Ib Alone - Fabricated Garry

by EmbodimentOfSpirit

The Fake Garry draws Ib deeper into the Fabricated World, but is it because of Mary's final order? Or does he have his own agenda? Will he be able to keep with that agenda when the real Garry's feelings interfere?

4. Chapter 4

PLEASE READ

This chapter has a trigger warning. I don't want to spoil the chapter, so I won't say specifically what trigger, but it involves sexual assault. I'll give more thorough author notes after the chapter, but all you need to know is that something is happening in this chapter that might set certain sensitive readers off. Please read with caution.

Music I listened to for this was Reminiscence from the Trinity Blood OST. There is no music for the trigger scene that I listened to. I didn't mark where I stopped playing music, but you'll be able to tell.

Edit: ty to princessofthedeadsheep for the suggestion on how to refine my trigger warning.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Ib sat with Cassie and Seo, happily munching on some sandwiches as they relaxed under a tree and discussed various aspects of the Fabricated World. It had been a few days since she had made the choice to work on being proper queen of the place and her days were often spent with them, training her powers and learning the various ins and outs of her new domain.

One such project was the room around them. It was incredibly rough at the moment. She had been complaining about how dark and cramped so many parts of the world were and asked the twins how Mary had made the world that seemed to be drawn from crayon. It gave her a tightening in her stomach to even think of that area, but it was obvious that the place could be altered because of it.

The result was that her first lesson for mastery over her powers was her mastery over the world. It was a very broad topic, one that was probably too early to be teaching her, but they saw how tense she'd been lately. Maybe a space of her own would help calm her.

And it did. She hadn't been able to create much for the space yet. Other than a door in and out of the place, it looked like an endless field of grass under a bright, blue sky. In the center of the room was a giant tree. It was rather plain, without fruit or flowers, but it stretched out over them and created a nice umbrella that shielded them from the false sun in the room. They told her that as she gained more power and precision over her power, she could create something more detailed here and make the room truly her own.

"And so," Cassie continued, "While the color of the mannequin dresses were initially a sheer coincidence, it seems like the dresses almost change color now based on their allegiance- Ib, are you listening to me?"

Ib had been locking an unfocused gaze on the far horizon of the room, munching slowly on her sandwich. At her name, she jumped and looked to Cassie sheepishly, "Sorry, this is just a lot. I feels like you don't stop talking." She stuck her tongue out playfully to a slightly indignant Cassie.

Seo chuckled, leaning back against the tree trunk beside Ib and grinning, "You know how she gets. Once she picks a subject..."

Cassie stuck her little stitched tongue out at Seo, "Well excuse me for wanting to make sure she knows about her own kingdom."

"These sandwiches are so good~ Even if we don't really need food here, fruit sandwiches are the best!" Ib broke up the little back-and-forth the twins were starting, grinning as she swallowed down another bite. At the sheepish look on Cassie's face as she looked aside, something dawned on Ib and she scowled, "Let me guess..."

Seo scratched the back of his head, "Yeah, that sounds about right."

Ib looked at the sandwich with longing before putting the rest of it back in the basket and leaning against the tree in irritation. Ever since that encounter a few days ago, the fake Garry had been acting weird with her. Cassie said he was trying to earn her favor, but what for, she couldn't fathom. His intentions as a whole were a mystery to her. All she knew is that she wanted nothing to do with this stranger that wore the face of her friend.

That hadn't stopped him from trying to pamper her. He made a library in the world for her to study in, one that reminded her more of the kind you'd see at a school rather than the darkened rooms that dominated the world around them. He tried coming in on her lessons to give input, though he would eventually leave when he realized she was just too awkward around him to continue properly. He'd offer more illusions of movie nights, even offering to stay out of it and let it just be her and the twins. But she just couldn't bring herself to respond to these gestures. Whatever kindness he might have been displaying toward her, the fact is that he looked a lot like her Garry and not only did that confuse her greatly, but gave her the feeling that he might have done something truly horrible to the real Garry to look like him in the end.

Garry had been getting more and more surly with each attempt to please her, eventually giving up by the third day. Or, what she assumed was the third day. Honestly, time moved slowly there and there was no real sun to keep time by. So "days" were an estimate to her, based on when she slept and woke up.

That day and the day before, Garry seemed to have simply resorted to making food for her to give to the twins, who would in turn give them to her. It seemed these sandwiches were a gift from him as well.

