《Sir Teddy - The Brave Bear is Lost Under the Princess´ Bed》


 RAIN

    The heavy raindrops kept on falling nonstop. They kept hammering the neighbourhood¡äs many roofs ceaselessly, with an eerie stubborness that only Mother Nature herself could be proud of.


    The rain had in fact become so bad that Layla could not see anything when she tried to look through the window. Not that the streets of the small suburb offered an engaging view, since no group of kids would come down the block riding their bikes at this late hour (especially not in the middle of that storm). The foggy windows didn¡ät bother the girl so much, but the loud thunderbolts kept scaring her through the night.


    It wasn¡ät fair for a young girl to be home alone in a rainy night such as this. Her parents had picked the worst night possible to go on a dinner date, and there was no nanny available. Well, to be fair, Layla was the one who had insisted she didn¡ät need someone to keep her company. She wasn¡ät a kid anymore (she was almost 13, mind you!), but dark nights like this one had a bizarre way to make her feel like she was 6 again. The girl was living through a weird phase where she still liked to climb on trees and play hide and seek, but boys had stopped being annoying and disgusting. Some even made her laugh and blush, it was so weird.


    Layla had put up her light brown hair in a ponytail and was wearing the light blue pajamas her mother had picked for her last month. She had yet to develop a sense for fashion, but she thought it was cute and liked to wear it on cold nights. The raging sound of thunder made she get away from the window at once, as she got back to her bed and embraced the old, plain-looking teddy bear on top of it.


    ¡°Looks like we¡äre alone for a few more hours, Sir Teddy. I¡äm counting on you to protect me.¡±, she spoke out loud, while her voice was almost drowned out by the heavy rain.


    The girl looked at the stuffed toy for a moment and smiled.


    ¡°Leave it to me, Princess. I¡äll protect you with my life.¡±, she heard herself answering with a heavy accent while making the small bear¡äs head move with her own hands.


    She rarely did this anymore (and she wouldn¡ät be caught dead doing it in front of other people, especially boys), but talking to Sir Teddy like this had a calming effect that she had enjoyed for as long as she could remember. When she was younger, she did it all the time, whenever she was sad or scared. Her Dad thought it was silly, but her Mom would almost always join in and talk to Sir Teddy, as Layla would gladly role play as the brave little knight with no hesitation.


    ¡°Have you been lonely? I¡äm sorry I don¡ät play with you as much anymore, it¡äs just¡­¡±, she looked at her old friend with eyes filled with nostalgia, but couldn¡ät really complete the sentence.


    Maybe I¡äm just getting too old for this silly bullshit.


    I should just put him into a box already. I¡äm almost 13!


    Her own face twitched at the thought. It¡äs not that it was wrong¡­ but somehow facing that harsh reality head on bothered her.


    She felt uncomfortable.


    As if this present version of her was mocking the Layla from one or two years ago, who would fight tooth and nail against such a cruel idea and scream that she would never get rid of her dear friend in such a way.


    ¡°I was really attached to you, you know?¡±, she let out a little smile, embracing the teddy bear. ¡°You¡äre still the best toy I¡äve ever had.¡±


    It was true. Even if she was outgrowing toys in general, it was still weird to imagine herself sleeping without Sir Teddy by her side (especially after watching some horror movie on cable TV).


    ¡°Want to come to the kitchen with me?¡±, Layla asked.Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    ¡°Wherever you go, I¡äll follow, Princess.¡±, her own voice answered.


    Geez, she was enjoying this more than she should!


    With the stuffed animal in her arms, she climbed down the stairs outside her room slowly and got to the kitchen after hurrying through the living room. It took more time than expected to find the light switch, and the thought of being home alone in the dark made her shudder. Every small noise was like an unknown creature lurking in the empty, vast kitchen that seemed so cozy and inviting when bathed by the morning sunlight. She held Sir Teddy tightly.


    ¡°I know. You¡äre here with me.¡±


    After a few more tries, she finally turned on the lights, almost sighing with relief. After going to the fridge and drinking some cold water, she decided to go back to her room without turning off the lights on the way back. If her parents dared to complain about it, she would just tell them it was their own fault for taking so long to come back.


    What was so special about having dinner without her, to begin with? Would they talk about adult stuff all the time? That sounded very boring.


    Layla climbed up the stairs quickly, thinking about what funny videos she could watch on her phone to forget about the fear, but when she entered her bedroom, her whole body shivered. Maybe she screamed, it was hard to know. A girl was undoubtedly screaming, but she could not recognize her own voice or feel the muscles in her face moving.


    She was completely paralyzed.


    The thing in front of her was like a shadow, but not really. It was big and bulky and animal-like. Its eyes were too big for its head and its face was really weird. Was that a long nose or a bird-like beak?


    It¡äs a monster!


    That childlike thought was, ironically, undeniable and absolute. It was a monster, indeed. It was crawling out of her bed like a living shadow, and it reeked an awful smell like she had never experienced before. The closest thing would be the dead dog she saw on her way to school last year. It had been run over by a car and it smelled so bad it had been engulfed by flies, but it was still nothing compared to this.


    This thing had a smell too rotten to be alive and moving.


    As this weird creature kept creeping closer and closer, Layla¡äs whole body began to tremble. There was a primal urge inside her to run like mad, and her lower abdomen was clenching so hard she thought she would piss herself right then and there, standing on the doorway¡­ but even so, her feet could not leave the floor. They were stuck and grounded like trees. Maybe it was instinct. Maybe it was too much horror movies.


    I can¡ät outrun it. I just know so.


    The moment I turn my back to this thing, it¡äs over.


    It will catch me.


    The creature stood on what seemed to be two legs.


