Nothing much happened over the course of the night. So, eventually morning came again. Nobody was counting the days anymore, but patience was being noted as lower than ever. Luckily, for the prisoners, things were soon working in their favour.

Morning passed, uneventful and uninteresting. Two had been trying to come up with a new security system, as the keycard and code version wasn't working very well. They thought more like.. personal. Something that would FORCE them to stay unless Two themselves granted direct permission..but how? This was something he had chosen to discuss with Yellowface.

But back at Golfballs lab, she had been super busy day and night trying to build settings into RobotTb, and code him so that he could climb the building and have the knowledge on how to cause a fuse in the building. She had been working hard, determined to do this right. Luckily, the electrical room wasn't inside the building itself.. it was just all the way on top. Fries had also warned that Cloudy would be lurking up there so, to make sure to be careful. Not like Cloudy could do much anyways.

It was now the early afternoon, and the group was talking about the whole plan itself.. it felt... so bizarre. They couldn't believe this was really happening.. it had been talked and talked about, but now they were actually.. doing it. Blocky was ... so happy he was finally going to see Eraser, Clock too. Him and Pin didn't talk very much.. but... it would be nice to see her as well. Finally they would be free from torment.

He was kind of nervous to have the actual responsibility of going in the building itself and being apart of the pair to ACTUALLY free them but.. he knew the others weren't in conditions to really do it any better. Lollipop, maybe, but she would be vulnerable due to her robotics and injuries.. so he didn't mind that much because he cared for the others safety. He knew Pen was scared for him.. but also for Blackhole.

Jr wasn't so keen on letting Bomby do that, either. Naily had tried to be supportive but it was clear that she was obviously kind of anxious about it too.

The group was currently sat around, Gb off in her own personal lab room, while Pen and 8-ball were off with Liy. Everyone else was together, as Lollipop had finally decided to join them after having some personal time alone. She was noticeably quieter though, nobody talked to her about what happened a few days ago.

"How do you think Fries and Blackhole are doing?" Lightning suddenly brought up, glancing down at everyone around with a shy smile in a weak attempt to start some sort of conversation. The atmosphere was weirdly heavy.. probably because of the impending threat of them .. losing their lives in this mission.

"They probably got in." Jr commented, tossing a paper ball in the air and catching it repeatedly, leaned against a wall. "Two is stupid as fuck man.. it wouldn't have been that hard. As long as they had a good story.."

"I hope Fries knows what he's doing.." Blocky exhaled quietly, Jr looking with a raised eyebrow. "How he has planned to cover this all up after... I'd feel awful if something happened to him because of us.."

"Let's just hope that doesn't happen then, hm?" Fanny replied harshly, Blocky shrugging it off. Pen walked through the door, as he had been busy with Liy and 8-ball.. "Mm, I think we need to give Liy some food  .." He informed the rest of them, clearly reluctant to tell them this news.

A wave of groans elapsed. Fanny was the first to voice her opinion, Lightning groaning "Seriously?? Why are we STILL keeping her alive? She's obviously never going to change. " she spat.

"Mmm.. I know.." Pen agreed, looking behind himself "I.. just don't know how Blackhole would feel if.. we let her die. "

"He willingly threatened her, he doesn't fucking care." Jr tossed the ball into himself, turning it into ashes. "You really think he could care less if that sack of shit finally bit the dust?"

"I don't know? Blackhole usually doesn't do things in his own favour. I don't know what he wants.. " Pen looked at Blocky hopefuly. "I-I don't want her alive, personally... what do you think?"

Lollipop curiously turned her attention to Blocky. This must've been a tricky situation for him.. the fact that he had been the one forced to make the decision. "Well, Blocky? What do you say" She urged.

"I-I don't knoww.." He turned to Woody, who was giving him a worried stare.. "I-I don't really see why we should keep her alive, either but.. ughh, do I really have to be the one to decide thisss? Come on, guys.."

