Mary's grip on the knife loosened slightly as the trio made their way up the brown stairs. Maybe he doesn't remember. But how can I get…
"Hm? Mary, you dropped something" Garry turned toward the fallen object. His purple hair keeping him from seeing its details until it was in his hands. The small, blonde girl turned around, startled.
"Huh?" What had she dropped? The palette knife was still secure in her hand so…
Smooth and shiny, the yellow flower was clearly made of plastic. Garry reached for it, "this rose…"
"DON'T TOUCH THAT," Ib stood, wide eyed as Mary growled ran toward Garry, white knuckles around the knife's handle. Garry turned toward the angry girl.
The palette knife glinted beside the blonde. "Mary?! What's that you're holding?!"
"Give it BACK!" She was a mere few steps from Garry and closing in fast. Mary raised her left hand.
"Wh…Hold on!" Garry took a shaky step back, but he was ignored. "M-Mar…!"
Mary lunged, bringing the knife down towards Garry's chest. He caught her arm just in time, "Don't touch it! MY rose!"
"Wa-wait, keep that away!" Her left arm shook against Garry's. The blade looked menacingly sharp up close. He shoved her back. Ib flinched as she saw the blonde's head hit the ground with a thump hard enough to feel in her feet. Garry's hand found itself a spot on his chest, where a heart was furiously beating underneath. He took a few breaths and crouched down towards his fallen attacker. "Mary…It's as I thought."
He only now noticed the red-eyed girl's troubled face. Was it just him or was there a hint of anger in her crimson orbs? "Ib, listen."
She hesitantly turned her gaze from Mary to the purple haired man. His torn coat seemed slightly more menacing than before. He sighed and stood, placing one of his large hands on the back of his head. Was he always so tall?
"I remember now," Garry tugged on his messy hair, "I saw a portrait of Mary in a collection of Guertena's works." Wait. Wasn't there a painting of Ib in the room with buttons?
"You might not believe me, but…" Garry looked away from the frowning nine year old, "Mary isn't human."
Ib opened her mouth, but shut it after a moment. She huffed. Garry looked her in the eye now.
"She's just like those painting women that came after us…I think she's another of Guertena's works."
Ib's fingers dug into her red skirt. She glanced at the floor where Mary lay, not moving in the slightest. Did her head hurt?
"I didn't spend enough time with her to really notice, but…it's dangerous to stay with her" Garry bit his lip, he knew Ib wouldn't like the next thing he had to say. Would she try to wake Mary? No, no. Ib is more rational than that. Right? "It's unfortunate, but we. We'll have to leave her."
Garry made his way forward, ignoring Ib's gasp. As he reached the door his hand paused over its handle. Ib now stood over the yellow flower on the floor. "That rose. It looks real, but it's a fake."
Ib shook her head. She looked at Mary, after a minute not even the movement of breathing could be seen. Ib's eyes widened. She briskly walked to Garry, sticking very close. Despite her fear, she ignored his open hand. The two walked into the next room. Garry cringed at the eerie amount of mannequin heads, but didn't comment. He led the way down the narrow hall, blocked by a mannequin covered in stab wounds and red liquid. Readily, they went back into the brown room. They explored all the doors, except for the one formerly blocked by red gas. When Garry had suggested they check that door, Ib frantically tugged his hand away from it. She agreed to go that way after they reached nothing but dead ends. Ib had a death-grip on Garry's hand until she was sure the gas wasn't going to come out from the holes in the ground again. They proceeded to the next room.
"Looks like these stairs go down. Alright, Ib, step back. Oogh," Garry moved the headless statue clad in red. "Whew. Just how many statues have I pushed today? Oh, well. Let's go!"
Down the stairs they went. At some point, they turned from brown to pink. If Ib and Garry had arrived sooner, the duo would have realized that the room was entirely drawn in crayon. They could have seen the scribbly lines that completely surrounded them.
"Well now…this is a significant change in atmosphere," Garry wondered aloud. Ib frowned, worried that Garry might have noticed what was off. He smiled at her, "But nothing we can't handle. Let's go, Ib."
