The Rose-Hospital Mystery

The summer home's halls were lit up with warm sunlight; a lazy day with nothing interesting in the horizon. Sitting out in the greenhouse was Leslie and Rosa, the two women enjoying the peace with some hot chocolate.
“Oh, right! I completely forgot I was going to show you something Rosa.”
Leslie opened the bag she had been carrying and dumped out several comics onto the table. Some of them had bright and eyecatching colors while others seemed more reserved. Rosa picked up one and mused at the artwork showing a young boy being toyed with by a witch.
“Interesting collection.” She said, “But why did you bring them?”
“I wanted to give you a small introduction to these books.” She said, “Seeing as you taught me how to cook better.”
Rosa gave a content laugh. She was happy that at the young officer was willing to return Rosa's kindness with some of her own.
“Very well. Why don't you pick out something nice to start us off with?”
Leslie seemed to beam at Rosa's response, and stumbled as she looked through the collection.
“O-Of course! Y-You like nice love stories, right?”
She held out a book showing a young couple dancing together in a large ball room,
“This is a classic story, so I'm sure even in this form you'll love it.”
Leslie opened up the first page and, like the curtains rising on a play, the two were pulled into the book.
–
Just like a play, there were familiar actors in this story. The young couple in this story had taken the form of Jackie and her boyfriend, the two dancing slowly as a sonnet played in the background. In the darkness, the two women watched with earnest as the tale of love came to it's beautiful conclusion.
“Ah, this house really makes things like this come alive.” Rosa said as she watched, “But is that really them?”
“No, these are just holograms.” Leslie commented, “SAYA figured she could save space on her hard drives by just using our appearances and voices instead of making new 'actors' for each story.”
As the two lovers embraced one another, the lights of the stage dimmed. The couple separated before giving a bow.
“We hope you enjoyed the show.” the copy of Ruben said,
“Yep, we hope you'll let us put on a show for you again very soon~!” Jackie's copy added.
With one last bow, the two vanished, leaving Leslie and Rosa alone in the greenhouse again.
“Ah, that was wonderful to see,” Rosa said, “What else do you wish to show me?”
Leslie looked through her pile again, noting that she was missing a book.
“Hey, where did my favorite go?”
As she looked around, the door to the greenhouse was opened. Stepping inside to the two women's little tea party was Angie, who carried several books in her hands.
“Oh, it seems I'm not the only one who discovered the secret of the greenhouse.” the old madame mused, “What were you showing our dear friend Rosa?”
“Just some stuff,” Leslie said, not paying attention to their new guest. “God, I swear it was,”
As she looked up, she saw a familiar pink cover on top of the stack Angie carried. Immediately, the officer jumped from her seat to get it.
“H-hey!”
“What did I say about grabbing my stuff Angie?” Leslie chastised.
“But that's—“
Just then, a thought crossed Angie's mind and, instead of trying to get her book back, sat herself down.
“Were you going to show that book to Rosa?” Angie teased,
“Yes, it's one of my favorites after all.”
Angie stifled a laugh as Leslie propped the book open and the world began to turn black. She figured this would be a wonderful lesson in humility for the young cop.
–
The world inside the book was that of the dreadful hospital. But unlike the horrid blinding white halls of their memory, the corridors were dark.
“This is...quite odd.” Rosa commented as she looked around. Unlike the last story, they were nowhere near the actual “stage” but instead somewhere within the story's world.
“That's because this is a mystery.” Angie said, “And no mystery is enjoyable if you just have the answers presented to you.”
Leslie looked around. She didn't remember something like this in the story, but then again the last time she read it, it had been without the greenhouse's special show. So perhaps this was just more cutting corners.
“Should we look around?” Rosa asked,
“We may as well.” Leslie replied,
With their resolve set, the two began to explore the odd hospital, eager to learn its secrets.
The first of these secrets had been rather quick to find, as a warm light broke through the darkness, signaling the three women that the room was in use.
“Ah, we've found the first room.” Angie said, “What do you think is behind those doors?”
Rosa shrugged her shoulders, unsure as to what she should think.
“If I remember correctly,” Leslie started, “This is the pet room.”
