Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Her flashlight flickers as she stumbles over her own feet again in the darkness.  She sniffles some, trying to block out what her parents had said. She knows she isn’t wasting her time on her craft!  Drawing is fucking integral to engineering, but no.  No, they can’t have an artist in the family.  It’s bad enough that she’s autistic.

The little light in her hand blinks off amid her stumbling, prompting her to scowl and smack the butt of the device with the palm of her hand in an attempt at percussive maintenance.  "Crummy batteries…" she mutters quietly, shaking the torch and managing a dim flicker.

She tries again to futilely light her way to no avail.  She curses under her breath and squints into the abyss around her.  There’s a light ahead of her, so she naturally lets herself be led by it like a moth to a flame.  She fumbles ahead, eventually pushing through a “wall” into a well-lit, green glen. Her breath catches in her throat at the sight, seeing glowing branches stretch out of a carved, ornate globe in the center of the glen.

She almost feels… drawn to it.  Like it’s a magnet for the lonely.

It’s beautiful, like nothing she’s ever seen before. It almost feels as though it could begin speaking to her at any moment. Or, something inside could begin speaking to her. The egg thing itself looks like a shell rather than a sentient being.

She digs feverishly in her bag to drag out her sketchbook and pencil. She slowly wanders towards the eggy looking thing, sketching it in as much detail as she can muster, until she reaches what she presumes is the front of it.

There’s a doorway to go inside the egg thing.  And what can be presumed to be a dead guard, surrounded by the corpses of human-sized praying mantises.  She has to suppress a shiver. Should she go inside?...

If this were a horror movie, this would be where the audience would be screaming at her to walk away because they’d seen the monster inside. But this doesn’t feel like a horror movie. And surely nothing this beautiful could be dangerous. 

“Wait, that’s stupid,” she mutters at the thought. There were plenty of beautiful and dangerous things.

“I should just go in,” she says. “There can’t be anything in there.” And yet, she can’t make her feet move. Something about this place feels strange. Unnatural. 

Eventually, she musters up her courage and ventures inside. 

The inside is a series of winding, narrow tunnels that feel claustrophobic until she’s in a more open room.

And there’s a glowing white tree that almost seems to have a face.

“Woah…” she mumbles, turning her eyes to her sketchbook, and a voice hums into the room.

“That emptiness… is that one of my children?”  The voice sounds like a woman, remarkably hurt and voice hoarse from disuse.  Julia looks up sharply, and she realizes the tree is staring into space with wide, cloudy eyes.  

“Uh...” Julia tried to rationalize the situation. Surely that tree hadn’t just talked to her. That sort of thing just didn’t happen.  But still, the honest-to-god head of the tree lady (is it a lady?) swivels towards the sound of the human’s voice.

Silence hangs in the air for several seconds.

“Ah, I see.  You’ve been stripped of your shell.  Just a shade, like the others,” the tree laments quietly.  “Come to me, child, let me fix you up. If you came this far to see me, it's the least I can do to grant you that extra protection.”

“Um...sure?” She’s not entirely sure what the tree lady is talking about, but she doesn’t want to be rude. The tree seems sad. She doesn’t want to make the tree sadder by telling her that she wasn’t who the tree thought she was.

One of the tendrils (branches?) lifts to snap off another. Julia tenses, expecting a cracking at the branch being broken, but it doesn’t come. Instead, the branch is removed without a sound. Other branches join the first, beginning to shape the broken branch. It reacts more like clay than wood, easily molded and shaped by the tree’s other branches. Soon enough, it resembles a strange mask, teardrop-shaped with almond-shaped eyes. A dollop of some black and white something goes into the cusp of the mask, smoothed along the inside. It’s certainly an intricate mask if mostly simple, a lovely one that looked to be decorative.  A branch hands it off to Julia, who takes a few moments to trace her hands on the surface.

Smooth.  Like ceramic or porcelain.  Not at all like it looked like it was made of.

“Go ahead, put it on,” the tree lady coaxes.  “Can’t have a bare shade floating around.”

The bare shade comment doesn’t even register, although in retrospect she should have listened more closely. At that moment, she’s transfixed by this mask. 

“This is… for me?” She asks, looking up at the tree lady. “You’re… Giving this to me?”

“Of course!  I’m no mask maker, but every bug needs a face.”

Julia shudders at the tree lady’s wording.  “Bug?”

The tree tilts her head some.  “Are you not a Vessel? An empty husk, meant to carry the blight of my kingdom and cast into the darkness when you failed to be void enough?”

The comment stings more than she’d like to admit. She’s always had trouble with her emotions. She finds them difficult and tiring a lot of the time. There were many times when she’d been younger when she thought she was broken somehow. To be called an empty husk...It’s all her worst thoughts coming back. Instead of responding properly, she purses her lips and lifts the mask to look through the eye holes speculatively.  Sized perfectly. Somehow.

All at once, tendrils shoot off of the mask and latch onto her head like a goddamned Facehugger.  She screams as the tendrils and the inside of the mask burn like acid. It isn’t long before the mask engulfs her head, almost swallowing it and gluing to her skin by some unknown, black adhesive.

“Oh my, are you alright?!” The tree asks, seeming startled by the girl’s shriek.

“No!” She claws frantically at the mask, attempting to pry it off in an attempt to stop the pain. “What’s going on?! Why does it hurt?!” 

No matter how hard she tries, though, the mask won’t budge. The fire on her skin spreads , getting underneath and seeming to sear her every nerve.  The tree lady responds, but she hears no words as a deafening scream of silence invades her mind.

Chapter Text

She wakes up to something sharp poking her in the shoulder.  Not in a stabbing manner, more like someone nudging with a stick curiously.  She groans quietly and mentally takes stock. Something feels… wrong . She’s not sure what it is, just that something isn’t the way it’s supposed to be. Her body isn’t hurting anymore, which she’s rather thankful for. But it doesn’t feel right. Slowly, she allows herself to open her eyes and assess the situation.

A pair of empty, round eyes are staring down at her from a blank face. The thing watching her has a mask much like the one the tree lady gave her, only this one has a much simpler design, with two uniform horns and encasing their whole head rather than the faint swirls on her face-only mask. It’s small, the size of a child, and wears a ragged grey cape around its shoulders. It also has what appears to be a blade in one hand. This is likely what she was being poked with. 

It looks a little beat up, with scratches on its mask and tears in its little cape. And there were little bits of some sort of yellow liquid or something on its blade. 

Her first thought is that it’s a child playing dress-up. It’s about the right size and the beat-up appearance reminds her of a kid after a particularly rambunctious play session. Clearly, this kid is playing at being some kind of knight. 

It takes almost more effort than she can muster to speak.

"P-please stop that."

The weird kid immediately perks up, sitting on the ground to get in her face.  Rude. It stabs the orange-streaked sword into the ground and offers her a tiny pair of hands.  She accepts the obvious attempt to help, letting herself sit up.

Chunks of some kind of meat slough off of her, still skinned and bloody.  Her heart leaps into her throat as she realizes the flesh pile she's sitting on belongs to her. She can make out her bag, her hair, her scrunchie, the remnants of her clothes. She spots the cartilage of her nose and the shells of her ears and firmly decides she's having a nightmare. This can’t be real. It can’t be. And yet...She can feel the meat. She can smell it. She takes a few deep breaths, trying to will herself to wake up. This is when she catches sight of her arm. 

It’s black and shiny and almost seems… chitinous.  Like an exoskeleton. She raises both her hands in front of her face, realizing with mounting horror that it is an exoskeleton. When she flexes her fingers, the segmented parts click together. Although she still seems to have hands, they look distinctly inhuman now. Her breathing quickens as she looks down at herself. The rest of her body is much the same, covered in the same shiny black exoskeleton. 

It’s wrong. It’s all wrong. This isn’t what her body is supposed to look like. It looks like a bug’s body! A humanoid bug, sure, but a bug all the same! She screams again, making the little ghost of a kid jump.

“W-What did you do to me?” She whimpers, looking up at the tree lady. Or, where she expected the tree lady to be. 

She realizes, now, that she’s outside the egg thing in the grass.  She must have been moved out when she… uh, melted. The weird little thing next to her tilts its head in confusion and gently pats her face - mask.  The mask over her face.  It wraps all around her head, now, with weird horns that twist together like the tendrils that had grabbed her face.  In the back of her mind, there's a stirring, sounding like the word sibling?

She shudders and hugs herself. "What happened to me?..."

The kid (she’s going to think of it as a kid) still looks confused. Or as confused as it can look without any discernible facial features. 

“Do you know what’s going on?” she asks, hugging herself, ignoring the tatters of her human clothes around her body leaving the remaining flesh to cling to her in awkward places.

The kid shrugs. She’s starting to think they can’t talk. Then they lift their weird blade and point to her with their free hand. She might have thought of it as a threat, but she doesn’t sense any malice coming from the kid. Just curiosity. 

“Are you asking where mine is?” She asks.  

The kid nods, putting their blade down again.

“I don’t… use swords.”

The kid tilts their head almost curiously.  They run their black, chitin covered hand along the flat of their blade in fingered circles along the intricate grooves, seeming thoughtful.  A quiet, breeze-like hush comes out of them before they seem to get an idea and gesture as if to say “Stay here!” before running off into the brush.

She sits, confused and lost as she continues to regain her bearings. She looks around, trying to find something she remembers. It’s all changed, though. The walls and ceiling look to be stone and are covered in moss and vegetation. But it’s not the sort of stone she’s used to seeing. It looks natural, like some sort of cave. There’s no sign of the path she came down. Instinctively, she knows she’s underground, despite not remembering going underground. She knows the mask changed her somehow, but it doesn’t explain how the world changed. 

“What’s going on here?” She whispers. She pulls her bag out of the mess of her to cuddle as if it's a doll.  She feels she could use the comfort.

That’s when the kid comes back. They have another blade in their hand. They come up to her and proudly present the new blade to her. 

“Is this for me?” She asks, even though she knows that it is. 

The kid nods, holding the blade out again.  She takes it with a shaking hand and examines it.  It’s old but well cared for, resembling a lance far more than any sword she’s ever seen, other than maybe a rapier without a proper guard.  But it’s… weighted like a sword, despite her never having held a sword before. For some unfathomable reason, the word nail comes to mind.

“Are-are- did you steal this off someone?” she asks in confusion.

The kid looks distinctly offended by this suggestion, shaking their head. She gets the feeling that they’re saying whoever used to have it no longer needs it. Then they grab her hand and start dragging her.

“Wait, where are we going?” She asks although she knows the kid probably can’t answer her.

The kid whirls back, cape swirling around them as they wave a shiny shell - money, she realizes in the back of her mind - in the air.

“Are-are we going to collect money?”

Fervent nodding from the smaller of the duo.

“Well, okay,” she says. She supposed she doesn’t mind them dragging her around. She feels better with them. She’s still scared out of her mind, but at least she’s not alone. At least she doesn’t have to face the horror by herself. Plus, the kid’s pretty cute. She’d always wanted a little sibling.  She shakes that thought out of her head.  She can’t already jump to sibling thoughts.  She needs to find a way to fix this and go home.

Even if there’s a persistent chant of sibling, sibling, sibling! ringing around her head cheerfully.  The smaller bug tugs on her hand to start leading her to a room with… weird… hopping… bushes.  Her small friend swipes at one of them a couple of times, and it explodes in a puff of orange mist and a rain of the glittering money shells.

“What the fuck?” She whispers. Attacking these things yielded...money? That’s some video game bullshit right there. But the money shells can probably buy stuff. 

Her small friend points at more hopping bushes, swinging their blade. 

“Do you want me to try?”

They nod excitedly.

“I… I don’t know,” she says, looking at the hopping bushes. Some instinct inside of her whispers to ‘ consume the light ,' But what light is it talking about? Why is she even thinking this? She doesn’t want to attack these things. She doesn’t want to give in to the strange instinct. 

Her small friend points at the bushes again, seemingly baffled by her unwillingness to fight. 

She hisses and adjusts her grip on the nail- it’s a sword.  It’s a fucking sword. She adjusts her grip and inches towards the hopping bushes.  One of them lands near her and pauses while gearing up to leap again, and she stabs it in the eye.  She sees orange leak out, and her vision darkens.

Wielding the nail - SWORD - like a rapier, she pulls it out and lets the weird creature hop away.  She lets out another hiss, more of a snarl, and lunges after it, slicing at it with the bit of the blade close to the grip.  The creature explodes like the other one, and little fireflies light up around the money and carry the shells all over to her little friend.  She stands stock-still, filled with the realization that she… she just killed something as the lights dance around her.

She wants to feel sick.  She can’t.

“Well, uh… that’s handy,” she comments awkwardly to try and distract herself as her companion applauds her for her handiwork.

Her little friend holds out one of the money shells to her. Her reward, she supposes. It’s a large, round, yellow one.  Probably worth more than the smaller shells that she’d seen being collected. 

“Thanks,” she says. Then they hold out another thing. It’s different than the money shells. She knows that. It reminds her of honey, although she can’t explain why. It’s crystalline and gold, looking like a large gem. She takes it and finds a little pokey bit on the back.  She presses it into an open hole on her… carapace, she guesses.  It slots in perfectly, and she sees a new sheen of gold.

“Oh my,” she mumbles.

Sibling safe, that persistent whisper in the back of her head affirms.

She wants to ask why they gave her this weird charm thing, if it’s meant to keep her safe, how it’s meant to keep her safe, but she’s getting tired now of all the questions she has.

“Thank you,” she says, trying to smile at her little friend. She can’t smile anymore, though. But her little friend seems happy enough at the thanks. They almost seem to be beaming.

How can she read them so well?  And what’s the weird voice in the back of her head?

One of the bushes she’d been ignoring lands down on her, and her chitin cracks under the pressure.  The cracks slowly fill in with the gold sheen as she whips around and quickly dispatches the weird bouncy bush.

“Asshole.”

Her little friend seems to laugh at this. They don’t make any noise, but the way their shoulders shake makes it seem like they’re laughing. 

“And what are you laughing at, tiny?!” She demands, putting her hands on her hips. Or where her hips would be. She’s trying to be intimidating, but she finds herself laughing as well.

She sighs and slumps a little.  “Anyways, uh… do we have a plan besides money collection?”

They walk up to her with a little nod.  They take her hand and start leading her out of the room.

Bench time.

“Bench?” she finally asks the little whisper aloud, and her friend pauses with a huge amount of surprise. Something suddenly occurs to her. 

“Wait, can you hear those whispers too?” She asks, her eyes widening.  The kid is too busy running circles around her.

Sibling listens, sibling listens!

The word sibling makes her shiver. She knows it has something to do with what the tree lady likely mistook her for. The tree lady probably isn’t mistaken anymore.

“I-I… I guess I can hear you,” she admits.  “What are you?”

Like you, like you. 

“I don’t know what that means,” she says. 

Hollow, void, vessel, sibling.

There are those words again.

“I’m supposed to be human,” she responds, sounding as empty as she feels, as desperate.  “I was changed, I’m not supposed to be-be-be ANY of those things!”

Like us, like us. 

“It’s not right!” She insists. She would start crying if she was still capable of it. 

Her little friend has stopped running and now seems concerned at her distress. Their head is tilted to the side again. It occurs to her briefly that they might not even know what a human is. That tree lady certainly hadn’t.

“I wasn’t born like this!  A tree lady made me put on a mask and now I’m hearing goddamn voices and I turned into a bug!” Her voice is rising as her anxiety kicks in. She doesn’t want to be like this. It’s all new and strange and different and she doesn’t like it. She has a hard enough time dealing with regular change. This is completely different than anything else she’d ever experienced and it’s all overwhelming her. 

Her little friend approaches and puts a hand on hers. 

She shudders and lets out a dry sob.

She feels like her friend can sympathize.

“I’m sorry,” she mumbles, drawing into herself. 

Her little friend shakes their head, squeezing her hand.

Strong imprints.  Ghosts forever.

She stares into space like she always used to before she hid her problems.

“... Are we dead?”

Her friend stares back with empty eyes.

Hollow.  Void.

She sits on the ground and does her best to curl into a ball.  She realizes the cracks she had are now gone, but she feels too empty to care.

“... So only my body changed then…” she whispers hopelessly. She’s used to feeling empty. There have been so many times when she’s just felt...numb. So many times when she just can’t muster up the will to feel anything about anything. She can deal with that. She’s done it all her life. 

She shakes her head, trying to calm herself down. She needs something to focus on, some distraction. Something to keep herself from just giving up and giving in.

“Where are you going?” She asks her little friend. “What are you doing?”

The impression of needing to sit down is pressed on her.

“Oh. Bench, then?”

Nod nod nod.

“... Lead the way, then.”

Her little friend keeps a hold on her hand, taking her to a bench. She wonders what the benches are , or at least what purpose they serve for her and her friend. Her friend sits down, and the light in the area seems to flash brighter for a moment.

She hesitantly sits on the bench herself, and her little friend makes a whispery noise that seems cheerful.

“This is nice.” She doesn’t know why she’s still talking. Maybe she’s trying to make herself feel better. Sitting on the bench does make her feel better. It’s like waking up after a long rest. She feels refreshed. 

She hears the ringing of a bell and looks over to see her companion swiping at a bell with their sword nail thing, summoning an approaching rumbling that makes her nervous.

