Ginger had never been afraid of her closet. At least, not during the day. During the day, it was just a closet.

It held her clothes, her shoes, a basket of things she rarely used, and several things she had completely forgotten she owned.

But at night, the closet looked different. Especially when the door was left open just a crack.

One evening, Ginger climbed into bed and pulled her quilt over her legs. She had just settled against her pillow when she noticed the closet door. It was open. Only a little.

Ginger stared at the narrow strip of darkness. “I thought I closed you,” she said. The closet did not answer. Of course it didn't. Closets couldn't talk.

Ginger reached over and switched off her lamp. For a few minutes, everything was quiet. Then— Rustle... rustle... Ginger opened her eyes. The sound had come from the closet. She sat up.

“Probably something falling off a hanger,” she whispered. Then, Ginger stared at the closet door. It moved. Just a little. Ginger pulled the quilt closer.

Shuffle... shuffle... Then came a very strange sound. Achoo! Ginger blinked. She had never heard of a closet sneezing before.

Slowly, she climbed out of bed. She stood in the middle of the room, looking at the door. “Hello?” Silence. Ginger took one step closer. Then another.

She had learned that imagining something frightening was often much worse than finding out what it really was. So she reached for the closet door. “One... two... three.” She pulled it open.

Something enormous moved behind her clothes. Ginger jumped backward.

Two big eyes appeared between a yellow shirt and a blue sweater. Then came two little horns. A large purple nose. And a great mop of shaggy purple fur.

Ginger's mouth fell open. A monster stepped forward. Then an arm appeared. And another. And another. Ginger counted. One. Two. Three. Four. Five. Six. The monster had six arms. And behind him, curling around a pile of shoes, was a long green tail.

Ginger stared at him. The monster stared at Ginger. Neither said anything.

Finally Ginger spoke. “You're in my closet.”

The monster looked around as though this had only just occurred to him. “So I am.” “Why?” The monster shrugged. With six arms, this was quite an impressive shrug. “I like closets.” “Why?” “They're cozy.”

Ginger looked past him. Her closet did not look particularly cozy.

Several shirts were hanging crookedly. A sweater had fallen onto the floor. One shoe was upside down, and three empty hangers were tangled together.

Then Ginger noticed something.nThe monster was holding one of her shirts. “What are you doing with my clothes?” The monster looked embarrassed. “I was organizing.” Ginger raised an eyebrow. “This is organizing?” “I didn't say I was good at it.” Ginger tried not to laugh.

The monster reached behind himself and pulled out a pink hat with a yellow flower. “What about this?”Ginger stared at it. “I forgot I had that.” “I didn't.”

He placed the hat carefully on Ginger's head. It slipped down over her eyes. The monster giggled. Ginger pushed it back.

“You have a lot of hands for someone who isn't very good at organizing.” The monster looked at his six furry arms. “That's actually part of the problem.” He tried to straighten three shirts at once. One slipped from its hanger. Another wrapped around one of his arms. A striped sock flew through the air and landed on his horn.

Ginger burst out laughing. The monster looked up at the sock. “I meant to do that.” “Of course you did.”

Ginger sat down on the floor beside him. “All right. If you're going to organize my closet, we're going to do it properly.”

The monster's eyes brightened. “You'll help?” “You're in my closet.” “That seems fair.”

Together they began. Ginger put her shoes in pairs while the monster gathered clothes.With six arms, he could hold a blue shirt, a green sweater, two socks, the flowered hat, and a pair of pajamas all at the same time. “Now that is useful,” Ginger said.

The monster beamed. They folded. They sorted. They hung shirts on hangers. They found two missing socks, a book Ginger had forgotten about, a purple sneaker she thought she had lost forever, and a tiny box filled with treasures she hadn't seen in years.

Every few minutes the monster discovered something interesting. “What is this?” “A scarf.” “What does it do?” “It keeps your neck warm.” He wrapped it around all six arms.

Ginger laughed. “That isn't your neck.” “Oh.”

A little later he held up a belt. “And this?” “A belt.” The monster put it around his head. Ginger shook her head.

“We have a lot of work to do.” By the time they finished, Ginger's closet looked better than it had in a very long time.

Shoes were lined neatly along the floor. Clothes hung straight. Sweaters were folded. And the things Ginger had forgotten about were where she could find them again.

The monster sat back proudly. “I think we make a good team.” Ginger looked around. “I think we do too.”

Then she noticed his smile disappear. “What is it?” The monster looked toward the open closet door. “Do I have to leave now?”

Ginger hadn't thought about that. “Where would you go?” The monster shrugged. “Another closet, I suppose.” Ginger looked at him. At his shaggy purple fur.y His two little horns. His six helpful—and occasionally troublesome—arms. And his long green tail curled around his feet.

She had an idea. “Wait here.”

Ginger found a small piece of cardboard and some crayons. She worked for several minutes while the monster watched.

Then she punched two little holes in the top, threaded a string through them, and hung the sign on the closet door. The monster leaned forward to read it.

CLOSET HELPER AT WORK

Underneath, Ginger drew a little heart. The monster's enormous eyes grew even wider.

“Is that me?” “That's you.” “You mean I can stay?” Ginger smiled. “As long as you follow the rules.”

The monster sat up straight. “What rules?” “No sneezing loudly in the middle of the night.” He nodded. “No throwing socks.” Another nod. “No wearing my clothes without asking.”

The monster slowly removed the flowered hat from his head.

“And,” Ginger added, “if you're going to be my Closet Helper, you actually have to help.” The monster grinned. “I can do that.” Ginger climbed back into bed.

Before switching off the lamp, she looked toward the closet. The monster was already straightening a row of hangers.

“With only two hands,” Ginger called. He looked down at his six arms. “That's going to be difficult.” “Try.”Four arms folded behind his back. Very carefully, he straightened one shirt. Then another.

Ginger smiled and turned off the light.

From then on, Ginger never worried when she heard a rustle from her closet at night. Some times it was a hanger.

Sometimes it was a shoe falling over. And some times it was a six-armed purple monster trying very hard not to sneeze.

Every morning, Ginger's closet was just a little tidier. Well...mornings.

And whenever Ginger saw the little sign hanging on the door— CLOSET HELPER AT WORK

—she smiled.

Because Ginger had learned that sometimes the things hiding in dark places aren't there to frighten us. Sometimes they're simply waiting for someone to open the door.