𝒞ℋℰℛℛ𝒴 𝒦ℐ𝒮𝒮ℰ𝒮, 𝒞𝒪ℒℬ𝒴 ℳ𝒜𝒟𝒟ℰ𝒩

|07| 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐜

☡

𝐀𝐕𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐄 𝐏𝐔𝐒𝐇𝐄𝐃 𝐎𝐏𝐄𝐍 the kitchen door, the smell of toast and coffee wrapping around her like a warm blanket. She spotted Amy already raiding the fridge and hurried over.

"Morning, Amy. What are we grabbing?" Aveline asked, sliding into the seat at the kitchen table.

Amy held up a half-eaten granola bar and shrugged. "Just some quick fuel before Vic decides I need a workout or something."

From across the room, Colby's small wooden body caught her eye. He was perched unnaturally on the counter, wrapped in bandages like a ventriloquist mummy, a crooked little smile painted on his face. Aveline froze.

"Uh... what's with the... uh... dummy?" she asked cautiously.

Vic, leaning against the fridge with arms crossed, grinned. "That's Colby, obviously. He likes to pick new forms every morning to keep us on our toes."

Eva rolled her eyes from the counter, stirring her cereal. "Honestly, it's terrifying. He was a fish yesterday. A fish. And this is somehow worse."

Amy leaned back, shaking her head. "Wow, congrats, Colby. You've officially scraped the bottom of the shape-shifting barrel."

Colby's wooden jaw creaked as he tilted his head toward them, in perfect timing with a mechanical, squeaky voice. "Hey! Who wants to hear a joke? What do dummies use to hear? Their puppeteers! Get it? Puppet-eers?"

Aveline blinked. She wasn't sure whether to laugh or scream. The tiny dummy hands waved dramatically.

Vic groaned. "Oh, that's top shelf, Colby. Real top shelf."

Amy sighed, sliding off her chair. "Okay, we've had enough of your bad jokes all day. Your turn is over."

Colby's painted smile didn't falter. "Not all bad! Just one more! One more!"

Aveline glanced at him, trying to hide a shiver. "Maybe... maybe just make sure you grease his little mouth hole, or he'll lock up on the punchline again. And, whatever you do... do not pull his string. Not gonna make that mistake a fifth time."

Vic waved a hand dismissively. "Yeah, I'm not touching anything. Bye."

Aveline sat down heavily, laughing despite herself. "I swear, sometimes I don't know whether I live with humans or cursed toys. This is insane."

Amy handed her a plate of toast. "Welcome to the family kitchen. You'll get used to it. Maybe."

Colby's head twitched toward them again, eyes twinkling under the bandages. "Hey, when's the next joke?"

Aveline groaned, biting into her toast. "Somehow, I have a feeling this is going to be a long day."

Aveline was sprawled across the couch scrolling on her phone when Hartley burst into the living room like she'd just outrun a tornado. Amy, who had been reorganizing her snack drawer, looked up at her with the same expression she always had when Hartley entered in panic mode: tired, mildly concerned, and already bracing herself.