A Witch's First Doll [Empty Spaces]

[Doll TF. CW for blood and graphic imagery]

“Coward…” The adventurer muttered to himself. “Why am I such a coward? Why can't I tell her how I feel?”

“Hey!” A friendly voice called from behind him. “Wait up!”

The adventurer looked back to see his only friend running to catch up with him. Sabrina held her messenger bag against her chest with one hand and pushed a stray lock of violet hair off her face with the other. In a moment, the genuine smile on her face vanished, giving way to a shocked ‘O’ shape made by her mouth.

Barely a moment later, pain erupted in the adventurer’s side. He collapsed to his hands and knees, which were quickly wet by a growing pool of his own blood. His arm gave way, causing him to keel over just in time to see Sabrina’s tall black boots rushing past him. Looking down at his body, the adventurer saw a glowing, golden arrow sticking out of his abdomen.

“I… S-Sabrina, I…” The adventurer squeaked raspily.

He returned his gaze to his friend, who stood with her back to him about ten metres away. Sabrina reached out her hand towards the bushes, and a moment later, a fuzzy blur was pulled straight into her grasp. With one arm, the woman held a wolfskin-clad bandit aloft by the neck as a dark aura began to swirl around her. The brigand dropped his bow to desperately claw at Sabrina’s hand, but to no avail.

With her free hand, Sabrina reached out to the bushes again, causing three more people to fly towards her. Before they reached her, however, she clenched her fist and flung an imaginary object to the ground - and in doing so, changed the brigands’ trajectory downward. The three bandits were slammed to the packed dirt path and didn’t get up.

The adventurer’s eyes were beginning to fog over now, but he still managed to see the archer brigand rapidly turn to stone. The last thing he saw before his eyes shut was his friend dropping the newly-formed statue and turning her attention back towards him.

—

A sweet and somehow familiar scent grabbed the adventurer’s attention. Slowly opening his eyes, he awoke to a room full of colourful trinkets, bottled potions, oil paintings, and carved wooden sculptures. The setting sun cut through a gap in the curtains beside him, illuminating a tiny humanoid sculpture resting on a shelf.

Looking down on himself, the adventurer saw he was lying in bed over a custom-sewn quilt. The arrow was still jutting out of his side, except there was now some sort of rune floating above it. He no longer felt any pain, much to his relief, which he assumed was thanks to the magical rune.

“Oh, you’re awake!” Sabrina said from just out of sight.

“S-Sabrina?”

“Shhh, don’t exert yourself.” She appeared from behind and to the left carrying a tray, which she placed on a bedside table. “Here, drink this. It’s to stop the pain.”

Sabrina placed a cup to the adventurer’s lips, letting him slowly consume the sweet liquid within.

“I’m sorry I kept this from you…” She sighed. “That I’m a witch.”

A faint smile formed on the adventurer’s lips. “Thank you, Sabby. For saving me.”

The witch frowned. “Well… I haven’t saved you yet. That arrow was designed to kill witches. I endangered you just by being near you, I-I just… I shouldn’t have gotten close to you…” She gritted her teeth.

The adventurer gently held Sabrina’s hand, looked up at her with teary eyes, and breathed weakly. “P-please don’t leave me…”

Sabrina blinked.

“It’s not your fault. You’re my friend. It’s not bad to grow close to a friend, r-right?”

“Right. You’re right, of course.” She glanced at the golden arrow stuck in her friend’s side. “But… I can’t save you. Not exactly. You have to… change… if you’re going to live.”

The adventurer sat silently.

“I put a seal over the arrow. Its magical effects are halted for now, but it won’t last forever. I’ll have to sculpt your body into a new form if you’re to survive the night, and beyond. But I’ll let you choose what you become.”

“S-Sabby…” Tears ran down the adventurer’s cheeks. “P-please turn me into whatever you want! Please! Just make me into s-something you’ll like… Something that isn’t such a burden… Something you can’t live without! I don’t care if it puts me in d-danger, I don’t want us to be apart… You’re the best friend I’ve ever had. You’re the only friend I’ve ever had! You’re the only one I’ve ever…” He trailed off.

“You silly thing… I want you to be you.” Sabrina whispered. “I’ll change your exterior into who you really are on the inside. I can tell you’re not just a simple adventurer~” She grinned. “But don’t worry, I won’t peek into you. The magic will sense who you are and reflect that as it reconstructs you.”

“Y-you can do that?”

“Yes. Now, listen closely. This process will feel very strange, and may be distressing - especially when the arrow is removed from your body. I can’t stop or go back once I’ve begun, I’ll have to finish for you to survive. Just remember that I’m here for you. I’ll protect you no matter what. I promise, okay?”

“O-okay.”

“Are you ready, darling?”

“Yeah~” He nodded.

With his consent, the witch placed a hand on the adventurer’s chest, closed her eyes, and summoned forth the full extent of her magical power. Warmth coursed through the adventurer’s veins, and pressure mounted where the arrow had lodged itself in his body. The rune faded away, allowing Sabrina’s powers to begin magically dislodging the arrow.

