"Mary…"

Though the name had rolled off her tongue twice now, the other girl refused to acknowledge it.

She hummed idly, one hand wrapped tightly around that yellow rose— so tightly that her knuckles were white, so tightly that surely the thorns pierced her palm— the other fidgeting uncomfortably at her side, fingers bunching up her green dress, then smoothing it back out again, over and over and over.

"We have to go. We need to go…"

The girl's eyes remained transfixed on the painting hung before them, and a vacant smile stuck stubbornly to her lips.

"We can't stay here…! Come on…! Mary!!"

Even the mounting distress in her tone failed to sway her companion, who moved only to admire a different piece on the far wall. Every passing moment seeded more scenes in Ib's head, of red stains and blue petals, and she couldn't afford to wait any longer.

Approaching the last locked door in the room, she took one final look over her shoulder at the oblivious girl before sliding the brown key into the lock and undoing it with a click. The knob turned easily, and the door gave way, leading to a small stairwell. She made to close the door behind her, though left it open partway on second thought, leaving Mary some sign of
her whereabouts— maybe she'd snap out of it soon.

The staircase wasn't long— she could see the floor below easily— but her first step was hesitant regardless. Something helpful could be waiting, something she could use to break the statue and stone vines separating her and one of the only other allies she'd found… or she could be greeted by more 'art,' waiting to tear her to pieces. There really wasn't any telling
with this place, and for that, her second step was just as shaky.

The third step never came. The door flew open, and a flash of green invaded the corner of her vision.

"I-Ib…!!"

The brunette reversed her steps and turned her head at the familiar voice. The tears forming in Mary's eyes stung to notice— did she do the right thing trying to press ahead alone?

"Mary, I—"

"W-Why didn't you wait for me…? I-I thought we promised to leave together…!!" A crack in her tone nearly had Ib cringing.

"I tried to get you to come with me, but you weren't listening…" Guilt bubbled up from the nine year old's chest, guilt far worse than she'd felt stealing gum, or writing on her school desk. What if Mary had been attacked? Then it would've been Ib's fault for leaving her alone, wouldn't it?

"S-So you just decided to abandon me!?"

"N-No,it's… it's not like that! I-I just… I just got worried about Garry… h-he's still back there alone, and I just thought that I…"

Mary's face suddenly contorted, brows furrowing, eyes narrowing, teeth gritting. "Oh, so I see how it is! You were gonna go find Garry and escape with him and leave me all by myself!!" She took a threatening step forward, which caused Ib to back up that much in reply. "You don't care about me at all, do you!?"

"I-It's…!" She felt her guilt twisting into pure shock. "No, Mary, I…!"

A gleam at Mary's side caught Ib's attention a second too late, and the other girl barreled into her, her back violently meeting the wall. One hand pushed painfully upon her chest, yellow rose tossed aside to lay at their feet. Sharp, uncomfortable steel rested against her neck, the  pallet knife still warm and slick with blood from the mannequin head.

"I don't get it, Ib!" she exclaimed, a sick shine in her eyes. "What's so great about Garry, anyway? Why do you care so much about someone like him??"

"M-Mary…!!" Ib squeaked, her own eyes wide, vision blurring with wet warmth.

"Sure, he might be nice to you now, but what happens when you get out of here, huh?? He's a grown-up!! You won't be able to play with him, or drink tea with him, or draw pictures with him… he's just gonna leave and go back to his boring grown-up stuff and forget all about you!"

"P-Please…!" she cried, one hand slowly rising to grasp the other's wrist— though it returned to her side when the knife bit into her skin, and her yelp echoed once, twice, before fading uselessly.

"Ib… when I asked you who you'd go with if only two of us could leave, you said you'd stay behind. But that's so dumb!! This place is so dull and lonely!! You'd never want to live here!!" The corners of her lips drew up into a grin, though it wasn't a reassuring look paired with the mania in her gaze. "I wanna go with you! And I think what you really want is to go with me, too, right? I think we should escape together, just the two of us!!"

