Well, Genevieve05, here you are! This will be a complete story, featuring all sorts of familiar faces. Apologies for the short length of this chapter. The next will be longer. :)

Just really quick, Willie is supposed to be about five years old here. So, take that into consideration.

Thanks to Arquenniel for her help on this chapter! You rock my socks, madamoiselle!

Thanks also to those who reviewed this last chapter, the-american-hockey-girl, Arquenniel, Genevieve05, and Jennifer Lynn Weston!

Chapter 3: Rumble-y Thunder

I don't like thunder very much.

It's very loud and rumble-y. Almost like the sky wants something to eat.

Sometimes I think it wants to eat me. But Mum says that is posterous…or some big word like that. Tonight, though, it sounded really, really hungry. I hid under my bed and closed my eyes real right so it couldn't see me.

It kept being noisy anyway.

There was a big white light that let me see real quick all the toys on my floor. It went away and I heard the noise again. It sounded angry. The house started to make creaky sounds like Bettie was walking very hard to the upstairs part of my house.

I told it to shush and it didn't listen. I hid under my bed but the light and the noise came down there, too.

I started to get scared then.

Mum's room was down the hall. The only problem was that the hall was dark and I think that monsters lived out there. They eat children. I know so. 'Cause I heard that once a little boy my size disappeared and his family never saw-ed him again. That's 'cause the monsters got to him.

I wasn't going to be the next boy to get eaten. So, I had to be a brave boy by myself. And that meant that the thunder needed to go away.

I bit my lip and poked my head out from underneath my bed. I put on my best Sunday smile and used my nice, inside voice. "Could you please be quiet?"

The thunder didn't obey.

Maybe couldn't hear me. I tried louder. "Could you please be quiet?"

The thunder didn't obey again.

It must need a spanking. Mum gives me those when I'm being too loud. But how do you give the sky a spanking?

I tried shouting again. I wasn't feeling polite. "Could you be quiet?"

"Willie?"

That wasn't the thunder. I looked over at the door. "Mum!" I scrambled up and ran as fast as I could to her.

She hugged me real tight and when she spoke her voice was trembled. "It's going to be fine, Willie. It's just a storm. Everything will be just fine." She pulled back and stared at me. Her eyes were all wide, like she was nervous about something. "Willie, I'm going to need you to get in your warm coat and shoes."

"Why?"

"Because, Willie," her eyes went red and watery for a second. "I want us to go an adventure."

I didn't think she was a truthful girl. "Honest?"

She nodded. "Yes, Willie. And when your Father gets home you'll have a grand story to tell him."

"Promise?"

"Promise."

I squinted my eyes. "And the thunder won't come with us?"

"Maybe. We'll have to see, hmm?" she straightened my collar like I'd been outside getting dirty. "Now, get dressed."

TBC...