Sofia and the Shadow Friend

Mama tucked her in and kissed her forehead. 'Sweet dreams, my love.' Click. The big light went out. Sofia held Ellie tight and watched the darkness creep in. The shadows came. They stretched across the walls like dark fingers. They made her chair look like a crouching creature. They turned her coat on the door into something with long, reaching arms. Sofia pulled her blanket up over her nose. 'It's okay,' she whispered. 'It's okay it's okay it's okay.' But her heart beat fast like a little drum.

CREAK went something in the house. Sofia's breath caught. WHOOSH went the wind outside. She squeezed Ellie until the stuffing bulged. SCRATCH went something at the window—probably a tree branch, but what if it WASN'T? 'What if there's a monster?' Sofia whispered. 'What if it's hiding under my bed RIGHT NOW?' She was too scared to look. Too scared to move. Too scared to call for Mama because what if the monster heard her first? The shadows seemed to grow bigger and bigger and BIGGER.

A tear rolled down Sofia's cheek. Then something magical happened. Ellie's button eyes began to sparkle—just a little—in the moonlight. Like tiny stars. 'Sofia,' came a soft voice, gentle as a whisper. Sofia froze. 'E-Ellie?' 'Don't be scared. I'm going to tell you a secret about shadows. A secret that will help.' Sofia peeked over her blanket. 'You can TALK?' 'Only when you need me most,' Ellie said, her velvet trunk wiggling. 'And right now, you need me most.'

Ellie hopped off the pillow (or maybe Sofia imagined she did) and waddled toward the scary chair-shadow. 'Watch this,' Ellie said. Sofia clicked on her little nightlight—and POOF! The monster disappeared. The scary chair was just... her chair. With her sweater draped over it. 'Shadows are just shapes,' Ellie explained. 'They happen when light can't get through something. They're not alive. They can't move by themselves. And they definitely can't hurt you.' Sofia looked at her hand and made a shadow puppet on the wall—a little bunny. 'I made that shadow,' Sofia realized. 'I'M in charge of it.'

'But what about THAT one?' Sofia pointed at the door, where the shadow still looked like a creature with long arms. Ellie waddled over. 'Shall we investigate together?' Sofia took a deep breath. She climbed out of bed, holding Ellie tight. Step by step, they crept toward the door. Sofia reached out and touched— Her purple coat. With the fuzzy hood. The 'arms' were just the sleeves hanging down. 'Hi, coat,' Sofia said, feeling a little silly. 'You're not scary at all.'

Sofia climbed back into bed. 'But what about the SOUNDS, Ellie?' Right on cue: CREAK. 'That's just the house settling down to sleep,' Ellie said. 'Houses stretch and yawn just like people do.' WHOOSH. 'That's the wind saying goodnight to the trees. They're old friends.' SCRATCH. 'That's the oak tree waving at your window. It's been waving at this house for fifty years.' Sofia listened again. The sounds didn't seem scary anymore. They seemed... friendly. Like the house and the wind and the tree were all keeping her company.

'But what if I get scared again when you're not talking?' Sofia asked. Ellie's button eyes twinkled. 'Then you sing the Brave Song. Ready?' Together they whispered: 'I am brave, I am strong, Shadows and sounds don't last long. I am safe in my bed, Happy thoughts fill my head.' Sofia said it again, a little louder. The scared feeling got smaller. She said it one more time, loud enough to bounce off the walls. The scared feeling was almost gone.

'Ellie?' Sofia asked sleepily. 'Were you really talking? Or was I imagining it?' Ellie was just a stuffed elephant again. Soft and quiet. Button eyes that didn't sparkle anymore. But Sofia realized something. The brave voice—the one that explained the shadows and sounds and taught her the song—that voice had sounded a lot like... HER voice. Maybe the bravery had been inside her all along. Maybe Ellie just helped her find it. Sofia smiled and hugged her elephant close.

Sofia looked around her room one last time. The shadows were still there. The sounds still hummed through the house. But they didn't seem scary anymore. They seemed... normal. Part of the night. Part of her home. 'I am brave, I am strong,' Sofia whispered one more time. She clicked off her nightlight. The darkness didn't feel so dark anymore. Sofia closed her eyes, Ellie tucked under her chin, and drifted into the most peaceful dreams. Dreams about elephants who could talk, and shadows who just wanted to dance, and a brave little girl who wasn't afraid of the night anymore.