Maiden of Roses

by H31R OF T1M3

When faced with a choice, Ib does the one thing nobody expects; she sacrifices herself. Now she's the painting, as Mary and Garry start to live their lives. But as years pass, and memories of Ib have faded, will Ib understand what it's like to live alone in a demented world? And what happens when Mary and Garry decide to go back to Guertena's exhibits?

2. Maiden of Roses

This is pretty much how the rest story is going to be. Garry/Mary, then Ib. Just FYI.

Mary opened her eyes. She couldn't remember what she was doing. She was standing in front of a silly painting, with lots of colors. "Hehe, that's an adorable painting," she giggled. She walked over to a statue of a large red rose. "That's so pretty," she said.

Garry, overhearing this, murmured, "Yeah…The Embodiment of Spirit…it's truly beautiful." He walked away, but stared at a nearby painting before leaving.

"I wonder what that painting is!" Mary chirped, running over to the one Garry stared at. It was a picture of a girl in a red skirt, with a white collared shirt and a red tie, with blood-red eyes and brown hair. She was sitting down, holding a half blue, half yellow rose in her left hand, and a red petal in the other.

The inscription red, "Maiden of Roses". Mary stared at it, a memory struggling to come forth. She closed her eyes, and remembered. The girl in the painting reached for a red rose in Mary's hand, and stole it. She ripped off the petals in one quick stroke.

"Mary, are you ready to go?" a woman in a red coat asked.

"Yes mother!" Mary said, opening her eyes.

"Did you have fun today?" a man in a blue coat asked. Mary nodded, smiling. The family walked away, leaving the room.

Ib opened her eyes, and she was sitting in a small room. "Where…am I?" she asked. She looked around, and saw the empty room. There was nothing in it, just four walls, a floor, and a ceiling. Ib sighed.

"Hm," someone muttered.

"Who's there?" Ib shouted, turning around in the direction of the noise. She walked towards the wall, and saw some light leaking through. "What is this?" she muttered, reaching towards the corner of the room.

Upon touching it, the wall shone with a white light, and now had a painting of Ib, titled, "Maiden of Roses".

"What is this?" Ib asked. She looked at it, then looked around the room. "Am I…in a painting?" she asked. She reached for the corner of the room again, and the wall glimmered, becoming a large looking glass into the museum. She peered out, seeing Garry stare at the glass for a second, walking away.

"Why is that so familiar?" he muttered.

"Garry! Garry can you hear me?" Ib shouted. Garry froze for a second before continuing out of the room. She fell to her knees, sighing. "So this is death," she muttered, staring at the glass. Mary walked up to the glass, appearing to be interested in it. "Mary? Mary, can you hear me?" Ib shouted. Mary closed her eyes, appearing to be remembering something.

Ib's mother walked up, asking, "Mary, are you ready to go?" Ib stared, realizing Mary had taken her place.

"As long as she's happy," Ib whimpered. She touched the corner of the room, and it flashed back to the wall.