DOLL
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III. Frightened Eyes
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He couldn't move.
He couldn't move.
He could feel something watching him, and he could almost even see it, but there was nothing he could do to protect himself. Albel Nox's body seemed to have frozen and there was a dull heavy feeling that was trying to weigh it down. What was this? Through the rain and distant thunder he tried to make out any other sounds, sounds that might perhaps indicate the intruder's movements. But there was nothing else. The green eyes he thought he saw in the lightning were gone, replaced by a dark figure now standing by his bed.
Despite his best efforts, the boy was unable to lift even one finger, and each time he tried it seemed as if he was being drained of life. The figure, on the other hand, remained still, looming over his body like a grieving widow. It lasted for what seemed like hours.
The fear was overbearing.
What did he have to do in order to move?
And more importantly, what in the world was that thing doing in his room?!
Nothing seemed worse than the threat of being immobile as a creature of unnamed horror stood at close proximity. What was he supposed to do? How could he cry out for help when he couldn't even summon his voice?!
Once again, Albel tried to move his arms. He had no idea what he would do as soon as he could move them, but anything was better than nothing! Absolutely anything. He couldn't take another second of this, the chills that clutched his spine and the feeling of being in grave danger. In the mercy of another.
There was a roll of thunder. It sounded like it was coming closer. Was the lightning coming closer as well? Up until now, when it struck, the lightning was unable to reach the figure as it did the first time. And it always disappeared before he could try to peer into the dark. But now, Albel did not know whether he wanted it to come closer or not. Would he really see the doll? He did not really want to anymore. Rather, he wanted so badly to flee. His father would definitely know what to do with the wretched intruder!
Move, damn it!
Lightning. He was right, it was closer now than it was before, big enough to light up a good fraction of his room. From the corner of his half-shut eyes, Albel saw the figure lurch. It flew back into the shadows of his bedroom, vanishing without a sound. Albel felt himself starting to seriously panic, locked in his own damn body.
There was silence. Then, a shocking roar of thunder followed by a voice that wasn't his own nearly killed him. It was enough to push him over the edge. He didn't know how and where in the world he got it, but finally - finally - his ability to move snapped back. He knew this because his toes were twitching!
Hurry! Before it comes...
Albel scrambled for the lamp, switching it on quickly so he had time to react properly to whatever awaited him. Unfortunately, he could only bite his tongue as the thing that haunted him all week appeared.
A scream of pain and unadulterated fear wrought his body like a seizure, yet it only resonated as a hushed cry. Sixteen-year-old Albel Nox, frightened beyond reason, was mute under the gaze of a doll that was only all. Too. Alive. The thingwas coming dangerously close to Albel's personal space, its large green eyes unyielding. Demanding. They almost completely stole the attention away from the rest of it, with a color that seemed to absorb everything it saw. Ball joints squeaked stiffly as the doll came closer and closer on thin legs. It moved unpleasantly, swaying slowly from right to left as if in pain, propped up by only a thin artificial spine. Albel's response was a shameful spasm that shook him to the very core with horror.
He felt the mattress sink slightly under the weight of a ball joint knee as it started clambering onto the bed. Noting that it would be the perfect time to do something, anything, to get the monster away from him, Albel only stared on in an odd sort of captivation.
Why was it here?
What did it want?
Was this how he would die?
He had always been sure that he would die in a fire of some sort, as a result of living in a city that coexisted with dragons. It was never a pleasant prediction, but now that he thought about it, he came to the conclusion that he would rather be burned to a crisp than die because of this monster before him. Admittedly that was dangerous thinking, but-
And then came a snap.
The doll's face looked to have suddenly cracked in half, but Albel soon realized that it had just opened its smiling mouth...
"Please."
...and with that word, pushed the teenager right over the edge.
"AAAAHHH!"
"Please-"
"OH MY FUCKING GOD!"
In the tumult of horror, Albel instinctively swept his left arm across the bed, smacking the doll right into the air and sending it headfirst over the bookshelf. Worn-out leatherbounds simply slipped off their places as the doll dragged the entire shelf down in a loud crash. In a few moments, Albel finally felt he had the upper hand in this situation. He cautiously crawled over the bed, taking a good look at the scene of his crime. The monster laid sprawled over the books, a little scratched and with limbs bent at ridiculous angles.
"Wha...what the hell are you?" he barked.
The sound of his movement startled the thing. Upon closer inspection, it also appeared to be crying.
Well, that was surprising.
