© 2005 Maggie O'Malley
 
 
“Otay!"

Little Maggie walked over to the big closet where she kept all her stories, games, 'maginary aminals and green fuzzy pizza slices. Reaching up on tippy toe she grabbed the knob and turned it, while Baru watched her twin closely before she dove under the covers to protect herself from the tidal wave to come.

Maggie opened the door cautiously and much to both her and her sister's surprise, no mountain of mess came rushing out to bury her waist deep.

When Baru didn't hear the toddler tidal wave hit, she peeked out from the under the blanket, "Hey Maggie, how comes you're not all upside down da wrong ways up and almost indibisibles in a big ol pile of stuffs?”

Maggie shrugged her shoulders, "I dunno. I didn't do nuttins. I didn’t use no magic."

Baru giggled, "Yeah, I knows you didn't use no magic cause somefins always habbens when you uses magic, and it's nebers quiet and nebers nuttins.”

Baru hopped out of bed and joined Maggie as the pair peered into the dimly lit closet.

"I think eberyting must be goned Baru, cause looks we can see da floor."

"Wow!" her twin exclaimed in amazement. "I neber knowed we had a floor in da big coset."

A voice from the doorway startled the two closet explorers, "Yes girls, much as it is hard to believe your closet does have a floor, a very clean one and I want it to stay that way."

"Yes Momma", the pair of princess replid in unison.

"Momma", Maggie started tentively. "Did...dids you keen our coset up?"

"Yes ... I risked life and limb to brave that perilous jungle you two call a closet. My word girls ... I think I’m going to change your middle names to Pack and Rat. I've never seen such a mess and so much stuff! I think you pair must be Little Lady Timelords and this closet your Toddler Tardis, because with all that junk you had in there, it must be bigger on the inside than it is on the outside."

"We sowwy," the pair of princesses dropped their heads.

"Honestly girls, I was beginning to think that if I dug deep enough in there I'd find the lost city of Atlantis, Nessie, Big Foot, and Amelia Earhardt, her plane included."

"Who Melia Airhead Mommy?" Baru asked innocently.

Shelly sighed, "It's Amelia Earhardt, but that's not important. What is important is that you girls start taking care of this room, especially that closet. I want clothes hung, games and books neatly shelved, and dolls and toys in the boxes where they go. And most of all, I don't ever want to find any more icky green fuzzy things in there that I think in a previous life were either a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or a slice of pizza."

"Mommy if its gween its da peadut budder and jewwy cause its da pizza dat turns purble, but ... but maggie woni and cheeze is da best cause it gween and purble and sometimes pink, too, but onwy if you mix it wiff juice."

Shelly grimaced at Maggie's colorful description. She was glad that dinner was still over an hour away. Hopefully she could still be a participant and not just the cook.

"Girls, if I have to risk life and limb to clean that closet again, things will go bye bye, provided of course I don't succumb to the dangers within and go bye bye, myself. Soooo ... are you girls gonna take care of the closet or will I have to?"

"We will Momma, we pwomise!"

Shelly knelt down, wrapped arms around both her toddler tornados.

"Oh and Maggie, I think you were looking for a particular storybook, weren't you? Ally in Wonderland?"

"Yeah Mommy,” Maggie smiled.

"Well I rescued it from the clutches of stinky, green and furry, and it's sitting on Ally's bed, along with Ally who said that if two little girls want to hear a fairy tale before dinner, they better go to her room right away."

"Dat means almost wight now!" Baru toddler translated the English. "C'mon Maggie!"

Baru disappeared quickly round the corner with her twin in hot pursuit. Shelly smiled while listened to the thundering hooves of tiny toddlers as they headed for their big sister's room, taking one last look at their clean closet, she wondered how long would it be before she went round two with something icky, green, purple or pink and fuzzy.