The 12-year-old girl who was almost stabbed to death by two of her friends in a Wisconsin park is "making strides," her family said in a Thursday update.
The attack was fueled by her friends' attempt to please the "Slender Man," a fictional, demon-like character from a horror story website, police say. Doctors say the knife two 12-year-old girls used to stab her 19 times barely missed her heart, the Associated Press reported.
"Our little girl is a fighter and is making strides of improvement each and every day," the girl's parents wrote on a fundraising website, according to the AP.
The girl, whose name has not been released, is watching TV from her wheelchair and is walking around the hospital with her father, the family said. The family was able to raise $16,000, out of a goal of $250,000, within the same day they set up the website.
"We appreciated your patience, love and support as we too are stunned and saddened by this tragedy," her family wrote according to the AP.
The victim was attacked in a wooded area of a southeastern Wisconsin park last Saturday in what police say was two 12-year-old girls' desire to become "proxies" of the Slender Man, a faceless character from the short story site creepypsta.wikia.com. The girls told investigators they had dreams about the demon and wanted to go live in his mansion in the woods.
The girls, whose names have also been kept confidential, have since expressed regret for their actions. They were charged as adults with first-degree attempted homicide on Monday, the AP reported.
"The bad part of me wanted her to die, the good part of me wanted her to live," one girl told an investigator, according to the AP.
The victim managed to crawl to a nearby road after her attackers left her lying in the woods. She was found by a bicyclist on the sidewalk.
The victim was able to tell police the name of one of her attackers. The two girls face up to 60 years in prison if they are found guilty.