Ib let out a sigh of frustration and looked up at the sky through the thick canopy over her head, "Can you guys just tell him to stop?"

The twins shared a glance before Seo chuckled nervously, "Umm... Pretty much no one here can really tell him to stop anything. When he wants something, he is pretty aggressive about taking it, even if he has to hurt people who try to get in his way."

The young girl snorted and closed her eyes, "He sounds like a real treat..." She just felt further convinced that she wanted nothing to do with him. He sounded like a downright bully. It unnerved her that someone like that was waltzing around, looking like her Garry. The frustration gave way to sadness and she had to forcefully shake off the feeling. Now wasn't the time to feel bad for herself or Garry, she supposed. Maybe when she was alone. She didn't want to worry the twins.

She peeked down at them, her lips twisting in displeasure as they looked at her with concern. Okay, she didn't want to worry them more.

She gave them a smile and waved it off, "I'm fine, sorry. So what's this about the mannequins?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Garry lay on his back on his bed, staring up at the ceiling with a grim expression. He found some weird part of him missed Ib's created room, as well as the illusionary apartment then had shared, and made himself the room from his illusions in physical form. At the very least, it was better than skulking around the Fabricated World and resting in random corners of it when he felt the need. He took a light drag of the cigarette in his right hand, using the vivid memories he'd gained from the real Garry to trick his body into feeling what the effect would have been. Sometimes it was nice to drown himself in his own illusions. Especially if it helped lower his ire, which had been steadily building as of late.

He wasn't sure what to do now with Ib starting to get enthusiastic about her role. In a strange way, it was satisfying to watch his Ib come into her own like this. But, that feeling was buried beneath resentment as he saw his reign over the world drifting further and further out of his reach. He had hoped that maybe he could win her over with kind gestures and still assert some control over her, but she seemed to not go for it. Every kind action was met with suspicion and resentment. In a way, he couldn't blame her, but it was still intensely frustrating for her to not fall for it.

His eyebrow quirked as his door was slowly pushed open and, for one brief moment, he entertained the idea of the intruder being Ib, finally deciding to give him a shot.

Instead, as he expected, it was the twins. He didn't bother even sitting up, continuing to lie there. His eyes drifted back to the ceiling as he slowly exhaled a long wisp of smoke from between his lips. After a moment, his mouth twisted into a scowl, "Do you not know how to knock?"

The twins looked at each other with mild worry, but there was a slight hardness to their expressions that put him on edge. They obviously had a bone to pick with him and even the threat of him killing them for their insolence didn't seem to stop them from addressing it with him. Interesting...

He sat up and released the cigarette, which faded out of existence before it even hit his bed. No doubt this visit had to do with Ib. The twins were highly protective of her, something he wasn't sure about as far as whether that was good or bad. He muttered darkly at their lack of response, "Well, what is it?"

The twins shared another glance before Cassie took a step forward, taking a breath before speaking tensely, "Milord, what are your intentions toward our queen?"

Garry wasn't so much surprised by their question as much as he was at the fact that they had been brave enough to ask it. He gave them an even look, "I am quite sure that my intentions toward Ib are none of your concern. Now, if that was all..."

Cassie bristled with outrage, but it was Seo's voice that cut through, putting out an arm before his sister to cut her off, "Actually, it is milord. Ib is wondering the same thing and her worry about your intentions has her entirely on edge. It's bad enough that it hurts her study time, but it bothers her every moment between and we can see that. If she had but even a little bit of insight as to your intentions, it might put her at ease."

Cassie looked at her brother with mild frustration and worry, while Garry looked at both of them passively. The male twin was always a bit more shy and soft spoken, but Garry had been witness more than once to how he got when he felt strongly about something. Not even his sister could hold back his opinion. It was admirable, if not quite aggravating in this situation.

Garry pinched the bridge of his nose as he thought. So Ib was thinking about him. Even if it was with unease and distrust, he couldn't help the bit of pride that surged at the fact that he was occupying her mind. Put her at ease, huh...?

He stood up out of his bed, hands in his pockets as he looked down at them, "Tell her I want to have dinner with her tonight."

That took the twins off guard a bit, though Cassie spoke once recovered, "With how things have been recently, I'm not sure she'll go with that request."

