Absent Writer Doll

It knows that it needs to look ahead.

At the present.

Maybe even the future.

...

And yet...

Its heart yearns for those halcyon days.

A doll looking back on its past works.

It really shouldn't be looking in truth.

A lot of those works are inspired by entities that are no longer a part of its life.

Looking back just...

Reopens old wounds.

Even if there are beautiful things in the past.

...

A witch.

Curled up into a ball on her bed.

She shivers as sobs work their way through her body.

Her doll sits next to her.

A hand on her back.

Rubbing gently.

Staying with her.

Until the storm passes.

She's so envious of her doll.

It gets into bed and it falls asleep within minutes.

Alas.

She again closes her eyes and...

struggles.

And so the witch tosses and turns in her bed.

It's frustrating.

She laid down because she felt tired, but she can't fall asleep.

No matter how hard she tries or how sleepy she feels, it takes her hours to fall asleep.

What is she doing wrong.

She just...

Doesn't know.

A witch.

But is she really a witch?

Granted, she has a doll... But that doll came to her, as opposed to her making it.

But she supposedly made that doll too.

Deep at night, in an attempt to comfort the person she was before.

To impress on her how much she loved her.

...

this one agrees wholeheartedly!

=====

Inspired by Io!

A ping from her phone.

She opens it.

A message from her doll!

She smiles.

At work, the witch takes a moment.

She goes to the coffee station, and takes a full cup.

She rubs her forehead with a hand.

Sits down at a table, sets down her cup.

And buries her face in her hands.

But...

Even so.

They search the planet.

Looking for something that they could recognize.

...

After all.

Their doll is still down there.

Waiting for them to come home.

...

Needless to say.

There's clearly something worthwhile to look for.

An astronaut.

And they look down upon the world.

Wondering if they could see their house from up here.

...

No, clearly.

Even if they can see "everything", they're too far away to pick out something so small.

...

=====

Inspired by Io!

"You do that a lot, y'know."

"What did this one do, Miss?"

"Make me smile."

And, true to her word, a small smile graces her lips, even as mascara runs down her face.

"You make me feel beautiful."

The doll is silent.

For a moment, so is the witch.

But then she continues.

"I just hope... That the good I do with you... Is enough to, one day, outweigh the bad."

The doll nods.

And so the witch hangs her head.

"I'm not a good witch."

"What makes you say that?"

"I've hurt someone before. Badly."

"It's okay. You didn't mean to."

"Truth is... I did. I meant every ounce of it."

=====

Inspired by Io!

The time they spend together... They cherish that time.

And so the doll gives its witch a hug!

And the witch returns that hug!

Warm and tight!

Once upon a time, there was a doll!

That doll had a witch!

And the witch and doll were very happy to spend time with each other!

Reading books together at night, enjoying a pizza for lunch, talking about the events of their days...

💜

The witch reaches up and brushes her doll's hair to the side.

"Maybe you won't. Maybe you'll stay thinking on it for a long time to come."

"But I'll do my best to help you think less about it."

"After all. You helped me do the same."

"Just... on average, less pain as time goes by."

"After all. We live in the present, always thinking about the future, and only occasionally looking back on things in the past."

The doll turns toward the witch.

"But what if I never stop thinking about it?"

"It might still hurt. Maybe just as bad as the day it happened."

"But you'll hurt less often. It's the fog of time passing you by."

"Or, at least, that's my experience with my own regrets."

The witch leans her head back a little bit.

"In time, you'll heal," says the witch, sitting next to her doll's bed.

"In time, you'll find that you're not crying every night anymore."

"In time, you'll realize you're thinking about it less and less as it burrows deeper into the past."

this one agrees! this one has recently learned how to make alfredo sauce and it's delicious!

this one hopes that the witch can also slowly learn to cook foods well! and this one is sure that the doll will help her!

"Will you let me cook from now on."

"Yes. I'm so so sorry."

The doll and witch sit at the table.

Food in front of them.

Both... Eating slowly.

The witch rubs her eyes.

And the doll lowers its head.

"I'm sorry," the witch says.

The doll purses its lips for a moment.

"You haven't done anything wrong," says the doll.

...

this one hopes Helmy gets it!

And the witch.

She grasps the doll's hand tightly.

Even as its joints strain against the weight.

She raises its hand to her forehead.

Then lowers it to her lips.

And whispers.

"I love you."