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Riz knew that there was something in his closet. You didn’t make it to five years old without knowing these things, after all. He had heard it bump around last night as he tried to sleep, and while his first instinct was to run and get his mom, he instead burrowed under the blankets of his bed and waited it out.
As soon as daylight filtered into his bedroom, he crept out of bed and cautiously opened his closet door. A cursory glance revealed nothing out of the ordinary, but Riz wasn’t convinced. He had definitely heard that bump last night, and he wasn’t going to let a mystery like that go unsolved!
His mom called him for breakfast, however, so Riz scrambled into the kitchen for his bowl of cereal (Goodberry Crunchies). As he shoveled mouthfuls of sugary goodness into his face, he paused and looked up at his mom, who was having coffee and toast for breakfast.
“Mommy?”
“Yes, Riz? What is it, sweetie?”
“I think there’s a monster in my closet. It went thump! last night!”
Sklonda yawned and peered over her mug at her son.
“Did it, now?” Are you sure something didn’t fall down? We’ve told you to keep your closet tidy, you know.”
Riz drew his lower lip up in a pout. “I’m sure of it! …Maybe.”
“Tell you what; finish up your breakfast and brush your teeth and then we’ll both go take a look, mkay?”
“Kaaay!” Riz hurriedly gobbled the rest of his cereal and slurped up the milk. He dropped the spoon with a clatter into the bowl, causing Sklonda to scold him for not respecting the dishes, but Riz was already out of the kitchen and in the bathroom where he brushed his teeth and even washed his face. When he came back out, his mom was putting the now-clean bowl on the drying rack and wiping down the counter.
“Mommy! Mommy! Let’s get the monster in my closet!”
“Alright, alright,” Sklonda said with a sigh, and allowed her son to tug her into his bedroom. She was quite tired; her husband was due back from a long work trip tomorrow, and she had been having fitful nights of sleep with his half of the bed empty. He had warned her it was a dangerous mission that he was on, and she always worried when he was away. Having her five year-old son insisting upon a monster in his closet was one of the last things she needed right now.
“OK, let’s see if we can find this monster,” she said, approaching the closet door. Riz hid behind her legs but peered inquisitively around them as she opened the door wide. He flinched as a ball toppled off a shelf and fell onto a pile of scuffed action figures and scattered Fantasy Legos.
“Riz…!” Sklonda moaned. “How many times have I asked you to clean up your closet? How do you get to your clothes!? Look at this mess! You can’t just shove everything in here when we ask you to tidy your room, you know! Your closet is part of your room!”
Riz hid behind her legs once more, ashamed to have his mess discovered like this. He had forgotten all about shoving everything in the closet the other day when he was told to clean up or no ants on a log.
“Sorry, Mommy…” he mumbled.
“Do you want help cleaning up? It’s alright to ask for help.”
He shook his head. “No, I’m a big kid. I can do it myself.”
“Well, if you need to put something away up high, please come ask me. If you just try to toss it up there yourself it’s bound to fall again, and I don’t want you climbing the shelves; they aren’t going to support all that weight.”
“Okay…”
Sklonda turned around and knelt down next to her son. “Oh, Riz, I’m not angry, I just want you to take cleaning up your room seriously, alright? Do you still think there’s a monster in here? Do you want to keep checking?”
Riz stared at the ground and shook his head. “No… It’s just the toys,” he said glumly.
Sklonda’s mouth lifted at the corner. “Sweetie, were you hoping that there was a monster?”
“... Maybe.”
She brushed his curls out of his face and kissed his forehead. “You’re always looking for adventure, just like your father. He’ll be home tomorrow, you know. Are you sure you don’t want me to help you clean this up so it’s nice and tidy for him? He’ll be very proud to know you kept your room and closet clean while he was gone,” she hinted.
“I’ve got it!” Riz insisted, crossing his arms in defiance.
“Very well. Let’s get dressed and then I want this closet cleaned up, mister.”
“Yes, Mommy.”
