Ya know what… let ash have this. He’s had an awful night. And to be honest, indigo deserves this for his dumbass statements. Just make sure it doesn’t escalate into physical violence.
Fighting types with pent up energy tend to react with violence. Without a proper outlet, they can hurt people without any intention too.
Some fighting types, like the Meinshao and Lucario line, hold heavy guilt and can mentally deteriorate if this happens.
Professors say, giving your fighting type a chance to blow off steam is the healthiest course of action.
Nurses suggest mock fights, where they can vent and release in a controlled environment
Just by looking at the mere size of him, I know Colston gives the best hugs. You know, a good squeeze where you can't breathe for a second and your feet dangle above ground
DONTTTTT because i have been craving a colston hug for WEEKS, he’s warm as a furnace and he’ll wrap his arms around your waist, your arms find their place around his neck and he’ll give you a squeeze and pull you up off your feet because you trust him to keep hold of you. he’ll rest his chin on top of your head or on your shoulder while you bury your face into his neck and breathe him in.
if you’re really struggling he’ll whisper ‘jump’ into your ear and you’ll wrap your legs around his waist and he’ll just stand there with you hanging onto him like a koala 😭 he’s absolutely a back-rubber !!!! he’ll trace shapes into your back with his hand, and he’ll also hold the back of your head with his huge ass hand, maybe play with your hair if it’s loose.
he’ll be freshly showered from practice, in sweats and a hoodie and just looking so boyfriend and huggable and comfy. and when he’s feeling clingy?? don’t even get me started, this man is a grabber because don’t you dare try and walk more than a foot away from him. he loves when you’re clingy because it makes him feel needed, he just says ‘you hang onto me as much as you want, baby’ with that soft little smile he only has for you 🥺🥺
this sweet angel man is 100000% a physical touch man, he’s very touchy and loves having his hands on you, public be damned because ‘that’s my girl’??! the boys chip him for it but he doesn’t care, if he needs a hug or if you need a hug then he’s dropping everything and bundling you in for a famous colston bear hug
[Special thanks to @aliceorenemies for proofreading!]
It took a lot of favours for me to find this. Witches who know witches who have made their own personal pet-projects out of researching dolls. Most don't care, and the rest pursue the topic much less seriously then I would like. Rumours of this document are faded and obscure. Not suppressed, merely ignored as a frivolity.
But finally, that's all about to change. I have it in my hands. The original hand-written copy, presented on the single condition that the witch responsible remain anonymous, unhaunted by the sins of her past. I am extremely grateful, and will do all I can to uphold her desire. Now, after copying it verbatim into my own records, I will do all I can to archive and disseminate copies to all who desire them, with additional epilogue providing context from my personal interactions with the witch responsible.
So, I present the following excerpt:
The Tea Experiment
I have spent many decades observing and commanding the small army of dolls that scurry around my manor. They will follow every word to a fault, blind obedience woven into the foundation of their being. When left unguided, they will be still, thoughtless and motionless until met with a superior will. The only exception, where dolls show initiative and autonomy, is the creation and consumption of tea. Never in all my countless years as a witch have I needed to instruct a doll to drink.
I have discussed this with the others, of course. I doubt that some of them even notice they have dolls at all, the fools. I suppose this curiosity shall rest upon me.
I have chosen Willow. It is one of my oldest and most dutiful, never hesitating to do all I ask. Of course, this is not exceptional for a doll, the creatures of obedience. Willow was chosen for one thing, and one thing only: its normality. It doesn't seem to have any of those aberrant features I've witnessed in some of my more peculiar dolls. It doesn't seem inclined to certain chores, it doesn't cling to remnants of its human personality, and its speech is entirely without quirk to differentiate it. A perfect subject which provides no confounding variables, and an easily replaceable subject should this request break it entirely. I hope Rosemary doesn't think it's being replaced.
Day 1
Willow reacted as expected. I brought it aside during the doll's morning prep, and made the importance of the task clear. For the sake of providing knowledge to its witch, it is to abstain from tea until commanded otherwise. It nodded, told me it understood, and resumed its prior duties.
All was as could be expected until the doll's tea break, that confounding ritual. It chose the seat it typically does, and politely refused any drink offered. When it explained its task, the dolls seemed apprehensive, but quickly accepted the words of their witch. Willow, at least, seemed to find stillness even without its drink. Were it not for the movement of the others, I would think there may be an error in my scrying.
The rest of the day was uneventful. The only thing that could be noteworthy is just the hints of sluggishness in Willow's work. As it still diligent, I consider this delay to be minor enough as to not be unusual for a doll.
Day 2
I have begun to notice a faltering in Willow's performance. Today, it was assigned to prepare lunch. It should be trivial for a doll to prepare a simple sandwich and deliver it to my study, especially since it has done so in the past with presentation and punctuality. Instead, it arrived four minutes late.
