Everyone told Ellie not to take the job babysitting the Christianson kids. That weird things happened in that house. That they were bossy, controlling, and treated their nannies like toys. But whenever Ellie asked for specifics, tried to get more information, they clammed up. Taking the stories as tall tales, she decided to take the job.

And things were fine! Yes, Henry was a bit insistent that they play pirates, taking Ellie hostage on his cardboard box boat. Yes, it was a bit odd that he made her serve food to his toy crew. But it wasn’t like Ellie didn’t know how to handle some imaginative playtime.

When Henry assembled his crew of bears, astronauts, and knights, telling them they were off to find the Serpent’s Stash, Ellie was with them. Standing there she wondered at the way she could begin to smell the salty sea, feel the bob of the boat, and hear the roll of the waves. Wondered at the way the box had become a pirate ship, just as Henry claimed it was. Wondered at the way she was dressed like a pirate.

Off they sailed, going from room to room, ransacking, raiding, making a mess of everything. Shouldn’t Ellie be stopping this? She wondered to herself while turning over the contents of a toy box, looking for any booty she could find. Maybe she should, but her captain had ordered Ellie to find the treasure map, and that took priority. After what seemed like an hour of pillaging, Henry triumphantly produced a map, and the pirates were off, raiding the furthest location on it: St. Christianson Isle.

Once they arrived and found the island deserted, the toys fanned out, and it was Ellie who first saw the treasure, glinting with jewels and pieces of eight. She had strict orders to wait for Henry before touching the booty, but it looked so real, so shiny, and pretty. Besides, she was a pirate now, and she began to scoop treasure into her pirate hat.

“What ye be doin’, Ellie!” Henry said behind her, “that treasure be cursed! It’ll turn ye into a sea serpent!”

That’s when Ellie understood what everyone had told her about the Christianson kids. About the way they were bossy, controlling, and treated their nannies like toys. Because she grew a suit of scales, her hands became plush clawed gloves, and legs wrapped inside a long, slithering tail.

“Henry! What’ssss happening to me!” She said, for just a moment, breaking character, seeing the world for what it really was. Seeing the deserted island as Mr. Christianson’s office.

But when the pirate captain spoke again, she was right back in his world. “It’s the sea serpent, lads! Attack!”

The battle commenced, Ellie becoming the fearsome sea serpent. How dare they come to her island! How dare they try and take her treasure! She eviscerated teddy bears with her claws, shrugged off nerf cannon balls with her scales, and capsized the boat with her long tail.

“That’s enough!” A voice boomed, and the world of imagination broke into a million, sparkling pieces. Mr. Christianson stood there, having returned from work. The island became an office again, the toys fell to the ground, the box of treasure became a box of cards. And Ellie remained a sea serpent, but one made of plush, and which couldn’t move without Henry’s animating imagination.

“You’ve made a mess everywhere in the house! Your sisters are furious, your nanny is nowhere to be found, and you broke into my card collection!”

“Keep it up, and I’ll start donating them to the Goodwill,” he said, pointing right at Ellie’s frozen, still surprised, serpent form, “starting with that one.”