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fountainpenguin · 5 months

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#Riddle watches Traffic

Doing my best liveblog of Jimmy at the moment. He's my first POV for Session 6 Secret Life and I pulled up his name without looking at anyone else's video titles. Some thoughts:

Something has happened that is very similar to something I have drafted in a future Dog's Life chapter I wrote before Secret Life even began. I am rubbing my forehead... if this ends the way I suspect it will end then I will just have to stare at a wall I suppose... sweet goodness.

Jimmy and Martyn really did not expand their single bed situation this entire time, huh? I kept waiting for them to but what am I supposed to do with this.

Joel: I want a cool nickname. Call me "The Florist."

Jimmy, who just agreed to attack his own flower husband and tell them that the florist sends their regards: ...

Holy cow he's 14 minutes into a 44 minute video and he has like 4 different tasks he's trying to do simultaneously because people keep rushing up and telling him they need a deadly favor. It's good to be Red.

Lizzie (about Scar avoiding her trap): He came around the other way! He just smacked me in the butt.

Jimmy, about his dog-shaped house: Red tongue, representing the Red Dogs. Tongues are that color, so you know what I'm saying.

Etho: ??? You like to lick things?

/Puts my head in my hands

Jimmy, inviting Etho into his and Martyn's house: You can sleep in our one bed. There's two of us. We share. You might have to squeeze in as well.

Thanks, Jimmy.

sldfj Etho asking if one of them sleeps at the end of the bed like a dog. I recently wrote a scene of Impulse doing exactly that on Etho's bed.

It's way too funny to me that when people were roleplaying soulmates on Double Life, they [at least Bdubs and Impulse, Joel and Etho] made an active effort to include two beds in their bases, side by side, even though that serves no functional purpose. Even in Limited Life, the Bad Boys made 3 beds for some reason and put them next to each other. Now when they're not roleplaying, all that is out the window. You share a bed and you'll like it.

Love Etho throwing 17 pieces of steak on the ground and asking "Do dogs like steak?" and Jimmy just grabbing all of it while looking at the ground. That's also the same thing he and Tango did when Joel threw them potatoes or whatever back in Double Life and they claimed to be eating off the floor.

skldjfsldj Jimmy and Scott

Jimmy, screeching and tearing across the grass with his enchanted iron sword: The florist sends his regards!!! He sends them!

Scott, riding away on a horse, tripping over himself in laughter: Can you return them?? Does it come with a receipt?

Martyn: I'm on my 5th red task

Jimmy, still on his 1st: ...

Red Mumbo in Last Life: /desperate for friends, constantly trying to explode people and leave without elaborating

Red Mumbo in Secret Life when Martyn and Jimmy approach: Just because I'm Red doesn't mean I'm joining your stupid gang

Jimmy: Stupid gang? Have you seen your mustache, mate?

Mumbo, running forward: Hey hey hey!

Martyn: ???? Ooh, yeah, that was kind of harsh.

Love how Scott brought up the flower husbands comment, actually. Same brain, even though it was Joel's suggestion.

slkdjfs Scott invited Jimmy to his own preemptive funeral and his expression is sending me.

They buried rotten flesh in the coffin... that's amazing.

sdlkjf They invited Grian to attend the funeral and he shows up, looks at Jimmy, and says "I checked the tab list, like... Did I miss something?"

Jimmy, with unreasonable venom in his voice: You're not supposed to attend funerals if you're still alive.

They buried him alive in dirt above his own coffin... This is my first POV for Session 6 and all I can say right now is... whoever is the reason that Jimmy's episode is titled "The curse has been broken" has the opportunity to do the funniest thing right now.

Jimmy had such a difficult task... replacing water with blue glass and convincing someone to jump on it, from a specific location? Which has a ton of water? Geez, that's rough. He is struggling.

I am astounded at the amount of confidence Jimmy had to run up the stairs to the Gem and the Scotts base and charge in, mere minutes after Gem showed him the "doorbell," and while he's in the midst of telling Pearl that he hopes they haven't rigged TNT up to it. Jeepers, dude.

slkdjflsdjf everyone is freaking out over an explosion. No death message came up in chat, but after a minute, Joel starts frantically typing and screaming "Lizzie? LIZZIE?????" and I have a feeling...

Of course Jimmy wouldn't know what the death sound sounds like and assumes someone's trying to explode stuff near him.

Watching this chat with no context is amazing because it's Jimmy cheering that he's not out first for the 5th season in a row, it's Grian wailing LIZZIE IM SORRY and Joel shrieking HEY THATS MY WIFE. Amazing.

slkdjfsd Jimmy that was so close... Jimmy, if you had died because you hit your own glass trap at the bottom of the lake while doing a celebration dive for not being out first, that would have been the funniest thing.

Jimmy, snatching up his red task and reading in monotone: Punch another player into lava. It cannot be lava you've placed. Fantastic. Great.

[It can be lava he's placed]

Jimmy, to Martyn as he dumps his lava: Have you got another or not?

Martyn: No? I'm not made of lava- what? Come on. You're sounding hella ungrateful right now.

slkdjf Jimmy on Martyn betrayal!! Martyn is furious, Jimmy's literally roleplaying that he's a pathetic puppy with a broken leg, Martyn's ready to swing like "Hey, you won't be the first out, this is fine-"

Betrayal drama at the Big Dogs on the hill...

Geez, the swivel from that to the immediate, simultaneous warden and wither is nuts.

HE'S DOWN! HE'S DEAD, THE CANARY IS DEAD! Still out the first episode of perma-deaths, even if not the first out.

Jimmy Session 6 POV complete!

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mochiwrites · 2 months

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Aaaa thank you sorry this is going to be super long but I just had this really amazing terrible angst idea thing with vampires and so i wrote it out and i think it gets across what I want it to? The more i look over it the more it feels like a vent lmao

So uh. Here. Contains blood, kinda sh thoughts, and self worth issues! No happy endings allowed!

The worst part of the late nights was how they never seemed to pay off. Grian rubbed a hand against his eye, trying to keep the lines on the page in front of him from blurring. On his way to grab a red pen for notes, his fingers brushed against the chain holding his red crystal pendant around his neck, and he paused to look over at the vampire in the chair across from him. The light from the fireplace gave him a slightly ethereal look— the low light hid the circles that Grian knew lay under his eyes, and his usual pallor was draped in a warm orange glow. His eyes caught on Grian’s, who quickly straightened the smile that had crept onto his face, hoping the dim light would mask the warmth across his ears and cheeks.

“Grian? Something wrong?”

Grian blinked a few times. The lack of sleep must have been getting to him. “No. No, nothing.” He turned his eyes back to the papers, ignoring how they stung in protest. He had to get something done tonight, it couldn’t all be for nothing, not like the cave, not like the shack. Useless.

“Actually, could you check this out? I think I need a second pair of eyes…” Mumbo muttered. Grian shot to his side as quickly as his heavy bones would allow. If he could do anything to help, anything at all—

He overcompensated for the distance between their chairs, toppling them both onto the ground. Grian scrambled off of him, apologizing profusely at the mess of papers now scattered on the ground. Mumbo shook himself off, face a little darker than before. “No, I’m fine. Are you doing alright? You look…” he brought a hand to Grian’s face, running a thumb under his eye. “…not great,” he finished.

Grian unconsciously pushed his face further into Mumbo’s hand. “I’m fine. I’m—“ he went to take a step back, save himself from Mumbo’s scrutiny, but his knee refused to support his weight. Mumbo shot an arm out to catch him, supporting Grian’s weight against his body. Grian flung his arms around his neck in panic, relaxing his grip to his shoulders as Mumbo’s hand, the one not at his face, pressed firmly against the small of his back. Grian noted the way they were flush against each other, how he could feel Mumbo’s chest move with each breath, in and out a little faster than it normally did. He understood why; he wasn’t particularly light, and Mumbo was basically carrying him at this point. Dead weight again, in a close-to-literal way.

When Mumbo spoke again, it was soft, tentative. “Grian, you can’t carry on like this. You need sleep.”

“I can’t just sit around doing nothing. Far as I can tell we haven’t found the murderer yet, I’m of no use unconscious.”

“Well, you’re certainly not going to be of any use to us if you’re dead.”

“You’ve been sleeping less than me. That’s not fair.”

“I’m a vampire, Grian. I don’t need to sleep as much as you. I’ll take a rest too, if you want, I don’t think I can get much more done today.”

“That’s— I can’t, Mumbo, why won’t you let me—“

While Grian’s voice had been steadily rising in pitch and volume, Mumbo’s stayed soothingly consistent. “Because I care about you. Because I—“ his eyes darted across Grian’s face for a moment; Grian felt the hand on his cheek shift to his jaw, thumb below his lip, pinky brushing his pulse. Mumbo took one shuddering breath before their lips connected. After only a moment— far too short— Mumbo pulled away, frantically searching Grian’s face for some kind of reaction. Grian didn’t give him the chance to figure it out, chasing his lips, his hand moving from Mumbo’s shoulder to catch in his hair. Mumbo startled before kissing back, clearly just as impatient as Grian was. How long had they both wanted this?

Still, something nagged at him, rang in his ears. Useless. He couldn’t convince himself that he deserved any of this. Why these long nights, the nightmares everything they had suffered, was it really just to kiss his best friend in a pile of their hard work?

The worst part was, he knew Mumbo was right. He couldn’t go on like this. If only there was something he could do, some way to keep going. More energy. An idea struck him— it was a bad idea, but it was the only one he had. He couldn’t do any more, but Mumbo could. All he needed was a little blood. That was something Grian could do. After all, he wasn’t using it for anything.

He broke from the kiss for a moment, long enough to whisper an apology, before rising to meet his mouth once again, this time driving pointed teeth into his lower lip. He tried to suppress a grimace at the odd feeling of blood leaving his face, knowing Mumbo’s fangs anchoring his mouth in place would make any kind of expression painful. It would have been better to get an artery, he knew, but this was the best way he could think of, the best way to put his worthless blood to use. Maybe he could have just cut open a wrist, maybe the smell could be enough, but then again, maybe Mumbo would see it coming and throw him out. He shuddered at the thought, pulling Mumbo closer against him, feeling teeth push deeper into his lip. Ah, and Mumbo had told him it didn’t work that way, didn’t he? So this really was the best way. Hands curled around his face, thumbs gently maneuvering the fangs from his mouth, painstakingly detangling him from this mess he had started. Cool, fresh air flooded the new space between them, and clarity hit him like a freight train.

What was he doing? Did he seriously consider slitting his wrist just to force his best friend into something he very obviously did not want to do? He forced himself to make eye contact with Mumbo, dark eyes meeting red ones, blown wide in shock. Hands dropped from his face, and he crumpled to the ground without Mumbo’s support. The vampire took one step back, another, then he was running. Grian didn’t get up. He wasn’t sure if he could. A bit of blood welled up on his lip, dripping unceremoniously onto the paper-strewn carpet.

