I had been Ink's plaything for far too long; tomorrow marked two years, but that was also a good thing, because I would be able to see Error again! I missed him a lot throughout the year, and he was commonly on my mind. Speaking of on my mind, Papyrus was on my mind the most; he's the best! From what I had learned, he hadn't stopped trying to rescue Error and me for even one week! Honestly, I felt that he should have been taking breaks; tired little brothers had the tendency to make mistakes, and that was the last thing I wanted him to do. As for me, I wasn't doing so well. Ink had mass-produced his new paint, and it hurt so much worse than the old paint; I wished he kept the old paint. I believed that he was using the new paint to torture others, too; I sometimes heard screams from other places, and they weren't pleasant..at all. I had died one month ago, which meant that I wasn't going to be walking to see Error this time; however, after a full year of begging, Ink did finally give me permission to visit with Error in his cell, in exchange for an extra hour of paint, which was worth it. All I had to do was get through the day, and I would be able to see Error soon; it was morning, and Ink had just woken me up.

"Good morning, Dusty!" Ink grinned. "Are you ready for a terrific day?"

"Y-yeah.." If I said something wrong, Ink might not have allowed me to see Error, which meant that I would be very good today.

"Great to hear!" Ink patted me on the skull; I assumed it was a form of praise - he had only done it when I followed his rules. "First thing's first! It's your meal day, which means you're being fed! Would you like to know what your food is today?"

"Wh-what?" 

"Today you get a magic granola bar!" Ink held out a magic-infused granola bar; that would hold me for three days, surprisingly.

"Th-thank you.." 

"You are being so good today!" Ink let me have the granola bar, which I began to eat immediately. "I wonder what's different..hmm..oh! You're visiting Error tomorrow! Silly me, I almost forgot! Is that why you're being so good?"

I nodded; he knew it was.

"Well, I can't blame you; you must be really looking forward to it! Are you?"

I nodded again, getting halfway through my food.

"I bet you're going to be so compliant  today!" Ink patted my skull. "Don't for a minute think that I've forgotten about that deal you made; an extra hour of paint. Today or tomorrow?"

"T-today.." I would rather take it sooner than later.

"You're such a brave little skeleton! Would you mind if we didn't take breaks today?"

"N-no.." Ink was taking advantage, but I couldn't risk my visit.

"That's great!" Ink laughed as I finished my small meal. "Shall we start now?"

"I-if you w-want.." I had no chance of seeing Error if I didn't oblige..

"That's a good Dusty!"

Ink wasted no time in starting my morning beating, which I predicted would last around four hours; the paint would take longer, and with the extra hour, it may have even shaved an hour off of the beating - that didn't mean it didn't still hurt, though. It lasted a total of three and a half hours, and Ink had immobilized my left arm; I now only had very limited movement of my right leg out of my four limbs, and I was incapable of hugging Error. I would manage, though! When the first round ended, Ink started the second strong with some paint. I hated paint. It was bad enough being coated in it and having to smell it all day, but Ink took it a step further with making me drink it. I couldn't argue today, though; I had to see Error. After a minute amount of fearful begging - Ink liked that - the pain started, and I had to drink it all. Sure, a lot of it spilled on my clothes, and some got on the floor, but the majority of it landed in my mouth, and whatever Ink put there, I had no choice about. That portion lasted for the rest of the day, unfortunately, and by the time Ink said it was bedtime, I had been constantly screaming for over ten hours; I would have lost my voice if I had vocal cords, but I didn't, which meant I could scream for days on end - Ink would have liked that. When night came, Ink sat next to me; I was still screaming in agony.

"That was a fun day, don't you think, Dusty?" Ink asked. 

I was still screaming.

"Oh..I forgot about that..silly me!" Ink giggled. "Well, it's bedtime now, and I can't have you ruining my rest! Sorry, Dusty!" 

