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"Ally." Shake, "Ally, it's time to get up."

"Ungh." I opened my sleepy eyes and squinted them at whoever dared to wake me up. Sodapop. He shook me again and then Darry sighed and told him to move over and he picked me up and carried me off the train. Any other day, any other situation, and I would have been mortified, but in this instance I just buried my head into Darry's strong chest and took a deep breath.

Darry put me down once we got our suitcases out of the train, and I dragged mine along after me. Mother still had that blank look on her face, and didn't even acknowledge when Sodapop took the suitcase out of her hand and dragged it along for her.

"So, uh... where exactly are we going?"

Of course, Two-Bit was the one to ask and mother just replied with a, "You'll see." And kept on awalkin' ahead of us.

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What seemed like an eternity later, tired limbs and faces lowered to the ground and we were here. The house was like nothing I had ever seen before. It was grand yes, but also kinda dark and mysterious looking... in a really fancy kind of way.

"We're gonna stay here?" Dally had an eyebrow raised and had pulled out a cigarette. Darry swatted him in the back of the head and told him to shut up real good.

The grounds outside of the house were ginormous, very green and very neatly cut. A million miles later and we were at the door and Mother was knocking on it with the big brass knocker thing.

Nothing.

We waited.

And waited.

And waited.

And then there was a creak and a bang and the door swung open and I gasped in surprise and almost jumped right out of my skin.

There she was. Grandma.

She was really... creepy looking actually. No, creepy did not even cover what she was.

She wore all black in a crisp suit that looked like it would shatter if you touched it or tried to move in it or anything. She had a sophisticated bun, that succeeded in pulling all of the hair out of her face, but sadly, also succeeded at yanking the skin on her eyes back and making them look long and grotesque.

The old lady also wore thick swatches of dark blue eyeshadow which, now that I thought of it, should only be worn on younger girls, but that also looks bad on them too.

"Gretta!" Our mother seemed to coo this at the woman in the doorway, who merely seemed to smirk even more (if that was possible) and answered back, "Mother. You'll call me mother of course."

At this, Mother seemed to falter a bit and lowered her gaze to the ground, "Yes,Mother."

I frowned and wondered why our mother would act this way. A grown woman and still she acted like a small child that had just done something terribly wrong.

"Well.." Gretta paused and looked behind my mother at all of us.

"Is that all of them? All of your... offspring." She said this in a way that made it seem like she was disgusted with us.

"Well, they aren't all mine but-" she was cut off by Gretta's "Yes, come running back to Mother when your dear old husband dies." This was said as though she was cooing a baby to sleep and Mother smiled wide and we were all ushered in.

The inside of the house was just as dark and just as creepy and mysterious. Grandmother took a few calculating gazes at us and pursed her lips so tight that they turned white.

"Your father is getting very old." The woman said, directing this still at mother.

"We wouldn't want these... children upsetting or interrupting him in his old age. They'll stay up in the old attic, where they can be kept out of the way."

You'd think when someone says you'll be kept somewhere that they mean that that is where you'll be sleeping, but I guess it doesn't count for all instances. Gretta pointed up the steps and told us to follow. I looked at mother and worded out, "What's happening?"

For the first time in what seemed like an eternity, Mother smiled at me and worded back, "You'll be fine."

So I followed the rest of them up, up, up the stairs and when we got to the very top and to the very end of the hallway, Gretta took an old, curvy and rusted key out of her pocket and used it on the door.

Seconds later, and it was open. Inside the room wasn't much to see. A couple of beds, that just looked like they were in there because there was no room anywhere else and also a fireplace, small TV and a radio in the corner.

"This is where you will all stay put. Come in, come in," She said annoyyedly in a nasally voice when she saw that some of us were still outside the doorway.

"I will bring you your meals and you will all stay here. Do you hear me?" She creased her face into an even more disgusting expression if that was possible, and Steve crinkled his brows,

"You mean, we can't leave here?"

Gretta swiped her head in his direction and seemed to growl, "No. Your grandfather is a very old man, you wouldn't want to upset him in his weakening age, would you know?"

She sent this part in me, Soda, Darry and Pony's direction as if she knew exactly who were the real children and who were just the unlucky tag-alongs.

By this time, I was really starting to get freaked out.

"Wait! You can't just keep us up here like that!" My chin shook a bit which was something I definitely didn't want happening; I figured the lady would have no sympathy for tears, and anyways, I was tired of crying.

An animalistic snarl came out of her, and she came at me faster than you can say pretty much anything. She took a hold of a clump of my hair and yanked my head so that my ear was right by her mouth. Protests came from all around the room, but the boys seemed a little to surprised to come to my aid.

"You ungrateful scum." She growled, "I am giving you shelter and food, better than anything your mother could do for you. You and your filthy siblings, every last one of you is of the devil." She spat this last part out and a sob reached my throat and came out.

At this point, Darry and the other boys did step forward and Darry roughly took Gretta's hands off of me.

I didn't understand why she had called us scum though, didn't understand why she thought we were of the devil. I certainly didn't feel like I was of the devil...

Just then, our mother came in, and she seemed to slightly resume to being her old self,

"Jesus, Mother! Whatever are you doing?!" She was exasperated and came over to me, kneeling beside where I was crumpled on the ground to coo with me.