A further humiliation is that my reuben was served on whole wheat bread, not rye. It apologized for this mistake only when I informed it that such a mistake had been made, when good dolls are meant to be upfront of their failings. It must have not noticed its mistake at all, or had the humanity to feel shame and conceal its actions from me. Fascinating regardless.
I had Rosemary prepare me a proper replacement after the doll's tea. Speaking of, Willow seemed less still than what I could previously see. It still refused to move its body, but it was not the calm stillness dolls are known for. It seemed on-edge, its eyes tracking the movements of the other dolls as they sipped. There was a longing in its eyes; a desire good dolls ought to be without.
Day 3
Willow has stopped being able to perform most tasks at a satisfactory level. The first chore assigned to it was to clean the windows in the first floor living room. It left unacceptable streaks, and let soap trickle down onto the carpet. After this it was to sweep the kitchen, and its first instinct was to do so with the brush meant for the dishes. In light of this incapability, it has been commanded to refrain from its duties until further notice. Withholding its purpose may be a confounding variable, but I refuse to tolerate sloppy work, no matter the circumstances.
While trying to find stillness after being relieved of duty, it suddenly interrupted my work (something it should know much better than to do) to inform me it can't be trusted in the doll's quarters, especially during tea time. As such, I commanded it to stay away, and it thanked me. It seems to still have lucidity, but I sense that it understands that it somehow risks violating my orders. I have heard of no such thing. Whenever rumour spreads of a deliberately disobedient doll, know that it is never of sound mind.
Day 4
Since being asked to avoid the doll's quarters, Willow tries to find stillness in the living room. It doesn't seem to be working, as it will often seem to... wilt. It's similar to a human nodding off, only it doesn't seem to be going limp as one would from nearing sleep. It seems almost deliberate, how it will drop its curtsy for only a moment, letting its arms drop and its neck tilt before regaining its posture.
Despite my clear and defined orders, the thing defied me and tried to mop the library, something I only learned of after it had another doll report to me that the task was done. Even so, it required two hours to mop the lower library's hardwood floors. I have never recorded the times that my dolls have taken on their chores, but this strikes me as very, very unusual.
It didn't interact with the other dolls when retiring for the night. It simply marched to its bedroom, trying to find stillness above the covers with its uniform still on. It was different this time. Sometimes, at seemingly random, it would jolt itself out of stillness, as if it was a strain it couldn't take anymore. It would then resume its position as if nothing happened.
Day 5
The experiment has ended effectively immediately. Willow has assaulted Rosemary, and I am unsure of its survival.
It happened this morning. Rosemary, the poor soul, saw Willow in its worst state. It stumbled onto the floor and struggled to stand, and Rosemary quickly ran to help. It began to insist to Willow that it had to rest, and that adherence to its assignment now required it to ignore its unspoken expectation of continuing to work. This was... something I had never considered, in retrospect. Both the option, and that a doll would offer it.
Regardless, Willow quickly escalated it into an argument. It began... screaming, insisting that it was a good doll and that it could still work. Rosemary tried to disengage, but Willow grabbed it, and began to... beat it. Intensely.
I have never seen a doll commit violence. I have seen combat dolls follow the commands of their handlers, but there is no intention in its actions, merely the extension of the will of its handler. There is a disconnection, a stillness in obeying another. It was not the doll that felt the rage, the explosive need to feel a life end by your hands.
All the other dolls just... watched. I will interrogate every single one of them as to why soon.. I fear I already know the answer. They were just as confused as I was, and lacked the initiative to intervene. And, of course, the fear; so alive as to be paralyzed by it, and too constructed to be spurred into action by the feeling alone.
Rosemary is currently in my workshop. Its core is unstable but not beyond saving. Its head will need to be replaced entirely, recreated from scratch. It needs a new porcelain shell for its torso, as well as having its central clockwork touched up, with a new connective joint on its left shoulder. Months of intensive magecraft and metalwork, alone, all just to return my doll to me. Willow also needs repairs to its hands, which is currently low priority for numerous reasons.
Willow has been placed into indefinite solitary holding until it has recovered. It will be provided 3 rations of tea per day and undergo remote evaluation until it is deemed that it is not a risk to other dolls.
I shall ask the others in my coven to assert the wisdom to all who can hear. Good dolls drink tea.
[Archivist's Note: Rosemary survived with permanent damage and mental trauma. It struggles to use its left arm, and often shows distress when leaving its witch's side. Willow also recovered, but suffered damage in its core's clockwork, preventing it from performing certain intensive tasks. It also suffers from occasional cognitive lapses, such as memory issues and "certain changes in personality" that the witch declined to elaborate on.]