A big flea-looking bug runs into the space that looks like train tracks, saddled with seating on their back.

“Where to, little one?” The old man grumbles to her friend. She blinks as her little friend reaches into their cloak and digs out a worn map. They move closer to the old man and point to a location.  “Dirtmouth, then?  What about you, over there?”

She looks around.  “M-me? Uh… I’m with them.”

The big flea huffs and Julia’s friend pulls her into a seat, and the giant bug starts running. She tries to settle in as best she can beside her friend. This isn’t weird, she tells herself. It is pretty fun, though. Like riding a hayride at a fair.

“Is this normal?” She whispers to her friend. “Like, do you travel like this a lot?”

She can’t tell if they can hear her, or if they’re nodding from the jolting of the ride.

The ride is thankfully not too long. Soon enough they arrive in the place that her friend had pointed out. 

The room they’re in has an elevator heading up that her friend starts heading towards.

Apprehension is what clouds her mind.

Chapter Text

Julia hesitates, shivering as she climbs off the flea bug thing.

Her friend hops off the large bug, giving an appreciative nod to the flea. She starts to hop off as well, but a realization strikes her. These other bugs in this Dirtmouth place will look at her and think she’s the same as her friend. They’ll have some kind of assumption about what she is. She doesn’t want to have to face others who think she’s something she’s not.  She needs to find some way to set herself apart.

“Can-can I search your saddlebags?” She asks the flea nervously. 

The flea gives her a strange look. “I guess. Not sure what you’re looking for.”

“I’m frankly not sure, either.  Something to show I’m… I’m different, maybe.”

She digs through the dusty saddlebags, finding many abandoned trinkets and accessories that had been left behind at some point. At the bottom of the bags, she finds something that seems to click with her. A cloak of green and gold. The fabric is still in good condition, despite the dust and dirt. It’s soft, pleasant to the touch. This is it. This is the thing that will set her apart. All the others she’s seen have been dressed in monochromatic colors of grey and black. Color will set her apart. Color will make her different. 

“Can I have this?” She asks, turning to the flea. 

“Don’t see why not.” The flea shrugs. “Not like anyone’s coming back for it.”

“Thank you.” She drapes the cloak around herself and hops off to the ground. She removes the honey crystal from her chest to pin it like a cloak clasp and hold the article of clothing on.  It felt a little large on her, but she would survive. She also had nabbed a ribbon with a gold weight on the end that resembled a barette.  Not knowing what else to do with it, she tied the ribbon to one of the horns on her mask.

Her little friend gives her a thumbs-up upon seeing her new ensemble. They jump up and, in a spattering of light, flutter up even higher with a set of gossamer wings to try and hurry her along to the elevator up to town.

She should feel… nervous.  Or excited. Or something.

But in her chest, she just feels a hungry hollow.

It’s strange. She can feel superficial emotions. But they’re just that. Superficial. They don’t fill her up. They’re just on the surface. She steps on the elevator after her friend, shifting in place and wringing her hands. Her friend took her hand again, holding it as the elevator began to move. Her surface level anxiety lessens at this gesture. She likes her small friend, she decides. Even if she doesn’t want to listen to the voices saying she’s their sibling, they’ve been very nice.

The door leading outside is already open as her friend leads her out of the station and sits on the bench, patting the open space to indicate the spot is for her.

“Thank you,” she politely responds. Her little friend just nods. Once she’s on the bench, they lean against her.

There are more buildings here, light leaking out from the entrances of some. They remind her of the shells of snails in their shape and the texture on the outside of them. There’s another bug standing beside a bench in the middle of what she thinks is a square. They stand under a street lamp with a beautiful spiraling design. 

“The little ghost from beyond has gone and found a friend in the deep, have they?” the old bug asks from their - his - spot next to the bench.  “So many new additions to town, lately.”

“A friend in the deep?” She echoes in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“You came from the City of Tears, did you not?” The bug says. “Like all the others.”

“No, I’m human,” she replies. 

The bug gives her a strange look. Her little friend tugs at her hand and shakes their head. She understands what they’re saying. The bug doesn’t know what a human is. 

Her shoulders slump. Of course the bug wouldn’t know what a human is.

“Surely you were found in the depths of Hallownest, then, if not pulled up from the Abyss of legend.”

“No, I’m… not from Hallownest.  I’m not even a bug, really,” she tries to elaborate. Despite knowing the bug won’t know what she’s talking about, she desperately wants to make clear that this isn’t what she’s supposed to be. She’s always been big on semantics.

“Then what are you?  A circus performer? A living nightmare like those Grimm Troupe folk?”

“The Grimm Troupe?” She frowns. “Uh, no. I’m not with them. I’m not with the circus either.” She pauses for a moment before asking, “What are they?”

“The stuff of nightmares.” The bug shivers, shaking his head. “You’d best not involve yourself with them.”

“I...I won’t,” she says slowly. 

She’s curious now, though. She looks at her little friend. Maybe they’ve heard of this Grimm Troupe. If they’re something supernatural, maybe they can turn her back.  She almost feels hope bubbling up inside her until it pops back into her inner void. She doesn’t want to ask about the Grimm Troupe while that bug is here, since they seem a sore subject, but she files it away to ask about later. 

Tiny, her little friend, is staring at her intently now.  It's starting to make her kind of nervous.

“Is...Do you want something?” She asks slowly. They swivel their head to look over at the army of red tents pitched up just on the edge of this little dying town.

“Is that where they are?” She lowers her voice. “Is that where the Grimm Troupe are?” She speaks quiet enough that she doesn’t think the other bug can hear her.  Her little friend nods confidently, adding a weird-looking pin to their carapace.  In a swirl of shade and flame, a bat-bug-thing appears. It croons like a mix between a cat and a lizard and perches between the summoner’s horns with a content croon.

“That’s pretty cute,” she says. If she could smile, a brief one would have flashed across her face at that moment. But she can’t, so she just watches the strange creature. It perks up at her voice and flutters over like the bat it looks like, getting in her face and puffing hot, red smoke into her face, making her sneeze.  It lets out a little “Nyah!” and flops into her lap like a living hot water bottle.

… Dear God, it’s so adorable.

“Hey there.” Her voice softens and she pats its back gently. She always wanted a pet, but her parents always said they didn’t have time to take care of one. She doesn’t know if this would count as a pet, or if it would be offended to be thought of as such, but for the moment she decides to pretend it can be.  It croons amicably and roils around in her lap like a cat rubbing themselves against the ground.

Her little friend pats the creature on the head and affixes a second charm to their carapace.  A trio of what looks like silver spiders spins onto the ground. They stare up at the two of them before sitting on the ground in politely folded little heaps.

“My parents would like them,” she laughs. Her parents always complained about how rambunctious animals could be. At the thought of parents, she pauses. “Do we have parents?” She looks over at her little friend.

“I mean, I have parents,” she continues. “But… do you have parents?” She doesn’t remember how bugs reproduce, but she’s sure her friend had to come from somewhere. 

They stare at her for a long moment before nodding slowly.  They pull aside their cloak and beckon for her to look at a charm on their carapace - a soft one that she knows instinctively indicates youth or lack of molts - jet black with an inscription.

Born of God and Void.  Child of Wyrm and Root.  Unify your element and ascend.

"I-I dunno what that means," she says, although in the back of her mind wheels are turning. 

The root part reminds her of the lady who gave her the mask. The tree lady had mentioned something about thinking Julia was her child. Was it because her little friend is the tree lady’s child? Judging from the reactions of others, she and her little friend aren’t the only creatures of void that exist here. Did they all come from the tree lady or that Abyss place?

The Grimm Troupe is momentarily forgotten as her focus switches onto this new mystery.

“The tree lady. Is she your mom?” She demands. Her voice comes out a bit more forceful than she intended. She knows she gets a bit intense when she’s interested in something.  The kid that’s been accompanying her stares at her, she thinks in surprise, for several moments.  Slowly, they nod and use their nail-sword to write in the dirt, scrawling letters she shouldn’t recognize but does.

Pale King father.  White Queen mother.  Eggs left in void. Hollow children.  Stop infection. Last resort.

They even write like a child, her heart cries.  

“Infection?  What infection?”  Julia probes in confusion.

She has a feeling that orange stuff has something to do with the infection, but she isn’t sure what it is exactly. Where did it come from, though? Why did the tree lady and the Pale King guy make creatures like her friend to combat it?

Her little friend holds up their blade, which still has the orange stuff clinging to it. They point to the orange liquid.

“Is that it?” She asks. “Is that the infection?”

Her friend nods and tucks their blade away again. 

“Where did it come from?” She persists. “What does it have to do with us?”

Angry light forgotten.  Wants revenge.

She frowns. “Revenge? Is it our fault they got forgotten?”

Pale father. Craved worship. Stole attention.

“So...Our dad took their worshippers?”  She doesn’t even notice the use of our.

Fervent nodding.  Wyrms build kingdoms, residents already here.  Unn suffered too.

“So he’s one of those rulers.” Her respect for this king isn’t very high at this point. But her respect for this creature isn’t the point.

“What are Wyrms, exactly?” She asks. The way her friend spelled the word is different. She doesn’t think it’s the same as the worms she’s used to seeing. 

Higher beings.  Great and giant.

Her friend doesn’t seem to know too much about Wyrms themself.

“Okay.” She nods, running this through her head. She can’t help but wonder for a moment just what she’s gotten herself into. This thought is quickly gone, though, in favor of curiosity about this situation. It’s a mystery to be solved, a problem to be figured out.

Her attention is directed back to the Grimm Troupe by the little cat thing flopping on her head.  It keeps crooning at her with little “nyah”s and she gets the distinct impression that this thing is a baby.  She reaches up to scratch it between the horns and it purrs, radiating heat through her body. She hadn’t even realized how cold she’d felt.

“You’re a cutie, huh?  Living water bottle, I swear,” she half purrs herself, lavishing the weird cat thing in pets.

Her little friend points towards the tents at the edge of town, head cocked to the side as if in question. She somehow knows they’re asking if she still wants to see the Grimm Troupe. “Oh, uh, yeah.  Let’s go visit,” she responds, standing up and scooping up the little creature in her arms as she does so.

Her friend nods, hopping up off the bench and holding out a hand for her to hold. She takes their hand again, allowing them to lead her toward the brightly colored tents. There’s a liveliness to the small town of tents, far more alive than the actual town they’d just left in her opinion.  Warm and hectic. Julia can’t help but feel a little excited. She wasn’t allowed to go to circuses at home. Her parents always said it was a waste of time and money. But she’s getting to see a circus now. Even if it is a weird bug one.

A puff of flame goes up in front of her, making her squeak and recoil.

“Welcome, newcomer!  Have you come to watch the performance today?” A raspy, breathy voice that sounded like a fifty pack a day smoking habit asks with pride in their- his? - voice.

“I, uh, um.” She flounders unsure what to say. This has to be the weirdest thing she’s seen so far. That bug just literally appeared out of a puff of smoke! Is this a bug demon? Can bugs become demons?  Is she meeting real, actual Bug Satan?

The taller, batty bug cackles like a cement mixer filled with gravel.  “I see you have the Grimmchild there,” he interrupts. “I’m guessing word of my little show has spread, thanks to the one who summoned us.”

He bows deeply to the two of them.  “Please, enjoy the show. A few thrills between friends is always a good thing.”

“Okay,” she squeaks.  He strides over to pet the cat kid thing on the head. 

“If you’re going to buy snacks, he likes the spiced crawlids,” the mystery bug hums, voice smoothing into a coo as the Grimmchild - apparently - leans into his touch and coos right back.

… The resemblance is uncanny.

“Is this his kid?” She whispers to her friend. “Why do you have his kid?”

“Yes, the Grimmchild is my spawn,” the man interrupts again.  “It’s a ritual the Grimm Troupe must perform to continue. Our summoner helps the Grimmchild to grow and nurtures them on the fading embers of a dying or dead kingdom.  The ritual ends when the flames are extinguished in the current Grimm - that’s me - and fed to the next Grimm - Junior here. My body still lives until I croak of natural causes,” the red and black Satanbug explains.  “It’s a form of immortality via, ah, body-hopping I suppose, though the person raising the Grimmchild will leave an eternal impression on the next Grimm. Perhaps he will be less vocal, or he will be more physical a fighter.”

Another hearty chuckle and Julia relaxes despite herself.  “Perhaps he will be more comfortable in the shadows. I’ll never know.  But as long as I live, I’ll pamper that child until the day I go up in smoke.”

She feels a pang of jealousy in her chest at this. She wishes her parents had been more like this. Instead, they were always obsessed with appearances and how people would see them.  

A pair of fiery red-pink eyes lock onto her.  “And of course, that pampering extends to the summoner and his- er, their family,” he continues.  “And judging by that void I’m sensing within both you and our silent little friend here, you two are siblings in some form?”

“Sure.” She shrugs slightly. No use in trying to deny it. It’s what she is right now. Those fire-colored eyes narrow good-humoredly.

“I see, I see.  We vessels can smell one another out like bloodhounds.  Granted, you probably don’t know what a bloodhound is-”

“It’s a dog.” It’s Julia’s turn to interrupt.  “A hunting dog.”

Grimm’s eyes narrow again, thoughtfully this time.  “Ahhhh, so I don’t need to explain. That’s a delight, there are many idioms we at the Troupe have picked up during our travels that most bugs, unfortunately, don’t understand.  Such is the way of language.”

The thought she had before comes back full force. Grimm knows more than the other bugs she’s met. He probably knows more than all bugs. Which means he might understand what happened to her. 

“Do you know what a human is?” She asks. The taller bug freezes, again, and stares at her.

“Humans are as notorious as Wyrms as far as making extremely fallible kingdoms.  I have visited many. Brumm, what was that one that was so big it split in two, again?”

“Rome, Master.  The summoner there was named Prometheus.”

“Ahhh, like that one legend of theirs!  How thematically appropriate!” Grimm grins, not seeming to notice the growing horror on Julia’s stagnant face.

“YOU WENT TO ROME?!” She exclaims, her eyes going as wide as they could go. Her mind is spinning. Grimm had gone to Rome . The biggest empire on the planet.

“Why, yes, we go wherever the lantern is lit.  Appropriately disguised, of course. To humans, the Grimmchild is simply a lantern that can move.”

“I learned about Rome in school,” she mumbles, still baffled. “And you were there ! That’s...That’s crazy.” She looks up at him, taking a determined step forward as the words spill out. “You have to know what happened to me. What that lady did. I was human! But then I put on this mask and now I’m...I’m...I don’t even know!  I didn’t even put it on! I just held it up to my face!” There’s desperation in her voice, pleading. She never had much of an attachment to her human body, but it was safe and comfortable. This is different and wrong and she doesn’t like it. 

He stares at her hard now.

“... come with me, miss.  I have a few questions for you.” The rasp has returned, more serious than he has been this entire time.  “Brumm, get Deliah to put on a kettle of tea. The chamomile-lavender ruby mix!”

He snaps his fingers, and the fluffy accordion player nods surely and walks off.  The demon-shaped bug half drifts away quickly. “Hurry now, Divine’s tent is soundproofed, and I doubt you want any eavesdroppers.”

She stumbles after him, her little friend trailing behind. 

Chapter Text

A weird half-mantis half-worm thing is shooed out of the tent, making disappointed noises that make her suddenly realize why that particular tent is soundproofed.  She warily enters it, and Grimm has already set up a low coffee table and cushions to use as seats.

“Now… tell me everything,” he hushedly tells her as she takes a seat.

She spills out her whole story to him, from meeting the tree lady, to the mask latching on to her, to meeting up with her little friend.  The tea arrives about halfway through, and Grimm stirs sugar into hers despite not knowing how much she likes.  Her voice is on the verge of sobbing, so she still gratefully takes the hot drink and sips at it to try and soothe her nerves.

“... I have to be frank, this is the first I’ve heard of this.  The magic of Higher Beings is mysterious and nigh irreversible unless you have a second Higher Being hidden in your back pocket.  I’m sorry, Miss Julia, but this,” he gestures to all of her, from the mask made of brambles to her chitiny, hair-tipped toes built for balance and traction. “... this is you from now on.  I wish I could help. I really do. But the best I can do is be a comforting presence, especially with the ritual completed.”

She knows she should feel distraught. She should be upset at this news. And yet...She feels nothing. Only a cold sense of clarity about the situation she’s now in. There’s a comfort in knowing there’s nothing she can do. Part of her feels relieved, as well. Relieved she won’t have to deal with her parents anymore.  Less burdened because she has one or two or twenty fewer things to worry about. 

She doesn’t have to go to college or become an engineer in a dying kingdom.  She doesn’t need to be basically blackmailed by her dad forever if she never sees him again.

Something in her stirs, something almost liquid.

“I’m sure this news is absolutely devastating to you.” Grimm hums, sipping his tea while the Grimmchild has his face dunked in the sugar bowl and her friend is hugging their cup.

“K-Kind of.  At least I won’t have to worry about student loans!” She laughs nervously, sipping at her tea so she doesn’t have to continue.  Grimm gives her an implacable look, one that’s soft and sympathetic.

