Extra Credit Microfiction: Mr. Miacca and Misbehaving Tommy

Little Tommy was not a good child. He lived in a wonderful house with his parents and little sister. His sister was the definition of a good child, always pleasing her parents. Tommy, on the other hand, always misbehaved. He would steal. He would bully the little neighborhood kids. He sometimes would run away in the middle of the chase after the squirrels and rabbits in his park. His parents would warn him that he had better watch out for Mr. Miacca, who would take bad kids in the middle of the night to feast on them. Little Tommy did not believe in this story. One night, he wanted to confront Mr. Miacca by rounding up as many squirrels and rabbits as he can and locked them up. His sister pleaded with him to stop but Tommy scared her home. Little Tommy was never seen the morning after. His sister was left with a toy rabbit on her windowsill.

Author's Note: This story was derived from the many tales of Mr. Miacca, according to English Fairy Tales by Joseph Jacobs. In the story, Tommy Grimes was a misbehaving kid that was about to be eaten by Mr. Miacca, who was known to feast on misbehaving children. However, Tommy narrowly escaped and never misbehaved again. I retold the story and included details such as Tommy's sister, who never misbehaved. This was to show that Mr. Miacca not only punished misbehaving children but also rewarded those who did behave! I also changed the setting as well as various other details to give more depth to the plot.

(Mr. Miacca Ready to Eat the Misbehaving Tommy. Source: Jacobs)