Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Ib or any of the character or original plot. Kouri (I believe that's how you spell his name) rightfully owns all ownership to this game. I, however, own this story idea. :)

WARNING: DOES CONTAIN SPOILERS. SPOILER, SPOILER, SPOILER ALERT. UNLESS YOU HAVE SEEN ALL THE ENDINGS TO THE GAME, I SUGGEST YOU TURN BACK NOW. THIS IS FANFICTION PEOPLE, EXPECT SPOILERS.

Summary: Seven years have passed since Ib's strangely vague visit to Guertena's art exhibition. Her workplace bought a famous painting from an auction, and soon Ib finds herself in a dangerous game between her possessive sister and a crazed, familiar man. Crazy Garry and sister Mary. Garry x Ib x Mary.

1.

...

Her heart was pounding as she soared down the dark corridors.

Her small legs were screaming out in protest as they tried to catch up to her quick pace.

Her initial pain and sadness and confusion were all eaten away by one emotion: fury.

"Loves me…" A childishly feminine voice laughed as the sound echoed through the hallway.

Don't you dare.

"Loves me not…" The voice continued despite of her deep desires that were so overwhelming for the little girl. And yet, while the phrase was not something to look forward to in this one game, there was still twisted joy in the voice.

When her crimson eyes, filled with glass tears, spotted the blue flower petals on the floor in front of her, her resolve and anger were at its peak.

"Loves me…"

She was speeding up the stairs, never once slowing down for her own safety.

Don't…!

"Loves me not…"

Ib had never been so angry and desperate in her life. The thought of her so-called friend picking away the beautiful blue rose that held that man's life; it was madness in her heart. The red was all consuming, yet it was a boost. Adrenaline was pumping into her circulatory system as her heart demandingly knocked against her ribs at an unhealthy speed, but she was only focused on one thing.

Red, red, red like her rose…

It was all she could see.

I'm going to KILL YOU!

"Loves me…"

For a sickening moment, just as she reached the apex of the staircase, she froze. This painting girl, Mary, had weapons. Ib had nothing, and her immature body would not be able to handle the wounds the blonde-haired thing would inflict on her with her palette knives. Mary… she may be psychotic, but she was faster, taller, and probably a bit older. She wouldn't stand a chance.

"Loves me not… Loves me…"

The sound of a flower being torn apart was enough for the overpowering fury to return.

The brown-haired girl clenched her fists tightly as she made a sharp turn around the wall before rushing at Mary in the middle of the room; the sick bitch had her grimy hands on the dying flower, ripping it apart with a wide, toothy smile and an obsessed gleam in her eye.

With strength and courage that Ib never knew she had since stepping into the Abyss, she smacked Mary who gasped in surprise for her speed and fell to the floor, clutching at her cheek. The rose stem plummeted to the carpet, briefly forgotten in the chaos.

Ib panted, her heart pounding madly. She eyed her conniving ex-friend amidst the fallen blue petals and slowly realized just how beautiful Guertena's artwork truly was. Time seemed to pause for the brunette as she saw how the natural colors of blue and green and yellow all blurred together as Mary blinked sluggishly, just as a painting would look.

The moment was lost.

"I-Ib?" Mary whimpered as she cradled her cheek. Ib bristled maliciously at her reaction. Even after everything, after lying to her, after acting like they were friends and sharing those rare moments of laughter in hell only to be stabbed in the back, after trying to kill Garry, she had the audacity to sound betrayed?!

"Why?" The blonde-haired girl sobbed, her palette knives scattered on the floor among the ocean-blue petals. "Why did you hit me? I did all of this so we could be happy together! I-I-I… I just wanted to…!"

Ib stiffened in fear when Mary's eyes narrowed as she reached for a nearby knife on the non-existent floor.

She gasped when metal clumsily clattered against the wall, ringing a harsh tune in the dark room.

"I JUST WANTED TO BE REAL!"

And Ib was stunned as the blonde-haired girl ran down a staircase and disappeared in the darkness of the Abyss. It wasn't exactly the action of her running away and not harming her that stunned her, even though it was unexpected, but the sincerity in her last words and the emotions that stirred with the proclamation.

She mustered up her remorse once more, but underneath the smothering emotion was a hint of sadness, and… understanding.

No! This girl… she tried to kill Garry!

Garry…

Gasping, Ib flew to the floor, her little hands grasping for the blue rose's stem. The amount of petals on the floor made her stomach twist and made her feel sick. She avoided the palette knives in disgust, not wanting to remember the girl who may be lingering around still.

She found it. The dark green stem withered away at her touch and Ib wanted to cry at the sight of the rose. She remembered how Garry would caress the petals in the same gentle way he treated her, and it was so big and full of life. Now, only a couple petite, budding blues were attached to the tip of the stem.