Ah the italics didn’t transfer. Thats ok. You can imagine. Love you mochi!!!

🦕

NONNIE. NONNIE PLEASE COME BACK. PLEASE. IM EXPLODING INTO A MILLION PIECES WHAT DO YOU MEAN MUMBO RAN OFF AND GRIAN JUST SAT THERE I /POS /POS /POS

I’m so. Okay. Okay okay okay. I am in love with this. like I can 100% see this unfolding in songbird. grian and mumbo feel SO spot on. like sb!grian would absolutely try and trick mumbo into drinking his blood through a kiss if it meant it helped him out. I’m so. MMMMMMMMMMMM

I love this. I love seeing a potential route of “hey this could lead to their kiss or a confession” I am in LOVE. I love them,,, and I adore how gentle mumbo was and grian’s stubbornness and MWAH. this is so lovely oh my goodness

wahhhh thank you 🥹💕 and if you ever want to write a part two please feel free omg

#mochi speaks #songbird’s blood au #🦕 anon #maintagging AND throwing this on the master post

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auseryoumayknow · 6 months

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✨Greeting Post✨

Greetings, traveler!

💜🩷🩵🩷🩵🩷🩵🩷🩵🩷🩵🩷🩵🩷💜

goofy gimmick blog: @youve-been-tropiusd

Profile picture by @gummy-axolotl :) hello! Here’s some basic info about moi 🤭

Name: Please call me May. <3

Pronouns: I’m alright with any, but I really prefer they/them, please and thanks! (Pronouns page: https://pronouns.cc/@AUserYouMayKnow )

Grumbo grumbo grumbo grumbo grumbo grumbo grumbo grumbo grumbo

scarian is slowly growing on me but I’m still loyal to grumbo

I am a minor.

some of my interests include:

Hermitcraft

Welcome to Night Vale

The False Prince (book)

mcyt

TADC

Doctor who

The Dragon Prince

Percy Jackson

ShorsWars (especially CDotKom for no reason at all *cough*)

(subject to change)

also if I’m liking a lot of your posts it could be one of two things:

I’m stalking your account to judge weather I like you or not

im catching up on your posts because I like you

I had to take out the “my friends” section because I have a lot of friends now and if I tagged them all the post would get too long 😌 please know ily all

DNI if:

Sexist/racist

MAP

SamGladiator fan (Him!! 😡😡😡 die!!)

zoophile (furries and thearians are fine 💜)

New addition: homophobes and transphobes and everything under those umbrellas because fuck you

people I cannot stand:

Justin Beiber

last little note:

WE DO NOT SHIP REAL PEOPLE, ONLY INTERSONAS!!! (From like YouTube and such) (shipping your classmates and friends is totally fine because you know them irl and they’re alright with it, but we do not ship the real people behind the Grian and Mumbo accounts!!)

If I say I love you, I mean it in a platonic way 💜 (except if you’re CDotKom ily) (<- joking) (maybe)

have an amazing day!! :)

P.S.

My glorious moment 😌

Edited March 16th, 2024

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angeart · 2 months

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ok let me thing fav moments fav moments... ig the one at chapters 1 - 50 is pretty cool /j

but if seriously then i love ofc the first kiss SO MUCH it's my roman empire i swear to god. also literally every scene when scarian are cuddling while sleeping. and the... stargazing? at the top of mumbo's base. honestly that whole thing is so cool i love comforting things sm so literally every sweet moments left me so so happy. but your ability to write angst is also amazing!! overall enjoying every word. looking under a microscope. biting 'em (insert a cat gif) tbh it's such an amazing and a big work it's really hard to take some pieces out of it ? i think of so much at the same time and every event are intertwined with other ones so much that if i keep going i'll just end retelling of the whole work good work ange! looking forward for the more updatess

for the request SCARIAN SLEEPING IN THE BED NEST pls i am starving for the scarian fluff. pls.

simaa! throwing cat with hearts at you.

i've been keeping this in my ask box so that i do not forget to draw the eepy cuddles for you, but i can release this into the world now. woo! (the drawing might not have the requested bed nest, but you know what? that just means there's more reason to continue drawing eepy cuddles. win-win if you ask me.) i'll throw that art post out soon.

i am so so so happy you love hmtb so much <3

tHE KISS MOMENT is important and precious and brings me joy even if it wasn't meant to happen the way it did. (they do whatever they want.) (sometimes that's murder. sometimes that's kissing.) (we'll see where this leads hehe)

honestly the soft moments in hmtb are so fleeting, but they do deserve the appreciation that much more, don't they? everyone in that fic is constantly hurting so much, they do need that softness and reprieve. and gosh. yeah. i keep forgetting they took that break atop the mountain. the stargazing. thank you for reminding me of that <333

we might get more of sleepy cuddling scarian in this fic later! who knows! it might happen! entirely possible! i just need to hurt them some more first-

thank youu for coming here to talk to me about hmtb!

#ange answers #very very happy about all of this #i agree that the soft moments are very precious #very important #it's fun to think back to all of them #and the future possibilities #(more cuddles?)#(more kisses?)#(probably more pain)#(shh)

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rickie-the-storyteller · 9 months

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Steph's Crew - Part 19: A Special Connection

Intro:

And we're back!

I've actually mentioned this part in previous posts… this is the part of the story that came out of nowhere! But I decided to keep it in. Added some much-needed tension (and it leads to some fun callbacks/references in future instalments). And it gives a lot of interesting development to Stephanie and Bret, exploring their relationship/dynamic in a way that hasn't really been done before.

It is kind of bad, though. Like, morally. These two do something that's not so great… (I mean, they're rebels. So they're always causing trouble. But this is a different kind of mistake if you know what I mean.)

We're going to get some follow-up on where the last part ended off... brace yourselves for that lol. It's a doozy.

The start of a friendship (Flashback to last academic year)

(It's lunchtime. The library is bustling with students sitting together and studying. Stephanie is sitting alone at the only free table remaining, engrossed in a textbook. Bret walks in, scanning the room for an empty seat. He notices the only available spot is at Stephanie's table. He hesitates for a moment, then reluctantly approaches the table. Stephanie looks up and smiles at him)

Stephanie: (sincerely) Hey! You want a seat? You're more than welcome to join me.

Bret: (hesitates, but eventually smiles back) I guess. Thanks. (sits down next to her)

Stephanie: You're welcome! (pauses) So…

Bret: So.

(There’s an awkward silence. Bret glances at her textbook with mild interest)

Bret: You’re reading.

Stephanie: Astute observation.

Bret: That’s crazy. I never saw you as the reading type.

Stephanie: (rolls her eyes) Oh, shut up, you.

Bret: What's the book about?

Stephanie: Oh, it’s about psychology. It’s Elise’s, she let me borrow it when I told her that I'm really into understanding human behaviour and how the mind works.

Bret: Are you actually into that crap?

Stephanie: To be honest, no. I was just looking for a conversation starter. But I may start to properly get into it… this book is fascinating AF.

Bret: (laughs) Fair enough. (confused) El doesn’t take Psychology, though. How does she have textbooks on it?

Stephanie: Yeah, she told me that she just studies it for fun.

Bret: Ah. Figures.

Stephanie: (puts the book down) So, tell me about you. Are you interested in psychology? Or anything, for that matter?

Bret: Hmmm. Well, I've never really been into psychology. Sounds like a bunch of mumbo-jumbo to me. I feel like people are just mentally messed up, that's all.

Stephanie: Well, not everyone can appreciate the wonders of the human mind. But you never know, maybe one day you'll find something in psychology that piques your interest.

Bret: I highly doubt that, but I'll keep an open mind, just for you. Since you’re new and all.

Stephanie: Why, thank you very much!

Bret: How has your first week been?

Stephanie: Much better than most of my first weeks at new schools. I think I'm going to like it here a lot. Could've done with a little less attitude from you, though… just saying.

Bret: It's all just part of my charm, Steph. You'll get used to it.

Stephanie: (laughs) You know, I sense that underneath your laid-back exterior, there’s a hidden deep and intellectual side just waiting to be discovered.

Bret: Well, you really shouldn't get your hopes up too high, Stephanie. You get easily disappointed that way.

Stephanie: I doubt that, Bret. I believe that everyone has potential.

Bret: You're beginning to sound a lot like El, you know.

Stephanie: Well, she's right. She's pretty great, you know. I've only known her for a week and I already love her so much.

Bret: Yeah, she's an amazing friend. I'm really lucky to have someone like her.

Stephanie: Yeah. (pauses) But she makes a good point, you know. Everyone has potential. Even you. You just need to believe that.

(The two smile at each other, sharing a moment of connection. A spark of curiosity and possibility flashes through the air. Little did they know, this encounter would be the start of a complicated but transformative friendship)

Stephanie: And besides, your best friend is a total brainiac. She’d be happy to help get you interested in more academic and creative pursuits.

Bret: (laughs) Really? I don’t think El has the time to waste on hopeless causes such as those. But who knows?

Drunk, lonely, miserable losers

(Stephanie is chilling at home alone in the evening. She's sitting on her sofa and finishing off some homework. Suddenly, there's a knock on the door. She heads to the door and opens it, seeing Bret. He looks stressed out about something)

Stephanie: Bret?

Bret: Hey, Steph. Nobody else is here, right?

Stephanie: Uh, no. Why?

Bret: Cool. (immediately walks in and heads into the living room. Stephanie follows after)

Stephanie: Bret, are you okay? Also, where’s Elise? Lately, you two never seem to be apart.

Bret: We're going through a weird thing right now.

Stephanie: Define "weird."

Bret: We kind of had an argument.

Stephanie: What?! Why?!

Bret: Because I lashed out at my aunt right in front of her. She came over ours and she had to witness a whole screaming match.

Stephanie: Damn, bro. That's a lot.

Bret: (sighs) Yeah.

Stephanie: Aw, poor El. (pauses) Why did you fight with your aunt, Bret?

Bret: It was about Gordon.

Stephanie: Gordon? Your uncle Gordon? The one with the radio show?

Bret: (voice laced with bitterness) Yeah. Him.

Stephanie: Oh, I used to listen to him all the time! He's so funny, oh my gosh… (trails off when she notices how angry and upset Bret is) Ahem. Sorry. What seems to be the problem with Gordon? Why are you fighting with your aunt about him?

Bret: Well, for starters, he's the same prick who threw that damn party, the one my parents were driving to when… when they died.

Stephanie: Yeesh… (pauses, then proceeds gently) Ok. So, what exactly happened with you and Elise? I mean, does she even know you're here right now?

