text: \[If I am posting in the wrong space, thank you in advance for letting me know.\] To give some context, I write as a livelihood. So one day, my editor and I were having a conversation about how sometimes it can be hard to sleep at night where every bump or notion keeps one awake, and that reminded me of this original that became associated with the notable caption of ' **Teddy bears: protecting innocent children from monsters-under-the-bed since 1902.**' Its potency allowed it to endure in my mental workshop for the longest time. This story came to me all of a sudden, one of the rare ones I write from inspiration rather than structure and conscious planning. It sprang from my wanting to create stories that do something, in this case as a bedtime story, to help bring peaceful sleep. And that, is why I write. Thank you, Enid Blyton. Enjoy Nightwatch. \ ‘Mommy.’ Says the little girl sitting on her bed, hugging her pillow tight, looking at her mother with wide eyes. ‘Yes, Delilah?’ The mother closes the storybook she is reading to her daughter, ready to tuck her in for the night. ‘I don’t want to sleep.’ She pouts, trying not to shed tears. ‘Ohhh, sweety pie, why?’ The mother checks that the nightlight is working, and lets the curtain fall enough for the moonlight to shine through the window facing the little girl. ‘Cos I’m scared.’ Delilah burrows into her bed even more, pulling the blanket around her. The mother stands in the middle of the room. ‘Well, that’s the best reason to ask your friends to help. If you can pick, which of your toys do you want on the bed with you--’ ‘All of them!’ The woman smiles, admitting defeat. ‘Okay, there are too many toys and too small a bed. You don’t want to be on the floor and only the toys can fit on the bed, do you?’ ‘No.........’ Delilah shakes her head side to side. ‘Okay, so, how about this.’ The mother raises one palm and splays out her fingers. ‘Five friends. Pick five of them and they will be with you the entire night so you can sleep safely.’ Delilah’s eyes brighten, loving this game. She scans the room, clearly making decisions in her small frame. ‘Teddy.’ The mother picks up a plain-looking teddy bear that has seen more years than the daughter. ‘Cos you gave him to me.’ ‘That’s right. It was mine and now he is your friend too.’ Delilah hugs Teddy as the mother passes it to her. She points to a toy hat on the dressing table that has two expressive eyes always in mirth. ‘Hat comes too. She talks funny and makes me laugh.’ The girl picks out a plastic hammer on the floor. ‘Magic Hammer!’ The mother places the squeaky hammer on the bed. ‘The better to scare the monsters away.’ Delilah looks at her cooking set. The mother knows what she is seeing. The woman pulls out of the pile a miniature serving cloth that waiters hang over their arms, but is a security hanky for her daughter. The girl’s palms are open and grasping to touch it, and she hugs it tight to her chest. ‘Alright, honeybunch. Last one.’ ‘Kito please.’ The woman smiles. ‘I knew you were going to say that.’ She steps over to the chest of soft toys, and brings over a small plushy hedgehog. Delilah sighs in contentment as her personal toy rests in her small arms. All her fears slough off her tiny person. ‘I want you to be up nice and early for pancakes.’ The girl squeals. ‘Pancakes!’ ‘Yes, so sleep.’ The mother brushes the girl’s hair away from her eyes, and pulls the blanket over her. The toys are all nestled under it, around Delilah. Her eyes are already closing, and her breathing goes even. The mother kisses her forehead. ‘Good night.’ She pads over the floor, holds the door, and closes it behind her as she heads off. Creature slinks from under the bed. It towers over Delilah. It wants to feed. The blanket moves. Creature wonders if the girl is waking up. No. The bump under the blanket comes out and stands on its small hind legs. Teddy steps closer and looks up at Creature. Creature sizes him up, and chuckles a throaty snarl. It glides closer. It does not notice that Teddy has a weapon behind his back. Teddy swings. A growl like a guard dog echoes in the room. Creature howls in pain as Teddy smashes its snout with the Hammer. Usually a squeaky toy to amuse a little girl, it is now pulsing with a steady glow, a low growl coming from deep within it. Teddy brandishes the Hammer again. The growl gets more menacing. Creature pulls back... ...and flings a toy at Teddy with one of its inky tendrils. Only for Kito to appear and turn around to have the toy bounce off her spiky back. Creature hisses. The baby hedgehog goes to Teddy, looks up at him, and imploringly opens her tiny paws to ask to be carried. Teddy reaches out with his left paw. Kito embraces the paw as she curls into a ball, pulling the paw inwards. Teddy pulls his paw back into place, his shield, Kito, ready to protect. Kito sniffs the air. She notices something. She makes a chirrup noise. Teddy spins, just in time to block the attack of a tendril snaking up from the side of the bed. It was moving too fast for him to strike back with the Hammer. The weapon chuffs with annoyance, its prey out of reach. Hat hops up and lands on Teddy’s head. It spins around on its own accord, its big eyes seeing everywhere for danger. Two tendrils are coming over the headrest behind Teddy. But there is no behind for Hat. Hat spins about and gives a death stare, as bright light flashes from its eyes. The tendrils quiver and disintegrate before the luminance. Creature bares its black fangs, its wounds cauterized by the searing light. Hat turns to look at Creature. And winks. Several other tendrils hit out, but Teddy blocks with Kito or shatters with Hammer. Creature casts its hateful look at the girl sleeping soundly beneath the blanket, unaware of tidal forces clashing within her room. Creature takes in a deep breath. It holds. And holds. Holds some more. Teddy does not wait for it to do something. He leans forward to break into a run. Creature exhales. Brown vapors escape from its mouth, flitting about the room, making their way to surround the brave companions. Vapors that carry multitudes of whispers that sing for death and promise a kiss of agony. Teddy swings the Hammer through the brown gas, but the vapors playfully dance around it. Teddy pushes Kito’s spiny back into clumps of gas, and all it did was scatter to reform. Hat flashes its eyes everywhere but light does nothing except highlight the vapors encroaching towards Delilah’s sleeping form. Creature snuffles, its malignant version of a suppressed laugh. Cloth whips up and ties itself around Teddy’s neck, security hanky by day, sentient battlecape by night. It flaps and flaps and flaps, using Teddy as an anchor as it creates eddies in the air. The brown vapors, so close to Delilah’s cheeks, blow away as before a strong wind. They break apart, and every time they try to reform, Cloth sends them scattering, and eventually, unable to piece together. Creature, frustrated beyond its capacity to understand or endure, shrieks a shriek of rage. Teddy and Kito and Hammer and Hat and Cloth brace for the mighty confrontation about to come. This is the moment of the night. Where Delilah either dreams, or has nightmares. Creature charges, bearing its full size and dark powers at them. The Indomitable Five stand fast. That is all they can do. That is all they want to do. For Delilah. Creature bares its maw open to devour the interfering upstarts. The Five strikes. &#x200B; *Five friends come together,* *Five friends stand supreme.* *Five friends to fight for the child forever,* *The child’s sacred right to dream.