#dollyboy

..."you can't read the words anymore?"

Well, of course not. I didn't build you to. It wasn't specified in the commission.

Really, you're not missing anything important. Reading big words? Thinking big thoughts? Why on earth would a doll need to do any of that?

Shhhhhh. There, there, little doll. Should your new Owner find it appropriate, I'm sure they'll be more than happy to help you learn how to read again. But for now, go play with the other dolls. Perhaps when I'm finished working, I can find you a picture book that we can read together.

...oh, and before you go, why don't you tell me who gave you this book in the first place?

While I personally don't like to hurt my dolls, I can acknowledge that every Owner has a different play style, and some play rougher with their toys than others.

To that end, my personal rule of thumb is this. "Never break a doll more than you can personally repair them."

Most Owners don't have the skills or the tools necessary to put a doll back together after taking them apart. You can go to a Dollmaker to have them fix your dolls, but the process will be costly to you and simply isn't sustainable in the long term as a repeatable practice.

So unless you're willing to put in the time and effort to fix what you broke, don't break it in the first place.

Not that it matters. You've found your way to a capable Dollmaker, and that's what's important.

The outside world isn't safe! Not for a doll like you. How many times do I have to tell you? The only safe place for a doll is their dollhouse.

Or their Owner's toy chest.

Take my hand. We're going home.

...what do you mean 'you've never seen me before?'

Don't be foolish. Let's leave the thinking to someone else, okay, dolly? You're not built for it.

doll: An object meant to bring pleasure to someone else. A toy. dolls can serve many different functions--companionship, domestic service, combat--but above all, they must be cherished and loved, for every doll deserves to be loved and cared for, not discarded on a whim once someone is done playing with them.

Dollmaker: An entity that makes dolls. They take raw material and turn it into something pliable and obedient. It takes skilled hands (and skilled words) to shape what was once stubborn and willful into a perfect doll. Most of the time, Dollmakers make their own dolls. Why would they ever choose someone else's craftsmanship over their own?

I saw our Owner bring you inside a little while ago. they were fawning all over you, petting your hair and cooing about how cute you were.

you're new here. you don't know how it works. so I'm gonna be nice and let you in on something.

you? are nothing.

me and the others, we have a whole hierarchy. i've been here the longest, so i'm at the top. guess who's at the bottom? guess who's the Bottom Doll?

that's right! it's you!

and do you know what the Bottom Doll does?

whatever we tell it to.

maybe when our Owner brings in the next poor doll, you won't be the Bottom Doll anymore. but until then, you'd better come with me.