(Bret looks away, unable to answer, and instead takes a step forward)

Stephanie: I'll take that as a "no."

Bret: No one knows. (pauses) Here's the thing - both me and Aunt Rach hate Gordon, for different reasons. I guess I was just angry that she was kind of invalidating my feelings towards him. I tried explaining that to El, but she just… she doesn't get it. Nobody does.

Stephanie: I- um… Ok. But you guys are going to be ok, right? Like, you're still together? You're not broken up?

Bret: Well, no. But we haven't spoken since it happened that night. And now, I'm all confused. I have no frigging clue what to do with myself. Normally when I get like this, I go talk to El about it, but I have no clue how to talk to her about this.

Stephanie: (trying to get him to leave) I think you should just go to her now. Have a proper conversation about this with her as soon as possible. I mean, you can't avoid this forever, man. And Elise really loves you! She cares about you so much, I'm sure she'll understand-

Bret: That's just it, though. She cares so much. You know how she's like… It's like all everybody else's problems are her problems. And I have so many problems! I don't want to be a burden on her. Not like how I was before… you know, like back when I broke her favourite vase last term and almost ruined our friendship. And other stuff like that. I don't want to stress her out with all the crazy shit that I have to deal with.

Stephanie: (sympathetically) Oh, Bret… come here (she hugs him)

Bret: (whispering) I feel stuck. And I can't really talk to my aunt, either, since we're still not exactly on speaking terms right now.

Stephanie: A bit grudgy still?

Bret: Yep. (sighs) I just didn't want to be alone right now.

(Stephanie nods, sensing his need for comfort)

Stephanie: Don't worry. You're not. I'm here for you, ok? You're more than welcome to stay. I've got beer in the fridge if you want any.

Bret: (smiles) Ah. You get me.

(Stephanie chuckles and the two stop hugging. Then, she walks to the kitchen, and Bret follows, taking a seat at the counter. She returns with two chilled bottles, handing one to Bret)

(20 MINUTES LATER - Stephanie and Bret are hanging out in the living room, sitting on the floor. They are clearly getting drunk, and there are beer bottles scattered around the room. They are just laughing and joking around about their problems)

Stephanie: Bro, why don't you just say you're sorry? You could literally solve all you're problems with your aunt by just manning up and being the bigger person in all this.

Bret: Look, look, it's a pride thing, alright? It's a matter of pride.

Stephanie: (giggling) Fair enough. And I mean, I'm one to talk. I'm like, never the bigger person. EVER.

Bret: It's overatted, Steph. Being petty is way more fun.

Stephanie: Amen to that.

(The two clink their bottles together)

Stephanie: (sighs) I had a pretty bad fight with Ben just last week.

Bret: Oh? Do tell.

Stephanie: I had a horrible nightmare about him cheating on me one night, and I interrogated him on the phone the next day.

(Bret starts laughing hysterically at this)

Stephanie: Yep. That's pretty much how Ben initially reacted as well. He was all like, "You know I'd never do that to you, Steph. Calm the fuck down, will you?"

Bret: Well, he WOULDN'T. You should know that by now.

Stephanie: I've prided myself in the past… on being a strong independent woman. Like, I've always seen myself as "THAT bitch." But as it turns out, I'm hella pathetic.

Bret: Oh, don't say that…

Stephanie: It's true! I'm like, super attatched to my man, bro. I can't live without him! I need him around! I've been all depressed and lonely since Ben left.

Bret: Well, long distance is tough, Steph. I bet Ben is finding it hard, too.

Stephanie: Lately I've been struggling a lot, you know? With Ben being so far away, it's hard to keep the relationship strong. I just miss him so much, it almost physically hurts.

(Bret's gaze softens, and he looks at Stephanie with genuine concern.)

Bret: I'm sorry. Genuinely can't imagine how difficult that must be for you, Steph. But you're strong, and you guys will make it work. I know you can.

(Stephanie forces a smile, appreciating his words)

Stephanie: Thanks.

(10 MINUTES LATER - They've changed topics back to Bret and his issues. Bret is still sitting on the floor, but Stephanie is now lying down on the sofa, her homework shoved underneath a cushion and completely forgotten about)

Stephanie: And what about you, Bret? It seems like you've been dealing with this whole thing in the wrongest way possible.

Bret: Right, 'cause you're such an expert at dealing personal issues. Weren't you the same girl that literally travelled to Austria in the middle of the school year just because she was depressed?

Stephanie: (laughs) Shut up! This isn't about me. Look, aren't there other people you could talk to about your problems? Like El? Why haven't you talked to El, again? I mean, don't you always talk to El about your shit?

Bret: Move. (stands up and tries to sit on the sofa. Stephanie adjusts herself so that there's space for him) I HAVE tried to talk to Elise about it. Once. And I've thought about going to her again and discuss it properly. Try and make things right.

Stephanie: Yeah. You really should! Properly.

Bret: I want to. But it hurts.

Stephanie: What do you mean?

Bret: Talking to anyone about Gorden just hurts SO much. I can't help but blame my uncle, even if it’s wrong or “unfair”, as aunt Rach puts it… and I don't want to burden her with all of this.

(Stephanie sits up and reaches out, gently placing her hand on Bret's)

Stephanie: Ok, but you don't have to keep things to yourself. I really do think you should talk to Elise. I know it's hard, but you can't let this tear your relationship apart.

Bret: I know.

Stephanie: El is my best friend. And you're her first real relationship, which is a huge deal, you know? I don't want you to hurt her.

Bret: I don't want to hurt her, either. I care about her a lot.

Stephanie: Don't be afraid of being vunerable. That's what relationships are all about. She deserves your honesty, Bret. And I doubt that there's anything that you could say or do that could make her stop loving you. I'm being serious. Like, aside from your aunt, I'd say she's probably your biggest supporter in the world. She cares so much. You just need to let her in.

Bret: You're right. I'll tell her. I should probably patch things up with my aunt first, though.

Stephanie: Yes! Make amends with Rachel and have a deep chat with El. That's the way to go. And don't forget that you have us, too. Dylan, Alice and me. We're your friends. We're all here for you too, whenever you need.

(Bret's fingers tighten around Stephanie's. Stephanie gives Bret's hand a supportive squeeze)

Bret: Thanks, Steph. For everything.

Stephanie: Anytime.

(Bret's eyes meet Stephanie's, and the two of them stare at each other in silence. Then, they start to lean in closer, their faces inches apart, until Bret abruptly stops)

Bret: Wait. What are we even doing right now?

(Stephanie gasps softly, her eyes widening in realisation)

Stephanie: I… I don't know. It just- you looked like you wanted to-

(Bret's expression shifts from confusion to shock, tears welling up in his eyes)

Bret: (whispering) I did.

Stephanie: (softly) Me too.

Bret: Oh my God. I’m the worst boyfriend ever…

Stephanie: Hey. It's ok…

(Stephanie's heart sinks, and she reaches out to give Bret a hug. He shrugs her off)

Bret: Stop!

Stephanie: Dude, it's ok. Shh. It’s going to be alright.

Bret: What are you talking about?! No it isn’t … Also, how can you be so calm right now, Steph?! You were about to cheat, too…

Stephanie: Yeah, but I didn’t. And neither did you. We’re not terrible people, Bret. We’re just drunk, lonely, miserable losers in need of some love and comfort right now. That’s all.

Bret: Oh my God… promise me you won't tell anyone about this?

Stephanie: I promise, Bret. This stays between us.

Bret: Ok.

(There's a long, awkward silence between them. Neither of them feel comfortable making eye contact)

Bret: I-I should go. Yeah. I'll go. Bye.

(Bret stands up and leaves the room. Stephanie's gaze follows him, but she stays seated and doesn't move)

What's going on? (Flashback to the fight earlier)

(Bret goes to his aunt's room, clutching Gordon's letter in his left hand. He knocks)

Rachel: Bret?

Bret: (bursts in) Hey. So, we need to talk. Right now.

Rachel: (organising her sewing kit) Ooookay. What's going on?

Bret: (confused) Wait, what are you doing?

Rachel: Oh, I've been trying to get back into crafts. I was about to make this! (shows Bret a picture of some basic sewing art - a pink love heart)

Bret: Oh. 'Kay. Moving on… I can't believe you'd do this!

Rachel: Uh… do what?

Bret: Talk to uncle Gordon! And then keep it from me!

Rachel: (surprised) What? What do you mean? Wh-where is this even coming from?

Bret: Well, for starters, I know about the letter.

Rachel: What letter?

Bret: This letter! (passes it to her) Man, this probably isn't even the only letter he's sent you. What, you guys are communicating through letters now?! This isn't the olden days! Email and texting are a thing, in case you didn't know-

Rachel: Honey, calm down. This is the first and only letter he's sent me.

Bret: Really?

Rachel: Yes!

Bret: Ok. (sighs) You're not going to write back, are you?

Rachel: (shakes her head) No. Of course not.

Bret: Good. We don't need his bullcrap. God, the nerve this guy has to just show up whenever he wants and bring a ton of confusion and chaos and hell..

Rachel: Well, we're going to be seeing a lot more of him from now on. He's moving back into the area.

Bret: Yeah. I know. Does he insist on just making life harder for-

Rachel: (interrupts) Wait, how did you know that? You didn't read the letter, did you?

Bret: (sits on the bed next to Rachel) What do you think?

Rachel: (hopefully) You didn't?

Bret: Come on, aunt Rach. Have you ever met me?

Rachel: YOU DID?!

Bret: Yeah. I was about to get into that-

Rachel: How could you?! That letter was meant for me to read, Bret! ME! You can't just disrespect a person's privacy like this.

Bret: Not even when the letter's about me? Because a lot of it was about me. And my mum and dad.

Rachel: Honey, I wouldn't read something that's addressed to you, so you shouldn't read something that's addressed to me!

Bret: That's kind of rich coming from you…

Rachel: What is that supposed to mean?

Bret: You used to read my journal!

Rachel: Alright, now that is just-

Bret: Don't even try to fucking deny it! I know you did!

Rachel: Ok, but it was back when you first moved in! Like, look at it this way - you were in this terrible state, you were all depressed, you're parents had just died and I was worried about you. You were clearly struggling! I actually thought you were going to like… hurt yourself, or something. I just wanted to know how you were doing, because you were clearly not willing to share anything with me yourself-

Bret: That's still invading a person's privacy, aunt Rach!

Rachel: I KNOW! I know. (sighs) I'm sorry.

Bret: It's ok. (pauses) I'm sorry, too.

Rachel: Oh, honey. Come here. (wraps an arm around him and pulls him into a warm hug)

Bret: Why is he even trying to reach out to us, anyway? What does he want with you? And why now? Why not before?

