going to have a picnic dinner with Roy and the Ingalls after church, buying her a hat will have to wait until Monday."

"Since she doesn't wear sunbonnets, she really should have one for today," said Adam. "My old one is too large for her. Joe, do you still have any of your old hats?"

"I'm pretty sure I do. Let me go upstairs and look." He went upstairs and returned with one of his old hats. "This is the smallest one I have. I think it's still going to be too large for her."

"Well," said Adam. "I guess there's only one way to find out." He walked into the kitchen. "Cat, are you finished with your snack?"

"I will be just as soon as I finish my milk."

"Ok. When you finish your milk, please come out into the living room. We need to get going if we're going to look for strays." He returned to the living room and said, "Cat just needs to finish her milk. She'll be out here as soon as she does."

When Cat walked out into the living room, Joe put his hat on her head. "It's not as big as I thought it was, but it's still too big for her. She'll spend more time chasing it than wearing it unless I can find a way to keep her from losing it. I've got an idea. Give me a few minutes." Joe walked into the kitchen and talked to Hop Sing. He returned a little while later carrying the hat. He had put a hole on each side of the hat and each hole had a thin strip of leather through it. Each strip was knotted at the top to keep it in its hole; the ends had been threaded through a wooden bead and then tied together. "This is the best I could do for now. It may not keep the hat on her head, but it will keep it from flying away while she's riding. Let's see what Hop Sing thinks." He put the hat on Cat's head, pulled the bead up under her chin, picked her up and carried her into see Hop Sing.

"Vely good. Missy Cat look like cowboy now. Little Joe, take Missy Cat to look in mirror." Joe took Cat into Hop Sing's bedroom so she could see herself in his mirror.

Cat looked in the mirror, hugged Joe and said, "Thank you Joe. Hop Sing is right. I do look like a cowboy now."

"I'd say that you look more like a cowgirl than a cowboy but at least you won't lose your hat. Hop Sing helped me fix it for you, so you need to thank him too."

They walked back into the kitchen where Cat hugged Hop Sing and thanked him for helping Joe fix the hat for her. "Missy Cat welcome. Now she no lose hat when riding horse and playing with cows."

"While we're in here Cat, we need to talk," said Joe. "I know that Hop Sing will agree with everything I'm going to say. When Pa tells you to do something, you need to do it when he tells you to do it, and not when you want to. You also need to do everything he tells you to do. When you got back from town, he told you to find me, Adam, or Hoss and then go in the house. You found Adam, but instead of coming in the house, you went out to see Fury. You're going to get into big trouble if you keep doing that. Pa expects us to obey him. I got a bare bottom whipping yesterday and I'm restricted to the ranch for four weeks because I didn't obey him while he and Adam were gone to get you. Also, you need to watch how you talk to Pa. Adam told you yesterday how to talk to Pa but you didn't do it. You're lucky that you only got a good scolding and one swat. You won't be so lucky next time. Pa's hand hurts real bad and his belt hurts even worse. The next time you go out to the barn, take a good look at the belt he keeps hanging out there and think what it would feel like on your bare bottom. Hop Sing, am I right about what I just told Cat?"

"Little Joe right. Missy Cat need listen to fathel and do what he tell her to do. Missy Cat also need to be lespectful when talking to fathel. If not, fathel punish Missy Cat. Then Missy Cat get spanking, have to stand in corner for long time and do plenty extla choles. Missy Cat no lun in house either. Hop Sing catch Missy Cat lunning in house, Hop Sing use wooden spoon on Missy Cat bottom and tell fathel!"

"Thank you Hop Sing. Cat, I sure hope that you were listening to what Hop Sing and I told you. We don't want to see you get in trouble. Now, we'd better go back out to the living room. Pa and Adam are waiting. I think you should apologize to Pa for not doing everything you were told and for being disrespectful."

While Joe and Hop Sing were talking to Cat, Ben was getting impatient. "What is taking so long in there? Your brother was just taking your sister to show Hop Sing how the hat was fitting."

"Relax Pa. If I know Joe and Hop Sing, they're probably talking to Cat about her behavior today. I intend to talk to her about it too, especially because I just talked to her about being respectful yesterday."

