"All right", Detective Taller said, feeling a lot less nervous after Stella encouraged him to go.
He stepped up on the stage, took a deep breath to steady himself - briefly wondering whether he was going to lose that "habit" over time - and began.
"There was a young girl who lived near the forest. Her mother would allow her to play everywhere, but not in the forest. 'Why?', asked the young girl of her mother, again and again. But her mother would only smile and shake her head.
The girl, as most young girls are, was curious and inquisitive, and often found out things she shouldn't know, went into places where she shouldn't go. So naturally, she went to play in the forest. One day, two days, three days, it went well. Nothing happened, and the girl, curious as ever, went deeper and deeper in the forest on the fourth day.
Soon she saw something that looked like ruins from the distance, and went closer to investigate.
These ruins were the reason she wasn't supposed to go into the forest. They were the ruins of an asylum; the inmates had died a long time ago, of some mysterious illness.
But the girl didn't know. To her, it was merely another adventure. And inside the ruins, she found something. A little porcelain doll, with perfect white skin and closed eyes. The girl decided to take her discovery home, as the doll looked nicer than the ones she already had.
That night, before she went to sleep, she placed the doll on the pillow next to her.
In the middle of the night, the girl awoke, feeling uneasy. Rain pattered and clattered against the windows. The girl thought she had woken from the rain, and went back to sleep.
The next morning, she saw that the doll had opened its eyes. The eyes were pale as the rest of the doll, and the girl wished the doll hadn't changed.
That night, though, she put her arm around the doll protectively.
In the middle of the night, the girl awoke, feeling scared. Wind howled around the house like some lost animal. The girl thought the wind had scared her, and went back to sleep.
The next morning, she saw that the doll's eyes had changed. They looked different now, more alive. But they seemed to watch her.
That night, she didn't hesitate to take the doll in her arms.
In the middle of the night, the girl awoke, feeling terrified, drenched in sweat. It seemed as though the wind was trying to tear the house down, and the rain tried to batter in the windows. The girl thought that was the cause for her nightmare, and went back to sleep.
The next morning, she found that the doll's skin had a slight rosy tinge that wasn't there before.
That night, before she went to sleep, she saw that the doll sat on the pillow already, as if it had waited for her.
In the middle of the night, there was a mighty thunderstorm. Every light in the house went out, even the little girl's nightlight, but the girl didn't wake up.
The next day, when the girl's mother went to see for her, she found her little girl still in bed. Her skin was cold and white as porcelain. She was dead. And next to her, there was the doll. The girl's mother saw that the doll's skin was rosy, and warm to the touch.
That night, the weather was calm.
The next morning, the girl's mother saw that the doll - was gone."
He waited, gave a slight bow and then left the stage. He was relieved that his stutter hadn't decided to make a triumphant comeback at that moment.
He went back to the table, somehow feeling even more nervous than before he had told the story.
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"Well I'm pretty sure you didn't run your fingers through someone's ears without permission before, now have you?" the imp growled at the pale woman. He did however notice her brooch, but it was short. Noir would have to get back at her at a later time for that incident. It would be a lovely payback price. He gave a frustrated sigh as he spread and refolded his head wings back into a more comfortable position.
