Teddy Bears and Demons
by
Matthew Scott Baker
© April 2006
(published in Aphelion Online Magazine, April 2006 – Issue 101, Volume 10)
Phillip was mad again tonight and it was really wearing Tasha down.
“Tasha, why don’t you get rid of this thing? It’s worn out and ready for the trash pile.” Tasha
Littleton looked over at her boyfriend holding the battered, brown teddy bear and frowned at
him.
“We’ve had this conversation before, Phillip…the bear stays, end of story.” Phillip snorted and
turned away, shaking his head as he tossed the bear onto the trunk at the foot of the bed. He
never seemed to understand about sentimental things. She stared into the mirror as she
finished pulling her hair back, looped it into a ponytail, and then sat there, shoulders drooping
as she watched Phillip’s reflection climbing into bed. For the most part, he was a nice guy;
but, she thought, he could certainly be quite an ass.
Tasha had met Phillip Creedner at a club down the street about seven months ago thanks to
an accident. Tasha had been leaning over the bar, trying to flag down the bartender’s attention
for another drink, when someone crashed into her from behind, sending her toppling headfirst
over onto the other side of the bar. Dazed, Tasha had stood up, red-faced and furious, to see a
handsome young man with a brown crew cut and a nice build grappling with a large, thick-
necked cowboy in a lime green shirt who was obviously drunk and obviously not in a good
mood. Tasha noticed the dark burgundy bouncer’s shirt that the nice looking man wore and
immediately changed her attitude about what had just happened to her. It was definitely an
accident that he had run into her and was certainly the fault of the belligerent cowboy.
The bouncer maneuvered the cowboy over towards the door and got him pinned down on his
stomach, a lime green arm pulled back in a hammerlock position. Shouting for the doorman
to help, the two hefted the cowboy off the floor and tossed him outside. A small cry of gratitude
rose up from some of the bar patrons and the bouncer held his hand up, smiling as he strode
back in the room, his eyes alertly scanning the crowd. He locked on to Tasha and immediately
hurried over, apologizing to her before he even reached her. Introductions had been made,
phone numbers exchanged, even a date was planned, and here they were. Seven months
later, they were dating exclusively.
But, for as nice as things were, Phillip had a dark side to him and that made Tasha very
uneasy. He had never hit her or even been forceful with her. Nor had he vented out a bad
temper in any form or fashion. There was just something…off…about Phillip; it was more of
something Tasha could sense, though no physical proof existed for it.
The dispute over her teddy bear had sparked this whole feeling and it had nagged at her to this
very day. Their first night sleeping together he had picked it up off her bed and tossed it away
in to the corner of the room, as if discarding a used paper towel. She had made a comment,
trying to sound casual, although it seriously didn’t anger her.
“Please be careful with that…it’s very old and has sentimental value…kinda falling apart, ya
know? One of those great-grandmother-gave-my-grandmother-who-gave-it-to-my-mother
things.” Phillip had stared at her with a curious look in his eyes, almost reproaching her
silently.
“You’re kidding, right?” he asked. “That thing?” But, because their relationship was new and
she really liked him, Tasha had changed the subject and the teddy bear comments had fallen
into the back of her mind.
But after a long, hard day like today, Phillip usually tried to bring the subject up, always prying,
trying to get more information about the bear and why she kept it. Sitting at her make-up table,
she watched in the mirror as he climbed into bed and folded his hands behind his head, idly
staring up at the ceiling. She sighed to herself and stood up. It was time to tell him, she
thought. Time to tell the truth and let him decide if he wanted to still date her or not. She
headed for her side of the bed, picking up the bear as she passed the trunk.
Phillip seemed not to even notice her as she got into bed. Propping her pillow up, she leaned
back and sat the bear on her stomach.
“I’ll tell you why this bear means so much to me,” she began, “if you’ll promise not to ask me
to get rid of it again.” He still didn’t move. “Ok?”
He blinked slowly and sighed. “Ok, Tasha. Let’s hear it.” Ignoring his condescending tone,
she began.
“I loved my dad more than anything in the world. He worked hard to raise me by himself after
my mom died…I was only three when it happened so I never knew her. Some type of rare
cancer, he said. Wish I could have known her. But, Dad did a good job, I think. Anyway, he
worked for the American Museum of International History down on 34th street, in charge of the
Procurement Department; he would work with dealers all over the world to obtain rare artifacts
and pieces for the museum. He loved his job, even so much that he would sometimes bring
home special pieces to show me.”
Phillip yawned; Tasha kept talking.
“Once, he brought home an old, intricate scroll, written in some language I’d never heard of
before. He told me that it was one of the oldest known artifacts we’d ever found, so old the
writing should have been impossible. I think I was eight at the time, so the full impact of that
didn’t even sink in. I was just happy that he was excited, so I let him talk and tried to
comprehend everything he was saying.