Breathing was hard for her as she rushed down the stairs where she once came from to the corner of the hallway. The brunette shakily and delicately slipped the stem away from her palms, careful not to touch them as they were holding onto the stem for dear life just as a rope was at its last thread. She placed it into the gray, clay vase on the small table as it plopped quietly into the water, muttering heartfelt and heartbreaking prayers and hopes and wishes on her pink lips. Her arms shook fearfully, and when the rose did not immediately respond to the healing particles of the water like it did every time, she cried out in submissive despair.

He was in pain, she knew. Every time a monster hindered her and swiped away at her rose, there was an excruciating ache that never left her as the petals feel off. The pain only got worse when more fell, and it never went away until it received the needed treatment that only the water in vases gave them. Once, only once she had only one petal left that dangled by the stem and she could not begin to describe the agony she experienced; she probably couldn't even describe it with words.

Her heart throbbed, but this time with hurt, knowing that Garry was hurt. Her eyes could not stay on the rose as it flickered down the hallway where the fallen form was laying.

She abandoned the vase, running down the corridor and never stopping until she saw the hunched form of Garry leaning against the wall with his eyes shut.

"Garry…!" She called out, kneeling in front of him and hugging his thin form. He didn't respond and Ib lifted her gaze to his face in perplexity.

He was sleeping, she decided. His brows were not furrowed and his teeth not clenched tightly like how it was when he was on his knees, telling her to go on. "I don't want to lie to you…" He had said with a slight grimace. "But I don't want to tell you the truth…"

"Go ahead…"

She clutched at his hand, her tears that were out of fear, fear of the unknown for she did not know what Garry's fate would be, were fading from the comfort of his presence. His hands were big, and as she fit her hand into his, her finger met the spaces where his began to branch off. They were warm, and she put both of his hands back on his head like he would when he would praise her for her innate skill of solving the puzzles within the Abyss or using a new word he had taught her from the descriptions of Guertena's works or the books they found in the bookshelves along their journey.

She reveled in the warmth and looked back up at his face. His expression did not change. He was still asleep.

"If you run into trouble… I'll come running."

"Garry…" She called out again hesitantly, unsure if she wanted to wake the peacefully slumbering man. When he didn't respond again, she reluctantly decided to leave him. Even though she had a deep attachment to the man ever since he offered her candy to cheer her up after her nightmare in the safe room, she had an instinctive feeling that the exit was just around the corner where Mary had fled. Hopefully, though, she would not run into her again.

She walked away, each step echoing heavily in her ears as her eyes continuously shifted behind her to the unmoving form of her gentle friend. When she rounded the corner and sprinted up the steps in anxiety and excitement, his form disappeared in the black. She hoped he would keep his word and follow after her once he woke up from his slumber.

She followed Mary's footsteps and found herself in the darker version of the art museum she had visited in the beginning. The lining of the walls and doorways was an eerie crimson red and the walls a bleak gray. She slowly climbed up the steps, eying each corner for a probably psychotic blonde-haired painting cautiously. When she stopped, she looked up and saw that her feet had led her to the painting where she saw the message calling for her in the real world written in red paint on the metallically white ground.

"…World," it read, though she could not decipher the first word on the description. She frowned sadly, remembering when Garry would help her with words such as this, slowly pronouncing them for her to follow and then laughing whether she did correctly or incorrectly. Her side felt very vacuous, and she craved to hold his hand like she did when she felt scared when they would walk into a new area.

White suddenly flashed before her eyes and she gasped, rubbing and blinking it away. When she squinted at the large painting once more, she felt like it was different somehow. The golden frame bordering the artwork had disappeared. The painting was now a portal.

"Once you go in, there's no going back," There were more words in the painting's description after the bright flash, ones she could understand. "All your time here will be lost. Will you still jump in?"

All your time here will be lost.

All your time here will be lost.

Garry… She didn't want to forget him…!

But, he was right behind her, like he always was! Right?

Will you still jump in?

Garry, he had probably panicked when he woke up in the corridor and was racing towards her right now, and soon they would be back in the real world, together.

With that comforting thought, she leapt into the painting without further hesitation.

Unbeknownst to her, the same girl who attempted to take Garry's life was right behind her, smiling happily as she also stepped into the painting.

With one foot in, she looked back with a smirk. "Have fun being in my shoes, Garry. Now… she's all mine."

And with two people coming in and an equal amount leaving, the painting's frame reappeared, and once more, it was a regular painting.

Ib's wishes would never come true.

"Mommy!" A blonde-haired girl, someone very familiar, whined as she tugged at Ib's mother's dress hem. "What's for dinner tonight?"

