The Dollhouse (Accepting)

Hey, guys, if everyone's going off in different directions at different times, how are we always running into each other?

I was thinking the same thing. Sorry mixup... I can't really change it now though.

A. S.

With mine and the enemy's sowrd in both hands, I raced head on into the new wave of enemy recruits. I barely glimpsed another one or two of our dolls come also. A spiked whip sizzled by me to trap a doll, which a swiftly removed. The other person's sword was too big and too heavy, so I merely dropped it. there was about ten more recruits; each of which were fully trained. A full team, I realized.

"They have they're whole team! What do we do?!" I cried, hacking miserably.

"Keep cool. Attack like you know what your doing." Ribbon, who had taken my blind spot, told me. We fended of opponents, killing as many as we can. I must admit, and I don't like doing that, but February was very very good with any weapon. She eradicated several dolls. As a team, Ribbon and I killed several more. then they're was Luna, who picked off all the rest. After a time, each and every enemy doll was destroyed. I slumped against a huge oak tree.

"We make a good team." I voiced to Ribbon.

"You could use some work." She retorted.

"Ouch."

"But yes," She mumbled, soft as could be.

"You're amazing, Feb." I told her.

"Just because we've battled together doesn't make us friends. Only friends can call me Feb."

"Will someone be a friend, acquaintance, something! I feel all alone." I waited for a response, when none came. There was two more people; one of the new kids and Luna. I was pretty much a new kid, too. With the fighting and all. But no one could know.

"You guys aren't a talkative bunch, are you?"

'Sometimes," voiced Luna.

"We'd better get back." Ribbon informed. Everyone got up, and extracted what ever they wished from the dead dolls. I just sat there; no one had a backwards glance as they left without me.

"Screw this doll thing. I'd have half a mind to just stick a sword in the back of my head right now." I mumbled to myself. They're was scant left;big, bulky swords and a helm that was dented. I sighed and sat by the tree, thinking about what I should do.


Anyone? I could use a friend right now. =(

While on their sneak attack mission, France and Luna saw Feb, Ribbion, Shey, and A&D while they were moving to the new camp. Kai, Ivan, and Kirill are moving to the new camp together and Petsha and Zion are flirting in a tree. Just a note: you guys could not have killed off the whole team. There will have to be other dools, the game can't be over that quickly. Lets just make it so the other team has more dolls than we thought, kay? And, also, should we still refer to the games as the Toy Box or the Doll House?

Kirill

I hummed a merry tune as Kai, Ivan, and I walked ahead to the new camp. Kai had her hands shoved in her pockets and her head tilted up to look at the sky. Her eyes were blank and she moved soundlessly. I glanced over at Ivan and saw he, more or less, held the same pose. His hands were laced behind his head and he was looking intently up at the trees. The silence was killing me.
"So, do you think A&D found the others?" I started softly.

"Probably," I van answered with a scoff. I looked over to Kirill and she imitated looking at a watch.

"Right," I said, smiling, "when we set the group off, it wasn't long before A&D went off to find them. They shouldn't be far away." Another silence. "What about Petsha and Zion? I havn't seen them around."

"It's their own fault if they got lost. They'll have to get water sometime, they should find the river soon enough."

"Two newbies out on their own, though. It's dangerous."

"What's not dangerous in the Toy Box?" Kai nodded in agreement before sipping on a engry drink I didn't even notice she had. I rolled my eyes at her and smiled.

"So very true, brother. Hey, listen, I can hear the river!"

Ribbon

I frowned at A&D and started walking forward again.

"Don't talk like that," I hissed. "You're just lucky you're not laying in pieces." At the mention of pieces, a horrible pain shot through my chest and I nearly dropped.

"Ribby," Shey screamed. I smiled weakly and waved the advancing partners away.

"I'm fine," I said with a small laugh. "Kirill can fix this up. She can fix your hand too," I said, turning towards A & D. He looked down at his missing hand as if he'd forgotten about it.

"We should hurry back to camp," Luna suggested quickly.

"Change of plans," February said, "they're moving camp to a more... disclosed location." At this news, France raised an eyebrow.

