Li I sucked at his paw diligently all the way through dinner. He was thinking. Very deeply. The rabbit was determined to find something out.

He was an orphan, or at least he lived inside an orphanage. But he knew in his heart of hearts that his father was still alive. For he could not be dead. Because if he was dead Li I would know. What he was thinking about was something far more important than the massive piles of dumplings being devoured in front of him.

What is under a bed in the dark?

Being young he had never bothered to check. He knew that some of the other orphans asked Mrs Yang, the kindly sheep who was the orphanage keeper, to check under their beds at night... but he was not sure why.

All day he'd been asking people about it.

"Mrs Yang?"

The elderly sheep sighed. "Yes?"

She must have been very tired. Well... being in charge of an orphanage was very tiring. "What is under a bed in the dark?"

The sheep cocked her head to the side. "Why... nothing." She then smiled warmly. "Perhaps some dust if Mung forgot to sweep the floor."

But that seemed unlikely... if there was nothing under a bed, then why did the other orphans ask about it? There had to be something more. So he had asked Mung. The orphanage cook and janitor.

"Under a bed? At night?" Mung's eyes widened in mock-horror... not that Li knew it was 'mock' horror.

Li I nodded, sucking his paw determinedly.

"Why... only the most ferocious beast known to animalkind!" He hopped onto a stool so that the young rabbit was not looking down at him. Being a rat meant he was smaller than... Pretty much the entire orphanage. Except that one kid that was a hamster. Mung stretched his paws wide above his head, making himself seem larger than he was. "It has claws and teeth bigger than me! And a tail full of big, fat spikes! It's jaws stretch open wide, wide, wide!" Mung stretched his paws into the air as far as he could reach. "And it's so big that it can swallow up naughty children whole and kicking! Especially those who steal from my kitchens." The fat little rat ended his tale with a confident smirk and paws crossed over his tiny chest.

"If it's so big, how does it fit under my bed?"

The cook failed to answer that question.

Next Li I had asked Fidget the half-bat (half-bat because he missed one leg, an eye and parts of one wing), another orphan like him. Only he was an orphan because criminals didn't make good parents. The bat had shrugged.

"I never checked. But I heard that To-Mi tried to hide Lee's umbrella under a loose floorboard under his bed."

So not even Fidget and all his gossip could answer his question. He'd next asked another orphan.

"Flower?"

The skunk looked up at him from where he sat, drawing an exaggerated depiction of Mung. "Yes Li?"

"Do you know what's under a bed in the night?"

Flower gave him the strangest looks. The skunk chewed on his claws, worry creeping in on his face. "It's... A... Giant nose. And... It's judge-medal."

Li I frowned. "Why's there a giant nose under our beds?"

The skunk shrugged rigidly, as if scared to do so. "Lee said so anyways." He swallowed heavily and checked to see if anyone was listening. "B-but I'm too scared to check."

"Alright, time for bed." Mrs Yang announced. Her decree was met with familiar groans and muffled protests. She shook a hoof in their direction. "Don't make me drag you there."

Shuffling footsteps and the sound of stools scraping against the floor filled the hall. Yet all Li heard was his own voice.

What is under a bed in the dark?

By now Li I was back in bed. Dinner was over and he was alone in his mess of a room. There were no lights and all was dark. He swallowed heavily.

Flower was brave enough to admit he was scared. But Li was not scared. He was brave like his father would want him to be. He crawled to the edge of his bed, uncomfortably aware of every sound his body made as it moved. He leaned over the edge and peered into the darkness.

There was no dust, for the underside of his bed was the only clean part of his room. There was no gigantic monster ready to eat him for robbing Mung's kitchens. Lee's umbrella was also not present and there were no giant noses to be found either. Unfortunately there was also no trace of his father. All there was... Was darkness...

Li I frowned and settled back into his bed. There was nothing under it. Just the air and the night.

Evidently noone other than Mrs Yang and himself... had been brave enough to look.


Footnote: The Halloween Special is a staple of mine. Didn't have much idea of what to do this year up until this morning. Hence this short little story. Clearing up my profile a bit so here we have this new fic that is... Kinda gonna be filled with short stories. Some may be longer than one chapter mind you. It's also where I focus on characters like Crotos Quillus, Splintnose and co. Might also bring in Cheesethief. This is also where all the Suna's Orphanage's shorts will get put. As well as any other shorts relevant to Group I. I've got a whole bunch planned out but I am also open to requests. The same thing will eventually get done for Each Group.

I'll also move all my older fics into one story. Gotta clear up this stuff.

Enjoy.