    Although it was hard to call them legs, since most of its body was covered by a large and dark cloak that kept swaying around as if this menace had no bones or spine to worry about.


    Large claws sprung directly from its hands, and Layla could see now that she was staring at a bird mask that uselessly concealed empty and dark spheres that could hardly be described as eyes.


    It made a sound.


    A deep, viscous inhuman breath.


    Layla gasped in response.


    Her eyes were already wet with tears by the time she felt her arms lose strength. Sir Teddy fell to the ground, but she couldn¡ät even look at him. The shadowy monster was so close to her now that her voice had started to come off in small hiccups, and Layla wasn¡ät sure if she was trying to talk or just breath.


    Mom, please come back.


    Dad, please come back.


    I¡äM SO SCARED¡­!


    HELP!


    SOMEONE HELP ME!


    The creature moved suddenly, but instead of lunging at her, it retreated a few steps, alarmed. Such an unexpected action made Layla fall out of her trance for a moment, as she looked down to see what made the creature so wary.


    ¡°Eh¡­?!¡±


    Sir Teddy had gotten up by himself.


    He was moving, brimming with life, something no mere stuffed toy could ever do.


    The little bear was standing fiercely, without needing any support, and had clearly positioned himself between Layla and the monster.


    ¡°Leave it to me, Princess.¡±, he said.


    That¡äs not my voice, Layla could not stop herself from thinking, while her eyes widened as much as humanly possible.


    The voice that came out from the teddy bear¡äs mouth was the one she had always imagined in her head, and always tried to imitate when roleplaying.


    She had uttered those words so many times!


    And that¡äs exactly the reason she was able to tell what he would say next. With no hesitation or any hint of fear, Sir Teddy declared:


    ¡°I will protect you with my life.¡±

 BEAR

    He could not feel pain.


    Since he was a stuffed toy made of cotton, Sir Teddy did not suffer when the enemy¡äs large claws pierced through his tiny body.


    Not that it mattered.


    Whether he was in pain or not was irrelevant, to be quite honest.


    He had been completely defeated.


    Sir Teddy spent a long time staring at the ceiling, not because it was particularly interesting, but because he had no other choice. He was lying on the ground, his body destroyed and torn apart in several pieces that had been scattered all over the bedroom.


    The stuffed animal kept paying attention to any noise that could warn him that Layla¡äs parents had finally come back home, but the rain had stopped and the streets were completely silent.


    He had a vague idea as to what was taking them so long: human couples sometimes needed some time for themselves, away from their children, to remember what made them fall in love in the first place. At least that¡äs what he had learned from watching stories from the Shiny Magic Box the family kept in the living room.


    But this situation was bad.


    The worst ever.


    Layla was his owner. His best friend. Watching her being grabbed by her ankles and dragged away by that rotten creature was just¡­!


    I¡äm disgusted at my own incompetence.


    It was certainly strange.


    That was not the first bogeyman Sir Teddy had ever encountered: most stuffed animals like him could feel the evil presence of a bogeyman from a mile away, so protecting their human owners during the night was a pretty simple task. Whether the enemies came from under the bed or from inside a wardrobe, these creatures were almost always meek and fearful, so sending them back to wherever they came from was generally a mere matter of cunning intimidation and standing your ground.


    It was a staring contest similar to two wild animals sizing each other up. Most of the time the kids involved would not even wake up as the whole situation took place. They would never find out that they had been protected from danger.


    But tonight was different.


    Way too different, in fact.


    The enemy was strong and evil and Old.


    Its presence was that of an ancient, long forgotten demonic powerhouse that should never be able to enter the Realm of Humans, so full of light and warmth and bright colors.


    The creepy monster who wore a bird-mask had ripped Sir Teddy apart easily, with a single blow, and then dragged Layla to that place.


    Under the Bed.


    The little bear had heard the stories. Most toys were not exactly sure of what they would encounter if they ever ventured in that dangerous place that connected the worlds of humans and monsters. What he knew was that it was almost impossible to come back, and it was not rare for certain children (and their stuffed guardians) to completely vanish from this world and never be found again.


    Their disappearances would forever remain as mysteries that no human detective would ever be able to solve.


    Adults did not believe in monsters that crawled in the dark, after all.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    Even though any kid could tell you that a room becomes scarier when the lights go out, as soon as they grow up a little, they become unable to admit it to themselves. ¡°There¡äs nothing in the dark¡±, they will say, feeling ashamed about their fears.


    But there will always be kids that will swear they saw or heard something in the shadows of their bedrooms.


    That unshakable reality is what kept the stories about boogeymen and goblins and slendermen from disappearing, as they kept being passed on from generation to generation, as a warning to all children and all stuffed toys: <u>be wary in the dark</u>.


    Even so, he had to go.


    That was his Will and his Nature: even compared to other stuffed toys, who were diligent protectors, Sir Teddy was loyal to a fault.


    He would bring Layla back.


    This was not only about his sense of duty or pride: he really loved that girl.


    The sound of her desperate screams as she was dragged through the room kept ringing in his cotton ears as a reminder of his failure, and he could not wait to correct that shameful mistake.


    What was taking him so long, then, you may ask? Well, his body was destroyed, and he had no time to wait for Layla¡äs Mom to repair him with her gentle and skilled needle before getting back up. So he had to heal himself the old fashioned way: slowly but surely, the pieces of his body were crawling across the room, all magically attracted by his head and torso. Those main parts were working as a nucleus at the center of the ritual. The little balls of cotton would roll fast across the floor, quickly reassembling his body, but the bigger parts, like his legs, would take a long time to move, slithering like snakes, as it took every ounce of his willpower to drag them closer to the main body.


    Come.


    You want to save her, don¡ät you all?


    You are all Me.