After that was said, Ink unsheathed his brush and twirled it around in the air for a moment before bringing it down on my skull; that was effective in both knocking me out and stopping my screaming. I descended rather quickly into a dusty nightmare, and before I knew it, I was thinking of Papyrus; he's the best, and naturally, I would think of him whenever I could! Of course, tonight I would think of someone else, too: Error. I hadn't seen him for a year! I wondered if he had changed; I hoped not, because I really needed someone to help me, and he was the best choice at the moment, since everybody else was either a guard or a conquered civilian. Error was family, and I needed family. At the moment, my only family in the entire multiverse was Paps, Error, and Chara, but I couldn't reach Paps or Chara, leaving Error. He wasn't a terrible comforter at all; he was actually really good at it! Apparently there was a rumor that he was insensitive, but that was absolutely incorrect, and I stopped it before it grew too large. When my dusty nightmare ended, I opened my eyesockets to see Ink staring me straight in the eyelights.

"Good morning, Dusty!" Ink smiled.

"G-good m-morning.." I returned; I only had to keep being good until I made it to Error.

"Are you excited for today?"

"Y-yeah.."

"You don't sound excited..are you excited?"

"Y-yeah! V-very ex-excited!"

"That's better! When your escort arrives, you will be taken to Error; when you come back, the 'diabolical' guard would like to play with you! Okay?"

"O-okay.." That news wasn't the best.

"Now, I'm going to do a bit of torturing and interrogation!"

"Ok-okay.."

"What do you say when I go to torture and interrogate?"

"G-good luck!"

"That's right! Bye, Dusty!"

"B-bye.."

Ink left soon after that, and I eagerly awaited the escort; I only got this chance once a year, and I was not going to miss it! When the door opened, I was picked up by a few guards, and they carried me to Error while talking to me about different things, such as my brother. There was no need for me to be handcuffed, for obvious reasons. The trip took a while with my broken bones, but we eventually made it to Error's cell, and his expression lit up when he saw me; it brightened even more when the cell door was opened, and I was let inside. He immediately wrapped me in a warm hug, which I couldn't even return. 

"Dust!" Error held me close. "I missed you so much!"

"I m-missed you, t-too." I laid my skull against him.

"Are you okay?"

"J-just a b-bit..immobile.." I sighed.

"Oh..sorry.."

"That's f-fine."

"Is this what you..usually look like?"

"F-for the m-most part.."

"I wish I could do something.."

"Y-you d-do enough b-by b-being here.."

"You really know how to cheer up a lonely soul, Dust." Error hugged me even tighter, but I didn't mind. "What's new with you?"

"Ink g-got a n-new type of p-paint.."

"Is that bad?"

"I-it's m-much worse th-than the o-old stuff.."

"I'm sorry, Dust." 

"I-it's n-not your f-fault.."

"..Is there anything else?"

"S-some guard is t-trying to b-become Ink's r-right h-hand.."

"And?"

"H-he's u-using me t-to do it.."

"You mean..hurting you?"

"M-mhm..h-he's coming..wh-when I l-leave.."

"It sounds like you need more comfort than me.." Error sighed, wiping a tear from my eyesocket.

"Wh-what's h-happening w-with you?"

"Just a bit lonely..I'm really fine."

"D-does he e-ever c-come d-down here?"

"No..the only ones who come down here are the guards and you, and the guards don't talk."

"Wh-what d-do you m-mean?"

"They're either not allowed to talk, or they don't want to.."

"Th-that's sad.."

"I have a lot of time to think..how about you?"

"Th-the oppos-site..Ink l-likes to h-hear himself t-talk.."

"I'm sorry you have to go through that, Dust.."

"I-it's n-not your f-fault.."

"I know..so, what's your brother been up to?"

"P-Paps?" This topic overjoyed me! "He's the b-best!"

"I know! Has he been doing a lot of good stuff?"

"Y-yeah! He e-even s-saved Horrortale a l-lot!"

"That's great!"

"Y-yeah, a-and he even t-tries to s-save us r-really often!"

"That's the best news I've heard in...a long time.."

"W-we'll be s-saved soon! I kn-know it!"

"Yeah.." Error tried to sound happy, but something told me that he wasn't.

"I-is something wr-wrong?"

"I guess..I'm just a little down.."

"D-don't worry, E-Error! We-we'll be r-rescued s-soon!"