They walked around for a while. Ib gasped and looked up at something, fear apparent on her face. Hanging from its ankle was a doll her size. The only visual difference between the doll and Ib was the slightly darker tint in the doll's shirt. Garry followed her frightened gaze. As if nothing were there, he kept searching. "Ib, what is it? Did you find something?"
Ib scurried ahead, still gripping Garry's hand. He nearly toppled over, but managed to regain his posture when they stopped in front of a pink building. "The Pink key is always kept in the toy box.
"The toy box? I guess there's a key there. Let's find it Ib!" Was this key their ticket out? Garry pinned his hopes on it. They started off again, and went into a small white house with a blue window. Some sort of red fruit piled in a bowl sat on a coffee table. Something told Ib to grab the blue bucket, and she obliged. Generally, following along with the feeling got her out of bad situations. The door suddenly slammed open. Ib and Gary froze.
"Ib…Garry…Where are you?" Mary called out, frowning. She still held the knife tightly in her hand. Garry pulled Ib further back into the closet, holding his breaths. Mary stomped her foot on the ground and rushed off somewhere. Minutes ticked by, but Garry wouldn't doubt it if someone told him hours had passed.
"Don't tell me…that was…" Garry let go of Ib's hand. She nodded once he looked at her. "She's after us."
"Let's go," Ib tried to ignore that last part. The made a right and tried the door on the pink building again. It was still locked so they went down the hall in front of it. At the end of the hall was a yellow flower to the right and two blue tulips to the left. Garry decided that going in the building would be a good idea until they found that door locked, too. They walked past the flowers and into a building with a red roof. Inside was a broken clock, someone's portrait, and a bookcase filled with only storybooks, but nothing useful. They moved on from the room.
They passed a blue flower bud. Garry stopped next to it, "Why hasn't this one bloomed?"
Ib was about to respond, but something told her to move forward. She let go of her friend's hand and rushed down the hallway to the left. She didn't stop until she reached a pond.
"Ib make sure you don't fall in while you're spacing out," Garry warned. His arms were held up slightly as he watched Ib fill the blue bucket with water, ready to catch Ib in case she fell. He followed his small companion closely as she walked back from where they came. Her eyes were fixed toward the end of the hall, hardly blinking. The nine year old finally let out a breath she didn't realize she had been holding after she poured the water onto the bud. She grabbed the key labelled 'gallery' from the newly bloomed tulip. A foreign sense of relief washed over her. "Let's try this key out."
They walked to the big building again and successfully opened the door. The pair paused for a minute looking at the mural of them. It seemed to be made by a child with a giant crayon. Garry would have laughed if not for the situation he was in. Really, Mary would draw him as the only one frowning. Off to the side was a grey chest.
"Pandora's box, huh?" Garry pursed his lips. Without a thought, Ib pulled open the chest. Strange, colorful objects flew out of Pandora's Box. They spun for a moment before flying off through the walls to unknown places. Garry's eyebrows shot straight up. "I wonder what all that was."
Garry stepped over the box, searching for a key, "Ah? There's something left in the box."
Ib reached in the box and pulled out a little mirror. What could this be for? An small voice in her head answered. A key for a key.
"A mirror…Let's just hope it's hope." Garry smiled, though it didn't reach his eyes. "Let's keep moving, shall we?"
They walked out past the drawing of a smiling, blue rag-doll holding a yellow flower. An orange light could be seen further down the hall. Garry picked up his pace, practically dragging his young ward behind him, the possibility of freedom so close. His hopes were crushed when he and Ib reached it.
"Ah, it's warm…" Garry smiled at Ib. He looked at the scribble on wall and closed his eyes before he lost it and punched the wall. "But this is a fake sun, isn't it?"
"Yeah," Ib sighed. It was so peaceful here. She sat down on the pink path under the light, all thoughts of monsters far from her mind.
"I hope we get to see the real sky again soon," Looking for a distraction, Garry asked, "Ib, you came to the exhibit with your mom and dad, yes?"
She nodded, deliberately not looking at the sun drawing as she did so, "Did you come with anyone Garry?"