    Every little piece, and every little speck of dust.


    We all exist for a single purpose.


    So come. Crawl to me.


    Let Us be Whole again.


    He knew this action was strictly forbidden, as any human that watched such a scene would instantly be scared out of his mind and assume the poor toy had become a cursed item, but he was in a hurry. He also knew not every toy was capable of this: Sir Teddy was pretty sure toys like him were a small minority, as he had encountered plenty of stuffed animals and dolls and shiny objects that had no Voice, and could never protect their precious owners at night.


    They were hollow.


    The little bear finally got back up, but his legs felt shaky and weak, as if connected merely by wishful thinking. That was precisely the case: right now Sir Teddy was a bundle of cotton held up entirely by his own mental strength. He needed to be sewed up to move efficiently, since his present form, all destroyed and messy, would not last long.


    He could not find one of his eyes, and the huge blind spot on the left side of his point of view was a huge annoyance. Sir Teddy tried to walk but fell forward, his face meeting the floor.


    Worthless. You¡äre such a piece of trash.


    Harsh words. He had heard this kind of remark more times than he could remember. He was not a videogame. Not shiny, colourful, or entertaining enough. He was a simple toy from a simpler time, that could only be useful with the help of a lot of creativity and childish imagination.


    From now on, your name will be Sir Teddy.


    Layla¡äs voice came back to him.


    She was 7 at the time. She was dressed as a princess. It was her birthday, and her hands were still wounded, but she was smiling.


    The girl didn¡ät have a sword, so she used a spoon. She touched both his shoulders and his forehead, imitating something she saw on the Shiny Magic Box.


    Now you¡äre my knight. A bear knight.


    And she laughed, like that was the funniest thing ever, a child¡äs laugh that was silly and pure at the same time.


    Oh, yeah. That¡äs true, isn¡ät it?


    Sir Teddy got up.


    I¡äm a knight.


    You know that too, right, legs?


    So get on with it.


    MOVE.


    He started to walk.


    He could not remember how long it took him to go all the way to the parents¡ä bedroom, find Layla¡äs Mom sewing kit, and patch himself up in an amateurish way. He felt clumsy.


    At least now his cotton would not spew up in front of him every time he moved, so it was better than nothing. The stuffed toy looked at himself in the mirror, and frowned.


    His body was completely covered by aggressive sewing marks. Long trails of stitches that looked like bizarre scars.


    He looked scary. Not cute at all. He hoped Layla would be able to recognize him later.


    The way back to his owner¡äs bedroom was much easier, as he could move with more freedom. He stuck several of the Mom¡äs needles into his own belly to use as weapons if needed, and grabbed the Dad¡äs new flashlight, knowing it could prove useful.


    Sir Teddy stared at the Bed, and suddenly it occurred to this small bear that a dangerous adventure was waiting for him at the end of a few more steps.


    He hated the thought.


    He was not an adventurer, not in the least.


    He liked comfy nights watching the Shiny Magic Box while Layla ate popcorn and drank soda. He liked the smell of books and hot chocolate. A ¡°good adventure¡±, to him, was something like being taken to the bathroom and getting soaked whenever Layla dragged him into the bathtub. Layla¡äs Mom would always get mad and scold her daughter, but the Princess would laugh and say it was a Knight¡äs duty to follow her to any place.


    To any place, he thought, bitterly.


    He smelled the sweet fragrance of the carpet, knowing that maybe he would never see this room again.


    Sir Teddy went Under the Bed.

 SCARY

    How long had it been since he had started falling?


    A minute? A few hours? A human¡äs entire lifetime?


    The little bear kept sinking in the empty void for so long he eventually lost all track of time and thought.


    He had only walked a few steps under the Princess¡ä bed before his cotton feet were swallowed by a bottomless pit.


    This isn¡ät the first time.


    Sir Teddy had fallen before. From the sofa. From the kitchen¡äs table. From the window. From the top of a tree. In hard places. In soft places. In clean places and dirty places.


    This is nothing special.


    The horror of falling could not break his will, because Sir Teddy was made of cotton. The fear of spending lifetimes unable to do anything did not scare him, because he was used to the hardships of staying still and pretending he could not move.


    So he waited.


    For an eternity, he waited.


    Eventually, the darkness gave up from trying to crush his spirit, and allowed the stuffed toy to get to his destination. It was like waking up from a bad dream: he was lying on the ground, looking at the bloody red sky, full of eerie thunder clouds.


    Had he fell from that vast sky, like a shooting star?


    Sir Teddy got up and looked around. So Layla was here? The little bear was surrounded by an ugly forest that reeked of pure malice. Owls with crooked heads and unequal eyes chirped mockingly at him, and squirrels with cunning faces and multiple tails rubbed their hands together from the top of large rocks shaped like human heads.


    Disgusting.


    I have to take her back home.


    This is not where she belongs.


    The Princess liked cute and colourful and soft things. Plushies and beds and cupcakes and kittens and dresses. This mockery of the Human Realm, with its perverted animals and bizarre landscape, belonged into a person¡äs nightmare. Such a place should never become reality.


    He barely walked a hundred steps before things got even worse. Most of the large trees that surrounded him were ugly and hungry. Their evil faces and crooked mouths danced with ill intentions as he walked by them. Some trees outright stuck their big green tongues out of their mouths and tried to lick him, others would order him to leap into their mouths, as if it was the natural and generous thing to do.


    ¡°Hey, little bear, come here.¡±


    ¡°No, no, here!¡±


    ¡°You look so delicious. I want to taaaaste you!¡±


    ¡°I won¡ät chew. You won¡ät feel pain! Come, why would I lie?¡±


    How annoying. The trees Layla liked to climb in the Human Realm had no faces or mouths or tongues. They were peaceful and serene beings, very different from these rabid ruffians.


