Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

You may know this story. You may have seen it countless times already. This story is about trust and friendship. It's also about fear and betrayal. That is your universe. But I see far beyond what is. Rather, I see what can be.
In the multiverse, anything is possible. Anything and everything can and will happen.
Consider me a guide through these confusing new realities.
Now follow me, as we ponder the question:
What If?

A boy meets a girl. They fight together, live together, and trust each other with their lives.
In your universe, the boy known as Mono was a loyal, caring friend to Six. He protected her, watched over her, and braved the dangers of a broken world to save her. He continued to brave dangers right up until he was betrayed by his one and only friend, becoming the very thing that chased him relentlessly, with time looping back on itself.
But in this universe, Mono becomes aware of the loop. And he will do anything in his considerable power to keep Six from betraying him again.
But he still cares about her. So what will he do?
Protect her from anything that would hurt her.

Mono leaped.
The abyss was too wide for him to make the jump himself, but that was alright.
Because Six was on the other side, holding out her hand for him, as she had saved him countless times.
He felt his hand latch onto hers, and he knew he was safe.
He looked up at his friend, his best friend.
They were together again. He had saved her from the Tower, and now nothing would be able to separate them again.
He smiled up at her, letting her know how much he cared for her, and how great of a friend she was-
His smile froze when Six's grip tightened, then she shook his hand away.
Mono fell.
When he came to, there was nothing but the sinister looking walls of flesh, all around him.
To his left, there was a chair.
And Mono climbed onto it, half entertaining the idea of using it to climb out-
And instead found himself sitting down, breaking into tears.
As he sat, he didn't even see the room transform into a blank slate. He simply cried.
Why?
Why would she drop him?
Why would she betray him?
He didn't know how long it took for the tears to fade. It took even longer for him to calm his shaking.
After countless hours, he began to think.
Did I do something wrong?
Was I not good enough?
And in the boy's mind, he began to dream of a different scenario. One where he did something different, changed something.
He wished he could change the past.
And the Tower heard.
The Tower listened.
The Tower helped.
And after a long, long time, when he was much older, his wish was granted.
Mono slowly shifted awake, a familiar paper bag on his head once again.
He was here again.
Mono was ecstatic. He could do it over again! He would show Six he was the best friend he could be.
In the Hunter's house, he hefted the axe, bursting through the door.
And there she was again, his best friend.
He wanted to hug her, to take her, to hurt her until she was his-
But she didn't know him yet.
That was alright.
He would still be a good friend.
He helped her, he was always by her side, and he always tried to make her path better.
When she was taken by the children at the school, he was almost instantly there, freeing her from the clutches of the bullies.
“That's what friends are for!”
That's what he said every time he would help her.
Because after all, who could be a better friend than him?
Six was taken again.
It was alright, it was only the shade he had left behind to keep the broadcast running. Six would be safe.
Her best friend would never let her down.
When he grabbed her hand again, he looked up, waiting for Six to pull him up and let him know he was her friend-
Six let go. Mono fell.
He tried again. This time, maybe he would save her from everything first. Nothing would capture her while Mono was around!
He broke down the door again, changing his words slightly.
“Hi! I'm Mono. I'm here to save you!”
And save her he did. This time, he pulled Six under the locker that fell and waited until the chattering bullies gave up.
He stood up to his older self, now a puppet for the Tower, before he could take Six from him.
Their battle reached the Tower anyway, and as Mono ran from the walls of flesh, he smiled. He had saved Six from everything, protected her from anything. This time she would be alright. They would be alright.
Six let go. Mono fell.
Okay, so that wasn't the way to go. Should he just be quieter? Six was quiet, maybe he should just let her be for a while.
Six let go. Mono fell.
He tried a different tactic. Maybe if he stayed in the rooms with the patients long enough, Six would realize that she missed him and couldn't be without him.
So he sat, his flashlight pointed at the door with the patients, waiting Six out.
Eventually, he started to wonder what Six was doing. Was she okay? Was she safe?
He hissed through his teeth, but forced himself to keep waiting. His mind kept flashing images at him, of Six hurt, of Six crying in a corner, of Six in the Doctor's clutches, of Six dead-
Mono found himself running, screaming for Six, shouting for all the city to hear that he was coming for her.
And there she was, safe and sound, and he was hugging her, crying into her shoulder.
Six returned the embrace, and Mono felt a piece of himself burst.
Did he do it right this time?

