Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Bassie awoke from her year-long hibernation, and her whole body felt stiff and heavy. She struggled to push herself out of her bed, almost slipping onto the floor as she stood up. Bassie took a deep stretch until her muscles felt normal again. She took a few steps over towards the mirror in the corner of her room, taking a nice long look at herself.

"I look horrible.." Bassie thought to herself, poking and prodding at her face like it wasn't her own. She'd done this many times before, every time she woke up for springtime. Maybe she should try something different? 

"I should wear my other outfit." Bassie poked at her face for a little longer, until she suddenly slapped her cheeks. 

"Focus, Bassie!" She told herself, opening the closet next to her, "The kids- No, Delilah expects more of you!" Bassie grabbed her blue and white dress and green stockings, slipping them on quickly.

Bassie adjusted her flowers so she didn't look like she just crawled out of bed (even if she did), and gave one more glance at the mirror.

"Hopefully that's good enough... for her." She took a deep breath to calm herself and left her room, expecting to hear the sounds of kids in the distance.

But it was dead quiet.

Bassie stood there, puzzled. Around this time kids would be bustling around Gardenview, laughing and talking with the other toons. Bassie even had her own little fan club that would wait for her (To her surprise). But, it was nothing this time. It didn't seem like anyone was here. She walked around "Main" hall, a corridor with all of the main rooms, and soaked in all the silence. It was peaceful, but in the worst way possible. She could feel her anxiety creeping up her chest.

Quickening her pace, Bassie turned the corner at the end of the hallway and walked towards the communal kitchen, expecting to see her handler. Instead, she saw someone she definitely didn't expect.

"Bassie! Oh my Santa, I haven't seen you in ages!" The red bauble shouted joyfully, hopping down from a stool near the kitchen counter and waddling over to the basket. Bassie was quickly wrapped in a tight, warm hug, almost uncomfortably so.

"Bobette?" She returned the hug apprehensively, "I thought you would be in your room by now...?"

"Oh right...!" Bobette looked nervous, letting go of Bassie and taking a step back. "You just woke up. huh?"

"Yeah..?" 

"How about we sit down for a cup of hot chocolate?" The bauble suggested, but it sounded more forced than Bassie liked.

Still, hot chocolate didn't sound horrible. Bassie walked over to the kitchen counter and plopped down on one of the stools. Bobette walked past her and into the kitchen, preparing hot chocolate as she hummed.

"Unfortunately, all we have right now are the packets of cocoa," Bobette sighed, "I hope that's alright?"

"That's fine. I'm sure it'll be good, because you're making it." Bassie said sheepishly.

"Aww, Bassie! You're too nice!" Bobette exclaimed happily, making the other toon jump slightly.

Bobette returned her focus to the two mugs of hot chocolate powder, opening the fridge and pulling out a jug of milk. Bassie watched the Christmas toon, but her head was in another place.

"Why did Bobette seem so nervous before? Where are all the kids? I'm not used to it being so quiet when I first wake up." Questions consumed Bassie's mind, her hand absentmindedly toying with the petal of a flower in her head. She would have felt awkward for being so quiet if she wasn't so caught up in her own head and Bobette's constant humming of Christmas carols. She was only brought back to reality by the loud beeping of a microwave.

Bobette quickly grabbed the two mugs out of the microwave, giving them a quick stir with a spoon. She waddled over to Bassie and set one of the mugs down gently in front of the easter toon. The bauble slid onto a stool directly across from Bassie, a jolly smile on her face.

"I hope you like it." Bobette took a sip of the hot cocoa, immediately burning her tongue.

Bassie giggled as she watched Bobette panic and run over to the sink to spit out the hot liquid. Learning from the other toon, Bassie blew on the hot chocolate to cool it down before taking a sip. The brown liquid still burned her tongue slightly, but it tasted really good for something that came out of a packet. She had to hold herself back from drinking it all in one gulp.

