//------------------------------// // Dolls // Story: The Collector // by The dead Pixel Brony //------------------------------// “C’mon, guys! We’re supposed to be at Zecora’s!” Sweetie Belle squeaked. “Quit worrying, Sweetie Belle! We’ll head over to Zecora’s once we find whoever is out here!” Scootaloo replied. “And who are we looking for out here for anyway?” Applebloom asked, “You said you heard somepony, but I don’t hear anything!” Scootaloo stopped, and looked at her earth pony friend with scowl. “What are you talking about? How can you not hear him? I’ve been hearing him for a while now!” “Hearing who? I haven’t heard a single pony besides you and Sweetie Belle since we came in here!” Applebloom said, putting her face up against Scootaloo, “And I think you’re just doing this to try and scare us!” “No I’m not! I heard somepony, and you’re just saying you don’t because you’re afraid of the forest!” “Am not!” “Are too!” “Am not!” “Are too!”         As the pair of fillies argument became nothing more than a shouting contest, Sweetie Belle looked on from the side. Giving a hopeless sigh at her companions meaningless argument, the filly plopped onto her haunches. “Always ends the same. Those two are way too headstrong.” The filly concluded with a nod.         As Sweetie Belle sat, watching the argument turn into a name-calling contest, she heard a faint whisper from behind her. “Hello there.”         Sweetie shot onto all fours with a shriek. With panic filled eyes, the unicorn filly spun around and looked for the source of the voice. Looking around the foliage, she saw nothing. Through the foliage, however, the filly saw something. A small hill, obscured by the trees, with a stump at the top with something sitting on it. Curiosity overwhelming her fear for the moment, the filly started walking toward the clearing. A hoof on her shoulder made her jump. Turning, she saw the concerned face of Applebloom. “What’s the matter Sweetie? We heard you scream, but you were just standing there staring off into space when we looked.” “Yeah,” Scootaloo said, walking over to the other side of Sweetie Belle, “You see something, or, better yet, hear somepony?” “Oh, give it up Scoots,” Applebloom groaned, letting her hoof fall of Sweetie’s shoulder, “There is nopony out here! Just let it–” “I heard somepony, Applebloom,” Sweetie Belle Interrupted, then pointed a hoof toward the clearing, “Look…”         Looking where their friend was pointing, Applebloom’s eyes widened at the sight while Scootaloo’s face grew a smirk. “Told you somepony was out here!” Scootaloo yelled triumphantly, running toward the clearing. “Scootaloo wait! It might be dangerous!” Applebloom yelled, running off after her. “Wait for me!” Sweetie Belle said, hesitantly trotting after the pair.         Scootaloo reached the hill, her wings flapping excitedly. “Hey!” The pegasus yelled at the slumped figure on the stump, “I found you! I knew somepony was out here– Whoa!”         Tripping halfway up the hill, Scootaloo found her face buried in the dirt. Catching up, Applebloom snickered as she approached her friend. “That’s what you get for running off like that,” Applebloom quipped. “Shut up!” the pegasus responded as she stood up, and continued on her way up the hill.         Shaking her head, the earth pony followed her friend up the hill. Getting closer to the stump at the top, Applebloom noticed something about the figure atop it. “Hey Scoots, I don’t think that’s a pony…” Applebloom said worryingly.         Stopping, Scootaloo gave a confused look towards her friend. Turning to look at the figure again, Scootaloo’s confusion tripled. “A doll?” Sweetie Belle said disbelievingly, as she caught up with her friends near the stump.  “But I swore I heard somepony!” Scootaloo yelled, moving up to get a better look at the doll.         The doll sat upright on the stump, its pure white button eyes staring out at the world. Two small pointy ears pointed towards the sky, like a ponies. The doll’s entire body was a worn brown, with four appendages sticking out of the skinny looking middle. The bottom two looked to be styled after a large dogs. Although the top two were overly long, stretching past the bottom two, almost to the ground. Ending with long spindly claws, like Spike’s, but not. “Its a really ugly doll if you ask me,” Applebloom said with a deadpan stare at the doll. “But I heard somepony out here! I swear I did!” Yelled Scootaloo with an indignant expression on her face, “Hey! Whoevers out there! Show yourselves!” She yelled toward the forest. “C’mon, Scoots. Thats enough,” Applebloom said with an irritated look on her face, “Maybe you did hear somepony, maybe ya didn’t. Lets just go to Zecora’s so we can try to get our cutie marks in something.” “Maybe you’re right,” Scootaloo said with a sigh, before looking at the doll with a scowl, “But I’m taking this doll!” “What?” Sweetie squeaked, “Why?” “I followed a voice out here, I’m getting something out of it!”         