"Come and try this dress on, sweetie", called Nola to Shyanna.

Shyanna went over to the old lady. She and Nola hadn't known each other for very long but Nola was certainly good to her. "I thought the color would go with your hair", Nola told her, handing over a flowered cotton dress. Going into the bathroom to change, Shyanna stroked the faded pink fabric and wondered what Nola would cook them for dinner tonight.

The bathroom was a sparse looking room with rag rugs on the floor. Shyanna took off her blouse and jeans and slipped the dress over her head. It was a very pretty one, stopping half-way between her knees and her ankles. The fabric was worn but very comfortable, and she hurried out of the room to show Nola.

"Oh yes, Shyanna, you look charming", Nola smiled. Shyanna turned to look at herself in the mirror. The dress suited her very well. "Do you know what, Shyanna?" the old lady said. "I think Hal'll be home soon. Shall we go into the back yard and find some vegetables?"

Shyanna had only been living with Nola and her son Hal for a few days in their home in the mountains, but she knew what this meant. She grabbed the large basket and went out into the yard with Nola. Shyanna gathered pea pods while the old lady, surprisingly sturdy, dug up potatoes. Between them, they also added a few radishes and carrots to the haul, while there were onions in the kitchen from yesterday. It wasn't long before they were back in the kitchen, with Shyanna shelling the peas into a bowl and Nola scrubbing the potatoes.

Someone was whistling outside. "Why, there's Hal!" smiled Nola, and a man in his 30's wandered in carrying his rifle and game bag. "I've got a rabbit for us all to eat", he said, patting the bag. "A rabbit!" smiled Nola with pleasure. "Shyanna, would you like to finish shelling those peas outside, I want to talk to Hal about something". Shyanna nodded, and gathered up the bowl and basket.

It certainly was beautiful outside and, sitting on the end of the bench in Nola's back yard, she could see over to the mountains. Over by the cypresses on one mountain, she could see two slight blond figures – what looked like teenage girls wearing jeans, t-shirts and small back packs. They were talking earnestly, and although Shyanna could see them, she didn't think they'd spotted her, which was just the way she liked it. There was a lot that she enjoyed about living with Nola and Hal. If the truth be told, she couldn't really remember anything about her life before she had wandered toward their house three days ago. Shyanna wondered now if that made her stupid. She quickly put the bowl and basket down by the side of the bench and hung her head so that her long hair fell in front of her face.

Just then, she felt some pressure against her thigh. Looking up, she realised Hal was sitting right next to her, squashing her against the arm of the bench. She looked over to the cypresses again to see if the blond girls were still there but they had gone. Hal was tracing a pattern on the faded pink fabric which covered her thigh. "Put your foot in my lap, honey", he told her. "Your right foot". Shyanna didn't want to but she was afraid of what might happen if she didn't. She placed her right foot, in its slip-on tennis shoe, in his lap. "Do you remember what I told you?" he said, toying with her foot. "On Saturday, Mom will going to visit her old friend Betty. And Betty doesn't like anybody coming along with Mom, so she'll be going on her own. And that'll mean that you and I'll be in the house together. And then", he said, running a finger from her cheekbone to her jaw, "we'll be able to go all the way".

Shyanna felt a terrible drop in the pit of her stomach. She didn't know where it was they'd be going to but she was sure she didn't like the sound of it. So far, Hal's attentions had been of the sort where he simply touched her cheek or played with her foot. These were troubling but she had the feeling there were far worse things in store, even though she couldn't say for certain what they were.

"Shyanna!" It was Nola's voice. "Come and help me with dinner!" Hal let her get up and she hurried in to the kitchen, glad to get away. "It's the magic hour", observed Nola. There was a mellowness to the evening sunshine, and Shyanna began to feel easier again as she helped Nola with the preparations. The kitchen window faced on to the front yard, and Shyanna was surprised to see the one of the girls she had seen earlier hurrying along the path. She felt stupid again, and turned her attention to the hand-written poem which was hung above the sink.

Read from some humbler poet,

Whose songs gushed from his heart,

As showers from the clouds of summer,

Or tears from the eyelids start;

Shyanna had formed the habit of reading this poem over to herself whenever she was in the kitchen. Nola had told her that it wasn't the whole poem, just the last five verses. She was glad that, even though she had forgotten so many things, she remembered how to read.

Who, through long days of labor,

And nights devoid of ease,

Still heard in his soul the music

Of wonderful melodies.

Suddenly she heard the front door open. Nola must have spotted the girl, for Shyanna could hear her bid the girl good evening. "Good evening", the girl said in reply, "I understand you have a teenage girl staying here. May I ask her a few questions?" Nola called to her guest. "There's a young lady here who'd like to speak with you, Shyanna, can you come to the door?" Shyanna supposed she had better deal with the girl so she hurried over.

"So your name's Shyanna", said the girl, with a captivating smile. She was wearing a turquoise blue t-shirt, with lace edging. "That's right", murmured Shyanna. "I wonder if you could step out into the front yard for a minute, I'd like to talk with you about something." Shyanna glanced over at Nola.

"I'm sure it'll be safe", smiled Nola. The two girls went out into the yard. When they were a few feet away from the door, Shyanna caught the eye of someone staring at her from behind a tree. It was the other blond girl. She was wearing a cream-colored t-shirt which set off her freckled face. The freckled girl looked as if she was bursting with something to say, but she appeared to be holding herself back.

"So, Shyanna", said the girl in the turquoise t-shirt. "How long have you been staying with…?"

"Nola", Shyanna told her. "And Hal".

"Since Tuesday", replied Shyanna. "And now it's Friday".

"Shyanna, how do you like living there?"

A sob came from the freckled girl, who wiped away a tear as Shyanna turned to look at her. "Don't call her Shyanna again", she gulped. "You know it isn't her name".

"But it is", replied Shyanna. "Shyanna Lee".

The freckle-faced girl ran right up to her. "Shyanna isn't your name at all", she told her. "It's Marcia! Marcia Brady!"

Shyanna stared at the ground. She'd known for the past three days that her name wasn't really Shyanna – she'd remembered that there was a sh- sound somewhere in her real name but she couldn't recall how it fitted in. Marcia Brady didn't sound like somebody who she was at all.

The freckle-faced girl had collapsed to the ground, and was sitting there sobbing, while the first girl was kneeling by her. "Jan", she said. "I told you your sister might not remember who she was. Don't forget we thought she could have hurt her head."

Marcia Brady. Shyanna didn't feel any closer to being Marcia Brady. Who was Marcia Brady, and what was she like? She crouched down in front of the girl named Jan and put her arms around her. "Oh Marcia", Jan sobbed, returning the embrace. Suddenly, somehow, the name felt right. She still couldn't remember anything about herself but she was this person called Marcia Brady. "Don't cry, Jan", whispered Marcia to her sister.