Rachel: I don't know, dear.

Bret: And why are you even letting this happen?

Rachel: What?!

Bret: Why are you giving him the time of day? Like, you took the time to actually read his letter instead of throwing it out immediately. He's your ex for a reason. When an ex tries to text me after ages of no contact, I block 'em.

Rachel: (chuckles) Well, I was married to this ex for 5 years. And before that, he was my boyfriend throughout most of high school, so it's slightly different for me.

Bret: Hmm. Still though…

Rachel: Hmmm. I do have a confession to make, though. This isn't the first time I've heard from him recently.

Bret: Wait… what?! (breaks the hug) But you said that he’s only sent you the one letter-

Rachel: Yes, that’s true. But that’s not all he’s done. He also came by the house not too long ago.

Bret: When?

Rachel: Like, last week? Friday. After you went to bed.

Bret: Oh my God…

(Elise is also upstairs while this conversation is taking place. She can hear the two argue, and part of her wants to go to the room and see what's going on. But the other part of her wants to leave. She quietly makes her way to the stairs and tries to sneak down them as quickly as possible… but just as she reaches the bottom, Rachel's door opens and both she and Bret are leaving her room and going downstairs themselves. She rushes to hide in the living room)

Bret: (coming down the stairs) What the actual fuck is wrong with the both of you?!

Rachel: (following after him) Bret, will you just settle down?

Bret: No! I will not "settle down," aunt Rach. This is getting out of hand!

Rachel: Nothing bad is going to happen!

Bret: Won't it?!

Rachel: No! I'll make sure of it.

Bret: (sarcastically) Wow. That's so very reasurring, aunt Rach. Thanks a lot for that.

Rachel: Oh my God!

(They get to the bottom of the stairs and Bret turns to face Rachel)

Bret: Every damn time… EVERY TIME he's here, something goes wrong. He has to ruin our lives somehow. And the thing is, things have already gotten so bad this past year that I don't know what he can do to ruin it more. Like, I've already lost pretty much everything! What now?! What the hell could he possibly want now?! I don't know whether to be annoyed or afraid or-

Rachel: Ok, why do you hate your uncle so much anyway? Like, can we talk about that for a sec? Honey, you do know that it isn't Gordon's fault that your parents died, right? You can't blame him for such a tragedy. It's not fair!

Bret: You know what isn't fair, aunt Rach? The fact that-

(Elise's phone chimes with a text message from Alice letting her know that she and Dylan are on the way. Bret and Rachel hear the noise, and it distracts them from the conversation. Elise sighs. She hates that she’s been caught)

Rachel: Damn it. Forgot we had company.

Bret: El?

Elise: (comes out of the living room and joins them in the corridor) Yeah?

On the balcony

(Stephanie is pacing around the apartment, in kind of a shocked, hazy state after that intense moment a few minutes ago. She stops upon noticing that Bret is still there, smoking on the balcony overlooking the city of London late at night. She takes a deep breath before approaching him, recollecting herself and thinking about what she needs to say to him)

Stephanie: (opens the glass door leading to the balcony) Ah, you've found my thinking spot.

Bret: (lets out a breath full of smoke) What?

Stephanie: After Ben left, for the first few weeks I'd go to that corner of the balcony - that one, where you're standing right now - and I'd just sit there and think. And simply stare into space. Sometimes for hours.

Bret: Wow.

Stephanie: Mhm. Still do, sometimes.

(Bret gives Stephanie a cigarette. She starts smoking it)

Bret: I still can't believe I almost did that, you know? I suck. I cannot believe how much I suck.

Stephanie: Look, Bret-

Bret: I should've known dating El was a bad idea.

Stephanie: What?

Bret: I mean, it was only a matter of time before I wrecked it somehow. That's all I ever do, after all…

Stephanie: No, no. Don't do that. Look, what happened back there was wrong. I know. I'm not feeling particularly great about it myself, either. I mean, I love Elise so much. And I'm in love with Ben. If we actually went through with that, then we'd be hurting two of the people that mean the most to me in the whole world. This whole thing was a huge mistake. But the thing is, that happens. People make mistakes. It doesn't change the way we feel about the people we truly love. Like, when you enter a serious relationship, you'll have moments where you'll get scared that you'll mess things up. And you'll have moments where you'll find yourself attracted to other people, too. Lord knows I have… But that doesn't necessarily mean that you are making a mistake with the person you're with. It doesn't mean that you shouldn't be with them or anything like that. I know that I'm way more into Ben than I'll ever be into you.

Bret: Well, that feels nice.

(They laugh for a moment)

Stephanie: No but you get what I mean. I love Ben. I want to be with him, and I know that completely. I don't even know why I tried to kiss you. I guess I've been alone for so long, and I've just missed it. That feeling of connecting with a person. I miss him holding me, and giving me comfort and advice when I'm down. And tonight has kind of been the closest thing I've had to that in a long while. And even now, I'm looking at you, and talking to you, and I know that he's not here, but it's like I'm seeing him in my head right now. You're like, filling the empty void where he used to be for me.

Bret: My God, you're drunk.

Stephanie: Yeah…

(They laugh some more)

Stephanie: I don't know if I'm explaining myself all that well. But my point is, the fact that you had a weird little moment with me doesn't mean that things are completely wrecked between you and Elise. I mean, be serious - do you actually like me like that?

Bret: (pauses, deep in thought) What, like in the "I really fancy you" sense? Or the "I think you're fit" sense? Or both?

Stephanie: Any. I don't mind. Like, if you were to rank me on a scale of 1 to 10?

Bret: Right now, a solid 8.5.

Stephanie: (flattered) Wow. Well. I'll take that!

Bret: But honestly, up to 9 or even 10 on a good day. I mean, you're hella cute.

Stephanie: (flicks back hair in a sassy manner) Why, thank you very much.

Bret: I do think you're attractive. Most guys at school do, I bet. But I've never liked you in an "I want to date you" kind of way. Partially because you already have a boyfriend, but also because - and I mean this in the nicest way possible - you're not really my type.

Stephanie: (pretends to be offended) Ugh! How dare you.

Bret: (laughs) No offence. And I mean… El isn't the usual type of girl I'd go for either. Like, she's different from other girls I've been with in the past. But I don't know… I've never felt the way I feel about her before with anyone else. Things with her are different, you know? Special.

Stephanie: (smiles) Awwww.

Bret: What?

Stephanie: (playfully) You wuv your girlfwiend…

Bret: Oh, shut up Steph. (pauses) But yeah. (blushes) I think I might. I don't know, though. I mean, it hasn't been all that long. And I don't think I've ever been in love before.

Stephanie: (nods) I think you're in the early stages of falling in love, bro. I remember what that was like…

Bret: What, with Ben?

Stephanie: No, with Danny Davids. My ex from when I used to live in Birmingham. He was my first real boyfriend. The first person I ever fell in love with. But I digress. See what I mean, though. I'm not into you. You're not into me. We just got a bit lost for a minute there. Doesn't mean we can't bring ourselves back.

Bret: I guess. (pauses) I'm sorry. If I made things weird just now.

Stephanie: I'm sorry, too. But oh well. What's a little bit of weirdness between friends, eh?

Bret: Thanks for being so chill.

Stephanie: I try my best, Bret. I try my best.

(The two break eye contact to take in the view of the city and the lights from the balcony. Even amidst the awkwardness of their previous moment of tension, there is still a genuine understanding and connection between the two friends. They take comfort in the fact that as long as they have each other, and they try their hardest, things can get better for the both of them)

And I think I'll end it here haha.

I'm actually so curious as to how people are going to react to this one lol. Especially if you've been following this series from the beginning. Bet you didn't see this one coming!

Steph and Bret have a moment of unexpected chemistry after spending an evening together and getting really, really drunk. How do we feel about this development? Happy? Sad? Angry? Don't blame anyone for being mad, tbh... I'm kind of mad myself, and I freaking wrote this... I'd get into my feelings on it in more detail, but we'd be here all day if I did, so let's try and move on lol.

Next time, Steph is going back to school, and we get to see the rest of the gang as well - including Elise. We'll get to see her perspective and her feelings regarding the whole Rachel, Bret and Gordon fiasco, which is the most important thing. And we'll see the crew getting all set and ready for prom! Can't wait to share the prom parts, they were a total delight to write (and I hope they'll be a delight to read as well)!

Finally, I think I'll give myself some props for mentioning this plot twist in previous posts without fully giving the twist away (apart from a few people. Like my sister. And people on my Discord server lol... which is only two people so far, so I don't think it really counts as "spoiling" anything. Especially since I didn't name any names on there when I talked about this plot point).

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atherix · 1 year

Note

is there any chance of you writing something like midnight passions/something fluffy someday, but this time with our boy scar too? /nf

on an unrelated note, i just really love the way you write dialogue. like, it's something that i just can't not talk about when i think about your writing. like, you could post a chapter of the three of them just talking about their favorite foods or something and i'd be still smiling through it all lol

ur amazing <3

Oh ABSOLUTELY. 100%. I completely intend to, once things calm down just a bit. They'll get their quiet moments again <3 And there is a very specific scene/line I want to write out that is very Midnight Passions-esque. It's... more focused on Mumbo and Scar (bc it references their not-so-great history) because I believe that even as a throuple the individual pairs inside it need their individual bonding/interactions but, there will ABSOLUTELY be something like that for all three of them :)

!!! hhhh!!!!! Thank you so much <33 🥺 I like to think my dialogue feels natural and has personality in it but I also don't want to hype myself up, dialogue is so fun and can reveal so much about a character but it's also so hard to do so I'm so glad you enjoy my dialogue 🥺Especially considering how dialogue-heavy some of my chapters have been... not me looking at Midnight Miseries Ch. 3...

Thank you so much, YOU'RE amazing <3

#ask #Midnight Series #Hermitshipping #Mumscarian

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aurabird · 9 months

Text

A Search For Belonging

Chapter 10: Shenanigans

In which Xornoth finds himself roped into more pranks and activities

Ao3 Link | Masterpost

---------------

The next few days were mostly uneventful for Xornoth aside from the occasional antics going on in Boatem that he bore witness to.

There was now a dirt structure Scar had built spiraling into the sky and ending right above the Boatem Hole and a strange-but-nevertheless-mind-blowing flying machine in the sky between Mumbo’s base and Midnight Alley. Both new additions being the result of messing with Grian while the avian was in a meditative state.

On top of that, Xornoth had watched Grian remove several black banners placed by the Big Eye’s crew advertising their iron shop, an establishment apparently sponsored by Mumbo himself.

There really was never a dull moment in Boatem.

Today, however, would hopefully be more eventful for Xornoth personally as he made his way over to the Swaggon by Scar’s request. Apparently, his fellow Hermit had something for him, a hat to be specific.