“I’ve seen a thousand kingdoms fall, summoned just at the start of a decline.  I’ve witnessed hundreds of innocent citizens’ lives come crashing down around them.  I may be the Nightmare King, but I’m in no way cruel enough to leave people out in the cold.  Many of the members of the Troupe to this day come from those times my tents have been shelters from plagues or famine.  I’m not offering you a spot, not yet, but… know I’m willing to support you.”

“...Thanks,” she says, ducking her head a bit and glances over at her friend. “I don’t think I want to join. Not right now. But...I’ll think about it.” 

She feels like she has some kind of responsibility as...whatever she is now. There’s something she and her little friend need to do.

“Take all the time you need,” Grimm hums.  “In the meantime, we have a show tonight. Care to attend and play all the games?  For free, of course.”

“You want to play some games?” She asks, gently poking her friend’s shoulder.  They nod eagerly.  “Before we do that, I need to figure out some sort of nickname for you.  I can’t just go “hey, you” all the time.”

“According to the child, your half-sibling calls them a Little Ghost.  And they tend to wander. Make of that what you will.” Grimm supplies, scratching the Grimmchild under their chin.

“Oh, okay.” She shrugs, mentally filing that away. Then she stops. “Wait. Half-sibling? What half-sibling?”

“I’m certain you’ll meet her soon in your exploring.  She’s… territorial.”

“Territorial...?” Julia isn’t sure what that means and she can’t help but be concerned. She doesn’t want to fight this new sibling. She doesn’t want to fight anyone . 

“You’ll be fine, you have that Wandering Ghost with you!” Grimm brushes off, depositing the Grimmchild onto her head.

“Well, okay.” She turns her attention back to the tent entrance. She’ll cross that bridge when she comes to it, she decides. For now, they can just play some games. All of the games resemble games she’s seen on TV shows featuring carnivals and fairs.

“Uh… what do you want to play?” She asks awkwardly.

Ghost looks around and Julia can almost imagine the glimmer of childlike excitement that would be in their eyes if they were human. They point to what appears to be a ring toss and nod decisively. “Alright, let-let’s go.  This is gonna be my… first time trying.”

The person running the booth, decked out in red and black, hands the two a full bucket of rings.  Ghost buries their hands in the bucket gleefully, seeming to enjoy the clicking of the rings. Julia does the same, finding that it is indeed rather rewarding to listen to the way the rings click together.  She’s the one to toss a ring first, going on what she’s seen in movies.  It firmly bounces off the side of a bottle, and she scowls. Ghost tries after her, taking a moment to look from the bottles to where they were before throwing. Their ring lands on the bottle.  They toss their hands up in the air, letting the rings on their wrists slide down their arms in victory.  Julia can’t help but giggle and make another attempt, this time copying the real-life example next to her. If she focuses on the distance and the momentum and the arc of the ring…

She throws her ring and it lands.  She cheers as well as the Grimmchild spits a ring out of his mouth, falling between the bottles.  Ghost pats the toddler in conciliation. 

“You did pretty well for not having arms,” Julia says. The Grimmchild sulks a bit, landing on Ghost’s head. They puff out a huff of smoke, prompting her to laugh and toss another ring.

Soon enough, they’re out of rings to throw.

“Okay, so we can get two giant plushies and a medium one?  Uhhh… you pick first, kiddo,” she mumbles, gesturing to that Wandering Ghost she’s befriended. Ghost regards their choices solemnly before pointing to a large plush of Grimm. The bug running the booth gets it down for them and hands it over. The plush is almost bigger than Ghost. It’s a pretty funny sight watching Ghost try to hold the giant plush upright. She scans the plush toys available before picking a plush toy of what looks like a caterpillar the same size as the Grimm doll.

“Here you are,” the bug running the booth hands it over. “One grub.”

She wishes she could smile.  She picks out a spiky whitish toy for the Grimmchild, who starts ripping at it like a dog toy. She’s not sure how long it’ll last under the Grimmchild’s aggressive playing but it doesn’t seem worth it to stop them.  They’re too cute to let her stop them.

“So, where to next?” She asks Ghost. Ghost looks around, their gaze blocked by the huge Grimm plush.  They set off in a seemingly random direction, and she follows. They ran over to what seemed to be a strength test. The bug running it was massive, their circus attire barely covering their huge body. Like all the others, they had that same white mask.  They pass her their doll and eagerly heft the biggest hammer.

They struggle some until they huff, switching one of their charms for another.  Switching their charm leads them to lift the hammer easier and they let gravity lower the head into a slam on the base.

Cue the loud ding.

The huge bug nodded in approval, stepping aside so Ghost could see the prizes. There were more plushes, as well as some little statues that looked to be carved out of wood. They pick up a small wooden statue that makes Julia’s heart clench, one of four figures.  Three faceless figures surrounding what looks like an older version of the Little Ghost.

A Sibling.

“What...Is that?” Her voice goes quiet as she stares at the statue. 

“It’s a replica of a statue you can see in the City of Tears,” the bug manning the booth replied. “Even painted to match.”

Julia keeps staring at the statue. There’s a strange feeling in her chest. A feeling of connection. A feeling that the two of them are the same. She doesn’t like it. She’s not the same. She’s not .

“Okay,” she says quietly, withdrawing into herself.

“Would you like to play, miss?”

“No thanks,” she mumbles. She just wants to escape now. She doesn’t want to have to face this connection she now has to these Vessels. She’s not like them. She’s not!

The troupe member waves as they leave at Julia’s prompting.  She shivers and rubs at her arms.

“... There are too many people around,” she mutters.

Ghost puts a hand on her arm, looking a tad concerned. They try to steer her toward a less populated area. Suddenly, she feels something strange. Her...What is it? Her outer shell? It feels...loose. That’s wrong. She knows that’s wrong. She scratches at her arm, and to her horror, something like dry skin comes off. Still pure black, but translucent.

Her breath catches in her throat as she immediately recalls-

The tendrils dig into her skull, into her brain, spreading the black along her bones as the flesh around it dried and started to crumble like so much wax, leaving bloody chunks in the joints.  It was so clean, it shouldn’t have been so clean, but… It was.

Her blood glints black as she convulses, seizes from the pain ricocheting around her limbs as the branches seem to weave roots into every part of her body, setting her ablaze and chilling her to a painful cold at the same time.  She can’t breathe. She can’t breathe! She claws at the mask, breaking off her fingernails and chunks of her fingers as they scrape harmlessly against the mask. 

She wants to scream but when she opens her mouth, it’s filled with something cold and wet. It’s like drinking a glass of cold water, yet so much colder. She can feel the freezing liquid traveling down her throat and settling in her stomach. As soon as it settles, though, it feels as though her organs are on fire. It’s like they’re melting. Maybe they are. She wheezes wetly and hacks out what feels like all the blood in her body.

It comes out black.

She screams and falls to her knees, the roots ripping her knees apart.  "God, I want to go home! I want my mom and dad!" She wails childishly, hugging herself and feeling the skin on her arms starting to crumble. She doesn’t know if she’s dying or not but it certainly feels like it. 

The roots burst forth from the remains of her skin like flowers bursting forth from the frozen ground. Only this is the farthest thing from beautiful. She can see something black and shiny under the blood and flesh. For a moment she thinks it’s bone. She never thought she’d see her own bones. She’s never even broken a bone before. But it’s not bone. It’s too shiny to be bone. 

As she holds her hands up to her face, she sees the segmented parts beneath the gore. The segmented parts that click and move together like the joints on a gauntlet. It’s not bone. It’s like armor. It’s wrong . 

This can’t be happening. It’s all wrong. This isn’t supposed to be happening!  The roots start to retreat, a mix of black and white and red now staining the wood, and there’s a weight left behind on her head, one that strains her neck even though she’s shedding her human body as if she’s a snake shedding its skin.

A bundle of tree roots, larger this time, pull up behind her and gently set her outside that intricate orb she’d found.  She forces herself to cough, to breathe, to not gag as the burning sensation in her torso continues spreading, numbing her extremities and turning the corners of her vision black as she keeps trying to tear off the mask as if it’ll fix whatever is going on here.  The black tips of her fingers scrape on more armor, though some of it gives under her desperate scrabbling like soft wood. She scratches at the heavy bramble on the back of her head, something acidic and cold bubbling in her throat. She’s running out of time!

It’s not working, though. She can’t seem to get it off no matter how hard she scratches and tears. It’s stuck firm and her panic is beginning to build because it’s wrong . It’s all wrong . She collapses to her knees again and begins to vomit. What comes out of her mouth is so dark it might as well be black, but she can see the red undertones in it. There are chunks in the bile that may have well been her organs and the metallic stench of blood is overpowering, making her throw up all over again.  This time there’s black-stained chunks that reek of acid, and she knows that she’s going to die.

An odd sense of calm settles over her as she curls up and lays on the ground on her side.  She’s going to die, and no one will notice she’s missing. She shudders, cold, as she sighs and gives up on trying to stop what’s happening. What’s the use in fighting it? No one’s going to care. Her parents would probably even be happy. She closes her eyes and waits for death. 

Chapter Text

She hears talking around her, but it’s garbled. She recognizes Grimm’s voice, that gravelly tone laced with concern. She wonders how he found her. Did Ghost go to get him? She’d probably freaked out when her shell had started coming off. She wonders what she was doing while she was remembering. Hopefully, she hadn’t made a scene. 

“Miss?” She hears Grimm’s voice right beside her head.

She makes a quiet whimpering sound.

“Are you alright?” Grimm asks. 

She shakes her head.  “I-I’m coming apart again…" she whimpers, squeezing her eyes shut.  She feels a bit of her skin shift and she has to physically stop herself from screaming.

“Oh, little flame, you will be fine,” the gravelly voice croons.  “You’re just molting,” he explains. She lifts her head - it feels so light now - to look at him.  He holds what looks like half of her mask, a gnarled mess of branches that make her nauseous to look at. 

“But I don’t...” She wants to say that she doesn’t molt. That that’s not something she should be able to do. But she doesn’t. Because apparently, it is something she’s able to do now. She doesn’t even know her own body now. 

The batlike bug shushes her gently and rubs her back.  “There was a lot of wood that grew around your head. Do you know why?” He asks softly.

“The mask’s made of wood,” she mumbles. “The tree lady made it from one of her branches.” 

“I see!  Well, there was chitin under there.” Grimm croons, petting her on top of the head.  Her hands, shaking, reach up to her own face to try feeling it out.

There’s no more soft bramble.  Just simple chitin cresting into a set of four horns.

“Huh.” Her voice is dull and lifeless. That bramble was the last sign of her transformation. Now there’s nothing to indicate she was ever anything different than this.  Her hands shiver, though she’s a little relieved that her head isn’t as heavy as it was.

“Would you like to hold it?” Grimm asks calmly, and she nods.  She sits up and the hunk of roots is gently set into her hands. The red and black are still faintly smeared over the spikes, and she can see where it wrapped around her neck.  The little bauble she’d tied to one of the horns dangles and clinks against the wood. She takes the bauble off and ties it to her current horns. It’s hers . Her sign of individuality.  

“Where are, uh, my robes?” She asks.

“Not suitable, I’m afraid,” Grimm laments.  “There are some spare Troupe robes you can borrow that aren’t too flashy, thankfully.”  Grimm claps his hands and a set of all-red robes are brought in by a ghosty-looking thing.

“Thanks.” She takes them and holds them up, allowing herself a small moment of joy. She’s a little disappointed that the cloak she picked out isn’t wearable anymore, but at least she’ll stand out with robes like these. The robe is simple, coming down to just her knees.  It feels… more comfortable. It already has her charm pinned to it.  Grimm brushes her off gently.

“Molts in the future will be cleaner, hmm?  And you won’t have such restrictive clothing on.  Nobles always have impractical clothes.”

“Nobles?” She repeats in confusion. “But I’m not a noble.”  

“And yet you were wearing noble’s robes,” the ringleader responds with a small smirk.  “Did you pull them off a corpse?”

“What?! No!” She shakes her head vehemently. “I got them from some kind of lost and found bag!” The idea of taking anything from a corpse repulses her.

Ghost doesn’t seem particularly put off by the idea. They’re right beside her, holding on to her new cape. She feels a bit bad. They must have been really worried about her.

"Makes sense.  Those City of Tears folks liked their pinks more.  Ah, how do you feel?"

She stares into space.

“I… don’t know.  I feel something ?”

Grimm hums.  “That may be the void you were leaking hollowing you out…”

There’s a spike of panic in her at the mention of “hollowing her out”.

“What...What does that mean exactly?” She tries to keep her voice calm. It’s not all that hard. Still, she doesn’t like the idea of something hollowing her out.

“The void is the antitheses of life.  It consumes all the life it comes across.  That’s what makes the vessels so…” Grimm, at a loss for words, just gestures to Ghost.  “They were born in the Abyss, the home of the void, so they were born with that emptiness a part of them.”

“Oh.” So they were like her. Empty inside. Lacking a proper grasp of emotions. She probably doesn’t have anything to worry about. She was already empty inside. 

“I guess that’s why the tree lady thought I was one in the first place,” she laughs wearily. “I was already empty inside.”

“That is a possibility,” Grimm agrees, unphased by her words.  “If it were any other way, I doubt you would have survived.” 

Julia shivers violently now. She’d never considered her ‘hollow’ emotional state a blessing before. But she’s glad for it now. 

“Um...Anyway...” She looks down at Ghost. “Is there somewhere you need to go? For, like, your mission?” She wants to put this whole molting thing behind her for the moment. 

The little empty kid tilts their head before they perk up, tugging on her hand.  She lets herself be led out of the tent with a small wave goodbye to Grimm. He makes her heart hurt.

“I’m sorry if I scared you,” she says as they walk. 

Ghost shakes their head, squeezing her hand. They’re saying it’s okay. They probably don’t understand what she’s going through. Still, they want to help her. 

“You got Grimm, didn’t you? When I started freaking out.”

They nod, still moving. 

“...Thanks.” 

They squeeze her hand again and she feels a profound sense of comfort. She may not be ready to accept this whole vessel thing and being their sibling, but it’s nice to have someone looking out for her.

Unlike her parents.

Her expression sours internally.  She can practically hear her father now, admonishing her for wasting her time with this kid.

Her father’s not here right now, though. He can’t tell her what to do. This kid cares about her and she’s going to help them. Screw her father!

She feels a swell of pride at that thought. Never before had she ever considered going against him. It was always too scary. She doesn’t find it so scary anymore.  Not here, while she bathes in literal void and surrounds herself with bugs the size of people.

Hell, he isn’t even that scary anymore.  She has a sword, so by all rights, he should fear her.  The idea is, frankly, thrilling.

The little ghost leads her back into the stagways, silently greeting the flea - or rhino beetle? - as they hop on.

“Where to?” The bug rider asks. Ghost pulls out their map and points to something. The destination seems to startle the rider.

“Are you sure you want to take her to Deepnest?” He asks. “Even brave bugs learn to fear that place.”

“What’s in Deepnest?” Julia probes.

“Spiders.”

Chapter Text

The stag station in Deepnest is in disrepair.  Thread everywhere, a broken bench, it makes her uneasy. She’s never been afraid of spiders. Whenever she saw them back home, she’d just let them go about their business. They were more afraid of her than she was of them. She’s not thrilled about spiders that are as big as her, though. Especially now that she’s a bug. Spiders eat bugs. Is that how it works here?

Ghost gives the rider bug one of the little shells that she knows is money and hops off, looking expectantly at Julia to follow.  She does, indeed, follow, trying to keep the cloak on loan from ripping on a lip in the saddle it had caught on.  With a quick, awkward thanks and apology, she hurries after the Little Ghost.

She hears skittering all around her, hushed and clicking like what centipede legs would sound like up close.  She keeps an eye out on instinct as her Ghost jumps off the broken elevator onto some platforms into the air.

Her body seems to control itself as she follows. She practically flies through the air behind them, darting from platform to platform. It’s an incredible feeling. She’s so agile and quick.  All the same, it's terrifying, sitting backseat in her head like a dream. She keeps thinking she’s going to fall and crack herself open like an egg. She’s never been the daredevil sort.

Ghost takes them inside a large silk structure with a broken bench. 

“Guess we can’t rest here, huh?” She says, walking up to the bench. She turns back in time to see the Little Ghost climbing up the wall into a hole in the ceiling before throwing a silk rope down for her.  

Benchhere Sister up!

She shivers at the sensation of the whispers echoing in her body.

“So, the bench is up there?” She points to the hole, trying to see what’s on the other side. 

Her companion nods fervently, gesturing for her to come up.  She grabs the surprisingly dusty spider silk and starts to hike herself up.

"I feel like I'm in a high school gym class in a sitcom." She half-jokes. The last time she’d done something like this was in elementary school.

She pulls herself through the hole and into the room beyond.   It's dark, even with the several lanterns and the slightly glowing bench. She can’t help shivering a bit. This darkness feels...wrong somehow. At least she can't hear the skittering anymore.

"So… this is Deepnest?" She whispers. "Where are the spiders?"

Ghost says nothing, looking intently around the room. They seem to get their bearings and lead her out of the room.

They take her into a well-lighted room full of candles and a plinth in the center.  On the other side of the room sits a person. A bug, like them.