When Joe and Cat returned to the living room, she walked up to her father and said, "I'm sorry I went out to see Fury instead of coming in the house like you said. And I'm sorry I was disrespectful too."

Ben hugged her and said, "I forgive you. Now, I need to apologize to you also. Your brothers scolded me while you were having your snack."

"You do? They did?"

"Yes I do and yes, they did. I'm sorry that I forgot to tell you that Uncle Matt's rule about doing what you are told to do isn't just when you're with your uncles or at the Tanners. It's for everywhere. Will you please forgive me?"

Cat hugged him and said "Yes I will."

"Thank you. Now, get your puppies and let's go. Those strays won't go back where they belong unless we make them."

"Can Little Joe come with us?"

"Well now, that all depends. Do you think that you can keep him out of trouble while we're out looking for strays?"

Cat giggled. "I'll try and I'll get Silver Chief and Lassie to help me."

"Well then, that's all anyone can ask. Boys, bring a pack horse and some rifles. Maybe we'll get some deer while we're out chasing strays. Cat, you can bring your bow and arrows too. If you and your puppies can get enough rabbits to feed Hoss, you can show Hop Sing how to make that rabbit stew you and Mark made."

"Are there enough rabbits on the Ponderosa to feed Hoss?"

Ben, Adam, and Joe laughed loudly. "I don't know Cat," answered Joe. "I suppose there are. We'll just have to find out, now won't we? Go, get your saddle bags for those puppies and if older brother here thinks he can manage to get some rifles, I'll saddle Ginger for you and get a pack horse ready."

"Don't you worry about me baby brother. I can take care of getting three rifles. Do you think that you can take care of a pack horse and Cat's horse?"

Ben decided to put a stop to his sons' sparring before it got worse. "Alright boys, that's enough. Adam, go and get the rifles. Joseph, go and take care of the pack horse and Catherine's. Ask Pete to saddle Buck for me." He turned to tell Cat to go, get her saddle bags when he spotted her coming downstairs with them over one shoulder.

Cat looked at her father and brothers still standing in the living room and said, "I thought we were supposed to be going hunting and to look for strays. If we're not going right away, I'm going to go, ask Hop Sing for some cherry pie and ice cream."

Ben laughed. "We're getting ready to leave. Adam is supposed to be getting the rifles and Joe is supposed to be saddling Ginger for you and getting the pack horse ready."

"That's going to take them forever. I'll probably be fifteen before they stop arguing. I'm going to ask Hop Sing for pie and ice cream."

"Alright, alright," said Joe. "I'm going out to the barn. Older brother, do you think you can manage the rifles by yourself do you need little sister to help you?"

"I can manage just fine baby brother but I'm not so sure if you can even saddle Cat's horse for her."

"Boys!" said Ben. "You're not setting a very good example for your sister. Now, go and do what you are supposed to be doing. Adam, after you get the rifles, you can saddle Buck for me. Come on Cat. While they are being slow, you and I will see if Hop Sing will give each of us a small piece of pie. We don't have time for pie and ice cream, but we do have time for a small piece of pie."

Ben and Cat finished their pie and walked out into the yard where Adam and Joe were waiting with the horses. Cat put her saddle bags on Ginger and then put a puppy in each side. She looked at the puppies in the saddle bags and said, "Silver Chief and Lassie are getting too big to ride in my saddle bags but they're still too small to keep up with the horses. I don't know how I'm going to take them with me everywhere I go."

"Don't worry about it Cat," said Joe. "We'll think of something. They haven't outgrown your saddle bags yet, so we don't need to worry about it right now."

"Joe is right," said Ben. "We'll figure something out before your puppies outgrow your saddle bags. Right now, we have strays to round up. Now mount up and let's go. Remember, it's your job to keep Joe out of trouble."

Cat giggled, mounted Ginger and rode off with her father and brothers. They found a dozen strays and put them back with the herd. Then they started looking for deer and rabbits. Joe had a good laugh when Silver Chief found a rabbit and tackled it. He was amazed when the puppy eventually killed the rabbit. "That pup is a good hunter. I can't wait to see what he does when he grows up. How come Lassie isn't doing any hunting?"

