The Faceless Doll

Two sets of feet crunched on the crumbly leaves of the forest. Quillan and Jayce were a seemingly happy couple. The pair arrived at their home, which was charred black after a recent fire. A porcelain doll plagued the house the two lived in with no face and lengthy chains around its ankles; one could hear it wandering the dark corridors at night. Jayce, a bright, adventurous young woman, never saw the alleged doll, but her partner, introverted and silent Quillan, claimed to have seen it since they were a child. Quillan never really spoke about her childhood, or about anything, for that matter. They kept to themselves and never really said anything unless necessary, or she was screaming that the "Faceless Doll" tried to hurt them.

The pair wandered through the ashes of their former home. A cottage that backed onto lush green forests which surrounded a crystal clear lake. Upon the horizon of the lake, you could see distant foothills and the bases of mountains. The cottage was cozy and warm but had ample space to host small parties or get-togethers. There was a master suite on the upper floor and two guest suites on the lower level. All three had ensuite bathrooms, walk-in closets, and a small office space connected to a small library. The rooms were located just off of the main living space with a fireplace made of cobblestone. The kitchen was an adequate size, with up-to-date appliances and a small dining area adjacent to it. There was also a lovely patio with a barbeque, lounge furniture and a glassed-in gazebo on a small path into the forest. It had LED lights strung around it, as well as a lantern inside the actual space. The patio was where Quillan and Jayce often spent their time, especially at night.

As the couple started to look around, Quillan began to feel like something was off. Birds that were chirping seemed to go silent. The air was deathly still. They could no longer hear her girlfriend's footsteps walking around. The only thing Quillan could listen to was this high-pitched ringing reverberating in their ears.

Then they heard the sound of dragging chains.

October 13, 1997- 24 years earlier.

Quillan was getting ready for a good night's rest before school the following day. They brushed their teeth, combed her long brown hair, and got comfortable in some cozy lavender pyjamas. Quillan's mother entered the room with a cup of hot cocoa and gifted it to her child before bed.

"There, my sweet Quillan. I hope you enjoy your hot cocoa. I'll be back to tuck you in when you're done." Quillan nodded shyly, not saying a word, as she sipped the hot cocoa slowly and cautiously not to burn the roof of her mouth. When they finished their tiny cup of hot cocoa, the mother returned and got Quillan nestled beneath the sheets, giving Quillan her favourite stuffed animal, a panda named Josephine. Quillan got snuggled underneath the covers as her mother turned out the light, leaving them in complete darkness.

As they slept, they started hearing dragging footsteps coming from outside. Quillan initially dismissed it as her dad sleepwalking as he usually would, but it sounded different. It sounded metallic almost, rather than the sounds of scuffling feet. Quillan sat up and looked around the dark, ominous room, trying to see if there was any sign of suspicious activity, but the room was as still as a statue. Nothing moved, not even the curtains. The night was silent.

Curious, Quillan walked over to her bedroom door and opened it, the door creaking loudly in the dead of night. They looked down the corridor to the end window, which glowed an ominous blue from the moon. She then heard the chains dragging behind and down the hall. Quillan walked closer to the source of the noise, the chains growing louder as their heart continued to pulse intensely inside her core. As Quillan reached the end of the hallway, they saw a nightmarish figure. It had no shadow. No eyes. No nose. No mouth. Just a porcelain head, cobwebbed hair, arms and legs. The figure wore a patched-up dress that went above its knees. The porcelain on the doll was cracked, broken and breaking. Parts of the doll's body were missing, leaving its insides black and hollow. Around their ankles were a pair of chains, reflective yet mysterious. The doll cocked its head to the left, then back to the center, as Quillan's body began to tremble. They ran away and back to their room, crying and screaming. Soon enough, her mother entered the room and asked what was wrong, but Quillan was inconsolable. The only words they could make out were "The faceless doll." Nothing else. Just "The Faceless Doll."