Garry raised an eyebrow. The fact that she decided to think of it as a request was almost cute. Though he supposed if he wanted things to go his way, he would have to play this a bit differently. He sighed and focused his gaze on the female twin, "I know she listens to you. Convince her. I'll talk to her tonight and clear things up with her."

Cassie and Seo shared a confused look, not sure how to take this. It was possible that, while unwilling to share his intentions with them, maybe he'd be willing to do so with Ib. But, then again, they knew he was manipulative at the best of times and downright deceptive any other. Still, it would probably do them both some good to get things out in the open. After a moment, it was Seo that nodded, "Alright, we'll talk to her. We can't promise anything though."

Garry felt a bit of annoyance at the response, not wanting to tolerate excuses, but simply gave them a curt nod and watched them leave his room. He closed the door behind them firmly and stalked back over to his bed, sitting on the edge of it and looking down at his hands. Hands that were his and yet not his. And now Ib knew the difference.

And things were just so much more complicated because of it.

He wouldn't let it get in the way, though. The Fabricated World was his. Ib was his. He would have everything he wanted, because after so many years in this place, being under that damn girl, this is what he deserved. His hands clenched into fists as he thought. He was used to taking everything by force, but he would play this game for now. He would try the talking approach. Try to win her trust. It would be so much better for her to be his of her own accord. For the world to be given to him willingly.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"No way."

Cassie winced at the sharp words. She shared a look with Seo that spoke volumes. They knew this would be her response, but they still had to try to persuade her.

Seo spoke gently, "Ib, it's just dinner..."

Ib stood in the middle of her room, arms crossed as she looked at the slightly guilty twins sitting at the edge of her bed, "And I said no. I'm not going to have dinner with that... that..." She bit her lip and turned away from them.

To be honest, she didn't know what to call him anymore. She couldn't bring herself to use Garry's name anymore, because he wasn't Garry. But it was rude to call him fake, at least to his face. She knew no other name for him, either. So in her mind, he'd just become 'him'.

Cassie sighed, "Look, he said he wants to talk. Didn't you say that not knowing his intentions was bothering you?"

Ib turned to face them again and ran her fingers roughly through her hair in exasperation, "I... I did, but..." She slowly moved to sit next to them, worry etched on her face. They were reminded that while she was physically twelve now, and to an extent mentally, she was just a young girl that was forced to grow up too fast. She tried to be tough about it, but they could see that she was having a hard time holding it together.

She jolted a bit when she felt two sets of arms on either side of her, hugging her tightly in reassurance. She gave them a shaky smile and murmured quietly, "Thanks, you guys."

They each sat on her lap, one on each leg, and looked up at her with concern. Cassie was still unhappy with how things had progressed, but considering everyone was stuck here with each other now, she hoped that maybe fences could be mended, "Ib, I think you should go. Just give him a chance to explain himself. Nothing says you have to believe him or even let it sway you, but I think you should at least give him a chance to say it."

Ib gave a sigh and closed her eyes, giving it some real thought. Cassie was right, she supposed. He wasn't going to vanish just because she avoided him. They were all stuck together. She didn't think she could live like this forever, always being tense and questioning. Always being in the dark about it all. She wanted answers, even if she didn't like them.

She opened her eyes and they flickered to the single red rose on her dresser, sitting in its vase. For a brief moment her eyes unfocused, imagining the fuller blue rose of her counterpart. She missed Garry so much. The real Garry. She resented that this other Garry likely did something to the real Garry for this, but she supposed she wouldn't know for sure, know the truth, unless she asked.

She looked down at the twins and gave a hesitant nod, "Alright, I'll go to dinner tonight."

The twins smiled happily at the response, their shoulders drooping as the tension eased out of them slightly. Maybe things would be okay after all.

Then Cassie got a wicked grin on her face that made Ib's unease skyrocket, "Um.. Cassie...?"

She rubbed her hands together gleefully and jumped off Ib's lap, "Let's get you ready!"

Uh oh.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Garry sat on a blanket in Ib's meadow room, under the giant tree. His eyes were looking around in an appraising manner. She'd done rather well on this room so far. He had a rather expert eye for this sort of molding of the world, so he could see the fine creases and distortions here and there that the average eye might not catch, but overall he could tell she was grasping what was normally a rather difficult bit of magic to control. He didn't want to fix it for her, figuring this was a work in progress and he should see what she could do herself. However, he did change the time of day to night. A wave of his hand sent small balls of light out around the area, the tiny things hovering almost like fireflies, lighting up the area around the tree. It wouldn't quite feel like dinner if it looked like noon, after all.