"That's really good but..." Bassie said as she put the mug down, ".. why is it so quiet.. and where is everyone?" 

Bobette seemed to freeze in place as the easter toon stared at her, "Ironic" Bassie thought. The ornament didn't seem like she wanted to answer and wouldn't even look Bassie in the eye. 

"Gardenview is.. closed." Bobette said quietly, twiddling her thumbs anxiously. She finally looked at Bassie, blatantly upset.

"Oh.. Well, that's okay.." Bassie responded lightheartedly, "When do we reopen?"

Bobette stayed silent for a moment, before letting out a sigh and answering.

"Gardenview is closed indefinitely, Bassie.." The Christmas toon put bluntly, "We.. I don't know if we're back."

Bassie stared at Bobette, who was clearly waiting for a reaction of some kind. However, every response Bassie thought of was snuffed out immediately. What could she even say to that?

"On the bright side, we don't have to stay in our rooms when our holidays are over!" Bobette tried her best to lighten the mood again.

"We can hang out more, and drink hot chocolate together, a-and tell stories, and-"

"Our handlers...?" Bassie questioned quietly, looking like she was near tears.

"... They.. haven't come by since the shutdown.." Bobette responded solemnly 

"Ah.. I see." She took a deep breath,  attempting to calm herself.

Bassie could feel her anxiety from earlier start to creep in like vines along her chest, tightening as her breaths quickened. But more than that, the ichor in her veins started to boil as she clenched her fist.

"I tried so hard every. Single. Day. And you're telling me it didn't matter?" She whispered to herself bitterly, her gaze darkening.

"What did you say?" Bobette asked, making Bassie realize that she said that out loud.

"HAHahaha, um, nothing!" Bassie replied hurriedly, slipping off of the stool, "I'll see you later!" She started to walk away.

"Bassie, wait!" The toon stopped, turning her head to look at Bobette.

The bauble, now standing up, had concern written all over her cartoonish face, an uncommon expression for someone like her.

"I.. I know you're upset, we all are.. or were." She smiled gently, "If you need someone to talk to, I'm here, okay?"

Bassie's face softened at Bobette's words. The Christmas toon was so kind and caring, it was enviable. The kids loved spending time with her during Christmas. She was a perfect "Main" in Bassie's eyes. Delilah would never try to replace her..

"I'll see you later..."  She muttered a goodbye and turned around, leaving Bobette alone with two mugs of hot chocolate. 

Bobette carried the two mugs over to the sink, dropping them in and turning on the water. She watched the water rushing out of the faucet, holding back the urge to cry. Instead, she held her head in her hands and let out a heavy sigh, muttering to herself.

"Nice going, Bobette.." 

Bassie could hear the faint sound of water behind her as she walked away, but she refused to look back. She was too busy with her thoughts anyway. She had spent the past few years trying to be "perfect" for Bailey and Delilah and now they were gone, probably never coming back. She was free now, but how could she go back to any sense of normalcy after everything?

The bile that she had bit back in front of Bobette began to surface as she continued walking without a destination. Bassie's hands curled back into a fist and she sank deeper into her thoughts.

"I'm not going to be replaced.. I should be happy, but.." 

"I'm so fucking frustrated…" Bassie cursed under her breath, something she wasn't allowed to do before with kids around.

The main continued back down the hallway, planning to return to her room and isolate herself for the rest of the day. She traced the wall with her hand, the only distraction she could give herself right now.

"Maybe I should have stayed with Bobette... At least then I could keep my mind off of everything." Bassie thought regretfully, guilt setting in. Yet, she still trudged forward. "No, I'll be fine on my own."

She just needed to get back to her room and lie down for a bit, take some time to herself, and just be alo-

"Why, hello there youngin!" A strained, familiar voice called out in front of her.

Bassie looked down the hallway and spotted two toons not far away from her room door. A blue butterfly and an old egg. Bassie forced a smile, screaming internally as she greeted the other toons.

