In a small village surrounded by a thick forest, there lived a cheerful boy named Dimas. He loved playing alone in his backyard, which bordered directly on the forest. The villagers always warned children not to go too deep into the woods, especially at dusk.
But one day, Dimas’s curiosity got the better of him.
That evening, as fog rolled in and the forest grew eerily quiet, Dimas noticed something half-buried in the bushes at the forest’s edge. It was a small wooden doll, old and dusty, but its eyes—made from red marbles—glowed faintly, almost like they were alive.
Dimas brought the doll home. He cleaned it, named it “Toto,” and started playing with it every day. Strangely, after the doll entered their home, Dimas began complaining about whispers at night and dreams filled with dark shadows. His parents thought they were just nightmares.
But soon, the strange things became real.
One by one, Dimas’s other toys broke on their own. Their pet cat refused to enter his room. And every morning, the doll Toto was in a different place, as if it could move by itself. One night, Dimas’s mother heard the soft clunking of wooden footsteps. When she opened his bedroom door, she saw the doll sitting on Dimas’s chest—its red eyes glowing in the dark.
The next day, Dimas fell into a high fever and kept muttering names no one recognized. He whispered strange things like, “Don’t let him return to the forest...”
The village elder, Grandma Rara, was called for help. As soon as she saw the doll, her face went pale.
“This is no ordinary toy,” she whispered. “This is the Guardian of the Dark Forest—a spirit sealed in wood by our ancestors long ago. It latches onto the child who awakens it... until their soul is replaced.”
That night, the villagers and Grandma Rara performed a ritual deep in the woods. They returned the doll to where it was found, chanting ancient prayers to seal it once again. The fog thickened, and faint screams echoed from the trees. Then, silence.
Slowly, Dimas recovered. But he never played near the forest again.
Legend says that if a curious child wanders into the woods at dusk, they might find a wooden doll with glowing red eyes. And if they bring it home…
…their nights will never be quiet again.