Merry-Sue: The Girl From BC

The "Sue" In Merry-Sue

It was late November when Rachel was finally allowed to exit the house once more. She had been let off due to good behaviour; however, she was still paying for her mistake, literally, with a withdrawal of her allowance money. Merry-Sue had adapted to her new life satisfactorily and, though she was still what people dubbed "an oddball", most viewed her as nothing more than a slightly unstable and very weird girl. People had stopped questioning her existance, but Becky's parents were becoming suspicious. To avoid awkward questions and puzzling answers, it was decided that Merry-Sue should occupy the empty dog house in their backyard. It may seem cruel and unusual, but Mrs Montague had been very fond of her furry little Rotweiler before he passed away, and she ensured his accomodation was nothing short of what she herself would settle for. With push-open double doors, a plush carpet and child-sized bed, the construction, as large as a small shed, was more than any dog could hope for. But ever since Pookey died, it was openly ignored. Mrs Montague could not contain her grief otherwise and so she and everyone else was to never mention him or enter his former abode. The dog house was so neglected, Becky was sure no one would even notice Merry-Sue living in it. The baby blue paint pealing off the outside walls and the windows curtained 24/7, it looked just as desserted as after Pookey passed.

And Becky was right. Naturally, however, Merry-Sue needed to visit the house to eat and drink, but her visits were strategically planned to evade suspicion; mainly Rachel and Becky snuk into the dog house and brought with them fresh food, juice boxes and company. It was a place of many mishaps, jokes and all-nighters, even Rachel had warmed up to the cave girl.

Such a night of bonding took place in this very dog house, one stormy evening in the gloomiest mid-November. There was a mass power-outage as a hailstorm damaged the power cords that supplied the city with electricity. Rachel and Becky sat through a very quiet candle-lit dinner with their parents, the eerie silence punctured only by the drumming of the heavy rain and the occasional groan of thunder. After being excused on the pretence of an early night, both girls tiptoed to Becky's bedroom, their pockets full of bread, cheese and a few packets of chocolate chips. They waited patiently for any noise that might indicate their parents had followed them to the landing, but it seemed they both remained downstairs. Becky shrugged on a water-resistant coat and walked over to tue window while Rachel rummaged for an umbrella. As Becky rattled open the tightly shut window, rain began to pour inside, damping her carpet. This would be easy to justify as all the windows on the upper floor were quite old and notorious for their poor rain-resistance, especially in storms of this magnitude.

"Wait," Rachel warned her sister, wanting to make sure the lightning was far from their location before proceeding.

They slipped and slid across the damp braches of the tree whose long and stable boughs provided a convenient, although risky, route. It's a good thing they both had spent their childhoods climbing it. Five minutes later, Rachel and Becky sat, soaked, on the plush carpet inside the dog house, creating large, dark stains on its surface as rain drops dripped off of their clothes and hairs.

"Are you sure this roof can handle the storm?" Rachel asked tentatively as she noticed the wooden boards above her head leaking.

Becky shrugged while Merry-Sue shoved bread into her already cheese-stuffed mouth.

Rachel frowned, "Alright then, we should think of a way to pass the time. Any suggestions?"

Once again, her companions failed to respond by any means other than shaking their heads and chewing. Frusterated, Rachel ripped open a pack of chocolatey snacks and crossed her legs, "Fine then. I'll decide. Why don't we tell stories?"

"That the best you can do Rach?" Becky teased.

"You got a better idea?" her sister shot back.

"I say we do it," came Merry-Sue's muffled voice, somewhere from the depth of her throat that wasn't clogged with food.