Richard watches as Ashly is observing, "Hey, I can see that you're getting the hang of it already." Ashly turns to look at Richard. "You seem to be staring more intently and longer than before, that's a good thing."
Ashly then looks down. "Yeah I wasn't really doing it on purpose." She said, "It just happened instantly that's all."
Richard notices how she looks a bit uncomfortable. "Hey you know, we can leave now if you want to." He asked and Ashly agreed. They then stood up from the chairs. They left and began to walk, Richard is keeping his distance, and is still suspicious of Ashly. "Could she just be acting right now or is she being sincere?" Richard asks himself.
As they are walking down the streets, they pass many stores which Ashly ignores for the most part. She begins to look around to waste a bit of time before returning back to the inn and resting. This will not work, she can't change in the way Lucas wants, so she will have to think of a plan. As she thinks of that she immediately stops.
"What's the matter Ashly, is there something interesting you saw?" Richard asked as he turned to see Ashly looking at a store window. There a doll can be seen, it seems to take the form of a child.
Ashly has an urge to want to touch the doll, she doesn't understand why but she wants to. Ashly enters the store and with the money she stole from Lucas, she buys it. Ashly then holds the doll, it's much softer than she expected. For some reason she couldn't understand why she thought it would be made of wood.
"Hey, why did you buy that doll just now?" Richard asked Ashly, "Was there something ahout it that caught your attention?"
"I don't know, I just bought it that's all. It feels like I have seen a doll similar to this one before." Ashly keeps on touching the doll, she brushes the hair and it makes her feel terrible. At this moment Ashly begins to feel an empty feeling inside her stomach. She isn't hungry as she ate earlier which is confusing to her.
"Hey, is something up Ashly, you don't seem very happy." He said to Ashly who keeps on touching the doll. "Hey, if it's bothering you I can hold it or throw it away." He extends his hand but Ashly refuses.
"I don't feel great right now, I mean it I don't feel well." Ashly says as she drops the doll, she looks up at Richard who is concerned. "I feel like I have seen this doll before, but I never owned one before."
"I just need to get back and have some rest that's all." Ashly says as Richard helps her, she then turns and grabs the doll. Richard asks her why did she did that. "I can't leave it behind, I spend money on it."
Ashly has returned to her room, and she is laying down on the bed. She feels tired and has lost motivation. Its as if she just lost all her energy, and it doesn't look like she is getting it back.
It's been a whole day since she has bought the doll. Ashly is holding the doll near her stomach, she is hugging it for some reason. Ashly hasn't slept much, her eyes are tired but she can't sleep. She feels like she is sick, but she knows she really isn't. She can't stand up from the bed, just moving her arms is challenging for her to do.
"What is wrong with me all the sudden, why am I acting like I'm dying?" She says as she stares at the doll, it seems her body is having a reaction to it. Maybe her body is telling her something she herself has forgotten, her mind usually forgets but her body doesn't.
Ashly then with force and concentration, stands up right. To think such a simple task would be difficult for her to do, did she just die or something. Maybe she should ask Lucas what it is that she experiencing as he is kinda smart. Wait no she can't, Lucas won't speak to her until the last day. She knows if she was to speak with Lucas then she will mess up more than she has already done. Maybe she should talk to Richard, he has to be smart as well.
In the meantime Lucas is back at the library, and has been thinking about things. He has been thinking about what will he have to do. Lucas doesn't know when Ashly is lying or not and it's scary to him. "How could you be this stupid Lucas, just how dumb do you have to be?" Lucas says to himself, his arm still hurts, and his right ear feels very off.
"Maybe I should leave immediately." Instantly Lucas smacks himself on his left cheek, "what the hell am I thinking?" The people around Lucas are now staring at him. A lady asks if he is ok. "Noo I'm not, I'm sorry for doing that in public." Lucas apologizes.
"I need to find my parents no matter what, I have to do this. I don't want to break before I see them, and I don't want to go through detours." Lucas says, Lucas then begins to write a letter. It's been a while since he wrote one and he almost forgot about it. They must be worried because he hasn't sent a letter in a while and he has to clarify everything.
He just can't think of a way to trust Ashly ever again. He feels uneasy as if he has the heart to accept her again if she does change. "Will I just tell her to-" Lucas then covers his mouth before he could say more. He is scared of what he was going to say, and if he was going to regret it. He begins to softly cry again inside the library after checking that no one was nearby.
Ashly is with Richard again, "Alright, there is something seriously wrong. I know that you aren't a good person at all, but this is still uncomfortable." He says to Ashly who is slouched.
