Writing Prompt Wednesday #35

TW: Child abuse

​Monsters under the bed are real, and they protect abused children from their parents at night https://writing-prompt-s.tumblr.com/

    Humans tell their offspring legends of monsters that hide under every child’s bed. Ones that’ll eat you if you talk back or stay up too late or don’t eat your dinner. Of course, all of these things are very untrue and harmful stereotypes. I should know, as I am one.
    I’ve been a monster in the bed division for almost three centuries, so I am an expert at my craft. I know what to do, I’m quick, and I’ve never been spotted by a child that I don’t want to be spotted by. 
    Of course, we monsters aren’t there to eat bad children or scare them. No no, we’re there for an entirely different purpose.

    You see, all monsters descended from one, Kjewh. They came into existence around the same time as humans, and for a long time, they didn’t know how to survive. Humans are not very friendly towards creatures that are unfamiliar to them, and Kjewh was constantly being attacked.
    However, a human took pity on them. A young boy by the name of Edward. He fed them and gave them water and protected them and brought them into the safety of his own home, hiding them under his bed. And Kjewh was forever grateful.
    But, every night, Edward’s father would yell and beat him. Edward screamed and cried, but always took it, leaving with a bruised face and heart afterward.
    Kjewh hated seeing Edward be treated like this. They yearned to help him, and, one day, they did.
    When Edward’s father came into the room, Kjewh stretched to their full height and stood in front of Edward. “No hurt,” Kjewh said in the rough English they had picked up from these humans. 
    Edward’s father stood there, shocked, for a second. Then, he charged at Kjewh. They didn’t want to hurt him, but they had no choice. With a sweep of their flabby tentacle, Kjewh sent Edward’s father flying into the wall. And Kjewh slithered back under the bed.
    Edward’s father was so terrified that he never beat or spoke harshly to Edward ever again. And, if he ever got close, he’d catch sight of glowing red eyes under a bed or in a closet, and he’d back off.
    After Edward had passed on, Kjewh dedicated their entire life to protecting humans from similar situations. They created an entire civilization, and when they passed on, their children went on to create more. And then their children, and then theirs, and so on.
    All of this, I remember as I crawl out from under a bed to serve as a shield to a little girl, who’s mother yells at her everyday. Or when I punch a stepfather in the stomach to keep him from harming his kid. Or when I put all of my courage into an older child, to give him the strength to defend his younger siblings himself.
    This job is the most revered in our society. Kjewh is remembered with nothing but love, and any monsters in the bed division are honored to carry on the memory of such a magnificent creature.
    I wanted to be a bed division monster since I was young. Some of us just have that need to protect others-to be their safe place when no one else will. I knew that I was one of them from the beginning of my consciousness. I was accepted right away.
    So, as I wait under my kid’s bed, I know that this is where I belong. And there’s no place I’d rather be.