MONSTER

Come; let me tell you the story of a beautiful little girl who lived in a big city in India.

When?

Well, in 2010, she turned thirteen. So…you do the Math. I think she was born in 1997.

1997! I was also born in 1997!

Really? So this little girl, who was very well-behaved and sweet and kind and beautiful, as I already told you, had only one secret wish. And that was to marry a wonderful guy who was very good-looking, quite rich, and madly in love with her.

Why?

You can’t blame her, you know. A lot of little girls think like this.

I don’t.

Really? You don’t want a handsome husband?

Maybe; But I have many other secret wishes.

That’s nice. Anyway, this little girl, her name was…Anya.

Anya?

Yes. Anya. And when she was five years old, her mother gifted her a little cycle.

Don’t you want to know about my secret wishes are?

Your secret wishes? Of course; tell me about them.

When I grow up, I want to be a doctor. Like my Mummy. And I will be a very tall doctor. And I will have a white silk coat and pretty pearl earrings like Aartimasi’s and lots of very fat books.

Really?

And a scope.

A stethoscope?

Yes. And a doctor’s set.

I love you, baby. Anyhow, when Anya was about 5 years old, her mother gifted her a cycle. It was not any ordinary cycle, like the one you broke, but a magic one which you could talk to. It had a silver handle and a black and silver body and a little golden basket in front to hold things.

I also want a new cycle, Ritamasi.

We’ll get your old one repaired.

No, I want a new cycle. This time I’ll be careful, I promise. Please…

Listen, Anya, if you start crying for a cycle now, I will never tell you any stories again.

She sulked for a while, then got up and walked away. Okay, don’t tell me any more stories. I don’t want to hear your stories. My Mummy tells me many stories and they are nicer than your stories.

Good. Then you go and pester her, let me read my book.

Even my Nani says better stories than you.

I’m so happy for you.

Of course, as was expected, few people in the family had the patience for Anya-style story-telling. She was back in less than fifteen minutes, looking for toys under the bed where Rita was reading, nudging her foot “accidentally” and humming her favorite tune as best as she could. Rita was amused but too absorbed in a time-travel yarn to respond immediately.
Shall I tell you a story, Ritamasi?

Not now. I’m reading.

I don’t want a cycle anymore.

You’re not getting one anyway, so it doesn’t matter.

Please, I love you.

Rita was moved. Actually, she was easily moved and Anya thought herself foolish to have worried so much. She snuggled up onto her lap and wedged her head between Rita’s face and book. Now tell me the story.

Where was I?

The cycle had a little golden basket in front…. The basket produced many fond memories and a big lump formed in Anya’s throat, but she was a practical little girl and swallowed it instantly. And it was black and silver. And you could talk to it also?

Yes.

In Hindi or in English?

No. Not in Hindi or in English. But in a new language, called…GibbledyDibbledy.
Gibbledy-Dibbledy?

Right; the cycle had a little manual—a book—with it with details on how to speak the language. You had to learn it by yourself, without any help from anyone and you were not allowed to speak in GibbledyDibbledy to anyone else.

What would happen if you spoke in GibbledyDibbledy to anyone else?

Then the cycle would stop working. It had to be a secret language. Anyway, so Anya worked very hard with the language and in few days, she could say Start, Stop, Go Faster and Pick That Up to the cycle. Everyday, in the morning, before the whole house woke up, she used to get up and wash her face and take the cycle out for some practice and fresh air.
She brushed her teeth also.

Whatever; Now, Anya started pestering her Mummy to let her take the cycle out to the woods. You know, near their house, there was this little forest—this jungle—with many trees on which there were many fruits like apples and oranges-

And grapes…

And grapes too and in that forest, there lived a little monster that everyone was afraid of. The monster had green skin and green eyes that shone in the dark and a long, pink tongue and warts on his body.

What are warts?

Rita looked at the girl uncertainly. Pimples; the monster had pimples.

Like Aartimasi?

Worse; and, you see, all this made the monster very ugly and everyone was afraid of him.

They used to say that he eats up little girls and boys…

Rita, why are you scaring the poor child? Now she’ll simply refuse to sleep with anyone else tonight and I have a night duty-

Arrey, why are you giving her ideas? In the end, she will kill the monster herself so it won’t bother her anymore.

We’ll see about that. Why do there have to be these weird monsters in your stories anyway?

Mummy, you go. I’ll sleep with Ritamasi, you please go. Go and do your night duty.

