The Irish Tales

Chapter Sixteen
　
And so, a few days later, Patsy spoke, quietly but fondly:
"I can tell you where Impy has gone. And where the other Friendly Monsters are. And why your sock drawer contains nothing but socks these days."

Jay spoke no words, but her eyes were full of questions.

"I can tell you why the postman no longer stands on his hands to deliver the mail. And why tomorrow, the milkman will no longer bark."

Patsy paused and stared at the floor. Actually she was staring at a grimy piece of cloth, once white, which was gathering dust under the window.

"I can tell you why foxes and dogs and foxhounds will no longer speak the human tongue to you, why birds will merely chirrup rather than chat and why your nights will be quiet and calm, if slightly dull and uneventful. …."

Again Patsy paused and somehow, to Jay’s eyes, she seemed smaller, older, more….tired.

Impulsively, she reached out a hand and stroked the Scaremonster’s nose, which was cold and moist, like all noses should be.

"And finally, I can tell you why your raggy lies gathering dust under the window…."
Here, Patsy’s voice trailed off and she sat very still and small.

"Why ?" asked Jay, in an equally small voice.
Patsy rose and walked rather stiffly round the bedroom before answering.

"You are growing up, my former fledgling," she said.
"What once disturbed your sleep, no longer will. What help you once needed, you need no longer. A bigger world awaits you."

Jay shook her head slowly.
"I…don’t understand."

"You will one day, little piglet. Remember – a Scaremonster isn’t just for childhood, it’s for life."

And Patsy stood at the stepladder which led up to the attic and placed one of her six hooves upon the bottom rung.

"But…you’ll still be my friend, won’t you ?" asked Jay uncertainly.
Patsy smiled fondly at her.
"I will always be just up here. Wherever up here is…" she said and pointed to the attic.

Then with a faint smile on her face, she trudged up the steps and as she trudged she sang as follows : "These were the days of our lives. The bad things in life were so few.These days are all gone now but one thing is true - when I look and I find I still love you….." *

And that was the last time Jay ever set eyes on Patsy Scaremonster.
　
*With thanks to the estate of Freddy Mercury
　
　
**********************************************
　
　
Postscript : 20 years later……..

In a bedroom in a small house perched high on the hills, a young boy called Alex woke up yelling with fear.
Not, I hasten to say, because of some bad dream or other, but because something large and warm had fallen through the trapdoor in the attic by and landed right on top of him
.
"Whoa !" yelled Alex.
"Merde!" yelled the large warm thing, who always swore in French or Latin when alarmed, to protect the delicate ears of her charges.

"Who are you ?" Alex finally said.
"Who are you ?" the large warm thing replied.
"It’s my bedroom and you’ve invaded it. So you go first,"replied Alex, with all the pluck he could summon.

Well, the large, warm thing harumphed and shuffled and glared a bit, then muttered under her breath : "I’m Patsy. Your family Scaremonster. I…I knew your mother once, a long time ago."

The large, warm thing who called herself Patsy looked around the bedroom and pointed to something.

"Is this your sock drawer…..?"
　
　
　
The End. (For now.)