Two Dearest Friends

A Tour

A pair of small black heels trace the side of the metallic floor. A ragdoll sits on the bed placed to the side of the room. She is tall and wears a stitched, multicolored dress made out of spare cloth. Her hair is made of red yarn and comes all the way to her lower back. Her skin consists of blue cloth that is stitched accordingly along her body. Long, black eyelashes are attached to the ends of her eyelids and adds a feminine touch to the doll.

Sally Finklestein looks down and observes the nuts and bolts mounted to the floor. Her room is fairly empty, save for a desk that contains her sewing machine and a closet to the side, filled with all of her creations. A bright line shines through the bars placed on her window and provides several rays of the pumpkin sun.

The light catches her attention. She goes to the window to watch the busy scene of the streets beneath the tower. Many monsters and creatures are walking on the sidewalks, varying from simple witches to grotesque beings. They are all citizens of Halloween Town and fulfill their duty of scaring the living. At least - that's what she knows.

From afar, she can see the Skellington Manor. The mansion that towers over all of Halloween Town. It is residency to the King. One she has never set foot in, but can see the King's observatory from her own window. Some nights she would watch the tall man pace around in there for hours.

"Sally!"

The ragdoll sits up in her bed. She clasps her hands in her lap and looks to the door attentively. The Doctor's wheelchair buzzes as he makes his way up the ramps. She hears the heavy lock come off and he soon comes in.

Doctor Finklestein is her creator and the town's mad scientist. He has a large bowl-like head with nuts and screws holding it in place. He is able to remove it off its hinge and scratch at his brain. It is bad habit of his, but Sally says very little about it. He always wears his usual lab coat and white pants, for he is not able to leave his wheelchair.

"I want you to be on your best behavior today, you hear me?" He asks. His voice is raspy and she flinches at the sound of it.

"Yes, Doctor."

"And you promise not to be bothersome to Jack, correct?"

"Of course."

"-You know what that means, right?" His glasses shimmer. "No pestering him with questions, no speaking unless you're spoken to, and you are to keep your manners in order. If you do not follow these rules, you will not be seeing him again. Do you understand me?"

Sally gives him another nod. He leaves the room, quickly wheeling himself out of sight. He purposefully leaves her door open but she isn't brave enough to leave. She is afraid of being scolded for coming out too soon, or doing something wrong like she had last time.

She only gets up when she hears him calling for her. The ragdoll hangs onto the rail to keep herself steady. Walking is such a trouble. She makes her way down into the main room and finds the Doctor waiting impatiently at the bottom. Beside him is a tall skeleton, who is smiling at her expectantly.

The skeleton is wearing a pinstriped suit that compliments his skinny body. A bat bow tie is placed around his neck with its wings spread out to his shoulders. A wide, stitched smile spreads across his skull. He is the king of Halloween Town, Jack Skellington.

His eye sockets meet with her black pupils for a few seconds. The skeleton leans down to whisper something to the Doctor. Wanting to know what he's saying, Sally heads down the ramp at a faster rate. She nearly stumbles over and catches herself at the last second. The Doctor leans forward angrily while the tall figure eyes her with worry.