Grabbing the doll, Scootaloo shoved it into her saddle bags. “Whatever, lets just get to Zecora’s,” Applebloom sighed. “I can safely say, potion making is definitely not our talent,” Sweetie Belle said with an affirmative nod, her fur and mane dotted with black scorch marks.         The other two made sounds of agreement as they trudged along, similar marks adorning their coat. As the three walked nearing Sweet Apple Acres, a pair of familiar, arrogant, voices made themselves known. “On my, look at the blank flanks Silver Spoon, all covered in gunk. Again,” The first voice giggled. “If I didn’t know any better, I’d say they were, like, trying to become zebras,” A second voice added.         The three fillies stopped and groaned. Turning their heads, the trio saw Diamond Tiara and Silver spoon trotting toward them. “Ugh, go away you two. We’ve been having a rough day. Leave us alone,” Applebloom tried to reason. “Why should we do that?” Diamond Tiara scoffed, “We give you blank flanks a day off, you all might start to think you’re, like, normal.” “Yeah, as ponies say, give an inch, and they’ll take a mile,” Silver Spoon added. “Hey!” Scootaloo yelled, spinning on the par causing them to stop in their tracks, “Just because we haven’t gotten our cutie marks yet, doesn’t mean were not normal! You both used to be blank flanks!” “Yeah, used to,” Diamond Tiara scoffed, “Now that we have ours, it makes us ten times the ponies you are!” “Yeah,” silver Spoon giggled as she went to walk past Scootaloo, “So get used to it blank fl– Ouch!”         Jumping away from Scootaloo, silver looked down to her side. Three long cuts ran horizontally down her side, bleeding lightly. “You hurt Silver Spoon!” Diamond Tiara yelled in Scootaloo’s face. “What?! No I-” Scootaloo started to say “I’m telling my Daddy!” Diamond yelled, interrupting Scootaloo. The snooty pink filly turned and ran away, a Confused Silver Spoon following shortly after. While the three remaining fillies stared after the retreating pair, neither noticed the claw hanging out of a hole in the pegasus’ saddle bag. Nor did they notice it pull itself back in. “Grandma! I’m home!” Yelled Scootaloo as she closed the front door behind her. “Welcome home, Scoots.” An elderly voice called from the kitchen to the fillies right. “Dinners just about done, go get washed up.” “Okay, Grandma!” The filly replied, heading up the stairs.         Turning left off the stairs, the filly headed straight toward her room. Opening the door, the filly flung her saddlebags off toward her bed, landing with a muffled thump. Turning around, and heading back to the stairs. Not even getting three steps, a second thump made the filly stop. With a quizzical glance back, the filly caught sight of the doll laying upside down at the foot of the bed. “Oh, I forgot about you,” The filly said with a frown. Walking over to the doll, the filly picked it up and studied it. “Ugh, you are creepy,” She said with a frown. Looking over the doll again, she noticed something she hadn’t before. A tag, tied to the dolls neck with a piece of string. With a hoof, she brought the tag closer to her eyes. With a raised eyebrow, she started to read what was written.         ‘I sit upon my stump, Right upon my rump, Calling out to any who will hear, Hoping to catch their ear, If by some chance, Some find me by happenstance, I am the Collector, and I will be your protector. Do not take this lightly, I am not very sightly, My methods are ghastly, But they work vastly. I am the Collector, and I love you.’ “That’s not creepy at all,” Scootaloo deadpanned. “Scootaloo! Dinners ready!” Yelled the elderly voice. “Coming Grandma!” Scootaloo yelled, tossing the doll on top of her dresser to the right of her bed.         Closing the door behind her as she trotted out of the room, the filly headed toward the stairs. Not even three steps away from the door, a loud thump came from behind the closed door. With a quizzical glance at the door, the filly made to turn around. “Scootaloo, hurry up!” Yelled the elderly voice, “I’m not going to call for you again!” “Sorry Grandma!” The filly yelled, turning around and trotting for the stairs again.         In short time, the filly rounded the banister and hopped down the stairs. When the filly was out of sight, the bedroom door clicked and slowly started to open. A large pure white eye peered through the crack in the door, silhouetted by disfigured light brown head. Slowly, the door shut closed again. “G’night Grandma!” The orange filly yawned, as she entered her room. “‘Night, Scoots!” The elderly voice called back.         