"Hi, guys. Did you both just wake up?"

"Nah, we've been up for a while. It's nice to explore when it's just us here." Flyte replied neutrally.

"Oh, and I just adore having more time to spend with Toodles and Rodger!" Eggson exclaimed.

"You sure it wasn't more Rodger?"

"Watch yourself, young man."

The two toons bickered playfully. Bassie just stood there, her smile faded and she looked annoyed. It's not that she disliked Eggson or Flyte, but she didn't have the energy for this right now.

Flyte quickly took notice of Bassie's expression.

"You doing alright, Bas?"

Bassie jumped at the mention of her name, locking eyes with Flyte.

"I'm... I will be okay." Bassie struggled to lie to the older butterfly. "Just upset by... everything, really."

She couldn't completely lie to Flyte. He was probably the closest thing Bassie had to an older sibling, and Eggson was... well Eggson. 

Flyte placed the tip of his wing on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her. Bassie responded with a tiny, obviously forced, smile, which didn't quell any of his worries. 

"Back in my day, this place was full of loud, playful children!" Eggson randomly interjected.

"Back in your day, I'm sure they just discovered fire." Flyte jabbed back. Eggson responded by whacking the back of Flyte's leg with his cane.

"Ow!"

Bassie chuckled and rolled her eyes playfully. It was always this way with the two older toons. Flyte just couldn't seem to keep his words to himself around Eggson.

"Eggson, I think we all would've been around that time.." Bassie pointed out.

"Oh, I guess you're right.." Eggson said thoughtfully, like it wasn't the most obvious thing. It made Bassie giggle more.

"I think his dementia is setting in." 

"Flyte!!" Bassie nudged him playfully, feeling a lot better now. Maybe staying with her friends was better than isolating. It definitely made her feel way better compared to before. 

Flyte and Eggson bickered back and forth as Bassie just listened, enjoying being around her friends for now. As Bassie watched her two friends throw sly insults at each other, she noticed someone walking towards them. As the figure got closer, she recognized them more. 

"Of course, it's you." Bassie'd gaze darkened as worked out who it was and let out a small noise of disgust. Flyte was going to ask if Bassie was okay again, but the new toon spoke up from behind.

"Hello my friends!" The butterfly and egg toons turned to see a chocolate bunny greeting them happily. The sound of her voice clawed at Bassie's nonexistent ear drums, painfully so. 

"Cocoa!" The two older toons greeted happily, Flyte being the louder one. The other easter toons crowded around Cocoa, chatting up a storm. Bassie was left standing alone by her door. She stared at the new group that formed in front of her, envy creeping into her chest.

"You just take everything from me, don't you?" 

The main thought, staring specifically at Cocoa. The rabbit seemed to notice the basket staring, smiling at her. It made Bassie recoil with disgust.

"Bassie, Hi!" Cocoa greeted her happily. Bassie stared at her with empty eyes. Everyone could feel the tension between the two besides Cocoa. 

"Hello." She replied blandly.

"Are you alright? You don't sound okay! Do you need help?" 

Bassie's eyes began to twitch with annoyance as she spoke.

"I'm fine," Her frustration was obvious, "I think I'll go to my room now." She grabbed the door handle to her room.

"W-Wait!" Cocoa hurried towards Bassie, placing a paw on forearm, "Are you s-"

"GET YOUR HANDS OFF ME." Bassie swatted the rabbit's hand away forcefully, knocking her back into Flyte and Eggson, both of which just looked shocked. Bsssie breathed angrily as she looked at Cocoa. Cocoa takes everything from her and then has the nerve to act friendly? What the hell was wrong with her?

"Leave me alone." She spat back at Cocoa. Bassie opened her room door and stepped inside. She slammed the door and locked it before anyone could open it. 

The main flopped onto her bed face first, exhausted mentally. She heard words be exchanged outside her door and footsteps walking away. Basie didn't care enough though. 