"Where to," he asked, ruffling his shaggy hair.

"The river," A & D said. "Where is the river anyway?"

"Just down the path." I replied, rising slowly, trying not to move my chest too much. "We should be there any minute. Can't you hear the waters?" Not giving them time to reply, I started off again. "Now, now," I called over my shoulder, "don't lag behind!"

Deleted it was a horrible post anyway.

I feel pretty dumn for saying this, but can someone please bring me in. I'm a 'lil confuzzled as to what is happening and I know that I'll probably screw everything up if I try shoving Kite into somehwere.

Luna

This was just, well, weird. The first mission I'd been sent on that I wasn't the only one coming back, and the first mission I went on that I technically didn't complete; but we still killed a bunch of dolls, so I doubted Kirill or Ivan would mind.

We all walked back to the new camp. I was trying to be stealthy and sneaky, but almost everyone else was being careless; didn't they care that enemy dolls could attack at any time? Didn't they see how easily I had found them? Did they even want to live?

There were two kinds of newbies, I had learned in my short time since I had been here; the scared-out-of-their-wits, I'm-going-to-die ones, and the this-is-all-a-big-joke ones. I liked the first kind; they were freaked out, and were willing to do anything to survive. They could be taught and soon enough they would be like me; new, yes, but trained, and having an understanding of how dire the situation really was. I despised the other kind. It was like they thought this was some vacation, not a death match. Or that they thought they had been given Humanity chips so that they could enjoy the freedom of life, not so that they could feel every shard of pain while we slowly killed each other off. They were delusional. But they would all be gone soon enough, until the next batch.

When we got back to camp, everyone else was waiting for us. I hadn't realized it, but it was getting dark. Funny how time slips away when you're out on the hunt.

I walked over to where Kirill, Ivan, and Kai were sitting, by a fire. They looked surprised to see us all come back in such a large group.

"You're back - you're both back," Ivan added, spying France.

I nodded, rubbing my cool skin, trying to warm it.

"Why is everyone here at once," asked Kirill. "Did they even catch any meat while out hunting?"

I shrugged. "France and I ran into them. Then maybe ten enemy dolls attacked us - not surprisingly; all the newbs were making a ton of noise, fighting over a weapon or something - but we killed them all. And now we're back. I didn't see any animals or meat though."

"Well," said Ivan. "At least you killed some dolls."

Even if we starve to death because of it, Kai seemed to say. Or, at least her facial features told me that. I couldn't be certain, of course, but I had gotten fairly good at reading them. When I first arrived here, I asked Ribby why they were always together, why they were in charge, and then I got a very in-depth profile of all of them, got taught everything she knew about them, which was a lot considering she's been here for a while. Plus, I've been sticking around them a bit, without seeming clingy or wimpy. I'm willing to go on missions.

See, I liked being by them; most of the time, it seemed like they were the only ones besides me who took these games seriously. Sure, some others did too, but they tended to die protecting others, so all of them have died. THey're usually the more experienced, so dolls attack them before our other teammates.

And I think they like me. Or respect me, at least a little. I mean, I wasn't sure how few times newbies actually came back from their missions, but every time I did they always seemed a little more impressed. The fact that I always brought enemy Humanity chips with could only help with that. Now it's my goal to bring back the teammates I'm sent out with, like France. Except today doesn't count 'cause we didn't actually find enemy dolls; they found us.

"Now what?" I asked. We needed a plan, and we needed to carry it out. As long as people stayed busy and doing something productive, they stayed alive, instead of sitting rocks waiting for the enemy to pounce.

Ivan stood up. "Hey, everybody," he said, getting everyone's attention. "Listen up."

Eyes turned to him, like moths to a flame. "Okay, so this is what we're gonna do,"

~leaving it blank on purpose. Someone else post what the plan is~

Shey

I watched Luna. I didn't like her, but she seemed to know what she was doing. I tried to copy the way she walked. The way she stepped on the ground lightly. But, I have up after a while it was impossible to silent like she was. I had to keep my head straight ahead, because of the cracks running up my neck. I tried to remember who had put them there, but I couldn't. Everything was fuzzy. I knew we had been in a battle, but the details were gone.