Chapter Text

Six let go. Mono fell.
Emotions swirled. Anger rose.
Six thought she could live without him?
Fine.
That was fine with him.
She could stay with the bullies until he was done with his future self.
Soon enough he was outside the door, hammer in hand, listening to the bullies screech and Six's cries of pain. He stood listening, already poised to go around and get to the city faster-
But he couldn't.
His heart broke again.
That's not me, that's not me, that's not me-
All he saw was static as he crushed two heads.
Dropping to the ground, he began to sob again.
“I'm sorry, I'm sorry Six, I'm so sorry.”
He felt her arms around him, but he couldn't return the embrace.
He was a terrible, terrible person.
Six let go. Mono fell.
Six let go. Mono fell.
Six let go. Mono fell.
Six let go. Mono fell.
Six let go. Mono fell.
Six let go. Mono fell.
Six let go. Mono fell.
Six let go. Mono fell.
Mono sat on his chair, head in his hands, crying into the emptiness that was the Tower.
He screamed, loud and long, a scream amplified by his powers, filled with pain and misery and anguish.
He didn't want to try again. He wanted to drown in his pain. He didn't want to have to do it all over again.
“Why can't we just be happy?” Mono yelled into the void.
And then he was in the forest again.
He didn't want to go on, but he couldn't die.
He had to save Six.
Something had changed. Mono was far more than he had been, and he knew it.
When Six was taken by the bullies again, something had snapped inside him.
These monsters had taken her from him.
They had stolen her from him.
That would never happen again.
He didn't realize how long he had been on his rampage until the static cleared from his eyes and he saw Six on the ground in front of him-
Looking up at him with fear in her eyes.
He quickly bent down and smiled.
“It's alright. I've got you. You're safe now.”
He didn't see Six shiver. He was too busy keeping her safe.
When the Doctor's hands leaped from their hiding places, he was already grinning.
He didn't look behind him, so he didn't see the small figure trembling in a ball in the doorway, watching him crush those hands over and over again long after they stopped moving.
Mono turned around and sighed, knowing that Six was safe again. “Hey, it's alright. I'll always be here to keep you safe.”
Six didn't know her friend anymore.
She had seen him save her countless times already, but each time he seemed to grow more and more violent. He was always by her side, speaking softly to her, but she had seen him destroy anything that wasn't her without a second of hesitation or remorse.
There was a difference between killing to survive and what Mono was like. She could swear she heard him laughing as he pulled the switch on the incinerator.
She had to get away. She had to run.

