Olive was grinning like a maniac as the spell built up inside her body and left it tingling with anticipation. She really loved this part, the moment before the change, the deep breath of anticipation as she prepared to turn her whims into reality. It was one of the few times where she felt like she really have power, control over her own life. On the table before her the toad she’d been given for her demonstration sat languidly, utterly uninterested in the sparking web of magic being weaved around it. Olive tasted ozone and mint on her tongue as the spell reached it apex and she let go, watching with bated breath as the strings leapt from her fingers and came taut around the little creature. It froze mid croak, a look of utter bewilderment on its warty face and then to her delight it yawned and stretched. There was no sound at all as its front legs grew out to paw and knead at the table surface, toes bunching and gripping the tablecloth with freshly formed crescent claws. Its milky yellow eyes grew sharp and aware, and stared up at her delighted face with lazy amusement. The stub tail slithered and stretched like a serpent and smooth gray fur quickly grew to cover its warty hide. Within seconds the strings had faded into its body, and instead of a toad she had a grizzled tabby cat before her, a scarred and wrinkled swamp-thing of a cat to be sure, but a cat nonetheless.

“Wow. That was… incredible Ollie!”

She turned to beam at Ray, who had stopped in his own work to stare at her demonstration in undisguised amazement. She’d always loved seeing that expression on his face, and knew that she was one of the only people at Carolina Kingdom University who could put it there. It suited him; it had done so when they were kids and he had been her best friend Ursula, and it suited his newer face even more. She loved that face, ever curious and intense, his sharp green eyes contrasting so nicely with the burnished copper of his skin and hair, both nearly the same shade. Looking at it, seeing it glow with Ray’s open admiration for her, her heart couldn’t help but melt a little. She’d helped him pick that face out and even stayed to watch as the doctors, magical and mundane alike, had reshaped his old one to match, the first step in what had been a difficult but wonderful transition process. Now Ray was his best self, and she couldn’t help but love him even more. She felt like she should say something but couldn’t find any words, so instead she offered a little embarrassed laugh, really more of a cackle, and returned with a simple “Thanks!”

“Indeed.” Came a smooth voice that interrupted her reverie and made her glance up, cheeks still red. Professor Orchard was looming over them, tall and slightly terrifying as always. Olive had realized early on that no matter how human the Professor appeared at any given moment, there were always a handful of signs and signals as to his true nature. The delicate point of his ears for example, the slight glimmer of starlight in his eyes. Or at this moment the sheer intensity of his expression as he gently lifted the rather bored looking cat and examined it, thoughtfully. “An impressive demonstration. You’ve come a long way from the scatterbrained lass who joined my class just for the elective credit. I don’t think I’ve had another student with such a handle on Metamorphosis as you. A+ work.”

Olive felt her grin widen to show her teeth and tossed her hair back, crimson waves bouncing wildly, still frizzy from the spell she’d cast.

“Does that mean… Books?” she tried not to make the question sound too eager, but she was certain the professor heard the slight whine to her voice. He gave her a hard stare and sighed.

“Yes Olivia. Books.” His hands came up in the twisting gesture. A rune appeared on the back of her hand, and she felt a flash of warmth wash over her like a hot summer breeze. “You now have unrestricted access to the faerie texts section of the University library. Go wild, but safely please.”

She couldn’t help but cackle again. And her fist pumped the air “Books! Books! Books!”

Professor Orchard rolled his eyes, an alarmingly human gesture, and turned to Ray.

“Alright son, your turn. Lets see your demonstration.”

Ray seemed to go stiff for a moment and nodded, and turned to the figure laid out on the table before him. Not for the first time today, Olive couldn’t help but glance at the puppet with a twinge of envy. His congratulations at her spell was practically the first time since they’d come into the lab that he’d looked at her. No, he only had eyes for his puppet, only eyes for Liz. The puppet was beautiful, she had to admit he’d done an incredible job on her. She’d seen plenty of his earlier efforts, simple roughly carved dolls with rough hewn faces, and Liz was a work of art by comparison. It was nearly half as tall as she was, with graceful wooden limbs and a delicate waist, the proportions of a dancer. Its hair was shockingly pretty given it was a cheap wig he’d styled into a simple yet elegant bun, but the most striking thing was the puppet’s face. She’d watched him put days of work into carving and smoothing it, until nearly the most beautiful woman she had ever seen had emerged from the blocky wood. She had asked toward the end, only half joking, if he was modeling it after her. It had been tough to hide her disappointment when he told her no.

