I splashed water on my face. Wake up, Ava.

Flowing water reminded me that I was human. The cool sensation was like no other; a fleeting feeling a doll would never experience.

It was a weird thought, but the doll was not going away anytime soon, so I found her a name to refer to. Which, of course, was Doll. Proper noun and all.

It sounded funny in my head; somehow my sense of humor had gotten even worse. But I barely had the headspace to crack a joke...

The situation was worse than being possessed or having a personality disorder. It was like drowning in the ocean... surrounded by soundproof glass. People could be all around, yet I would be alone, and my cries for help would never reach their ears.

If I were to try to seek help in my current state, I would be sent straight to a psychiatric ward.

Yet, the doll was a part of my reality, no matter how much I resisted.

I leaned on the sink. I was so tired from all the chasing that it felt like my legs would give out any moment. Thank God for my absolutely hopeless stamina. Marlon could've died by my hands if he wasn't faster. But Doll was reluctant to go beyond the apartment's front gate, so Marlon made it out safely.

Doll had all the power once she got on the driver's seat. It was frustrating how nothing would budge once she won over no matter how hard I willed, yet when I was in control, I could feel her under my skin like a ticking bomb.

My head felt heavy. It was just afternoon, but the sensation of fainting was overwhelming me. The last thing I would want was to pass out.

How much longer could I keep my alibi of being sick before the town centered on me as the cause of all the paranormality? My family wasn't so sure of me themselves. They didn't understand why I refused to go to school. All my mother could see was a girl dragging her sickness longer than it should have lasted, so that she could bunk classes.

I only stayed home because my father trusted I wouldn't lie to him.

I could barely keep myself together. My sleep deprivation was not a new issue, so though it was the same old for my family, I was living in a nightmare!

And I was not exactly normal per se. Maybe it'd convince them if I killed one of them... After all, everything I went through was because of them–

My line of reasoning was starting to get twisted and venomous.

I pushed those thoughts away. I couldn't afford to lose my only anchor. I had to always remember them - those who were important to me, those I would lay my life down for. They had no idea of this insanity. They had never predicted my misfortune. We were just... unlucky.

I loved my family. If my prediction was right, my emotional connections controlled Doll to some extent. So I couldn't let myself let my mental guard down. Doll could hurt them if I did.

But it all still lingered in my mind. I wasn't even fully alive, so what was I fighting for?

My senses suddenly perked up then. The ominous atmosphere from before continued to surround me, even after Marlon's departure. Or, more accurately, I had grown used to that creature - whom Doll fondly referred to as Joker. Now I could barely sense his darkness, having been wrapped in it for so long.

But I was glad for the distraction.

Marlon had been trying to avoid him. They were associated somehow, and though I had no knowledge regarding the matter, it was clear that Marlon was on the losing end. Joker very obviously was spending much of his time observing me. Every time I was close to committing a murder, Joker was around, watching.

If I was his prey, what was Marlon to him?

"Joker?" I called out softly. The word left an unpleasant taste in my mouth. It just felt like an insult, not that this creature deserved any better, but...

I sighed, reaching out for a towel. I didn't know where I was going with that myself.

Either way, I didn't expect Joker to reply at all, since he never paid Doll any attention. It was only a random whim of mine. Despite his strong presence, he was invisible, so it was impossible for me to judge him or his character.

But I was out of harm's way for the time being, for Joker did not want me dead.

Yet.

I licked my bleeding lips. Doll smiles so ferociously, so wide that it hurts my facial muscles.

And her vision was... It was on another level.

I raised my head to face the mirror. The sight of mangled brown hair annoyed me. I slowly began untangling it, relying completely on my touch. If my hair was any longer than ear level, I would have probably ripped it off.

I pressed my eyelids together. Doll had taken away my irises.

My pupils had expanded beyond any human measure. The image that formed in my head was too much for me to process. I could see so much that I couldn't see. Everything was magnified and the proportions were off.

She handicapped me. My degraded eyesight was, after all, just another tool to aid her. I was nothing more than a mannequin. She could style me however she liked.

In the end, I was the doll in this situation, and Doll sure loved to play with me.

I tried taking deep breaths, my trusty method to relax my nerves. I was at a disadvantage, as I was awfully vulnerable, but it was foolish of me to even hope that I could escape.

"I find it very curious," a voice rang in my ear, "that you aren't crying."

Voices that seemed to come out of nowhere did not scare me anymore.

I glanced at the general direction of the sound source, and that was when my eyes fell on Marlon's book.

It was so hard to make out the letters. I felt myself detaching from reality as I began to make sense of the title: Vampires, Humans and Everything in Between. Perhaps a mythology book, judging by the orientation of the cover, with a weirdly unique name to boot. I had never appreciated a present so much. Maybe Marlon knew that I was a sucker for mythology.

But... I probably would never be able to read again, huh?

Tears crowded my eyes before I even realized. Reading and writing were my favorite hobbies. They had kept me company for nearly four years by then. I was a lonely person saved by imagination. My stories made me prouder than anything else could ever. Those dreams of becoming a famous author kept me going through tough times.

But now, everything I had built up over years was snatched away in mere moments. The memories of happiness I associated with books felt fainter than ever, like a wisp of smoke.

Now they would be constant reminders of my disability.

Why was this happening to me? Why must I suffer such a fate? What had I done so wrong to receive a punishment like this?

Why me? Why me?

I yearned to go back to being the weak-spirited crybaby I used to be.

"Please leave me alone..." I begged, my voice choking up. Magic was supposed to be kind, not evil.

I had known, though. I had known from the day I got the courage to keep on stabbing a bleeding doll that I had terrible, terrible things coming for me. Or was it from all the way back when I first saw the doll?

Joker chuckled darkly. "It's so sad that you were close to walking away without consequences. Only if you had killed the body within and not touched the medium at all. Though you didn't have any way to do that, huh? I forget humans are magicless.

"But fear not, friend, for you are a part of us. I will help you master control upon your other half. What do you want to do next?"

My body lost all strength when I heard those words. I fell to my knees and cried without reservation. Fate was cruel. So, so, so cruel.

By breaking that mineral, I severed the medium of exchange and bound Doll to myself. However, if I hadn't done so, I'd not even be in my own body!

The whole ploy was a well-designed trap. A trick without an answer. I wish I could go back in time and stop Mom...

I hated that I had to suffer the consequences of my brother's stubbornness. But would I rather be stuck in a doll?

I didn't even want to consider it.

I had to painfully acknowledge that several families in town had suffered from the same porcelain doll... and that I had tolerated the least.

To think that this torture was the bare minimum.

"I'm going to find a way back to become human again," I replied to Joker. Deep within, I had already given up, but having been robbed of proper sight, I would do anything to get Doll out. "Half my soul means less years of life, but at least I'll live."

Those words lit an unfamiliar fury within. Doll needed to go in the most agonizing way possible.

Joker painfully snickered a second time.

~~

A/N: Hope you liked this chapter (written over quite some time, so I'm hoping its editing is good enough)! Finally gave the 'unknown creature' (Joker) and 'the doll' (Doll) their proper nouns. My inflated word count is no more.

I feel like I use the word 'but' way too much, but I need them all.

I tried making Joker's entry into the story as smooth as possible, but do let me know if it felt abrupt/is fast-paced/needs some more editing. I also worked very hard on describing, taking into consideration the ratings from last chapter!

After 6K words, we finally know Ava's physical strength, hair color, and hobbies.

What do you think about Ava currently? Does she seem stable?

As always, thank you for reading!