“Hello?” She calls out, taking a step toward the other bug. She knows it’s not a good idea to be calling out to bugs she doesn’t know. She’s kind of hoping this is the half-sister that Grimm had mentioned, though. The other bug’s head jerks up, and they jump to their feet, grabbing what looks like a giant sewing needle.

“Who are you?” The bug, a girl that sounds like she’s about her age, demands.  She’s dressed in a red cloak with no seam down the front or sides that she can see.  It flares of seemingly its own will.

Julia tenses, voice frozen in her throat.  Little Ghost waves their hands and runs up to the bug, who relaxes some.

“Little ghost,” she addresses them.  “You return with an intruder.” Her voice turns sour at the end there.

Julia finally finds her voice.  “Uh… h-h-hi.”

The female bug casts a glance back at Julia, which she can’t help but feel is supposed to be derisive. 

“Where did you find her?” The bug asks Ghost.  They pull out their map and point to somewhere.

“The Queen’s recluse?” She asks in surprise.  “... Is she another Vessel? I’ve never met one whose voice wasn’t lost to the whispers of the Abyss.”

“W-Well, um, I...I used t-to be a human?” Julia says weakly. “But then the l-lady gave me this m-mask? And now I’m like...th-this?” She was pretty sure this was indeed the sister Grimm had mentioned. He hadn’t been kidding when he’d said she was territorial, huh?

The other red-clad bug stands ramrod straight.  "Human? I don't recognize what kind of bug that is, and I have seen the breadth of Hallownest.  And… the White Lady lives? She used whatever magic she may have had on you?"

“P-P-Pretty much...” She can’t help but be a little disappointed this sister doesn’t seem to know what humans are either. At least she seems to understand the situation. “So...Y-Yeah...I’m a Vessel now?”

The eyes on the other girl's mask narrow some.  "You must not be a true vessel. You weren't born in the Abyss and robbed of your soul." She concludes.  "An attempt at an imitation through the power of a Higher Being." 

"G-Grimm told me, uh, that," she scrapes her memory, and the mention of the bat bug makes the other girl's eyes narrow further in suspicion. "That I was still hollow.  And lucky to survive. H-He said I only survived because I was already hollow inside."

“That is not possible,” the bug replies coolly. "I intend no doubt in your tale, but bugs are emotional, too much so for them to withstand such raw power regardless of the source.  One is either born of the void or killed by welcoming too much in."

“Well, I don’t know what to tell you.” Julia’s shoulders slump and her voice goes flat. She suddenly feels incredibly tired. It’s not worth it to try and get through to the other girl, she decides. It’s too much effort. She can tell this half-sister of Ghost’s is stubborn.  They stare at one another for a long moment before the girl Julia realizes she doesn't know the name of sighs and sits back down.

"... I'm Hornet.  My mother is - was - the Queen of Deepnest."

“I’m Julia. Julia Scott,” Julia replies.   

Hornet side-eyes her some. "I'd comment on the name, but… I'm a spider-Wyrm hybrid named by and after a Hiveling.  I have no room for judgment. It is certainly… an experience to meet you, Julia." The way Hornet says her name is odd, like she's never had to make those sorts of sounds with her mouth in that combination before.

“It’s nice to meet you too,” Julia replies on instinct. “Oh, um, what did you mean when you said your mother was Queen of Deepnest? I thought that white king guy ruled everything?” She settles comfortably into asking questions.  Hornet tilts her head.

“Despite his best efforts, the Pale King could not sway everyone in the land that became Hallownest.  Not the Mantises, not the Hive, and not us in the Deep,” she explains.

“Okay.” Julia nods. Had she possessed facial features, she would be frowning in thought. There’s a lot she doesn’t know about this place. “So, you’re a princess, huh?” 

“I suppose I count as one.” Hornet shrugs.  She then scrutinizes Julia’s cloak. “Where did you get this?  I don’t recognize the textile.”

“Grimm gave it to me after I...ruined the other one.” She hesitates at the thought of the horrific molting process. It’s not a memory she wants to revisit. 

“How did you ruin the other one?” Hornet elects to probe.  

Julia shudders violently. “I don’t want to talk about it,” she mumbles, folding in on herself.  

Hornet tilts her head. “If you’re embarrassed about it, I won’t press, then.”

“Uh, thanks.” Julia nods, hugging her knees. “So...How do you know..them?” She points at Ghost, eager to change the subject. 

“They are my half-sibling,” Hornet explains.  “And we tried to kill each other a few times.”

“Oh. Okay?” Somehow that seems like a normal thing to have happen here. The territorial comment resurfaces in her mind.  

“I am glad they have prevailed, however.  Through trial, they have earned the Kingsbrand.”

“Kingsbrand?”

Hornet swiftly grabs the Little Ghost and shows Julia their back under the cloak, bearing a strange mark lined in white along the spine like a tattoo.  “The marking that makes them the next ruler of Hallownest.”

Chapter Text

Julia blinks. She’s not sure entirely how to react to this. It’s a surprise, certainly, but not exactly world-shattering at this point. 

“Good for you,” she says, patting Ghost’s head between their horns. The Little Ghost seems to brighten under her praise. They squirm, still in Hornet’s grip.  Julia tuts, managing to get Hornet to pass them over.  She sets them down and straightens their cloak. She’s instinctively shifted into the sibling mindset again. She catches herself and almost recoils at the thoughts, quickly withdrawing her hand. She wonders if Hornet has to deal with this.

“Do you ever...hear things?” She asks Hornet. “Like...a voice in your head.”

Hornet tilts her head.  “No… Do you?”

“Um… yeah,” she admits. “I think it’s the voice of the Void or something.” Julia shrugs slightly, drawing into herself once. “It’s how they talk to me sometimes.” She points at Ghost.

“That makes sense.” Hornet hums after a moment.  “I have no void in my blood, so I could not hear such a voice.”

“Oh...” Julia deflates a bit. She’d been hoping she’d have someone who understood her experiences in Hornet. Well, at least Hornet still seems nice. If kind of intimidating.

Gendered child. Notvoid. The Void in her head chatters.

“So, you said your mom was the queen of this place, right?” She looks back at Hornet. “Was she nice? Did you like her?”

“I didn’t get a chance to know her very well,” Hornet responds.  “My birth was… an exchange. A child for Herrah the Beast to assist in sealing the Hollow Knight within the Black Egg in the Forgotten Crossroads.”  She bows her head. “I was just a spiderling. I barely remember her. But… I still paid her my respects. Sat here when the little Ghost had to come and whisk her life away while she slept.”

“It sounds like you loved her.” There’s a pang of envy in Julia’s chest at Hornet’s words. “I can’t imagine loving my parents enough to watch them die in front of me. I was always just their...accessory.” She laughs weakly. “Almost makes me wish I had what you did.”

She can hear the pain in Hornet’s voice as she speaks, which only increases Julia’s jealousy. She wishes she had a parent who would support her. Or at least someone she’d miss. “I’m not trying to make this all about me, far from it.  I just… you must feel horrible. About her… dying and all.  I’ll shut up now.”

Hornet stares at her almost blankly.  “I’d accepted it when my mother was first put to sleep.  It’s better that she isn’t trapped in her mind. I… appreciate the sentiment, however.”

“Okay...” Julia plays with the edge of her cloak. “I’m...I’m glad she’s not trapped in her head. That would suck.” She has to admit, the idea of being trapped in her mind, cut off from her body, terrifies her. She can’t imagine that happening to her.

“Let’s, uh, let’s change the subject,” she suggests. “Where do we go from here?” She looks at Ghost. “Did you come here just to look for Hornet?”

The ghost simply wiggles on the spot nervously. Julia smirks at the sight and pats them between the horns.

They stare up at her before consulting their map again. They stare for several moments, and she swears she sees their eyeholes squint a twitch.

“Are you looking for somewhere?” She asks, scooting over so she can peer over their shoulder at the map. 

Unfortunately, the map is completely incomprehensible to her. In the sense that she doesn’t recognize any of the locations. 

“Are you going somewhere?” She asks Hornet. Ghost will probably point to where they’re going, but Hornet will give her a verbal answer.  

“If they are, then I’m not privy.” Hornet chuckles a bit.  “They tend to be a bit secretive.” The amusement tones down. “I have a question for you.  If you were a Hyu-men, where did you come from? How did you find Hallownest? The Queen’s recluse, of all places?” the spider quizzes.  Julia shivers a scant amount at the rapid-fire interrogation.

“Ah, I, um…” she mumbles with a stutter, twisting her armored fingers around themselves and practically cracking the armor a little in her anxiety.  “... I… st-st-stumbled on it?”

Hornet stares at her, bewildered.

“I-I was looking for a place to draw,” Julia explains as best she can. “I like w-wandering in the woods looking for pl-places to draw. It’s better than trying to draw at home.” Her fidgeting grows faster. “I d-dunno how I found that egg place. I just...did.  I was just… in a cave.  And I was lost, and in the dark, and I followed the only light I could see.  And then I walked through a clump of vines covering the wall. ”

Realizing she still has her sketchbook on her, she digs in her side bag and pulls the bloodied book out.  She flips to the relevant page and shows it to Hornet. “See?”

Hornet takes the book and flips curiously through it, frowning at the drawings of Julia’s friends and classmates. 

“How strange...” Hornet murmurs. “Are these...Hyu-mens?”

“Yeah.” Julia nods fervently. She points out one of the drawings.  “That was… me. I was drawing it off of my reflection,” she explains.  Her voice catches on the sudden lump in her throat. “That-that’s me…”

“Are you alright?” Hornet asks, noting the change in Julia’s voice. 

“That’s me...” Julia repeats, staring at the drawing of the person she used to be. The person she’ll never be again. It all feels so long ago now. There’s a loud crack and a shoot of pain up her arms.  She quickly looks down and realizes that she’d wrung her hands so much that the carapace cracked, letting black ooze drift out and evaporate into black motes of clouds through her coating of honey.  “O-oh. Shit, I should have been keeping an eye on that,” she manages to fire out, shaking her hands as the honey coats her wounds.  “I always wring my hands too hard and end up hurting myself.”

“It’s good then that you have that charm,” Hornet says. 

Julia nods quickly, rubbing her arm sheepishly.  “I’m grateful that our phantom little friend gave it to me,” she responds.  “It’s, uh… c-come in handy.”

“It’s a very useful charm,” Hornet agrees with a solemn nod. “Especially for those who are less than proficient in combat.”

“Or self-destructive idiots like me,” Julia laughs weakly. She’s glad at least that she doesn’t have cuticles to pick anymore. That always ended with her fingers bloody and raw. Now she has fingers like crab legs.  Snap, and they open up and bleed all over.

Hornet is staring at her oddly.  Julia quickly shuts up and clamps her mouth… mouth? The… claws acting as her mouth, she clamps them shut.

"How do you move these goddamn mouth claws?" Julia mumbles through her claws. 

"...You mean mandibles?" Hornet asks slowly.

“I suppose so…” the former human mumbles out.

“You’re certainly a strange one,” Hornet says. Julia thinks she can hear a hint of warmth and amusement in her voice, but it’s difficult to tell if it’s really there.

“Cut me some slack. ” She becomes a tad defensive. “I’ve only been a bug for… maybe a day.  I don’t know.”

“Time is hard to tell here,” Hornet admits. 

“How do Hyu-mens tell the time?” she asks after a long time.

“Oh, uh, w-we have clocks and stuff,” Julia replies. “A-And we look at the sun. Although,” she pauses. “That doesn’t work in some places...”

“Why is that?”

“Well, some places get a lot of sun during the summer to the point where it’s hardly ever dark,” Julia explains. “And then in the winter, they’ll hardly get any sun so it’s dark all the time. It has to do with the geographical location in relation to the equator and the poles.” 

She speaks with confidence and authority, having learned about it in a book she’d read. 

Hornet stares at her blankly. 

“Uh, the planet is tilted.  That means it wobbles as it spins ,” Julia continues to explain. “The spinning makes days, and the tilt makes the seasons.  Spring, summer, fall, winter. It’s… stuff when there’s no ceiling to block the sky.”

“I see.” There’s interest in Hornet’s eyes now. It dawns on Julia that if Hornet has spent her whole life underground, she’s probably never seen the sky before.

“If I ever find my way back out of here, I can show you,” Julia muses aloud.  “When I found the cave, it was still spring.”

“I’d like that,” Hornet says. “I’m curious about these seasons and the sky.” It almost seems as though she’s smiling.  

“You’d like them.  At-at least I think you would.  Spring is all about plants growing after winter ends.  It’s pretty.”

“That sounds lovely. I would enjoy seeing greenery without the threat of being attacked.” Hornet nods thoughtfully. “In any case, what is your plan at the moment?”

“Plan?” Julia repeats. 

“Do you... have a plan?” Hornet seems to frown a bit. 

“Well...N-Not really,” Julia admits. “I’ve just been k-kinda following this one.” She glances at Ghost. “S-Since I can’t go back to n-normal. I thought I’d...help?” She’s not sure how she’s going to help Ghost, but she wants to help. She wants to do... something . She doesn’t want to just sit around and feel bad about herself. She needs to have something to do.

“Do you know what they’re trying to do?” Hornet’s expression becomes serious.

“They’re trying to...s-stop the infection?” Julia supplies, although her voice is unsure.

“But do you know what that entails?”

“....N-No?  Honestly, I… don’t know what this infection stuff is.  I’m basically an alien in all of this. ”

Hornet’s stance shifts.  “The infection is one of the dreams.  An angry god lashing down and dragging everyone it touches into insanity and death and waking nightmares.  All to spite the former king. And the Hollow Knight, they are holding this angry god hostage. And they are beginning to fail.  Only a creature of Void can hold her, the Old Light.”

“The Hollow Knight?” Julia echoes. Something about that name feels familiar. Likely a creature like her or Ghost, she supposes. 

“The old king, h-he conquered this place, right?” Julia says, gears turning in her mind. “He wanted t-to be worshipped, right? So he kicked out this old god?” She thinks this has already sort of been explained to her by Ghost. If it was, she had forgotten. 

“Precisely,” Hornet replies. “This infection is her vengeance.” 

“So, the Hollow Knight is keeping her hostage, but they’re failing.” Julia is thinking out loud, not expecting an answer. “And a creature of the Void is needed to hold her...” Something suddenly strikes her. 

“Like...Ghost.” She turns slowly to Hornet. “Is Ghost supposed to take over? Are they supposed to hold the god back on their own?”

Hornet is silent, but that silence tells Julia everything she needs to know. 

“But that’s not fair!” She protests. “They shouldn’t have to give up everything to fix that king’s mistakes!”

“It is what they were created for,” Hornet says solemnly. “Them and the Hollow Knight.” 

“But it’s not fair!” Julia can feel anger bubbling up inside her, like water beginning to boil. “The King was the one to make the mistake! His kids shouldn’t have to pay for it!”

“The Hollow Knight suffers for it as we speak.  You are more than welcome to take their place if you feel you are void enough to hold the Old Light,” Hornet challenges.  “But it may be your very emotions and mind that spell your undoing. She preys on hopes, she abuses the loophole provided by the dreams and wills of bugs.  It’s why the Hollow Knight failed. They simply grew a heart that hopes. The Pale Wyrm had his reasons, as terrible as his methods and results may have been.”

Julia falls silent, at a loss for words.  “I… they’re my family now. I think. I have to help them, somehow.” Her words dry her mouth, conjure a lump in her throat.  “I’m the most expendable of them. I’m the spare cog in the back of the drawer. And this… Hollow Knight, if you say they learned to hope… then they need my help even more.  I-I can’t just let someone suffer like that, Hornet.  Especially with them being… being what little of my new family is left.”  

Her vision blurs with watery black, as if her eyes had watercolors daubed into reality, and she aggressively wipes her face dry, creating a horrible scraping noise with the back of her hand.  “I can’t just stand by, knowing someone I’m supposed to care about is suffering for the selfishness of a complete bastard that waltzed in and futzed up everything for the people living where Hallownest stands now!”

Ghost gets up from where they’ve been sitting, stowing away the map and patting Julia’s hand. She knows they probably don’t understand why she’s sad. They don’t have the baggage that she does. 

“If they have a heart, they deserve to be happy,” she says, still wiping away tears. “They don’t deserve to suffer just because their father said they had to.” 

The more she learns of the Pale King, the more she sees her father’s face reflected in him. Perfect to any onlooker, but a nightmare to those closest to him. She hates the Pale King. Or, well, she thinks she does. She’s only heard the polar ends of what people know of him, the closest and the onlookers.

“I won’t stop you,” Hornet says.  “But I… must warn you. The Hollow Knight will fight you.  There may be no way to let them live if you plan to take the infection from them.  The Radiance herself will puppet their body like the empty husk it was made to be.”  Her eyes soften. “Please, be wary when you go to the Temple. I can lead you there if the Little Ghost has any diverging plans.”

“Like...Right now?” Julia’s eyes go wide. 

“Perhaps not now, but at some point,” Hornet clarifies. “It all depends on the plans of the Little Ghost.”

They both look down at Ghost, who’s still standing at Julia’s side. Ghost looks back, their expression predictably blank.  They look between them before making a shooing motion at Julia.

“Do you want me to....l-leave?” Julia asks slowly. She takes a step back.  They point at Julia, repeat the shooing motion, then point at Hornet.