“Apparently, this scroll described a tribe of ancient people whose children were plagued by
creatures they called night-fiends. These creatures were almost invisible to the adult eye and
could somehow sneak into bedrooms and nurseries to terrorize their young and, in some
instances, cause death. The Holy Elders of the village pleaded to their gods to help them. The
gods heard their pleas and sent down warriors to help protect the children. But, these warriors
were truly unique. No more than a foot high, they resembled short, shaggy dogs that walked
on two feet. They would wait in the shadows of the children’s rooms and sometimes even
hide under the blankets or the bed; when the night-fiends arrived, the warriors would spring
from their hiding places and do battle with the creatures.”
She paused, expecting Phillip to make a comment. But he said nothing, watching her with true
interest now. It seemed her story was having some effect on him, but she couldn’t quite read
what.
“Eventually, as the legend went, the evil creatures diminished in number, but were still
consistently attacking children every now and then. The scroll became really vague at this
point, but my dad filled in the gaps by saying the Holy Elders decided it was in the best interest
for everyone if the warriors stayed. And so they did.
“Over time, as more and more people were born and the population grew larger, there weren’t
enough warriors to watch over every child. So, they began to make fake warriors and gave
them out to every child that didn’t have a real one. The idea was that hopefully the night-fiends
would see the fake warrior in the child’s room or bed and be frightened away…”
Tasha trailed off as she thought back to her own father tucking her in at night, kissing her
forehead and then patting her bear on the head before he left her room.
“And…?” Phillip asked.
She looked over at him as she answered. “And, that is where the teddy bear got its origins.”
Glancing down at the little brown bear in her hands, she smiled. “These little guys are the
direct descendents of a long line of butt-kickin’ warrior-bears.”
Phillip was silent for a moment as he stared at the bear. Then, with a grunt of disgust, he
threw back the blanket and stood up. “That has to be the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard,
Tasha. If that thing means so much to you, then you can just sleep with it…I’ve gotta get out of
here.”
Tasha bit her trembling lip and fought back tears; she hadn’t expected a reaction like this.
How could he be so insensitive? Phillip grabbed his pants, pulled on a shirt, and was quickly
out the door. A few seconds later, the front door slammed shut as he left the apartment.
Silently, tears began to stream down her cheeks. Tasha pulled the bear close to her and lay
down on the bed, curling up on her side with her arms wrapped around it. Never in her life had
she considered this single object of sentimentality a burden, but it had suddenly caused a rift
between her and someone she thought she loved. Why was her affection for this bundle of
soft cloth and stuffing such an issue? Reaching over to the bedside table, she clicked off the
lamp and lay there in the black, alone with her sadness.
And in the darkness of the room, the small bear smiled as it kept a silent vigil over its charge.
The End.
by
Matthew Scott Baker
© April 2006
(published in Aphelion Online Magazine, April 2006 – Issue 101, Volume 10)
Phillip was mad again tonight and it was really wearing Tasha down.
“Tasha, why don’t you get rid of this thing? It’s worn out and ready for the trash pile.” Tasha
Littleton looked over at her boyfriend holding the battered, brown teddy bear and frowned at
him.
“We’ve had this conversation before, Phillip…the bear stays, end of story.” Phillip snorted and
turned away, shaking his head as he tossed the bear onto the trunk at the foot of the bed. He
never seemed to understand about sentimental things. She stared into the mirror as she
finished pulling her hair back, looped it into a ponytail, and then sat there, shoulders drooping
as she watched Phillip’s reflection climbing into bed. For the most part, he was a nice guy;
but, she thought, he could certainly be quite an ass.
Tasha had met Phillip Creedner at a club down the street about seven months ago thanks to
an accident. Tasha had been leaning over the bar, trying to flag down the bartender’s attention
for another drink, when someone crashed into her from behind, sending her toppling headfirst
over onto the other side of the bar. Dazed, Tasha had stood up, red-faced and furious, to see a
handsome young man with a brown crew cut and a nice build grappling with a large, thick-
necked cowboy in a lime green shirt who was obviously drunk and obviously not in a good
mood. Tasha noticed the dark burgundy bouncer’s shirt that the nice looking man wore and
immediately changed her attitude about what had just happened to her. It was definitely an
accident that he had run into her and was certainly the fault of the belligerent cowboy.
The bouncer maneuvered the cowboy over towards the door and got him pinned down on his
stomach, a lime green arm pulled back in a hammerlock position. Shouting for the doorman
to help, the two hefted the cowboy off the floor and tossed him outside. A small cry of gratitude
rose up from some of the bar patrons and the bouncer held his hand up, smiling as he strode
back in the room, his eyes alertly scanning the crowd. He locked on to Tasha and immediately
hurried over, apologizing to her before he even reached her. Introductions had been made,
phone numbers exchanged, even a date was planned, and here they were. Seven months
later, they were dating exclusively.
But, for as nice as things were, Phillip had a dark side to him and that made Tasha very
uneasy. He had never hit her or even been forceful with her. Nor had he vented out a bad
temper in any form or fashion. There was just something…off…about Phillip; it was more of
something Tasha could sense, though no physical proof existed for it.
