House Divided

Home

"Dream?.."
Ink called, exiting the side door to the special project Dream had him working on. But when he did, Dream was already gone. This was rather confusing to see, Dream would stay here late...and it was barely dusk...so was something wrong? Or was something else going on? Did Dream have another project? That felt more probable then it should've... So even though Ink would've preferred saying bye to Dream, he just decided to leave.
Outside it was just around that dusky sunset time that he had seen through Dream's window. It was rather gorgeous, and honestly relaxing after Ink's more then strange day. He liked looking at the change in everything around him, from almost glowing streets to some more calm and relaxed tone of dark maroon and yet still slight hints of orange gold mixed onto walls and around shadows. The scene felt calm, like it brought a whiff of momentary serenity to the closing that never merged into the cold silent night, just to pick back up at the all to soon busy and bright morning.
Ink walked his way through the now mostly empty town, seeing a few people he had seen that morning while others appeared to be new. It was nice, the current lack at least at the moment of talking was really what Ink needed...even though he didn't know it and just felt strange about the noticed silence... But at least this made his trek home go by a lot quicker- Until the end.
Just having gotten up to the building, Ink went to the entrance just to suddenly feel a hand get placed onto his back- No push it. Ink tumbled to floor, pushing himself into the doors and landing hard on tile floor. With a painful groan, Ink rolled around to look at who had pushed him, and paused when he saw who it was. It was a dark silhouette of the man from earlier, starring daggers into Ink's shaking pupils. Before Ink even had a chance to think off something to say- The darkness crept in closer, as he harshly whispered across the noise of the light apartments joyful music and sounds, to say something weird...unexpected...
"How don't you see what's going on here?"
What was that meant to mean...what's going-
"What's wrong? Look- Everything wrong"
Ink knew this guy was crazy at this point- That much was clear. But for some reason...the senseless words carried something for some reason...for no reason...there would be no reason for them to because everything was fine. And yet all he could think of was what the man in front of him was saying..."You see", and he did...
Eventually though some others got the stranger away, but even so all Ink managed to do was stumble away before he was. When he left all he could do was picture those words in his head, take in all of the surroundings while he had those thoughts, saw the people, they all seemed the same. Same. Same. They were the same. Did they just look that? No.-
"...This...isn't my room..."
Even though Ink said that, he looked around the room he was in and couldn't see a difference well nothing to shocking would be better, because he did notice something. His viles weren't there. Of course he could've lost them, but something inside him told him he was right about that...even if he could've lost them. So stumbling out of the random apartment, Ink just ended up backing into another one- That was also the same. Not just structurally, or someway that'd be understandable. No this was uncanny, same chairs, same towels, same bedding, same plates- same almost everything...
This led to Ink fumbling around frantically and barely ending up in his room by the end of it all. Even then though he was barely able to except that until turning the apartment upside down and being able to find a few things different...well actually only a couple. But even after that, when he was laying awake in bed, Ink still was thinking. He had realized something, in his destruction of his room, in the refinding of his room, and to be fair the rest of the day. There was no true feeling, nothing other then empty blankness other then happy if that thought even came up.
With that in mind, Ink shot back up out of his bed and again started to tear through his things again. All his shelves were emptied, and when there was nothing to empty anymore he ripped what he could apart. Just as he again to run out of things to crush and ruin, he clawed and scratched at what could barely be broken to find nothing. To not find his viles...
"Where...where are they?"
Ink collapsed in a swollen fit of emptiness, he couldn't feel sad, and he wasn't afraid to admit that the feeling he wanted to feel was sad...or anger, or scared. What did it mean? What did he do now? How would he convey sad? Where are his viles? For the only growing number of questions, Ink knew he was incapable of asking anyone for answers. He would have to find them himself he really wanted to know what to do, what to feel, or even how to.
So even though he was more then hesitant to do what he was now considering, Ink took a deep breath and tried to get himself together.
"It won't be a big deal...and if h-he is there then I'll be fine, he'll understand..."
Ink felt himself get only more nervous after he said that. He, Dream, would have more then a problem with what was going on, he would have a fit. The last time Dream got mad had been to long ago for Ink to remember, but what he did remember was it was more then horrific...
"Maybe horrific is a bit to strong...he just has strong feelings."
Hearing himself say something like that made him cringe, because he knew he was lying. "Strong feelings" are feelings from someone with a strong, and unharmful opinion. Dream's supposed behavior was anything but, Ink just wasn't ready to admit that.
Either way he still shyly left his room, his legs shaking so much he surprised they didn't buckle under his own weight. Regardless of his wavering statice of stability, Ink slowly left the darkened apartment complex. A strange thing was that no one was anywhere, no other occupants, not even other workers. The building was completely still, and as Ink made it outside, the darkened town mimicked the same thing.
This was probably for the better, and even if it wasn't Ink wasn't going to take the time to think about it for once, he didn't have the time for that. Ink held his scarf up to his face and sped walk into a run down the street. The golden building was close by, so he got there near instantly. Similarly to the apartment building, Ink's work place was also completely barren- But Ink could still sense something close by. Ink just took extra caution walking his way over to the elevator, luckily not evoking anyone that could've been close by.
Taking the elevator up, Ink sprinted into his workspace first. He tore up everything he could, and like before found nothing. Now having no other choice, Ink went back to the elevator and took it up, but not before taking some empty paint viles due to a new constructing theory.
Getting up to the highest floor, Ink snuck his way to Dream's office, and hesitantly opened the door. There didn't appear to be anyone, but Ink still wasn't going to take his time by any means. He rushed over to the desk and much more neatly sifted through the drawers. Ink hoped he wouldn't find the viles, he really hoped he wouldn't- But what happened...was just what happened...
In a neat wooden stand were Ink's remaining viles. He had a feeling they were there, Dream had been the one to suggest the slow reduction of his emotions, but he hoped that they weren't. He still took them though, getting ready to shove them in his pockets when he stopped and got out those empty paint viles. Ink had come prepared, which sadly meant he had a feeling about what he would find in Dream's office.
Forgetting about that fact again, he started pouring portions of viles into the empty ones when he heard-
*Click*
Steps came shortly afterwards, and with having no where else to go, Ink ran over to the door to the mysteries side project, hiding as whoever approached entered the room.