Ib was at the top of the white staircase, tilting her head to the side as she peered down at her parents' figures near the front desk of the art museum with her sister. For some reason, she couldn't remember her time that much or even coming into it... It was all really vague and blurry.

The nine-year old brunette slowly descended down the stairs as she listened in on the conversation. "Come, now, Mary," She heard her mom scold her sister while laughing. "Talking about dinner already?"

Mary made a comment before her eyes shifted over to her and Ib spotted the excited twinkle in Mary's blue eyes. "Welcome back!" Mary smiled, gently taking her hand.

"I found Ib, mommy!" Mary proclaimed as they arrived by the front desk.

"My word, Ib! Where did you get to?" Their mother said in relief, patting Ib's cheek who wanted to roll her crimson eyes in exasperation. Almost peering into her subconscious, her mother's gentle look gained a harsh side as it transformed into a glare. "Your mother wanted to go see the exhibits with you…" She grumbled irately.

"Hey, it's all right," Their father piped in optimistically. "Maybe Ib just wanted to see the exhibits by herself in peace!"

Ib nodded affirmatively, even though she herself wasn't quite too sure, and Mary copied her actions.

"Well, we should get going soon," He continued, glancing down at his black wristwatch in a concerned manner. "Mary's feeling hungry, anyway."

"And you mother's feeling a bit parched," She smiled, having already forgotten the play-argument she had with her biological daughter. "Let's see if we can find a café."

Ib perked up at the word. It wasn't unusual to visit a café since her mother loved the simple and cute drinks and snacks they offered, but for some reason she felt really excited to go to it. She felt like… like something sweet, and in the shape of something really odd—

"Say Ib… Have you heard of macaroons? They're these candies shaped like hamburgers. And just the other day, I had one at a café, and it was sooo tasty! So, uh, if we get out of here, could we go there together?" Pause. "No, wait, we WILL be going there! And we will get out! I promise!" A big grin that sent her heart fluttering. A light pat on the head that made her feel warm and safe.

"Ib, hear that?" Mary squeaked, jumping up and down in the museum despite her mother's soft protests. "A café! I can't wait to see what they have!"

Said girl snapped out of her stupor before smiling at her sister. "Yeah."

"Okay, let's go!" Their mother said and all four of them passed the front desk, bowing politely at the gray-haired man behind it and heading for the door. Feeling a twinge of uneasiness and sudden desperation, Ib casted a glance back at the staircase she had descended, remembering the portrait she had been staring at when she had snapped out of her trance in her visit. The one of the beautiful, sleeping man surrounded by blue roses…

"C'mon, Ib!" Mary ran back to pull at her wrist, whining impatiently. "Café!"

The brunette smiled and let her sister drag her off, but not without looking back once more.

As the double doors opened, she could have sworn she heard her name being called.

Ib lifted her chin and looked at Mary once more. "What?"

"What?" Her sister seemed more confused than her, so she denied it and said it was nothing.

They slipped into their father's family sized gray SUV, the only man behind the window, his wife at his side in the passenger seat, and their two children sitting side by side in the back seat. Mary was humming a painfully familiar tune, and though Ib wanted to ask where she heard that song from, something held back her tongue.

Ib faced the retreating silhouette of the art museum with her front pressed into the leather seat to peer out of the very back window of the car. Her crimson eyes seemed to stay put on the entrance expectantly, but once the building disappeared in the rolling streets behind the sunset, she sank into her seat, filled with a heavy feeling. 'Why am I feeling this way?'

Sensing Mary's gaze—she always seemed to feel her uneasiness, and, as a result, was uneasy herself—the brunette child faced her and smiled reassuringly at her. "I just thought I was missing something." Mary sighed in relief and returned the smile as well.

"The Guertena exhibition was quite something…" Their red-eyed mother commented wistfully, probably remembering the several breathtaking artifacts she saw.

"Yep," Their father chirped in. "I bet Ib and Mary learned a lot from it too, huh?"

"Yeah!" Mary said. "It was the best! Right, Ib?"

"Yeah," Ib replied in her usual gentle yet clipped tone. Tired, she leaned against the side of the leather seat when she heard a crinkle from her skirt pocket. Curiously, she reached in and pulled out a simple-looking candy wrapper. 'When did this get here?'

"Ooh, candy!" Mary suddenly chimed, her fingers greedily clenching the air as she reached for it. "Gimme!"

"No!" Ib screeched, yanking herself back and surprising both of their parents. Her father cussed as he nearly slammed the car on its brakes, and Mary was crying, saying that she really wanted the candy.

"Now, now, calm down," Their stern mother commanded and Mary's sobs softened. "Mary, that's Ib's candy; let her eat it."

"But mom—!"