Bassie dragged a pillow into her grasp, hugging it close and burying her face into the cool fabric.She had found a sense of relief again. However, her mind in a constant bout to torture her, immediately filled with the events from a minute ago. 

Bassie thought she would be able to let things go considering there was no threat of being replaced anymore. But as soon as she laid her eyes on Cocoa, everything came rushing back like a train. Whether the rabbit knew about what Delilah had told her or not, it didn't matter. She was still the cause of every ounce of worry Bassie had in the past. 

"I still can't stand her.. even after everything."

Bassie clung to the pillow and sighed, it was better to just push these thoughts away anyways. She would rather sleep.

She closed her eyes and thought of someone that would calm her, Bailey. She slowly drifted off to sleep as she imagined Bailey comforting her to sleep like she used to.

.

.

.

God, she missed her...

Chapter Text

Letting out a low, tired grumble as she “awoke” in the dead of night, Bassie barely squinted her eyes open. The dark ceiling greeted her, or maybe it glared at her; Bassie couldn’t decide. Her arm twitched to life, sudden pain shooting throughout the part. It was subtle at first, but slowly the pain ached like she was on fire. The rest of Bassie’s body followed in suit as the stinging spread everywhere besides her head. She felt like yelling for someone, but the name stuck in her throat.

With a groan, Bassie flipped onto her stomach and crawled out of bed, falling down onto the floor with a thud. It hurt, but not as much as the pain that shot through her body. The main pushed herself off the floor weakly; she had to use the bed as an anchor just to stand. Bassie limped over to her mirror to assess whatever had happened to her. She stumbled forward, panicked, but she caught herself with a hand placed on the glass of the full-body mirror. The toon looked up at her reflection as her eyes adjusted to the darkness.

“W-What…?” Bassie stuttered out, her eyes wide with terror. She backed away from the mirror, shaking her head and covering her mouth as if she would scream. Yet, nothing came out, not even a peep.

Bassie stared at her reflection that bore deep cuts across her arm and legs, though she could feel that there were more under her clothes. All of the wounds seemed to burn more the longer she looked at them. Dark, viscous liquid dripped from the afflictions like a slow faucet and pooled at her feet. Bassie’s body was ruined, the imperfections present and clear. What had happened to her?

Bassie fell to her knees as she gagged heavily; vomit rushed out from her mouth and painted the already ichor-ridden floor darker with more of her ‘blood.’ The wounds now felt like they opened further, spilling more and more ichor on the floor until it was all Bassie could see. Her breaths were heavy and unsteady; breathing felt like such a chore for her injured body.

“No no no no no no no…” The main tried to deny her predicament by mumbling hopelessly. The situation was too much for her to handle alone.

"Bailey, help me…" Bassie whimpered. The name felt like honey on her tongue, in contrast to the name that racked her body. She called out for her handler over and over, but no response would ever ring out. Bailey was gone and would never come back.

Bassie fell limp to the floor, lying there in a pool of her own blood. The room around her looked far away and blurry. She was dying.

"I don't want to die…" Bassie sobbed weakly. Her body felt cold as all the warmth left her. The main could only lie there and drift away into the abyss, her tears mixed with the ichor on the floor. She unwillingly closed her eyes as everything went black.

It was still midnight when the basket's eyes shot open, bloodshot despite her having been asleep seconds ago. Her body still felt icy cold, and she struggled to breathe rhythmically, gripping her chest. She coughed and heaved as she tried to catch her breath. Bassie looked around her room feverishly but saw nothing. That was the issue; no one was there for her. She realized that neither Flyte, Eggson, Bobette, nor Bailey was there with her. Bassie was alone, just like she was in her nightmare.

After a few minutes, she had managed to calm herself down enough to stand up out of bed. Even if she was tired, Bassie couldn’t bearto fall asleep again, afraid of having the same dream again. The darkness around her only made her more paranoid. She swore she could see faces and figures in the edges of her room.