“So I didn’t exactly know what you’d like but given what you have told us and the plans for your base I managed to make something that I really hope you enjoy.” Scar explained as they entered the hat shop.

“If it’s anything like the hats I’ve seen on the others I’m sure it’s amazing, Scar.”

It was true, the hats that every other member of Boatem now wore had been beautifully made and Xornoth was excited to see what Scar had made for him.

“Well, if there’s anything about it that you don’t like I’m perfectly fine with changing it. Are you ready to see?”

“I am.”

At the confirmation Scar grabbed something off a hook behind him and turned around with a dramatic flourish, presenting the hat in question.

Xornoth had expected it to be a crown of some sort as a throwback to the fact Empiria was a land of monarchs. Instead, it was modeled after a sheep wearing a silver circlet on its head, a dopey look in its beady eyes that made it absolutely adorable.

A smile crossed his face at the sight, “Scar…I love it.”

“Oh thank goodness!” Scar sighed in relief as Xornoth took the hat from him to get a closer look, “I was so nervous that I would trigger a bad memory or something with the crown on its head and all! I hope it fits, it's a bit hard to design something for a person with antlers, you know?”

“Only one way to find out.” Xornoth said before turning to a mirror on the wall and putting the hat on, finding it fit perfectly between the growths on his head and making his smile grow even wider at just how perfect it seemed to match him.

After leaving the Hat Shop and making his way back to the central area of Boatem Xornoth noticed the giant sign that read ‘Octagon’ that was now a part of the long-legged monstrosity that was selling things on Boatem’s coast.

The voices of Grian and Impulse then reached his ears, the former sounding very annoyed compared to usual.

As the two Hermits in question came into view Xornoth was able to see why. The Octagon sign wasn’t the only advertisement in Boatem, every other establishment with the exception of Horse-Head Farms had left something in the village square.

“...advertise and bring people here. Oh look, it's Xornoth!”

“Hey you guys. What are you two up to?”

“First off, I love your hat.” Grian began with a smile, “And secondly, I’ve got a really good idea for marketing! We just have to decide who we’re going to do it to”

“Is this…aggressive marketing?” Impulse asked.

“It is very in-your-face marketing.”

“Oh I love it.”

“Oooh, so we just have to pick someone then right?” Xornoth questioned.

Grian nodded, “Well we’ve got Octagon, Rons, the Evil Emporium, and Cleo who all think its fine to advertise here so we can definitely advertise there.”

After several minutes of back-and-forth chatter and Impulse darting off to gather several shulkers of logs Xornoth and Grian found themselves over at the Octagon atop a platform the latter Grian had constructed above the shop.

“I don’t exactly know if this is going to work the way I think it’s going to work.” Grian admitted as he began to build.

��Yeah, how exactly do you have this in your head?” Xornoth questioned.

“Redstone.” Grian finished as he placed two observers and a dispenser down; the latter component beginning to activate as it got a signal. “There. Stage one is complete.”

Impulse arrived with the shulkers of requested logs and Grian was quick to explain how his plan would work as he began to craft several boats, shrinking them to a smaller size and then tossing them into a hopper that had been placed above the firing dispenser.

Xornoth laughed with Impulse as he watched the component spit the boats back out at full size, instantly dropping them down into the shop below and causing several stacks to begin forming.

“Now we just take this to the extreme!” Grian cackled with devious glee at the flawless execution of his plan.

The trio went on to ‘boat bomb’ Big Eyes Bay, this time letting the boats all occupy the same spot as opposed to letting them spread out. Once finished, they settled down on the nearby mountainside and waited for one of the residents to investigate the prank. It wasn’t long before Tango showed up and proceeded to cause all the boats to explode in every direction.

Roaring laughter resounded from the three members of Boatem at the display, “That was SO MUCH faster than I expected it to be!” Grian exclaimed.

After they had managed to compose themselves they flew down to greet Tango, the half-blazeborn now thoroughly flustered. “Buy at Boatem!” Grian laughed before proceeding to hop around on the many boats in the water, Xornoth and Impulse following suit.

“I will remember this!” Tango threatened with a grin, caught up in laughing himself as he joined in on the boat-hopping antics, everyone getting stuck between the wooden vessels occasionally.

After a farewell to Tango the trio took off, returning to their original plans for the day. Xornoth landed in the center of New Rivendell with a massive smile on his face and was more than energized to build the storage building he had planned so that he could finally move all his resources from his house and various other random locations strewn about the mountain, into one dedicated place.

Xornoth had spent most of the following morning preparing for the long, arduous process of moving and sorting his items into the now-finished storage building and decided to take a break to check the Boatem group chat to see if he’d missed any messages while he had been working. Scrolling up to the last message he read, two Mumbo had sent earlier caught his eye.

<MumboJumbo> errr guys

<MumboJumbo> the boatem hole has bedrock in it

Xornoth looked at the image sent in the chat and was confused. He knew bedrock didn’t simply regenerate, be it through magic or otherwise and it prompted him to go check it out for himself after putting all his gear and supplies into his enderchest.

Even if bedrock had once again sealed up the hole into the void, Xornoth wasn’t going to take any chances. He wasn’t procrastinating, that would be nonsense.

Upon his arrival to the scene Xornoth dared to look down into the Boatem Hole and, just like Mumbo had said, the area that normally led to the void was once again covered in bedrock.

Curious, he decided to descend into the depths to investigate the strange phenomenon, setting his feet down on the layer of bedrock…

…and falling through immediately after.

Xornoth let out a panicked yelp as he tried to stabilize, but to no avail as his wings did not react fast enough. The inky blackness of the void filled his lungs, suffocating him; waves of pain flaring through his entire body as he was pulled further down into the abyss.

Xornoth fell out of the world

He jolted awake in his bed with a gasp, panting heavily as he took in fresh air. His communicator pinged multiple times in quick succession as he recovered from the traumatic respawn, no doubt Hermits worried about him. He quickly shot a message in the chat saying he was fine and that he didn’t lose anything except a bit of pride.

Once the post-mortem effects had worn off Xornoth got out of bed and figured that he already decided that he would not actually move everything into his storage building today so, he may as well just fly around and see what the other Hermits were up to.

Again, definitely not procrastinating at all, he just needed to interact more with his fellow Hermits outside of Boatem.

His flight took him to various locations to try and find Hermits to interact with and Xornoth found himself roped up in a game he’d never heard of before known as Leaf Spleef with Cub, Joe, and Cleo, getting to know them better in the process. It was nice, to be able to just goof around and have fun without any real responsibility or a kingdom to eventually run.

The sun had begun to set by the time he had begun to make his way back to Boatem, flying over Big-Eyes bay and seeing it still covered in boats.

As Xornoth passed over the Evil Emporium, the one shop he never really visited often since most of his supplies were easy to harvest himself, he took notice of the individual pacing in front of the stairs, red armor contrasted against a deepslate and blackstone building with a glass orb atop it.

Curious to talk to the one Hermit he knew so little about, Xornoth descended, landing a bit away from Exiel before approaching.

“Um…hi?” He began in greeting, “I hope I’m not interrupting anything. I was just passing through on my way back to Boatem and saw you pacing; thought I might as well take the chance to speak with you since you’re like, the only Hermit I have had no interactions with at all.”

Exiel turned to him, red eyes meeting Xornoth’s own and causing the elf to freeze up. He could almost picture veins of crimson marring the voidkind’s skin under the armor, pulsating with dark power that drove the corrupted individual to madness and…

“Oh, you're the elf they recently adopted.”

The blunt remark snapped Xornoth from his spiraling thoughts and back to reality, “Uh….yeah. That’s me, I’m Xornoth.”

“Well, Xornoth. Welcome to my humble abode I suppose. And no, I’m just frustrated at my stupid brother installing a machine at Octagon that completely ruins the entire point of the Hermits buying derpcoin from the Emporium!”

Xornoth let out a chuckle, “Brothers, am I right?”

The comment made Exiel give him a quizzical look, “You have a brother too?”

“I do. We aren’t as close anymore though, not like we were before destiny and fate tore us apart for the sake of prophecy.”

“‘Suma and I weren’t as close as we are now, you know. I resented my brother and what he had so I found myself aligned with a malicious individual who convinced me that the solution to my problem was to embrace it and destroy everything that Xisuma knew. I tried for many years but deep down I had started to grow fond of the band of misfits and runaways he surrounded himself with and began to realize that what I was doing was wrong. After everything I’d done though, I felt I had no chance at forgiveness so I banished myself to wallow in my own pity. When I came crawling back to Xisuma I was desperate for purpose, I never expected forgiveness from him, let alone the invitation to join the Hermits…but here I am, I suppose. If there was hope for me to redeem myself, then there’s probably hope for you and your brother as well.”

Xornoth gave a bittersweet smile, “It’s a nice thought, but Scott probably thinks I’m dead and after everything I did to him and those he called his friends, redemption and forgiveness are no longer an option for me.” he paused a moment before continuing, “But it’s fine, I have all the Hermits now. After decades of being a pawn of destiny, I am finally free to do whatever I want, to be my own person with my own choices.”

A sly grin crossed Exiel’s face at Xornoth’s words, “Well, how about you use that freedom to make your own choices and buy something with that Derpcoin my brother gave you a while back?”

A laugh escaped Xornoth at the comment, “I blew it all buying wood at Octagon for the boat bomb prank we did there and at Big-Eyes Bay.”

“You realize that you buying the wood from them is a win in their eyes, right?”

“Yes, but it was hilarious all the same. Grian is debating hitting up this place next you know? Perhaps, if you give me some derpcoin I can convince him to spare you guys?~”

“You’ve been hanging around with Scar too much. You’re picking up on his marketing habits.”

Xornoth smiled, “I’m only joking, we will probably hit Big-Eyes bay for the bedrock fiasco next.” he tossed two of the diamonds he’d won from Leaf Spleef earlier to Exiel, “How much derpcoin will that get me?”

A few derpcoin richer, Xornoth bid farewell to Exiel and continued to make his way back to Boatem, landing on the balcony of his house and going inside to freshen up as the moon began to cast its glow on the land below.

Before he settled down for the night he checked to see what he’d missed in the main and Boatem chats.

<Grian> Who’s up for getting back at Big-Eyes Bay tomorrow?

<ImpulseSV> I’m in!

<MumboJumbo> Same

<GoodTimeWithScar> Can’t, was invited to test the horse course with Bdubs and Etho.

<Grian> No worries. Xornoth, are you up for more pranking?

Xornoth, feeling bad he’d missed most of the conversation typed out his response

<Xornoth> Sorry for the late reply, I was busy most of today. Definitely in; dying to the void this morning was the worst.