I tried to test it. I couldn't remember anything! I new we had been dropped of by a plane this morning, I had weaved branches, only to be told we were making a new camp, then I had been in a battle, and now I was walking towards... camp yes the new camp. I rubbed my temples only to feel pain shoot down my arm and up my neck. I let my arms drop. Slowly, each inch making colors flash before my eyes I looked down. Cracks ran from just below my belly button up to my shoulder and then I couldn't see anything else. I could see the cracks because my shirt was ripped open.

I again forced my head up and realized we were coming to a stop. I walked forward and sat down. The voices around me faded and I was soon slouched forward in a place I can't really call sleep or anything else that comes to mind.

Ivan (Apple, you can bump into Petsha and Zion while they're doing their tree thing.)

"Okay, so here's what we're gonna do," I started, eyes skimming over the line of dolls in front of me, even a few of them cracked and broken. Was that guy missing a hand? "First, I'm going to need Kirill to patch up some of our broken dolls," I said, turning around to look at my sister. She nodded and told all the injured to come over to where she was, Kai was already getting the first aid kit for her. Ribbon, Shey, and A & D all stood in a line waiting to be fixed. "As I'm looking around," I continued," I see that Kite, Petsha, and Zion are still missing. They've either died, gotten lost, or become traders. Whatever it is, you all can rest easy knowing that I'm going to bitch them out when they get back." I heard Kirill chuckle lightly before a hiss of pain came from one of the dolls.

"Sorry," she mumbled.

"Anyway," I drawled, rolling my eyes at her, "the first thing we need to do is find some food. I will be taking a small team with me into the forest. Some of you will be going off with Kai to draw and filter some water and the rest of you will stay at camp with Kirill to make shelters?" I paused and scanned the group quickly. "February, Shey," they both looked up. Shey rather slowly because he seemed to be in another world. "You two come with me. Ribbon, A & D, you two go with Kai. Luna and France, you two stay with Kirill." There was a mumble of okays and sures while everyone grabbed the few things they would need for the assignments they were given. Kirill was just finishing up attatching A&D's hand. I grabbed my sword and quickly ran a hand through my hair.

"It's getting dark," Kirill said to me, her voice showing a small hint of worry. "You guys make it back quickly, okay. We'll have a fire going on your return." I nodded at her and smiled weakly before rounding up my group and setting off.

Kai

I nodded and tilted my head back to a side path. I mimed drinking water, then pointed over my shoulder. They seemed to get the gist and nodded uncertainly. Trying not to roll my eyes (Ki would grill me if I did), I jogged up the path, which was apparently too fast. When I looked over my shoulder, the shiny-new kids were walking hurriedly to catch up. (Well, really, only A&D was new to the team. I'd known Ribbon for some time now.) I pouted and marched back to them.

Locking one arm securely around Ribbon's waist, the other around A&D's, I lunged forward again. I was glad Ivan had given me dolls with some experience; I would not, under any circumstances, be teaching a Packaged (my own name for new dolls) how to get safe water.

We reached the lagoon in good time, and I released the kids' waists. I kneeled by the shore, my knees protected from sharp pebbles by a layer of fabric, and cupped my hand, filling it with water. I held it up so they could see the water, clear and sparkling. I held up one finger on the other hand and splashed it against my hand. Ribbon took her breath in, but I shook my head and smiled, holding my hand out for her to inspect. It was just as it had been, no color distortion or melting.

I took an empty metal bottle from one of my pockets and handed to Ribbon, and handed a tightly sealed jug to A&D. I myself began filling a bottle, my hood falling back. I thought I heard one of them whisper, "Is she mute?" but I can't be sure. One thing was for sure, though: I was getting these kids back to base before nightfall.

The first night in the House was always the worst.

Ribbon

A & D and I started filling up our water jugs.

"Is she mute," A&D whispered to me. I shook my head and laughed a bit.

"No, she just doesn't talk."

"Why not?" I paused for a moment, reflecting on the question.