~~~
Later that night, after Riz was tucked into bed in his fresh pajamas and his mind was full of thoughts of his dad coming home tomorrow, he almost didn’t notice the scratching noises coming from his closet. Almost. Once more he sought refuge under the covers, and soon the noises stopped. He crawled to the foot of his bed and peered out from beneath the blanket, willing the monster to make more noise or come out and reveal itself, but nothing happened. He slid off his bed and tiptoed over to the door. He gently knocked on the closet door and was rewarded with the sound of something skittering away. Unfortunately, he wasn’t actually prepared for this, and yelped and dove back underneath his covers. He stayed huddled there all night, eventually falling asleep.
In the morning, after breakfast, he hurried back into the room and flung open the closet. Once more a few items were strewn about the floor, and he huffed in exasperation. He just cleaned his closet yesterday; this monster was making him look bad! Well, it was time to pull out the big guns. His dad was going to come home today and wouldn’t he be proud to see that Riz had solved a mystery of his own and caught a monster? He cautiously pulled out his clothes for the day, got changed, and then went to his little desk where he pulled out his beloved magnifying glass. It was time for Junior Detective Riz.
Riz dove into his closet, searching for signs of the intruder. … But what are the signs of a monster in the closet? he wondered. He remembered the scratching from the previous night and began to search his shelves for clues. After several minutes of poring over his shelves and toys, he turned up empty-handed. Riz sighed. This monster was going to be tough to capture.
He then looked at what was strewn on the floor; a couple old nursery rhyme books and some action figures. The Figures had deep scratch marks along them and one book was chewed up along the edges. At last, ev… evid… evid-ents! He gathered up the book and figures and proudly made his way to the living room where he placed them on the coffee table.
“Mommy! I got-”
There was a click at the front door and it opened up to reveal a disheveled Pok Gukgak, home at last after a troublesome ‘business trip.’ Riz forgot all about his evidence and rocketed towards his dad.
“Daddy!” he called out, slamming into his legs (eliciting a soft “oof” from Pok) and squeezing them tightly.
“Oh, hey there, kiddo!” Pok said jovially, all his fatigue forgotten in an instant. He dropped his briefcase and scooped up his son, hugging him tightly.
“Riz! I’ve missed you, buddy! How are you?”
“I missed you, too, Daddy! Can you stay home tonight?”
“Of course I can, kiddo. I’m going to stay home for a long time this time!”
“Yaaaaay!” he cheered, and planted a big kiss on Pok’s stubbly face.
“You’re all scratchy, Daddy!”
“Sorry, kiddo. I didn’t get a chance to shave this morning.”
Sklonda hurried over and wrapped both of them up in a hug.
“It’s okay, darling. I don’t mind the scruff at all,” she purred, and she kissed him on the lips. Riz made a face.
“Icky! Adult kisses!”
Sklonda and Pok chuckled and Pok placed Riz down so he could kiss his wife some more.
Riz grabbed Pok’s briefcase and toted it into the living room, placing it on the coffee table next to his toys.
“Ah, thank you, Riz,” said Pok, noticing the table. “Oh, did I interrupt you playing with your toys?”
“Nuh-uh! I, um, it’s evid-ents of the monster in my closet!”
Pok and Sklonda walked over to the sofa and sat down while Riz picked up his toys and book.
“Yesterday morning he said there was a monster in his closet, but it was just some toys shifting in there,” Sklonda explained to her husband.
“Ah, I see. So why are these toys evidence of a monster?”
“Look!” Riz said, holding up the book. “It’s chewed up my book!”
Pok took the book from Riz and looked over it, examining the fang marks on the corners and the frayed pages. “Hmmm. Riz, I remember this book; it was your favorite when you were a toddler. You used to chew on it all the time! Are you sure a monster did this and it’s not from when you were little?”
Riz huffed and took the book back. He looked it over. He did remember chewing on his books before he could properly read them…
“Well!” he stated loudly, holding up the action figures. “The monster scratched up my Team Tyr™ toys! See!” he pointed to a long claw mark that ran down the back of one of the toys. Another had several light scratches along the chest and legs.
Both his parents took the toys and looked over them before glancing at each other and frowning.
“Riz, sweetie,” said his mom gently. “This is just normal wear and tear. I saw these yesterday and they were already in rough condition.”