Ray took a deep breath and stood, reaching over the doll, letting the threads of magic extend from him to wrap around it. There was silence for a moment as the three of them watched, then a soft clatter as the puppet jerked. Liz began to rise from the table in slight jerking motions. One leg rose, then the other, and then the whole of its body rose inelegantly to a standing position on the table with a final tug. As Olive watched, the puppet began to dance, its motions began to smooth, not without the occasional stutter or pop of a wooden joint. The dance began to pick up pace, the rough edges of the performance becoming less like those of a crude puppet, and more like the natural imperfections and strides of a living ballerina. Olive forgot the other two were there for a moment as she stared, capturing every arc and pirouette. When Liz finally bowed and froze in place, lifeless but so lifelike, Olive realized she was mere inches away, so lost in the performance that she’d drifted almost to within kicking distance were it not for Ray’s hand on her shoulder to pull her back. She flushed and turned to grin at him.

“That was beautiful work Ray, she’s amazing!” To her surprise Ray returned the smile crookedly, but gave a dissatisfied grunt.

“It was… okay. She’s still not perfect. To many mistakes.”

Olive stared. “Mistakes? Dude, I’ve seen your other attempts, this is your best puppet yet! She’s almost alive!” He merely shrugged and let go of the spell, the puppet dropping to the table with a clatter. Olive winced and the Professor clucked his tongue in annoyance.

“Almost isn’t good enough.”

“There’s always room for improvement Ray”, the Professor said primly. “but let us still take joy in our triumphs. You pass with an B+. Perhaps practice the doll’s movements yourself next time to really get a feel for them. Animation is a delicate art whether dealing with dolls or golems.” He paused for a moment, face twisting. “Or bodies but I trust you don’t have any of those lying around.”

Ray grimaced and Olive couldn’t help but giggle. “No sir. I’ll do better next time.”

As they packed up to leave Olive found herself standing over the puppet, turning its head from side to side, examining the fine detail. “She really is gorgeous Ray. But I hope you’ll still have time for real girls once you get her really moving.”

Ray glanced up and seemed uncertain how to respond. “Um, well I was thinking of asking Casey out this week. Or maybe… next week.” He said, seemingly shrugging off the thought. Olive moved closer, trying to seem almost casual.

“Casey? She’s cool and all, but isn’t she a little… airheaded for you? Is that really your type dude? I dunno.”

He looked away, as if to busy himself with his textbooks. “She knows what she wants. She’s, I dunno, classy I guess. And I think maybe she likes me?” Olive’s eyes flashed with annoyance She wasn’t sure he saw it until she caught his barely perceptible sigh.

“Ray, there’s a girl right here who you know likes you. Come on! Lets try it again, I know you had fun last time we dated!”

“Olive…” Ray’s voice was strained and he seemed to speak with a slight delay, as if choosing his words carefully. “Its not that I don’t like you. But the last time we dated it was… lopsided. I just don’t think it’d work.”

“Ray, please. At least tell me why.” She winced hearing the pleading in her own voice.

He sighed. “Its just that... you always had to take charge of everything. It was never the two of us, it was always *you* and your boyfriend.”

She was stunned for a moment. “You thought I was too bossy? I don’t get it, we’ve known each other for our whole lives, you never complained before!”

He stood then, arms laden with books, and laid a soft hand on her shoulder. It didn’t help. “Its not that exactly, I love that about you. I love having a best friend who pushes me to be better. But its not what I want from a relationship.” He leaned in, giving her a little half hug. She felt frozen and belatedly lifted an arm to return the gesture even as the gentle tug of his arm felt like it was crushing her heart. His words were so gentle, yet the ache was paralyzing. “You just aren’t the girl for me Olive. I’m sorry.”

