Chapter 3:

The Hidden Shop

My Sweet Porcelain


“Welcome.” answered an older woman’s smooth, rich voice.

“Hello…” Albert answered, his voice trailing off. He didn’t see anyone.

Albert stepped into the shop. Bells tinkled. Looking around, it was… normal? Of course. What should he have expected? Definitely not a bookstore filled with grimoires. Nor an armory. The shop’s name was Happy Trinkets, after all.

It was slightly cramped. Shelves with merchandise lined the left and right walls of the room. In between the walls was a line of baskets and racks, slightly off center from the room, creating two aisles with enough space for a pair of people to squeeze through. The knick knacks the store sold seemed to be simple decorations ranging from wind chimes to conch shells. At the immediate right of Albert was a set of staircases leading up. Nothing seemed magical inside the shop.

In front of Albert, across the room, was a window spanning the width of the wall. It was the only source of light in the room, albeit not much because it was dark out. The lanterns on the streets outside cast a hazy yellow glow that creeped inside the shop.

Those buildings out the window looked familiar.

Albert walked across the room, past the glass balls and bells. He could see the view more clearly now. It was a street that he knew. He was there before he was lost, when he was being chased by Leo.

He stared in disbelief. Right under the nose of one of the more crowded areas was a shop nearly nobody knew about.

Dolly, who was trying to stay still under Albert, was nervous.

“Don’t move, Dolly,” Ficus had told her before the door opened.

Right behind her, was a customer. Someone new. Should she have greeted the person? He seemed nice, but would he be surprised? No, Ficus told her to not move, so she mustn't move. Because Ficus is always right.

Dolly stayed still. That is, until she felt Albert move again.

“Hahmf,” She stifled a surprised shout.

“Huh?” Albert was about to walk back to the door, but he heard something.

He looked around and noticed a little doll looking out towards the street in a sitting position. It donned a red dress, covered by a light, pastel blue shawl, decorated by yellow ribbons and linings. Its bonnet matched the shawl.

Is it… shaking? Albert decided to bend down to have a better look at it.

“See anything you like?” a voice interrupted from behind him.

Albert propped himself back up, and turned towards the source of the sound. It was an attractive woman, definitely his superior, but no older than 30. She wore a coffee cream colored tunic dress. A sash of earthly green was wound about her torso, highlighting her slim waist. Albert’s gaze lingered around her well endowed chest before looking at her face. A pair of periwinkle eyes, partially hidden by her wavy, silver bangs, seemed to hide a certain knowledge from him. Her hair cascaded down a bit past her shoulders.

Entranced by her beauty, Albert took a while to respond.

“Ah, no, just looking for a way out,” he stammered.

“Were you perhaps interested in Dolly?” She stepped closer. She leaned forward and stared as if her gaze could peer past his eyes and into his soul. She smiled.

Albert shrunk back a bit and looked away. “Um...” He didn’t know the right answer. “No?”

“Hmmm, that’s too bad,” she stood straight again and walked back into Albert’s view. “You seemed like the perfect person who would take care of this child.”

Albert couldn’t understand what the lady was thinking behind the face she was making. Her tone seemed to be genuinely sad, but her face looked like she could squeeze the right answer out of Albert. She had a smile on her face that borderlined into a smirk. Her eyes reflected the lights from outside and bore a hole through him.

“Look…” Albert was trying to find the right words. “I only came for directions, so I didn’t come prepared to buy anything grand.”

“Buy?” the lady questioned. “I only wondered if you were interested in her.”

“Well…” He glanced at the knee-high doll on the display counter. From what he could see, it looked cute. “I guess I would say that I am interested.”

“That’s good to know,” she giggled. “Would you like to have her?”

“No, I can’t,” Albert felt stuck. “Like I said before, I didn’t prepare to buy anything.”

“You don’t have to pay.”

Albert looked at her. She was serious. No glint in her eyes. No smile. She seemed to be dead serious with no tricks.

“No, I can’t accept this.” He tried to refuse.

The lady wouldn’t back down. “I insist! this little one needs to know the outside place and you seem to be the right person to give it to.”

What kind of reasoning is that? Albert couldn’t follow her line of thought.

“Well...” He was running out of excuses.

The lady picked up Dolly to her face and put on sad, puppy-eyes. “No?”

Dolly was certainly well crafted. Its face looked cute. The mahogany eyes and chestnut hair matched well. The rosy blush on the cheeks stood out from the pale skin. The porcelain seemed like it could be soft to the touch. It was like a child preserved in clay. Overall, it definitely did not look cheap enough to be casually given away.

“Are you sure you want to give her to a stranger?” He doubted.

“Well then,” the lady gently set aside the doll. “My name is Ficus, and she is Dolly. Nice to meet you.” She gave a polite bow.

“Umm, I guess my name’s Albert. Nice to meet you too.”