"Hm? I came alone," He was shocked the quiet girl had continued the conversation after answering his question without words, the fake smile on his face disappeared. Wait, that came out wrong, "Not to imply that I don't have any friends, of course."
"Alone?" She looked away, hoping she hadn't offended him with her question.
"Art galleries aren't really places for groups of adults to go…" The girl looked back at him, eyebrows scrunched. Garry smiled, this time a glint of amusement in his eyes sparkled before he closed them. "I thought it would be nicer to see the exhibit alone, take it at my own pace."
Ib mused on his answer for a minute. Couldn't he still do that with his friends? Do-
"Why, I feel like could fall asleep right here," Leaned against the wall it seemed so easy. Garry's shoulders started to slump and his head plopped over. He barely caught himself as he fell over. "Th-that was dangerous. Ib, let's get going."
Just as tired, Ib pouted as she picked herself off the ground. Something stirred deep in the back of her mind.
"Say, Ib…Have you heard of macaroons?"
She rubbed her eyes and yawned, "No."
"They're these pastries shaped like hamburgers." Garry smiled.
Ib crinkled her eyebrows, "Ham…burger pastry?"
"And just the other day, I had one at the café, and it was sooo tasty." His smile grew. "It was really, really good! Even the cream wasn't too sweet!"
Ib giggled. Mother never got so excited over dessert. She had only ever seen her this way when…, well there wasn't a single time she saw Mother excited enough to do more than clap. Was Garry really an adult? He even screamed when they first met. Maybe he was like Father, as Mother always said, a child in a man's body. The purple haired man didn't seem to be joking about the macaroons.
"So, uh, if we get out of here could we go there together?" Garry stopped smiling, reality putting him back in check. Ib's eyes widened as she wondered why an adult was asking her for permission. Shoot. Did I make her lose hope? "No, wait. We WILL be going there! And we will get out! I promise!"
Ib snorted when she tried to hold back a laugh. She didn't want Garry to forget he was an adult because of her. Which way was out, though?
"This place seems to make my ears ring. Plus, is it just me? Or does it smell like crayons?" He scratched the back of his head. "Why?"
Now that she thought of it, Garry was right. Was it from the fake sun? Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to stand under it. Garry did mention it was dangerous earlier. Was this drawing of a sun like the other artwork in the gallery?
"You saw that stuff flying out of 'Pandora's Box' earlier, right?" Garry stopped glaring at the wall. The mirror in Ib's pocket started to feel heavier. "I wonder what it was. Probably not anything good…That would figure."
The brunette reached into her skirt pocket. She pulled out the little mirror and put it on the ground where it reflected the artificial sunlight.
"Ah! The ice in the door melted!" How did she know to do that? "Not too shabbyyy!"
Ib seemed to enter a trance once they entered the dark room. She glanced at the wall covered in a swirl of symbols. Garry stopped smiling. Why are there buttons in here? Is it a trap? Ib walked to and fro pressing buttons like she knew exactly what she was doing. The eighth button she pressed dinged and a plastic key appeared in the center of the room. She picked it up and walked out. Garry followed her to a building with a yellow heart on its two doors. She stuck the key in, but didn't turn it. "A...key?"
"Ib?"
"S-sorry!" She opened the door. Inside was a white room. There were some stairs blocked by a large blue box labeled 'Toy Box'
"This is the toy box? It's rather big. But at any rate" Garry looked into the container, frowning. "It said there was a key in there…I can't say I see the bottom. Is there really a key in there, I wonder…?"
"Wanna see?" a taut voice suddenly asked.
"Huh?!" Neither Garry nor Ib had heard Mary come in. She thrust the slack-jawed duo into her toy box. They fell for about four seconds.
Ib woke up on the floor, pain all over her body. Her rose was missing. Where's Garry? The sullen girl noticed a scribbled on train track. Maybe Garry was tied up on a part of it. She needed to find him fast, before the train ran him over. Her rose could wait, she followed the tracks, passing mannequins, a drawing of a clown, blue dolls, and headless statues. Ib spotted Garry on the ground, surrounded by four mannequin heads. The girl regret breaking the three mannequin heads earlier. "Garry?"
