The thing is snuffling at the closet door again. Dean pulls his blanket over his head.
"Mommy," he whimpers. "Mommy, come quick!"
The barricade that he made before bedtime isn't holding up and the door is starting to squeak under the assault of thumps. The toy soldier general isn't commanding his soldiers very well. They're falling all over the place underneath Teddy and Moosey.
He wishes Mommy would hurry up and come and make the monster go away. He's scared, because today it seems as if it's really coming out. Before it was just snuffling - that was scary already - but now the door is starting to creak open.
"Mommy!" he squeaks in fright.
The faint squeaking of bedsprings tells him that she has woken up and is coming. He hopes she comes in time, because the monster is almost out. Moosey's antlers are caught under the door. They aren't doing much good.
"Dean? Dean, baby, what's the matter?"
He takes a deep breath of relief. His mommy is standing at the door in her fluffy pink bathrobe. She looks sleepy and confused but she's so pretty and her hair is glowing all gold in the light of the Peter Pan nightlight that he got for his birthday.
He points to the closet. His voice trembles a little.
"Something's in the closet. I don't know what it is, but it's trying to get out and I'm scared!"
Suddenly Mommy seems more awake. She looks really mad at the monster, and that makes him feel better.
"I'll be back in a second, honey," she says, soft and reassuring. He nods and she nods back before whisking down the stairs. He hears her feet thumping quickly against each step (he knows she's doing that to make him less scared because she never stomps... she's always telling him not to stomp).
Just as she said, she's back upstairs soon. She's holding a bowl of white stuff. He thinks it's sugar (the yummy kind that she puts on his pancakes sometimes), but maybe it's salt (which isn't so yummy). He sits up a little straighter.
"What are you going to do, Mommy?" he asks curiously.
She smiles at him and he smiles back, because Mommy's smiles always make him want to smile.
"I'm going to make the monster go away, baby. Don't worry."
He isn't worried, not anymore. She's so brave. He watches admiringly as she throws the closet doors open without hesitating. Something that looks like a ghost whooshes out, howling. He ducks under the blanket again, making sure to keep one eye out to watch his mommy.
She throws a handful of the salt at the ghost (he's sure it's salt now... whatever might happen she would never ever throw sugar around). The ghost gives another howl and stops gliding through the air.
"You leave my house," Mommy says. Her voice sounds scary, the way it does when Dean is naughty, except this time it's even more scary. He watches her with wide eyes.
"Leave my house right now. I'm warning you. I know what to do. I used to be a hunter."
The ghost actually looks frightened (well, as frightened as a bit of misty smoke can look). It curls into a little ball, but defiantly stays in the room.
"All right, I'll use the big guns now. You aren't getting the hint. I'm Mary Campbell."
Mommy sounds fierce. The ghost seems really scared now. It zooms around the room, squealing in panic, before shooting out the open window into the starry night. Dean claps his hands gleefully. Mommy puts down the bowl of salt and sinks down next to him.
"Wow, Mommy, that was so cool! Thanks," he says, snuggling against her fuzzy robe.
Her nice-smelling hands stroke his head. She's so comfy and warm and safe. He has the coolest mommy in the whole world. Even closet monsters are scared of his mommy. He bets that Jimmy across the street doesn't have such a cool mommy.
"That was so cool, Mommy!" he says again. "Are you a monster fighter?"
Mommy looks afraid now. That's funny. Dean frowns. How come she's scared now? The monster is gone.
"Yes, Dean. But, baby, you can't tell anyone, okay? It's a secret. Promise me, honey."
He still doesn't really understand, but Mommy looks so serious.
"You mean you're like a superhero? Like Spiderman?"
She laughs a little (he wasn't trying to be funny, but her laugh is pretty so he doesn't mind).
"Yes, Dean, like Spiderman."
He gazes at her adoringly.
"I promise I won't tell anyone. I'm a big boy, I can keep secrets. You can trust me," he boasts, puffing out his small chest proudly. She brushes his fluffy blond hair from his eyes and kisses him. She leans her forehead against his and they stare at each other for a little bit. His eyes are green like hers. Maybe he'll grow up to be a monster fighter, too, like her, someday.
"I know I can trust you. Thank you, Dean."
He gives her a big, big smile. And he doesn't tell anyone, ever. Not even Sammy. Because he loves his mommy and she's his very own secret superhero.