"Sure.." Error didn't seem convinced.

"Error?"

Error said nothing, simply holding me closer.

"We.." I didn't understand. "We'll b-be saved, r-right?"

"Oh, Dust!" Error started sobbing; I realized in that moment just how much this had impacted him.

"E-Error..it's o-okay.."

"I'm sorry! I shouldn't make you sad!"

"I'm s-sad m-most of th-the time, a-anyway..you n-need c-comfort.."

"How about..we take turns?"

"O-okay..t-turns. Y-you first; you n-need it m-more!"

From that point on, we took turns offering eachother comfort in our differing circumstances, and we did it as best as we could manage; this comfort had to stick around for a year, and we were intent on making it do so. I enforced Error's perseverance with kind words, and he enforced mine with hope; hope ran thin in my torture, and I would use anything I could get. Our hour together flew by quickly, and before I knew it, the cell door was being opened. The guards let me say a final goodbye before I had to leave for the next year, but I still wished I had more time; we didn't even get to talk about everything I had in mind! The last glimpse I caught of Error was a soft smile, as if he was encouraging me, saying, "Don't worry, Dust! We'll see eachother again!" I really needed that. When I was returned to Ink's room, the diabolical guard was waiting for me; I knew that I was in for it. I never saw his face, since it was covered by his helmet, which he never seemed to take off; that didn't mean that I couldn't feel his glares burning into my soul, though. He was in the same category as Ink for one reason: he patterned himself after Ink, and that was sick. I didn't even care to know his name; he wasn't worth it.

He was quick to begin his term, using bone attacks, blue magic bursts, and even his hands to hurt me, and he did. He had perfected his technique on me, practicing moves over and over; learning common weaknesses in Sanses, which he usually tested on himself afterwards, just to make sure; finding out what hurt the most during torture by repeating painful actions; and persuading Ink to accept him as worthy. Right now, Ink still regarded him as inexperienced, but he was intent on changing that, and he was willing to do anything to sway Ink's mind, including performing demeaning tasks such as watching a conquered universe. He was determined, to say the least, and he commonly told me that he was on the verge of piquing Ink's interest; Ink told me that he was just not strong or smart enough, but perhaps someday he would make it. Ink really didn't want anyone to be in the position the guard was yearning for, since it would put someone in a higher power level, and that someone could make threats against him for their benefit. If he ever did choose a right hand, it would be someone that he trusted and knew well; that didn't include the guard, no matter how hard he tried. 

The guard continued his term for three hours, stopping the moment Ink opened the door and saluting post-haste; he was a good soldier, but he was an awful person - almost like Ink. When Ink walked over, he examined me for a bit, making the guard stay.

"Are you sure you hit him hard enough?" Ink wasn't convinced; I was.

"I used all my strength, Sir." The guard confirmed.

"Look, I know what you're trying to accomplish, but this is not good enough! I'll demonstrate."

Ink took my broken left arm in his hands.

"When you break a bone, you never do what you did; you do it this way." Ink twisted my arm as much as he could, snapping the bones thoroughly and producing a shriek. "You see?"

"Yes, Sir!" The guard really thought Ink would let him be his right hand; I almost felt sorry for him, but I managed to suppress the urge. "I'll sharpen my technique!"

"Good. Now leave us; we have some business."

"Yes, Sir."

When this was said, the guard quickly left the room, and Ink smiled at me.

"So, did your visit go well?" Ink wasn't interested in pain at the moment; I was thankful for that.

"Y-yeah.." I winced a bit from my wounds.

"That's good. Would you like to hear about my day?"

"N-no.."

"So you'd rather play?"

"No! I-I'd love t-to hear ab-about y-your day!" That was better than being beaten or fed paint.

"Oh, really? Well, in that case, I'll have to oblige!"

Ink laid my body on the floor and began to tell me about those tortured souls he had visited in his absence; it made me sick, but I always had Error's hope to get me through.

Hope would protect me.

~~~chapter end woot~~~

Dust bean say hi to Error bean again! Yay!

Thanks for reading my hopeful writing! 

Bye!