Disclaimer: I do not own Ib.
Ultimatum
Ib stopped advancing down the hallway to prove she would not try to take back the withered rose from the blond. She pulled her rose from its place, ignoring the thorns that scratched her skin. She held it out in front of her, examining it. This was all so wrong! But there was an idea forming, an idea that was pushing her closer to what was right. She looked to her side, where a blue petal lay next to her, and the idea fleshed out.
"Ib! Mary!" Gary's voice rang out as he stumbled onto the scene. He leaned against the wall for support as he finally caught up to them. He was breathing heavily and was obviously exhausted. She wondered just how many petals he had left.
"Stay right there Garry." Ib commanded softly.
Two pairs of eyes darted to her curiously.
"I wasn't lying before Mary. I want you to give Garry's rose back, but I won't try to take it from you. You want to leave right? But you can't without taking someone's place."
She paused, rotating the flower in her hand. "Well, what if I said... that I don't want to leave if Garry doesn't come with us?"
"Only one of us can leave. Either me or Garry." Certainty. She could not see the other option.
"I'm not going without him."
"Ib-"
Her free hand came up to meet the petals of her rose. She kept her eyes meaningfully on Mary as she plucked one of her own petals off. She gasped in pain and spoke. "Loves me."
"Ib!" Garry and Mary chorused worriedly.
She acted like she did not hear them. "I liked this game too, Mary. But I don't think it's very fun anymore."
"What are you doing?" They exclaimed. Ib noted that they seemed more in sync than they'd ever been.
"I won't have to use your trick of counting the stem to get 'Loves me.' Five petals is an odd number." She continued, leaning against the wall tiredly. She tore off another petal. "Loves me not."
"Stop!" She smiled ironically, they had finally found something to agree on.
"Why? You said only two could leave. Remember when you asked what I'd do if I had to choose? I wasn't lying." Her fingers were barely able to close around the petal with enough pressure to actually pull it off. When had she fallen to the floor? "Loves me."
"We'll...we'll... We'll find another way Ib. Just stop!" Garry pleaded.
"Please! Just forget about Garry! We won't be able to leave unless he's gone!"
She frowned. They were disagreeing again. Garry understood what she was after. Mary wasn't quite there yet. She pulled off another petal. She sucked in a deep breath to keep from screaming and choked on it, coughing up blood. "L-l-loves m-me...not."
She had gotten through four petals without problem, but now she hesitated. It seemed like her bluff may become a promise as Mary continued to vehemently proclaim the necessity of Garry's death. Garry's voice sounded far away, but she knew he was trying to persuade Mary to take his side. To stall her. To make sure that last petal remained on the stem. She blinked hard, trying to concentrate and clear her now blurred vision. There was no point if Mary did not agree, not when she still had Garry's rose in hand.
Her dying rose was crystal clear against a background that seemed to have gone fuzzy.
She really was not lying. She had hoped, of course, that seeing her pull petals from her own flower would have forced Mary to concede. But given the choice, her decision was obvious.
She watched, as if from a long distance, as her hand reached out for her last petal.
She hoped her parents would understand.
The final petal felt soft and smooth, like silk, between her fingertips.
The corner of her lips tilted upward just a bit. She whispered, "I win."
She was not talking about the game anymore, though she supposed it was still appropriate. It did not feel like a win.
"Loves—" She was interrupted as blue entered her field of vision. Garry's rose, down to three petals, lay beside her from where Mary had tossed it.
Her flower slipped out of her hand. Carefully, she picked up the blue rose. Real. She looked up to see the faces of her friends, both concerned but Mary's resigned.
Relief. She really had won.
She tucked both roses into her waistband, where Mary would not dare to come after them. Good, now they were getting somewhere.
She held her arms out to Garry. "It hurts," she whimpered.
Immediately, he was by her side. He scooped her small form up easily. "I know. It's alright. Let's find you a vase."
She looked over his shoulder to where Mary stood still, distraught and looking betrayed.
Ib called out, "Come on, Mary."
The blond met her gaze with confusion, but began to follow. Garry continued his search, eyes darting back to make sure Mary kept her distance.
No, she could not trust her. But she would save her.
No one would get left behind.
BREAK
A/N: Just a short little thing I came up with. A plot bunny came to me after playing the game a couple of times. Then I saw the fanmade ending where the player can actually have Ib choose to sacrifice herself and it fleshed out. I may end this here and you can assume that they all got out. Or I may decide to continue. If I do, it will include them getting out and how they all adjust being in the real world together. Expect relationships to be quite strained as they to get passed all this baggage. Should be shorter than my other chaptered stories.
I hope you enjoyed reading this.
Until next time friendlies,
Dfsemina