Mallory and the Ghost Cat by Ann M. Martin

Author:Ann M. Martin
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.
Published: 2014-12-26T16:00:00+00:00

Kristy was sitting for the three Korman kids that evening. The Kormans have become pretty regular clients since they moved into Kristy’s neighborhood, and Kristy sits for them more than the rest of us do because she lives across the street from them.

The evening had started off well. Kristy had made special arrangements to bring her stepsister Karen along with her, since Karen and Melody are the same age (seven) and have become good friends. When Kristy and Karen arrived at the Kormans’ door, Melody threw it open before they could even ring the bell.

“I saw you coming up the walk!” she said. “I am so, so happy you’re here.”

“Well, I’m glad to be here,” said Kristy, smiling.

“Not you, silly!” said Melody. Kristy’s face fell. “I mean,” said Melody, realizing she might have hurt Kristy’s feelings, “I’m glad to see you, but I’m really glad to see Karen. Skylar’s asleep and Bill is being so boring. All he wants to do is line up his G.I. Joes and talk about which weapons each one knows how to use. Yucko.”

“Yucko,” echoed Karen.

“So now that you’re here, we can play!” said Melody to Karen. “What should we do first?”

“Let’s pretend that we’re mermaids and the fountain is our swimming pool!” said Karen.

Yes, there’s a fountain in the Kormans’ front hall! Remember I told you that Kristy lives in a mansion? Well, most of the other houses in her neighborhood are mansion-type houses, too. And the Kormans’ is the most mansion-like of all. But there’s one thing I should mention about the fountain, which, by the way, is shaped like a fish standing on its tail. When the Kormans moved into this house, not too long ago, they thought the fountain was kind of funny, so they turned it on. Skylar panicked! She’s only a year old, and I can’t even begin to imagine why that fountain scared her so much, but it did. So the Kormans turned the fountain off, and it’s stayed off.

I like the fact that the Kormans thought the fountain was silly, and didn’t mind turning it off. The family that lived in that house before — the Delaneys — were really kind of stuck up. They thought the fountain was “elegant,” and the kids boasted about it, along with the swimming pool, the two tennis courts, and all the other features of the house.

Anyway, after Mr. and Mrs. Korman had left, Melody didn’t want to play in the fountain that night. “I’m tired of being mermaids,” she said. “Let’s do something else.”

“How about a game of ‘Let’s All Come In’?” asked Karen, hopefully. That’s her favorite game, probably because she invented it. It’s a “let’s pretend” game about various guests checking into a fancy old hotel.

“Nah,” said Melody. “Not enough people. Bill won’t play, and Skylar’s too young to play, even if she was awake, and if it’s just you and me it’s no fun.”

Kristy was kind of relieved. “Let’s All Come In” isn’t necessarily one of her favorite games.

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