He gave her another horrible smile and left then, leaving her alone in the empty lab with the Puppet lying beside her on the table. She had known more or less what he was going to say and yet it was worse than she’d expected. She wasn’t stupid, she understood that much despite her other insecurities. She’d had a vague understanding that the entire time they’d been dating through high school that it had really been something she’d pushed for. Spun it as a convenience “so we’ll have someone to go to prom with” or twisted it with a self deprecating joke “I mean who else is gonna want to date us?” That last one stung, as she realized suddenly how cruel that might have seemed to Ray in retrospect, especially with their tenuous self esteem, even if she’d meant it to be more about herself. Had she hurt him without realizing? It wouldn’t be the first time, she had a bad habit of doing that with most of the people in her life. Sure they always forgave her, but that was no excuse was it? That had always been her problem, a need to always be in control of every situation. If someone did something she didn’t like, put them down. If she wasn’t confidant in doing something, master it no matter the cost. She didn’t like being this way. It had its advantages, but it left her with few friends, and the doubt and frustration never really went away, they were simply sated for a time.

She slipped into a seat and found herself staring at Liz’s delicate wooden features wistfully. “No wonder he likes you better. You don’t say nasty things to hurt, or upstage him with how much better you are at magic on the biggest day of the semester.” For a horrible moment her jealousy twisted into a flash of hate and she suppressed an urge to smash the helpless wooden thing. It was only for a moment but she leaned back in alarm, the shame of the impulse burning on her cheeks. I hate being like this.

She stood there for a moment, clutching her body, and as a few tears began to pool, she reached up to brush them from her face. Then she stopped, eyes locked on the back of her hand, seeing the Rune Professor Orchard had placed there. I glimmered slightly, as all faerie magic did, full of promise and possibility. She didn’t have to be like this after all, did she? She’d gotten free access to the restricted portion of the library, she could take advantage of that. Not simply out of her desire to learn, but because of one spell she knew was there, in an old gilded book that had been written centuries ago in the time of the Tuatha de Denan, when the world had still been whole. She’d seen it when the professor had chaperoned her there last month, and firmly removed the book from her hands and returned it to the shelf. It was a simple spell but powerful, the kind of transformative magic that you heard about in literal fairy tales, a spell with no name but with a very simple function. To change a person forever, turn someone into their true love’s ideal partner.

A spell she now knew she had to cast.

Waiting for the library to close had been the most agonizing part. The university did a sweep for students of course, especially in the small but tightly controlled magical texts section, but she’d by now memorized all the shadowy corners where a simple illusion would be enough to keep her hidden. Now, with everyone else long gone and the midnight moon peeking through the windows to bathe the stacks in ivory light, she had her chance. As she pressed her hand to the invisible door separating the faerie texts section from the rest of the library, she felt a surge of triumph as it clicked open. She could taste the raw scent of old magic on the air almost immediately, sickly sweet, like a bouquet of flowers that had sat on the shelf for far too long. The book was easy enough to spot. The moonlight played atop its gilded binding in soft, sparkling rivulets, like a prism set in a sunlit pond. Her hand had barely grazed the spine when a voice behind her made her jump, causing her to nearly knock half the row onto the floor.

“I see it didn’t take long to throw out ‘safety’ Olivia.”

She jumped and turned to see Professor Orchard standing there. It was an alarming sight. The moonlight played over his features, and he looked even more fae than he usually did, with sharp, angular cheekbones and a small stub of horns piercing through his brow.

“Professor! Hi, just couldn’t wait to get studying! You know...”

He tilted his head at her, a single razor brow raised. “Yes, in fact I do know. You are going for the spell I take it? True love’s form?”

It wasn’t even a question. Olive considered her angles and finally just sighed. “Yeah.”

The professor said nothing at first. Then he moved quietly to the shelf and removed the book, examining it for a moment before pressing it into her hands. “Very well.”

She was frozen in place. Her eyes moved down to the book in her hands, then up to his face, grim in the moonlight. She half expected a trick or a “just joking, gimme that”, but instead he simply stood and watched her with owl’s eyes.

“I don’t get it, whats the catch? I know you think this is a bad idea.”

He tilted his head and it passed out of the path of the moon’s light, and suddenly he looked… softer. His faerie features melted into the familiar human face and she suddenly realized how much more young, how kind he looked as a mere man, instead of the ancient creature he truly was.