“Go with her?”

Nod nod nod.

“You want me to leave with her,” Julia repeats slowly.

Ghost nods fervently. 

“But what about you?” Julia asks. “Will you be okay on your own?”

“They have proven capable of taking care of themselves in the past,” Hornet says. “I wouldn’t worry about them.”

“Well...O-Okay.” Julia begins to fidget again, turning her gaze back to Hornet. “So...I-I guess I’m going with you?”

“It would appear so.” Hornet nods.  “This is an ample opportunity to properly educate you on the use of a nail and… other topics.  You’re currently holding a Pure Needlepoint, a style that relies on charging and thrusting, not unlike a needle similar to the one I use.” The spider girl continues.  “I believe I fought someone that used a Needlepoint like that…”

Her expression becomes a little distant as she becomes lost in memory.  Julia is about to regain her attention when she blinks out of it.

“Anyways, I can also take you to the Black Egg.”

“What’s the Black Egg?” Julia asks. 

She wonders what Ghost is going to do and why they want her to go with Hornet. Are they about to do something dangerous? And where did Ghost get the nail that they’d given to her?

“The Black Egg is where the Hollow Knight is kept,” Hornet replies. “If you wish to defeat the Radiance, that is where you must go.”

“Oh...” Julia nods slowly, suddenly feeling very nervous. 

She’s really going to do this, huh? She’s really going to try and kill a god. Too late to go back now.

She doesn’t really have to kill a sun god.  Just… hold it hostage.  Keep it inside her, even if she’s so so certain suddenly that the sheer heat will melt her from the inside out-

She shakes her head and shudders.  “Is there anything we need to, uh, disable to get to it?”

“No, but three Dreamers were keeping a seal active on the Egg.  My mother was one.”

Julia stares at the ground.  “She sounds so brave,” she comments in admiration.

“She was.” There’s a reverence in Hornet’s voice.

There’s a beat of silence, Hornet seemingly lost in her memories and Julia unsure what to say. 

“So...The Black Egg?” She asks. 

“Yes, the Black Egg.” Hornet snaps back to reality, all business once again. “Follow me.” She begins to dart away, using her threads to swing about.

“Oh, uh, okay!” Julia follows, trying desperately to keep up.  

Chapter Text

As they walk their way into what Hornet calls the Forgotten Crossroads, Hornet fiddles with thin white strands, almost like fishing line.

"What is that?" Julia asks in wonder.

"It is my silk," Hornet responds simply.  "I am a spider."

“You’re a spider ?” Julia frowns. “You don’t look like a spider. You’ve only got like two legs. Don’t spiders have eight?”

"Do not forget.  My father was the Pale Wyrm.  That may reduce my limb count."

Even Julia can hear the sarcasm, and she giggles a little.  "Oh yeah, you said that before, didn't you?"

“I did,” Hornet replies, and Julia almost thinks she sees a smile. 

Hornet looks pretty cool, swinging by on her strings. Like Spiderman. Although, Julia was never allowed to read comics, so she only knows that Spiderman moves around on webs and stuff. Julia kind of wants to try it herself. She probably wouldn’t be able to manage it, but she wants to try. 

She mimics Hornet’s hand fiddles as she runs along. She doesn’t expect anything will come of it. But then, a single pale thread shoots out from her. She stops abruptly.

“Holy motherfucking shit!” She barks out in surprise, and Hornet swings back her way.

“What’s wrong?!” She asks, alarmed.  Julia simply holds up the faintly glowing strand, and the half-spider stares at it.

“... It is unusual for a vessel to make silk.  Not possible, as a matter of fact. May I see it?”

Julia hands it over with no protest, seeing the silk cling to her fingertips and pull more of itself from there.  The silk makes her feel just the slightest bit drained.

Hornet hums as she inspects the silk.  She rubs the tip, and little white motes of glowing stuff come off.  “I see… It looks like it’s made of pure soul,” she comments. She looks at Julia.  “How did you do this?”

“I, uh… I just tried to copy what you were doing.”

“I see,” Hornet hums. “How strange.”

“It’s making me feel kind of...drained. Does that make sense?” Julia says. 

“It’s only natural it would make you feel that way,” Hornet replies, looking back at the string. “Given that it’s made of your soul, producing it drains your soul.”

“Which is like...my life force?” 

“Yes.  Its use is much less fatal with a void creature using it, however, since they subsist on void. ”

Hornet neatly slices the strands.  “Try it again, this time more deliberate.”

Julia tries to conjure up the feeling of actually making the silk, at a bit of a loss since she wasn’t paying attention to that. Nothing happens initially, which only serves to frustrate her. She begins to grow nervous, painfully aware of Hornet’s gaze on her. Would she yell if Julia was unable to produce results? That was what her father had always done.

“I-I’m sorry,” she mumbles, drawing into herself. “I-I don’t know h-how I did it before.”

“There’s no need to apologize,” Hornet says. “You don’t seem to be in control of that power yet.”

“B-But you w-wanted me to try it again.” Julia’s voice goes up an octave. “You wanted me t-to do i-it again.”

“I did,” Hornet agrees. “But, as I said, you’re not in control of that power yet.”

Julia just stands, shivering and staring at Hornet, who shrugs.  “I was simply curious if the results could be reliably replicated.  It’s just another thing to chalk up on the teach you tablet.”

The spider girl seems to smile at Julia before continuing onwards.  Julia stares at her hand, watching the little spots of liquid light lazily drift off her hand.  She has no idea how to feel about this suddenly.

Why was she copying Hornet?  It’s so rude to copy people like that! But Hornet had looked so cool gliding through the air like that. Julia had wanted to look that cool too. Maybe...Maybe if she tries copying Hornet again, then she can produce those strings once more. 

So, she does. She watches Hornet swing about on her strings and attempts to copy her. Just like the last time, pale shining strings shoot out from her fingers. 

“Hornet! I’m doing it!” She cries out of joy.

Hornet stops what she’s doing, running back to Julia.

“Good job!” Hornet congratulates.  She pulls the thread, examining it again with clear interest.

“You see these ridges on your hands?”

Julia stares hard at her hand, looking for the ridges Hornet found.  Hornet traces some shallow bumps on her fingertips, and she finally spots the ridges.

"I think these are spinnerets.  They even look like mine."

“That’s where the thread comes out, right?” Julia asks, peering at the bumps. 

“Yes,” Hornet replies. “I suppose this means you’re a spider like me.”

“Oh! Cool!” Julia would smile if she could. It is pretty cool. She can do cool stuff like Hornet. At least, in creating the thread that is.  She’s nowhere near as agile or acrobatic as her.

She doesn’t know whether she should count herself as jealous or not about that.

“So, I, uh, just… focus and make my hands do the silky thing?”

“More or less.” Hornet chuckles.  “It takes some practice to get used to.”

Julia nods, feeling the thread.

“I wonder if I could knit with this,” she ponders aloud. 

“Knit?” Hornet repeats curiously. “Is that like weaving?”

“I guess it is,” Julia says. 

“You’re a weaver, then,” Hornet concludes. “Perhaps you were destined to be a spider.”

Julia shrugs as noncommittally as she can despite the rushing non-sound pulsing through her.  The idea of being not just a bug, but a hunter...

Something about it is thrilling to her.

Chapter Text

A Little Shadow stares out over the small mountain of junk, spying the gleam of something bronzed lodged among the refuse.  Unaffected by the stench, they charge up their Crystal Heart and launch themselves over the pond of sewer water to investigate the attractively metallic gleam.

It appears to be a sarcophagus of some sort, made of burnished bronze metal and wrapped with heavy chains and a padlock. There is a face embossed in the metal, roughly where the bug inside’s face would likely be. It looks almost like a chrysalis. The little Ghost makes their way up to the looming metal coffin. Stopping in front of it, they dig around in their cloak, extracting a simple key. Carefully, they fit the key into the padlock, finding it fits perfectly. 

As they turn the key, the coffin begins to shake violently. The little Ghost takes a step back, not out of fear but out of caution. In an instant, the scalloped edges burst off and a towering bug falls out onto the ground. It wears a strange golden mask, like nothing the small wanderer has ever seen before. A charm lands on the ground in front of it, which the tiny specter collects handily.

At first glance, it looks almost like a compass, but on closer inspection, it more closely mimics the strange bug’s tapered helm with a blank, circular center.  It turns a soul-sheen white for a brief flash before retreating to that all-bronze look. Thinking it may be of use, they tuck it into their cloak to hide it within their void.  They then spend a few moments inspecting the strange bug, who has their head spinning with bits of Essence. Knowing their cue, they wind up their Dream Nail and take the strike at the other bug’s mind.

Their vision goes a dreadful, painful white, and songlike voices boom into their head.

Blasphemy! Rank blasphemy!

They cover their head instinctively as they land hard on some unseeable surface, the sensation of the lines marking the exit gate of a mind-land churning the void in their feet.  They faintly wish they could close their eyes to spare their vision.

Thou crawler! Thou cringer! Thou smallest of the small!

The voice persists as bits of dream clouds float around the little contained Shade.

By what right dost thou trespass here, in this home of the Gods? Shrivel away and begone! Begone!

The lights fade, and they make out an opulent, palace-like place.  Severely lacking in the buzzsaws and spikes, they may note. A song can be heard, reverent humming coming from the central island of the mindspace. They shake their head and, intrigued, the Ghost of Hallownest sets forth to explore Godhome.

=0=

They’re almost at the Black Egg when Hornet falls. Julia panics and, fearing an attack, clumsily draws out her nail as she searches desperately for their unseen assailant. But there’s no one. The cavern around them is silent. Nothing moves. 

“Hornet? Are you okay?” Julia asks, a note of fear entering her voice. It’s a primal sort of fear. The fear of being attacked. The fear of being hurt.

Hornet remains where she fell, unmoving. 

“Hornet?” Julia repeats, creeping closer. 

Upon closer inspection, Hornet appears only to be asleep. Her chest is still rising and falling, and there’s no sign of injury on her.

“Come on,” Julia says, shaking Hornet. “This isn’t the time to be sleeping!”

But Hornet remains asleep.

Julia shakes Hornet as hard as she dares, but no response.  Suddenly, she remembers the infection, how it invades through dreams.

She feels what little nerve she has drain out of her, and she starts trembling violently.  “I-I-I… I need to get you somewhere safe!”

She hefts the sleeping half-spider’s arm over her shoulder.  She remembers seeing a chain leading upwards out of these Crossroads.  They’d cleared out their path, and Hornet had pointed out the well to her.  Praying that the chain leads somewhere safe, she lopes off with Hornet on her back.  She wraps her arm back around Hornet to use her other arm and her legs to climb up the chain. 

She hefts the both of them over the lip of a well and finds herself right next to Dirtmouth.  She almost cries in relief.

“Grimm!” She yells, stumbling toward the tents with Hornet on her back. “Grimm, something’s wrong!”

In a puff of flames, Grimm whisps to Julia’s side, quickly assessing the situation.

“What happened?”

“I-I don’t know!  She just collapsed and fell asleep in the middle of walking like a narcoleptic!”

Grimm lifts Hornet off of her back with one arm and lifts Julia with the other.  “Where were you when she fainted?”

“The-the Crossroads!”

Grimm’s expression wrinkles up, and he mutters something about a sister before he coasts back towards the small city of tents on the other side of Dirtmouth.

“Is-Is she going to be okay?” Julia asks, following behind him. “Did the infection g-get her?”

“I can’t say for sure,” Grimm replies. “She reeks of the essence of dreams, but I do not sense the Radiance’s power involved.  The Crossroads are filled with that stench, and it’s not yet reached her mind. Some other dream being must have snatched her mind.”

“Some....other dream?” Julia frowns. “Like what?”

“I can’t say for sure,” Grimm admits.  “All we can do is hope she wakes soon.”

He takes Hornet to an empty tent, laying her down on a little bedroll. Julia sits down beside her, fidgeting with her hands again. Every time she breaks some of the chitin that golden light appears and fills the cracks. 

“I wish Ghost were here,” she whispers. “Where did they go?”

“That is a good question.” Grimm taps his fingers together. “Where are they?”

“I dunno.” Julia shrugs. “They told me to go with Hornet and ran off. They’ve got stuff to do, probably.”  

“My child is outside of my sensory realm, so they must be somewhere outside of Hallownest, somehow.  I doubt that’s the case, however. There’d still be a faint trace. Perhaps…” Grimm drifts off, lost in his musing.

“Perhaps what?”

“The Little Ghost has a tool that allows them to enter dreams.  Perhaps they are exploring a dream. That tends to be the most consistent blindspot I have with them.”

“Wait wait wait wait!” Julia scrambles to her feet. “Exploring a dream?! They can do that?!”

“They can. With their dream nail.” He says it so casually, as though this is an ordinary thing.  “It is required to both begin and end my ritual and is a tool often passed among moths as a totem of worship.  My sister gave the moths of Hallownest theirs before her fall from grace.”

“Your...sister...?” Julia’s getting whiplash. “You’re...related to that moth thing?”

“Yes I am, but that’s not important.” Grimm waves off.  “Hornet’s sleep is light. She should wake relatively soon.  What do you want to do?”

“Well, um...” Julia takes a deep breath, trying to calm her racing mind. “I don’t want to leave her.”  Grimm nods in seeming approval.

“I’ll have one of my Nightmares bring you some cushions to sit on, then,” he affirms.  “I’ll see if I can procure any more information.”

“Thank you,” Julia mumbles, sitting back down.

Now that she has time to think again, she can’t help but feel ashamed of herself. She thought Hornet was in danger and she couldn’t do anything. All she had done was go running for help. She couldn’t survive like this. 

“I really am useless...” She says to herself. She doesn’t feel sad or self-pitying, though. She feels...nothing. The Void wells up inside her, eating away at the emotions that may have welled up.  She really is useless, huh?...

A ghosty-thing floats in, dropping a pile of pillows on top of her with no warning.

“Oh, uh, thanks.” She nods vaguely toward it.  It chitters at her and flutters away. She takes one of the pillows and hugs it to her chest, watching Hornet.

“I hope you’ll be okay, Hornet,” she whispers as she keeps watching the bug she’s accepted as her sister.

She prays that Hornet will wake up soon.

Chapter Text

Hornet is almost sure she’s dreaming. What other explanation can there be as to why she’s suddenly in a strange colosseum, surrounded by the masked faces of bugs she doesn’t know?  There’s nothing but humming all around her until there’s a loud chime, and a Vessel walks into the arena.  She thinks she recognizes it, but she’s… not sure. She tenses, drawing her needle. She feels as though she needs to fight, although she doesn’t know why. The Vessel doesn’t look dangerous. But she needs to fight it.

She feels eyes focus on her as she lets out a battle cry. She flies toward the Vessel, lashing out with everything she has. She doesn’t know why she’s doing this. The Vessel isn’t a threat. She doesn’t need to fight them. But she does. She fights with all she has.

The Vessel, who is increasingly familiar for reasons yet unknown, manages to strike her down.  They try to approach her, but-

Hornet wakes up somewhere warm.

“Hornet?” A voice comes from her side. “Are you okay?” 

The face of Julia appears in her line of vision. Her expression is blank, of course, but Hornet can hear concern in her voice. 

“Where am I?” Hornet asks. 

“One of Grimm’s tents,” Julia explains. “You passed out.” 

She sits up, and true to Julia’s word she’s surrounded by red.

“I… I know you probably don’t like Grimm, but he was the first person I could think of to help.”

Julia’s hands are being wrung so hard, her finger shell is going to pop right off.  Hornet wordlessly rests a hand on Julia’s.

The two stare into each other’s eyes for a few moments.

“... I don’t know if I can fight the Hollow Knight…” Julia whispers.

“What happened to your determination?” Hornet asks. 

“I just...” Julia starts wringing her hands again. “I couldn’t do anything when you passed out. I thought you’d been attacked and I was too scared to do anything.” She hunches her shoulders. “How am I supposed to fight the Knight when I can’t even protect you?”  She looks away in shame. "God, I…  I have to keep asking everyone else to do stuff for me," she laments.  "I can't help anyone , no matter how hard I try."

Hornet stares at her hard.

"I just… Maybe I shouldn't even try," Julia says, hanging her head. 

“That’s it?” Hornet asks. There’s an edge to her voice that makes Julia look up. 

“Huh?”

“That’s it?” Hornet repeats with more force. “You’re just going to give up? After everything you told me?”

“But I...” Julia began. 

“What happened to your determination? Your conviction?” Hornet demands. “What happened to your righteous anger? Did you mean any of what you said?”

“I-I did, but-”

“Then follow through!” Hornet says, getting to her feet. “You want to protect your family, don’t you?” She draws her needle, pointing it at Julia. “If there is one thing I can’t stand, it’s those who give up after making such grand declarations.”

“So you want me to die?!” Julia fires back. 

“I want you to try !” Hornet replies. “I want you to stand by what you said!”

“I want to, Hornet, I really do! But I don't know how to fight! I don't know anything that would let me help!  I'm superfluous here! I can't help anyone. I can never help anyone!"

Julia throws down her nail in frustration.  “It’s as good as getting a promise from a plant!  I want to help, but wanting offers no ability!”

“You can try, at least, right?” Hornet asks coldly.