Since his talk with the twins, he'd been thinking about what sort of setting he should do for dinner. He thought of making an illusion of Garry's apartment again, but even he realized that was asking too much of Ib and scrapped the idea immediately. Another idea had been making a room look like one of the restaurants in the real world, but in the long run, he decided that an illusion was a bad idea. His deceptions had been the very thing that set her off and he had a feeling that no matter the context, more illusions were probably a horrible idea if he was trying to get back on her good side. After a short talk with Seo again, who was kicked out while Cassie got Ib ready, he decided Ib's meadow room would be best. It was a space she created, so it was obviously comfortable for her. And unlike his illusions, this room was as real as anything got in this world.

So he'd retreated to her room with a large blanket to sit on and a picnic basket full of food. "Dinner" in this world was a rather loose concept. The food was tangible and certainly edible, but was really only a step up from a full-on illusion. No one in this world needed to actually eat to sustain themselves. Since Ib was part of their world now, this counted for her as well. But she seemed to miss flavor when she didn't eat, so she continued to eat snacks here and there for that small sensation of flavor.

His eyes moved to the door as Ib came in, her face anxious as she looked around. As she shut the door behind her, it vanished for the time being, which left the room with the illusion of being just an endless meadow around them. Her eyes wandered around, a small frown on her face, until he realized the source of her expression and spoke up, "I just thought this was more appropriate for dinner. It's only temporary."

Her eyes darted to him and he had to fight to not make a negative expression in response to her reaction.

She looked at him with some odd expression, almost looking hopeful before her expression fell into one of hurt and sadness. He knew without her saying. They had very little interaction since she found out his secret. Especially the last two days. Hearing his voice had unconsciously made her respond hopefully, because she didn't hear 'him', she heard 'Garry'. But then she remembered it wasn't him and her heart ached. He had to fight extra hard not to let his bitterness show.

Instead he tried to give her a comforting smile and patted the blanket in front of him, "Come on, let's eat."

Ib looked reluctant, but after a moment she slowly walked over to where he was sitting, stepping into the lights. She heard him suck in a sharp breath and paused a moment before sitting down across from him, the basket between them.

He didn't know whether to be happy with the twins or utterly frustrated. Making her this cute did not help his self-control. They put her in a light blue dress that fell to her knees, though the exact tone was hard to make out in the dark, even with the lights there. A darker blue jacket was worn over it, the bottom barely reaching the bottom of her ribcage and open in the front. Her hair was also pulled up for once, some sort of clip he couldn't see holding it up in a bun at the back of her head. Only a few strands managed to escape it, framing her face. It gave her a cute and yet strangely mature look.

Meanwhile, she noticed that he'd changed his appearance as well. Rather than the usual outfit he'd been wearing, which was the exact outfit Garry had been wearing during their entire adventure through the Fabricated World, he was wearing a v-neck shirt with long sleeves. She couldn't tell the color in the dark, but she assumed it was gray from what she could tell. He was still wearing his jeans like normal, though. Perhaps he was trying to differentiate himself from Garry? She wasn't sure if she appreciated it or not. She looked up at him to see him look to her feet and blushed, "I... I don't normally wear shoes in here. Habit."

It was such a surprise to hear her talk after so long that he almost forgot to respond, giving a chuckle, "I don't mind it."

They sat in an awkward silence for a moment before Garry broke the silence with a smile, starting to pull out various foods and spread them out on the blanket between them, "Umm, we should probably eat, right?"

She almost flinched at his attempts to talk like Garry. She wasn't sure of his real self, but it was painful to hear. She grabbed the closest thing to her, which looked like some sort of burger, munching it quietly.

Garry noticed her subdued reaction and frowned a bit. He grabbed a macaron and took a bite, unable to help his attraction to these little treats. He tried to give her another smile, "Is it good, Ib? You should try these, too. They're-"

"You don't have to do that."

He was brought up short as he heard her mutter the words, her eyes looking down at the blanket. She looked almost sad until he caught the dark look in her eyes. Those crimson orbs darted up to him when she realized he probably didn't know what she meant, her voice even, "You don't have to talk like him."

For a moment, he felt like his brain had stalled out. He certainly hadn't expected her to say something like that. To be honest, he hadn't even really been trying that hard to talk like Garry. In this form, such a thing was very easy to do and he was in the habit of doing so for her so often that he just did it without thinking.