Chapter Text

Six was gone.
Quietly, Mono called Six's name. When she didn't answer, he called a little louder.
There was no answer.
Then Mono realized what had happened.
She was leaving him.
She couldn't leave him.
She had to be safe.
And after all, he was the only one that could keep her safe.
Almost in a daze, he played out the fight with himself again.
Now he would find Six.
He called on his power, using all the forces he could command to spread into every television in the city.
And there she was, crouching in front of a store.
Found you!
Mono began to giggle, and soon found he couldn't stop himself from laughing.
Six really needed to stop playing hide and seek.
She could get hurt.
Six saw the TV switch off, and heard the Viewer growl in outrage.
She ran, and as she ran, she saw a stampede of them flooding after her, as she felt that something had gone very wrong-
And just as suddenly, there was silence. Six peeked out to see all the Viewers just gone.
And then, a soft, happy voice sounded from around a corner, filled with laughter.
“Oh, Siiiiiiiiiix!”
Six stumbled backwards, trying to get away from the madness in that voice.
“Come out, Six! Where are you hiding?”
Six crept into the eerily quiet store, quivering as the very familiar voice passed by the door.
“Six, you could catch a cold out here! Don't be this way!”
Six curled into a ball underneath the shelf and waited for Mono to continue on.
The voice grew a little quieter. “You know that I'll find you eventually…”
Six forced herself to breathe, hearing Mono's footsteps fade away.
She didn't understand what was happening, or why her only friend was becoming as bad as the monsters that had chased her, maybe even worse.
“There you are!”
Mono's upside down head came into her view all at once, his wide mad eyes staring into hers in an expression of pure glee.
Six screamed.
When she opened her eyes, all she could see was a soft pink glow.
Six stretched, feeling blankets shift. Fully opening her eyes, she glanced at her surroundings.
Her raincoat was hanging on a hook near the bed she was in, and toys were scattered all over the floor.
Then she noticed the music box sitting in the middle of all of it.
Six knew it was probably a bad idea, but it did look better than her old one.
She heard a hiss of static behind her, and there was Mono, shifting from one foot to the other.
“Um, I made you a new box,” he said softly.
Six carefully made her way out of the bed, keeping her eyes fixed on this boy who for all the world looked shy.
But she could remember his laughs as he had chased her, and she had to force herself to remember that Mono was not himself anymore.
She grabbed the handle of the music box and began to turn it, watching him out of the corner of her eye.
Mono watched Six, and he gave a sigh of relief.
Six was safe.
He had fixed it.
They'd be together forever now.
Nothing could change that.
He smiled at Six.
“I'll bring you some food in a bit, alright?”
He didn't even hear himself giggling as he left the room. He was far too happy to pay attention.
Six blinked at Mono's sudden disappearance, cautiously waiting for his return.
When he did return, he was carrying a steaming tray of different foods. There was even a cupcake sitting in the middle. Where had he found all of that?
Mono grinned as he set the tray down, watching Six set her music box down and pick up the fork.
She was still really quiet, and she obviously didn't trust him.
That was fine. She'd learn how much he cared for her. He'd show her. He'd give her anything she wanted.
“Is there anything else you want, Six?”
Six swallowed, looking up at her friend.
“I want to leave.”
Mono's smile froze. “What was that?”
“I want to leave.”
Mono's grin slipped, and for a second Six saw something deep inside his eyes.
Something painful and dark.
The next second Mono had his smile back so fast it was almost unnerving.
“Of course, Six! Anything you want.”