    Fortunately, they were still trees after all, and could not move freely to attack him. Their only choice was to taunt Sir Teddy as he walked by them.


    However, the only tree that made the little bear stop in his tracks and turn around to look and was completely silent. This tree had a large face, old and wrinkled and full of sorrow, and its mouth was open, but it did not utter any sounds. Worse yet, it seemed like it was crying. Fat, large tears of some red liquid kept pouring out of its huge bulging eyes. So disturbing! Yet, there was a reason why Sir Teddy¡äs lone eye could not wander away from that tree.


    What is this¡­!


    From every single one of the tree¡äs many branches, a small stuffed toy was hanging like a dried out corpse with a rope around its neck. Each and every one of them was tortured and butchered beyond recognition.


    So many of them¡­ how could this be?


    Were they just like him? Loyal toys that came to this place to rescue their owners? Most likely. They had arrived in this evil Realm with noble goals. And yet, here they were, destroyed and humiliated, unable to save their loved ones, hanging like carcasses to serve as a warning to future intruders.


    Sir Teddy was shaking.


    ¡°Just like me¡±?


    Did I really think that for a second?


    No way.


    Don¡ät be ridiculous.


    There¡äs no way I¡äm going to end up like this!


    Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.


    ¡°One more, one more? You never learn, do you?¡±


    The voice came from above, and forced the agitated bear look up. It came from a big fat crow that used another bird¡äs skull as a helmet to hide its own face.


    ¡°You Cotton Ones are really stupid! You keep coming to get the Meat Ones back, like it¡äs going to change anything. But that¡äs how you always end up. Torn apart! They dismember you, then piss on you, then hang you where everyone can see.¡±


    ¡°¡­ why?¡±, Sir Teddy asked.


    ¡°Because they caaa~n. You¡äre not in Kansas anymo~re! This is not the silly world of humans where you Cotton Ones can stuff your chests with pride and tell the monsters to go a~way. This is our territory! You¡äre not welcome!¡±


    ¡°I see. I guess it¡äs only fair.¡±, the little bear sighed, and started to walk among the stuffed toys that hang above him like bizarre ornaments.


    ¡°Ooooo~h? Aren¡ät you mad?¡±


    ¡°Yes.¡±, Sir Teddy answered, looking for the toys that had pockets or zippers on their bodies. ¡°But I don¡ät have time to dwell on it too much. My owner¡äs waiting.¡±


    The crow laughed. The sound was like nails meeting a chalkboard.


    ¡°It¡äs always the same with you Cotton Ones! Gotta protect my kid, you say! Such a pathetic existence! That little shit doesn¡ät even care about you! And you¡äre going to sacrifice yourself for some snot-nosed human? You¡äre just a slaaaa~ve!¡±


    The little bear stopped moving for a second, and looked up.


    ¡°You shouldn¡ät have said that.¡±


    ¡°Oh? Did I hit a nerve? Are you offended, Cotton Slave?¡±


    Sir Teddy shook his head.


    ¡°I pay no attention to your boring rambling. But you said bad things about the Princess. So I will kill you.¡±


    A moment of nervous silence went by before the bird started to laugh again:


    ¡°And how do you mean to do that, fool? I can fly! Even if you try to climb this tree, once you get close, I can just run away! What an empty threat! Are you an idi~oooot?¡±


    Sir Teddy ignored him, going back to his search. He checked the pockets and zippers of the defeated toys. Only two of the hanged victims were still carrying something in their bodies: a pink elephant whose face had been burned beyond recognition, and a bear, just like him, that had both eyes gouged out and both legs ripped off.


    ¡°What are you doing? Do you really think there¡äs anything useful down there? You think these shits would have been left here carrying any good weapons? Sooo stuuu~pid!¡±


    The bear had a picture in his pocket: it was dusty, but Sir Teddy could see a little girl embracing the stuffed animal, while being embraced herself by a couple of adults. They all seemed happy.


    She seems like a good owner. You did a good job.


    Sir Teddy wrapped the picture in his own little pocket and turned to the pink elephant, opening the zipper he had on his back. A spoon fell to the ground.


    A spoon, eh?


    Was he also declared a knight?


    The thought was sarcastic and bitter, but even so, when Sir Teddy turned around, ready to leave that old useless spoon lying there on the ground, his body froze.


    Tch.


    Why did you fail, then?


    Sir Teddy picked up the spoon and put it into his own pocket. His face became sour and tired.


    Your Princess was waiting for you.


    ¡°A picture! A spoon! Such foolishness! So useless! Oh, great hero, tell me how you¡äre going to save anyone with this garbage as your equipment!¡±, the crow was laughing at the top of its lungs. He was having fun mocking that strange, grumpy bear. When that new intruder just turned around and started to walk away from the tree, the bird felt disappointed.


    ¡°Going away so soon? Weren¡ät you going to kill me? I thought you¡äd at least entertain me a little, but you¡äre all talk, aren¡ät you?¡±


    It happened so fast the crow could not react.


    He felt a deep stab right into his chest and coughed. Every feather in his body became pointy and rustled at the same time. Horrible gasping sounds left his beak, and he fell from the tree, lifeless, with a sewing needle buried deep into his small heart. A sewing needle that had been thrown like a spear, hitting its target with scary precision.


    ¡°You killed him!¡±, shouted one tree, laughing.


    ¡°From so far away!¡±, another one replied in an excited way.


    ¡°He had it coming, that fat bird!¡±, a third one singed.


    ¡°Where can I find the children that are brought here?¡±, Sir Teddy asked, walking towards the giggling trees that spoke to him.


    The evil plants laughed louder.