Light, she needed light. Any source would be fine—anything to get away from the dark. Bassie hurried out of her room and into the main hallway, where darkness was only stunted by small bulb lights on the wall. It wasn’t much, but it made her feel better already. Bassie leaned against the wall as she walked down the hall. The main was still sluggish from just crawling out of bed, so every step felt like a chore, and the door at the end of the corridor didn't seem to get any closer. Bassie’s eye twitched angrily.

"This is fine, I'm fine…!" The basket grumbled to herself as she continued to stagger forward. It took a few more minutes before Bassie reached the cold double door that led to the lobby, and she let out a sigh of relief. She twisted the knob on one of the doors to open it but felt a sudden resistance. It was locked.

"Because of course it is…!" Bassie growled as she threw a tiny tantrum, "Why, just why...?" Can't one thing not go wrong today?"

She felt herself tear up angrily, ready to cry again. Suddenly, the doorknob twisted with a weird, blue glow around it. Bassie quickly wiped her eyes before whoever walked in could see her.

"Oh, Bassie…! I was just about to come to your room…" The moon-faced toon greeted nervously, probably shocked to see Bassie out of her room at this hour. He used his magic to hold open the door. The soft glow Astro emitted comforted Bassie and almost made her forget to reply.

"Oh! H-Hi, Astro…!" *She responded awkwardly. Astro was one of the many toons Bassie hadn't interacted with all that much. He was quiet whenever she did talk to him but still nice and genuine. Most of the time, Astro always seemed to carry a sense of calmness with him. It intimidated Bassie honestly.

"My room…? What f-for? D-Did I do s-something wrong?"

"Oh stars, no!" Astro quickly said, probably a little louder than he intended. He cleared his throat, embarrassed, and continued.

"I w-wanted to check on you because… I saw some of your nightmare… Not on purpose, I promise!"

Bassie stared cat-eyed at the moon toon, tensing up like she was about to get into a fight. Astro flinched and took a step back. He had seen something he wasn't supposed to. Now he knew Bassie wasn't perfect.

"Are you okay?" He blurted out, snapping her out of her thoughts.

The basket stared at him in silence for a few moments before her body relaxed and eyes softened. Astro was a kind, gentle person. She couldn't blame him for being a good friend, but his question wasn't one her voice could answer. Her arms went limp at her side, and she stared at the floor.

It seemed Bassie’s silence had answered his question. A worried expression took over Astro's face. He let out a quiet sigh before he spoke.

"Would you like to see the stars?" He stretched out a blue hand from under his blanket. She stared at it like a scared cat, but she still accepted it.

Astro guided her through the double door and down the hallway like a parent guiding their child. Bassie thought back to the time when she was first introduced to everyone at Gardenview. The main was a shy, nervous wreck and refused to let go of her handler's hand. Bailey had tried to leave her alone with the other mains, but Bassie would just follow her anyways.

The memory was bittersweet, though. She would probably never see Bailey again, and that realization only made her feel worse.

The two mains walked past the two empty shops, one of which Dandy usually ran. It was a little eerie to see the area so empty. Bassie could see the island in the center of the circular atrium, surrounded by 3 elevators. On the island was a singular, small tree accompanied by flowers and grass. That tree had been here since Bassie had first shown up. She always wondered how it managed to stay alive for this long.

High above the island was the glass roof that separated them from the outside. The sky was glittered with tiny stars that shone in the night, dwarfed by the crescent moon in the sky. The whole atrium was illuminated.

“Beautiful...” Bassie murmured in astonishment.

“…It is, isn’t it?” Astro agreed thoughtfully, “…I come here every night just to get away from…things.” Frustration flashed in his eyes for a moment. Bassie wanted to ask about it, but it wasn’t her place to. She barely even knew Astro and didn’t want to make things awkward by overstepping his boundaries. The basket just kept staring up at the sky, absentmindedly counting each star that lay in front of her eyes.