“Perhaps. Perhaps not. Sometimes change is necessary. Change allows us to live fully, unburdened by our regrets. We may still carry them in our hearts, but the weight no longer threatens to strangle us.” He stepped closer and placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, a human hand she realized, warm and understanding. “I came here, to this world, in order to change. But I did so for myself, because I understood the makings of my own heart. And that is the only heart we can ever truly understand.” he continued past her and gestured for her to follow, locking the library behind them as they went.

“There’s so many things I hate about myself. That Ray hates about me. I want to be better. For him, anything for him!”

The professor nodded, but his smile twisted slightly. “Do not presume to know what lies in young Raymond’s heart. Only he can know that, no matter how close you have been with him. I will not tell you not to use the spell, but I will say this.” He paused and turned to face here, golden eye blazing. “Do not change yourself for him, or any other. Do so only for yourself. It is the only way you can be who, or what, you are meant to be. Goodnight my dear.”

There was a gust of wind suddenly, cold winter air tugging at her sweatshirt and she was forced to close her eyes. When she opened them again, the Professor was gone. She stood there for a long moment, then found a bench and began to read.

The book was heavy in her hands as she stared down at the page. The spell was there, written in shockingly plain ink, simple enough for her to interpret. Learning it had been shockingly easy, but perhaps she should have expected that much. That was the thing about really, really old spells; they tended to be simple. The kind of specific, focused magic she’d been leaning was more like a scalpel, precise and detailed, able to change a person or object on such a minute level and give ample room to make adjustments and fix errors. This on the other hand was so broad and all encompassing that it was more like a bomb. It would snuff out any other spells that got in its way and keep going, changing its target so deeply, down to the last cell, that going back and fixing mistakes would be the least of her concerns. It would be such a simple thing, to cast it, to surrender to whatever came. She could do it now, close her eyes, let go completely of the person she had been for the last 20 years of her life and awaken as Ray’s ideal girlfriend. Or boyfriend perhaps? Or something else entirely… the more she thought about it the more hesitant she became.

He’d been planning to ask Casey out. An image of the preppy girl floated in her thoughts. Confident sure but vapid and dull, a social animal through and through with absolutely no interest in magic or studying anything more than she needed to pass. If that was the sort of person Ray was into...would that be her fate? Put like that, it sounded like a nightmare. The Professor’s voice rang in her ears.

“Do not change yourself for others. Do so only for yourself.”

He was right, she realized glumly, Olive had no idea what was really in Ray’s heart. She could guess, but unless she cast the spell there was no way to really know. Sure, once the magic had its way, she wouldn’t mind being an empty headed diva once all was said and done. Hell the new her would probably love it! But in the moment the idea left a pit in her stomach.

She sighed and rubbed her tired eyes. She paused as she caught her reflection in the nearby pond doing the same, and stared for a moment at her own strained expression. No, she realized firmly, there was one person whose heart she truly knew, or at any rate trusted. “What do I want?”

The whispered words hung like the dust in the moonlight streaming through the library windows. She took a breath, and allowed her eyes to close, doing her best to imagine him. The image of the morning exam rose in her mind, Ray adorable as always hunched over his doll while she looked on. Yet as she focused she could not help but feel her gaze wander. She found herself watching not Ray, but Liz, the doll elegantly laid out and dutifully tended to by her maker. It was enchanting to watch as it, as she, stood and danced. Ray and the strings faded into the background until it was just Olive and Liz. She couldn’t help but smile as it twirled. Then, to her surprise, it leapt off the table in a fantastic Jete, more fluid and precise than Olive had ever seen it move. She realized the doll was watching her back through varnished, painted eyes. It could not move its mouth to smile and yet it did, an inviting and warm smile that left her feeling… loved. All the things she hated about her life, the doll was free from, an existence free of anger and self loathing. And yet it did not live, nor could it could love life, or its maker, as she could. Neither of them were whole, she realized. Perhaps she could be? It reached out a hand to her, inviting, as if to beckon her closer. The hesitation melted away as she imagined herself reaching back, her own fingers wrapping tenderly around smooth, unbending wood. And then she tasted the ozone on the air.

