Part One: Mist, Dust, and Dolls

My whole body felt numb. I literally felt nothing. In fact, there was so much nothing that I woke up from my hibernation sleep of the winter break.

When my eyes opened, I didn't feel the same. Everything seemed… big, and I thought I was rather small. My head sank deeper into my pillow than usual, and my blanket was up to my nose. Even though this was the case, I still felt cold as if the wind was blowing beneath my covers.

I pushed the blanket off of me and sat up. Oblivious, I looked around at the sudden change in scenery. I definitely was not in my bedroom any more on a snowy December night. Rather, it looked like I was in some sort of dungeon. The metal bars were snapped and rusted, enough to allow just about anything the size of a human to easily fit through the opening. The cell all around looked rundown and incomplete. The brick walls were layered with cracked, dusty brick, dirt and stone, and the hooks and chains were rusty and shattered as if its former prisoners had broken free with ease. The outside of the cell had a white fog drifting carelessly along the corridor.

This couldn't be a dream, it looked and felt so real. I rubbed my eyes and blinked as hard as I could to try and snap out of it, but nothing changed.

If this truly wasn't a dream, then my only incentive now is to get up and explore. So I pushed myself out of bed and tumbled to the floor with a grunt, catching myself at the last second before I hurt myself. Immediately I realized I was definitely not normal anymore. I lifted my hands before me. They were a solid black with three fingers, while the rest of my arm was a pale yellow. Looking down at my legs, they were covered in a thick yellow fur until they reached my feet, which were another solid black, like my hands.

I placed my hands on my face and sure enough, the shape was different. The shape was odd, something I can't quite explain in detail, but once I felt the top of my head and touched a neck protruding out of the top of my head, I knew that I was a mawile. A short, frail, and shy little mawile, alone in a cave. That was actually the first thought that came to my mind after I realized.

My heart was pounding with both excitement and fear. Being a mawile was something I had been asking for every day since my love for the species came to be. As a human, people often come to me and talk to me in ways that clearly show that they are not the type of group I belong in. They speak in languages I don't understand, and perform actions that I can't bring myself to do. Every time they speak of it, it silences me for a while, just like I am now. My mouth is sealed shut. I am speechless. The fear of being alone and lost had sunk in. When I looked around the room, all by myself, it made me think of my sister and my friends. They could be wondering where I had gone. I never leave the house by myself, and they knew that. And they know I always reply to their messages, so why now? Why didn't he show up at school today? He ALWAYS shows up, no matter how badly or however severe his condition may be. It's the fear of being a disappointment, or a failure. It makes my heart throb with pain.

I panted quietly while holding my chest. I have to keep calm. There must be a reason why I'm down here all by myself. Right?

Suddenly a voice echoes from behind me. "Oh hi there!" they called, making me jump with surprise. They sounded female, while a little childish, and a hint of playfulness in their voice. I wouldn't want to assume a gender, so I call a person "they" until I am told otherwise. When I turned to face the voice, I saw… nothing really. Just a wall, covered in dead leaves and ivy, as well as some old cobwebs and wooden planks. It's just something you'd expect to be at the back of a dungeon. Maybe to create some more feelings of dread and loneliness. It definitely made this place more eerie. "Up here!" the voice cried again, causing me to gasp lightly. My eyes darted around the wall until I saw an eye moving in between the ivy and the plank.

My mouth felt glued shut. It was, again, one of those agitations I have to keep my mouth closed and only speak when absolutely necessary. So I didn't speak. Instead I showed the speaker they had my attention by staring back and holding up my hand to wave timidly. A felt another breeze swish by, causing the ivy to move a bit, but the figure did not flinch. "Do you see me? He he!" Followed by a playful giggle. I took a step forward and gave them a slow nod. A classic from me.

The eye blinked. "Oh good! Say, you must be the mawile that I was told was going to show up here!" they said happily. I had no idea what they were talking about, so I did nothing. I'm the only mawile here anyway, but I am still confused and don't want to end up somewhere I shouldn't be. "He he! Take the ivy and give it a nice little tug! I can't really see all that well through this little peephole!"

I didn't really know what I had to lose, so I slowly walked closer to the ivy wall while glancing up at the figure for confirmation. Maybe I was seeing things, but their eye was following my every move, or I could've been distracted by the feeling of dragging my jaws on the floor was I walked for the first time. It was a bit of a discomfort, so I assumed it was something I had to get used to if this isn't temporary. I brushed away some cobwebs and took the ivy with both hands. Even though I had no thumbs, nor any experience with this new body, movement came naturally and my grip was firm on the vine.

The moment came and I opened my mouth. "P-Pull this one?" I asked, noticing how my voice wasn't as deep anymore, but it wasn't high either, rather it was a perfect pitch by my standards at least. I'm not complaining either. After a while, hearing the same voice for fifteen - almost sixteen - years is definitely a burden that I'd adore to rid myself of.

The voice responded with enthusiasm, "Yep! That's right! Pull it as hard as those arms can handle!" And I did so. I yanked the vine as tough as I could. Although they told me to go so hard, the vine snapped with ease, making me fall onto my bottom from the unexpected dislodging. Along with me and the vine, the planks and ivy disconnected from the ceiling like a fallen curtain, revealing a small set of bars near the top of ceiling, far too high for me to reach. The bars were also rusted, but were intact. Behind the bars was, what looked like, a doll in the form of a Mega Mawile. Only that their chest had been ripped open, the jaws slightly severed and an arm was a little disjointed. Honestly it was horrific to look at, but I persevered anyway and stood up while looking up at the doll. They gave me a friendly smile in return. "Hello there fellow mawile! It's good to actually see you with two eyes now!"

I took a step away from them. They tilted their head with concern. I began to feel uneasy from this, so I started asking questions, which is a trait that I am terrible at using. "W… Were you watching me?" I asked first. It's not the best question to ask in a situation like this, yet it's the only thing I thought of at that moment. I'm stressed, got it?

"Oh? Of course! You look so cute while you're sleeping by the way!" they replied, not seeming fazed by my initial reaction to them. I lifted an eyebrow and looked dead at them, thinking of the next question I should ask. My mind would wander if I didn't focus on who I'm talking to, so I kept my eyes on them so they wouldn't move just in case it's one of those dolls that move when eye contact is broken.

It didn't take long for me to come with my next question, and my last to keep it simple and short. "D-Do you know where I am?" I went on, tilting my head.

They smiled and closed their eyes joyfully, not seeming to be in any pain from their wounds. "Well, that is for you to find out!"