“If only Bailey could see this with me…”

Astro turned to look at her, and only then did Bassie realize she said that out loud, her face heating.

“That was your handler, wasn’t it…?” Astro carefully asked as she shifted, suddenly very uncomfortable. She nodded.

“My handler and I had a weird friendship. Honestly, sometimes it felt like I was the handler..” Astro giggled to himself. Bassie stared wide-eyed at him, clearly invested now.

“I remember when we first opened, he nearly had a panic attack seeing all the little kids with their parents. It took me almost 20 minutes to convince him to come out of his office.” When Astro laughed, Bassie also let out a quiet giggle this time. Hearing the lunar toon talk about his handler reminded her of the good memories, though there were few. It gave her a little bit of hope that maybe she would see Bailey again.

But then she thought about it a little more. It had been a whole year since Gardenview shut down. If their handlers really cared enough to check on them, they wouldn’t wait a year. At most maybe a month. So, now what? Would they just be forgotten, left to rot?

Bassie’s expression must have changed because Astro spoke up.

“…Are you alright?” He questioned softly.

Did she look okay, because she definitely didn’t feel okay? All the feelings from the dream tore at her heart.

“We were abandoned… weren’t we?”

Bassie knew the answer, but part of her hoped that maybe she was wrong. Astro wouldn’t meet her eyes, and that was enough of an answer for her. He placed a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her.

“I’m sure they haven’t forgotten us.” He started, “If we still remember them, they haven’t forgotten us. It’ll be okay.”

“How can you say that!?” Bassie yelled and slapped his hand away. Astro took a step back, looking surprised.

“I spent years, Astro, years, trying to be good enough for them! For Bailey. For Delilah. I tried so hard for them, and then finally I felt like I had won. I felt good; I felt perfect!”

Tears glistened in the moonlight as they trickled down her cheek.

“Bailey was the only one who believed in me, who took care of me! Now she’s gone! And… and I’m alone. I’m nothing… I’m not perfect—I’m...worthless.

Bassie couldn’t bring herself to finish her sentence. She choked and cried into her hands as she stood in front of Astro. Tears turned her white dress gray as they fell from her cheek.

“How can you be okay with this…?” Bassie asked desperately, searching for something to make the pain in her chest hurt less, “How am I supposed to be okay with this…?” She looked up at Astro.

Astro stared at her with gentle worry and pity. Bassie waited and waited for an answer. Nothing came.

“Say something! Anything!? Fucking speak, damn it!” Bassie screamed angrily and grabbed Astro by the collar of his blanket. He grabbed her wrist in fear; he looked horrified of her.

"I... I'm sorry…" He finally said. Bassie’s eyes widened as she realized she had made a huge mistake, immediately letting go of Astro. She backed away from the other man. A knot of guilt twisted in her stomach.

"Bassie, I—"

"No. Just stop…" She interrupted. She had said too much already and probably woken up the whole museum with her yelling. This conversation was over.

"I'm… I should go back to bed." Bassie thought about apologizing, but there was no point now. "Goodnight, Astro." She roughly wiped her tears with her sleeve and turned to walk away, back down the dark hallway. She could feel Astro staring at her as she stepped away, but she didn't care to turn and see what expression was on his face.

Bassie’s emotions finally kicked in as she swung open the double door. She knew she'd messed up. That could've been her chance to finally be close with someone, but all she did was hurt Astro. It would be funny if it didn't hurt so much.

Bassie jumped as heavy footsteps echoed down the hallway. Someone had listened in on her and Astro's interaction. Not good, but she couldn't do anything about it.

The main's lack of sleep had finally caught up to her, and each step felt like a hassle. The dark scared her before; now she was too tired to care.

Opening the door to her room, Bassie immediately flopped onto her bed and closed her eyes. Maybe tomorrow she would have more luck with friends. She prayed she didn't run into Cocoa, though; that would ruin her day… again…