Week 12 Story: This Little Piggy Got Hungry

"Betty Pringle had a little pig,

Not very little and not very big;

When he was alive he lived in clover;

But now he's gone, escaped from his owner.

So Billy Pringle he laid down and cried,

And Betty Pringle she got up an tried;

Searching for little piggy wiggy."

-Adaptation of a nursery rhyme

Betty Pringle traveled far and wide, searching for her piggy wiggy. They had been best friends growing up always sharing each others food and place to sleep. Betty Pringle was a pretty girl, with eyes like diamonds and hair like coiled gold. Her brother begged her not to go, but she left anyway searching for her piggy wiggy.

She looked under every stone and on top of every mountain but could not find her little pig. One day, a man in an old van pulled up beside her as she walked down the road offering to help her out. Betty Pringle being the small, naive child that she is took him up on her offer. She told the man all about her piggy wiggy and began to cry at the thought of him being dead. The man consoled her telling her that he knew exactly where her pig was and offered her some candy. This candy was strangely wrapped, but Betty Pringle was happy to have help on her search for her pig.

She asked the man for his name which he replied was Willy. Satisfied with the trustworthiness of her new friend she popped the candy in her mouth and noted a strange taste before quickly drifting off into a deep sleep...

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Betty Pringle woke up in a dark and dank room. The only light in the room was from the static on a TV in the corner. Confused about what happened she called out to her new friend that gave her the candy. The man rose from the armchair in the corner and whispered to her in the dark:

"Curly locks! curly locks! wilt thou be mine?
Thou shalt not wash dishes, nor yet feed the swine,
But sit on a cushion and sew a fine seam,
And feed upon strawberries, sugar, and cream!"

-From a  nursery rhyme

Finally becoming aware of the situation that she was in. Betty Pringle cried out:

"What age may I be? What age may I be?

My boy Willy?"
"Twice two, twice seven,
Twice ten, twice eleven:
But, oh! I'm too young
To be taken from my mammy."

-Adaptation of a nursery rhyme

Sobbing her eyes out, Willy felt distressed in her presence. He moved to comfort her, for she was his beloved. He felt that in his bones. He unchained her from the wall and began to rub her back. Before he knew it, Betty Pringle had tied the chain around his neck and it was lights out for Willy.

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Months had passed and Billy Pringle had not heard from his sister. The little pig returned from his adventure and waited anxiously for Betty to play. Billy decided to search for his sister. Searching far and wide, under every stone and on top of every mountain. Billy could not find her. One day he was walking down the street he got a chilling feeling when he passed an old house. He could tell his sister was close by. Tearing the house down, plank by plank. Billy came to a locked door leading to the basement.

Removing the lock, Billy entered. He retched at the stench, but he pressed on down the stairs into the cold, dank basement. The only light in the room was from the TV in the corner. Confused Billy called out for his sister. She rose from the armchair in the corner. Her golden hair was matted, and her face stained red. She carried a bone in her left hand:

"Betty Pringle so lost and single,
Eating a man bone;
How she gnawed it, how she clawed it,
When she found she was alone!"

-Adaptation of a nursery rhyme

Artwork of Anthony Hopkins' Hannibal Lecter

Author's Note: 

Poor Betty Pringle, what an adventure she has had. I took from four different nursery rhymes to create this story. I had to adapt a few to make them fit with the story. I have always found nursery rhymes to be creepy. As I was doing my reading this week, I could not help by draw connections between them as many have the same themes. I wanted to make this story as dark as possible. Making Betty Pringle a monster that is arguably worse than Willy was actually kind of fun and it reminded me of an expository writing class I took while here at OU called Modern Monsters. There have been many cases where people have survived for months from plane crashes or ship wrecks by eating the flesh of their fellow passengers. Most notably the Stella Maris College Rugby Team.

Bibliography:

The Nursery Rhyme Book. Andrew Lang