With his message sent, Xornoth silenced his communicator and called it for the night, looking forward to the pranking of Big Eyes bay…

…and still denying that it was an excuse to get out of moving everything into his storage building.

#empires smp #hermitcraft #hermitcraft x empires #empiresblr #hermitblr #Xornoth #empires xornoth #grian #impulseSV #goodtimeswithscar #evil xisuma #a search for belonging #My writing

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bluiex · 1 year

Note

Yes! Yes All, I love that!

Mumbo was laying back as he was messing with a small stress ball. “Well that meeting was tedious huh?” He asked Grian with a small chuckle. “Sorry I kept you here so long.”

Grian shrugged “It’s fine.” He told him finishing up the notes, he couldn’t wait to get home.

Tossing the ball up in the air a few times Mumbo sighed. “I’ve been growing stressed lately. Bdubs takes most of the planning now for me, but I still have a lot to shoulder with this resistance.” He tells Grian.

“Really? Stressed? Well you’re good at hiding it.” Grian commented looking at Mumbo, and that was something he didn’t expect at all.

“Well thanks.” Mumbo chuckled his eyes crinkling a bit. “But seriously, I didn’t actually want this job, it was meant to be a joke really. But people actually voted for me, a guy who used to farm mushrooms and vegetables near the river.” He laughed a bit at the absurdity.

Grian perked up “You used to be a farmer?” He asked curiously, as he put down the pen. He could feel Scar’s intreats peak as well.

“Yeah, made a humble living. Sold to cooks around here and at the farmers market. Guess people trusted me as they knew my face.” Mumbo gave a bitter chuckle. His eyes looked at the ceiling, as he messed with the arms of the stress ball. “I wish I had never went through with it. Wish I could go back home, leave this mess for someone else.”

A silence rang between them as Grian stared at Mumbo. He didn’t expect this honesty from the mayor who seemed to be lost in memories. “Can I ask something?” He looked at Mumbo who hummed. “What are your real thoughts on Father Spore and this resistance?”

Scar hummed I’m his head curiously Mumbo’s brows furrowed, he was silent for a long moment. “Huh…” he finally said. “I’ve actually not given it much thought, most is filtered through a political drivel of threats and people being turned. And I’ve not thought beyond that.”

Mumbo laid his hands on his chest staring at the ceiling again “I suppose he’s interesting. Whatever he is. But beyond that, I don’t know we’ll enough to make an assumption that isn’t through Bdubs rants.”

A pause, the words lingering. “Like his hat though. Cottage core aesthetic and all.” Mumbled chuckled earning a laugh from Grian. “Not that we can tell Bdubs that, he’s scold me.” He laughed again along with Grian.

“My lips are sealed.” Grian promised earning a snorting chuckle from the mayor.

He was… much more complex than Grian though. And Scar seemed to agree with that.

Mumbo just endearing himself without knowing it lol.

ADFDLSDK ough please- these are so good. I love Mumbo in this, all yall are so amazing WAAAH this is amazing Jade

#bluie gets an ask poggers #father spore au #long post

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wormtime123 · 11 months

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I have come from ao3 to attack you with kindness about the season sevenfinity fic.I cannot figure out for the life of me how someone has made such a good fic. The way the characters act is just so realistic is amazing. It's like a hermit just left a unused script for S7 out for a moment and you were just like,'yep, that's mine now. Yoink.' Ina ll seriousness though, that series was one of the first ones I ever read and it was so good I am still hanging around today! Can't wait for chapter 7 and super glad to have seen you on my dashboard a odd month ago❤️ (also completely unbiased but mumbo needs a hug and you are going to give it to him. This is a threat)

i’ve been hit in the head with the kindness this is SO sweet omg. it’s really cool you found me and hearing this means a lot, thank you for stopping by :-) there’s a lot of chaos ahead and i’m looking forward to sharing!!

…that said though with pearl about to kill a man mumbo might have a bit of an uphill battle. for a little while. but the journey will be worth it Promise

#sorry in advance !#the agonies build character ❤️

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darkclouud9 · 4 months

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okay Secret Life's over and I've only watched Cleo and Skizz's finales.

but I wanna rank the seasons just bc.

Secret Life is honestly 1 for me. it had my favourite alliances yet, I loved the Cletho + Grian team (I refuse to call them 'Roomies'), the Heart Foundation was amazing, the Mounders were pretty cool, I actually really enjoyed Lizzie and Scar being alone, no matter how sad it was. Big Dogs were amazing actually, one of the best pairings, most fun base in all the seasons just off the top of my head :]

but I have to say. first half of the season was my absolute favourite. silly tasks, BigB gaslighting everyone, Lizzie, Mumbo, Jimmy alive, etc etc. it's probably up until the episode they die where it felt like it decreased in enjoyment for me. the zombie apocalypse task was ehhhh, the vibe was cool, very LL energy, but I overall didn't like it all that much (I understand and appreciate it still, but the whole cancelling out other tasks was sad :[)

the vibes of this finale seem... weird.

and you might say I have no place to say that, having only watched two finales and getting spoiled on who the winner is yet again, but I personally didn't enjoy it. everyone felt extremely rushed and fumbled so hard. Joel in particular on his Skizz kill. Cleo didn't get a chance to defend herself, and neither did Etho, and presumably Grian. all the group ups felt off to me. I feel like the Heart Foundation should've stuck more to Cletho + Grian, they all could've done a bit better them I feel.

the massive group of people just sticking together and killing everyone else was a bit ehhh to me, but as Cleo put it, they'd have to kill each other eventually (ive watched it twice and I can't remember exactly what they say. I am a failure :[)

second is Last Life, I was insane over Team BEST for a while, but I'm more insane over Team TIES now (I have reasons I won't say teehee)

Mumbo and Lizzie are here!! they're cool!!

loved the mechanics for this season. boogeyman was very cool, and the random life count was epic. favourite mechanics actually.

lot of favourite deaths, Impulse's final death was pretty cool to me, betrayal deaths make me bite the bars of my cage, not looking at anyone in particular *ahem* BigB, Martyn's stupid yellow(?) death, Scar and BigB's final deaths were insane (Operation Bubblevator!!)

Fairy Fort was an insane alliance I never was that big on them when this season was active, but hooooollllly hell these guys. (Do me a favour. Die for me.)

the music disk, Etho freaking everyone out with it. the "Bogeyman", Southlands. Southlands just in general.

episode 6...........................

the final 8 survivors (-one. you know who they are they won it.) Pearl's boogey kill, her protecting Cleo, Joel's double kill, the final 2 battles. ough. this season had everything man. I hate the cold and winter but the wintery vibes of this season were immense and I loved it so much (no thanks to the Snow Fort...)

a lot of the final yellow kills were cool, in particular Etho and Cleo dying together, in the same order (twice in a row!!). Etho trying so hard to at least kill Ren before Pearl killed him is one of the most memorable moments for me.

and Mumbo screaming as Etho fishing rods him up into the air. and then the dogs.

and the lotion throw at the beginning of session 6.

and Lizzie's first death after failing to kill her husband. those are all extremely memorable moments :]

3L is next for almost no other reason than "nostalgia" purposes.

one thing I liked about this season was how innocent and pure everyone was.

idk about anyone else, but, except for its burning. s. I really enjoyed the Wool Castle. the swamp. and Etho trying to become Shrek or something. what was up with them

my favourite character from this season was undoubtedly Joel though. I LOVED his base, his dead bushes, Cleo dying to his roof, his roof constantly burning. with him. his army of dogs. first dog boy. Gerald. ine. I feel like he forgets his red skin at some point in this season and I really enjoyed the skin changes between colors.

also feel like him n Cleo tease Renchanting for being so loyal to Ren. (oh my go d they're actually calling him king!)

4th is Limited Life.

listen. I feel like I should like this season more than I did. I was sort of falling out of the Life Series at this point so I don't have much to say let alone remember.

but let me tell you.

Skynet.

5th is Double Life.

another season I feel like I should've enjoyed more. I loved Team Ranchers at first, but the way everyone sort of treated them was... whatever, and them people talking about Boat Boys made me live Boat Boys (I didn't feel much for them at first, but oh my gosh) but those two are my top two pairings (I can't pick between them rn)

I have no hate for this season

Scar and his allay buddy, being oblivious to who his soulmate is, Mickey Mouse. Scar was a pretty fun character, plus all his skins for this season were really cool!! insane over them still

all the pairings were really cool, I loved the Divorce Quarter, the Vultures. they were cool, I loved how they just refused their fate. (and how Martyn literally killed himself. and how Cleo was the only person to have died all three times while Martyn was partially responsible for all of them in some way.)

the pillar outside the Midcentury Modern Home or something. the fishing rod party. (Joel and Etho's demise-) one thing I feel like was overlooked with them was that Scott was like. wrong. about them. sure having the both of them pulled up so they take double damage was stupid. but it was Joel. who. died. and took all of their hearts. Etho didn't even hit the ground. in fact I think he barely even left it.

also one thing that makes me bite and tear at my cage is that Etho and Joel were the pairing to have died at the midpoint. 3 pairings died before them. 3 pairings died after them. and, despite Joel losing their earlier 2 lives, Etho being the first to die on their final life splits them into top half and bottom half, with Etho being 8th this season, and Joel being 7th.

also the Ranchers' Warden was-

#life series #ig #long post #its 1am rn idk how long ive been typing this

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mochiwrites · 4 months

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I'm just feeling like jehdgwknsuuwhsvdudjd at the moment because of the newest chapter of night life!

Like these lines own my hart<3

1."He killed them for hurting the vampire he’s in love with. But Mumbo wasn’t the only one, was he? No, he thinks, as warm brown eyes flash in his mind. He killed them for Grian, too."

Scar acknowledged that he is in love with Mumbo! And that he might also love Grian<3 With him being an angry protective boyfriend*sobs dramaticly* I love it hdhdhdhdjejjekahsiwjdgwiwnaidbeuiwnw

2."Yes, he decides, he has every reason to look forward to this sun."

Like dhdheheh and jajrheukaksjd! I shall never forget this line. With how Mumbo compares Grian to the sun! I love the idea moon Mumbo and sun Grian<3

Songbirds blood au has taken over my brain. /pos

Your writing is amazing and your ideas for the stories are unique and crazy but me and the readers will all agree we love it<3

uwahhhh thank you 🥹💕💕

those two lines are so !!!!! I have a lot of favorite lines from this chapter, that second one is definitely one of them

scar being so angry is SUCH a pivotal moment for him. he’s not quite at the realization that he’s in love with grian — that one comes Much later. but he’s forced to admit that he cares. he considers grian a friend and cares about his well-being and he can’t run from it anymore

this chapter has 100% made me insane and AUGH

#mochi speaks #songbird asks

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angeart · 3 months

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I really love how you do the characterization throughout HMTB regarding each of the characters. Scar and Grian both clearly still have trauma from their time in 3rd Life, and it shows really really well! The triggers for Scar are really cleverly done as well, and I love how you portray Grian's efforts to pull him through his trauma.