I don’t have to go till five, baby, why do you want me to go?

Okay, then sit here quietly and listen to the story. But please don’t disturb us. Haan, masi, then what happened?

Then, well, so Anya’s Mummy had told her strictly never to go the jungle alone and never after dark, anyway. And Anya was a very obedient child. She never, ever used to do anything that her Mummy asked her not to do-

Unlike some other kids we know.

She told you to sit quietly and listen to the story, Tara.

Oh, all right. Sorry.

Anya cast her mother a triumphant look. I also always listen to my Mummy.

Yes, I know sweetie. So did Anya. But one morning, when Anya was riding her cycle around her house, and practicing how to say Start and Stop in GibbledyDibbledy, she saw a green, pointed cap hiding behind the tree at the gate of her house. At first, she thought that it was only a leaf or something, but when she came to the gate again, after taking another round of her house, she also saw a little green foot sticking out from behind the tree. So she told her cycle to Stop and slowly walked up to the tree. When she got there, she asked in a shaking voice, “Who is there?” and-

Why was her voice shaking? Was she scared? I am not scared of-

Anya…please listen to the story. And then, a little, scared-looking pixie came out from behind the tree and stood in front of Anya, shaking so much she thought he would pee in his pants. So she asked him, “Little Pixie, why are you so scared? And why are you hiding behind that tree?”

And the pixie started crying and said, “Anya, I am so scared because I just saw the Green Monster.” “What Green Monster?” Anya asked. So he said that in the jungle there lives this ugly green monster, which eats little pixies and fairies and even eats little girls and boys, and I saw him lying by the river asleep and I wanted to take a closer look, as he was sleeping, you see- “So Stupid,” Anya said, “you should have run away!” “You’re right. But I wanted to see what the monster really looked like, so I crept up to him and I bent over him and-” and here the pixie started bawling loudly “and accidentally I stepped on his tail—he had this long, green tail, like a snake—and I stepped on his tail and he woke up and roared really loudly and I ran as I fast as I could, but he ran after me and I even fell down once, and I thought, he really will catch me, he was running so fast so I finally just ran out of the jungle because I knew that he wouldn’t come out of the jungle. But then, I didn’t know where to go and I was feeling very lost and then I heard your sweet voice speaking in GibbledyDibbledy so I came to see who it was and so I hid behind the tree and-”

How did he know that my name is Anya?

Did he know?

He knew. He said Anya; I am so scared because I just saw the green monster.
That was because he heard her Mummy calling her for breakfast so he knew her name. Anyway, he also knew that the name of the magic language was GibbledyDibbledy. Then Anya said, “Pixie, I also want to see the Green Monster.” But the pixie was so scared, he shook his head. So she said, “Okay, at least I can drop you back to the jungle on my little magic cycle!” And the Pixie said, Okay and so Anya quietly picked up the cycle and told it to Pick Up the little pixie and the cycle picked him up and put him in the little golden basket in front and slipped out of the gate. Now, Anya had been to the jungle herself a number of times with her older brothers and sometimes with her aunts, but she had always only gone through nice, clean paths which were lined by short, straight trees. The pixie took her to thick, dense woods, where the trees were all crooked and knotted and they were so tall that there was hardly any sun and it was very dark. But Anya hadn’t learnt how to say Turn on the Light to her cycle, so she kept driving quietly. Then she remembered that the pixie also knew GibbledyDibbledy so she asked the pixie and the pixie asked the cycle to turn on the Light and on it came.

Then what happened?

I want some tea.

So do I. Wait, Rita, don’t get up. Aarti! Aarti!

I’m busy. Aarti’s response was immediate and expected.

Rita and Tara looked at each other and rolled their eyes. I’ll make it, Tara, Rita rose.

No, Ritamasi. I’ll tell her. AAR-TI-MA-SI! Can’t you hear your sisters calling you to make some tea?

I figured that they wanted me to do something for them, Aarti shouted back.

Good. So please make us all some tea. Anya looked back at her mother and aunt and giggled.
Aarti’s grumbling voice came nearer. Have some shame. Getting an innocent child to do your dirty work! I hardly slept last night-

You were watching a movie. You can hardly expect our sympathy.
Why? Do people who watch movies need less sleep than those who do night duties in hospitals? At least you get paid for staying up late.

Very funny; Make us some tea and come and listen to the story of the Ugly-Green-Monster-Who-Had-Pimples-Worse-Than-Aartimasi.

What?