"Oww…ugh. I hit my head…" He scrambled to his feet at the little girl's troubled voice. "Ib…Are you okay?"
She looked at her feet, "I'm fine,"
"Ah! That's good…At any rate," Garry scoped the area for an exit: stairs, a ladder, even rope, just something they could use to escape. There were mannequin heads, statues, and those creepy dolls all around them. Sure, they were standing still right now but for how long? "This place is full of scribbles…Is this the toy box?"
"I think so"
Glaring at a nearby doll wearing white, Garry commented, "We fell in from the upper floor…after she pushed us." Garry's voice shook, worrying his small companion. "Well, let's look for the key and get out...You look kid of pale. Are you really okay?"
"I-I lost my rose," Ib said, her voice growing smaller with every word.
"What? You lost your rose?!" Ib blushed and focused her attention on her red shoes. "You had it before, so it must be in the toy box somewhere! Let's find it!"
Garry grabbed her hand and pulled her along as they darted around, searching for the rose. They came across a pink key after some time.
"Ooh? What's this? A present for me?" Ib and Garry turned around in horror at the familiar voice. "Yaaay, it's so preeety! Can I have it? Oh, thank you!"
Garry glowered, "That…it can't be…" They ran to where Mary was at, holding a red rose to their perturbation. "Mary!"
"Oh! Ib and Garry! Did you find what you were looking for?" She kept talking when neither responded. "But anyway, lookit! I just got this! Pretty isn't it!"
Garry's heart dropped, "Mary…that…That rose."
"Huh?" Garry's jaw clenched at the blonde's 'innocent' act, but he couldn't do anything yet or Ib would be harmed. "…Ahh! You mean this is Ib's? I thought I'd seen it before!"
"Mary, please…Give that back to Ib," Garry took a step in front of Ib.
"Huh…? I wonder…" Mary frowned as she trailed off. "Ib…You want this back?"
Ib cautiously walked forward. In a barely audible voice she answered, "Yes."
"Well…..Hmmm…..Wanna trade Garry's rose?"
Garry stiffened, and stood in silent horror waiting for the red-eyed girl's answer. If he didn't know any better, he could swear he was straining his ear against the silence. It was a while before anyone said anything. Soon, Mary grew impatient at Ib's hesitance.
"Garry's rose is blue, right? I like red and all, but I like blue even mooore!" If not for herself, then maybe Ib would trade Garry's rose for her friend. After all, she and Ib were best friends! Mary pointed to the small doll in front of her, the one who had stolen Ib's rose and handed it to her. "See? This doll's blue, too! Isn't she cute?" The doll jumped in happiness at the compliment.
I couldn't do that! Garry is my friend. And he's so fragile too. Mary interrupted Ib's train of thought.
"So? Wanna trade?"
Garry flinched, afraid of Ib's answer. She was just a child after all. Knuckles white, Ib looked to Garry for advice. "Don't give me that look, Ib"
In a voice so low it barely broke the pregnant silence, Ib finally spoke, "I don't know what to do."
"Don't worry…I'll be fine. Just leave it to me." Garry stepped closer to the thief. "Understood. Please, give me Ib's rose in exchange for mine."
Ib stood slack jawed and head hanging down. Before she could find her voice, Mary spoke. "Really? You sure?"
"Yes….." a dark look was etched on Garry's face. He grudgingly brought out his rose. Maybe if he was fast enough, he could pluck the blue flower out of the blonde's hand after Ib's was safe in his. The difference in height could be used to his advantage.
"Heehee…..Yaaay! Pretty pretty flower," Garry was in a cold sweat with Mary's hand so close to the blue rose. What if she was stronger than she looked. Moments later, Ib's rose was safely in his hand. Alternately, his wasn't so safe. Now was his chance. "Ahahahahaha!"
Mary ran off as Gary froze. He hadn't expected her to laugh, let alone so evilly. The sound of her voice chilled him to the core. Dammit! Garry stood there, barely keeping himself from breaking down in front of the little girl he just sacrificed his rose for. He faced her again. Kneeling, he cautioned, "Be careful with it…"
Ib gently took her rose from Garry's hand. "I'm sorry."