The doll was now attempting to fold into itself in order to cover its face behind arms and knees. Albel was slowly being urged to relinquish his fear as the thing continued to cry softly.
"What are you?" he asked again, irritated now at feeling sorry for something so alien. What for, he thought, but couldn't find a mentally-stable enough answer. Now that he was in control, it was much easier to reassert himself and figure out what kind of bullshit was happening to him. But the doll kept crying and he was forced to become even angrier. He tossed his caution aside, finally understanding that his bigger build could clearly overpower that creature, and hopped off the bed.
"It hurts!" blubbered the doll as what looked like real tears trickled from glass eyes. "I wanna go home..."
Home?
"I want to go home..."
Albel tried to process this, but was cut off when he heard the sound of footsteps outside his room.
Of all times for the great Glou Nox to be a good father!
The teen dove towards the doll on some very strange instinct, scooping it up and diving for his bed in one fell swoop. He supposed it wouldn't make sense to freak anybody out now...right? Now that he could move just fine, and the thing was acting like a baby, he no longer felt terror. In fact, it was replaced by something like...curiosity? The panic, however, had yet to fade; his father knocking furiously on the door made sure of that.
"Albel! Son, are you all right?"
Albel made sure the doll was sufficiently hidden under the covers before responding.
"I'm fine, father. Please go back."
Nevertheless, Glou let himself in. It was clear he noticed the fallen bookshelf, but thankfully the man did not look angry. Albel eyed his father innocently as he made his way over to his bed.
"It was just a nightmare, father," he lied. "I'll be fine."
"Really?" Glou raised an eyebrow and gestured towards the shelf. "And how would you explain that?"
He felt the doll move beside him. Albel almost gasped in shock but contained himself in time, pressing his hand down on the doll to keep it from doing anything else.
"Well," he looked back at his father, who took a seat at the foot of his bed, thankfully on the side the doll didn't occupy. "I threw something at it in my sleep, and it fell over. Really, father. It was just a nightmare."
"...Truth be told, I thought you stopped having those," said Glou, putting a hand on his son's shoulder. "Tell me, Albel, have the medicines stopped working?"
Ah, the medicines.
The Nox family doctor, who was forever convinced that Albel was abnormal, had long ago read the boy's nightmares as a sign of mental illness. The frequency and intensity of Albel's dreams were enough to convince even himself that he needed some help, so he had agreed to take the prescribed medication, with the encouragement of his father. The bitter tonics did diminish his nightmares and soothed him in his sleep, but after a while, there were several side effects. Albel felt exhausted all the time, and felt as if only half of him were awake. He didn't do well in his studies, resulting in arguments with Count Woltar that he was too weak to win, and his appetite dwindled down to almost nothing. When he brought it up with the doctor, he was only told that he wasn't taking the correct dosage. His father was rarely there and thus failed to notice the changes in his own son. Having nobody to believe him, Albel secretly stopped taking the medicine. He thought that dreaming of death was better than feeling dead.
But obviously, he couldn't tell that to Glou right now. Not when there's a living doll hiding under his blankets!
"I guess I forgot to take it after dinner," the boy shrugged, feigning nonchalance. "I was a little distracted today. I'm very tired."
"Mhm, I noticed that," his father nodded. Albel almost felt guilty watching the concern on his sleepy face. "All right, son. I suppose you should go back to sleep. But remember to take your medicine first."
"Okay."
Glou patted his son's head a few times before standing up. In a few moments, he was finally gone, closing the door behind him.
Albel sat motionless for a while, drowning in a mixture of different emotions. On the one hand he was relieved that his father was finally gone, and he no longer had to hide the doll creature on his bed. On the other hand, there was a doll creature on his bed and he had opted not to ask his father for help. He had no idea what to do now. He was a little reluctant to lift the covers back up, worried that the doll might have taken on a more horrendous form while he was speaking to Glou. Was that possible? Scratch that; after everything that happened tonight, did he still have the right to question the possibility of anything?
He had so many questions!
After a few minutes of staring at the wall dumbfounded, Albel realized that the doll was no longer moving. Perhaps it was now safe to toss it out the window, or bury it in the courtyard, or return it to the aqueducts or maybe even burn it so it could never hurt anyone...
Ever so slowly he lifted up the covers and took a peek.
The doll's eyes were closed.
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DOLL
arcanegel: My sincerest thanks to luukia, Pepper's Wish, Albel Venex, Angelfreakzoid, Natsumi1122, ram of the forest, and Kfbbl2400 for the reviews! I love you all and hope you will continue to support me!