    ¡°You think we¡äre going to help you? Maybe if you let me eat an arm or a leg!¡±


    ¡°Me too! I will definitely tell you what you want to know if you give me one bite!¡±


    ¡°Even if you¡äre an ugly and ragged bear, full of stitches and holes, all worn out and stinky and trashy, I¡äll do you a favour and accept a piece of you!¡±


    They laughed and mocked him, dancing around with their trunks and branches, but unable to leave their roots behind.


    Suddenly, one of the trees started screaming in pain.


    ¡°STOP IT! STOP IT! I can¡ät close my eye!¡±


    ¡°I thought so. That¡äs why I¡äm doing this.¡±, the teddy bear answered, matter-of-factly, touching the tree¡äs bizarre eye with a flashlight. The very bright white light of that utensil created by humans was being completely directed at the large pupil of the talking tree.


    ¡°YOU¡äRE BLINDING ME, YOU PIECE OF TRASH! IT HURTS! IT HURTS!¡±


    Sir Teddy did not stop.


    ¡°Answer my question.¡±


    ¡°So cruel! What are you doing to her?¡±, another tree screamed, sounding really worried.


    ¡°You¡äre terrible! We hate you! We won¡ät tell you anything!¡±


    ¡°I¡äm going to eat you, you little shit!¡±


    They all kept complaining, but Sir Teddy didn¡ät even turn around to look at the other trees. He continued to methodically fry that huge eye with the intense white light, until it became red and tired and sick.


    ¡°STOOOOP! PLEASE, COTTON ONE, I BEG YOU!¡±


    ¡°I told you to answer my question.¡±


    ¡°Right, I¡äll tell you! I¡äll tell you!¡±, the tree had started to cry and moan. ¡°Just stop, please!!!¡±


    ¡°Don¡ät tell him shit! Be strong!¡±, the neighbour tree was clearly furious. It was trying to no avail to grab Sir Teddy with its branches. But it was useless, since the teddy bear was right outside their reach.


    ¡°Fool, you think we¡äre scared from your stupid magic light?¡±


    ¡°What are you gonna do, blind us all, one by one?¡±


    Sir Teddy turned his head to stare at the tree that had spoken last. The tree gulped after noticing the stuffed bear¡äs lone eye focusing on her.


    ¡°If I have to.¡±


    The trees roared in response:


    ¡°Your magic can¡ät last forever! You¡äre bluffing!¡±


    Sir Teddy kept his composure.


    ¡°Are you willing to find out if I¡äm bluffing or not?¡±


    Now some of the trees were audibly gasping. Their rage was quickly turning into fear.


    ¡°Calm down, everyone. Let¡äs just tell him already!¡±, one of the trees declared, with a big grin appearing on its freaky face. ¡°There¡äs no harm in just giving him the right directions, right?¡±


    That sly grin was quickly copied by the other trees.


    Oh, that¡äs right!


    It was so obvious.


    They could just lie! Send him far away! Send him to some dangerous place, a trap from where he could not return!


    ¡°Yes, let¡äs tell him!¡±


    ¡°I agree!¡±


    ¡°He¡äs such a nice fellow after all!¡±


    Sir Teddy looked around after listening to those words.


    ¡°That¡äs good. You have my thanks.¡±


    The bear then turned to look at the tree he had just targeted with his flashlight.


    ¡°I¡äm sorry about your eye. I hope it heals.¡±


    ¡°No problem, little one.¡±, the tree showed him a big smile.


    You little fucker, you¡äre gonna pay for doing this to me!


    We tricked you! And now will decide where you¡äre going to die!


    The first tree to exhibit a big sly smile was also the one that took the initiative:


    ¡°So, little bear, pay attention to my directions! First, you should go to¡­¡±


    ¡°Wait.¡±, Sir Teddy interrupted its words.


    ¡°Huh? What is it?¡±


    ¡°I just want to tell you that, while I¡äm thankful for your help, I¡äm also in a hurry, so I hope you don¡ät make any mistakes.¡±


    ¡°M¡­ mistakes?¡±, the tree kept grinning, but the smile did not reach its eyes. It felt nervous.


    ¡°I need to save the Princess. So I need your directions to be clear and correct. If you give me wrong directions by mistake, you better hope I¡äm completely destroyed. Because if I survive¡­¡±


    Trees do not shiver.


    They are also unable to produce cold sweat.


    But this poor tree would be doing both right now if it could!


    ¡°If¡­ you survive?¡±


    The one-eyed bear answered with a low voice:


    ¡°I¡äll come back here and burn this forest to the ground.¡±


    The trees were not smiling anymore.


    They gave Sir Teddy the correct directions.

 EYE

    She felt cold. Disturbingly so.


    Worse yet, everything was way too quiet.


    Layla looked around, deciding it was okay to sit down against a wall. She didn¡ät feel like lying on the ground any longer.


    However, much to her surprise, he wall was even colder than the ground. She had never leaned against or touched such a strange thing.


    The rock-like surface of the wall was not only uncomfortable and devoid of any warmth, but it was also pulsating. Expanding and contracting in little intervals, as if it was a living organism. Layla did not need to be a scientist to know walls were not supposed to do <u>that</u>.


    ¡°What the hell is this place¡­¡±, the young girl mumbled, embracing her own knees. She knew she was far away from home. She could feel it, as every fiber of her being kept reminding her that she did not belong inside this nightmare.


    Layla was in a small room with no windows and a single entrance. The only source of light was a torch in which blue flames glowed and danced menacingly. She had never seen anything like it, but then again, these were far from the most shocking thing she had saw recently.


    Why was she here?


    What did they want to do to her?