Also, poor Grian, trying to balance his own pain and trauma while helping Scar bear his. He may be recovering fast, but refusing to talk about it is only going to get him so far.

One other big thing that I adored: Mumbo's insecurities. It's easy enough to wave off Mumbo's concern as irrelevant or unnecessary if you've never been in that position before, but I felt so bad for the poor guy! Every display of affection he tried to offer was one he interpreted as shot down. He doesn't know what to do with Grian, but he also doesn't want to lose him. I feel for those three, I really do.

I just discovered Help Me to Breathe recently, and I am absolutely adoring how you wrote this so far! The characters feel really real, and I'm so glad I found this fic.

(Also, your little interjections of art make those tender moments even better. Story and visual? Amazing combination!)

hi cloud! thank you so much for coming to tell me what you enjoy about hmtb :3

they are definitely struggling; both grian and scar have their own trauma, but you're right that grian has, on top of that, the role of grounding scar and reeling him in and making sure he doesn't do anything too bad. and the lingering sickness. mmh.

but for scar, losing that grip on reality is terrifying and confusing. he feels destabilised and lost, and he clings to the only bit of security he had when he used to be smilarly scared: the desert castle. their little safe haven, their home, the place where laughter bloomed through graves and blood and explosions.

they both have the short end of the stick, and are just trying to somehow remain above water.

mumbo!!! i am so happy you mention mumbo and his struggles. he certainly has it rough in his own very unique way. and i think his pain deserves recognition, because he doesn't have it easy, either!

it's interesting and fun to explore each of their struggles, so very different and yet so tightly intertwined, as they trip each other up and dig holes underneath their own feet and desperately grab at anything or anyone in reach, dragging them down with nothing else but fear and good intentions.

i really appreciate hearing that you love the characterisation and the parts of the story i wrote so far! it means a lot to know that the characters feel real; it genuinely helps to hear! thank youuu!

and of course, welcome onboard to this trainwreck of a story <333

#ange answers #hmtb #thankyouuu so much for taking your time to tell me this #they're a mess #and i am so happy that you're enjoying the story!

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headbucket · 2 years

Text

Ask game answers nobody asked for

Hermitcraft ask game by @cryptid-crw

🐶 What hermits do you watch?

Lots! Bdubs, Cub, Etho, False, Gem, Grian, Impulse, Iskall, Keralis, Mumbo, Pearl, Ren, Scar, Tango, Beef, xB, Zedaph, and Cleo.

🐱 Who was your first hermit?

This gets a little complicated but... as a hermit, Grian. As just a MCYT, Bdubs.

🐰 Who is your favourite hermit?

This is a hard question but... I have to say Etho (yes I admit it I'm an Ethogirl)

🐼 Who is one hermit you haven't watched yet but want to?

Joe - everything I see about him is so unique and hilarious but so far I haven't really gotten into his videos. Maybe someday, though!

🐸 What year did you start watching hermitcraft?

Okay, let's do the story now. In early 2019 I was watching some of Grian's building videos and stumbled onto his Hermitcraft series, which I started watching, got hooked on, and gradually started watching more and more hermits. I was really excited when Bdubs came back towards the end of S6 because I had watched him way back in Attack of the B-Team days, and at some point I learned that he had been in S5 so I went back and watched that. The videos were so familiar and I realized I had seen them before... I had watched his S5... so basically I was watching Hermitcraft before I knew it was Hermitcraft! I only watched Bdubs then, though, and had no idea what was going on on the rest of the server so I consider S6 to be when I started watching Hermitcraft.

🐵 What season did you watch first?

Season 6! I watched Grian's series from the beginning and caught up to episodes being currently released right around the time of the Civil War.

🐧 What is your favourite season?

Season 7! The Head Games, Hermit challenges, HWF, the Button, Boomers, Shade-E-E's, the mayoral race, Turf War, Decked Out, the Upside Down, HCBBS, Sewer Cats, Aque Town... so much good stuff!

🐝 What is your favourite hermitcraft moment?

Man, it's hard to choose, but I think my favorite moment(s) were Etho's meetings with Llama Dad in S7. They were so funny and the Etho and Beef vibes are impeccable.

🦝 Do you watch any streams?

A few! Mostly I watch Tango's Phasmo and stabby streams, and MCC (usually False).

🍂 How many hermits are you subscribed to on YouTube?

18 (70% of them!)

🍄 Do you only watch hermitcraft content, or do you watch their other videos too?

I watch other videos too! I watch just about all the videos of the hermits I'm subscribed to: Traffic series, Empires, Building with Bdoubleo, Naked and Scared, and Etho's singleplayer and modded series are all amazing!

🌻 Are you also in the life series fandom?

You bet! All three of them have been some of my favorite series ever.

🌕 What is your favourite hermitcraft build?

Scar's magical village in S7: the amount of detail was incredible and it truly felt magical. Plus it was only his starter base?!

🌗 Do you have a favourite quote/favourite quotes?

A few of my favorites: "Oh, you declared war! Oh perfect, wonderful - dude, your mayorship is working out fantastic! We've declared war!" -Bdubs, S7. "HCBBS, which I assume stands for How Can Butter Be Solid? Yes, I too ask that question, great almighty countdown clock." -Cub, S7. "In terms of salvation, Cleo, is this one of those six to eight weeks for deliverance deals?" -Joe, S8.

�� Do you have a favourite shop?

Hmmm... probably Scar's chest monster shop in S7.

🌙 If you could join hermitcraft, would you?

No, I would be too scared! I'm a perfectly average Minecraft player and I would be very intimidated by all the talented Hermits.

🪐 If you joined hermitcraft, who would you team with?

I would love to team with Pearl! She could teach me some building skills and we could do some shenanigans together, plus she seems super nice.

💫 Have you met any hermits?

Nope

⭐️ If you could meet your favourite hermit, what would you say to them? / If you've met your favourite hermit, what did you say?

"I... ah... thank you!" (I'm not sure I could say much more than that honestly)

🌟 Have you been to any conventions?

Nope

✨ Do you have any merch?

Yes! I have a Gem hoodie and a Doc beanie (both very comfy)

🌈 Are you immune to the good times? (no, no you are not)

Never.

#hermitcraft #ask game

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jexvex · 2 years

Text

{⚜️Warning: Horror and other uncomfortable topics ahead⚜️}

Vital Virus

chapter 2, Barely Noticable

Another day on the new server, more work was getting done.

All the hermits were working on detailing of their bases, sending over trades they needed, finding pets and going about things as normally as they could. As 'Zedaph' said, the noises in the trading system were gone. Chat was booming once again.

>Bdouble0100< Does anyone need anything?

>Xisumavoid< I am good thank you.

>Grian< I was going to say TNT but Iskall promised me a hook up

>Grian< no scar

>Grian< A hookup of some TNT later on through the system so I should be good!!! Thanks anyways!!

>Bdouble0100< oh okay!! Great! Ethos what are you working on?

>EthosLab< Gathering items for shulker boxes and elytra since they will be needed

>Bdouble0100< OOOOOOO YESS

>Bdouble0100< I NEED those SO BADDD, once you get some I call dibs for first call

>EthosLab< lol ofc you can, I'll even make you a green shulker. Just for you

>Bdouble0100< YOU'RE LIKE AN ANGEL

>GoodTimesWithScar< Aw that's such a sweet moment

>GoodTimesWithScar< HOWEVER I call second dibs

>Bdouble0100< LOL

>Grian< YOURE SO LUCKY I WAS TYPING THAT BEFORE YOU SENT IT

>GoodTimesWithScar< better luck next time

The discussion continued, bickering and laughing. They were too distracted to hear a small sound through the walls. Too busy to realize their bases being mapped out. Marked.

Sun setting now, Zedaph's eyes opened. He felt cold. Looking around he noticed he was in the middle of the sky, starting to scream. Only to look down. There was no blur of trees, no feeling of a jump in his stomach, and no legs seen squirming in loss of ground to stand on. There was only trees and a nice view. Looking around himself more, he couldn't see his own body. Now the screaming was due to that realization. He was dead. A Spector. The entire time he screamed no one could hear, for he had no lungs. No mouth. His screams were falling on deaf ears.

Only after that realization, he came to another, having no mouth meant no means to warn his friends that Bdubs was the killer.

All he could do was spectate. Watch them suffer.

If he could cry, he would.

Zedaph hurried to his base through the air, looking for his body. Any evidence of a home invasion, something. Nothing. There was nothing robbed. There was no body. The walls that were broken in were neatly replaced as if the whole incident never happened. As if he never died. No face to show the horrid fear he felt.

The walls. They were replaced. He came to conclusion to check inside them, follow the mass. Zedaph went through the wall, looking around. The mass was curled and wrapped along the dirt, spread longated off in so many directions. Off to the north he saw his neon pink tinted goggles. Going towards the view he noticed a body. Twisted and contorted along the vines. As if it fell from a building.

It was his.

He looked away.

Only to continue going down different directions, seeing where it lead to. All of his friends bases. Except dear paranoid mumbo's.

The cords. Mumbo never gave Bdubs his cords.

Zedaph found another body along the vines, looking as if it was currently still being eaten by the carnivorous plant. It was his, again.

He died four times. There must have been four bodies inside the walls.

Zedaph left the inside of the walls, left underground. He couldn't stand seeing them. It was hitting him hard that he was dead. Really dead. His curiousity had really been the death of him.

Bdubs watered his beautiful rose bush garden. Watered his other posies, tulips, and then his gorgeous mass. A smile as wide as can be as he pet the growth like a cat.

"You're doing such an amazing thing for me, yes, you are! Yess you are. Who's a good little plant? You are! You! That's right!" An eerie little pet baby voice left him in a coo, little proud giggles to go with such a voice. "You will be my eyes. You will be my help while I am theirs. How does that sound? I know. I know. I'm a genius." While he spoke he stopped watering the mass to give it some pork. "I helped and I think I can be so much more helpful with you...though I think..I want to recruit more help soon. What do you think?"

The mass does not respond. It can not speak.

"That's what I was thinking!!! You are just as smart as I thought." He giggled more madly now. Bdubs brushed off his hands. "I think I'll pay Keralis a little visit. Check on his building. I'm sure..he will need my help. If I can't help him, I think I'll watch. I'm just..I just have that itch. That itch I have to scratch. I know,,I knowww we aren't allowed to see friends. But! I think some rules are meant to be broken." He then put his hand back on the mass, the petting more slow. "I know you believe the same.." His eyes scanned over his beautiful plant. Patting it before walking off to the upper section of his base. The bush base had been redesigned as a greenhouse.