"Perhaps we should wait until Blackhole returns, then we can decide whether we kill her or not." Lollipop suggested suddenly, her legs crossed as she sat perched on top of one of the crates. "She means nothing to me. But, it would be unfair to not include Blackhole in this decision.."

Jr groaned loudly as he clearly didnt approve of this annoying conclusion, Naily awkwardly watching this play out "I didn't know she was so bad.. I mean, I know she's crazy, duh, but I didn't know she was THAT crazy.."

"She's nearly caused many of our deaths!" Lightning admitted, not liking to think of the time he accidently freed her. "She..uh.. doesn't care, like.. at all. I'd feel bad.. but also I don't feel bad..? It's not like she's going to change.."

"Pfft." Fanny scoffed, rolling her eyes. "She'll NEVER change. I don't care if she starved." She hissed coldly.

"..C-Can someone help me give her food, then? She kind of scares me." Pen awkwardly rubbed the back of his lid, looking off to his left. Blocky slowly stood and brushed himself off, sighing loudly "I gotcha, dude. I'll be right back, guys." He waved to them with a grin, joining with Pen and leaving out the door.

"8-ball has been guarding her like, all the time." Pen informed, looking behind himself to where Blocky had came from.. ".. He said she hadn't changed.. well, she's just gotten worse. I don't think I want to keep her alive, to be honest.." Pen felt bad for admitting that but, it was the ugly truth.

Blocky swallowed, looking to the ground.. "..Mm.. I agree, Pen. Don't worry." He pat his back, smiling reassuringly. The two of them went up some nearby stairs, Blocky peeking around to admire the area.. he didn't wonder around here often, mainly because it was where they kept Liys cage.

"Just in.. er.. there." Pen pointed ahead, towards a door that had a numerous amount of locks. Blocky half laughed, taking lead "Well, that was obvious.." he joked, trailing over slowly.. "Jeez, I haven't seen her in a while."

"Me either.." Pen followed from behind, peering over Blockys shoulder cautiously as he undid the hinges.. "J-Just, don't get too close.." he warned.

Blocky raised an eyebrow at Pens warning, but decided not to question it. Taking a deep breath, he strolled inside, and was met with the sight of Liy.. for the first time in, well, a while. 8-ball looked over dimly as Blocky entered, having no sort of expression.

Liy perked up as soon as she heard someone enter, swiftly turning her body around and glaring at Blocky on the other side of the bars. She looked unwell. "Woww.. it's been so long since I've seen your pathetic face." She hissed the end of her sentence with a smile, gritting her teeth and gripping the bars of the cage. "Aw, did you miss meee??" She taunted him.

"Likely story." He movked, unimpressed "Yeah, whatever. I don't plan to hang around. " he glanced to his side, giving Pen a look that signalled to get the food. Pen nodded nervously, going to walk over for a crate that was across the room.

The room itself was bare.. it was hardly lit by a small lightbulb that hung from the ceiling. There was a work table and some boxes, but it was mostly empty. Blocky crossed his arms as he walked over to Liy slowly, skeptical. "So, dying, huh?"

"Fuck off" She seethed, before proceeding to spit at him. Blocky winced, uncrossing his arms and wiping it off in disgust. "You're lucky to even be alive."

"Why do you still keep me alive ?" She grinned playfully, gripping the bars tighter and moving her face close to one of the gaps. "Is it because you neeeeed me?" She cooed chillingly.

"You wish." Blocky insulted, her glaring. She gritted her teeth "Well, if I had one of YOU guys captured, just know that it definitely wouldn't be a pleasant stay.." she sneered. Being cramped up in this cage for so long was driving her crazy, she wanted to get out but knew they would kill her soon anyways.

Blocky half laughed, putting his hands on his sides confidently. "Yeah well, good thing we're not. YOU are."

"You're always sooo confident..." she traced the bar with her finger.."I want to see what happens when someone TEARS that confidence to shreads." She snarled, smiling sadisticly at him. Pen awkwardly tapped Blockys shoulder, him turning "Yeah..?"