The dispute over her teddy bear had sparked this whole feeling and it had nagged at her to this
very day. Their first night sleeping together he had picked it up off her bed and tossed it away
in to the corner of the room, as if discarding a used paper towel. She had made a comment,
trying to sound casual, although it seriously didn’t anger her.
“Please be careful with that…it’s very old and has sentimental value…kinda falling apart, ya
know? One of those great-grandmother-gave-my-grandmother-who-gave-it-to-my-mother
things.” Phillip had stared at her with a curious look in his eyes, almost reproaching her
silently.
“You’re kidding, right?” he asked. “That thing?” But, because their relationship was new and
she really liked him, Tasha had changed the subject and the teddy bear comments had fallen
into the back of her mind.
But after a long, hard day like today, Phillip usually tried to bring the subject up, always prying,
trying to get more information about the bear and why she kept it. Sitting at her make-up table,
she watched in the mirror as he climbed into bed and folded his hands behind his head, idly
staring up at the ceiling. She sighed to herself and stood up. It was time to tell him, she
thought. Time to tell the truth and let him decide if he wanted to still date her or not. She
headed for her side of the bed, picking up the bear as she passed the trunk.
Phillip seemed not to even notice her as she got into bed. Propping her pillow up, she leaned
back and sat the bear on her stomach.
“I’ll tell you why this bear means so much to me,” she began, “if you’ll promise not to ask me
to get rid of it again.” He still didn’t move. “Ok?”
He blinked slowly and sighed. “Ok, Tasha. Let’s hear it.” Ignoring his condescending tone,
she began.
“I loved my dad more than anything in the world. He worked hard to raise me by himself after
my mom died…I was only three when it happened so I never knew her. Some type of rare
cancer, he said. Wish I could have known her. But, Dad did a good job, I think. Anyway, he
worked for the American Museum of International History down on 34th street, in charge of the
Procurement Department; he would work with dealers all over the world to obtain rare artifacts
and pieces for the museum. He loved his job, even so much that he would sometimes bring
home special pieces to show me.”
Phillip yawned; Tasha kept talking.
“Once, he brought home an old, intricate scroll, written in some language I’d never heard of
before. He told me that it was one of the oldest known artifacts we’d ever found, so old the
writing should have been impossible. I think I was eight at the time, so the full impact of that
didn’t even sink in. I was just happy that he was excited, so I let him talk and tried to
comprehend everything he was saying.
“Apparently, this scroll described a tribe of ancient people whose children were plagued by
creatures they called night-fiends. These creatures were almost invisible to the adult eye and
could somehow sneak into bedrooms and nurseries to terrorize their young and, in some
instances, cause death. The Holy Elders of the village pleaded to their gods to help them. The
gods heard their pleas and sent down warriors to help protect the children. But, these warriors
were truly unique. No more than a foot high, they resembled short, shaggy dogs that walked
on two feet. They would wait in the shadows of the children’s rooms and sometimes even
hide under the blankets or the bed; when the night-fiends arrived, the warriors would spring
from their hiding places and do battle with the creatures.”
She paused, expecting Phillip to make a comment. But he said nothing, watching her with true
interest now. It seemed her story was having some effect on him, but she couldn’t quite read
what.
“Eventually, as the legend went, the evil creatures diminished in number, but were still
consistently attacking children every now and then. The scroll became really vague at this
point, but my dad filled in the gaps by saying the Holy Elders decided it was in the best interest
for everyone if the warriors stayed. And so they did.
“Over time, as more and more people were born and the population grew larger, there weren’t
enough warriors to watch over every child. So, they began to make fake warriors and gave
them out to every child that didn’t have a real one. The idea was that hopefully the night-fiends
would see the fake warrior in the child’s room or bed and be frightened away…”
Tasha trailed off as she thought back to her own father tucking her in at night, kissing her
forehead and then patting her bear on the head before he left her room.
“And…?” Phillip asked.
She looked over at him as she answered. “And, that is where the teddy bear got its origins.”
Glancing down at the little brown bear in her hands, she smiled. “These little guys are the
direct descendents of a long line of butt-kickin’ warrior-bears.”
Phillip was silent for a moment as he stared at the bear. Then, with a grunt of disgust, he
threw back the blanket and stood up. “That has to be the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard,
Tasha. If that thing means so much to you, then you can just sleep with it…I’ve gotta get out of
here.”
Tasha bit her trembling lip and fought back tears; she hadn’t expected a reaction like this.
How could he be so insensitive? Phillip grabbed his pants, pulled on a shirt, and was quickly
out the door. A few seconds later, the front door slammed shut as he left the apartment.
Silently, tears began to stream down her cheeks. Tasha pulled the bear close to her and lay
down on the bed, curling up on her side with her arms wrapped around it. Never in her life had
she considered this single object of sentimentality a burden, but it had suddenly caused a rift
between her and someone she thought she loved. Why was her affection for this bundle of
soft cloth and stuffing such an issue? Reaching over to the bedside table, she clicked off the
lamp and lay there in the black, alone with her sadness.
And in the darkness of the room, the small bear smiled as it kept a silent vigil over its charge.
The End.