A wave of sensations suddenly hit him all at once: dizziness, lightheadedness, hunger, nausea, and pins & needles throughout his entire body. Then, as rapidly as they appeared, those disorienting feelings ceased, only to be replaced by new ones: a profound, physical emptiness consumed him, his vision melted away, random and unexpected scents and tastes registered in his senses, and it felt like he was both shrinking and growing simultaneously. The adventurer realised he was holding his breath, but when he tried to inhale, nothing happened. Beginning to panic, his body shook involuntarily as he sat in the darkness, suffocating and bleeding out.

But then, he felt the warm touch of Sabrina’s hand on his cheek. His muscles - or at least, what was left of them - finally relaxed, only occasionally experiencing a slight jitter. His racing heartbeat eased up too, then eventually slowed to a halt. A dull ringing sound echoed through his ears, but Sabrina’s muffled voice managed to sink into his consciousness.

“That’s it… Nice and relaxed… You’re doing so good, just hang in there. Think comforting thoughts… Think of what brings you happiness…”

Doing as instructed, the adventurer tried to remember the happy times in his life. The mental image of Sabrina smiling at him instantly appeared. The memory of when they skipped university classes so they could grab a bite to eat and hang out together on the pier washed away the darkness, returning him to that warm and sunny day. Oh, how they made each other laugh… It was one of the best days of his life, spent simply in the company of someone he loved.

Eventually, the memory reached its conclusion. Colour slipped away, shapes lost definition, sound became garbled. The adventurer returned to a dark abyss, left only with the blurry image of his best friend in the distance ahead of him. But she, too, vanished, leaving him in a world devoid of senses.

But for the first time in his life, he felt at peace.

'Is this it? Is it over? Have… have I fallen into the forever sleep?' The adventurer thought. 'I’m glad I got to see Sabrina today. I’m glad I took that arrow instead of her. I’m glad I got to relive that day with her, one last time… I… I’m glad I didn’t have to go alone. Thank you, Sabrina. Thank you for seeing me off…'

Moments, minutes, hours… Time was unquantifiable. But eventually, a tiny, dim light appeared before him.

"...most there… you're almost there now." A trace of Sabrina's voice appeared, then grew more distinct. "That's it! You're doing great, just a little more."

As the light grew, colours began to emerge in a blurry collage and shapes began to form. He was opening his eyes.

“Welcome back!” Sabrina said warmly.

“I’m… alive?”

“Of course you are, silly~”

The person beside him - and the rest of the room, for that matter - looked different somehow. Colours were more vibrant and everything looked sharper. He was quite literally seeing the world with new eyes.

"Sabrina? Is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me. Now just take it easy, alright? There's no need to rush."

As his senses returned to him, the adventurer noticed the moonlight shining in through the open window. It must have been at least a few hours since he last held full consciousness.

"I can leave you to rest if you'd like " Sabrina offered.

"P-please stay! You… You make everything better. And… I never want us to be apart. I mean it."

"Of course I'll stay. I'll always be here for you."

"Th-thank you!"

The adventurer then got quite the surprise when he turned his attention to his body. His clothes had vanished - burned away during his transformation - and the arrow was gone. But what's more, his body had completely changed: his skin had become hard, dull pink porcelain; his insides were now hollow; his joints were now visibly ball joints; and his body shape was now much more feminine. His chest hosted a pair of small bumps simulating little breasts, his hips were wider to fit a new hourglass figure, and his hands and feet were smaller now.

"I'm a doll!?" Only then did he realise his voice was much softer and more fem sounding. "I'm a doll!"

The doll smiled wider than ever before.

"And I know what this means!" The doll continued excitedly. "Sabby, I know how bad you've wanted a doll of your own. I… I wished I could be a doll for you. I wanted to make you happy. I knew you couldn't get a doll of your own, and I just… Ohh, please let me be your doll! Oh Sabby, please… will you be my witch?"

Tears appeared in Sabrina's eyes. "Of course!" The witch gently held her new doll's cold hands. "What pronouns will you use?"

"It/its." It responded immediately.

"And what would you like to be called?"

This time, it took a moment to think. "Lula!"

"I love it! That's a very pretty name." Sabrina sniffled, then took a moment to regain her composure. "Now, you really want to be my doll?"

"Yes! Yes!"

"You want me to be your witch forevermore?"

"Yes yes yes!"

"You want our hearts to touch and to beat in sync?"

"I really do!"

"Then hold my hand tight."

As they held onto each other, a dark energy formed in their palms. The magic spread throughout their bodies, then dissipated into the cosmic flow of the universe.

"It's done! You're my first doll!"

Lula sat up and hugged its witch.

"Thank you, Mistress!"

"Oh you silly thing, you don't have to call me that if you don't want to." Sabrina giggled.

"S-Sabby… I love you…"

"I love you too, Lula. I love you dearly."