"Here.." Pen handed him a small brown  paper bag, it wasn't too heavy.. probably contained a few food items. Blocky observed it, reluctant to give it to her.. maybe they should just let her die.

"A gift? For me? Aw, how sweet of you." She suddenly lunged forward, violently trying to grab it out of Blockys hands as she thrusted her arm through the bars, her body clashing with the metal. Blocky backed up. "Jeez, calm yourself." He mocked her.

Blocky gave her a look of hatred, clenching his teeth before tossing the paper bag effortlessly into her cage. She scrambled to get it, desperately ripping it open to get what was inside. She was clearly starving, they hadn't fed her since she got there.

"Blocky?" Golfball called from the other side of the door, slowly pushing it open with her foot. Blocky, Pen and 8-ball all turned, Liy too preoccupied to care.

"We have to go now.." she informed, peering back at Liy with anger, before looking back at the rest of them, strengthening herself up confidently. "I believe it is ready.. come on. It may take a day or two to get to the base. So, we need to leave immediately. " she demanded.

"R-Really? We're going now..?" It felt like realisation only hit just then those moments. This was really happening now... She nodded firmly "Get your axe and tell Bomby to get something too. We're all going. " she turned to Pen and 8-ball. "You two stay here with Liy.."

Pen hesitated..hoping she was joking "W-Wait, you never said I had to so that." He worriedly looked at Blocky.. he didn't want to stay here.. he would be too worried about him. 8-ball seemed passive "Understandable." He grumbled, annoyed but didn't care too much.

"Don't worry, Pen. We'll be back in no time. Eraser will be really happy to see ya." Blocky nudged him with his elbow, giving a playful smile in hopes it would cheer him up.. he knew he didn't want to stay and understood why. Pen still seemed unsure, avoiding eye contact.."Mg.. stay safe, please?"

"When have I not?" He snickered. Golfball swiftly turned her body on her heel. "Hmp. Follow me.. " she instructed. Blocky gave Pen a weak smile, patting his shoulder to comfort him before leaving with Golfball.

---

A little later into the day, Gelatin had been on his way back from doing some translation from Roboty. Apparently the robot had some sort of statement to make, turns out it was just a false alarm and it was nothing important. Gelatin didn't mind as much as it may have seemed like.. he kind of liked having things to do. He knew he was the only one who could understand Roboty so felt lucky that he didn't have to do anything  like be on Front Row. It would've drained him..

Sometimes he helped Barfbag in the main room but she usually liked to be on her own, he understood but.. it was lonely. During his time alone he had been able to think about everything.. each day that passed the more he felt his anger towards Donut fading. Honestly, at this point he mainly only felt guilt.. and, wanted to talk to him.

He felt awkward going to see him in his room, since he didn't know how Donuy would react. He had been keeping his  distance from Donut lately but.. he knew he had to do something now. He had been leaving this for too long and.. things had calmed down. It would be okay now, right?

Of course he was still mildly annoyed about the fact Donut was lying to him. He still knew he was the victim in the situation and knew Donut still had some explaining to do but.. he also knew Donut struggled with this type of thing and would need Gelatins support so.. he couldn't just brush him aside. Plus.. he regretted some of the things he said to Donut.

There had to be a valid reason for why he wasn't telling him. He had a theory Fries was blackmailing him but.. he wasn't going to make any assumptions. It was DEFINITELY something to do with Fries though. However Gelatin was wayyyy too afraid to talk to Fries by himself so, that was out of the question.

Gelatin was heading up the stairs to his room, deciding to chill out for a little and perhaps practice using Twos power while he had time to himself.. he had gotten pretty good at using them, actually, and now understood certain mechanics of them that he didn't understand before. He felt bad because.. they were definitely more powerful than Fours. However, Donut was holding back so.. who knew? He still had the ability to heal but, couldn't currently.

