In the depths of stillness and strange instances, dreams unfurled into outcomes and the night put on its finishing touches when a creature crept through the window. It was a peculiar nightmare with only a tuft of hair on the tippy top of its otherwise hairless, lumpy head. Meanwhile, bulging eyes rolled around their sockets, and a long nose defied gravity. In a blatant refusal not to be left behind, its ears jutted out in a grand display of ridiculousness, a prime example. With an extra layer to the absurd, the creature wore a multicolored suit, each fabric of a different sort. The interloper tip-toed further into the room.
Toward a preteen, deeply entrenched in the blissful delusion sleep can bring, adventures danced along the child’s imagination. In reality, a hand shot over the child’s head, hovering as a soft light emanated from the palm. An ethereal ribbon, the coveted essence of childhood imagination, slipped from the child’s cranium, a purple and slithering slip, replaced by an adult’s harsh and ever-present realism.
All this transpired while a witness hovered behind a doorframe, unbeknownst to the perpetrator. A raven-haired girl with dark eyes named Betty watched in horror, struck by the sight. Quickly, she scurried to the comfort of warm layers, shaking from the experience.
Endless and painstaking thoughts swirled, searching for a solution as one year turned to the next, the revolving door of season quickly landing her in a similar spot. Her pool of resourced was a shamefully shallow stream, her hopes nearly dashed when a new series of wordplay landed in her ears. Bettie’s imagination was held hostage by idol rumors and gossip seeping into her impressionable mind drip by drip- the inevitable coarse unfurling before the child. And so, she made a beeline for the outskirts of town, to the mysterious source fueling imaginations. Up hills and over, she traipsed the gliding and swooping landscape.
Eventually, a thin panel of wood that hid the secret in plain sight, barely covering the spot it meant to hide came into view—throwing these pieces aside unveiled a large hole. Into the dark space, it wasn’t long before a thick layer of smoke developed inside the tunnel, coating the lungs and corrupting the air.
Betty emerged into the room right as a coughing fit was about to claim dominance. The first glimpse into the smog had her doing a double take. A giant amphibian lethargically sat in a corner, a fedora on his head as he puffed on a cigar. When she tore her eyes from the creature the room didn’t disappoint. All around, snow globes sat on selves, each as empty as the last. These displays circled to a counter where a pointy-hatted creature stood in miniature clothing. A simple jacket that coronated with its hat and dark pants dominated its frame. The finishing touch was the beard that hung beyond its face, nearly dragging on the ground. The creature’s beady eyes lit up at her entrance, nearly jumping from excitement.
“Hello! Welcome, welcome,” stirring itself into a state while the other creature barely blinked, lost in the smoke. “My name is Ollie, what brings you to our shop?” It buzzed from the encounter.
“What do you know about the midnight thief?” a conspirator’s tone claimed her voice while shifting eyes roamed.
“Oh, that troll,” the creature’s happiness faded, replaced by revulsion and a dismissive wave-A balloon deflating before Bettie’s eyes. “Too much,” strict displeasure at the thought, hovering around such unpleasantries into far off-times and places. “What do you want to know?”
“I want to get rid of it!” a slight aggression took hold, a disposition of desperation appearing and overtaking her face.
“I have just the thing,” Reaching below, Ollie produced a crystal ball that shimmered through the fog. “Hold this up to the creature. That will do it,” simply put, as if common knowledge, the creature shrugged. Betty reached out, ready for the next step of her plan, when little hands moved the piece.
“I need something in return,” a coy expression followed the words, the upper hand choosing a side. “Once you catch the creature, bring it back here!” with the terms of agreement fully stated, laid out, and bare. An instant nod from the child and a smile from the other, the piece was handed over. An instant nod from the child and a smile from the other marked the deal.
As midnight neared without humdrum nonsense or nonsense, the quiet night was an arduous climb toward possibilities or disappointment, a thrown-up coin refusing to learn. Meanwhile, the child twitched, uncomfortably positioned to wait, and wait. After too much, far too much time, the window slowly opened with a soft creak. A small frame crawled through, lithely maneuvering to the bed within a few steps. With an athletic leap, it jumped onto the bed, reaching the head; it barely took a moment before its grubby fingers grabbed at the edge of the blanket. Throwing aside the comforter with the necessary dramatics. A hand reached out, inching closer. As the process started its hand was snapped away, all confusion as it turned.
‘Ah, ha,’ Betty jumped from among the shadows with a shout to accompany the action, the crystal ball held high. A bright light then issued from the piece and filled the room intensely. So bright it dominated and blinded.
‘AAAHHHH’
Terror filled screams pierced the room, echoing thoroughly as the creature began to change. A stone casing crawled across its frame until every inch was covered, a thorough endeavor. A thick silence had Betty lowering her hands, once again surrounded in darkness and silence. After a few seconds, she mustered the courage to inch closer, apprehensively inspecting the creature with unwavering eyes. Laying on the bed, a piece of stone with the troll’s features eternally captured remained.
The next day, before dawn could shoo away the shadows, Betty headed outdoors. She wobbled to the piece’s rightful owner with the glass in one hand and the creature in the other. Betty meandered through the tunnel to the smoke-ridden chamber. Ollie was in raptures, practically salivating when she entered. While the same amphibian but a new cigarette squatted in the corner.
“Here you are,” Betty quickly handed over the orb, not waiting before backing away, disappearing as Ollie was preoccupied with his prize, lovingly caressing each object delicately. His smile was a little too wide as his eyes twinkled, plans and shenanigans fleeting through his mind. His dreams being worked into reality, reworked and structured. The missing piece fell into place perfectly.
“Oh, we are going to have fun,” patting the troll.