Pleasantly Raising Cain

Monsters

"It's under the bed...."

Sophie Pleasant watched anxiously as Valkyrie Cain flicked the light switch on the wall, plunging the room into darkness. Sophie had never said anything, but she had always hated the dark. Her fear had grown in the last few days when she had seen some scary things in her bedroom.

The first night it had been footsteps on the carpet coming towards her bed. The second night, it had been creepy shadows near her door, although no one was standing there. The third night, something had whispered to her, directly next to her ear, saying her name and other things that Sophie couldn't understand. The fourth night the thing had been staring at her from the side of her bed, staring at her with its eyes, although instead of eyeballs, it had pitch black holes. That was the night that Sophie had almost screamed out for help, but then the thing had whispered for her not to. She hadn't made a sound. The fifth night, it touched her. The thing grabbed her ankle, and tried to pull her off the bed. Sophie had struggled, and fought back, eventually winning. The thing had gone away got a little while, until it had come back for more. Sophie had watched it crawl across the floor towards her and it told her not to scream and tried to drag her towards the cupboard. She had won again.

His little whispers
Love me, love me
That's all I ask for
Love me, love me

Sophie had not said anything to her parents, she didn't want to sound like a complete psycho. She was sure it was just her imagination playing tricks on her, but now she wasn't so sure. Not after having the thing grab her and try to take her away. No, Sophie was sure that had been real. Nonetheless, she really hated bedtime now.

Sophie watched, frozen in terror, as Valkyrie closed her bedroom door. It clicked shut, and there was silence for a few minutes. Sophie knew what was going to happen now. Soon, the thing would come back again and do something scary.

He battered his tiny fists
To feel something
Wondering what it's like
To touch and feel something

Sophie pulled the covers up to her chin and held them tight. More silence, then....

Whispering.

Sophie whimpered softly, and clutched the covers close. She heard the creak and groan of the cupboard door as the thing opened it and crawled out. Sophie didn't blink, she didn't move, she was frozen in pure terror, and she watched the thing stand up and stumble towards her.

It whispered again and grabbed her by the shoulders, yanked her out of bed. Sophie screamed, and immediately regretted it. She heard the thing falter, and growl. Then, the sound of footsteps from the stairs echoed through the house...

Monster
How should I feel
Creatures lie here
Looking through the window

Sophie looked around as her bedroom door smashed open and Skulduggery Pleasant and Valkyrie Cain stormed inside. Skulduggery had his gun in his hand, and Valkyrie had energy crackling in her palms. They stopped short when they saw their daughter on the floor, with the bed sheets strewn everywhere. Skulduggery lowered the gun and Valkyrie closed her palm, the energy disappearing.

Sophie sobbed quietly. The thing was gone, but she knew where it was. It was underneath her bed now, hiding from her parents.

That night he caged her
Bruised and broke her
He struggled closer
Then he stole her

"Sophie what's wrong?" Valkyrie asked. Sophie looked up, a single tear running down her cheek.

"The thing, it tried to take me away," the little girl answered.