“I mean, yeah, but I’ll probably die!” Julia wants to run her hands through her hair and tug on it the way she used to. “And I don’t want to die! I really really really don’t want to die!” 

She’s on the verge of tears. She wants to shut down. This is all too much. She can’t deal with this.  

“I wasn’t made for any of this, Hornet!  I’m basically an alien here! I wasn’t born for fighting or Void bullshit or fighting gods and their meat puppets!  I can still fear for my goddamn life!  I was scared for your life just a few hours ago!  I’m made to be a ball of anxiety and worry that weighs everyone else down with my incompetency!”

Hornet falters a bit, her nail falling. She’s not used to dealing with this sort of thing. She can deal with combat. She’s done it for a long time now. But this? These feelings that Julia is expressing? She doesn’t know what to do with them. 

Deep down, she wonders if her sibling has ever felt this way. Do they feel like a failure? She knows they weren’t as ‘hollow’ as the Pale King had hoped. She knew that just from interacting with them. Did they force themselves not to feel? Did they try to smother their emotions to please their father?

Julia may very well be as much of a mirror to Hornet’s bound sibling as she is to Hornet herself.  It’s… unsettling.

Hornet stares hard at Julia, who visibly falters at the scrutiny.  “I… I really want to help, I promise, but…  seeing you collapse like that and being able to do nothing was like being dropped into a tub of ice water in the middle of a fever.”

The other bug is wringing her hands, head lowered and eye sockets faintly twitching.  “I just don’t want to end up failing and causing more harm than what’s already been done.”

“I can understand that,” Hornet says softly, lowering her voice. 

In her mind’s eye, she can still see Hollow forcing themself to stand ramrod straight even when the armor was clearly too heavy for their spindly frame. Even when they could barely stand from the training, they forced themself to keep going under the Pale King’s watchful eye. Did they ever feel how Julia is feeling?  Worthless and inadequate?

“I’m sorry I yelled at you.” Hornet sheathes her nail. “I...I didn’t consider how you were feeling.”

“It’s fine.” Julia shrugs. “I deserved it. You’re right. I shouldn’t say stuff like that when I can’t follow through.” Hornet can see her shutting down a bit, withdrawing deeper into herself. 

“Let’s just say we were both wrong,” Hornet suggests, desperate to get her sister back. For some reason, she keeps picturing losing Julia in the same way she lost Hollow, Julia retreating into herself until she’s nothing more than an empty shell.  

Julia nods silently, looking away from Hornet and seeming to tuck her chelicerae into the hem of her borrowed cloak.

“J-”

“I’m fine, I just… need to calm down.  Just some space.  I’m sorry I can’t keep promises,” Julia interrupts quietly.

Panic rises in Hornet’s chest. “Don’t go, please,” she begs.

“I’m-I’m-I’m getting overstimulated.” Julia attempts to explain.  “Everything’s just… j-just too much right now.”

“Ah...” Hornet allows herself to relax. “Alright. I...I understand.”

Julia stares at Hornet now, almost stunned.  “You… you’re not gonna press it?”

“If you need time to collect yourself, I won’t force you to stay,” Hornet replies. “I don’t want to make things worse for you.”

“Thanks, I… I appreciate it,” Julia mumbles, practically hiding in the red coat around her.

“You’re welcome.” Hornet smiles warmly. “Take your time.”

Julia nods, leaving the tent to find a quiet place to calm herself. She weaves her way through the bugs that make up the Grimm Troupe, apologizing quietly whenever she bumps into one. She eventually finds herself at the edge of the fairgrounds. She feels better on her own here, away from everyone else. The chatter of the others has faded to a distant hum, allowing her blessed silence.

“Deep breaths,” she whispers to herself, focusing on her breathing.  She covers her head with her arms, trying to catch her breath.

.

Hornet, meanwhile, spins her thread in thought. She needs to show Julia that she means no harm to her.  No hard feelings. She wants to help Julia in any way she can. In the way she couldn’t help Hollow. 

She wonders again about that knitting thing she mentioned.  Would she like a cloak made that way? She should look into this. Maybe Grimm knows something about this knitting thing. He knew what a hyu-men was. He probably knows what knitting is.  It’s such an odd word. Maybe knitting something will help Julia feel better.  Hornet feels terrible, knowing how stranded she must feel. So, she goes to find Grimm to ask him what this thing is and how she can do it with Julia. 

She finds Grimm in his tent, conversing with one of his troupe members. 

“I wish to ask something of you,” she announces, drawing herself up to her full height. Grimm turns slowly to face her and she resists the urge to run away. Those flame-filled eyes fix on her, and a small slight smile crosses his face.

Grimm bows to her deeply.  “How may I help the Princess of Deepnest?” he asks in a smooth, purring rasp.  She steels herself.

“Do you know anything of the weaving style knitting?” she asks bluntly, and Grimm cocks his head curiously in response.

“And why, pray tell, are you interested in knitting?” He asks. “I wouldn’t think you would know of it.”

“Julia mentioned it before,” Hornet replies. “I thought...She might be happy if I did this knitting with her.”

Grimm stares at her for a moment, his expression a mask of confusion. Then a soft smile crosses his features. 

“That’s very kind of you,” he says.  His eyes crinkle in a peculiar warm way that Hornet can’t help but feel the comforting heat of.

Hornet can’t help but feel self-conscious under his gaze. Especially when he’s smiling like that. 

“I...I want to help her,” she says, refusing to look at him. “She’s...upset at the moment.”

He straightens up, clearly assessing her.

“I picked up a bit of the skill a few summonings ago.  A sweet young woman taught me.  I can certainly teach you what I remember.  You intend to use your silk, correct, Deepling?”

“I do.” Hornet nods. “Julia mentioned when she first saw her silk that she thought she could use it for that.” 

The Troupemaster nods surely.  “That makes sense.”  He smiles brightly.  “Come, let me procure some sample thread for myself.”

Hornet tenses, narrowing her eyes warily. “Do you...want me to give you some?” She asks slowly.

“That is the plan, yes.”

Hornet continues to stare warily at him. She doesn’t particularly want to give him some of her silk. She knows it’s ridiculous but she can’t help but feel afraid he’ll use it to perform some dark ritual. 

"I could always use some spare spools we have around for repairing costumes if my borrowing your thread makes you too uncomfortable," Grimm proposes.  "We have plenty."

Hornet nods.  “That would be best.  I need to use my own thread.”

“Very well,” Grimm hums, turning away from her. He goes to a cabinet and begins to calmly look through it to locate the thread.  He pulls out an almost comically large spool and two pairs of needles that are about a fifth of the size of Hornet's weapon.

“What are those?” Hornet asks, pointing to the needles. “Are they supposed to be weapons?” 

“They could be,” Grimm chuckles, the sound low and rough. “But they’re most often used for knitting.”

“I see...” Hornet stares intently at the needles. He hands her one pair and ushers her to a cushion with his thread and needles.

He begins to instruct her on how to do something called casting on, getting all of the loops you need to start with on one needle. She takes to it rather quickly. It is rather like weaving. She finds it calming. Perhaps this is why Julia enjoys it.  Grimm rambles to her about the different kinds of stitches Hornet could do.  He briefly borrows her needle to show off "cabling" before swiftly returning it. He finishes with a cast off for her to copy.

“If I wish to make a cloak for Julia, how would I do that?” Hornet asks once she thinks she has the hang of it.

“That is a bit of an undertaking,” Grimm replies. “It would likely take quite a while to make a sizable cloak. Although,” he pauses, noting the long sheet of cloth Hornet had produced. “Given your talents, it might not take you as long as I thought it would.   I can lend you a pair of needles that you will need and show you how to join knitted works in the round."

Another few minutes of extra tutorial, and Grimm deems her good to begin her personal project. She chooses green and yellow threads. They suit Julia, she decides.  For some reason. they just suit her.  

Maybe she should add in a little traditional weaving to make it look nice, too. She finds her heart swelling at the thought of Julia wearing the cloak, so much like Hornet’s own.  She resolves to finish it as quickly as possible and keep it a secret until it's done.

She'll make it up to her. 

She goes and looks for Julia after an hour or two, hoping the other Vessel is feeling better.  It looks like she fell asleep on the edge of the tent city.  She looks so peaceful despite her eyes being frozen wide open. Hornet can’t help but smile. She slowly makes her way to Julia, picking her up and carrying her back to the tent, careful not to wake Julia up in the process. The vessel girl is making an odd, rasping noise as she breathes.  Is she okay?  Hornet listens to the sound for a bit, trying to place the source of such a sound. She wonders if she should ask Grimm about it. He knows so much about humans. 

Then again, she’s asked so much of him. She decides that maybe she’ll ask Julia when she wakes up, setting Julia down on the bedroll. She sits beside her, as she had with her mother, deciding to guard her.  She cleans her needle as she waits. 

Julia continues to sleep for a while longer. She’s not surprised when she wakes up in the tent again. 

“Sorry, did I fall asleep?” She asks, sitting up.

“You did.” Hornet doesn’t halt her cleaning, although she looks up. “I hope you’re feeling better now. I was...admittedly a bit worried about you.”

“I’m fine, I just needed to clear my head,” Julia responds with a sigh.  “Sorry to make you worry.”  

Hornet shakes her head. “You don’t need to apologize.”

“I mean, I don’t want to be a burden,” Julia mumbles, drawing into herself.

“You’re not a burden!” Hornet says quickly. Perhaps too quickly. Julia flinches back at Hornet’s loud voice. 

“I...I’m sorry.” Hornet awkwardly clears her throat. “You’re not a burden, Julia. Please don’t say you are.  And if anyone has lectured you about being so, then they’re either lying or wrong. ”

Julia stares almost blankly at Hornet. “... Are you sure?”

“Would I be telling you were I not certain?  We are siblings now, so it is only right to support you through everything.  Especially when so few live now.  Only you, the Little Ghost, and the Hollow Knight.” 

Hornet slows in her weapon cleaning.

“... My mother would agree with me, no doubt,” she continues hesitantly.

“I dunno if an actual queen would think I’m anything special,” Julia laughs wearily. “Especially in comparison to you.”

“Don’t compare yourself to me.” Hornet holds Julia’s gaze. “Holding yourself to the standard of another serves no other purpose than to make you miserable.”  She drives her needle tip into the dirt floor of the tent and stands up.  “It is like judging a crawlid on how well it can fly in comparison to a squit.  It simply isn’t fair to the one being judged.  It isn’t fair to you. ”

“But-” Julia begins to protest, but Hornet cuts her off. 

“No buts,” she says in a tone that leaves very little room for argument. “You are yourself. And that is a good thing to be.”

Julia watches her for a moment or two, then quietly asks, “You really think I’m good?”

“I do.” Hornet nods definitively. “You are an incredibly interesting creature and very much unlike other Vessels I have encountered.”

Julia stares at Hornet, the void in her eyes starting to swirl and dilute.  Quickly, she uses the heels of her hands to rub her eyes.  “God, I keep turning on the waterworks.  I…  N-nobody’s ever said something like that to me…”

Hornet tilts her head at Julia.  “That is a shame.  Someone should have said it sooner, then.”

Julia silently bows her head, and Hornet wonders if she’d said something wrong. Then Julia looks up at her, almost seeming to smile. 

“Thank you,” she says.

Chapter Text

The Hollow Knight wheezes silently from its spot chained to the ceiling of the Black Egg.

Do not think.

Do not speak.

Do not hope.

Do not.

She will use it against it. 

It had to do what it had been told. 

It couldn’t let her get free.  It’s already lost little footholds here and there.

It has nothing left to lose in waiting.

=0=

“Are you prepared to begin?” Hornet calls out, voice trumpeting through the main tent.

“Y-Yeah!” Julia stumbles out, still a bit tentative. Even though she has Hornet’s belief fueling her, she’s still scared of actually going and trying to fight the Hollow Knight. 

With a war cry, Hornet launches herself towards Julia.  Terror rushes through her, and she parries the needle on reflex.  

“Very good,” Hornet says. “Again!” She lunges once more and again Julia reflexively parries. 

“You can’t just react on instinct,” Hornet says. “You need to consider your movements. Watch your opponent to see what they’ll do next.”

“U-Uh, okay.” Julia nods shakily, trying desperately to keep up with Hornet’s attacks.  Eventually, she realizes that Hornet fights in a pattern, and her own actions become more sure and reliable. 

Hornet’s eyes crease in the manner of a smile, and Julia begins feeling… proud of herself. She’s learning! She’s getting better! She starts to gain confidence in herself. Hornet seems proud of her as well, which only makes Julia feel even better.  It's one particular war cry that makes Julia stumble and start laughing like a madwoman.

"D-did you just tell me to get good?! " 

That reaction seems to catch Hornet off guard. and she pauses mid-throw of her needle.  "I'm afraid I don't-"

Julia, still laughing, takes advantage of the sudden lull and makes a surprise attack. Hornet’s embarrassment is soon forgotten, the two of them returning to the lull of battle. 

After a little bit longer, the two of them were completely wiped out. They both laid on the ground, breathing heavily.

“You’re showing a lot of progress,” Hornet says.

"Thanks!  I still can't get over how your war cry is to tell people to git gud," Julia shoots back in almost automatic banter.  

Hornet shakes her head wryly. "What does that even mean?"

It's Julia's turn for embarrassment. “It’s, um, it’s a video game thing.”

“A...video...game?” Hornet looks over at her with an expression of innocent confusion.

“They’re a form of entertainment,” Julia explains.

“I see.” 

“And, uh, people say ‘git gud’ when there’s a really hard game and people fail a lot. It’s, um, it’s just s-sorta saying you need to get better.”

“Ah.” Hornet still doesn’t understand but she pretends she does. 

"Oh!  It's like shorthand for get good at this if you want to win!" Julia realizes, clapping her hands together.  

Hornet tilts her head curiously. "That… does sound like something I would say," she muses.  "What an odd coincidence."

“Yeah, I guess it is.” Julia can’t help but laugh. She wonders if she can teach the other bugs memes. A decidedly mischievous glint enters her eyes.

“Hey, how much do you know about memes?” She asks. The blank look on Hornet’s face tells her all she needs to know. “Let me tell you some stuff.”

=0=

Elderbug sighs, standing by as he watches the girls huddle together as the one with two pairs of horns talks quickly to the one with just one pair.  He overhears some of what they say, but he doesn't understand much of it.

What in the name of the Wyrm is a-

"YEET!" One of the girls yells as she throws something hard to see as hard as she can.  He squints, trying to make out what she threw and what direction it's going in.  

He reels back suddenly as a tightly-wound, small ball of wound-up spider silk hits him smack dab in the middle of the face. The two girls break into peals of laughter, running off before Elderbug can stop them. Elderbug sighs to himself, muttering about youths these days.

“That was so fun!” Hornet exclaims as they run away. She feels so giddy.

“It was!” Julia agrees, equally giddy and breathless. Showing Hornet memes had been a little rocky at first, given how much Julia had had to explain, but now they were both having a lot of fun.  She digs in her bag, looking for something she could use to help speed the process along some.

She still has her phone.  Muttering a swear, she fumbles it as she pulls it out, her fingers slipping on the smooth glass surface.

“Please work…” she mutters, tapping her shell-covered fingers to the screen, praying that the phone will respond properly to her touches. It does turn on, although fingerprint recognition isn’t going to work.

“What’s that?” Hornet asks. 

“It’s my phone,” Julia says, only really half paying attention.

“Phone?” Hornet repeats. 

Julia pauses. She wonders how long it’ll take to explain phones to Hornet. Probably longer than she’s willing to spend.

“I’ll explain later.  Basically, this is a machine made to let me interact with something that can gather information from anywhere in the world at any time as long as I have a connection.  If I don’t have a connection, I can still use it for the things I’ve copied to the phone’s memory.”

She swipes around on the phone, eyes catching the telltale symbol of no signal.  “Looks like I’m stuck showing you the stuff I have saved.  No internet, so I can’t look up a vine compilation.”

“Internet?”

“The something that has all the information on it,” Julia explains quickly.  She navigates to her gallery and scrolls around.  She opens up her meme folder and scrolls through it.

“Okayyyyy, my memes are all still intact.”

Hornet looks over her shoulder.  “What are those symbols?” she asks, pointing to the name of the folder.

“Oh, those are words.  I think it’s different from any language you might know.”  Hornet nods in confirmation.  “Okay, here’s that one picture I told you about, the one that’s for surprise when you shouldn’t be surprised?” Julia continues, pulling up a saved picture of a Surprised Pikachu.

Hornet peers curiously at the picture. The creature depicted is like nothing she’s ever seen before. She finds the expression it has strangely compelling.

“Interesting,” she murmurs.  

“A lot of memes are edited images or videos,” Julia explains, swiping to another image, clearly edited so that the colors are a little too sharp, and another one of the glyphs from Julia’s mother tongue.  “Heh.  E.”

Hornet nods again, unsure what’s so funny about this specific one. Likely because she doesn’t speak English. 

“Ah, you wouldn’t get it.  Like I said earlier, a lot of memes are just… inside jokes everyone has with everyone else.  They’re sorta... viral in their popularity, though that might be a bad choice of words.” Julia explains.  She opens up a video. “Here, watch this.  It’s a compiled set of short recorded clips called vines.”

