Page 41 of Dollface

“What is it?” Sullen asks.Such a curious devil.

“Curiosity killed the cat you know, devil-boy!” I snap my teeth, scaring him as he falls onto his ass. I cackle, falling back, kicking my feet in the air. “Havoc got you!”

“Shut the fuck up, you clown,” he grumbles.

“Havoc is a clown!” I shout, pointing to my pretty painted face. “See? Everybody loves clowns.”

“Not me,” he groans while standing.

My smile dims down. “Devil-boy loves no one except pretty Charisma, his skeleton beauty.” I snap my head, seeing Charisma. “Havoc does not blame Sullen. Such pretty bones.”

“What’s this new game, Havoc?” Sullen asks, annoyed.

“Do minions want to play the deadly game? Dice, needles, and webs. All connected and tangled together.” Charisma and Sullen look at one another, confused.

Sad. No one gets Havoc. No one sees what Havoc does. If they did, the games would be so much more exciting!

“No, minions can’t play this game. Too many players. Too many pawns.”

“Who’s playing this game, Havoc?” Charisma asks. “Boss? The doll? Someone else?”

“Secret!” I shush them, glancing around. “No one can know. Only Havoc. Many players, many stakes.” I look around as I crouch down. “Only one will win in the end; the rest will die. Havoc doesn’t want minions to die.” The two minions exchange terrified glances. “Minions best run and play their own silly games. Leave the big kids to do their jobs.”

“There’s nothing big about you, Havoc,” Charisma snarks, flipping their pretty feathers.

I grin, sharp teeth shining. “Havoc has one big thing.”One. Big. Thing.

“The itsy-bitsy spider went up to Nightmare land. Down came the moon and squashed the bugs all out,” my words sing as I crawl back into the darkness. “Spiders, webs, nightmares, buttons, needles and bugs. Oh, the itsy-bitsy spider.”

Chapter 11

Firefly

"Blue!" The deafening roar of wind and the acrid stench of something burning fills my senses, drowning out my aching screams for her. My skin feels like it's on fire as I frantically search through the chaotic abyss. Smoke clouds my view and I can’t see far ahead of me, but what I do see feels oddly familiar.

This place, it can't be Nightmare. Am I... in Dreadmoor?

"Firefly!" Blue's frantic voice slices through the air like an icy knife, filling me with terror and dread. I try to push through the smoke, but it only seems to thicken with each step, trapping me in this swirling, hellish inferno. And then I hear it—her blood-curdling scream so loud, it pierces through my soul.

"B-Blue!" I call out, my heart pounding in my chest. I desperately scan the area for any sign of her, frantically searching the chaos, but all around me is deathly silent, halting as the darkness settles and something draws near. I suddenly feel a cold, boney hand gripping my heart. A chill runs down my spine as a dark presence envelopes me, taunting me with its ominous presence. The wretched smell that follows tells me who it is, panic flooding my veins as her breath wraps around myneck. I spy her sharp grin from the corner of my eye, stretching as she whispers with a twisted glee, "Shall we play a game?"

My body jolts upright from the cold, hard floor. Sweat beads on my skin, drenching me in a sticky layer. My heart pounds so hard, I can feel it throbbing against my ribcage. In the dim glow of my skin, I can see my bugs, usually illuminated and buzzing with energy now motionless and quiet, as though something had dulled them.

"What's happening?" I pant, frantically trying to calm myself. I rake a hand through my damp hair, feeling disoriented and on edge. Something isn’t right.

"Firefly?" Blue's voice startles me, and I turn to see her naked form curled up next to me. The sight of her brings a sense of relief and comfort to my frantic mind, calming it instantly.

"What's wrong?" She yawns while sitting up, rubbing her button eyes. The memories of my nightmare flood back—the smoke suffocating me, the overwhelming sense of despair, her screams for help. I swallow, remembering the voice I heard. The Spinster.

"Bad dream," I manage to choke out as I lay back down and pull her into my arms. She gives a sleepy chuckle and nuzzles into my chest, her fingers tracing her name gently. I don’t want to worry her, especially after what happened in her basement, but something isn’t right. I feel it in my bones.

"Can the Boogeyman even have a bad dream?" she teases gently, quickly falling back to sleep. I carefully stroke her thigh, feeling the sewn thread of my name as I press my lips to her head.

No, but her Firefly can.

My arms pull her body close, gently squeezing her tight as I bury my head into her hair, inhaling her scent as I try to calm myself back to sleep. The world slowly begins to fade away as we drift off, the sounds of my bugs chittering lightly creatinga unique lullaby as something cackles, the sound echoing in the faraway distance, my consciousness slipping into absolute darkness.

My eyes remain shutas I carefully rotate, reaching for Blue. I feel around the floor, searching for her body, but it isn’t there. “Blue?” I peel my eyes open, sleepily patting the ground.Where are you?

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