"I don't know," answered Cat. "Maybe she doesn't know how or maybe she doesn't like hunting. If she wants to hunt, Silver Chief will teach her how. If she doesn't want to, that's ok too. She doesn't have to if she doesn't want to."

Ben, Adam, and Joe each got a deer. Then they started helping Cat look for rabbits. When they had enough for supper, they headed back to the house. When they reached the yard, Ben said, "Joseph, Adam and I will take care of the deer. Find Hoss and help your sister with the rabbits. Catherine, take the rabbits outside the kitchen door where we clean the fish. Then you can get Hop Sing and show them to him. You'll also have to see if he has everything you need to make your stew."

Cat did as she was told and Hop Sing was surprised to see all of the rabbits. "Who will clean labbits?" he asked.

"Joe is supposed to find Hoss and then the three of us will. I'm also supposed to ask if you have everything I need to make rabbit stew."

"Come in kitchen and we look." Before they could enter the kitchen, Silver Chief spotted a rabbit in the vegetable garden, killed it and brought it to Cat and Hop Sing. Hop Sing picked the puppy up, hugged and praised him. "Good puppy. Kill labbit in garden. Hop Sing give puppy special treat for supple." Cat and Hop Sing walked into the kitchen and she told him everything she needed to make her stew. Once Cat was satisfied that Hop Sing had everything she needed to make her stew, they walked back outside. Hoss and Joe were nowhere to be seen, so Cat started cleaning the rabbits herself.

She looked at all of the rabbits and her puppies and said, "It's not fair. Hoss eats more than everyone else put together. He should be helping me do this."

"I quite agree," said a voice from behind her. Cat turned around to see Ben standing there. "Adam and I finished one deer and I thought I'd see how you, Hoss and Joe were doing with the rabbits. I'll go and see if I can find them. I'm getting extremely tired of those two doing whatever they please and I'm about to put a stop to it." Hoss and Joe walked up just as he was about to leave. "Where have the two of you been? Joseph, I told you to find your brother and then the two of you were supposed to come here and help your sister. Now get busy."

"I had a hard time finding Hoss," said Joe. "He wasn't in the barn."

Hoss picked up the skins from the rabbits Cat had already cleaned and started to toss them onto the trash pile. "Don't do that," said Cat. "I need them."

"You don't need no nasty ol' rabbit skins," said Hoss. "They belong in the trash heap."

"I need them," said Cat. "Don't put them in the trash."

Hoss ignored Cat and threw them on the trash pile. "Hoss," said an angry voice from behind him. "I distinctly heard Catherine tell you twice that she needed those skins and not to throw them in the trash. So why did you ignore her? It is not for you to decide if she needs them or not. If she says she needs them, then do not throw them in the trash! Now, pick them up and put them back where she had them! Catherine, let me know if either of these two give you any more trouble and I'll deal with them."

Hop Sing walked out of the kitchen to check on the progress of the rabbits being cleaned when he saw Lassie chase a rabbit out of the vegetable garden. Just as he had done with Silver Chief, he picked her up, hugged and praised her.

With Hoss and Joe helping, the rabbits were cleaned in no time at all. "What do you want to do with the skins?" asked Joe.

"They need to be stretched so they dry."

"Alright. Hoss and I will take care of that for you. Hoss, why don't you start taking care of the rabbit skins and I'll help Cat carry the meat into the kitchen?"

Joe helped Cat carry the meat into the kitchen where she was surprised to see that Hop Sing already had most of the vegetables cut up and in a pot. "Thank you Little Joe. Missy Cat help Hop Sing cut up meat and then go play. Hop Sing cook meat and finish stew."

"Thank you Hop Sing. I'm not used to cooking for this many people."

"Hop Sing know. It take lot of food to feed Mr. Hoss. Now help cut meat then go play with puppies."

Once the stew was finished, Hop Sing called everyone to the table. Everyone thought the stew was delicious and heaped praises on Cat and Hop Sing, who had been dining with the family ever since Cat returned home. Hoss and Joe were surprised that Cat knew how to hunt and cook what she had killed. They wondered what other surprises their little sister had in store for them.