Hornet’s eyes widen as the pictures on the screen begin to move. She doesn’t entirely understand what’s being said in many of these “videos”, but something about the way the words are said is funny. The gestures, the actions, what they’re wearing. It’s all so strange. And yet, she finds it funny. Julia, thankfully, is kind enough to translate what’s being said in these “vines”, going so far as to mimic the tone and cadence, proving she knows them quite well.  While the jokes are a tad ruined due to the lingual gap, Hornet still catches the gist and finds herself quite amused.

“These ‘memes’ are very interesting,” Hornet says as she stares intently at Julia’s phone.  Julia nods fervently.  

"Yeah, they manage to convey specific emotions despite just being pictures or videos.  Since you can't really add tone or pacing in text the way you can in speech, they're basically used as hieroglyphic stand-ins for the words you'd use to express the emotion the meme can do in just one picture.  Memes tend to also have a lot of layers, and if you don't get one layer a big chunk of the joke flies over your head."

“Fascinating.” There’s reverence and awe in Hornet’s voice as she speaks, which makes Julia even more excited. She has a captive audience who wants to listen to her info dump.  She clears her throat in anticipation and starts going into more detail.  She looks through her phone as she speaks, trying to find an example of what she's talking about.

Hornet continues to watch intently, still interested in what Julia has to say. Julia can’t help but feel a surge of joy. She’s never had people be interested in what she has to say before. Especially not when it has to do with “silly” things like memes. It's… nice to have someone actually listen to her for once.  A small question from Hornet sends her into a tangent on explaining videos to her. 

Hornet studies Julia’s expression, smiling to herself at the way Julia’s face lights up while she’s talking. She speaks with confidence, gesturing wildly with her free hand.  She does her best to ask relevant questions and absorb as much information as she can. This is certainly more engaging than Zote's precepts.  One could tell that Julia is truly passionate. 

Still, Julia eventually peters out. 

“Sorry,” she says, laughing. “I didn’t mean to ramble.”

“It’s alright,” Hornet replies. “I don’t mind. I enjoy listening to you talk.”

"You-you do?" Julia asks, audibly stunned.

"The things you describe are… fascinating. " Hornet elaborates.  "It makes me want to hear more."

“Wel, um, I’m glad.” Julia feels a soft warmth in her chest in the knowledge that Hornet enjoyed her rant.

"I feel that I should explain some things to you in exchange so that it's a fair trade," Hornet muses.

“It would be nice to know more about all this stuff,” Julia agrees. She doesn’t want to be completely lost in this world. 

Hornet nods and debates on how to begin the tale.

"Even Wyrms die at some point," she begins.

Chapter Text

The Wyrm knows it’s dying. It can feel it. It has lived a long life and now it knows the time has come for it to pass on. Its strength is waning as it burrows beneath the ground. It rests, feeling death creeping up on it.  It tunnels through the ground, unearthing itself in a green glen.  It continues onwards, eventually losing strength in a desolate waste.  Soul thrumming with a bond to the land, the Wyrm constructs a great egg for the enormous body to nourish, to begin anew.

It lays itself down, safe in the knowledge that a new life will begin from the ashes of its old one. It hopes the creature that is born will be a good one. That it will go on to do great things. Although it knows it cannot be sure, it still remains hopeful.

The great giant sighs its last, and it allows itself to settle into its final rest.  Within its mouth, a silvered egg opens to reveal a small, childlike bug.

Gleaming with a holy light and allowing a symbol to be pressed into its back, the newly shaped Wyrm sets out to conquer its new land.

First, it speaks to the moths.

The moths follow an old god. An old god who cannot be allowed to remain if the Wyrm is to rule here. It sways the moths to abandon their god in favor of the Wyrm. It must be the only god here.

There is resistance, of course. Many are unwilling to abandon their god. But the Wyrm stands firm. It must be the only god here. That is its nature. A Wyrm must have a kingdom. It must have worship.  

The swayed ones call their brethren down from the peak of a great mountain as tall as the Wyrm was long, and they too become swayed by the Wyrm’s pale light, closer and more inviting than the Old Light’s harsh, hidden away sun.

With the moths under its rule, the Wyrm moves on. Others must accept its rule.  The Hivelings and their Queen reject it wholly, and it moves on.  The Mantis Tribe, as savage as they are in its eyes, drive it upwards to the wastes of equally as tribal mushrooms.  It calls to them, promising enlightenment, and the Mushroom tribes hesitate before accepting the Wyrm into their lives.

Its kingdom is growing but it is not yet satisfied. It must have more. It has subjects, but its kingdom is not yet complete. It begins to build.  The Wyrm reaches out further and further, swaying the rest of the moths with its might and snatching away the children of Unn.  The spiders of Deepnest, too, reject it, but it cares not as its reach swings up, dazzling bugs hither and yon.

It finds a Queen, a Higher Being like itself. She is beautiful in her white light, dazzling all who gaze upon her. A perfect companion for the Wyrm.  The Wyrm calls to her, and she calls back.  

It is no wonder that together they craft the halves of a charm in the rites of marriage.

With its queen at its side, the Wyrm feels unstoppable. It builds roads, towns, waterways. Its kingdom is going to be beautiful, it decides. A bastion of civilization for all bugs to see.  The Wyrm’s subjects are more than content to work, to build, to help erect the civilization for all of them.

The king and queen build their palace themselves. The palace resides beneath the place now known as Hallownest. The Wyrm requires a certain separation from its subjects so that it may retain its air of mystery. Its subjects cannot be allowed to see the true weakness of the Wyrm.

And all is prosperous.

Until the Old Light returns, angry and harsher than her nightmarish brethren.

She spreads her light like a plague, and by the time the Wyrm knows of the plague… it’s had to retreat to its last resort.

It frantically develops a plan. Together with its queen, it creates children, throwing the eggs into the Void deep within Hallownest. To defeat the Old Light, it needs something truly hollow. Something that could not be affected by the Old Light’s power of dreams.

Many children make their way out of the Abyss. None are hollow enough. 

Until Them.

One child surfaces that seems truly Hollow. And so the Wyrm takes them to its palace. The child needs to be trained so that they will be able to defeat the Old Light.  The child is trained, is fine-tuned, is bound and hailed as a hero in mourning would be.

Hornet, in the background, is born and bred to protect. And protect she does, when the King retreats into his dreams when the Queen hides away in her retreat out of shame.  When Hallownest still crumbles to the ground in the unending twilight of stasis, she remains.

She still protects.

She’s still here.

=0=

Julia’s eyes widen as Hornet peters out after her story, staring into space.

“Wow...That sounds...Wow...” Julia struggles to come up with some sort of response, but nothing comes. She hadn’t expected such a… storied history of this place.  It just seemed like this place had always been around.

“Thank you. For telling me,” she says, awkwardly fidgeting with her fingers.  Hornet nods. 

“It is only right that you know your history.”  She pauses, seeming to purse her lips.  “... Speaking of history, it would do you good to get you a proper needle.”

“Oh! Right!” Julia pulls out the needle Ghost gave her. They’d said it belonged to someone else. That person would probably want it back. 

"That nail is a good one, but it will not do if you are to learn how to use silk like a spider." Hornet nods.  "It would be difficult to add a loop to it to wind thread around."

“Ah, okay.” Julia vaguely remembers the way Hornet had done so when the two of them had fought. It had been rather beautiful.  It would be cool to fight like that. 

“Would you like to come with me?” Hornet offers.  “So you can find a needle that feels best for you.”

“Sure.” Julia brightens a bit at the prospect of seeing more of Hallownest. She’s especially curious now that she’s heard about the history of this place. “Do you wanna go now?”

“Now might be best,” Hornet agrees. “Your battle with the Hollow Knight will require a needle you can use more effectively.”

“Oh, yeah, right...” Julia begins to fidget again at the mention of the Hollow Knight. She’d almost forgotten about having to fight them. She’s even more determined to save them now, though, after hearing about what they went through. 

She’s going to save them. No matter what.

“Shall we?” Hornet asks.

“Lead the way,” Julia gestures, training her eyes on Hornet with the impression of a semi-forced smile.  Hornet nods in response and walks off with Julia close on her heels.

“Sooo, are we taking the stagways?”

“No.  I much prefer the, ah, scenic route.  We’re going through the Fungal Wastes.”

Julia considers the name of the area Hornet mentioned and amuses herself with the idea of being like Alice and her Wonderland.  “Are the mushrooms going to be colorful?”

“Some,” Hornet shrugs, fidgeting with her thread, clearly antsy without being able to fly away on her needle and silk.  

Julia nods approvingly.  “Alrighty then, better than none.”

“I should warn you, they can be a bit...strange,” Hornet warns.

Julia’s eyes went wide. “The mushrooms talk?” She whispers in quiet reverence.

“They do and they are very strange,” Hornet says. “So...be aware of that.”

“... Good grief,” Julia mumbles, following Hornet in a stunned state.

=0=

The mushrooms are exactly as strange as Hornet had described. They keep talking about some kind of telepathy that they have and how it makes them better. They’re just...weird. And Julia isn’t sure how to feel about them.  She manages to easily ignore them, however, with all the stench and spores coming from them.

“That’s it, I can’t take this pace any longer.” Hornet decides, grabbing Julia around the waist and lancing her needle like a grappling hook ahead of them to pull them forward.  “YEET!”

Julia feels a rush as Hornet draws them forward about as fast as a car on the surface normally would go. She’s never gone this fast in anything before, except maybe in a plane. 

“That was so cool,” she gasps when she and Hornet touch down at their location.

“My apologies for springing that on you,” Hornet says. “I was getting impatient.”

“No no, it’s fine,” Julia quickly assures her. “That was awesome!” She begins to flap her hands excitedly. “It was like being on a roller coaster or something!”

“Is that...good?” Hornet asks slowly. “I don’t know what a...roller coaster is.”

“Yeah! It is!” Julia nods fervently.

Hornet relaxes a bit. Julia flapping her hands is rather cute.

“Would you mind explaining as we travel?”

It’s no illusion that causes Julia’s eyes to crease slightly in pure joy, her flapping getting more vigorous.  She stammers out a few syllables before making herself calm down.

“Sorry.  Sorry.  I’m caught up in the adrenaline.  Roller coasters are like minecarts that have motors.  The tracks have a lot of loops and corkscrews and controlled falls on the tracks to make you go fast and get you all excited.  They make them as safe as possible, though, so people don’t die from falling out,” she half-babbles.  

Hornet nods. “I take it that will be another thing to show me from your home?”

“Oh! Yeah! Totally!” Julia agrees. “I wasn’t allowed to go on roller coasters at home but I went on one once with my cousin and it was amazing!!”

“It certainly sounds exciting,” Hornet laughs.  There are so many interesting things humans have invented that seem so useful. She can’t help but be excited about seeing more. She remembers that she meant to ask Julia more about humans earlier.

“Julia, would you mind telling me more about humans?” Hornet asks politely, resuming a walking pace.  “I’ve been meaning to ask.  I’m curious.”

“Uh, sure. What do you want to know?” Julia tilts her head to the side curiously.   Hornet takes a moment to gather her questions.

“... Why do you make rasping noises when you sleep?” she begins, recalling a question she’d meant to ask before.

“You mean snoring? Well, not everyone does that,” Julia explains. “It usually has to do with breathing issues or something."

Hornet gives Julia a worried look, but she gets waved off.  "It only means I slept at a weird angle.  I'm fine. Sometimes it means breathing problems but sometimes it just means you’re sleeping weird.”

“Ah, good.” Hornet nods shakily, her fear ebbing a bit.  She begins pondering more questions.  “What kinds of bodies do humans have?” She probes.  “Do they have exoskeletons like bugs, or are they squishy like mammals and the Uomu and Uoma in the Fog Canyons?”

“Humans are mammals, so they’re pretty squishy,” Julia answers. She almost tenses at the memory of the remains of her body. Hornet doesn’t notice.  “There are a-a lot of mammals on the surface,” she continues.  She’s taken to wringing her hands again.

“What sort of mammals?” Hornet asks.

“Well, um, w-what kind of m-mammals do you know?”

Hornet thinks about it hard.  “... the small crawling ones.  And the occasional larger one that hunts the smaller ones.”

“Okay, okay, mice and stray cats.  They’re both mammals, but they’re different species of mammal.” Julia rambles.  “You know why they’re called mammals?”

Hornet tilts her head.  “I know in Hallownest, they are called that because of an old word meaning milk-giver.”

Julia nods quickly.  “That’s exactly why!  Mammals have mammary glands that are, uh, better developed in the females of the species when they’re old enough to reproduce.  That’s how they feed their kids.  They-they also do the, uh, whole… live birth… thing,”  her voice peters out at the end, indicating that it’s a bit awkward to mention for her.

“Mm.” Hornet nods, deep in thought. “And the mammary glands in humans are...the squishy things on this area?” She pats her chest. 

“Um...Yeah....” Julia goes a bit red. Or she would if she could.  “Nowadays, they’re, uh… regarded as an object for the reproductive process.”

“Why, though?”

“Hell if I know!  Straight people are weird!” She blurts out.  “I don’t want to talk about it.” She draws into herself again, seemingly shutting down a bit.

Hornet nods.  “Very well.  I apologize.”

“Let’s talk about something else,” Julia whispers, her voice flat.

“What do humans do for fun?” Hornet asks.

“Lots of stuff,” Julia answers, starting to count off on her fingers. “Reading, writing, making art, playing sports. I don’t think I can name everything.” As she speaks, her voice gains a bit more confidence. “I mean, I liked to draw and read and stuff.”

“Those are things bugs like to do as well,” Hornet says, deep in thought.   "Perhaps bugs and humans aren't so different…"

"Philosophically, right?" Julia's oddly nasal voice chimes in.  "Cause I can say the physical differences are enormous."

Hornet rolls her eyes and sighs. “Yes, philosophically,” she agrees. It’s a technicality, but she’s not going to push it. It’s not worth arguing over. 

Julia nods, looking around. “Oh, um, are we ever gonna get the needle? We came here for a needle, right?”

“Oh! Yes!” Hornet had almost forgotten. “Of course.”  

She pulls Julia along into the Weaver’s den, eyes already searching for the pointed needle.  Julia comes along at a slower pace and pauses in awe at the size of the den.

“Woah…” Hornet soars up to a ledge with some - 

Are those corpses?

“... The infection killed them all…” Hornet’s voice echoes among the abandoned strings, “And even in their final throes…”

She sounds like she’s crying.

“I’m sorry,” Julia replies reflexively. 

She immediately feels bad that she doesn’t feel more. This place means something to Hornet. But it doesn’t mean anything to Julia. She always feels bad when she sees someone upset over something that Julia doesn’t understand.

“You have no reason to apologize.” Hornet shakes her head, taking a few deep breaths. 

Julia just shrugs, starting to look around in an attempt to distract herself. She just has to look for a glint of metal, she tells herself.  

Hornet swoops back down with what's clearly a baby spider cradled in her arms.  "I found them in a nest of corpses and tied magically to a charm." She whispers.  Julia spies the simple silken charm at Hornet's neck.  "Who knows how long they've been alone.  Our little ghost took the other three siblings." 

Julia gently strokes what she thinks is the cheek of the weaverling.  "So small…"  

Hornet nods in agreement.  "I think this part of the charm was meant to be added to the other part so there were four weaverlings.  And-and I found a note."

Julia thinks this is the first time she's ever seen Hornet falter.

“Are you okay?” She asks out of instinct. “What’s the note say? Something bad?”

“They were making a charm so I wouldn’t be lonely.  E-even as they were all dying out and abandoning Hallownest.”

“Oh...”

Julia’s first thought is that Hornet must feel awful. The Weavers were making a charm for her rather than leaving. She figures Hornet probably feels responsible for their deaths even. That must feel terrible. Julia can’t help but feel anxious. Is Hornet going to start crying? She won’t know what to do if that happens.

“It’s only half a charm but… it-it still works…”

Julia hovers closer to Hornet. “Do you...want a hug?” She asks tentatively. 

She’s not very good at comforting people. It’s just difficult to understand the feelings of other people. If Hornet starts getting upset, Julia knows she won’t be able to help. But she wants to help.  

“No.  N-no.  It’s just… hard, knowing how much they cared despite the illness,” Hornet says, taking a deep breath to calm herself. “Let’s find you a needle.”

Chapter Text

Grimm can feel it coming on. His death is at hand.

He feels no fear. This is how it must be. He must die so that the Nightmare Heart will be reborn.  He has a few extra plans than expected, this time, but… he sends out a summons to all of his marked.  All those in the Troupe, and…

The Pale King’s children. 

He has gifts he wishes to bestow upon them. Thanks for their help and apologies for leaving them so soon. 

And, perhaps, a story to share.

He hears the crooning of his child, and Grimm turns to see his newest summoner with his child in tow.  The Vessel must have felt his call twofold.

“Ah, hello!  So sorry my call was so strong for you.  My child must grow weary, feeding on my embers.”  Ah, that rasp is making it hard to hear him talking.  “Soon, he will form his chrysalis to become the next Grimm.  And I…”

The little ghost looks distressed, although expression is hard to read on their blank face. He knows they don’t want him to go.  

“Oh, alright, you’ve twisted my arm.  I was going to wait for everyone else to get here, but I’ll give you your gift early.”