Chapter Text

Outside, the Pale City was brighter than it ever had been before.
Mono led Six down the street, clutching her hand in his.
“This place looks nice, Six!”
Six stared up at the looming building, the signage on it long since fallen into pieces. All she could see was that it had once been a store for clothing.
She glanced around nervously, as Mono was giving no care to his volume any longer.
Nothing jumped out at them. In Six's mind, that was even more disturbing.
The next thing she knew, Mono was tugging on her hand. “Cmon, Six! Let's go!”
Reluctantly Six allowed herself to be pulled along.
All the clothes inside were dusty, and very faint music played from some hidden speakers.
“Ooh, Six! Look at this one!”
Six turned to see Mono holding up a tiny dress, fit for a child. It was bright yellow and had a tag on it with a cartoon princess's face on it.
“You'd look really good in this one, Six!”
Why was he acting like nothing was wrong?
Like the world wasn't broken?
Six slowly shook her head. “I don't really want to-”
And then she stopped.
Mono was smiling, but that smile wasn't in his eyes.
He looked dangerous.
Maybe it would be safer to play along for now.
Sighing, she took the dress from Mono.
Mono pointed. “The changing rooms are over there, I think.”
Six nodded, and let Mono show her the door.
As the door shut, Six looked around for something, anything-
There was a grate on the far wall.
It was loose.
Six ran over to it and began to pull. She heard the metal squeak softly.
So when the grate squeaked, she missed the tinny music shut off.
Six carefully set the grate down on the ground, then began to hoist herself into the hole.
A low, menacing growl sounded behind her, and she turned to see a blank-faced Viewer standing right in the doorway.
Frantically she turned to the grate, only to see a dead-end wall directly in front of her.
Hadn't the grate led somewhere before?
A loud screeching noise sounded, and the Viewer began to glow, in preparation to steal her life force.
Six heard static hiss, and there was Mono, facing the Viewer.
She watched in horror as Mono calmly raised a hand, a tiny figure before a massive monster, and made a small gesture of squeezing.
The Viewer's head exploded in static.
Mono turned, and Six shrank back at the look in his eyes. Every ounce of Mono radiated fury,
She shut her eyes, and then felt a soft hand on her shoulder.
“Are you alright, Six?”
Six glanced up at Mono's concerned face, and stood up, pushing his hand away. “Did you do that?”
Mono frowned. “What? Save you?”
“No! Did you…”
Six suddenly felt dizzy. Had the Viewer taken some of her energy?
Mono caught Six before she fell, and the last thing she heard was Mono's voice.
“It's okay. You must be exhausted. You're alright. Let's get you back home.”
As Mono carried Six back to her bed, his emotions churned.
That thing had gotten out of his control too quickly.
It had almost killed her.
She's safe now, she's safe now, she's safe now.
Mono placed her in the bed, then hung her new dress up beside her coat.
He pulled up a chair and watched Six sleep. He would take good care of her.
He rocked back and forth, hugging his knees to himself, feverishly muttering and giggling to himself.
Six is safe, Six is safe, Six is safe, Six is safe.
Six is mine, Six is mine, Six is mine, Six is mine.
Forever and ever and ever and ever.

Chapter Text

Six stirred, opening her eyes to see Mono dozing in a chair. Quietly she tried to move, and found that she couldn't.
As if her movement was an alarm bell, Mono's eyes opened, and he grinned at Six.
“Are you feeling better?”
Six groaned, her head pounding.
“That's okay, Six!” Mono gestured to her bedside. “I got you food again.”
Six glanced over to the tray on the dresser beside her. It looked even better than it had yesterday.
Her stomach growled loudly. Mono snickered. “Someone sounds hungry!”
Six glared at the boy in front of her, but also found herself shoving a piece of bacon into her mouth.
As the days went by, Mono continually found new ways to keep Six engaged, such as finding a working DVD player and a TV that didn't have a signal antenna.
While Six rested and got better, Mono was always by her side, making sure she always had what she needed.
Six wouldn't have minded all of this, honestly Mono was still acting somewhat normally, except for the fact that her room had no door.
And that every time she brought up going out again, Mono just laughed, shook his head, and whispered, “Do you think you could handle it?”
She always seemed to be tired after those conversations, so Mono got her music box out and sang softly to her until she would fall asleep.
After an uncountable amount of days, Six woke up again with no trace of her headache that had been with her for so long.
Six had to run.
She had to get out of here.
Quietly she crept out of her bed, her feet making no noise across the carpeted floor.
It was wooden before, right?
The glow of a television caught her eye.
There he was.
Mono slept peacefully in front of the TV, curled in a small ball.
Then something else came into her view.
Mono had left his axe next to the TV.
Six blinked.
There was no possible way.
Carefully she lifted Mono's axe up, testing its weight.
She knew how broken he was.
She had to kill him.
She had to kill her only friend.
It would be a mercy to kill him.
He wasn't thinking right.
Six's arms trembled as she held the axe above her head.
She was helping him.
It was the right thing to do.
The smart thing to do.
But-
She stared down at Mono, at his small form.
He was her friend.
Silently, Six laid the axe aside, creeping away from the sleeping boy.
She knew she was crying, but she forced herself to keep moving.
She was nearing a door. She could make it out.
Mono yawned and muttered. Six froze. But Mono seemed content to continue to rest.
Six sighed in relief, then turned towards the door.
Almost immediately, a screech sounded from behind her, and she spun to see an empty space.
She whipped her head back to see Mono looming over her, all of his smiling and joy gone.
He leaned over her and hissed, “Going somewhere?”
Six scrambled backwards as the walls of the room shifted and twisted into something far more terrifying.
Mono stood in the center of all of it, static swirling around him.
“I try so hard to take care of you, and this is the thanks I get?”
Six ran.
As she ran, she heard the walls crumble, and she could see the eyes behind them.
That wasn't half as terrifying as the laughter she could hear behind her.
The floor started to crumble beneath her, and she leaped across a chasm that formed in front of her-
She didn't make the jump.
Six closed her eyes as she fell, fully expecting to hit the bottom.
The air stopped whistling by her face. Cautiously, she looked up to see Mono standing over her, and her hand being held up by a force of static.
Mono looked down at her, a grin splitting his face.
“Hmm, this looks familiar.”
He could barely contain himself from laughing.
“Do you remember this, Six? Of course not.
But I remember.”
He smiled down at the suspended Six.
“Do you know how many times we played this game? How many times have you dropped me? I don't know, I stopped counting after four hundred.”
Six looked up into Mono's face, and all she saw was insanity.
“I tried so many times to be your friend, and every time I got betrayed. What did I have to do to get you to be my friend, Six?”
Mono stood up straight. “All I wanted was to keep you safe. And if I have to lock you in the Tower for all eternity to keep you that way, then that's what will happen.”
Mono let go. Six fell.
All she saw was darkness.
Six pushed herself up from the ground and tried to see something in the darkness.
Nothing.
Mono's voice came from everywhere.
“This is what you did to me. You left me alone.”
Six looked all around, trying vainly to pick out Mono in the emptiness around her.
“So here's what we're going to do.”
Mono's giggles reverberated around the entire room.
“You've lost your privileges, Six. Enjoy your timeout.”
And there was a chair. Sitting there as if to mock her.

