The Doll Maker

The clatter of a bell sounded at the front, and Lynk raised her head from her elbow. The day had gone by utterly slow, and she was so anxious to go upstairs, (her work area and home was up there) she hated the long wait.

The front door was opening, and then it shut. No one had come in, nor had they gone out. Confused, she leaned over her glass display desk, eyes searching for anyone to be found.

The bell above the glass double doors slowed and came to a stop as Lynk’s ivy eyes met with Lithia’s pupiless ones. All Linx demons had no pupils, no iris, just colors to cover the full eye, including the sclera (the white part of your eye, in case you didn’t know). To her surprise, on Lithia’s back, Lithia carried a set of miniature wings shaded pink on the skin, and white on the outlining bone. She was wearing a dress the same shade of light pink with huge sleeves, and ribbons holding it to her body. It was far too large for the small demon, but she was smiling so wide, Lynk thought her lips might fall off her face.

“Lithia?” Lynk asked, as if she wore a costume in which she wasn’t sure who was under.

“Ye-e-e-e-e-e-s?” Lithia stretched the poor word, making it more high pitched at the end. Lithia’s mother owned the bakery, which was right around the corner, which is why Lynk’s mouth watered when she saw the small lozenge in her hand.

“Mommy wanted me to give this to you!” She held out the tiny cake, and Lynk ripped it from her grip, took a deep whiff of it, but placed it on her desk. She wanted to finish her conversation with Lithia before losing control over it. I have control, she told herself hastily.

“Did your wings come early?” The lady behind the counter asked incredulously. The little girl nodded, twirling and fluttering her wings in the process. When she stopped, she stared up at Lynk with a smile and fluttering eyelashes. Lynx Demons usually get their wings at around seven or eight. Lithia was only six, and hers were here.

“Yuppers!” Though, when a demon child gets their wings, that can’t fly with them for a year because they’re not fully developed.

Lynk clapped her hands. She was careful not to mess with her Victorian wristlets. They were new, and she didn’t want to wrinkle them already.

“What’ve you been working on?”

Lynk stiffened. She knew she couldn’t show her, though it was killing her. So instead, she went around the counter and gently nudged Lithia out of the way. She opened the glass door and pulled out her latest wax doll.

Lithia gasped, reaching out to hold her. Lynk let her, but secretly smirked, thinking, ‘Just wait until she sees what I’m working on upstairs.’

The doll wore a simple black dress and had skin so pale it looked like she had been powdered. It had light brown hair. Her eyes were completely white. The wings on her back were white and fluffy; double the size of Lithia’s.

“She’s beautiful!” Lithia cried, admiring the doll’s beautiful white wings. “Oh, and the face…”

The face. It was different then every other doll she had made. It was so hypnotizing, so pale and fragile she could’ve thought she hadn’t made it. And the lips were small, but full, with a large cupids-arrow. Everything about her was perfect.

“How much?” Lithia asked. She was a frequent customer, and she never got tired of them. Many of Lynk’s creations sat on Lithia’s windowsill and on her shelf.

She scratched her head. “Hmm…I don’t know if I want to put her on sale, yet.”

Lithia gaped. “What?” She then screeched.

“Sorry, kiddo. Maybe when I get over looking at her face.” Lynk gazed at the doll, as if expecting it to jump out of Lithia’s hold and become real.

“Erm…fine. I’m going to get home now, if you don’t mind. Mommy’s waiting.” Lithia turned, not forgetting to flutter her wings, and began walking toward the door.

“Bye.” Lynk waved, and then began to ravage the lozenge she had left. Only getting a bite into the magnificent cake, when a filling she had forgotten about dripped down her cheek. She used her palm and wiped it away and went to look at what it was. The liquid was still warm, and sticky. Deep crimson.

Blood? Is it human?

Lynk put her hand to her face, sniffed it, and then used her delicate tongue to lick it. It was human. How could Lithia’s mother get this? It was super rare.

She licked the rest off and finished the rest of the lozenge. Then, she walked up the creaking spiral staircase to her living room. The place was very big, and roomy. The place decorated in red and black, or more likely, violet. She walked past her bedroom and to her work room. It was slightly cluttered, but other than that, it was big and roomy. On the left side of the wall were completely finished dolls, but they still needed improvement. On the right, there was an assortment of waxes.

On the table at the back of the room, there was a figure on the silver table. Lynk slowly crept to it, then ran her hands along the wax cheek.

On the table, there was a man. He wore a messy tuxedo, with large buttons on the coat. She smiled. He was coming along swimmingly.

Lynk went to his feet and swung his legs over the edge, then, she pulled him to where he sat on his butt. He slumped, but she straightened him. Holding him up with one hand to his chest, she reached over and grabbed the hat she had made for him. Then, she put it on his head, right over his silver hair.

As he started to slump forward again, Lynk caught him with her arms. She began to fix his bow tie sloppily, just like the rest of him. But that made him all the more beautiful.

“Don’t worry. I’ll give you a soul, and we’ll be together forever.”