Chapter 29

The stairway was dark from the ink and the lack of light in it. Looking down the stairs, it seemed to be a path to an endless dark hole in the ground. When that would dig deep into the center of this pitch black cold world. She slowly and carefully made her way down the slippery stairs she wouldn't let the ink take her to her death again. Whether it'd be by rebirth or by slipping and falling into the pit.

Yet, this wasn't why she was so out of it at the moment. Her feelings were bubbling and boiling under her skin, seemingly making her ink feel warmer than usual. Her hands prickled with pain and aching for when she had pushed herself to cut the rope. The rope that had held him and his Boris up. Just thinking about it made her hands and the hole where her heart should be hurt a little. It almost made her pause at the thought of what she'd have to do soon. She shook her hands and beat them against herself to focus on a different feeling, any feeling.

Alice tried to shove down the sure to be, meltdown for a while more. For she wasn't sure how long that this pool of mixed emotions had built up but, it was painful in her chest. Maybe, the pot of emotions had started to stir when she had come back the first time. Perhaps, it truly started to brew after she had begun pulling herself together as an angel. Then Henry's sudden appearance only lit a larger flame under her pot. And the rope...the rope had fallen into the pit and onto her flame to fan it more.

No matter how it had started it, it was here and ready to overflow and burst. She didn't know why it surprised her though. She had felt the pot upset even more lately. Yes, they did agree that killing Henry was an option and something that they might have to do. Yet now it just seemed unreal, like they really hadn't believed that they ever would have to kill him. They were wrong and it had left her numb...slightly.

It reminded her of the first time she had killed one. A faceless blob had attacked her and tried to rip her apart. To gather her ink and try to glue itself back together with it. She had no boards, no ax, nothing to defend herself. Only her bare barely formed "hands" to try and shove it away. Away, so she could slip between the floorboards and escape. She had no such luck though, the blank face had grabbed onto her again. When push comes to shove, she tore into it with her claws and ribbed its "face" apart.

With that kill came an unsettled feeling and she had become one of the dogs. The dogs of the new dog eat dog world. She'd find them and rip them apart to better herself. With very kill came a new piece, and with every new piece came to a step closer to completion. With every step closer to completion came a step closer to perfection. With every step closer to perfection came a little more numbness, that she'd use to kill again. With her every step now, she found herself at the bottom of the stairway.

Lights flickered and grabbed her attention. They made the dripping ink somehow seemed even colder with every step. Each drop seemed to fall drawing by drawing. The lights giving the hall and its ink the feeling and look of a flipbook quickly breezing through its pages. Brown pages stained with pitch black blood. And where else they in a puddle of this black stains would be the two she needed.

At the other end of her dark hall in the little light that shone down was them. Henry's motionless body laid on the ground where it had undoubtedly been dragged out of the death box by the wolf. The wolf who should have been bent over his body in a predatory wild stature instead leaned over him with the gaze and concern of a domesticated dog.

She slowly and quietly made her way down the hall. The groans of her steps blended in with those that came naturally from the decrypt building. She watched the perfect pet loom over its friend and gently shake him. Shake him with enough force to hopefully waken him, but not to hurt him any more than he already was.

She couldn't stop her feet from moving onwards and getting closer to them. She held her breath and she stepped out of the shadows and into the blinking light. The wolf so busy trying to help poor Henry, that she'd gone unnoticed. She slowly and monotonously crept up from behind him. She stood in the light and watch the wolf on its knees keep shaking Henry for a second more. It must have felt something was wrong then, for it stopped its action and was about to turn its head around. It was too late.

She wrapped her arms around his neck and with force pulled it back. Back towards the darkness. Its thrashing and frantic grabs against her arms shook the barely standing hall. It's lights flickered even more and it seemed like darkness was consuming everything faster than before.

No matter how hard it thrashed and pulled against her, she eventually won. By the time she reached the stairway, its body was limp. It dragged her unconscious prize up the stairs little by little. At a pace that would drive a snail made she ascended the steps. Pulling it and pushing her body to new extremes made the burning her chest grow ever more.

Finally, reaching her floor after climbing to the top of the stairs she continued on. She dragged it like a heavy sack and through the metal gates, they went. Down the halls and past its long gone brethren they walked. Over the pitch black pool of where soon the wolf's body would find itself. To the room, where everything would be wrapped up in a blood-stained bow.

Kicking open the door, she ignored the squeaks and yelled of an upset plush. She didn't even look for where it was, focusing instead on her prize. She heaved him up onto the table and rolled onto its back. Strapping it in, she sat down on the ground. Well, more like collapsed.

Every part of her body had a sickening numbness to it. Every part except her chest which burned even more. Still, she wasn't going to break now. She forced herself to her feet and looked over the straps to ensure that they were tight. She sat down again and felt her pot grow numb from the burning. Alice properly then had a meltdown.

Author's Note- PLEASE READ THIS IS IMPORTANT. Alright, guys, I have to tell you about something missing from this story. I know Alice has Henry do a chore where he has to protects his angel, and I didn't write it in. There's a good reason for that...I honestly forget to.

I have a very basic outline of this fanfic's story written to help me plan out the pace and when major events should happen. However, something happened and I skipped over the scene by accident. I was already writing the last chapter when I realized it. I could have squeezed it in, but I didn't want to give guys a two or three more chapters of just boring filler with nothing happening, because certain conversations and event were already planned out. The events that were supposed to happen during the chore were already in other chapters and upload by this point.

So, I decided that I'd just have to move on without it. Even though I REALLY wanted to put the scene back in this story. Maybe when this fanfic is wrapped up, I'll go back and edit the scene into where it should be but for now, it's not happening. Sorry.

Anyway, Thanks for reading the story (and this long Author's Note). See you guys next Saturday.