A/N: Okay this is just a little short story I though of at like midnight. :P it's kind of based on a true story, but only because my brother and I were joking about it. So yeah! I hope you enjoy it!
I don't own Hetalia or any of it's characters.
Arthur Kirkland growled to himself. Peter was putting up such a fuss over going to bed. The boy was eight years old, and was complaining about being afraid to sleep that night.
"Bloody hell, Peter, just go to bed!" Arthur said in the calmest voice he could muster. "Whatever that git Alfred told you is nothing but rubbish!"
"But it's not, Artie, it's real! I swear! He told me the Slenderman was one-hundred percent real!" Peter cried.
Arthur glared, but then softened just a little. "Whatever you speak of is not real. It's made up, just to scare you,"
"But... He is real... I know he is,"
By now, Peter had sat up in his now untucked-shees, letting them pool around his waist as Arthur stood in the doorframe of his small room.
"Peter, if I have to call Berwald at this time of night just to get you to sleep, he will not be happy. And I won't be, either. I agreed to watch you for the weekend, and I can clearly recall that yesterday when I picked you up, Berwald and Tino told you to be good. You are not being good for me or them,"
"But I can't help it! What if Slenderman gets me as soon as I close my eyes?!"
Arthur decided that demanding the boy to sleep wouldn't work, so he approached it from a new perspective.
"Peter, if this Slenderman is real, which he is NOT, why don't you explain to me what exactly he is and what he looks like?"
Peter was silent for a moment. "Well," he began, after thinking through what Alfred had told him. "He's really tall, and has a white head. But what's freaky is that he has no face, just a white oval-y head. He looks like he's wearing a tuxedo, kind of. Then, to top it all off, he has strangely long arms! Like, really long! It's so scary... I'm afraid he'll get me in my sleep..."
Now that Arthur had a picture in his head, he noted that this Slenderman character did seem quite freaky to imagine.
"Well, Peter, I can assure you that he is not real. Want to know how I know that?"
"How...?" Peter was uncertain, and at the same time, suspicious of what Arthur had thought of.
"Because if this rubbish is real, I'm sure this creature will be more interested in hunting down that bloody moron Alfred for telling you this. But that's just my thought. Even if he does come by here, I'll make sure he doesn't get you,"
Normally Arthur wouldn't have been so understanding to what Peter was feeling. But he had remembered a long time ago, an old childhood friend Francis tried to pull the same trick with him. Francis said there were monsters and ghosts in his room. He said they were everywhere, his closet, under the bed, in the dresser, everywhere. And it scared Arthur.
"No Artie! He'll kill you, right there on the spot!" Peter exclaimed.
It was only 10:37, so Arthur decided on one last approach.
"Okay, Peter, listen. What if I called up Berwald and Tino for you, and let you talk to them? Would that help you? Or should I not bother?"
Peter nodded. "Yes please... Daddy can protect me, because he's way taller than Slenderman. And Mama can hug me tight so I forget all about him,"
Arthur nodded and left the room to retrieve the phone. He actually found it sort of cute how Peter sounded so young moments before.
'He must really be scared...' Arthur thought to himself.
He picked up the nearest phone off it's little holder and brought it back to the room Peter was still in.
Arthur dialed Berwald's house number, and sat at the end of Peter's bed while waiting for the phone call to be answered.
"Hello? Arthur?" A light, heavily accented voice answered.
"Hello, Tino?" Arthur asked.
"Yes, why? Is everything okay? It is awfully late... Is Peter okay?" he asked.
"Yes, well, no. Well, yes physically, but no mentally. You see, he's having troubles falling asleep because Alfred told him some story about a tall creature with long arms. I can't get him to go to sleep, so I was hoping you and Berwald could," Arthur explained to the worried Finn.
"Oh, of course! I'll go get Berwald,"
"Thank you very much," Arthur could hear Tino softly explaining what happened to Berwald. He turned his attention to Peter. "Alright now Peter, do you want me to put it on speaker or do you want to just hold it?"
"I'll hold it,"
"Very well," The Brit handed him the phone.
Peter put it to his ear. "Hello?"
"P'ter?" a deep voice answered.
"Daddy!"
"Wh't's wr'ng, boy? H'ving tr'bles falling asleep?"
"Yes..."
"W'nt to t'll me ab'ut it?"
"Um... Well, Alfred told me a scary story about a guy named Slenderman who's really tall and has long arms and no face and wears black and it's scaring me... I don't want to sleep,"
"W'll P'ter, y'u're in l'ck. I'll t'll you wh't. If you go to bed f'r me and T'no, t'm'rr'w, I'll p'rs'n'lly g've Alfr'd a little t'lking-to. How's th't s'und?"
Peter brightened a bit. "Really?"
"Y's, abs'lut'ly,"
"But... Daddy, you'll still protect me, right?"
"Of c'urse. Any day, P'ter. W'nt to t'lk to T'ino now?"
"Yes please,"
"Okay. I l've you, P'ter. Th't "Sl'nd'rm'n" isn't gonna both'r ya, alr'ght?"
"Love you too Daddy. And okay, I believe you!"
"Good. Here's M'ma," Peter could hear the phone being passed.
"Peter?"
"Mama!"
"Hello Peter! I'm sorry you're having night troubles when I can't be there to help you sleep! But, I'm glad you and Arthur called. I heard about this crazy creature from when you told Daddy, so you don't have to say it again if you don't want to,"
"Okay, but Mama?"
"Yes my baby?"
"While Daddy's protecting me from the Slenderman, can you lie with me in my bed and tell me that we'll be okay?"
"Why, of course!"
"And while you're lying there, hug me so I forget all about him, okay?"
"Certainly. Anything you want, my sweet, sweet child," Tino smiled to himself. "Now Peter,"
"Yes Mama?"
"You need to promise me that after we hang up and say our good-nights, you'll listen to Arthur and go to sleep. Can you do that?"
"I think so..."
"Well think about this: if you go to sleep, dream of Daddy and I being with you and protecting you. Then, when you wake up, you'll realize that you're completely safe,"
"You're right! I will Mama, I will! I promise!"
"Good boy. I love you, Peter! Have sweet dreams, my baby,"
"I love you too, Mama! And I will!"
"Goodnight!"
"Goodnight!"
And with that, Peter hung up the phone. Soon after, he yawned, making him realize how tired he really was.
"Artie, can I go to sleep now?"
"Absolutely, Peter. Goodnight," he said, getting up and turning off the light. He left the room, leaving the door open just a crack to let the dim hallway light shine through.
Only moments later was Peter found soundly asleep.
A/N: Yay so I hope you liked it! :3 please review~~~!
~A.V.~