Chapter Text

After an hour, Six was already bored.

After two hours, she began to scratch into the chair to make shapes.

After four hours, she lost count.

She slept, and when she woke, it was just as dark as before.

After a while, she could hear her stomach growling.

She had run out of tears after six hours.

After ten hours, she curled into a ball and began breathing irregularly.

After a full day and night, she began screaming for Mono.

He didn't appear. There was no food, no music box, nothing.

Just emptiness.

Why hadn't she done it?

She cried, slept, and screamed until she lost her voice.

Why hadn't she done it?

After two days, Mono came for her.

He found her shivering, in the fetal position.

“Six, are you alright?”

She couldn't even lift her head to see him.

“It's okay, Six. I'll take care of you.”

Mono hated himself.

He didn't want to leave Six anymore.

He'd never get angry again.

She's okay, she's okay, she's okay.

Over the next few days, Mono never left Six's bedside.

He fed her, cared for her, and sat by her at all times.

On the first day she actually woke, Mono heard her stomach growl loudly.

Quickly he grabbed a tray and brought it to her.

He screamed and jumped back when he saw the rat sitting on it.

Then he remembered he had powers.

But before he could move, Six snatched the rat and shoved it into her mouth.

Mono watched her devour the thing, a little disgusted.

“Six, don't eat that! That's not food!”

Six snarled at him, then finished her meal.

Mono's gaze turned black. How dare she be so ungrateful, when all he was trying to do was help her-

He forced himself to smile and forget it.

“Maybe don't eat things like that, Six. It's not good for you.”

He could be happy.

They could be happy.

As long as he had Six, he was okay.

Over the next couple of days, Six started becoming functional again, and generally stayed with her music box, although Mono did see her with one or two more rats in her clutches.

He had to pull the last one out of her mouth in order to get her to stop eating it.

Six, for her part, wasn't really coherent enough to understand what Mono was pulling out of her mouth. It was food for her. Wasn't it hers?

Mono started noticing a change in Six. She was hungry more often, and he started having to feed her at least seven times a day to keep her happy.

But she was happy.

That's all that mattered.

Mono appeared back in Six's room with her raincoat, fully washed and clean.

“Hey, Six, look what I’ve-”

He stopped dead.