Gelatin hummed and held onto the handle on the stairs as he walked up, turning the corner subconsciously once he got to the top as he knew where his room was. He hesitated as he saw another object going to the next flight of stairs, it catching his attention..

Donut.. 

Was.. now a good time? Maybe it was finally the point when he needed to talk to him. He was worried about those bandages, too. Barfbag said she didn't know what they were. He braced himself, swallowing and taking a deep breath before speaking up, jogging over and burying all his doubts.

"Donut-" he spoke up wearily, trying to get his attention. Donut was kind of lost in thought so didn't initially reply. Gelatin went to grab his shoulder before he could get up the stairs, speaking again. "Yo, Donut..-"

"HG-" Donut jumped at the contact of someones hand on his shoulder, pulling away and swiftly turning his body over to Gelatin.. he looked physically surprised to see him, but also he seemed to get nervous very fast. "G-Gelatin-" he blurted, trailing off and letting his eyes observe his features..he hadn't spoken to him for so long, so wasn't sure what to say. He tried to recall what he had rehearsed he was going to say to him if something like this happened, but couldn't quite form his words.

" .. Look, ..." Gelatin shook his head "I.. really.. don't like arguing like this." Gelatin admitted finally.. his voice uneasy. He usually didn't find himself apologising "..I'm sorry that I .. snapped at you. Can we talk? I'm worried about you.."

Donut seemed to think for a moment, but he looked super tense.. he definitely didn't expect this and.. it had been a long time since he had spoken to his friend. He tried to force some words out, moving back out of fear. "It's fine." He bluntly spoke, turning around rapidly "Don't worry about me." He proceeded to try and leave due to his nerves, but Gelatin grabbed his arm.

"H-Hey!- don't-"

Donut felt pain, yanking his arm back from him. Gelatin became skeptical, his gaze drifting towards his arm. ".. What's..wrong?"

"..Nothing." he quickly shot. Gelatin was unsure, giving a sympathetic look.. "..Please can we talk? I don't like this..."

Donut groaned in mild defeat, turning around slowly and leaning against the wall next to the stairs, avoiding eyecontact. He was trying to avoid this confrontation as.. he just felt awful about what he had done. He preferred not to think about it, as it only made him feel worse... why was Gelatin always so persistant.

"..Are.. you doing okay, D?"

"Yesss.." he replied longingly, hostile. Gelatin didn't believe him, going to speak and opening his mouth but hesitating.. he decided to say something else.

"...Look..I.." he glanced over at where one of the cameras were.. he then turned his attention back to Donut. ".. I didn't mean what I said that day. I.. know you need my help. Of course I wanna help you!" He tried to smile, but it was mostly forced. "I was.. well, it was all in the moment, wasn't it? Ha.." he laughed it off, putting his hand on his waist.

Donut was still avoiding eyecontact. "I said it was fine-" "But its..not though, is it..? " he lowered his voice.. "..Pleasseee can we talk in my room? I don't like it when we're being watched, so.."

Donut almost said no. He grunted, holding his arms softly "Fine.. make this quick, though.." he requested harshly. Gelatin felt pleased hearing him say that, his smile growing genuinely.. they were getting somewhere at least.

He went to turn around and walk to his room. Donut gave one last glance to the stairs, before sighing and reluctantly following. He had been fearing this.

Gelatin took him into his room, which was reasonably close by. He opened up his door and stepped aside, giving Donut a small smile as he entered. Once his friend was in, Gelatin followed behind and shut the door, leaning back on it as it was shut... he finally felt like he had privacy. "Donut.. I.. feel bad for what I said.. just.. know I didn't.. mean it. I'm..here for you no matter what, okay?"

"..Yeah.." Donut replied tiredly, almost dismissive. He wasn't facing Gelatin, walking into a further part of the room. Gelatin rubbed inbetween his eyes with his fingers, before leaning away from the door. "I'm seriousss! I just..got upset and, didn't know how to react. Can't you sympathize with me a little? I.. didn't know how to feel, Donut. You lied to me."