>Bdouble0100< Are you still working on your base Keralis?

>Keralis< That I am! I am almost done!

Bdubs whines under his breath.

>Bdouble0100< Do you need help?

>Keralis< Nope! :D

>Keralis< You can come to see it with your beautiful eyes if you would like! Just stay at a distance for safety!

>Bdouble0100< I WOULD LOVE TO SEE IT! On my way!

>Xisumavoid< I will be keeping watch for you two

>Keralis< Thank you sweetface

>Bdouble0100< That's so smart

During lunch Bdubs had been sitting in the grass with crossed legs to watch Keralis work. Eating raw beef.

Zedaph looked down at Bdubs from the sky. Going down closer to get a better look. Bdubs did not appear to be the same as he saw him before he died. Zedaph looked for any difference, anything at all. Something that would give his killer, his friend, away. Nothing.

Keralis now turned around, wiping his forehead with the back of his hand. Sighing with relief. His plaid cover-up over his shoulder, turning to bdubs. "Well, what do you think?"

Bdubs took a second to mentally click in. "Hm? Oh- OH!!! I LIKE! I REALLY LIKE! Do my big eyes lie or is that flooring beehive?"

Keralis chuckled. "It is beehive! Expensive but Papa K likes it regal." He joked with a shoulder shrug.

"REGAL?!" Bdubs snorted with a snicker. "Oh yeahh yeah very regal! Says the man who makes the worst kind of jokes along next to Scar and Iskall!"

Keralis makes a big dramatic gasp. "Moi?!"

Bdubs rolls his eyes and points to Keralis. "Yes!!! Yes you!!"

Zedaph felt sick. Disgusted. Such a friendly man. His good friend. Always so funny and kind and deadly. He watched, anxious. Always on the edge, expecting the worst. The worst that never happened the whole meetup.

Bdubs hummed, carrying some logs in his hands. A gift from Keralis. Putting it in his storage system.

Zedaph looked away. He couldn't look at him the same way anymore. He was acting so normally after his death. Bdubs wasn't mentally all the way there. It was obvious. His friend was still his friend. His friend was just, sick. Sick in the head. Sick. Zedaph wondered around more. Noticing all the hermits going about their day. They all were so unaware of his death. It was unsettling. Someone was bound to find one of his bodies during mining. Till then, the coverup in the chat and the base would last for some time.

Until then, Zedaph looked back at Bdubs. He would follow him around everywhere he went now. If the world would be infected from Bdubs, then from a scientific standpoint he wanted to see this happen.

From a victim standpoint, he wanted to see the man fail. Be cured. Death be the cure.

He just wanted bdubs back. Not this parasite.

Zedaph wanted to watch the others too, yet morbid curiosity was keeping him tethered to the parasite.

Tension formed anytime bdubs would be near someone he shouldn't be near. Interacting with people despite the rules. Xisuma noticed and only lectured him once, zedaph noticed.

>Grian< Mumbo do you have any sticks?

>MumboJumbo< Only a few, I know Ren has too many

>Rendiggitydog< TRUE BUT THEY ARE LIKE GOLD TO ME MY DUDE

>Grian< What if, you give me sticks now..and in the longer run..I give you MORE sticks back. Like interest..

>Iskall85< What an investment

>Rendiggitydog< DEAL

Zedaph wanted so badly to press any communication buttons on his stolen communicator, so badly to tell them to stop worrying about sticks and find his bodies. Find who will be devouring the server. His friends. He knew there was nothing he could do. Nothing.

A thought hit him that hurt him to his core.

They'll never find his bodies and they will never know he was dead in the first place. They'll go the entire season without him. Never knowing.

Zed didn't want to watch anymore. Curious or not he did not want to be the curious cat that continued to be turned into roadkill. Zed just wanted to be noticed. To be avenged. To know his friends cared.

A week passed by.

All while Zed had been having many realizations, the mass it grew. The mass would be made of more matter the more time and care it had received. Bdubs always loved to spoil his friends. The mass was now one of his friends. So the mass, was spoiled. Spoiled and growing more and more. Bdubs gathering false alibis accidentally without second thought. All he was doing was spending time with the other hermits.

They all thought, it couldn't be him. Thinking, if it was him, he would have killed anyone of us by now. They all give him such a clear slate by wrong assumptions.

Grian didn't open a detective case yet since there was no deaths. Nothing to run on by with evidence yet.

>Grian< Anyone else besides Xisuma loose any lives?

>GoodTimesWithScar< I fell down a ravine yesterday!

>Grian< Anyone ELSE besides Xisuma AND SCAR loose any lives?

>Grian< I mean to the killer

Zedaph was filled with hope for once since his deaths. Finally there was a serious discussion about the killer.

>ZedaphPlays< If you have, I can take note!

Zedaph watched as his name popped up in the chat. That wasn't him. He watched as Bdubs giggled, taking over from his communications. Bdubs having now two watches on his left wrist. He was known for collecting those golden watches but this was another sick and twisted form of collecting.

>Grian< That would be great! You can be my keeper!

>ZedaphPlays< I can do that :)

>Grian< Perfect! So since I didn't get an answer besides scar, I think we are all doing pretty good surviving

>Iskall85< kinda reminds me of the zombie apocalypse

>MumboJumbo< ISKALL NO

>Iskall85< What?! It does!! Think about it, virus and deadly in a way? C'mon bro that is so close

>MumboJumbo< I'm choosing to take your words with a grain of salt

>Grian< He has a point wafflehead

>MumboJumbo< I hate it here

>Iskall85< You love us

Mumbo rolled his eyes, responded to the text by an 'unfortunately' before looking away from his communications, muting it for some time. He wanted to continue working on his underground farms. At the moment he was working on a zombie farm.

As Mumbo was mining for his farm he heard a familiar sound.

Squelching.

He froze. Waiting. Surely he heard wrong, he thought to himself.

One minute. Silence.

Two minutes. Silence.

Three, four, five, six, silence.

Seven.

Squirming, muffled squirming.

Mumbo looked at the wall, cold sweat covering his face. Backing away. His anxiety was just acting up he thought, he was just being paranoid. Mumbo wanted to pretend that he didn't hear anything. Pretend it and possibly it would be true.

Mumbo started to mine again after some hesitation. Humming to himself to calm his nerves. He didn't hear anything for some time after that one time.

He was just paranoid and thinking illogically based on fear is what he concluded with.

Mumbo decided from then on out, if he heard another noise, he would trust Zedaph's word on it.

Trust his good friend on it.

There was no more red mass and Zedaph was fine.

He could ignore the red against his walls, it was just leftover Redstone.

>Grian< Another question, anybody notice anything weird?

>MumboJumbo< Anything?

>Grian< Yeah anything!

>MumboJumbo< I uh

>MumboJumbo< Weird noises

>MumboJumbo< The weird noises

>Grian< you sure they aren't just made up by you? I do trust you! I just think you tend to overthink things! Are you sure?

>Iskall85< Yea man are you sure? This is important

Mumbo sweat at being put on the spot.

>MumboJumbo< No no you know what, yes, yes you are both right. I must be overthinking it. I do that. Everything's fine. I'm safe, I'm just scared.

>Grian< it's okay to be scared! Try to think before answering questions! Zedaph is taking notes and I need the story to be clear!

>MumboJumbo< Right, Right. I'm sorry grian

>Grian< you're alright!

Mumbo muted his communications again. Feeling guilty.

His private messages being spammed.

>Bdouble100< You heard weird noises?

>Bdouble100< Do you need help dealing with them?

>Bdouble100< Where did you hear them from?

>Bdouble100< I wouldn't mind going all the way over to help

>Bdouble100< No matter how far your cords are

>Bdouble100< I would go to so many lengths to get those cords of yours

>Bdouble100< Mumbo? Are you there? :D?

>Bdouble100< I didn't even know you were connected to the trading system! How did you do that without my help?

>Bdouble100< I can help you, you know?

>Bdouble100< Why don't you trust me?

All of the messages at some point still dissapear over time. Hours being waste away as Bdubs gets no response and Mumbo works on his Redstone.

>Bdouble100< Mumbo am I helpful? You don't think I'm helpful do you?

No response. It was making Bdubs antsy. Clingy. Desperate. He wanted to help. He needed to help. Mumbo wouldn't let him. Didn't trust him. He craved it.

>Bdouble100< Mumbo

>Bdouble100< Mumbo?

>Bdouble100< Mumbo please answer

>Bdouble100< mumbo I will help you, let me help you

No answer. Bdubs knew mumbo got quiet during his builds. Even if he knew this he was covered in sweat. Crying and laughing. It hurt so bad not to be able to help. It hurt so bad knowing that something felt abnormal about himself. Even if he was a monster he still wanted to help. Even in his twisted sense. He wanted to help.

He opened his chat. Private messaging Keralis.

>Bdouble100< Keralis

>Keralis< Oui?

>Bdouble100< I'm upset and I don't know what to do

>Keralis< Aw no, come here now, I give you honey and tea and we talk, yes?

>Bdouble100< you'll help me?

>Keralis< yes, I help you

Bdubs wiped his face and started to head over to keralis's house. Face dripping with liquid. Tears he figured.

Keralis turned around to smile widely at his favorite wide grinning man besides himself, only to fall short. Pausing in his turn.

"BUBBLES?! Who has made you bleed this way?" Keralis ran over and rubbed a thumb over Bdubs cheek, runny red liquid getting smeared against his skin.

"Bleed? I'm? IM BLEEDING???" bdubs blinked quickly

Keralis now squished Bdubs face with two hands. "YOU ARE BLEEDING SO MANY! SO MUCH! What has happened????"

"I don't know!!" Bdubs genuinely could not remember.

"Is your blood, right?" Keralis raised a brow.

"I think so???? Is it?" Bdubs tilted his head, confused.

Keralis runs a finger by it and lightly licks it like a cat. "Yes is yours."

Bdubs blinked rapidly. Standing there for a moment.

Zedaph would blink so fast if he could.

Keralis smiled. "No worries, I am a professional."

"I" bdubs smiled and then started to laugh. "I trust you. Tango was right." Right about him being a freak.

"hey!" Keralis puts his hands on his own hips. "Take it back or no tea."

"okay okay I take it back! I take it back!" Bdubs couldn't stop laughing.

"first we get you aid, then we clean you up and get you the tea. Lets go. Tell noone or Xisuma, all of them paranoid. No need to add stress." Keralis walked behind bdubs and started to push at his back to get him moving.

Zedaph was coming to acceptance of being barely there. Just known of sounds and maybe red.

Just barely noticable.

#jexvex #hermitcraft #jexywrites #Vital Virus

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