He raked a hand through his hair, weighing his options. He wasn't sure that he could be as courteous to her if he talked like normal. However, it was obviously bothering her that he was talking like Garry. He could try to fake that he was unable to talk any other way so he could continue talking to her in that gentle way and not risk scaring her, but at the same time, all it would take is one instance of him not talking like that in front of her for her to realize he was lying. While he had no problems lying to her, he did have a problem with being caught doing so.

He sighed, his voice dropping a bit. Not quite an octave, but still a bit deeper than Garry's normal voice, "Alright, I'll try to stop. But just so you know, it's not like I was trying. It just happens." His eyes locked on hers and she could swear they took a red hue for a moment before fading back to violet.

She was somewhat relieved to hear him instead of Garry, but she was uneasy in general with him. She took another bite of her burger, chewing as she tried to think of a way to ask her question without sounding too accusing. It didn't work as well as she liked because the words came out a bit harder than she meant to, "Why did you make yourself look like Garry? And how?"

He narrowed his eyes at the question. Despite his talk with the twins earlier about sharing his intentions with Ib and being honest with her, the fact is that he had no such plans. After all, he was quite sure that speaking his plans aloud would result in them never coming to pass. And he couldn't have that. He could lie to her, but after how his last lies blew up in his face, he was quite wary about making more. He watched her face, watched as those piercing eyes watched and waited for his answer, then spoke curtly, "You don't want to know the answer to that."

She felt herself bristle at the answer. She didn't know him and only vaguely knew what he was capable of, but she couldn't help but lash out, "If I didn't, I wouldn't have asked!"

He could read between the lines of her reaction. He knew she wasn't so stupid as to antagonize anyone, especially someone of his power, without a reason. And her reason was Garry. In the short time the two had been together, she had gotten almost as protective of him as he had of her. He couldn't help the envy that bubbled up in his chest at the fact that, even with him gone, she was still so protective that she was willing to lash out at him about this.

He pursed his lips together before speaking evenly and slowly, the battle to not lash back out at the small girl evident in his voice, "You would most likely not like the answer. Trust me when I say that you are better off not knowing of his fate. The previous queen killed him. That's all you need to know."

She shook at him mentioning the words 'killed him', looking torn between angry and sad. He could see her eyes watering with unshed tears, her voice breaking a bit, "Mary isn't the one parading around looking like him!" She could see he wasn't going to make an effort to tell her anything, despite the twins' insistence that he'd invited her to dinner so they could discuss things. She forced herself not to yell at him some more, speaking from behind clenched teeth, "This was a mistake."

Garry was seething by this point. He knew it was unfair that he was keeping things from her, but they needed to be kept. His ambitions aside, it would only hurt her to know that Garry wasn't even able to rest in peace. That his soul was absorbed inside him. His voice came out between clenched teeth as well, trying hard to push down his building temper, "I'm just trying to protect you."

Those words were the last straw for her and she couldn't help but explode, "Protect me!? From who? I was going to go home! I was going to leave with Garry and we were going to be fine! But you ruined everything!"

"You are so naive," he bit out, "He was dead, Ib. You weren't going anywhere with him!"

She shook her head, tears running down her face angrily, "He.. he wasn't dead! He couldn't be dead!"

"Trust me, he was. Is. He is gone, Ib. The only thing I could take from that corpse was his memories and face."

"Stop it! Just stop! I don't want to hear it!"

She tried to cover her ears, but he grabbed her wrists tightly and pulled her hands forcefully from her head, "Hear me, Ib! You asked for the truth and there it is! That's how it happened!"

"No!"

He struggled to bring his voice back down, "The only thing you have left of him is me."

She eyes moved to his and he had to fight not to squeeze down on her wrists and break them from anger at her expression. He could see the rejection as clear as day, as if she were screaming that he wasn't good enough. That if he was the only thing left of Garry, she wanted none of it.

He swallowed down the lump in his throat, his voice barely above a harsh whisper, "Is there no way for us to reconcile?"

She looked back up at him, unable to help the vicious resentment in her chest. Because of this... this monster! Because of him, her Garry was gone and she would never get him back. She gave a whisper back, just as harsh as his, "No."

