"You know who old Ben Brewer is, don't you?" she asked them.
"Your great-grandfather?" Mary Anne ventured. (Ghost stories make her nervous.)
"Right. Before he became a ghost, anyway. He was a - what's the word, Kristy?"
"Herpitologist?" I suggested.
"No!" cried Karen, laughing. "The word that means he stayed in the house all alone for years. He never went out and no one ever went in."
"He was a recluse," I said, "according to Brewer family history."
"And he ate fried dandelions," Karen added.
Stacey snorted.
"Well, he did," Karen insisted, turning to Stacey indignantly. "Anyway, he's a ghost now and he haunts our attic."
"Only the attic?" asked Claudia.
"Yes, thank goodness," I replied.
"But every now and then he leaves it," said Karen. "Just for a few minutes. He likes to chase me through the halls. He says otherwise he never gets any exercise."
"You mean any e-x-o-r-c-i-s-e?" spelled Mary Anne, but Karen wasn't old enough to get the
joke. The rest of us laughed, though.
"You do know that's not true, don't you, Karen?" I asked.
"Yes," she admitted. "But it's fun to pretend. Sometimes I'm sure he's behind me." (I shivered.) "But it's not pretend about the attic. He really haunts it."
"We have an honest-to-goodness secret passage in our house," spoke up Dawn.
"You do?" Karen's eyes widened.
"I've been in it," I announced.
"You have?" Karen's eyes became the size of soup tureens.
Crash, bang, THUMP.
"What was that?" exclaimed Stacey.
"My brothers," I replied. "I think."
"Yup, that's right," said Karen. "They're playing football."
"In the house?" I asked.
"Yes. Andrew is the football."
I rolled my eyes. Mom and Watson were out for the afternoon. I wasn't baby-sitting, since Sam and Charlie were home, but I felt I should be on top of things. There were ten kids in the house, plus Boo-Boo.
"This house," I informed my friends, "is actually a madhouse. Can you imagine what it'll be like when Shannon arrives?"
At that moment, Charlie charged into my
room with Andrew in his arms and threw him on the bed. "Touchdown!" he shouted.
Andrew squealed and giggled. He sounded a little too wild, which was unlike him. "Do a cannonball!" he shrieked. He tucked himself into a ball and Charlie picked him up again and ran him down the hall chanting, "Ba-boom-ba-boom-ba-boom-ba-boom." We heard a soft thud as my brother tossed him onto another bed.
"Hey, you guys! Perk up!" I shouted to them.
My friends laughed.
Karen ran after Charlie shouting, "My turn! My turn!"
"When do you get Shannon?" Mary Anne wanted to know.
"In two or three days," I replied.
"You know, Kristy," Claudia began, "I hate to say this, but - "
"Then don't," I interrupted.
"Don't what?"
"Say it."
Claudia made a face at me. "But," she continued, "you complained an awful lot about Shannon Kilbourne and the other snobby girls around here, and now Shannon's giving you a puppy. That's a pretty nice thing to do."
"I know," I said in a small voice as I traced the pattern of the bedspread with my finger:
"She's not as bad as I thought she was. In fact, she's sort of all right."
"Well, what happened?" asked Dawn.
I shook my head. "I'm not sure. But we did have a talk the day Shannon brought Shannon to meet me."
"What kind of talk?" asked Claudia. She was lying on her back on the floor and began blowing a gigantic pink bubble with a wad of Bazooka.
"You know, if that pops, it's going to cover your face and goo up your hair," Stacey pointed out after a few seconds.
Claudia ignored her and kept on blowing.
"We had a very pleasant talk," I replied. "We talked about baby-sitting. I said I hadn't realized that I might be stepping on someone else's territory when I started sitting around here. It was just natural for me to sit."
"What did Shannon say?" asked Mary Anne. "Did she understand?"
"Oh, yes. Believe it or not, she said she was jealous."
"You're kidding," said Dawn and Stacey at the same time.
