Sophie Carr (Year 10) has written a short story to try to help others make sense of the thoughts that those who suffer from Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD) and other mental health issues face every day. This powerful story about Little Mouse will resonate with a wide audience – well done Sophie!

If enough people believe a liar, what they say will become the truth. Sometimes, Little Mouse believed the liar. For the liar was a dragon who was big and scary with scales and wings, and horns and a mouth that breathed fire. Little Mouse felt like she had to believe and do what the dragon said. And although Little Mouse occasionally tried to stand up to the dragon, it was too hard. Little Mouse felt weak and, well, little. She thought she was just too small to stand up to such a big monster. When the dragon told its lies, Little Mouse did what it said to make the lies go away. The dragon would open its wings wide and breathe red, ferocious flames. The dragon ordered Little Mouse to go up the mountain three times a day, if she wanted the lies to go away.

She wasn’t afraid of the dragon, but of what it told her, and it was often easier to give into it. But as Little Mouse did what the dragon said, the dragon got stronger, and Little Mouse got weaker. The dragon told all sorts of lies to Little Mouse and made her do more and more and more. Within a few weeks, Little Mouse had to go up the mountain 9 times a day which exhausted her.

The lies made her sad, so she made them go away by doing what the dragon said. But doing what the dragon said also made her sad. It took up lots of her time and the lies didn’t really leave her. As soon as she made one go away, the dragon thought of a new one. Soon, the dragon forced Little Mouse to travel the mountain 81 times in one day. To this, Little Mouse tried to fight back and argue with the dragon, but rarely seemed to win. She was tired with trying to beat the dragon and it drained lots of her energy. She was a smart Little Mouse, and her brain power was being wasted on the dragon and its lies.

It got worse for Little Mouse. She felt surrounded by all the lies and they were on her mind every day. She needed help. She couldn’t fight the dragon all by herself and she needed someone to help her find her strength. Little Mouse knew of people she could get help from. There were 5 knights who were perfectly willing to fight the dragon with her. But Little Mouse was made so upset by the dragons lies, and she didn’t want the knights to be made upset too.

But the knights knew something was wrong with Little Mouse. They could see she was hurting. The knights spoke to her, and she spoke to them. She told them one of the scariest lies the dragon had told her which was hard for Little Mouse. It made the knights sad and Little Mouse was worried. But the knights reassured her that she had done the right thing by sharing. Little Mouse sometimes thought that a problem shared was a problem doubled. But the knights explained that it was just halved, and that they would help her fight the dragon. They were sad because they cared so much about Little Mouse and wanted her to be happy.

The Knights gave Little Mouse a helmet and sword and trained her, so that when she encountered the dragon again, she would know what to do and have the strength to stand up to the dragon. They helped her understand that the lies were just that: lies. They weren’t true, and so she didn’t have to listen to the dragon or do what it said. She could ignore it as the dragon had no real power over Little Mouse. And once she started to ignore the dragon, it grew smaller and smaller and Little Mouse grew bigger and bigger in strength. The knights supported her, and she slayed the dragon.

If enough people believe a liar, what they say will seem like the truth. But sometimes, things are not what they seem. Sometimes, little mice slay dragons.