That set him off. Both of her wrists were suddenly in one of his as his free hand flew out to sweep the food out of his way as he descended on her. He pulled her hands above her head and used the weight of his body to pin her back to the ground, his eyes wild, "I've tried, you know Ib?" His voice was harsh and breathy, nearly hyperventilating with his anger, "I've tried doing nice things for you, giving you things. I've done nothing but try to give you everything here! But it's not enough, is it!? Well I've had it. I've had it trying to be nice and get you to come to me willingly. If you won't be mine by your own will, I'll just take you the hard way!"

His actions put her into shock more than anything, though as his words started to sink in, she felt a cold jolt of fear shoot up her body.

Pretty much no one here can really tell him to stop anything. When he wants something, he is pretty aggressive about taking it, even if he has to hurt people who try to get in his way.

Seo's words echoed in her head and she started to squirm in his grasp in fear only to freeze up when she felt his lips descend onto hers. She cried out in fright, but it only resulted in giving him access to her mouth, his tongue invading forcefully. He could almost see the wheels turning in her head and a second before her teeth could close down on his tongue, his free hand shot up to grab her jaw, pinching close to the hinges so she couldn't close her mouth.

His body settled between her legs, forcing her dress up high onto her thighs and leaving her legs mostly exposed to the air. She tried to struggle again beneath him, but between his weight pressing her down and his grip on her wrists and jaw, she couldn't get herself free, left helpless against him as he took his time ravishing her mouth. After a time he pulled from the kiss, leaving her gasping for air as he let go of her jaw and instead brought his kisses down against the side of her neck.

"S.. Stop..." She managed to somehow get the word from her lips, but it fell on deaf ears as he continued to leave little bites and kisses along her neck. The hand not holding her wrists was now tearing the jacket from her shoulders and carelessly tossing it aside. The topple backward had knocked the pin from her hair, which now flared out around her head beneath her. He took a handful of it and tugged her head back, causing her to cry out but exposing more of her neck to him. The hand in her hair moved down the back of her neck and to the back of her dress, feeling the zipper that kept it together.

Panic took over her as she felt him running the zipper down, trying to pull her legs back enough to kick at him. Anything to try to get him off her. His response was to lean his body in closer to hers so that her legs had nowhere to go and find purchase against his torso. Seeing that she wasn't going to stop struggling long enough for him to fully unzip her dress and pull it off, he settled for pushing her skirt up more so it settled around her waist, exposing her lower body to him. She couldn't articulate anything past a scream of fear and tried to pull her hands from his grip to cover herself.

He wasn't having any of that though. Keeping his grip tight on her wrists, he pressed his hand to the ground and two vines sprung up, wrapping around her ankles and a bit up her calves to keep her legs from moving around. "That's better..." she heard him murmur, though his hair was so much over his face that she couldn't make out his expression other than an inhumanly-wide grin on his face, one that made the terror that much worse in her.

He wasn't sure where the feeling was coming from, but he had a strange feeling in his stomach as he began to touch her at his leisure. He used another set of vines to keep her hands above her head, free up both his hands to run along her sides and the insides of her legs. Why did he feel so unsettled?

Don't do it...

He ignored her thrashing and yelling, one of his fingers tracing up in the inside of her thigh only to rub her through her panties. Her body locked up under him and he couldn't help but smirk at her response. So despite her protests, she still felt pleasure from it, huh? All the better.

She felt her face blush in shame and shook her head side to side as his finger slowly rubbed up and down along her panties. It made her feel very strange and not in a way she was liking. Rather, in a weird way it almost felt good, which was something she didn't want to associate with this experience in the least.

She felt relief when his hand moved away from between her legs, only to cry out in horror and embarrassment when his fingers hooked over the inside of her panties and pulled sharply, hearing rather than seeing him rip her panties from her, exposing her rather intimately to his gaze. She tried hard to close her legs, but the vines around them wouldn't let her. Tears ran down her face and she found herself wishing again that he didn't look like Garry. It just made the situation that much worse. The face of her beloved Garry, smirking in a way that didn't match his face, doing things to her that her Garry would never do.

He dropped his gaze from her tear-stricken face, for some reason having a hard time looking at it. He pushed the thought aside, his fingers brushing along her slit unhindered now, ignoring her protests as he ran one of his fingers inside her.

Don't touch her like this...

