Painting the Roses Red (An Ib AU)

Chapter 9: Groups

No One's Point of View

MEANWHILE....

"Ugh, I'm so BORED." Jack groaned and Barry was trying to climb the vines for only not to work.

"They haven't been back for a while...  Ocean! Rick! Toby! *** **** it." Tommy muttered and Jack shuddered.

"I guess we have to go through that room again." Jack added as Barry looked at them.

"What's wrong with that room?" He asked innocently.

"Barry, you got to look at it normally or in Ocean's Point of view" Tommy said.

"Maybe it was Amy and Mark influencing your vision... But I don't know... It's NOT cute, even Ocean would agree to that." Jack stated. (Author/Red: THANK YOU JACK AND TOMMY!!!)

Barry was clearing his mind, as he stepped through the door. In place of bunny rabbits, Barry blinked and saw reality; horrible, blue-skinned dolls with messy black hair and huge red button eyes.

"What the-?!" Barry started in shock.

"I know!" Jack looked at the bookshelves.

"There has to be something here..." Tommy thought hard and carefully. In frustration, Tommy kicked the right bookshelf over while screaming in rage.

"**** it- hey!" Tommy yelled, but behind the bookshelf was a passageway.

"Guys, come on!" He said to the others to come thought the passage.

"Look!" Jack pointed out, jumping out of the small passage and running into separate room. Barry walked up to the writing on the purple wall.

"There is no exit. There is no reason." Barry read and scoffed.

"Watch us!" Barry said as he walked away from the words. Meanwhile, Tommy inspected five cords. He looked at them thoughtfully before pulling the middle cord, while the room went dark.

"Oh, come on! Who turned out the lights?" Jack said as he groaned.

"Sorry, sorry!" Tommy said as he pulled the cord once more, the light coming back on.

"Thank goodness it was you and not some freak." Barry said smiling and Tommy grinned back at him. He pulled the first cord as a hand nearly slapped him out of the wall. Tommy quickly moved onto the next cord, yet the second cord had a bit of a surprise. When Tommy pulled it, a green gas exploded out of the ceiling directly onto Tommy and he coughed.

"Ugh! What the **** was that?" He said, while Tommy skipped over the third golden cord and moved to the fourth, which did nothing. He braced himself for about three minutes until Barry asked him what he was doing.

"Uh... Tommy? Are you okay?" Barry asked him in concern.

Ocean's Point of View

Meanwhile...

Toby, Rick, and I sat against the void, watching sadly and feeling powerless to do anything. Toby slowly began to nod off, leaning against towards me as I let him sleep on my shoulder.

Yet I see Rick smiling at us out of the corner of my eye. Suddenly, a painting in the void slid downwards to create a makeshift bridge. I noticed the cords above the void; the fourth one turned pink as the painting lay across the void.

"Toby? Hey, Toby?" I said softly, shaking his shoulder. Rick crawled over to his other side.

"Wha...?" Toby says tiredly as his eyes began to open.