[ WP ] Monsters under the bed are real and the only protection from them is teddy bears , you are a retired bear telling one of your stories .

Someone once said, when fighting monsters, it is of the utmost importance that you, too, not become a monster. 
 
 I had never given it much thought until midway through my career. My first assignment was on a farm in rural Germany during the Grimm years. Nice guys, the Brothers Grimm. They saved my life on more than on occasion. I learned how to deal with the worst of the worst monsters from them. Their lessons never prepared me for my time in the 20th Century US. 
 
 1950. The US Government had all but decided that Communism would destroy the US. Men back from the war had finally settled in and started their own successful careers. My first assignment was the child of an Advertising Executive. He had taken to the bottle to shut out the images of Europe and the Pacific. His wife felt the wrath across her eyes when the liquor did n't help. I protected the son as best I could, but it was limited to the bedroom. If he was caught outside while his father raged... 
 
 One night was worse than the rest. My assignment had gotten up to get a drink of water and use the bathroom when his father burst into the front door, yelling for his dinner. It was midnight. Dinner was leftovers in the fridge by now. 
 
 `` John, you're drunk again!'' The mother half-scolded, half-whimpered. Her courage was shaky at best. `` Do n't wake our son! Please...'' I braced myself for another hard night. 
 
 `` Shut up, bitch!'' I heard a slap. I wished my assignment would hurry up and return so I could raise the barrier before it was too late. My assignment let out a cry. `` Mommy! Mommy!'' It was too late. I was powerless to protect him. `` Gah! Get the fuck out of here before I beat you senseless!'' My assignment started crying. `` Quit your crying, you little sissy! Or I'll give you something to cry about!'' I had to do something. 
 
 I summoned up all my power and made my way towards the bedroom door. The shuffling, yelling, and crying filled my ears. I began to sweat profusely. The noise grew louder. I reached for the door knob. I jumped to open the door when it burst open. The light blinded me for a moment. My assignment was thrown over me and rolled on the floor. The father yelled like he had never yelled before. `` John! No! Not our son!'' The terror in her voice has never left me to this day. 
 
 `` Our son! Our son! Boo fucking hoo!'' He mocked her. `` If he's my son, he can take a beating. Like a *man*!'' He loosened his belt and folded it in one hand. `` Mary Jane, you dumb cunt, you baby him too much. He needs to toughen up!'' My assignment, dazed on the floor, began to get up. 
 
 Two glowing eyes appeared under the bed. Four. Six. Ten. A guttural growl began while John prepared to show his son what the Pacific did to him. I had to act now or I might not have another assignment. 
 
 Maybe if I had known this would be my defining moment, I would have hesitated. John would still be here. Mary Jane would have left him and re-married someone who reminded her of the man John used to be. My assignment would have suffered for one night, but he would have grown strong for it. I ca n't know for certain. 
 
 I raised a barrier around my assignment. Drool seeped across the floor and stopped at the barrier... then it crept around and formed at John's feet. I knew what I had to do. 
 
 I stood up and began to sprint towards John's legs. If I could knock him over, the pheromones from the drool would knock him out. I reached out my paws and, with all my strength, shot like a fuzzy missile into John's legs. He fell over and hit his head on the side of a dresser. `` Fuck! What the fuck!'' He swore some more and tried to gather himself while holding his head. The guttural growl crescendo'd. The puddle of drool formed around John. Mary Jane went towards her husband, but I stopped her before she stepped into the drool. No, she did n't deserve this... 
 
 The monsters came out that night. They came out and feasted on John in front of his wife and son. I watched, the bloody scene reflecting off of my black button eyes. The screams, the horror... the snapping bones. John had been through Hell in the Pacific. But it was nothing compared to the hell in this bedroom. 
 
 When they were finished, they glared at my assignment. Though satiated, I could see they wanted more. They always want more. Then they turned to me. `` Come. You are one of us now.'' I knew what I had to do. I knew the consequences. And I did it anyway. 
 
 The next day, Mary Jane was taken to a mental hospital and my assignment was sent away to his aunt's. I never saw him again. 
 
 Now, I lie in wait under another bed. Tonight is my first night with this child. It has been at least twenty years since that night. I have grown quite adept at survival. Many a teddy bear has had to surrender to my power, to my will. I lie in wait, already drooling. The door opens and in walks a child, laughing and smiling. She will be delicious. Her father comes in and speaks. I recognize the voice. It's almost like John's, except gentler, kinder. Could it be... 
 
 If it is, I'll finish what John started that night twenty years ago. I'll finish it and continue on my quest to quench my thirst for blood.