“Maybe you just don’t remember playing with them so roughly,” added his dad.
“But-!”
“Hey, buddy,” Pok said kindly, reaching forward and placing a hand on Riz’s shoulder. “I’m sure you think there’s a monster in your closet. We can go check, alright?”
“No!” shouted Riz, who grabbed his toys and book and stormed away into his room.
“Oh dear,” said Sklonda, looking at her husband. “That didn’t go well at all.”
Pok sighed and sank down into the sofa. “No, no it didn’t. I’ll have to go apologize to him later.”
“How about a nice hot bath in the meantime, let yourself relax after this long trip.”
“That sounds nice,” said Pok, nuzzling up against his wife. “And then maybe later we can ‘relax’ together.
Sklonda kissed his cheek. “Later, honey.”
While Pok took his bath and Sklonda went grocery shopping, Riz continued to explore his closet, digging out toys and books and clothes as he ventured deeper and deeper into it.¹ He found old stuffed animals with leaking stuffing that he remembered chewing on when he was younger, and – ick! – a centipede came wriggling out of a stuffed duck when he picked it up. He shrieked playfully and tossed it away. It crawled back into the closet and disappeared.
[¹ Ok, so his closet was only two feet deep and six feet long, but it was large enough for a curious goblin!]
He found an old board game that he hadn’t played in a long time and dug it out: Fantasy Clue Jr. He set it aside; it would be fun to play with his parents later. Before he could get further into the closet, though, the sound of the front door unlocking as his mom came home brought him back to the present and he realized that he’d made a mess once more. He hastily began to put things back, stuffing them everywhere there was space before his mom came in and saw the mayhem that was spread out across the floor. He shoved the board game under his bed and got the last of the toys back in his closet when Sklonda came in.
“Riz, honey, do you want to help me make dinner?”
“Yeah!” he cheered, and he ran out of his room, monster forgotten for the time being.
~~~
Once more that night, something moved and bumped inside of Riz’s closet. He wasn’t afraid anymore, because he knew that it was up to him to get to the bottom of all of it. If his parents wouldn’t believe him, he’d just have to bring the monster to them. He sat in bed, holding a small flashlight that he had dug out of the closet earlier, and shined it on the door. It rattled as something thumped against it. Riz bit back a squeal and slowly climbed out of bed. He was a big boy; he was going to start first grade in a few months and big kids like first graders don’t get scared of monsters in their closets! He crept towards the closet and reached a shaky hand up to the knob. Swallowing audibly, he grasped it tightly, turned and flung open the door, shining the flashlight in the center of the closet. Something small leapt away and Riz quietly yelped. He dove into the mess of toys, reaching desperately to grab whatever he had lit up with his light, and his hand grabbed something soft and slimy. He gripped it tightly and pulled it back out of the closet; it was a toad. He peered at it curiously, wondering how a toad got into his closet, when it croaked loudly, startling him. He dropped it and it tried to hop away, but he was faster and snatched it up again.
Victorious (but confused), Riz ran into his parents bedroom.
“Mommy! Daddy! I caught the monster!” he crowed, shining his flashlight over the bed. Both his parents blinked and groaned, blinded by the light.
“Okay, sweetie, one moment,” said Sklonda as she fumbled for her bedside light. Pok sat up and shielded himself from the flashlight.
“What’s that you’ve got there, kiddo?”
“It’s the monster! I caught it in my closet!” Riz proclaimed proudly, holding the toad aloft.
“It’s… a toad?” Sklonda asked, perplexed. “How did a toad get in your closet? We didn’t go to the park today or yesterday…”
“It’s a monster!” Riz demanded, and handed it over to Pok’s outstretched hand.
Pok took it from his son and turned it this way and that, examining the offending creature. “Well, it definitely would cause a lot of bumping around, that’s for sure,” he mumbled.