She opened her eyes as the spell took shape around her, lifting her up from the ground in a gentle embrace. She hadn’t even realized she’d cast it, her yearning and desire reaching out to the page and igniting the spark of magic within. She found herself floating as if in deep water as long, unbreakable strings of magic began to wrap around her, tied first around her ankles and wrists, then deeper, burrowing into her very being. When they found her heart she gasped, feeling the tightness as they wove a cocoon around it, enclosing her spirit. She was bound, a puppet on a string, yet the spell was as gentle and soothing a puppeteer as Ray had ever been. She watched as the threads caressed her hands and arms, the color draining from her skin, light dancing on the surface on a glossy sheen. It felt wonderful, the cold winter air seemed electric on her skin as ball joints formed with a soft ‘pop’ on her elbows, wrists, and digits. She flexed experimentally and was delighted as they clicked open and shut, the motion artificial but smooth, better than her own clumsy, nervous hands. Though she could not see her lower body, she could feel it, the rapturous sensation, evolution, making her want to kick her smooth, hollow legs back and forth against the open air in delight. She realized suddenly that she had stopped breathing and the moment of panic almost overwhelmed her until her mind caught up with her instincts, opening her mouth and closing it again, no rush of breath passing in or out of her glistening lips. At last the strings rose around her head to entangle her mind and she felt them burrow deep into her psyche. Bliss, flashes of sensation and a crescendo of emotion flashed within her thoughts before her brain was wrapped tightly within a warm embrace. She felt the simmering heat of anger and shame grow cool, replaced by something new, something wonderful. She felt only bliss. And then her head lolled to the side, eyes open in a glassy stare, and she knew no more.

Ray hadn’t slept well. He was yawning as he stumbled into the lab, hours before anyone else he was certain. He needed to practice with Liz, at least enough to train the puppet on the basic movements so he could handle the complex maneuvers manually. He’d hoped by now he’d made enough progress that it might be able to dance with a partner, but the wood has stubbornly refused to learn. That was annoying, wood was supposed to be good at that, certainly more so than stone or more difficult to carve materials. His idea of an Animated ballet company of puppets had seemed like such an achievable goal earlier in the semester. Now he’d just be happy to just have one dancer who could stand up on her own two feet.

He hit the light switch and froze, as he noticed a pale figure out the corner of his eye, standing against the wall with his other puppets, but bigger than any of them, human in scale. As he turned to face the figure his eyes went wide as saucers.

It was a doll.

Not a simple wooden toy like his own puppets, but a real work of art. Its body was pale, alabaster white, glossy and reflective under the classroom lights. Every joint was modeled, even the fingers, with ball joins so small and delicate as to provide almost perfect poseability. Its eyes were open, bright glassy blue that for a moment looked like they were looking back at him. Waves of soft, crimson hair cascaded down its back and shoulders elegantly, and every feature of its face was precise molded… and oddly familiar. He crept closer, looking it up and down, and realized why almost at once as he examined its clothes. He thought for a moment he was still dreaming. It wore a familiar sweatshirt, leggings, and ankle boots he had seen someone else wearing only yesterday. His voice was a shocked whimper as he came almost nose to nose with the doll and spoke. “Olive?” For a moment there was silence, then it lifted its eyes and laughed.

“Surprise master!”

He leapt back in bewilderment, nearly tumbling over on of the desks as the doll, lifeless and inanimate mere moment before, beamed at him and let out a tinkling, airy laugh. He was still stumbling to his feet as it descended from its perch along the wall and arrived at his side in three toe tap steps to steady him. Olive’s hands were strong, the motions precise as she helped him to his feet and twirled back, to face him with a fluid curtsy.

“I do apologize master Ray! I had no intention of scaring you. Are you alright?”

Ray did his best to extricate his jaw from the floor. “Ollie… how are you? What is the… I mean who?” It took another breath to steady himself. Olive cocked her head, the smile on her face beaming with amused patience. “Olive, what the hell!?”