"Nope. She said she wasn't really mad,
"Your great-grandfather?" Mary Anne ventured. (Ghost stories make her nervous.)
"Right. Before he became a ghost, anyway. He was a - what's the word, Kristy?"
"Herpitologist?" I suggested.
"No!" cried Karen, laughing. "The word that means he stayed in the house all alone for years. He never went out and no one ever went in."
"He was a recluse," I said, "according to Brewer family history."
"And he ate fried dandelions," Karen added.
Stacey snorted.
"Well, he did," Karen insisted, turning to Stacey indignantly. "Anyway, he's a ghost now and he haunts our attic."
"Only the attic?" asked Claudia.
"Yes, thank goodness," I replied.
"But every now and then he leaves it," said Karen. "Just for a few minutes. He likes to chase me through the halls. He says otherwise he never gets any exercise."
"You mean any e-x-o-r-c-i-s-e?" spelled Mary Anne, but Karen wasn't old enough to get the
joke. The rest of us laughed, though.
"You do know that's not true, don't you, Karen?" I asked.
"Yes," she admitted. "But it's fun to pretend. Sometimes I'm sure he's behind me." (I shivered.) "But it's not pretend about the attic. He really haunts it."
"We have an honest-to-goodness secret passage in our house," spoke up Dawn.
"You do?" Karen's eyes widened.
"I've been in it," I announced.
"You have?" Karen's eyes became the size of soup tureens.
Crash, bang, THUMP.
"What was that?" exclaimed Stacey.
"My brothers," I replied. "I think."
"Yup, that's right," said Karen. "They're playing football."
"In the house?" I asked.
"Yes. Andrew is the football."
I rolled my eyes. Mom and Watson were out for the afternoon. I wasn't baby-sitting, since Sam and Charlie were home, but I felt I should be on top of things. There were ten kids in the house, plus Boo-Boo.
"This house," I informed my friends, "is actually a madhouse. Can you imagine what it'll be like when Shannon arrives?"
At that moment, Charlie charged into my
room with Andrew in his arms and threw him on the bed. "Touchdown!" he shouted.
Andrew squealed and giggled. He sounded a little too wild, which was unlike him. "Do a cannonball!" he shrieked. He tucked himself into a ball and Charlie picked him up again and ran him down the hall chanting, "Ba-boom-ba-boom-ba-boom-ba-boom." We heard a soft thud as my brother tossed him onto another bed.
"Hey, you guys! Perk up!" I shouted to them.
My friends laughed.
Karen ran after Charlie shouting, "My turn! My turn!"
"When do you get Shannon?" Mary Anne wanted to know.
"In two or three days," I replied.
"You know, Kristy," Claudia began, "I hate to say this, but - "
"Then don't," I interrupted.
"Don't what?"
"Say it."
Claudia made a face at me. "But," she continued, "you complained an awful lot about Shannon Kilbourne and the other snobby girls around here, and now Shannon's giving you a puppy. That's a pretty nice thing to do."
"I know," I said in a small voice as I traced the pattern of the bedspread with my finger:
"She's not as bad as I thought she was. In fact, she's sort of all right."
"Well, what happened?" asked Dawn.
I shook my head. "I'm not sure. But we did have a talk the day Shannon brought Shannon to meet me."
"What kind of talk?" asked Claudia. She was lying on her back on the floor and began blowing a gigantic pink bubble with a wad of Bazooka.
"You know, if that pops, it's going to cover your face and goo up your hair," Stacey pointed out after a few seconds.
Claudia ignored her and kept on blowing.
"We had a very pleasant talk," I replied. "We talked about baby-sitting. I said I hadn't realized that I might be stepping on someone else's territory when I started sitting around here. It was just natural for me to sit."
"What did Shannon say?" asked Mary Anne. "Did she understand?"
"Oh, yes. Believe it or not, she said she was jealous."
"You're kidding," said Dawn and Stacey at the same time.
"Nope. She said she wasn't really mad,
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