He gave it a gentle squeeze, and to his shock the toad shifted in his hand, changing into a tiny olive-green creature around the same size. It was bipedal with a long, snaking tail and dark bumps along its skin. It had long, bow-shaped horns protruding from its brow right above its round, all-black eyes and round, toothy mouth. Two long, thin ears jutted out at sharp angles from its head and it screeched, kicking its digitigrade legs and trying desperately to claw Pok’s hands with the two nasty-looking talons at the end of its feet.
Riz flinched at the sound of the screech and hid behind the open bedroom door, shivering in fear.
“What the-!” stammered Pok as Sklonda leapt out of bed and crouched next to Riz, trying to calm him from the creature’s Scare attack.
“Shhh, it’s alright,” said Sklonda, stroking Riz’s curls and holding the quivering little goblin close. “It’s okay,” she reassured him. “Daddy’s got it and I’ve got you. You did a good job, catching the monster! You should be proud of yourself!”
Pok peered at the creature once more. “Well, I’ll be; it’s a quasit!” he exclaimed, looking it over. “This was in Riz’s closet?”
Sklonda frowned “Where there’s one, you’re bound to find more. Dang it, I hope we don’t have an infestation!”
“I’d better go check, but first, we need a place to store this little guy,” said Pok.
“I’ll get a jar,” said Sklonda, and she took Riz by the hand. “Riz, want to come help Mommy find a jar to store the quasit in?”
The Scare had worn off by now, and Riz nodded solemnly, a little embarrassed at being frightened by something so small. He let his mom lead him to the kitchen where they found an old pickle jar with only a few spears left inside.
“This will have to do; I hope it’s not too upset by the smell of the pickles,” said Sklonda. “Riz, can you get Mommy a zip bag to put the pickles in? Thank you.”
Riz did as told, grabbing a plastic bag and holding it open while his mom tipped the contents of the pickle jar into it. Riz sealed it up and put it in the fridge while his mom washed out the jar and then poked holes in the lid with a nail and hammer. Jar ready, Pok placed the quasit inside and closed the lid. Riz watched as the angry creature changed into a centipede, then a toad, then a tiny bat, before going invisible in frustration.
“Wow!” he breathed, fascinated by the monster.
Meanwhile, Pok was rummaging in the closet, searching for signs of more quasits, now that he knew what he was looking for. Soon enough he found several centipedes and a small hole in the very back of the closet. He sat back on his haunches and sighed.
“Yep, you called it, Sklonda. It’s an infestation. The super’s not going to be happy about this.”
“What’s that mean?” asked Riz, coming in while holding the jar with his new ‘pet.’
“It means that we’re probably going to have to leave the apartment for a little while,” explained his mom. “Oh, dear, Riz, let’s keep the quasit on the kitchen table where we don’t risk dropping it and it escaping, alright?
“‘Kay.” he said, a little sad, but he sat at the kitchen table and watched the quasit stamp around in anger.
“Can I bring it to show and tell at kin’nergarten tomorrow?” he asked.
“Sure thing, honey. But now, let’s get some sleep. You can sleep in bed with us tonight, alright?” said Sklonda.
“Yes!” celebrated Riz, leaping off the chair and rushing to his parents’ large bed. He bounced on it a few times until his dad gave a stern but loving look. Then Pok tackled Riz and rolled over onto his back, holding Riz aloft in the air above him.
“You did a great job, finding that monster, Riz!” he lauded him.
“Yes, we’re very proud of you,” added his mom as she slid under the covers next to them. Riz wriggled joyfully in the air and then dropped down so he could snuggle up next to his mom.
“I’m sorry I didn't believe you when you mentioned it the other day, honey,” she said, kissing Riz on the head.
“Me, too,” said Pok, climbing under the covers as well.
“It’s okay,” said Riz with a yawn. “Just believe me next time.”
~~~
The next day Riz proudly told his kindergarten class about how he caught the monster in his closet and showed off the creature in the jar. He got a gold star sticker for his accomplishment and was the envy of the playground.
Later that week the entire floor of Strongtower Luxury Apartments had to be closed off for fumigation as the quasit infestation was quite extensive. And that was how Riz got to spend a week in a hotel complete with pool, which he splashed around in every day.
[The original quasit was tearfully turned over to the exterminators to peacefully live out its days on a ‘farm.’]