    Why not eat her or drink her blood immediately, like in a horror movie? There were so many questions, and she didn¡ät even know if the answers would change anything in the slightest.


    Was she asleep? Was she just having a bad dream?


    No.


    This was a nightmare, alright, but she was very much awake. At first, Layla wondered if she had died and this place was some kind of strange Afterlife, but the girl quickly dismissed that notion: she had said bad words and lied to her parents a handful of times to escape being grounded, but only a truly horrible person would end up in such a scary place after dying.


    I¡äm alive. I¡äm alive! I really think so.


    This positive thought kept her head in place. As long as she was still alive, she could go back home. She was confused and the memories of being dragged to this awful place were certainly painful, but¡­ <u>as long as she was alive, there was still hope</u>.


    He will find me.


    She was almost 13. She was not a kid anymore.


    But honestly speaking, these last events had thrown all the ¡°common sense¡± and ¡°judgement¡± of the adults she knew through the nearest window.


    They weren¡ät so dependable after all, huh?


    Her parents kept telling her for years that there were no monsters lurking in her bedroom, and that there was no reason to feel afraid in the dark.


    They were wrong. So wrong.


    And if they were so utterly oblivious about a thing any kid could figure out easily, what else were they wrong about?


    Maybe after you grow up you become blind to it?


    She didn¡ät know the answer to that question¡­ but what she did know was that, in an horrible moment of absolute despair, Sir Teddy spoke to her.


    His voice was firm and kind, just like she had always imagined.


    She remembered it clearly. His fluffly body got torn to pieces by the enemy, and she screamed while being dragged through the room towards her own bed¡­ but when she tried to grab onto the carpet, she picked something up, and at that moment Sir Teddy¡äs voice invaded her head once again:Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Don¡ät worry.


    I¡äll find you.


    I¡äll bring you home.


    Those were the last words she heard before losing consciousness. The girl blushed, feeling embarrassed, and felt her eyes tear up a little.


    She wanted to hear that voice again!


    ¡°You¡äll come¡­ right?¡±, she whispered, wiping out her tears with the sleeve of her pajamas.


    She hoped so. And if that was the case, she couldn¡ät just sit here doing nothing. Layla was scared, but¡­ she needed to find out more about this place and understand her situation better, otherwise it would be too hard for Sir Teddy to find out where she was.


    I don¡ät know anything about where I am.


    Maybe there¡äs a way to send a message to him!


    Did this place have phones or computers? She doubted it. But maybe they had their own magical ways of communicating through long distances! Wasn¡ät that how things worked in games or movies?


    The girl took a moment to fix her hair up and build up the courage to get up. Layla had learned to tie her twintails high up just a few months ago, but as with anything her Mom taught her, she repeated the process several times until she was satisfied with it. She was stubborn about doing things correctly.


    Layla swiped some of her own light-brown strands of hair that had gotten stuck over her small lips. Then she got up and grabbed something from the pocket of her pants: the small object she had picked up from the bedroom¡äs floor as she was being dragged away against her will.


    It was round and pretty, a jet-black sphere made of glass.


    It was Sir Teddy¡äs left eye.


    I wonder if he can see me through this thing?


    She blinked, trying to smile at the small object. She then waved at it, like you would do in front of a webcam.


    What the hell am I doing?


    She laughed out loud, amused at her own antics.


    This whole situation has really turned me back into a child.


    But was that really a bad thing?


    At least her fear had evaporated, and she started to remember all of those times she went on adventures together with the neighbourhood boys into the woods that surrounded their small suburb. They barely did anything remarkable, but to small kids like them every weird noise that


    made your heart race and every tree you were brave enough to climb ended up becoming a great adventure.


    I lost him once. Sir Teddy. I left him behind.


    As she put the small round eye back in her pocket, she started to remember that old story that happened years ago. The other boys had already gone back home, and it was already late in the afternoon. If she had gone back home to ask for help, she knew her Mom would tell her to wait until the next day, but she could not let Sir Teddy spend the whole night alone in the forest!


    The sun was almost going down when she went back into the woods, alone, to search for him.


    It was the kind of stupid thing only a kid would have done, but Layla loved her friend very much.


    She was so scared! The sunlight was fading quickly, and she couldn¡ät remember where she had dropped him. Even now, years later, Layla could visualize it so vividly: that little girl leaning back against a tree, closing her eyes to hold back tears, learning for the first time the meaning of being disappointed with herself.


    If only I hadn¡ät brought Sir Teddy along today¡­


    He will get sad and think I threw him away, but it¡äs not true!


    If I find him, I¡äll take better care of him! I promise!


    When the little girl opened her eyes, there he was.


    Easy to spot, dropped on the top of a big rock.


    Layla screamed in joy, running to the teddy bear and embracing him.


    ¡°There you are!¡±


    She was so silly! He was standing in a place that was so easy to notice! She probably had missed him several times as she walked by! Was she not looking properly? Maybe she was too nervous?


    Wrong.


    There was another explanation for what happened on that day.


    Layla knew the truth now.


    You found me, didn¡ät you?


    On that day, Sir Teddy went to where I was and stood in an obvious place so I could see him.


    Thanks to that, we went home before it got dark.


    You were protecting me!


    ¡°Even though I had forgotten about you and left you in that forest all alone¡­¡±, Layla whispered to herself, biting her own lips.


    She wanted to tell him she was sorry, and she wanted to thank him.


    Not only that.


    Honestly, there were so many things she wanted to tell him...


    Layla left that strange room. She was walking slowly and cautiously as she entered a long and dark corridor. Its walls, just like those in the room she had just left, seemed to be made of pure rock. She wondered if they pulsated like living things as well, but had no intention of finding out. Torches full of blue flames created small checkpoints of visibility across the pitch-black corridor. Layla shuddered, unable to move a single step.