Don’t mind her, Aarti. Remember the story I told you about the Witch-Who-Was-Bustier-Than-Taradidi?

Really? Tara frowned and then smiled. You run and get us the tea, Aarti. It’s almost time for me to go. Then what happened?

Wait! I want to hear it too.

You’ve missed too much. Just pick it up whenever you come in.

I’m here. Three steaming cups of tea arrived, followed by Anya’s pimpled aunt. Now, what’s the story?

The situation is such. Anya is dropping a little scared pixie home on a bicycle that only responds to orders spoken in a secret language called GibbledyDibbledy. They are presently riding in a very thick jungle where there is hardly any light and the pixie has just asked the cycle to turn on its lights.

Where’s the Green Monster?

The monster is, at this moment, hiding behind some trees and watching the two riding their cycle. He had seen the pixie run out, and had waited at the edge of the jungle for him to come back. Then he saw the cycle and the little girl and the pixie in the golden basket. So he followed them, prowling behind trees and bushes, never losing sight of the little girl. But when the cycle turned its lights on they fell straight into the monster’s eyes. The monster was blinded and frightened and he yelped and the little pixie started shaking so much that he fell out of the golden basket. Anya was also scared, but her cycle just went on as if nothing had happened. She opened her mouth to ask her cycle to stop but her mind drew a blank. Hoodledum! Cuckidoodle! Stop! But the cycle went on. Anya could hear the monster running after her but she couldn't remember how to ask the cycle to go faster either. Huff! Puff! Ricketyroo! Run! Go faster! The monster was running behind her and shouting, stop, get off the bicycle and Anya could only shut her eyes and pray to God.

I don’t like this story.

Wait. It will become all right.

Will the monster die?

We’ll see. Then suddenly, she felt a cold hand around her neck and she started screaming-

This is so morbid.

-and she started screaming Help! Help! Save me from this ugly monster and suddenly she heard the monster’s voice in her ear saying, please don’t call me ugly, I am not going to hurt you, please listen to me, and please stop. So she said, “Stop!” to the cycle and it stopped and she realized that she could speak the secret language again so that meant that she was not scared.

Will the monster kill her?

Do you want to hear the story or no? Yes? Good. So then she turned around and looked at the monster and he was really ugly with his warty skin and green eyes and snake-like tail but he was crying so Anya felt bad for him. So she asked him why he was crying and he told her that till last year, he also used to be a cute little child like Anya, but one day, he had wandered into the jungle alone following his ball and he came upon this ugly witch-

-with booboos bigger than Mummy’s

-this ugly witch sitting by her cauldron and he was so scared that he started screaming. So the witch pounced on him and picked him up with one hand—like this—and said why are you screaming? What have I done to you? And he said, “Nothing. Please let me go. I am very scared of you.” And she said, “Why?” So he said, in a shaking voice, “You are so ugly and scary.” And the moment he said that, the ugly witch threw him back on the ground and started screaming and crying and tearing her hair.

Why?

Guess she felt bad at being called ugly. When she was done, she turned to the little boy and said, “Boy, I am going to teach you a lesson for saying these cruel things to me. I am going to cast a spell on you that will turn you into the ugliest thing you can imagine.” And the little boy looked at her and said, “No, please don’t, I am sorry” but she was already chanting some weird spell in GibbledyDibbledy and dancing a strange dance. So he ran up to her and threw himself at her warty feet and said, “Please, I am sorry. I didn’t realize that I was hurting your feelings. I am only a little boy. Please forgive me.” But by this time, the weird witch had already thrown a handful of dust onto him and he was turning into this green monster and he kept crying and saying, “I am sorry, can’t you please forgive me”, so the witch took pity on him and said, “Okay, I’ll forgive you but I can’t take my spell back now. I can only tell you how to break it.” “How,” the monster asked, still crying. So she said, “The spell will be broken the day you meet someone who you like and think nicely of, and that person looks into your eyes without feeling scared of you, holds your right hand and smiles at you and says I love you. When that happens, the spell will be broken and you will be a cute little boy again.” So now, Anya, what do you think happened next?

Did Anya…

You tell me, baby. What did Anya do?

The kid is sitting on her aunt’s lap and looking into her eyes. Shall I tell you, Ritamasi? Anya…she held the boy’s hand and kissed him on the lips—like this—and he turned into this handsome prince and they got married.

Indeed. And since when did five-year-olds start marrying?

After they grew up, silly. Now you tell me another story.

-Richa Saklani

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