More dreams.
I was back in the clock room in Tyumen. I got up from the armchair, idyllic ticking in my ears. Outside the single window, it was dark, too dark to be night. Unsettling, I thought as I went over to the door which led into the living room. With a slow creak, it opened revealing something very different from what I was expecting.
The house in Russia had had long brown couches with furs slung over them around a fireplace. Mismatched carpets on the floors and stone walls covered in photographs and paintings. The altered version of the house held the same furniture in the right places but the floor was wooden and the walls were of brick. In front of me was the inside of a giant clock. I realized that I was standing in a clock tower. The faint light came through the glass of the clock face and outside I could see the outline of a small city. Behind me, the remnants of my old loop were gone and I was now in the clocktower completely. I could hear the sound of the ticks of the giant clock as gears kept turning. Although the clock tower was loud from the gears and ticks, I could hear something else and it was fast approaching.
Footsteps, I realized a little too late as I whipped around to see who had come up the stairs.
A man.
He was dressed in a dark green shirt and beige slacks with a toolbelt, he wore sunglasses even though we were indoors.
A menacing laugh came as he opened his mouth but the sound came from everywhere, louder than the clock.
I tried to speak, to ask who he was but my mouth wouldn't open.
The man pulled off his glasses to reveal blank eyes. No iris or pupil.
A wight.
And if there was a wight here, there had to be a hollowgast nearby.
To my despair, I was right as the thundering sound of fast and heavy footsteps came up the stairs. I couldn't see it but I recognized the smell immediately. The wight kept laughing, the sound so loud it felt as though he was laughing beside my ear.
Before I knew what was happening the Hollowgasts tongue came flying towards me and the glass of the clock face shattered as I fell out.
Down and down.
My vision began blurring and getting dark.
Before the dream, I heard the echoing voice of the wight.
"Soon."
I awoke with a scream.
A horrible dream, I thought, but hopefully just a dream. That pit of dread in my stomach was back.
Before I could analyze what I had dreamt Emma ran in, alerted by my scream.
"JUNE? Are you ok?" she asked, "why did you scream?"
"A bad dream," I said with a shudder.
"That's odd," she said walking over and sitting at the end of my bed, "Horace had a bad dream too but you know how his are prophetic, maybe you both saw the same thing."
Oh no, is all I thought. I hoped that we hadn't dreamt the same thing because that would mean my dream would become reality.
"I hope not," I said.
"Why? What did you see?" she asked.
"Just something," I said not wanting to worry her, "I'll talk to Horace first, I don't want anyone to panic over just a dream."
She gave me an understanding nod.
"Wait, what time is it?" I asked.
"It's nine, we didn't want to wake you last night because of your injuries so you slept right through supper."
I felt the bandage on my neck and looked at the one on my hand. They didn't hurt so bad today.
"Explains why I'm so hungry," I said.
"Come," said Emma, "we can get breakfast."
I realized I was still wearing the blouse and skirt from last night. No need to change in that case, I thought, as I got out of bed. Emma had already gotten up and ran over to the door. I saw her catch sight of something at my door.
"Hey," she called, "what's this?"
I walked over and looked over her shoulder to see what she was holding. It was something wrapped in brown paper with a note on the top that just read 'For you'.
"Did you put this here?" I asked.
She shook her head and handed the package to me.
Excitedly, I opened up the brown paper.
"I hope it's not a bomb," I told Emma.
Emma laughed.
I finally got the package open and inside lay one of the most beautiful victorian dolls I had ever seen. She had pretty golden curls held up with a pink bow. Her cheeks were rosy and she had bright blue eyes with long lashes. The doll wore a blue dress with white frills and a little apron. On her feet, she wore white and blue striped socks with black slippers. Stitched to the top of her apron it read 'Alice'. Inside the package was one more note, 'Your own Alice in Wonderland' it read.
I shrieked when I saw it.
"Emma look how beautiful it is!"
"Oh wow," she said surprised, "that really is beautiful."
I knew exactly who had made this for me, after all, I had only told one person of my favorite book.
"So June," said Emma with a mischievous grin, "I don't know about you, but I only know one person in this household that specializes in dolls. Granted, this isn't usually his style but I think he wouldn't mind making a few changes to make you happy."
"Oh hush," I told Emma, blushing, "this really is such an amazing gift, I will go thank him this moment."
After looking at the doll a moment longer I decided to leave it in the room, Enoch had a reputation of cold-hearted and grumpy, and making dolls for girls didn't really fit that.
I left the room with Emma as she headed downstairs to get breakfast. She gave me a wink as I knocked on Enoch's door.
"Who is it?" I heard him demand.
"It's June," I called out.
"Oh," he said as I heard scuffling, "come in."
As I opened the door I realized this was the first time I was seeing his room.
The room was dark, the curtains pulled over the window letting in only a dim light. To one corner of the room was his bed with his wardrobe. On the other side were shelves and shelves lined with jars. It was difficult to see what was in the jars but I eventually made out that it was small organs. The jars lined the wall from the door all the way to the window where his desk stood. There was a lamp on it as well as many Homunuculi and doll parts. It was messy in an organized way. A faint smell hit my nose as I stepped in, chloroform.
"Wow," I said taking in the whole room, "what a stylish room you have."
"Thank you," he said smirking, "I have plans on being an interior designer."
I laughed and then remembered why I had come in here.
"I came here to thank you."
"For what?"
"The doll, obviously, I didn't tell anyone else that Alice in Wonderland was my favorite book plus you're the only doll maker in the vicinity."
"Yeah, well it's nothing," he said brushing it off and walking back to his desk.
"It's something to me," I said walking up to him and hugging him. Once again he was tense but I refused to let go until he hugged me back which he eventually did. We stood there hugging for a while. It felt safe in his arms as my head rested below his shoulder. I felt giddy from just hugging him, I was quite fond of him. With a sigh I pulled back.
"It's a very beautiful doll," I said, "I know you're deadset on becoming an interior designer but have you ever considered doll making?"
"I applied to doll-making school but I was rejected," he joked with a smirk, "something about too many animal organs."
Laughing, he sat down at his desk and I stood beside him.
"What are you making?" I asked.
"Don't tell her but I took one of Claire's dolls to make yours and now I'm making something else with the leftovers."
I picked up a doll arm and examined it.
"You know what would be amazing?" I began, "if you gave a Homunucli blades for arms."
"Didn't know you were into blades," he said with a smirk.
"After yesterday not so much," I replied with a laugh.
"What are you making all these dolls and Hominucli for anyway?" I asked.
"An army," he said.
"Why do you need an army?"
"To fight."
"To protect the others?" I asked.
He shrugged.
I had known that Enoch cared about the other children, he didn't show it very well though.
We sat in a comfortable silence as I watched him work.
Eventually, I got up to go have breakfast.
"Thank you again," I said looking into his dark brown eyes. He smiled at me , a genuine smile not a smirk, as he brushed his dark wavy hair out of his face.
"Your welcome," he said.