"Ahaha…Why are you apologizing? You didn't do anything wrong, Ib." He so badly wanted to say, it's okay, but it wasn't. It just wasn't. He wanted to scream how unfair it was. What had he done to deserve this! "Right? So don't look so down!"
Ib sniffed, still staring at her rose. She wanted to go home. Maybe this was just a nightmare. This kind of thing didn't happen in real life, right? But, how did she feel pain when she got hurt or lost a petal. Dreams don't make you feel physical pain.
"And my rose…well! We'll just catch Mary and get it back," That's right, then they would leave and get some macaroons from the café like Garry said. "Let's do our best! I know we're almost there!"
The room began to rumble. "Wh-what?! Wahhh! What's with these guys?! Ib…Be careful!"
All the 'toys' that had been standing still up to this point came to life and made their way towards the two humans. Between two giant rag dolls were the stairs. With no other available exits and many horrors tailing them, Garry and Ib jumped between and sprinted up the stairs, shutting the door behind them. Mary's voice could be heard in the distance.
"Loves me…." Oh no. Pain sliced through Garry. Blue petals met him and Ib when they reached the top. "Loves me not…Loves me…..Loves me not….…Loves me…...Loves me not…..Loves me" He winced in pain with each pluck of the rose. Halfway through the hallway, Garry collapsed.
"Garry?"
"Ib….um…Sorry, but…could you go ahead?"
"But-"
"I'm…uh…..I'm sorry…I don't really know what to say…"
"We're almost there! C'mon!" Garry frowned, looking away from the scared red eyes.
"…I don't want to lie to you…But I…don't want to tell the truth either…"
"N-no! We're going together. You promised!" I did, didn't I. Sorry, Ib. He gave Ib a slight smile.
"If you need help…I'll come running…" Ib stayed in her spot, refusing to leave Garry behind. She tried to pick him up, but he was so heavy. "Go on…..ahead"
Ib bit her cheek and ran down the hall. She started up the stairs, freezing at the sound of Mary's peppy voice. "Loves me not…...Loves me…..loves me not….!" Mary grunted. "Oh!" She threw the barren stem into the air as Ib's heart took a plunge. "LOVES me! Ahah! Yay! Now I can…"
Mary walked out, cruelly smiling. Fear racked Ib as she looked at the scattered petals all over the floor. She remembered the first time she saved Garry's rose. He was crumpled on the floor then, too. 'I thought I was a goner there' That's it! She just had to find a vase around somewhere. He'd wake up and thank her like last time. But, there were no vases with water around. Ib picked up the stem and gathered the scattered petals. She went back downstairs. "Garry? I got your rose back." She gently put the stem in his hand, then shakily placed the petals on its top. "See, that's better. Right? ... You'll catch a cold if you sleep there."
Ib frowned and sat next to the man crumpled on the floor. Maybe not, he has his coat. The nine-year old shivered. He's not very warm. He won't mind if I borrow his lighter. She took it from the coat pocket. "Maybe I can still find a vase."
Ib found herself upstairs again. She noticed large thorns covering a stairway. "What's up there? Oh! These aren't concrete." Smiling, Ib set them aflame with the silver lighter. The huge fire was instantly all over them. Soon, Ib was not just warmed up but very close to getting burned. She stepped back from the dancing orange and yellow. The gallery reeled from the sudden heat, alerting Mary of the fire near her domain. With the thorny vines out of the way, and existence, the brunette easily made her way up the steps into another room. Ib could see a picture frame, and a silhouette of missing paint on its canvas. Glass shards were strewn on the black carpet underneath it. Thump tump, thump tump, thump tump, thump tump! Ib turned to face blue eyes.
"Ib! What are you doing?!" Mary frowned, dejected. Ib should have gone downstairs and jumped. "Why…and how did you get into this room…?" Was she the one behind the fire, no. Ib wouldn't, she couldn't know that her anchor was in this room. "You can't…can't be here! Please, leave now…"
Ib glared, her crimson eyes adding to its menace.
