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Ghost was exhausted. They could feel the cold metal of the chains surrounding them, and they desperately craved something, anything, to warm them up.
They didn't want to be awake. They had only slept once since defeating murdering their sibling. They couldn't sleep. Sleeping would let her get to them, which would make this entire thing worthless.
But still. They weren't sure they would last long enough for another vessel to come and take their place.
Ghost had already failed once at being an empty vessel, so it would stand to reason that they would fail again. They had to try though. If they gave in, then everyone's deaths would be for nothing.
Myla, Quirrel, Cloth, and the original vessel. All of them would have died for no reason if Ghost couldn't do this. They would-
Well hello, little knight.
What? Were they starting to spiral or was It-
You know who I am.
No. Nonono nono. Not now. Not this early. Ghost started to desperately struggle against the chains. They silently pleaded for anyone to come, to help them.
There had to be someone. Maybe an explorer, or Quirrel-
Not Quirrel. Don't think about Quirrel.
Ah yes, the assistant. He was rather interesting, wasn't he?
Shut up.
Come now, Little Knight, we wouldn't want his sacrifice to be in vain, would we?
She was right, and they hated that fact. Getting angry would give her an opening. They had to be hollow. If they didn't think, she couldn't get in.
Oh but that's not quite true, is it. After all, your predecessor was supposedly perfect, and they failed. How can you be what they couldn't?
She wasn't right. She wasn't. Ghost may not be perfect, but they could keep her at bay. They had no other choice.
There's always another choice.
Don't listen to her. They had to stay empty. No feelings, no thoughts.
You can't do that though, can you? After all, you came to this forgotten kingdom of your own free will.
She was wrong, Ghost didn't have free will. They came back because- because…
There we are.
Ghost didn't acknowledge her words. They were busy attempting to sort through their thoughts. She couldn't be right. They jolted out of their thoughts, distracted by the quiet rattling of their chains.
Against their wishes, a jolt of hope flew through their body, accompanied by another bout of noise. Had someone come to help them?
Their eyes slowly opened, flicking around the room to see if anyone was there. Nothing. There was nothing- Wait.
Ghost's eyes flew to their right, following a quick flash of movement. No one was there. Had they just imagined it?
"You aren't imagining things, my friend."
Ghost's attention immediately snapped to focus on the area in front of them, locked on the masked pillbug standing there.
They froze, unable to believe what they were seeing. Quirrel waved at them, and then tilted his head when they remained still.
"What's wrong? You didn't actually think I was dead, did you?" His question rang out, and Ghost couldn't stop their flinch at the sound of his voice.
"Ah. I see." Quirrel's expression softened, gaining a bit of pity. He said something else, but Ghost didn't hear it, too busy taking in the image of Quirrel standing there, alive.
“-alright?” Ghost twitched, coming back to themself. They glanced back at Quirrel, and pointedly tilted their head towards the chains. They attempted to shake their body a little, which caused the chains to make the same rattling noise they had heard earlier. Quirrel’s eyes lit up with realization, and he gave Ghost a sheepish grin from underneath the edge of his mask.
“My apologies, my friend, I was distracted by our reunion.” He moved over to the bottom of one of the shackles, fiddling with the lock. His eyes had the same gleam in them that Ghost had seen back during their first meeting, and it made their chest hurt.
For several moments, there was silence, unbroken except for the noises of Quirrel working on the chains. Ghost continued to stare at Quirrel, their eyes flitting over his nail, his mask, his hood…
Wait. His mask. That mask was gone, destroyed with the dreamer it originally belonged to. So how did he have it?
Below them, Quirrel froze. An orange fog that they hadn't even realized was there lifted from Ghost's mind. Their eyes sharpened with suspicion, and they glared at the pillbug beneath them.
The pillbug who was no longer there. Ghost's eyes widened in surprise, and they glanced rapidly around the room, and yet there was no sign of Quirrel.
They were unaware of the silent tear that made its way down their face as they searched in desperation.
He had been there, right? They weren't going insane?
My apologies Little Knight, I thought it would make you happy to see a friendly face.
Of course. Of fucking course. Quirrel was never there, and he never would be. All because of-
Don't go blaming me, Little Knight, you're the one that decided to go around breaking the dreamer's seals.
She was right. It was their fault. If they hadn't escaped from the abyss, then this wouldn't have happened. They should've just stayed down there.
Everyone (Tiso, Myla, Cloth, Quirrel…) would still be alive if Ghost hadn't returned to Hallownest.
I can bring them back for you, Little Knight.
Ghost knew she was lying, but…
Just let go, and you can be free.
They were tired. They were so, so tired.
Let go.
They wanted to see everyone again.
This time, when the orange haze started to close in around their mind, they didn't fight it. They just wanted to sleep, so they closed their eyes and started to forget.
Thank you, Little Knight.