    Look at this.


    And I used to think MY KITCHEN seemed vast and scary when the lights were turned off¡­!


    ¡°No, no!¡±, she shook her head, trying to focus.


    I can¡ät back out now.


    She took a long breath and closed her eyes for a moment.


    I was scared that day too, when I went back into the woods to look for Sir Teddy. But I did it! And I was much younger!


    For some reason, amidst the confusion and fear, she remembered that little moment on the previous day when she was home alone and decided to go down the stairs to drink some water.


    For a few seconds, her hand just wouldn¡ät find the kitchen¡äs light switch. At that moment, she was completely alone in the dark.


    No. That¡äs wrong.


    She wasn¡ät alone back then, and she wasn¡ät alone now.


    Layla started to walk, step by step, creating shadows in the walls as she moved slowly. The girl smiled and slowly slid her hand inside the pocket of her pants. Her fingers touched the small black orb of glass she was keeping there.


    That¡äs right. You¡äre here with me.


    Her small body was completely swallowed by the darkness, but she kept moving forward.

 GRAPE

    The long defensive walls were made of wood.


    The lengthy slabs that encircled the village and formed the wall were positioned side by side and had been firmly stuck deep in the ground. They towered over Sir Teddy.


    This wasn¡ät a particularly great achievement, to be honest: Sir Teddy is a stuffed toy, after all. He is very small, and has short arms and legs.


    The little bear kept observing the walls, searching for any weaknesses. Unfortunately, he didn¡ät find any. The slabs of wood were pointy at the edges, and seemed sharp enough to easily tear through meat and bone. Not that Sir Teddy cared about meat or bones. <u>His body had neither</u>.


    Even so, climbing the walls and trying to jump over them sounded like something he should only try as a last resort.


    So he decided to storm the main gate.


    How hard could it be?


    This was a Goblin Village, and goblins were not known for their bravery or fighting skills. Sir Teddy had already encountered some of them in the Human World, trying to steal some of Layla¡äs toys and sandals.


    Goblins loved stuff created by humans. That had always been the case. It was very common for a human to ¡°lose¡± something inside their own house and never be able to find it, even though they could swear they had just dropped it behind the sofa or other random place. The truth was, goblins liked to search for ¡°lost¡± objects while humans slept, and then bring it home to the Realm Under the Bed.


    Sometimes, they would get bored with their newest treasure and give it back after a few days. But if the stolen item was interesting enough for the goblins, then the original owner would never find those socks or shirts that had been forgotten on the bathroom¡äs floor.


    The only protection against the goblins¡ä exploits, as any good human mother would always say, was to keep your stuff properly stashed in your wardrobe or desk. Goblins despised things that were safely locked away. Their true passion was picking up objects they found on the floor. Or perhaps forgotten behind some piece of furniture. You could say that they were always looking for diamonds in the rough, so to speak.


    To Sir Teddy¡äs surprise, entering the village was even easier than he was expecting: the only guard was an old goblin that was sleeping on the job, hugging his own weapon, an old frying pan he had probably stolen from a human¡äs kitchen.


    This is not reassuring at all, Sir Teddy thought, feeling a bit of pity towards the other villagers.


    Were they really going to be okay like this?


    He was like the other goblins Sir Teddy remembered: short stature (although still taller than a stuffed toy), while pale skin, forked tongues like those of snakes, and big ears that resembled a bat. His arms and legs were scrawny, and he was dressed with a colourful human shirt that was too big for him. The size difference made it look like he was wearing a long dress.


    The goblin¡äs eyes were closed, as he snored loudly, perhaps having some nice dream about picking up coins under a sofa.


    Sir Teddy didn¡ät waste anytime and passed him by, entering the village without announcing himself.


    He wasn¡ät here for tourism.


    He had a human girl to find.


    A village was the perfect place to collect some information and resources. Perhaps he could learn a little more about this awful place and find out where the Princess was being kept.


    For a place built by goblins, it was surprisingly clean and welcoming. The small houses were made of wood and straw fibers, with colored roofs that were decorated with human socks. Goblins, for some unknown reason, really liked to collect socks and pencils. Perhaps those were the objects humans paid the least amount of attention to? Were they easier to steal?


    It looked like the amount of socks you were able to decorate your roof with said something about your status in this village. Some houses had so many bright kneesocks and thigh-highs waving and flapping because of the wind that, for a moment, Sir Teddy though they were flags.


    There was not much distance between the small houses, but enough space for the villagers to walk freely, without running into each other. The ground was dirty, but had been properly terraced to allow for walking barefoot without losing your step.


    He walked through the streets of the village under the curious stares of the local populace: the pale goblins, with their big red eyes, strutted around, proud of their pieces of human clothing. The colorful and bubbly boogeymen slimed slowly, almost bouncing as they walked, and the tiny talking animals, like squirrels and rats, moved at their own pace, with creepy smiles that reminded Sir Teddy of the crow he had met some hours ago.Stolen story; please report.


    All in all, the place seemed relatively organized, and with a clear hierarchy that put Goblins on top.


    After several minutes of walking around, he had noticed no hostility from the locals, only slight curiosity.


    They probably felt a small teddy bear walking by himself was no threat to the citizens of this place. Sir Teddy understood the reason behind their confidence when he arrived at the largest street in the village, where one could find the central market.


    Not only there were a lot of villagers reunited in a single crowded place, buying and selling all kinds of things, but the market was being patrolled by goblin soldiers mounted on gigantic spiders that moved their large and long legs slowly, while observing their surroundings in a sinister way.


