CHAPTER SEVEN

Always

Through joyous tears, Ib told Garry everything that had happened, and how the massive rose bush had saved them. When she looked at where the bush had been, however, it was no longer there, and the cracks in the floor were also missing. In it's place was a single purple rose, laying on the floor of the room, a yellow ribbon tied smartly around it's stem. A sudden noise from the other side of the door startled the two out of their confusion, and when the door swung open they were almost positive they were going to find themselves face-to-face with more danger.

A flashlight swept the room and fell on the girl and young man. It was a night security guard of the museum; He was initially furious that Ib and Garry were in the museum after hours, but the two of them looked so dazed by his sudden appearance, he allowed them to explain themselves. Garry apologized profusely for their presence, insisting that they hadn't broken in, and that they were incredibly lost. The guard was suspicious about the validity of their claims, and asked for their information. When Ib gave her name, the guard seemed to be in much brighter spirits; he was a friend of her father. Seeing that everything was in order, the guard allowed them to leave without questioning them further. Ib carried with her the purple rose, holding it close to her heart.

The town seemed to be back to normal. People and lights and cars were going every which direction, and neither Ib nor Garry had ever been happier to partake in the hustle and bustle of city life. They felt they couldn't completely relax, however; they were still anxious to find Ib's parents, and hoped desperately that they had been released from Guertena's spell just as the rest of the town had been.

Ib's house was a long way away from the museum, but thankfully they caught the very last bus of the night. As soon as they got off at their stop, the two hurried to Ib's house.
Flinging the front door open, Ib and Garry were greeted by a frightening sight; Ib's parents were laying on the floor of the foyer, as if they had fainted. Ib was on them instantly, gently shaking her mother awake. Garry worriedly felt for a pulse on her father; to his relief, they appeared to only be sleeping.
"Mom? Papa?" Ib said gently, and her mother's eyes fluttered open easily. "Wha- Ib? What... What happened?" her mother said, struggling to sit up. Ib helped her, and saw that Garry had managed to wake up her father, as well. "What in the world...? Did we... Fall asleep down here?" her father asked groggily, looking at his wife, and then to Ib and Garry. His eyes suddenly widened. "Is everyone alright? Ib, honey, are you okay? We didn't get robbed, did we?" he asked in a panic, and Ib smiled, shaking her head. "No, dad, everything's fine. We're all fine. How are you feeling?"

Her father rubbed the back of his head, trying to think. "I feel... Tired. But awake, too. It's... Strange. Honey? How do you feel?"
"The same," Ib's mother admitted with an embarrassed laugh. "We must be sick. I knew it... We must have caught something. But look at us," she said, standing up with Ib's help and brushing off her skirt. "We must have given you a fright. I'm so sorry, Ib," she said, stroking her daughter's hair. Ib felt like she could cry, and she hugged her mother fiercely. "Don't apologize, I'm just glad you're okay," the little girl said earnestly.

Ib's mother and father apologized again to their daughter and Garry, and thanked Garry for looking after their little girl. They decided to adjourn to bed, as they were still feeling very under the weather, and Ib's father kissed her forehead before saying goodnight. When they were safely upstairs, Ib let out a massive sigh of relief. "It's them." she said happily. "That's really them. They must have all of their memories back, too."

"I'm glad. And look," Garry pointed at the staircase, "there seems to be a missing portrait."

It was true; 'Self-Portrait' was gone. The wall looked incredibly bare without it.

Garry sighed. "It seems like everyone's okay. Except..." Garry patted his coat, and pulled out a big yellowed piece of sketch paper.
"Mary!" Ib exclaimed, and they both observed the paper anxiously. It was just as torn as before, and Mary still appeared to be sleeping. Ib frowned.
"I don't think I can go to sleep with her like this," Ib said sadly, and Garry carefully folded the paper up again. "Me either," he admitted. He glanced at the door to the storage under the stairs, and smiled. "Say... Do you think you have any empty picture frames laying around?" he asked, and Ib beamed back at him happily.

The two of them rummaged around in the storage closet for close to twenty minutes before Garry nearly tripped over a large frame that was just the perfect size for Mary's sketch. Clearing a work space on the dining room table, Ib gathered supplies- glue and tape, mostly- and Garry set to work repairing the damage done to the sketch. Garry had a wonderful attention to detail and an ideal finesse for this sort of work, so Ib merely watched him quietly, breaking once to find an empty vase for the purple rose. She placed the vase on the table with them, admiring it until Garry finished. Garry placed Mary carefully in the frame.

Deciding to hang it in the unoccupied stairwell, Garry gently hammered a nail in place and hung it carefully. Both Ib and Garry half-expected Mary to open her eyes and come back to life, but her form remained unmoving, her hands folded delicately at her chest, her expression tranquil.