"No buts!" Mary's face was ridden with worry, and although usually she would feel guilty because she always felt obliged to make her sister happy, Ib felt strangely satisfied.

The crimson-eyed child pulled both sides of the wrapper and watched as it unraveled to show a yellow sphere. She peered down at the candy piece, wondering why she felt so nostalgic before popping it into her mouth.

"Hey, Ib, why don't you look in the pocket of that coat? …That's a piece of lemon candy. Feel free to eat it anytime you want!"

Feeling deeper into her pocket, she felt something smooth and cold. She didn't pull it out in case her pouting sister would theatrically raise her voice in some form of protest. At the top there was a circle with rough edges that circulated when he finger pressed it up and down. There was a button at the bottom of circle, and feeling that, she pulled away as if she had been burned.

It was lucky she did, because if she kept playing with the thing, she probably would have literally burned herself. Or, more accurately, set herself on fire.

It was a lighter, she remembered seeing the things in convenience stores and gas stations. When she had asked her father what it was used for, apparently it was an alternative light source from flashlights. And for the oddest reason, she really doubted that claim.

"Hey, Ib," She peered at her sister who had stopped her sulking to inquire her curiously. "What do you want to play when you get home?"

She shrugged, thinking about it for a few seconds. "I don't know, anything's fine with me. Maybe house, or tic tac toe, or Cops and Robbers?"

Mary shivered. 'Weird,' Ib thought. It was really warm in the car, and it wasn't even fall yet.

The blonde-haired girl smiled. "I'm getting excited just thinking about it!"

Ib sighed. What an eccentric sister she had.

"Ib, can you promise me that from now on we will always be together?" Ib tilted her head at her sister in question, and seeing the insecurity in her sister's orbs, she smiled and held out her pinky finger.

Mary beamed as she stuck out her own and they both intertwined.

"I promise."

If Ib had stayed back with Garry for a few more moments, she would have noticed how the rose twitched and its small petals bloomed bigger, and more and more filled in the top of the stem. If she had snuggled into his form just a little bit longer, if she had caressed his warm hands for a few more minutes, if she had stayed to call out his name or talk to his unmoving form…

Groaning, eyelids fluttered as he woke from his "slumber", ruffling his white-lavender hair. His vision was a blur of indistinguishable forms before it focused. "I'm alive," He breathed out, touching his face constantly, hoping it wasn't a dream.

Finding his rose in the vase, he held it as if it were his treasure.

"Ib!" He called out, running up the stairs, only to be greeted with a messy room filled with petals and knives. "Ib!"

He must have circled around the place, his fear growing, his desperation overwhelming, and his despair kicking in when realization set in.

He was alive.

He was alive.

He was alone.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but, I know there's this rule in the Abyss where only the same amount of people who enter can also leave. Meaning, Garry and Ib came in, so only two people can leave. And the portal shut because Mary took Garry's spot. Does it matter if Garry is alive or not? I thought I saw something like "someone has to die in the end, no matter what" so I kind of assumed that a person has to die for Mary to leave. If that's the case, I'll be breaking the rules for a good fandom reason. ;P

Anyway, what do you guys think? After a day of looking at Pewdiepie play the game, and then going to watch his friend Cry play the game to the end, I fell in love with this game. And, to be honest, the "Promise of Reunion/Return" was the happiest ending, even though it doesn't end so happy in my books, and the "Forgotten Portrait" was the saddest one for Ib's part. "Ib All Alone" with Ib walking away with her fake mom and Garry calling out to her for his part. Ugh, I get shivers thinking about it. I LOVE the game's story plot! :)

I probably won't be checking in anytime soon (technically, I have other matters to attend to with my stories (I'M VERY AWARE :I), and admittedly, a very late editing as a beta reader for an author (if you're reading this right now, PM and let out all the anger you can so I can actually push myself to get to doing that! LET IT ALL OUT :()) but I probably won't even get to get to those any time soon because of my stupid Advanced Placement summer homework assignments. I finished everything except for my Current Events project. I'll hopefully be working on it all day tomorrow once I don't feel too lazy, lol. Procrastinating…

Also! I know in the summary it says "Garry x IB x MARY". I'm wondering right now if Ib's and Mary's relationship should be a possessive sister relationship or a forbidden one-sided, maybe even two-sided, relationship. While having a forbidden relationship between sisters IS sickening, technically, Mary isn't her real sister or related to her in any way, and it WOULD make the story interesting… I've never really written about lesbian relationships, though… Tell me what you guys think!

Anyway, leave a review if you loved it! And for me, it doesn't matter the amount of reviews I get as long as you say something that will help me or makes me feel as if you really support this story.

I'll be back… soon.

~CiiCiinREX.