Olive laughed again, the singsong laugh of an elegant lady, and she clapped her hands together in delight. “I went to the library! It was decided that I make a few improvements to myself master. Isn’t it wonderful?” He noticed dully that her fingers clacked together like hard plastic, and he found his eyes lingering in hypnotic fascination on the delicate motions of the digits, as they seemed to tap together rhythmically to a music only she could hear. He suddenly recalled a conversation from weeks ago, when they’d been preparing for their final. Something about a book she wanted to check out once she passed? She’d mentioned it had some really esoteric spells that she was dying to try out. What was it?

“That spell you’d been joking about…” the memory came back to him in a flash of hot horror. “To turn someone into their true love’s dream girl! Olive, you didn’t!”

She twirled again, and he realized it was so that he could see the whole of her transformed flesh. She was beautiful he realized and suddenly became aware of the flush creeping into his cheeks. He tilted his head a little, hoping she wouldn’t see.

“Oh yes I did! It was wonderful master, I’ve never felt anything li-”

“Stop calling me that!” The horror was mounting and it was suddenly hard to stand, the world spinning beneath his feet. “I’m not your master Olive! I’m your friend, I never wanted you to do this for me!” Had she taken his rejection so to heart that she’d take such a drastic step? Was this his fault? She’d always been reckless and-

“Oh, I didn’t!”

He froze, and looked up, catching her eyes once more. She was grinning madly at him, teeth as white as her plastic skin. He wasn’t sure if he’d heard her right. “You didn’t... cast the spell on yourself?”

She danced closer, god every step she took was like a dance, and came to stand before him, hands at her sides in a rest. “Oh yes Master, I cast that spell! But I didn’t do it for you. I did it for… me.”

The doll couldn’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy for her poor master as she watched his mouth open and close again. Finally he let out an exasperated sigh, not devoid of curiosity, and simply said. “What?”

She tossed her hair back and he couldn’t help but notice the shine, silken and artificial, but vividly bright. “Master, for as long as you’ve known me, have I been happy with myself? Loved myself?”

Ray swallowed. He knew the answer, but it wasn’t something he liked to admit about her. “I guess not really. But thats what I love about you. Maybe you feel like a screw up but you’re just so cool, and talented!” Her smile was molded to her face he realized, even as her words came out with an almost imperceptible edge. He wondered if she could even frown anymore.

“Master… Ray. That may have been how it seemed to your lovely eyes, but deep inside it was more than a few foolish mistakes or self deprecating jokes.” Her tone was so formal, her words so syrupy sweet, but he could still sense the faint echo of regret in them.

“I mean sure, you’ve always had things you hated about yourself, your body and personality. But don’t we all? Its just something we have to learn to live with.”

She laughed again, like rain on glass, nothing at all like her old gremlin cackle.

“Do we? You didn’t have to. Thats what I love about you!”

That left him silent again for a moment, and he wasn’t sure what he could say. Finally he settled on. “I never wanted you to be a doll.”

“Of course you didn’t!” she giggled. “I have no idea what I would have turned into if I had cast that spell while thinking of you. Master, I did while thinking of myself, of what I want to be, what I want to feel! My ideal self...” She turned and pointed a long, delicate finger at the frozen Liz standing against the wall. “...is her!” She turned back to him and took his hands in hers. They were cool and smooth, with only the faintest impression of a nail painted soft red on the plastic to match her blazing hair. “It wasn’t just you I wanted, it was what you made. Beautiful, graceful, free of stress or responsibility. And free of doubt. Liz can be a work of art to dance and serve at your pleasure. But she can’t really live, not yet anyway. But I can. I can have that life, a life of care and admiration. And love. You are my master, because you are hers. Because I want you be mine.” She kissed him then, her lips electric, lifelike despite their stiffness. Ray couldn’t help it, he kissed back. She was beautiful and strangely comforting, like the Olive he knew was still behind that smiling face somewhere but changed, reborn. As she parted from him, he could not help but swallow.

“Wow, okay. This is a lot to take in Olive but if this is what you really want. I can try to be your master.” He wasn’t prepared for the hug as she lifted him up and twirled him around. She was amazingly strong despite he suspected, being almost entirely hollow.

“Oh thank you Master! Ray, thank you! I shall serve you faithfully my beloved, I’ll be the centerpiece of your ballet!” She put him down suddenly as she noticed his dazed expression. “Sorry my master, too much?”