Donut felt a sharp pain of anxiety pierce through him as he brought this up again. He tried to speak. "... I said I was sorry.." he replied, hurt in his voice.

"I.. know you did.." Gelatin slowly pulled away from the door, walking up to him.. "I know you are.. you hurt me, Donut. I've like, done so much for you and, yet I still feel like you're pushing me away.." he addressed. Donut didn't reply, and was still facing away.. Gelatin couldn't tell what his expression was .

"I took Twos powers for you, lied for you and helped you and supported you
.... believed you.. did that mean ..nothing?"

Donut hated this confrontation. He didn't want to look at him, struggling to speak over the weight of his anxiety ".. Of course it did." He harshly replied, colder than he intended. He tried to carry it on, not wanting to seem hostile. "I-It.. really did." He spoke softer. " I don't..even know if I would've been able to handle the responsibility on my own, Gelatin.." confessed weakly.

"..Then.. what's the problem? Why are you still..hiding stuff from me?"

".I-"

"Are you being.. blackmailed..?" Gelatin interrupted, cutting straight to the point. Donut was surprised at the question, holding his arms and shaking his head "No..that's not it.." he denied.

"..Then, what is it?"

Fries told Donut he could tell Gelatin if he wanted to.. man, now he felt bad for snapping at Fries too. Maybe Donut was in the wrong with all of this.. maybe..he did need help. Maybe he.. was jealous of Fries... he felt like now was a good time to finally admit it.. finally tell Gelatin what he should have said before.. tell him what he had been hiding. He was so afraid of rejection, he felt so sick... and arguably teary eyed at the thought of making things worse with a confession this size.

".. Fries, isn't-" his voice cracked and closed his eyes, ".. F-Fries isn't.. insane. At all.." he blurted quietly, trying to keep a steady voice. "I've been.. working with him to.. try and support Fours side. He didn't...want me to tell you. There's all this.. stuff happening and... it's really hard to explain it all to you..." he finally admitted, keeping his eyes closed. He opened them after he finished talking, feeling so much pressure and stress from the situation and.. how Gelatin would react. "Th-Thats why.. I've been with him so much.. " he croaked.. he didn't realise how tightly he was holding his arms.

Gelatin didn't seem to reply, this only worried Donut further. He began to feel fearful that he was going to leave, hesitating to speak. He went to, but was soon cut off.

"..That.. that's it? That's what all of this was about?" Gelatin stammered, shocked more than anything.. as .. startling as it was to hear this about Fries, he.. finally understood. Everything finally added up.. this whole time Fries had been pretending? Donut must've found that out after he attacked Fries to find out what he stole from Two.. that's why he hadn't been around as much. It wasn't much less from Donuts situation, with him pretending to be on Twos side with Fours powers. Gelatin was surprised to have never picked this up from Fries though.. he must've been really good at faking it, because Gelatin was a good observer.

"Donut.. I-I would've..been completely fine with this." Gelatin half laughed, since .. everything had been so worked up over. Well.. Donut did say Fries didn't want him telling anyone. But still..

Donut suddenly felt a huge relief, turning to Gelatin slowly ".Y-..You understand?" He was taken aback.. Gelatin seemed so sympathetic and understanding over this. Honestly.. it made Donut feel even more guilty. ".. I..I'm sorry for hiding this. You..really.. believe me?"

"Well, it makes perfect sense.." Gelatin shrugged, but since he only had one arm it was hard to tell. "Unless he really is blackmailing you, ha.." he joked childishly, Donut avoiding eye contact..

Gelatin was so.. easy going about this. It just.. made him feel.. guilty. Before he could say anything, he flinched as Gelatin held his hand without warning, Donut looking over to him wearily.. Gelatin was smiling. Donut gave a weak smile back.

"How about you tell me all about it, yeah?" He looked at Donuts arms. "...Tell me about that, too.."

---