From Murder to Dust

ATE - 15 - Hold

Ink had kept me for twenty-one years and five months, and I despised it. I had been slowly getting used to his newest paint, but it was a time-consuming process, and it was difficult, as well; overcoming pain was hard. I could now walk on almost completely shattered bones, now, though; I wasn't sure if that was a good sign or a bad one. There was one little ray of light that made everything better, though: Papyrus. Since I could now see his accomplishments again, I could see how great he was! He's the best! I didn't feel Ink's newest paint every day, since Papyrus didn't do something to enrage him that often, but six out of seven days in a week, I was feeling unbearable pain, and there was nothing I could do about it. I felt like I was going to die again today, which I didn't entirely mind, since it was easier to walk when my legs weren't broken; that didn't mean that I couldn't, of course. It was a new day, and Ink had just woken me up from a peaceful sleep; I really liked that particular dusty nightmare, but that wouldn't stop Ink. For a minute, when I was gaining my senses - Ink had really hit me hard last night when knocking me out - I thought I had lost my Hope, but I was mistaken, and my calmness returned when I found it.

"Good morning, Dusty!" Ink greeted.

"Good morning." I hugged my Hope. 

"Did you sleep well?"

"Yep."

"Do you love your brother?"

"Yes!"

"Let's see..the diabolical guard wants to play with you today! Isn't that fun?"

"Sure."

"You're such a good little Dusty!" Ink patted my skull, making me smile; I really liked that. "After that, I'll be using you in a training course, which will take about half an hour. I figure you'll have died by then, and if not, I'll just kill you myself. Okay?"

"Okay."

"Great! I have a meeting to go to right now, but your babysitter is on the way!"

"Okay."

Ink patted my skull once more before leaving me to hug my Hope; it was a bit weird that I had kept the doll longer than I had actually known Killer, but I didn't dwell on that. Although I had only known my family for ten years, they were the best family I could have ever wanted, and I loved every moment I had spent with them; I missed them so much. If I could have brought them back, I would have done it in an instant, but I didn't have that power. From time to time, I wondered what had become of Last Hope, but I usually just passed it off as my own mistake; I probably messed up with the wiring when I was sleep-deprived and couldn't focus. In any case, there were no sightings of my family, aside from copies, which Ink disposed of as soon as they were discovered; he didn't want any threats to his rule, and that included other versions of the ones who had opposed him for a decade successfully. It was kind of weird knowing that there were others that looked exactly like my family; I decided not to think about that. After twenty minutes, the door was opened, and Fell walked in and sat next to me, giving me a smile; I returned it, happily.

"Hey, kid." Fell looked like he had news about Paps.

"Hello!" I held my Hope loosely.

"Guess what!"

"What?"

"Your brother just took on a whole section of guards and their commander yesterday."

"And?"

"He won."

"He's so cool!"