Ray suddenly let out a laugh of his own, and he hugged her back. “No, not at all, this will just take some getting used to. But for what its worth… I like the new you’s enthusiasm.”

“I exist to please!” She curtsied low, her flexibility astounding. “Oh and Master? I don’t think I’m really Olivia anymore. I really feel like more of a Marion.”

“Marion?” He repeated rolling it on his tongue with a grin. “Short for Marionette I guess? God, I’m glad you’re still such a nerd.” She said nothing to this, merely smiled and offered a submissive tilt of the head. He glanced over at the lifeless Liz hanging from the wall. “I guess Liz just got upstaged as my leading lady. I’ll never be able to build anything as fine as you.”

Marion stepped lightly over to the puppet, her sibling Ray suppose, and to his surprise gently stroked the hair out of its wooden face. She was intensely intimate taking the stiff wooden hand in her own and stroking it gently. When she turned back to him there were stars in her glass eyes.

“Not necessarily Master. Have you ever thought about what we might accomplish if we combined our magic together…?”

Marion was never more real than when she danced. Upon the stage she and Elizabeth were one, movements synced, two hearts as one. It was the final performance of the day and it was just as perfectly choreographed as the first, the delicate weave of their motions unpredictable and yes unmistakable. Every time they caught each other’s eye their hollow hearts beat faster, in time with the rhythm of the orchestra. As they approached the finale they froze in one graceful arch of slender legs and clasped hands, left staring into each other’s souls as the curtain finally fell to the thunder of applause. They remained that way for a thousand breathless moments until the signal came and they parted.

“You were lovely as always Marion!”

“Not as lovely as you my dear!”

Liz, or Elizabeth as she preferred, had gone through many changes over the decade since she’d been brought to life, to give her longer limbs and more dexterous joints, but she still had the same face Marion had fallen in love with.

“You were both beautiful as always girls!” came their master’s voice and they turned to see him rising up the steps to the stage. Age and the stress of running the company was beginning to show its wear on his handsome face, but Ray was still excited and animated as he ran up panting to them. They as one offered him a slender bow.

“We exist to serve Master!”

He grinned and hugged them both in turn. “I do love hearing that. Ready to meet the public? They’re dying to see their divas in person.”

The dolls grinned at each other and let him lead them down toward the lobby. They waved to the rest of the troop as they passed. There were a dozen other puppets that made up the Carolina Breathless Ballet Company, each with their own roles and duties. Some had been made like by hand like Elizabeth, and a few others… “I wonder if that cute blonde will finally get up the courage to audition!” Elizabeth asked in amusement, spotting the girl stealing glances at them as she filed out of the auditorium.

“Oh I hope so, she’s been here every night for the last week. She would make such a lovely puppet!”

Ray laughed. “I think she has a crush on you actually Elizabeth. I’ve noticed her watching you in particular.”

The doll tossed her head proudly, with a soft clicking of the neck joint. “What can I say? Wooden girls have more fans. And more fun!”

As they reached the door to the lobby, Marion and Elizabeth paused for Ray to catch his breath, still panting slightly as he leaned against the door. “Oh dear master, you’ve been overworking yourself again.” Elizabeth sighed, leaning into his arm.

“Have you thought about our proposal Ray?” Marion asked, her eternal smile showing only a hint of the concern she felt. She and her sister didn’t need to eat or sleep, didn’t age or tire, but she’d increasingly noticed her Master still did.

“I’m… still considering. To be honest, I’m not sure becoming a doll is really for me. I like food too much for one thing.”

They hugged him tightly. He found their presence comfortable and warm somehow, despite the lack of heat from their hard, polished bodies. “We care for you master. We don’t like seeing you suffer.”

Ray grinned and kissed them each in turn. “That’s just life, loves. It happens.”

“Not to us.” Elizabeth said with a slight pout.

“Give me some more time to think about it okay? In the meantime, I order you to get out there and enjoy the adoration of the public.” The command was gentle, but absolute, and both puppets beamed in delight at the opportunity to serve their master while doing what they loved most. They took each other hand in hand and stepped through the door, their hearts entangled in one set of strings.