"I don't know," I whispered back to him, "she just doesn't." He looked up and looked weirdly at Kai, who's back was now turned to us, before shrugging, dropping the question. I looked over at him to watch him work for a few moments. His face was scrunched up in concentration as he focused on getting the water. His new hand seemed to be working okay, my chest was even starting to stop hurting since Kirill put something on it and bandaged it up.

"Sorry about your hand," I said suddenly, remembering that it was I who gave him that wound.

"Sorry about your chest," he replied. I smiled and went back to collecting water.

"No problem."

Luna

I was glad it was me and France with Kirill; France was one of the newbs who didn't totally annoy me. At least he had a sense of fear.

Kirill sent France to get vines and me tropical leaves - the kind bigger than your torso - in the geographically incorrect forest/jungle landscape. She stayed back to make the frames from sticks they gathered while we were out "attacking."

"So... how you liking the island so far?" I asked nonchalantly.

"It's... not as bad as I thought," France said. This made me smile, a little. Finally, someone who knew the situation was bad, but was smart enough to realize it could be worse, and if we weren't careful it would be.

We gathered in silence for a while, until he asked, "Does Kai ever talk?" He was obviously trying to break the awkward quietness.

"No. Well, she would if she had to, put prefers not to. But if, say, she were a ways behind us and saw some dolls attacking us from behind, she'd yell if she couldn't take them out in time. But other than that, no, not really."

"You seem to know a lot about the island and everyone for only being here three other times."

"Yeah, well, that's the thing about the Dollhouse; you either learn fast or you die. That's why only people who take this game seriously - like Kai or the twins - last long. Most of us are newbs, or if we aren't, like Ribbon, it's because we do what the veterans say, keep close to them, and don't go off by ourselves. That's the biggest thing."

"So you think Petsha, Zion, and Kite are gonna die?"

"Probably. It's hard to tell just yet, though. Sometimes those kinds of people are smarter than they look."

By now each of us had an armful of vines or leaves, so we headed back. Kirill had sorted out the sticks and wood and apparently decided which pieces go where for a strong shelter. She put France to work tieing the foundation together while she set up another one - we wouldn't all fit in one little hut, after all - and sent me out again. I always got sent out again.

>Can I make my character evil, please! She can be working for another team! I don't think she really fits in with this team anyway and it can cause some drama. <

Kite:

Alright, so I hadn't been looking where I was going. As usual I had managed to lose myself in my own curiosity. As you might want to know, I've already scratched out Petsha and Zion as threats. I watched them from the tree I was hiding in. All they had managed to achieve so far was flirting. It kind of made me angry too. If I'd ruled them out as threats that also meant I had ruled them out as people capable of doing any damage, but then again they could be acting too...

A sickening cracking sound pulled me away from my thoughts. Looking at the tree branch I was standing on, I felt my heart lurch. The branch broke off from the tree truck, both Zion and Petsha turning to watch me crash to the ground in front of them. Petsha brought her hands to her mouthn and Zion glared at me like I had the plague.

"Are you okay?" Petsha asked.

My hands instanly fled to the chip up in my head. It was okay, it hadn't fallen out. I let out a sigh of thanks. Realising that they were still looking at me, I quickly rearranged myself and patted the dirt from my skirt...like I cared about it.

"Sorry, I was trying to find something I can use as a bed." I said in a innocent tone.

"In the trees?" Zion asked disbelievingly.

I laughed, "Yes!" I tried my best at a sweet voice. "Tree leaves are most comfortable."

Petsha nodded at me and grinned. "I've never tried them." She cast a glance up into the trees. "Maybe I should try it."

"Would you like me to help you get you some?"

Zion coughed, "Maybe later, Petsha and I are returning back to camp." I watched as he whisked her away. I looked after them, letting my hair fall over my face.

"Petsha may be a little easier to convince, though Zion, not so much." Standing up, I followed after them. Petsha looked over her shoulder at me and tried her best at a comforting smile. I scratched my arm looking this way and that, yes maybe this would work.

~Hey, dolls are randomly given traits like humans... and some humans are diabolical. If you wanted to be even more evil, you could decide that the other team is stronger, or better, or something, and be a double agent, actually siding with the enemy. I don't really see her motivation otherwise~