"I'm tired." I was finally able to get out in between sobs and so mother shook her head yes and helped to lead me to one of the big beds. The bedding was cold and rough, though I knew it would warm up eventually, but I still felt lonely and I figured maybe Pony, Soda or Darry could sleep with me, just this once tonight, since dad had died and since we hadn't done that since I was about eight.

They seemed to be thinking the same thing, and Pony stripped off his shoes and socks and climbed into the bed with me. I lifted the covers up for him and snuggled into his warmth, "Thank you Pony." I said tiredly, yawning at the end.

"They cannot sleep in that bed together! Get him out of there! What is this?"

Gretta, however, was furious with the sleeping arrangement, and Pony hopped out of the bed quickly with nervousness.

"Geez, mother. You haven't changed at all, have you? Pony and Ally are so sweet and innocent!"

"Innocent? Innocent?" Gretta raged, "That's what your father and I thought about you and your third Uncle, Darrel, and you!"

We all gasped and looked at mother. Father couldn't have possibly been her third Uncle, could he? And what? Did Gretta honestly think Pony and I would do something nasty with each other?

"I would have her out of the room with all these boys', but it just can't be done! This is the only one where Grinald won't here them moving around, and also the only one with an adjoined bathroom."

Gretta glared at all of us and directed Ponyboy to the bed next to mine.

"He can sleep there with another boy, and same with the others. They can all divvy up the last three beds."

I sighed, "Look, that'll just mean that three of them have to share one bed. Just let me share this one with someone!"

"No, no, no, young lady. I can't believe you, Linda! Raising your girl to want to share her bed all the time! Its absolutely dreadful!"

Now I was really pissed off, but I decided not to say anything since this women was freaking nuts. Did she honestly think I wanted to do anything with my big brothers or with their friends'? Yuck, we might as well all be related, and guys were kinda gross as it was.

"You will be silent, you will keep this room tidy, as well as the bathroom. You will not cry, yell, scream or pound on the roof or the ground. In fact, until your Grandfather dies, you will be here, but you won't really exist. I will lock the door behind us so you can't roam."

My mouth dropped open as did everyone else's.

She could not be serious. She must be saying these things just in order to scare us all. I looked to Mother for an answer to all of this, or maybe for a smile or something that would tell me that everything would be fine. Nothing. But, by the end of the speech she had lowered her head, her shoulders were sagged and they quivered as though she were crying.

Then she turned to me first and I ran to her arms, and soon everyone was standing around her, some of us in her embrace.

"It's all right." She cooed, "You'll only be here one night, and then your Grandfather will welcome you into the house and you can all do what you please and play football outside and even go to town for movies."

She looked up and gave a glare to Gretta, "They are your grandchildren... why can't you be nice to them?"

Gretta shook her head and said, "Am I not already? What else could I do?" In a way that told them she didn't care what else they thought she should do.

"I don't know... Mother.. give them the whole wing, lock the door at the end of the hall so that they have more room to roam around-"

"I can't do that. The servants will wonder why. Your return cannot coincide with this wing being closed down. The servants will run to your father with tall tales! They don't like me much. For now they will stay here, and every Friday the maids will come and clean this place, and the children will hide out in the attic until they are done with the cleaning."

And then Gretta was getting up and she told Mother to get up as well, and she came over and stroked my cheek, "I just have to get your Grandfather to forget what it is that I did to make him mad at me, and then we can all be together again and have a great time.

Mother sniffled softly and nodded her head, "I've got to go now."

And then Gretta was eyeing us suspiciously and then mom ran back to me and whispered in my ear roughly, "Tell the others: Be good, do as your grandmother said. Don't give her any reason to punish you. Please."

And then Gretta was asking her what she's said and she lied and said that all she's told me was that she loved us all and that I'd be alright, and then mother was through the door and Gretta was too, and then the lock could be heard and then footsteps sounded down the hallways and I listened until they were gone.

And then there was nothing and I was so scared and I couldn't believe any of what had just happened.

The lights' flickered out and I screamed, and then quickly covered my mouth with my hand.

"Oh, god," I mumbled and I felt tears burning again, trying to escape.

"Ally. Are you alright?" This time it was Darry speaking and I nodded my head before realizing that he couldn't see me.

"Yes. Darry, I'm all right. Just a little spooked."

"I think we're all kinda spooked." Steve replied and I could just imagine that he was on the edge off the bed, trying to make his expression look perplexed while actually making him look a bit sick.

"I can't believe that woman." Soda said and I knew that he was shaking his head.

"I know, she could use some livening up," Two-Bit let out a dry laugh and everyone else remained silent.

"Pony?" I asked into the dark room.

"Yeah, Ally-Bug?" Ponyboy replied.

"Come sleep with me. I'm kinda freaked out." I could hear Pony slide out of the bed next to me and sigh, "You heard what she said." Pony tried to sound like he didn't want to, but I knew he really did. It was something really nice and relaxing sleeping next to your older brother or little sister in his case.

"I know, but,... I still can't believe she thinks we'd do... you know...anything. You are my brother after all. That stuff is all kinda gross.

"Yeah." Pony stopped and then sighed again and I could feel his weight on my bed and then he was under the covers and he was so warm and he wrapped his arms around me and I snuggled closer to his body heat.

"Yeah, that woman has one heck of a twisted mind!" Two-Bit added on and yawned.

"Your just like a little sister to all of us anyways. And you really are Darry, Soda's and Pony's sister!" Two-Bit guffawed lightly and then fell silent.

And that's the last thing that I remember before falling into a deep sleep.