Angie smirked,
“Well then, let's take a look...”
As the doors swung open, Leslie gasped. Inside, the familiar forms of Devon and Ichirou were before them. The two boys were stark naked save for a muzzle around their mouths, a collar that was chained to the walls, and a tail that was attached in a way that made Rosa turn a bright red.
“W-What did this to them?” Rosa asked.
Before Leslie or Angie could answer, Devon spoke up.
“Our masters. They have let us rest.”
The teen's voice was crackling, as if his vocal chords had been heavily assaulted. Timidly, Rosa knelt down to look at the poor boy. He had bite marks on his neck and shoulder, and smelled strongly of chlorine and something she could not recognize.
“W-Who are your masters?” Rosa asked,
“They....they're in their rooms.” Ichirou said, “They let us rest before starting over again.”
Rosa's heart ached. Though she knew these were just duplicates, she still couldn't let them be as they were. The woman stood back up and started to fumble with the chains.
“What are you doing?” Devon asked,
“I'm freeing you from this torment.” Rosa replied as she worked to undo the loop in the chain.
“Free us?”
“We don't want to be free,” Ichirou said, “We like it here.”
“Oh no, has the abuse really been that bad?” Rosa panicked,
“Who knows? Maybe they genuinely like being tied like that.” Angie commented,
“You can't be—“ Just then, Rosa recalled who she's talking to and let her complaints die in her throat. “Nevermind, let's just try and find their 'masters.' Maybe we can convince them to let these two go.”
Angie chuckled to herself,
“Lead the way then.”
As they left the pet room behind, a sense of dread began to fill Leslie. Some of those details were not what she remembered, but there was just enough right that she couldn't help but doubt her memory. She only hoped whatever laid ahead would follow her memory of the story.
Unfortunately, things weren't as straightforward.
The second room within the dark hospital beckoned them with its warm light. Entering the room, they could tell from its regal appearance that this room belonged to one of the 'masters' that the two boys had mentioned. But there was one thing that stuck out in the room: the bed was unusually large, thick curtains blocking the view of it.
“This is such a strange room.” Rosa commented, “And it smells....strange,”
“Yes, the smell is very familiar,” Angie replied with a giggle, “I wonder why?”
“Visitors?”
Stepping out from behind the bed's curtains was the form of Erwin, the man bearing only a pair of boxers to cover his dignity.
“Ah, hello ladies,” The doctor said, “Welcome to the rose hospital. Have you come to learn of its mysteries?”
“Y-Yes,” Rosa replied, “We have come to learn the dark secrets of this place.”
“Oh my, I never thought we would have an audience.” Erwin chuckled, “Kai and Sean will definitely find it amusing.”
“Er..win?”
From the bed, the naked form of Gregory crawled out, a pair of cat ears and chained collar decorating his head and neck respectfully.
“Why do we have visitors?” The ginger asked, “I thought this place was just for us?”
“Oh, forgive my kitty,” The doctor walked back over to the younger male and petted his head, “He doesn't know how to react to visitors.”
The chain was pulled, making Gregory sit up,
“I have to punish him for this. You're welcomed to watch...”
Rosa couldn't help but stare as the doctor got to work,
“S-Such a strange mystery. A place where Erwin can do as he pleases to Gregory...”
“W-Wait a minute...T-This book is...is...ANGIEEEEEEE!”
–
The illusion shattered, leaving poor Leslie staring at a wall. She turned and saw that Rosa was still eagerly reading the book with Angie egging her on.
“Hahaha, how do you like this book from my special collection Rosa?”
“T-The things written here are terrible, yet...I-I can't stop reading!”
Leslie stormed in between the two readers, her face a bright red from both indignation and embarrasment.
“Angie, you tricked me! I-I'm confiscating this book right away!”
She tried to pull the book away, but Rosa's grip was firm.
“I-I...I want to see more. Q-Quickly, show me more!”
Angie let out another cackle,
“That's the spirit Rosa. Let's explore more of the rose lit hospital's mysteries together!”
“Baaah, why do you always have to introduce everyone to your shit tastes in the genre!” Leslie cried out in frustration, “...and don't turn the pages so fast! I can't read anythiiiing!”