--------------------------------
THUMP. THUMP. THUMP.
You don't know how long you have been running. You can't remember when you got separated from Garry. All you know for sure at the moment, is to run. Run as fast as your legs can carry you, because they are coming...
You dive into the first room you see, locking the door behind you. The loud thumping doesn't stop. They are still right outside. Behind you. Just one step away. Clawing, gnashing, biting.
A whole museum of beautiful works seeking to end your life.
Your breath comes in raggedy hiccups, panic running through your whole body. Now, more then ever, you felt alone.
"G-Garry..." You whimper, wishing you hadn't lost him in the chaos a moment ago. Who knew if you'd ever see him again, or anyone else...
The banging on the wall grows louder, and you proceed into the next room, shutting the door again behind you.
You let out a long sigh of relief. With your ear to the door, you can barely hear the noise fading away. It's faint, but they have left you alone.
You turn around, only to come face to face with the lady in red. She looks calm, though she approaches you with a burning hunger in her eyes.
You stumble backwards, nearly tripping over yourself as you turn to fumble with the door.
There is little you can do but gasp in horror as the door's lock clicks against your efforts.
Tears stream down your face as the Lady arches over you, clawed hands ready to strike.
Your scream pierces the air, before fading with you into nothingness.
A single rose petal falls to the cold ground, joining it's wilted stem to live nevermore...
---------------------------------------
You awake with a start, chest heaving with each stressed breath. Your body feels sore all over, and as you wipe your face, you find it wet with tears.
A quick look around the room shows a reveals a small office of sorts, the only painting to be seen is a small frame with flowers on it resting on the nearby desk. You yourself must have fallen asleep some time, probably having been run ragged by all the running, and Gary had taken you here.
You shakily stand up, revealing your makeshift bed/blanket that you had been lying on to be Garry's coat. Speaking of Garry, were was he?
As if on queue, your companion came rounding one of the bookshelves in a hurry. "Hey, Ib. Good morning... I think." He said, giving a kind smile as he kneeled down to your level. "How are you feeling?"
You pull the coat tighter around you shoulders, shivering slightly. "I... I had a nightmare.." You whisper meekly.
Garry gave a sad sigh, standing back up. "I see... You poor thing. Can't say I'm surprised though. Being exposed to such frightful sights... you know? I guess it's good you woke up. I'm sorry I didn't notice earlier..."
Garry was silent for a moment, looking around as if he was watching for something. "Ib, would you take a look in the pocket of that coat?"
You do so, fumbling around with the worn piece of cloth until you find the pocket in question. Pulling out the object inside reveals a tiny yellow sphere in a clear wrapping.
"You can have that. Feel free to eat it, if you like. Its lemon flavored. They usually help me stay calm." He said, before walking off again to stand around the bookshelves. "Feel free to rest as long as you need. I'll wait."
You nod silently, as you are wont to do, before walking slowly around the room, coat still draped around you. You put the candy in your own pocket, not really feeling like eating it now. Wandering over to the desk, a small pamphlet catches you eye.
Rules of the art gallery, it reads. No loud conversation, no photography, no food or drink, no touching the displays, no fountain pens, NO LEAVING EVER.
You sigh. It's all you can manage right now.
Finding no real purpose in lying around, you walk off to find Garry. He hadn't moved an inch, simply leaning up against the shelves.
Sliding the coat off of your shoulders, you hand the raggedy garment up to him.
"Oh... thanks Ib. Me and this jacket have been through a lot together..." He said with a smile, though the second part was more just musing to himself. "I was just so focused on getting out of here... I didn't really look after you... Sorry Ib."
Throwing the coat back on, Garry walks to the door, motioning for you to follow.
The rooms following were a deep vermillion, though otherwise empty. There were a few mannequins, but they didn't move, and neither of you were willing to temp them by approaching the exhibits they resided in.
There were no pointing to be seen during the walk through the twisting indigo halls, save for one benign little piece.
"Hey Ib? Have you heard of milk puzzles?" Garry asks down to you as you approach the stark white jigsaw puzzle. You shake you head silently. "Well, as the name implies, its a puzzle where all the pieces are white like milk. Like this one. Since there is no picture on them, they're much harder then regular puzzles. Very smart people can finish them in no time at all, but..." Garry give a humored sigh, continuing his walk. "To be honest, they're not exciting. Since they don't even make a picture in the end... It feels much more worth it to do a puzzle of a picture you like, don't you think so, Ib?"
You think for a bit, a bit confused at the concept, before nodding. It didn't make much sense to you to build a puzzle with no picture. Garry laughed a bit at your reaction, causing you to look up to him with confusion plastered all over your face. "If you don't mind my asking, why are you so quite all the time?"
Of course, your first reaction is silence, but that would simply prove his point.
"My... my parents like it when I am quite..." You barely whisper. Garry simply nods sagely, something that seemed a bit out of character for him.
"I can understand that. But I want you to know one thing, Ib." He stops for a moment, causing you to nearly run into him. "I want you to know that I like it when you talk. You don't have to be afraid to tell me exactly what is on your mind."
You cant help but smile a bit, even if you don't know why. No one had ever wanted to simply hear you before. It made you... happy.
Eventually, the hallway came to an end, stopping with a simple door, flanked on either side by a mirror. You try to door, only for it to end up locked. "Hey, what's this... The name of the gateway to this world. Speak it and you shall enter. " Garry reads aloud, having leaned over to read a plaque next the mirrors. "Right... the big floor mural... what was it called again? Something... of the Deep? I don't remember. Any ideas, Ib?"
No comments:
Post a Comment