"Well I don't know, it's all happening because of that doll. Ever since I touched it I have been feeling like this and it sucks. I just don't feel like wanting to do anything." Ashly says with a soft and low tone with uninterest. "Do you know of a reason to why I feel like shit?" Ashly asked.
"Well I think it's something with sadness, yeah I can't jump to conclusions but you're definitely sad. Maybe it's because of the fact that you're remembering something from the past." Richard said as he looks at Ashly, "It could be a terrible memory, and you're experiencing negative emotions. You said you couldn't remember much yet you might be, which I don't know if it's a bad thing or not. Try to remember what happened, maybe you will get the full context."
"Well it's much easier said than done, I don't know how long ago this memory was. For all I know it could of been when I was a baby." Ashly begins to take deep breaths, she knows that it couldn't have been after she was in Greenside as she was poor. Maybe it could of been with that old man that cared for her, but if it was then she would of been reminded.
"Ashly, take a seat and think about it slowly alright? You don't have to force yourself as it won't come back instantly." Richard said as Ashly sat down on a chair. He himself sits down, and watches Ashly carefully. The wind outside is surprisingly calm, and it hasn't snowed in a while.
Ashly then does as what Richard told her, she begins to think. Ashly puts her hands on her lap, and just begins to concentrate. She begins to think about her entire life, would it be possible. She knows she has a terrible memory so it might just be impossible. Ashly knows that Richard is worried, and if something bad happens then Richard will help her, well she thinks he will atleast.
After a few minutes Ashly opens her eyes, and looks at Richard. Ashly can see that he is about to ask her about it. "Yeah nothing, it's been a few minutes and I have nothing. Just give me time, I don't feel well alright." Ashly then puts her left hand on her forehead.
Richard is a bit anxious about this situation, Ashly looks sad. Why is he feeling this way, he doesn't know Ashly that well. All he knows is that she is a negative person, and is being unpredictable. Richard waits patiently for Ashly to say something, maybe she isn't lying to him. It's better for him to doubt her than to risk being toyed with.
Ashly then lowers her hands, she looks at Richard. Her eyes are now wide open and her face was stunned. Ashly opens her mouth but says nothing, she then swallows her saliva. "I…I think I just remembered something." That's all she said which to her was all she had to say.
"Are you for real? Alright let me calm down." Richard says as his heart begins to beat fast, she might be lying to him. Don't get your hopes up. "Tell me what you remember at your own pace alright. If you don't want to tell me anything then it's fine, I can't force you to tell me." He says with a comforting voice.
"Eva, that was the name of my older sister." Ashly said which makes Richard encourage her to continue, "She was my overly negative sister until her dream was in arms reach. My mother her name was Emma, and my father's name was Paul."
"Is that all?" Richard asked, "That's amazing, you remember who they are." He can't believe Ashly is remembering her family. "Keep going Ashly, don't stop. There's is a chance you can remember more."
"The doll, it all makes sense to me now." Ashly says which Richard asks her to explain as he can't read her mind. "Oliver, that was the name of the kind man who gave me a doll. It's made from the same material as the one I just bought, that's why my body was feeling off. It reminded me of what I used to have." She says "I had a friend named Jessica, she had a cat which she called Candy and it was female."
"Wow, alright that's huge news for you Ashly…oh." Richard can see Ashly closing her eyes and covering theme it her hands. "Are you crying Ashly? Tou can stop now if it makes you feel sad."
"No, it's not that it's hurting me at all." Ashly says as she removes her hands. "I remember the day I got this doll, I was a brat back then." Ashly smiles but her eyes seem distressed. "I was from an entirely different district, it was much nicer. I just can't remember which one exactly it was but I should. It was part of my sister's dream, but I just can't remember its name."
Ashly then clasps her hands, "The day I lost my doll, her name was Sophie, and my sister named it." Ashly then lowers her head and frowns. "The day I lost my doll was the day my family died." Richard is absolutely stunned by what she said. "I was there and saw it all, I watched my family die in front of my face."
Richard stands up and puts his hand of her shoulder. "He Ashly, it's fine if you stop right now. It seems like a very tough situation, and I don't want you to force yourself to remember that."
"No, im actually disgusted not because of what happens to my family, but to myself." Ashly said as she looks up to Richard. "Even though I was a little kid, I didn't even cry at all. Thinking about it, I never cried ever since and it's awful. I was a kid back then, but I didn't feel anything."