The story

Once upon a time, in a kingdom far away from here, two children lived. They were cousins, little Annabelle, six years old, and Katherine, almost eight. They were the best of friends, always getting into mischief and laughing. They were known as Katie and Annie to their families, and they lived very near each other in their tiny village.

One night, while Annie was over at Katie’s house, Katie’s mother baked a whole bunch of cupcakes for their grandparents, who lived in the house next door with the family’s dog, Parsley.  Even though it was dark out, Katie’s mom knew it was a very short walk over there, and that they’d be fine. Annie was scared, but she felt safe when she was with Katie, so they agreed to go.

So they set out, Annie carrying the basket and Katie leading the way. Chattering back and forth, they walked carefully around the willow pond. The branches, long and green, flowed in the wind around them. They could hear the crickets and frogs chirping and croaking around them, and even though it was dark, the world felt safe. Past the stone bench and the tree that dropped green apples in the fall, they came to the base of the hill on which their grandparents lived.

Suddenly a low growling caught Annie’s attention. She grabbed at her cousin’s sleeve, Whispering out: “Listen!”

“What is it?” Katie asked, unaware of the coming threat.  Annie opened her mouth to reply, but another growl, closer this time froze both girls where they were.  Slowly they turned around to face it. A Huge brown dog was facing them, hackles raised and snarling.  Katie moved in front of her best friend, both girls visibly shaking.

“G-get away!” She shouted at the beast, but it simply barked angrily back in reply. Annie was almost too frightened to move. She wanted someone to rescue her. Grandfather had told her to scream if she ever needed help, but she knew the dog would lunge and get them if she did. Then she remembered. Parsley, the family dog! She tried to whistle like Grandmother had taught her, but she couldn’t remember how. She tugged on Katie’s sleeve.

“K-Katie, whistle for P-parsley!” The older girl nodded and whistled, loudly. But nothing happened. The dog growled louder and took a step forward. Suddenly a blur of black launched into the dog, knocking it away while the girls shrieked. Katie grabbed Annie’s hand and pulled her toward the house

“Come on! We have to tell Grandfather!” The girls ran all the way up the hill and burst into the house, where Annie’s parents sat talking to their grandparents. The girls explained what had happened, near in tears and shivering. Grandfather went outside to investigate while they others tried to calm them down.

A few minutes of worrying later, The door reopened and Grandfather stepped inside. He shook his head and said there was no sign of anything. No dogs, no blood, no noises, nothing. Annie’s parents scolded the children for making up stories, and said they probably just scared themselves. The girls protested, but only received sharp looks that clearly said “stop.”

And so the adventure was forgotten by the others, as they sat and enjoyed the cupcakes Annie had managed not to spill as they’d run.  But the girls remembered, and they always will.