Welcome to Gaia! ::

The door opens inward soundlessly. With a hand I push the door more to see inside the room. The lighting in the room is a bit dark, but it’s not too dark that I can’t see anything. The walls and the furniture look exactly like Kiri’s room. Bookshelves line the walls and each one is filled to capacity with thick books. This room looks like it doubles as a library. There are no signs that a child lives here, because there are no personal effects. The large glass windows are nearly completely covered by a grey curtain and a small sliver of light shines through.
In the middle of the room, sitting traditionally on the black carpet, is a young boy about a few years younger than me, but older than Kiri. He has short black hair. His face is downcast and sideways to me, so I can’t tell his eye color. His eyes are open though, and staring at the dark carpet like he’s in a trance. He’s unmoving and calm. This boy is very much like a broken marionette; a puppet with his strings cut.
The thought comes to me that he’s a demon locked in this room. I can tell he knows I’m here, but his body doesn’t flinch or react at all. He simply stares at the fibers in the carpet like he’s possessed.
This is a child not granted the joy of living. This impersonal room is his, and it swallows him in a dark abyss. How many years has he been here living like a doll without a soul while I am allowed to roam freely? The more I think of it that way, the worse I feel. His eyes don’t reflect any light, and his skin is very pale. He looks very frail and weak to me. Of course, being trapped in a room for many years would eventually leave you like this.
These bland, unwelcoming walls have long drove this boy insane. He just doesn’t have the mind to realize it.
My body is still frozen in the doorway. The air in this room is icy cold and unfriendly. My mind screams at me, telling me that if I stay here I might end up like this boy, or worse.