#mmhhhhhhh

MASTERPOST

Definetely. But I wouldn't say it's her killing the children directly - rather, I would say children are being killed for the purpose of keeping her happy.

It's likely that the Pretender can't interact with real, breathing kids her age because of her power. I have a strong feeling she doesn't have full control of her absorbing ability, thus making her dangerous to everyone around her, which could explain this painting.

The other children seem to be backing away from her. Only one of them is turned in her direction, yet she doesn't dare to approach the Pretender.

(Also... six children. Only one stands clear among the other five who are obscured, with two of them visibly together... and this is the room where Scarecrow's jack in the box is hidden. The whole Nest is just filled to the brim with references to the Ladies. But still, just observations. Carrying on.)

In this same room are the pictures of the Pretender with her parents, the hanging of her father, and this large painting of an empty crib.

The odd one out, mh? It really has no reason to be there, but I have to say that it looks so sad to me, especially when taken in context with the other two. It gives off this sense of... loneliness. I can't really explain it, it just does. Seeing it so empty makes me feel as if something might be missing. Someone.

Initially I assumed this was the Pretender's crib, buuut, I just had a thought.

This is the same hall where Scarecrow's box is. Hidden under the staircase, away from the world. In her room, there was this painting of the Pretender with her head ripped off, which is what helped me connect it to the Lady in Blue and her quarters back on the Maw.

Back then, in my first post about the Ladies, I mused how this may imply there are some similarities between the Pretender and Scarecrow.

Listen, this may be a big stretch, but I beg you to try and follow me. What if. What if, the Pretender wasn't an only child. What if something horrible happened, one day, when the powerful eldest was left alone with her sibling unsupervised? Something so tragic it tore the family apart, causing her father to kill himself in shame... or perhaps regret for not being able to supervise his children?

OOOOR, I could be looking too much into things, as I usually do.

Going back to the original topic - the Pretender is undoutebly plagued by loneliness and she hates it. It’s clear that she wishes for companionship, otherwise there wouldn’t be these many dolls, both in her quarters and in the dump, however this statue in the entry hall lets us understand that she may not have a clear idea of how a true friendship should be.

I wonder if this is how the Pretender wishes to be percieved. Someone to be seen as a savior, worshipped by the ones around her whom she considers to be beneath her. Considering her status as a privileged child, I would not be surprised if this truly is how she interprets the concept of friendship.

Yet, this arrogance of hers goes perfectly with her strong desire of being seen, to have someone by her side. Someone who won’t dissolve under her touch like the human kids; someone who won’t ignore her like her mother does. Someone who won’t abandon her like her father. Someone who won’t fail her.

Anyone. 

She must have realized her dolls don’t fill that empty space in her heart. We wouldn’t see her weep in front of a dismembered doll otherwise. Yet, they’re all she has and can have until she learns how to control her power, if she ever does. All she can do until then is play pretend in her twisted little world, just like every other adult in this world.

You’ll be fine, have hope.