The blood trickling down Ib's neck began dying her collar a deep scarlet, and a sob finally loosened itself from her throat. "S-Stoooop…" she pleaded, "y-you're…"

"W-We don't need that stupid guy! You don't need that stupid guy!! A-All you need is me, Ib!!" Her form now trembling noticeably, her shaking hands drove the knife's edge just a tad deeper into Ib's neck, and a single red petal met the floor. Upon hearing the girl whine, Mary leaned in, fabric gathering under her clenching fingers, face so close, so close to the other's. Ib could feel her breath against her cheeks, but every muscle in her body remained frozen in the terror pounding at her brain.

"I'm gonna take his place… h-he's gonna trade his life for mine, whether he wants to or not…!! A-And… and we're gonna leave together, Ib…" Though her voice wavered like the rest of her, her tone itself betrayed a terrifying sort of confidence, one that rattled Ib to her core despite not understanding her words.

"M-Mary… w-what are you…"

She giggled. "We're gonna be best friends forever, you and me…! We'll play dress-up, and eat pretty macarons! We'll go to the park and pet doggies and have fun all day, every day!!"

"P-Pleaaaase…."

"I-I'm not gonna be stuck here any longer!" she exclaimed. "I won't let him ruin this…! I won't let him take you away! I won't!! I won't!!"

Laughter came spilling from Mary's mouth— loud, awful laughter that rang in Ib's ears and made her wince and choke and sob.

"Ib!!"

A scream pierced the air, but it wasn't her own. The pressure on her chest disappeared, and she opened her eyes to the sight of dark hair and a raggedy coat, the sight of—

"Garry…!" she called, though made no move toward him.

He had a hold of Mary's arm, and try as she might, all her pulling and tugging did nothing to pry herself from him.

"Let go of me!!" she shrieked. "Why did you have to show up!? If you'd just waited down there…!! I could've shown her… I would've shown her…!!"

Before she could protest any further, he effortlessly flung her to the side. Her body hit the near wall with a thump and crumpled to the floor in a motionless heap.

Ib finally stepped forward, staring at the other girl. Garry had knocked her out so easily…

"It's alright, Ib," he spoke softly, "she's… not really human. She's a piece of art, like those ladies, and all the others."

She pondered this for a moment before looking around, finally spotting her yellow rose and picking it up— plastic stem, fabric petals. "It's fake…"

"And so is she." he said with a nod. "Listen, I'm sorry I didn't get here soone—"

The sudden weight at his waist almost knocked him over. Ib clung tightly to him, her face buried in his stomach, her sobs muffled by his shirt. It took him a moment, but his surprise became relief, and he finally managed a smile. Kneeling down to level with her, he drew her close, one hand on her back and the other on her head. "Hey…" he cooed, "Hey, it's okay, I'm here now… it's going to be okay, I promise…"

She sniffed audibly and pulled away, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand and bringing out a small smile of her own.

"Now that's what I like to see! We need to keep going, then," Garry said, standing, "but first…"

He brought up the tattered end of his jacket and, after a bit of fumbling, managed to tear a small strip away. He then leaned down and tied it around the girl's neck. "It might be a bit tight, but it has to be for the bleeding to stop."

Ib's fingers brushed against the makeshift bandage. "Thank you... but... are you sure? You just tore your coat…"

Garry chuckled. "It's already ripped up as it is. Nobody's going to notice! Besides, it's just a coat. You're a lot more important than that! I'm just glad the wound's shallow. If she'd cut any deeper… eugh…" he shuddered and shook his head, "I'd rather not think about it. Anyway, there's no use going down here, I already scoured the entire floor."

"Oh, we found stairs. But there's a statue blocking them…"

"Is that so? Well, sounds like a job for me! Let's just get out of here quick— we've already spent enough time dawdling, and who knows when she's going to wake up?"

Ib nodded, and the two of them returned to the brown room.

Moments later, Mary stirred.