Shutting the door, the filly turned and made her way to her bed. Wrangling her way up on it, the filly turned toward a small bed side table next to the head of the bed. Sitting on top of the table, was a simple photo frame. The photograph itself was worn, with small stains, and burned on one edge. The photograph depicted two ponies with a bundle of white cloth between them. The smaller of the two, obviously female, was beautiful. She had a purple mane, and a green coat. The male had an orange coat and wings, his mane a dark shade of blue. Their faces held nothing but pure happiness. “G’night, Mom. G’night, Dad,” She said with a small yawn, stretching her neck to kiss the frame afterwards. Turning away from the photograph, the filly stretched the rest of her body. When that was done, she lifted up the covers and slipped underneath. With a clap of her hooves, the lights in the room dimmed to darkness. Leaving the only source of light to the Moon that flooded into the room through the window. The only object left untouched by the light, was the dresser. The light appeared to bend around it. Not even noticing the weirdness surrounding the dresser, the filly continued to find sleep. Shifting for a little while, the filly finally found a comfortable position. After a few minutes, a light snore started to escape the filly’s lips. Soon, the snores abated, and the room was quite.         Then, a slight crackling noise paired with rustling cloth filled the room. As the noise continued, two orbs of white appeared above the fillies dresser, and began to rise. As the noise grew in volume, the orbs continued to rise toward the ceiling. Suddenly, a light brown hand reached down from atop the dresser toward the floor. The hand had only three long, fleshy digits, that all ended with a metal scissor half. Soon after the first, a second claw descended from the dresser. Following soon after, two canine like legs landed in between the claws. As the figure entered the moonlight, the light seemed to bend around it, concealing its middle and head in darkness. The only thing that was visible on the head, were the two unblinking white orbs. Moving slowly, a claw reached toward the unaware filly. Turning its hand around, it began to gently stroke the filly’s mane.         The filly giggled, making the creature retreat its hand in response. The filly sighed, and remained still. The figure remained as still as a statue, seeming staring at the filly with its pure white orbs. After a short time, the figure turned toward the window. After only two steps, the figure reached out with one of its long arms and opened the window. With a glance back at the filly, the creature disappeared through the window. “Ugh, I can’t believe this!” Diamond Tiara seethed, pacing around her bed, “First the blank flank good-for-nothing pegasus hurts silver, then my Dad doesn’t even do anything about it!”         Kicking a stuffed bunny across the room, Diamond Tiara stomped her way towards her bed. “Oh, they’re going to pay!” Diamond screeched, “I’ll make them pay, even if I have to do it myself!”         With a small jump, the filly made her way atop her plush bed. With a few mutterings of revenge, the filly reached for a switch on the wall. Flicking it, the lights in the room was replaced with the moonlight streaming into the room weakly through the balcony door. With a few more mutterings, the filly crawled under the covers. Tossing for a few minutes, the filly finally remained still.         Then a loud click echoed through the room. Raising her head, the filly looked toward the balcony. The doors laid wide open, a slight breeze ruffling the curtains. With a groan, the filly threw off her covers, and hopped of the bed. Marching toward the balcony, the filly muttered about adding the balcony doors to her revenge list. Pushing them closed, one door at a time, the filly locked them. Trotting back to her bed, she hopped back up and settled back into her position.         Just as the filly was starting to doze off, a pressure on the other side of her bed made itself known. The filly soon found three long fingers gripping her neck. With a rough yank the filly found herself torn from her bed, and her eyes staring into two pools of pure white. “Hellloo there…” The figure rasped in a light tone.         Diamond wanted to scream for help, but the circumstances caused her to be mute. Movement to her left drew her attention away from the orbs. In the creature’s other hand, pinned between two of its fingers, was a doll. A very familiar looking doll. Holding it further into the moonlight, Diamond finally saw it for what it was.         It was a doll of Silver Spoon, her friend. ‘Why would this creature have a doll of Silver Spoon?’ Daimond thought. The creature gave the doll a light squeeze. “Help me, Diamond,” Came Silver’s panicked voice from the doll, “It hurts.”         Staring at the doll in confusion, something clicked in Diamond’s mind. ‘Thats not a doll of Silver,’ Diamond though, ‘It is Silver!’ Diamond’s voice returned in full, shrieking a bloodcurdling scream.         Morning found Scootaloo in a good mood. Waking up with a light yawn, the filly stretched her extremities. Rolling of the bed onto the floor, the filly landed on her hooves. Lazily trotting toward the door, the filly yawned again. Opening the door once she reached, the smell of pancakes assaulted her nose. “Pancakes!” The filly yelled excitedly, running out of the room.         What the filly failed to notice in her rush, was the two extra dolls on the dresser. One of a pink filly wearing a tiara, and one grey with glasses.