Ib yawned and rubbed her eyes; she never remembered being quite so tired. She and Garry sat on the staircase, both of them vainly fighting sleep and determined to stay with Mary a bit longer. Ib's head finally slumped onto Garry's shoulder, and before Garry could even entertain the idea of carrying the sleeping girl to a fitting place for slumber, he nodded off as well.

Ib was awakened by the morning sun falling over her face, and the merry singing of birds outside. Upon opening her eyes, she was relieved to find that she was exactly where she had been when she had fallen asleep. She felt sore, however, and realized that stairs were not the smartest choice for a good nights rest. Garry was leaning against her, still very much asleep, and Ib smiled warmly at the sight. Careful not to wake him, Ib went and checked the time. It was still very early... And it appeared no time had passed for the rest of the world since they had been gone, as it was only the morning after they had first found themselves in the world of Guertena's creation.

Heading back to the stairs to wake up Garry, she found that he was already getting up when she arrived. He grinned at her sleepily, stretching.

"I was worried for a second, when I didn't see you there. But everything feels so normal, I knew it was alright," he ended in a yawn, and Ib smiled.

"Sorry for making you worry. I decided I'm going to school today... And I'm going to make us breakfast!" she announced.

Ib (with some help from Garry, although she was exceedingly determined to make it all on her own,) made enough breakfast for everyone, and decided to surprise her parents with breakfast in bed. Both of them apologized to her again for not waking up in time to make her breakfast themselves.
"It's so strange... I feel like I've been sleeping for years, but yet I'm still so tired." her mother explained, bewildered. Ib smiled at them brightly. "Don't worry about it," she said, handing them napkins. "Rest as much as you want today. Today, I'm going to be your mom! I'll make dinner, too, okay? For Garry, too!"
Her parents both agreed, and promised to take her and Garry somewhere fun in return, when they were feeling better. Ib couldn't have cared less for something like that... She was just overjoyed to have them both here with her, and in one piece.

Getting dressed and ready for school, Ib flew down the stairs where Garry was waiting. Grabbing her book bag, she headed for the door, looking back at Garry with a smile. "Ready to go?" she chimed, but stopped in concern when she saw Garry unmoving from his position, looking almost sad. Her brow dipped in worry.

"Garry? Are you okay?" she asked him, walking briskly to him and standing on her tip-toes, touching his face gently with her hand. "Are you feeling sick?"

Garry looked down at the girl, nodding vaguely. "No, I..." He almost looked like he could cry.

Garry suddenly swept Ib up in a warm embrace, holding her close. Ib blushed, not having expected it.
"I want it to always be like this," Garry said quietly, his mouth close to the girl's ear. "I want to always see you happy and smiling, and I want to keep spending time with you, just like this."

Ib almost didn't know what to say, but before she could get the chance, Garry pulled away, scratching the back of his head with an embarrassed smile. "Sorry... I guess, after everything, I got a little emotional." he admitted, his face flushing.

Smiling, Ib shook her head. "Don't be sorry," she said sincerely. "I have something to tell you, too."

"Oh?" Garry inquired, hoping that whatever it was would take the focus off of his outburst. "What's that?"
Ib shook her finger at him. "I'll tell you," she said with a cheeky smile, "when I'm a little older. Okay?"

Garry mulled over her words carefully for a moment, and then his face turned an even darker shade. "I see," he said, coughing into his hand. He smiled at her then. "I'll wait for you to tell me, then." he said with resolve. "No matter how long it takes."

Ib happily grabbed Garry's hand, and the two of them left the house together, closing the door after them.

A pretty girl behind a glass frame had heard the whole happy conversation. Her eternal sleeping form had changed very subtly from the previous night; on her face was a content smile, and between her neatly folded hands was a yellow rose, adorned with a lovely red and blue ribbon.

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Fin

Additional Author Notes:

Thank you so much for reading my Ib fanfiction!

I can't tell you how fun it was to write, and I'm actually sad it's over. I hope I was able to capture the feelings of the game we all love, as well as add new elements that still make it unique.

I apologize if this messed with anyone's head canon for certain characters! (Guertena in particular.) The character of Weiss Guertena was so passionate and mysterious to me in the game, this is just how he came out.
I don't see him as an 'evil' character, but a character lost in his passion and overwhelmed with power and loneliness. In the flower language, the orange rose symbolizes desire and passion, which worked WAY too well for his character, also. He was very fun to write.

This fanfiction was meant to cater to both sides of the fandom; IbxGarry lovers, and those who prefer their relationship to be strictly 'brother and sister'. I myself think that both options are adorable for them, and mostly wanted to write a story about how much they mean to each other, all romance aside. I hope I did a good job conveying that. (But I do ship them, shhhhhh~)

If you couldn't guess, a purple rose is a symbol of protection, and love. (And it also happens the be the color that happens when you combine red and blue. Hurr durr) I think that speaks for itself!

Thank you again for reading my fanfic. ღ