“Great!” Ficus smiled. “Now that we’re no longer strangers, would you like to adopt Dolly?”

“S-sure...” Albert was at a constant loss of words.

“Please wait outside while I prepare to send off Dolly.”

How odd. Albert still complied and stepped out.

“Dolly, you can relax now,” Ficus said as she sat down next to her.

Dolly eased her posture.

“What was all that?” she asked as she turned towards Ficus. ”Is Dolly going to go outside?”

“Yes,” Ficus had a smile of mixed emotions. Her tears that were building up contained happiness and sorrow. “Congratulations Dolly.”

Dolly patted Ficus’s knee, as that was the best place she could reach.

“It’s okay Ficus,” Dolly consoled. “Dolly is strong. Dolly can handle leaving Ficus and go with that nice man. Dolly is only worried that Ficus will be lonely.”

“Ohh, Dolly” Ficus stroked Dolly’s head.”You definitely are strong. How about I give you a magic spell?”

“What for?” Dolly asked.

“Hmmm… How about for good luck, strength, and for me to always be with you?”

“Okay!” Dolly accepted. “Dolly is always fine with being with Ficus.”

Ficus brushed away Dolly’s bangs. Then, she bent down and lightly kissed Dolly on the forehead. “Goodbye Dolly,” she spoke sadly, and hugged her.

“Goodbye Ficus,” Dolly hugged back. Where Ficus’s lips touched felt warm and tingly, as if a part of her lingered. “Dolly will most most most definitely see Ficus again.”

“Me too, Dolly,” Ficus wiped away a stray droplet from her eyes. “I will most most most definitely visit you. I promise. You have my word.”

The lights outside flickered as the two shared their goodbyes in the shop. The shadows danced around them in a circle. It was peaceful. It was silent. But it was also sad.

“Well,” Ficus stood up and rubbed her face to check if she missed any tears. She grinned excitedly at Dolly. “It’s time for you to see the world!”

“Yes! The world!” Dolly repeated.

Ficus placed Dolly in a decorative bag and walked over to the door. The shop tuned out a slow fanfare as the pair passed. It wasn’t as grand as an imperial orchestra, but it was special to Dolly. Of course it should be special for her. This was her first home, and that would never change.

When they reached the door, Dolly popped her head out and shouted. “Bye bye shop!”

The trumpets died down.

In the silence again, Ficus raised Dolly to eye level to warn her. “Not everyone is accustomed to a talking and moving doll. Please be careful about your surroundings. Don’t move or else you might be sent back.”

“Even Mr. Albert?” Dolly asked.

“Maybe wait a while before showing Mr. Albert,” Ficus answered.

“Okay!” Dolly accepted the warning.

Ficus smiled. “Have fun, Dolly.”

“Yes!” Dolly affirmed. “Dolly will have fun.”

Ficus lowered Dolly down and took a deep breath. “Ready,” and reached for the handle.

Albert stood at the entrance for five, ten minutes. He looked around. It was no longer a dead end. The stairs were gone, and the street was open from both sides. He walked to one side and stuck his hand out, expecting the view down the road to be fake.

Suddenly, Ficus popped out from behind the door, grinning. “She’s ready!” She handed Albert the bag. “Here you go!”

“Thank you,” Albert felt awkward, and he still did not know the way out. “Umm, so—”

“You know,” Ficus cut him off. “I’ve always called Dolly Dolly because she was a doll. Do you want to give her another name?”

“Huh.” Albert thought for a while. “Daphne? Iris? Maakia? Sabia?” he muttered to himself. “How about Camellia?” He suggested to Ficus.

“Camellia, I think that’s a great name!” Ficus was happy. “Any reason behind that choice?”

“Oh, nothing too important,” Albert explained. “I just thought that since you had the name of a flower, Dolly should also be named after one.” It felt awkward, using someone else’s name as a template.

However, Ficus seemed to be pleased at the thought that he put into the naming. “How thoughtful,” she complimented. “I knew you were the perfect person to take care of her.”

His face blushed from his embarrassment. “Ah, but I feel like she should keep her first name though, so how about Dolly Camellia?” Albert suggested.

Ficus smiled. “Thank you, Dolly Camellia must be very happy with her name.”

There was a moment of uncomfortableness. Albert was unsure of why Ficus treated the doll as if it had emotions.

Ficus put her hands together. “Well then,” she tried to speak without sorrow. “I guess this is farewell for now.”

“Ah, yes,” Albert hesitated. “But where is the exit?”

“Oh!” Ficus exclaimed. “That’s easy! All you need to do is stick to this wall and go that way.” She pointed to Albert’s right side. “If you have any doubts during the intersections, remember to always turn left.”

“Urk,” Albert suppressed a gag. He certainly had not overcome the trauma from the day’s earlier ordeals.

“Is something wrong?” Ficus inquired, tilting her head in a worried manner.