"Now!" Mary took a threatening step forward, hoping Ib would listen.
She stood her ground. "You hurt Garry."
"Now! NOW! NOOOW!" Mary pulled out her knife, noticing a lighter in Ib's hand, and red crack lines appeared beneath her. "LEEEEEeeeEEEeeAVE!"
Ib ran for the frame with broken glass underneath it, Mary pursued her gaining more ground with every step. She was faster, much faster than Ib. Underneath the frame Ib could see a plaque 'Mary' engraved in it. Mary hesitated as Ib flicked the lighter open and on in one swift motion. Garry was right, Mary was a monster.
"Ib!" Mary's face contorted with desperate scowl. "Please! STOP!"
Glass popped as the flames licked the portrait. The blonde stopped scowling, and held a withered frown in its stead. Her feet and dress began to blacken. "Ah! NOOO!"
Ib turned about face, eyes glazed over with tears. She watched the palette knife drop as Mary became a pile of ash. The horrified child ran from the room, and from her deed. Her heavy heart lightened slightly when she looked at the silver object in her hand. He'll catch up later, when he finishes his nap. She walked out of the room onto a familiar pink path. Something led her to the little pink house. In she went, using the pink key from the toy box. Inside were stairs. At the bottom was a familiar desk and poster of a daunting fish. She walked forward, where the second floor beckoned her. A feeling tugged her to a large painting.
"? world. Once you go in, there's no going back. All your time here will be lost. Will you still jump in?" The frame disappeared. Ib gave the dark gallery a last look and jumped in.
"Wait! Ib!" a figure clad in blue and beige reached for Ib, hands missing by mere inches. Was that-?
The world went white, blinding her. "What was I doing?" Ib read the plaque underneath the huge painting. ? World. Somehow, despite not knowing the word nor recognizing the piece, the painting frightened her. The girl briskly walked away from it. Where is Mother, maybe dow- A painting of a purple haired man interrupted her thoughts as she passed by it. She spun, grateful no one was behind her, and walked to it. "Forgotten Portrait"
A foreign anger, sense of betrayal, and guilt welled up within her small body as she gazed upon the sleeping man.
"Ib!" startled, Ib tore her eyes from the eerily familiar painting and faced the direction her mother's stern voice. "There you are! Sheesh…I was looking for you!"
"Sorry Mother,"
"We should look around together! We all came, after all…"
Vaguely, Ib thought she'd rather take the exhibit at her own pace.
"Ah, right! When we're done here, I'll have your father get you something to drink!" Not waiting for an answer, Noriko went on. "Yes, let's do that."
Ib began following her mother out, but stopped to look at the painting again. Why, why did she feel the desperate need to wake the sleeping man?
From downstairs, Noriko called, "Ib! Hurry up!" Knowing full well her mother was in no mood to wait, Ib ran to catch up, letting the portrait live up to its name. Her parents were already at the exhibit's exit. "Shall we get some drinks, Yuuta?"
"Of course, dear. There's a nearby café we haven't tried out yet," Ib's father suggested. The girl frowned. Hadn't someone told her about a similar place, "Ib? Why are you crying?"
"I…am?" She touched her cheek, and lowered her head as she felt the warm fluid on her face. She pulled out her lace handkerchief, "Sorry Father."
Yuuta pat his daughter's head, chuckling, "We'll come visit the gallery again if you love it so much."
"Dear! You'll spoil her," Noriko chastised.
"Nonsense, Nori, it's not often we see our daughter make a fuss," The smiling man planted a sloppy kiss on his wife's cheek. "And did you see how surprised she was! Ha, she didn't even know tears were spilling."
His wife folded her delicate arms, shaking her head. "Children ought not get what they desire over some tears."
"Hey, Ib, do you think we should get those leaky eyes fixed?" Ib's answer was a simple blush. The smiling man held the car door open for his wife. "Nori, our daughter takes after you."
Ib buckled her seatbelt as her father drove out of the parking lot. She let out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding once the gallery was out of sight.