Six was on her bed, curled in a ball, blood running from both hands.

Mono dropped the coat and ran to her. “ Six!”

Six groaned and her stomach rumbled louder.

“What's wrong, Six? What happened?”

Then he noticed the bite marks on her fingers.

Six whispered something, and Mono quickly leaned in.

He heard her cracked, low voice.

“ It's okay. I couldn't take you.”

Mono started to cry, although he couldn't figure out why.

“W-what do you mean?”

Six pulled him into a hug, and he heard her voice one last time.

“ You're my friend. I can't eat you.”

Mono heard Six exhale, then she let go of him.

He watched her fall on the bed.

She wasn't moving.

No, no no no no no no no no no no no no no no-

Frantically, he listened for a pulse.

There wasn't one.

Mono dropped his head and began to sob, his cries echoing throughout the empty Tower.

“I'm sorry, I am so, so sorry…”

And the Tower tried to comfort him, as it had before-

You did this.

The Tower's eyes could see the boy, and they could see the pale fire burning in his eyes. 

This hunger. It was from you.

The Tower quickly tried to reassure, to comfort, to care for-

And the Tower felt its very foundation crack, and the last coherent thought of the Signal Tower was sheer terror-

As Mono ripped the Tower from the world.

The quake was felt throughout the entire city, as the Tower literally crumbled from within.

Mono stood among his ruin, and stared into an abyss of his own making. 

Now he knew the truth.

This world was cruel.

And a world without Six didn't deserve to exist.

Mono laughed as he drew on his powers. 

No mistakes this time.

Chapter Text

Screeches could be heard all throughout the Pale City as the skyscrapers that had leaned towards the Tower for so long lost their focal point.

The resulting explosions were almost catastrophic.

Viewers fled in terror as all their televisions shut off, and pieces of falling metal and stone rained from the heavens as if the wrath of a god had come.

Well, maybe it had.

Mono could be heard through the entire city. It was as if his pain and rage had come to life in the form of the destruction he was wreaking on the world.

He screamed, his cries seeming to crack the foundation of the earth itself as Mono unleashed his powers, uncaring of anything that got caught in the chaos.

Viewers melted away. Bullies were ground into ashes. Even monsters that had terrified Mono in a time that seemed forever ago were no match for his power.

There was nothing left to care about anymore.

This world had nothing but pain for Mono.

Six was gone.

She's gone. She's gone.

And it's my fault.

Mono's heart had been ripped in two and forged into something new and terrifying.

In this world of monsters, he was the deadliest of them all.

And he hated himself for it.

He walked purposefully along the crumbling streets, cracks appearing in the ground behind him.

There was someone standing in front of him.

The figure towered over him, strangely blank eyes staring out of a wooden face.

It was a mask.

Mono glanced up at this being that dared to stand in his way, and he sensed power.

The Lady stared back down at this boy.

His eyes were wide. Tears ran down his face, but his teeth were clenched in an insane smile.

That smile didn't match his eyes.

Those eyes burned with a cold fire. 

Mono cocked his head, and began to giggle.

Think you can stop me?

Just try.

Dark powers swirled around the two figures, standing in a void at the end of everything.

Mono hissed as the static formed in his hands, all of his rage and anger focused on this thing that stood in front of him. 

Nothing could stop him now.

Once he set his mind to something, he was never going to give up. 

The Lady didn’t know who this boy was, or why he seemed so hell-bent on obliterating everything in his path, but she knew she would not let him destroy her world.

Her only home.

To a bystander, it would have been a strange fight, as neither of the opponents were moving. However, there was a storm of static and darkness raging around them, every single ounce of power from the both of them seeking to annihilate the other.

It was as much a physical battle as it was a mental battle, the wills of Mono and the Lady clashing against one another, each searching for a way through their barriers to dominate.

Mono gritted his teeth and growled, driving his powers into the Lady’s mind-

And suddenly a flood of memories washed over him. He could see the Lady’s life, her struggles, her loneliness on a boat out on the empty ocean.