“No, no,” Albert assured her. “Everything is fine. I’ll best be on my way now.”

“Well then,” Ficus waved goodbye. “Safe travels to you and to Dolly.”

“Thanks, will do. Have a nice night Ms. Ficus.”

Ficus grinned. “Goodbye Albert.” She closed the door, leaving Albert back in the alleyway.

Albert stuck to the side of the wall and began his trek home. Sure enough, the exit was on the same block as the shop, and he quickly found himself facing the main street. The festival was still ongoing at the peak of its jolliness, but Albert was too tired from the day. The day was too weird for him. Thus, he decided to head home, where there should be a nice bed waiting for him to rest upon it.

As he passed through the crowds and stands, Dolly peeked her head out of the bag. It was very different from what she saw earlier. The twinkling lights; the people passing by, talking to each other; and the crisp air. Although they were only passing by, Dolly felt as if she was a part of the festivities. Everything was new. She stared, captivated by the sights and sounds. There was music in the far back. Dolly hummed softly along with it. Nobody noticed the gentle singing. It blended into the ambience of the festival, as if it always belonged there.

The time with the crowds and lights was short, however, because Mr. Albert had decided to head straight home. This was fine for Dolly too. As long as it was someplace new, she would greedily absorb whatever sights there were to see.

Apart from the ruckus from the festival a few blocks back, the streets were silent. Lampposts situated every few houses blanketed the streets with a dim light. Dolly couldn’t quite make out the fine details in the surroundings, but she could tell that, while each house had the same or at least a similar design, they were decorated differently. Some had flower beds in the windows. Others had a flag waving out. Each one was unique, like it described the person living inside it. Dolly quietly observed every house, wondering what the people were like. What if she had a conversation with them? Would she ever meet them?

Within a few streets, they reached a pub. A sign was hanging from a pole that stuck out around three to four meters above and parallel to the ground. The words “Sweet Ales'' were sprawled across the board.

Mr. Albert stopped at the door and searched his pockets for the keys.

Sweet Ales. So this was Dolly’s new home. There was black fencing mixed with hedges outside, containing a few sets of tables and chairs. The building was similar to the others, but Dolly tried to remember its design down to every detail. The flowers hanging in the pot by the door. The intricate designs on the front of the shop. The patterns of the wooden door. She wanted to know it all.

What about the interior? What did it look like inside the building? Mr. Albert unlocked the door. It had a restaurant setting. Wooden tables and chairs were spread out at the front of the room. At the back, lay a kitchen with a mini bar. There were bottles lining a majority of the back of the wall, with a set of stoves on the left. On the right of the bottles, were a set of cabinets. Separating the dining area and the kitchen was a counter, where transactions could be made and meals could be garnished and sent out. At the far right corner, lay an exit to who knows where. It seemed that not anyone was allowed to exit through there because the counter cut off the doorway from the dining area. Maybe it’s a room for storing food. On the far left, there were a set of stairs leading up. Presumably where Mr. Albert’s room was located.

Albert walked behind the counter and placed Dolly in the back, where the cabinets were located, far from the stoves. He turned Dolly to face the wall where they came from.

Deep in thought, he took a chair and sat down in front of her, chin on the table. What a day. First the crazy Leo. Then the labyrinth. Finally, the shop. He looked at Dolly. They were at eye level.

“Dolly,” he called out, unaware that the name in question was actually listening. “Dolly Camellia.”

Dolly’s eyes glistened with happiness at the sound of her new name. However, she did not move. Ficus had warned her not to, not yet at least, and Dolly would always heed Ficus’s words.

Albert noticed her eyes shimmer, though. He thought they looked like there was life in there. Is this why Ms. Ficus treated her like a person? Now that he was on that topic, didn’t he hear something coming from her earlier in the shop? He brushed Dolly’s cheek with a finger gently. It was soft and smooth to the touch. It felt very similar to a human, but it was cold.

What nonsense. There was no way this doll could be alive. He stood up and walked up the stairs to receive his well deserved rest.

As soon as Mr. Albert left the room, Dolly relaxed. She grinned in happiness. Touching the spot where he stroked her cheek, she giggled.

“Ficus found a nice person for Dolly. Dolly is happy,” she whispered to herself. ”However, Dolly already wants to see Ficus again. Dolly already misses Ficus.” She sat down.

In the dark empty room, Dolly hummed out a soft lullaby while holding onto the spot on her forehead where Ficus placed a spell on her. She remembered the warmth and sensation from it. The lullaby was both happy and sad, filled with the optimism of the future to come and the reminiscence of the pillar of her past. Albert, who was upstairs, already drowsy, drifted off to sleep from her lullaby. He was unaware that the humming came from the doll, as he was already half asleep.

The next day and weeks would turn into a new chapter for the two.

Han-SC
icon-reaction-1
-june-
icon-reaction-1
Werecat
icon-reaction-1