He didn't push too deep, for fear of breaking that barrier of innocence within her. No, when he did that, he had much bigger plans for it. Instead he moved his finger in and out of her just enough for her to feel it but nothing more. Her small body arched under his in pleasure that she didn't want but he forced upon her anyway. A darted glance to her face showed him the war going on within her, between her physical reaction and her emotional one. He grinned at that, but it couldn't quite reach his eyes.

Her body, at least, responded well to the treatment. Once he felt she was wet enough for what he was planning, he pulled his hand away. He considered using another finger and trying to stretch her out a bit so this would hurt less, but he was getting impatient, his erection almost painful by this point.

Ib didn't want to even let herself hope that he was done, afraid of what could possibly come next. She tried to see through the haze of her tears, watching as he gave a sharp sigh of relief when he unzipped and unbuttoned his jeans, freeing his erection from the tight confines of his pants. Her mind reeled and she remembered the discussion she had with the twins about sex. Terror seized her even harder and she tried desperately to thrash out of the vines. She tried to figure out how to use her powers in this sort of situation, but not only had the twins not taught her anything combat related or useful to this situation, but it felt like any time her power surged, it was absorbed into the vines holding her.

Indeed, Garry had seen how panic caused her to unconsciously let out her power before against the mannequins. Not wanting to take that chance, he made sure her power would be kept under control this time.

He stroked along his shaft a few times and settled himself between her legs, lifting her hips a bit so he could line himself up better, nearly shaking with anticipation to be inside her. He ignored her pleas for him to stop, but couldn't seem to get his body to move.

No! Don't do this to her!

He clenched his teeth, practically throbbing in his hand as his cock ached to be inside her. So what the hell was stopping him?

Look at what you're doing to her! Look at her, damn you!

And he did look. Right up at the face that was full of fear and despair at his actions, as well as embarrassment at the reactions of her own body. He felt bile rise up in his throat.

Don't you dare do it, you bastard!

He tensed before pulling himself back from her, unable to find words to say. What did you say to the girl you nearly raped? What could he say? He did the only thing he could think to do and pulled up his pants and then left, the vines fading around her. The night faded back into day, leaving Ib to curl up on the blanket and cry beneath the canopy of the tree above her.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Garry sprinted through the halls of the Fabricated World, having no real clear direction. He just needed to get away. Away from the feelings that lanced through him, nearly taking actual words as they haunted him. What was wrong with him?! He was possessive of the girl, sure. She was his, after all. But feelings? No, he certainly didn't love her, if that's what that meant.

And yet, the sight of her had been too much to bear. He had been unable to take her, right as he was about to. Everything he'd worked toward nearly in his grasp and he fucking blew it!

He eventually came to a stop and rested his back against a wall, sliding down it until he was sitting on the floor, panting heavily. He looked down at his hands, his body. No, Garry's body. Mary had been so sure Garry was dead, but some part of him seemed to live here. Now. Inside of him. And that part was slowly warping him. Twisting his feelings. And he didn't like it one fucking bit.

"Shit..." he bit out, "What am I supposed to do now?

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Okay, now for the mile-long author note. Firstly, I apologize if the near-rape freaked anyone out. To be fair, I did give a trigger warning. Part of why this chapter took so long to get out was me wrestling with whether this scene was really necessary or not. It was also that writing this for you guys was really, really difficult. Even if I accelerated her aging a bit for plot convenience, the fact is that this was very dicey territory. We're talking a 12 yo girl nearly getting raped by a 20-22ish-looking guy (by my story's canon, anyway. we don't know Garry's age).

I feel this shouldn't have to be said, but I want to say it anyway and get this out there. I do NOT condone rape in any form. That scene was not meant to feel sexy or any other feeling that might be remotely positive. It was meant to make you feel uneasy. Because it was an uneasy and horrible situation that honestly I needed to happen for the sake of plot. I did a lot of thinking on whether it was necessary, and came to the conclusion that it was, as sick as it made me feel to type for you guys.

I also apologize if the quality of the chapter suffers due to me pretty much forcing myself to type something I wasn't entirely comfortable with. I tried my best with it. I'm sorry I wasn't specific with my trigger warning, but I felt a warning for that would have given it away. Especially because the trigger would likely point to attempted rape, which gives a spoiler to the fact that Fake Garry chickens out before he can go through with it.

Anyway, I hope this chapter was otherwise enjoyable and I'm sorry again for how long it took to get out. This was a very hard chapter for me. I will hopefully have the next chapter out a lot sooner.