    These enormous spiders were completely black, but their many eyes shone in a dark-blue color. There were also several painting marks drawn on their large bodies. White and red symbols that Sir Teddy did not recognize. It was some kind of tribal art probably produced by the same goblin riders that had trained these monstrous arachnids.


    Now I get it.


    That¡äs the reason they don¡ät worry about the main gate.


    With a patrolling force such as this, they don¡ät need to bother.


    Sir Teddy had underestimated the resources of this village.


    He strolled through the central market area, trying to disappear into the crowd as to not bring too much attention upon himself.


    It was useless.


    He was a stuffed toy from the Human Realm, and his body was covered in gruesome stitches. Whoever saw him was unable to look away for a few seconds.


    Sighing loudly to show his disappointment, Sir Teddy approached a street performer who was seating in front of a small wooden table. This particular performer had attracted quite the crowd, perhaps because of his odd appearance. He was about Sir Teddy¡äs size, but was covered from head to toe with a ragged white blanket that hid his body. The only uncovered part were his big green eyes that stared at others from inside the mysterious blanket.


    There was also something moving anxiously in his lower back. Maybe it was a tail? Goblins and boogeymen did not have tails, so this performer probably belonged to another tribe.


    ¡°Whoever can find this grape!¡±, the performer announced as more people joined the crowd, showing them a small grape that had been put on the table, ¡°Shall take all of my buttons away.¡±


    He showed them an assortment of old plastic buttons, like those the Princess had in several of her clothes, and the crowd gasped in awe.


    Huh? Why would anyone care about these?


    At first, Sir Teddy could not understand why everyone was so interested in that prize.


    But he kept quiet and observed those around him.


    All over the market, plastic buttons like those were being used to acquire items and food.


    So that¡äs their currency.


    As expected of a Goblin Village.


    ¡°Two buttons to participate. Does anyone dare to take my challenge?¡±, the performer covered in a blanket asked with a cheerful voice, and it didn¡ät take long for a line to form in front of his small table.


    Once more, Sir Teddy did not hurry.


    He watched and learned.


    His only remaining eye paid a lot of attention to what was happening in front of him, the same way he used to pay attention to the Shiny Magic Box in the living room to learn all kinds of things.


    It was a simple game.


    There were 3 identical cups on the table.


    They were red and made of plastic.


    One of them was used to cover the grape, hiding it from everyone¡äs view. Then the 3 cups were quickly shuffled around by the mysterious performer, right in front of the challenger¡äs face.


    The cups exchanged places several times before being left alone, in an entertaining show that made some observers clap and whistle. After that, the challenger had to pick the correct cup, the one containing the grape.


    If he could do it, all of the buttons left on the table would be his. It sounded like a tempting offer, but winning the game was harder than it seemed at first: even after 10 goblins tried their luck, one after the other, they could never pick the correct cup.


    The performer¡äs hands were very skilled, and the goblins did not have the patience to keep their full attention during the shuffling of the 3 cups. They kept leaving everything to random chance, and were punished for it with consecutive failures.


    ¡°Too bad! Best luck next time!¡±, the performer would say, while another goblin complained that this game was stupid and he wasn¡ät trying to win anyway. The next goblin would declare that as a lame excuse, then proceed to fail miserably, and then complain that this game was stupid and that he actually had lost on purpose.


    As Sir Teddy watched this situation, he became impressed with how much goblins hated winning.


    After a while, the crowd seemed to lose interest in the game, as many of the goblins decided that the chance of winning was too low. Their buttons would be better spent by buying some food or socks!


    The street performer who hid his body under a ragged white blanket noticed that he had lost the attention of the crowd, but didn¡ät look particularly sad about it. Instead, he rubbed his hands together.


    ¡°Looks like that will be all for today, huh? Thank you for your patronage, it was my pleasure.¡±, he said in a cheerful voice, almost like he was mocking those who had lost their buttons to him.


    ¡°Wait.¡±


    That cold voice took the performer by surprise.


    The big green eyes inside the safety of the blanket slowly slid to the side, looking for the one that had uttered that word.


    It was Sir Teddy.


    The small bear approached the table with a sullen expression in his face.


    The street performer looked at the stuffed toy with evident curiosity.


    ¡°A teddy bear¡­?¡±, he murmured, ¡°Shouldn¡ät you be guarding some sleeping human kid, Cotton Slave?¡±


    ¡°Yes. I intend to do so.¡±, Sir Teddy answered.


    ¡°Then why are you here?¡±, the performer stared at this suspicious stuffed toy.


    The crowd, that just a few moments ago had almost dispersed completely, had been stopped on its tracks by this sudden development. They were paying attention to this unexpected interaction.


    ¡°He¡äs right, you know?¡±, one of the goblins laughed out loud. ¡°You¡äre very far from home, buddy. You¡äre Under the Bed.¡±


    ¡°I want some information.¡±, the teddy bear said with the same cold voice, still looking at the performer who hid under a blanket.


    ¡°I can¡ät help you with that.¡±, the performer sighed. ¡°But this is a market. A place where you can buy and sell things. I¡äm sure you can find any information you want, for the right price.¡±


    ¡°Yes. That¡äs why I came to you.¡±


    ¡°Huh? Are your ears not working, Cotton Slave? I just told you I¡äm not in the information business!¡±, the performer¡äs voice became louder as he showed his irritation.


    Sir Teddy leaned towards the small table in front of him.


    ¡°As you said, this is a market. If I want useful information, I need to be able to pay for it. So let¡äs play this game of yours.¡±


    The big green eyes of the performer blinked several times. He finally understood the situation.


    While the whole crowd of goblins watched him, Sir Teddy flicked the grape that had been left on the table, making the small sweet fruit roll towards the nearest cup, and then said:


    ¡°Your buttons. I will be taking all of them.¡±