The Lady had lived far longer than she should have, but kept going for the simple reason of wanting to stay alive.

She wasn’t so different from Mono after all.

Had he been thinking rationally, things might have been different.

The next moment, the Lady took advantage and broke into Mono’s own mind. 

The torrent that washed over her next was almost overwhelming.

He had been alone for far, far longer. 

He had been forced to live out his life countless times, and each time he had been betrayed by his only friend.

The Lady saw Mono’s suffering and heartbreak repeated over and over again, and she wondered how he was even standing up.

Then she saw the center of his thoughts and the thing his mind had latched onto to drive him after his friend had been ripped away from him.

Mono was in the Hospital, panting on the other side of the door that contained the Patients. He had just barely escaped.

He always barely escaped.

He’d lost count of how many times he’d done this. It was muscle memory by this point. 

Why did he have to do this?

Why was he still here?

A glint in the corner caught Mono’s eye. He glanced over, and saw a bucket of rusted tools.

The Doctor must have used them. 

Mono made to turn away, to head back to Six-

And found himself turning back.

Maybe there was a way out.

He could stop the loop once and for all.

He could do it.

Mono picked up the oversized scalpel with both hands. 

He was trembling. 

But he knew it was the right thing to do.

Six could do it.

He believed in her. 

Mono stabbed downwards.

His chest flared with pain, but only for a moment.

Black enclosed him.

But no-

He was right back in the same room.

No.

He kept trying, in every single way possible.

He couldn’t die.

Mono sat, curled on the floor, blood running from his head, crying from the pain and from his memories.

He wanted out.

He didn’t want to be here anymore.

The Lady jerked back in surprise as Mono’s pain washed over her.

Mono didn’t see her expressions, but he saw weakness and struck.

Crack.

Mono snapped the Lady’s neck.

For a moment, the chaos seemed to cease, and Mono stood alone in the rain.

He was grateful for the rain.

It hid his tears.

Mono straightened.

Time to finish the job.

The boy roared in pain as his powers burst from him.

Light.

Darkness.

Chaos.

Peace.

Everything ended.

Except him.

Mono opened his eyes to see his surroundings.

He was on a tiny piece of stone in the middle of an endless void.

The world still won’t let me move on!

Mono began to shake, for once not laughing.

He turned his face upwards and began to scream.

“LET ME GO!”

He began to sob.

“ L-let me die-”

And at the end of everything, there was nothing but darkness.

And memories.

There was nothing anyone could do.

Mono raised his head, and through his tears, he saw-

Something.

It was bright, and shining. 

Mono couldn’t make out what it was, exactly, but he reached out for it. 

He could see a hand.

Fingers touched.

And in a rush of noise and chaos, he was back again.

Staring up at his best friend.

Six cocked her head and studied Mono, completely broken down and crying below her.

All she could hear was his whispers.

“I’m sorry, Six. I was wrong.”

Mono shut his eyes.

And waited for it to happen again.

Six grunted, then pulled on Mono’s arm.

Mono’s eyes flew open as Six dragged him upwards and into the screen.

The two friends lay on the ground, breathing hard.

As they stood up, looking at each other, Mono knew something had changed.

Six stepped up directly in front of her friend and looked into his eyes.

Mono gave Six a small, hopeful smile.

Six slapped him. Hard.

Mono didn’t even realize he was on the ground until a full two seconds after the slap.

He stood up, then sighed.

“I deserved that.”

Six nodded.

Mono turned to face the unknown, Six at his side.

This was better.

He didn’t know where they would go, but he knew they’d be alright.

And as they walked away, Six’s stomach gave no trace of hunger.

One life, repeated over and over.

This universe brings me pain and sadness. But it also brings great joy. 

It reminds me that no matter what your friends may say or do, they are still your friends.

A boy and girl forgave each other.

Even after what they had been through.

And you may have questions.

All I will say is that I cannot allow the universe to be destroyed.

There will always be something to save.

Until the next universe.

THE END