Grimm hands down a small silver locket with shadowed eyes, like the Ghost’s own face.  “Open it up, and a fake shade will look out at you!  It’s a representation of a bigger surprise.” He winks, fastening the pseudo charm to their ratty cloak.  He tuts.  “I wish I had a spare cloak for you, too.”

The Ghost stares at him, and he thinks he sees a frown on their porcelain mask. They point at the locket and tilt their head to the side as if to ask why Grimm had given them this. 

“Just look inside,” Grimm urges. 

The Ghost continues to stare for a moment or two longer before giving in and opening the locket.  Inside, sits a shadow black face with flame-colored eyes.  For a moment, it seems to be mouthless, but smiles out at Ghost warmly.

The Grimmchild flutters down the back hall to Grimm's sleeping quarters, knowing just where to go and what he needs to do. Ghost forlornly watches him go, then turns to Grimm.

"We can both feel when his next stage and my finale are going to arrive." He explains.  Two tiny little hands press to a solid mask in reply and recoils in surprise when the mask seems to loosen.

“Don’t be afraid,” Grimm assures them as the Ghost panics.

Their mask drops away, revealing a face like the one in the locket.  Grimm swiftly picks up the front of the mask.  “Do you feel… well?  It took a lot of convincing from the Nightmare Heart to get you this.”

“Gri...mm...?” The voice that comes out of their mouth is soft and unsure. They’re startled that the voice came from them, their hands going up to cover their mouth.  Grimm’s smile widens. 

“Theeere we go, now you’ve got it,” he coos like a whisper of ash.  The maskless face of the Shade stares in awe up at Grimm before the child promptly shoves their hands in their brand new mouth, causing Grimm to laugh warmly.

“What...?” The little specter looks so baffled by this turn of events. They never expected to be able to speak.

“It is my gift to you,” Grimm says. “A voice.” 

The raw confusion on their face makes him smile.  “I always make it a habit of giving gifts to the friends I make when the Grimmchild pupates.”

Finally, understanding dawns on the Little Ghost’s face.  “Gif’?  You give me gif’?”

“Yes,” Grimm chuckles, unable to fight the smile spreading across his features. The little Ghost is so cute in their first attempts at speech. Like a toddler discovering language for the first time.   And, like a toddler, the very act of receiving a gift is so foreign to the child.

“I implore you to stay, to see your sisters’ gifts, and to hear the story I have to share with all three of you.”

“But-but- gotta fight light!” The little vessel protests.  Their voice is so tiny and polite-sounding.  Grimm didn’t craft the voice, he simply created the means of speech.  The voice itself is wholly the little Ghost’s.  And it’s so…

Young.

Boyish.

The poor thing.

“She’s not going anywhere,” Grimm assures them, cupping their face in his hands. “Give yourself time to get used to the new mouth, and the mask.  It can go on and off.”

“On...Off...?” Ghost repeats with a frown.

“Yes, on and off,” Grimm says. “Your mask can go on and off while wearing that charm.”

He watches the child puzzle over such a simple concept - almost every bug had a removable mask - as they bend over to pick up the face of their mask confusedly.

“Your face is soft, so you protect it with a mask,” Grimm explains.  “But you take it off so you can eat.”

There’s a light in the Ghost’s eyes, and they press the mask to their face.  “Still talk?  Yes.  Good,” they say to themselves.  They take a minute to practice pressing the mask on and off, to get used to the motion.  Grimm smiles proudly, sensing Julia and Hornet approaching themselves.

“Welcome.” He turns to greet them.

“Look!” Ghost goes running up to them, removing their mask and proudly presenting their new face. “Can talk!”

“You can talk now?!” It’s unclear which of the two of them says this. Likely both.

Grimm nods surely.  "I can feel my time coming, so I saw fit to give each of you a gift as… well, a thank you!  The Grimmchild has finally pupated, and my life is running thin.  I wanted my last moments amongst friends I made here, friends I trust my kin with."

“Wait...You’re going to die?” Julia feels as though the breath has been sucked out of her. She’s only just met Grimm, and now he’s going to die?

“I see...” Hornet nods solemnly. She takes the news with all the quiet dignity Grimm had expected her to. She’s faced death before. She knows how to handle what is left behind.

“As my end is coming near, I saw fit to give each of you gifts with the last of my power.  Your sibling came first, so they received theirs early.”

Ghost promptly takes off their mask and lets a tangle of void tendrils spill out of their mouth.  Hornet twitches a brow and Julia recoils with a noise of disgust, prompting the Ghost to quit the tentacles and laugh breathily.

“And I wanted to tell you a story.” Grimm continues, ignoring the background shenanigans.

“A story?” Julia asks, turning her gaze to Grimm. It doesn’t escape Grimm how her eyes light up a bit at the promise of a story. Nightmares swarm into the room, dropping a veritable mountain of pillows.  

“Why, yes!  Come, sit, which one of you would like your gift first?”

“Can I have mine?” Julia draws closer. He can still sense sadness in her at the prospect of his death, but apprehension and interest as well. Curiosity as to what he would give her. 

Grimm flutters over to, grounding himself in front of her.  “I put a lot of thought into these gifts, and, well… I know that losing a positive father figure would be hard on someone like you, Miss Julia.  So I used my sway over the Nightmare Heart to get you this .”

He pulls out a lantern, filled with the swirling red flames signature of the circus.  The sides are metal and glass with no clear door.  “A small lantern of Nightmare flames.  It consumes the nightmares of the living to remain lit.  And keeps its holders warm.”  He hands the lantern over, and Julia holds it as if it were made entirely of glass.  “The glass is made of essence, unbreakable.  A way to keep me close to you.  Especially since it will act as a beacon to every Grimm alive.  The flame dies with you.”

Julia has to blink back tears.  The way it keeps away nightmares, and that it’s meant to help keep Grimm close, even in death...

“Thank you,” she whispers, taking the lantern and holding it to her chest. 

“You’re welcome.” Grimm rests a hand between her horns.  She can already feel it warming her body in its entirety, comfortingly.  Grimm floats over to Hornet.

“I admit, you’re hard to find gifts for, but… something relating to Deepnest would be best for you, correct?” He asks Hornet.

“There’s no need for you to give me a gift,” Hornet says. She knows she’s not as close to Grimm as the others are. Some part of her still fears him. She doesn’t feel it would be right for her to ask for something from him. 

Grimm still shakes his head.  “It would have been unfair to you.  I managed to glean some of your fears, and I think my gift will be suitable.”  He hands her what looks like a simple hand mirror.  “This is a magic door.  It will resize itself at your will.  It disguises itself as a standard mirror and,” Grimm meets her eye.  “Whenever you look in, a true Deepnest spider looks back.  And only a true Deepnest spider can walk through it.”

“I...” Hornet takes the mirror, her hands shaking. She feels tears welling up in her eyes. Despite not knowing her, he’d managed to hammer her gift on the head.  Useful and…sentimental.  She looks down into the mirror, and she just sees her regular reflection staring back.

“I don’t understand.” She looks up at Grimm. “I just see myself.”

“As I said, a true Deepnest spider looks back,” Grimm says. His smile is warm. 

Hornet looks back at the mirror and her reflection in the glass. A true Deepnest Spider...

She begins to cry. For so long, she’d doubted herself, doubted that she truly was her mother’s daughter, doubted that she truly belonged in Deepnest.  Grimm rubs her back, and she does not protest to the ashy touch or the gentle seating of herself onto several cushions.  

She wipes her eyes dry and does her best to compose herself.  “T-thank you.  I’ll treasure this gift and use it wisely.  Where… does the door lead?”

“Wherever you need it to go,” Grimm defines with his breath like a dying fire.

He takes a deep breath.  “I don’t have too much longer, so please let me speak.”

=0=

You know, once there were moths in this land.  Many, many moths that basked in the light of my sister’s sun, before she was at the peak of her power.  The nightmares were scarce, weak, and needed a host to become stronger and more potent.

There was one moth who went by Fletcher, that liked the dark and dreary, and he oft played with fire for the hell of it. He searched for the rare and valuable, one day stumbling on a strange lantern with no known fuel.  And the heart of the nightmares called out to Fletcher in his dreams with persistent phantasmal calls.  “Light the lantern!  Come and bask in what you belong to!  Find a home with us!”

The young moth went, not knowing what was in store for him, and he lit the lantern.  He fell asleep on the spot, and awoke embroiled in flames.  The heart called to him, weakly and reeking of essence like the Lady of the Light, and he caught it.  It spoke to him, and he listened.

It offered him fame, a name ensconced in legends instead of his common, meager name, and abilities beyond belief at the price of dancing and dying and living forever in the very flames that birth and burn him.

It took several days of deciding for the moth to decide yes on the suggestion.  The nightmare heart turned to essence, but the moth heard it beating in his head and heart. 

And then he was set ablaze.  With the acceptance, the name Fletcher died with his old body.

He woke up with a new name and a new purpose, the Nightmare Heart teaching him how to be the Vessel of the Heart, and he amassed followers to create what his summoning manifested as.

=0=

As Grimm tells his story, his body begins to leech of color and smoke, turn black and crumble like so much charcoal.  Julia gasps in horror as it goes on, but Grimm continues speaking serenely.  Smoke starts pouring from his eyes and mouth.  “He, to this day, does not know what exactly made him say yes, but…”

He pauses to look at them tiredly, darkened eyes meeting the other three in turn.

“... I don't regret it a bit.”

“But...don’t you get tired of it?” Julia asks. “Immortality has to be hard.” 

She’s thought about immortality before while reading books with immortal characters. She decided a long time ago that she wouldn’t want that. It would be lonely, she thinks. 

“It’s not true immortality,” Grimm laughs. “Not in the way you’re likely thinking of.  I am no undying god, Miss Julia.  I am a phoenix. ”

And with those words, the Ringleader of the Grimm Troupe collapses into ash. It happens so suddenly it takes them all a moment to process what’s occurred. When it does process, a wail fills the tent. The wail comes from Julia. It’s like nothing any of them have heard before, filled with pain and grief.  Her siblings move closer to comfort her, and she hugs that lantern as if it were a lifeline.  She sobs uncontrollably as a solemn hymn starts up around the Troupe’s campgrounds as if in a funeral procession.

The old Grimm has died.  And now everyone knows that.

Chapter Text

Oh, bury my mother, pale and slight, 

bury my father with his eyes shut tight! 

Bury my sisters two by two, 

and then when you're done, let's bury me too!

The funeral dirge winds its way to the central tent, though none of the vessels are paying any attention to it.

Ohh, bury the knight with her broken nail, 

bury the lady, lovely and pale!        

Bury the priest in his tattered gown, 

then bury the beggar with his shining crown,

Julia sits curled in a ball as Nightmares swoop around, gathering their old master’s dust.

The rest of the words turn into a chaotic, mismatched mush that she only catches bits and pieces of, but she doesn’t care.

Grimm is dead.  He’s dead and he’s not coming back.  At least, not the same. She doesn’t want him to be gone. She’d only just found a father figure who actually cared about her and now he’s gone.

Finally, the new funeral verses ring clear amongst the crowd.

Oh bury the couple, found dead in embrace

Bury the leper, dirt chaser to flames,

Bury the traitor, hung in blasphemy!

And burn the red circus, living eternally!

Ghost hums a few notes here and there, seeming to recognize the song, but looks forlorn.  Hornet is trying to catch Julia’s attention.  But all she hears is the song.

Bury the Old Light, casting her shade!

Bury the sickly, alive in their graves!

Bury the shell mounds, in droves of teens!

When everyone’s dead, who’s left to do me?

The song is sung in such chaotic rounds and rhythms, it would almost seem like a work song or a folk song to teach children of hard truths, but the work of cleaning up the old Grimm and getting his ashes into a proper container for a proper funeral is done quickly and next thing she knows she’s holding a bucket of ash.

“... This Grimm wanted his ashes turned into pottery.  A vase for collecting water or holding flowers.  Something that could still be helpful,” Brumm hums quietly.

“Are you asking her to make it?” Hornet looks between Brumm and Julia, who’s still staring at the bucket.  

“Far from it.  I was meant to hold it.  We will hire a proper potter to do that work for us.  It won’t do to have something so sentimental be ruined.”  Brumm then gently takes the bucket from Julia.  “I can get you a giant Grimm plush if that will make it easier to cope,” he offers gently.

Julia nods numbly, shifting to holding the lantern again. Brumm leaves the tent with the bucket.  A weird cricket strolls up to her.  "He last-minute wanted to know what you wanted the ashes made into.  He likes to give his remains to mortals that he got attached to."

"A-a lantern dish?" She asks unsurely.

“A lantern dish.” The strange cricket nods, repeating the words to itself as if to help remember before departing.

Hornet approaches Julia.  "You're not taking it well," she states more than asks.

"H-how am I supposed to take this?  He said he was immortal!" Julia snaps, holding the lantern instinctively tighter. 

“Death comes for all things.”

“I know that!” Julia’s voice rises, her anger flaring at being treated like a child. “I’m not an idiot! I know people die! That doesn’t make it any easier!” 

People in her life had died before. It had never made much of an impact before, though. They were people she didn’t know well, distant family members or friends of her parents. She’s never lost someone she actually cared about before.   This is more like like-like…

Like if one of her own friends died.

She’d never known how much it hurt, and her parent’s cavalier, distant attitude about death didn’t help.  Julia’s trying to get words out, but blubbering the entire way.  She can’t get the words out!  So, she instead resorts to just swearing up a sobbing, sloppy storm, managing to switch to English instead of using the language she'd been stuck speaking. 

Ghost listens, then begins to copy her. Their little voice blurts out the swear words without any knowledge of what the words are and what they mean. Julia stops and stares at them. They stare back, continuing to happily swear. 

“What do those words mean?” Hornet asks, a tinge of concern in her voice. She doesn’t know what the words mean either, but she knows that Ghost likely shouldn’t be saying them. 

“They’re, um...” Julia trails off, staring to laugh in between her tears.  "They're swear words.  Be-because I can't find any other words to describe how horrible I feel!  It's like… I've been betrayed!  Or ripped apart!  I-I-I know I don't deserve to feel like this, but I do anyway, and I feel like shit for it!"

Hornet’s expression softens. “It does hurt, doesn’t it? To lose someone you love.” 

She never allowed herself to grieve after her mother began to Dream. She had a duty to fulfill that left no time for such feelings. 

But it had hurt. 

Deep inside, it had hurt to lose her mother.

“Let yourself hurt,” she says, looking at Julia. 

Julia is silent for several seconds before keening out a sob, collapsing to her knees.  Hornet and Ghost hover closer with offers of hugs.

Ghost looks down at Julia’s lantern, then at the path back to Grimm’s sleeping place.  They sneak past the cloud of Nightmares and rocket back into the sleeping perch.

From Grimm’s former stoop sits a red and black cocoon about the size of Ghost.  It seems to pulse now and again to a hidden heartbeat. This is probably where Grimm Jr. has gone, they imagine. Grimm had to die so that Grimm Jr. could live. That’s what Grimm said. They’re glad their pseudo-brother is alright, but they are still sad Grimm is gone.

They… want.  They want Little Grimm to wake up in a world where the Radiance was beaten.

They know what must be done.

They turn on their heel to leave.

They jump when they hear another screech, one of fury. It sounds like Julia’s voice. But why would Julia be angry? She’d been crying before.

They leave the tent to see Julia taking off in the direction of the Black Egg with Hornet in hot pursuit. Hornet is screaming at Julia, begging for her to stop, but Julia doesn’t seem to be listening.  Globs of void seem to hang in the air, suspended streaks, and Ghost realizes they’re tears.

They need to go fight the Pantheon fast before Julia is stuck in the Black Egg forever.  They start running themselves, Voidheart thumping in their ears.

=0=

Julia doesn’t know what she’s going to do.  She has no idea how she’s going to fight the Hollow Knight, but she needs to do something to drown out her agony. She wants someone to hurt the way that she’s hurting. She wants something to make herself feel better. 

“Julia, you’ll die!” Hornet calls after her. 

Julia doesn’t care. If she dies, she dies. So what? It’s not like she has anything to live for anyway. The only father figure who ever cared about her is dead and she hurts. She should have died after meeting that tree lady, and she’s just following up on the jet lag!

Hornet stops following her after the entrance of the Egg, and Julia notices the spots of white under her feet.

Soul.  Spells.  She squeezes her eyes shut and just pushes herself harder.  She only slows and stops when she feels warm, uncomfortably so, and she bumps right into a chain. 

She opens her eyes and looks up to see a Vessel bound in armor and chains with cresting horns that look to strain the neck, one eye cracked and both blazing orange.  Those blazing angry eyes - so much like Grimm’s had been but so hateful and so different - stare down at her, and her trembling hands unsheathe the new needle she and Hornet had gotten.  She’s still unsteady with it, but she’ll have to be good enough.

Shivering violently, from anger, from sorrow, from fear and pain, she drives the semi-barbed lance through the nearest string of chains.  A flash of shattering bindings and the chain self destructs up to the ceiling.  Dread pools inside her, and she pulls out her lantern from Grimm.  She stares at it, letting her eyes tear up. After several quiet moments, the clanking of chains catches her attention again.  She curls the lantern to her chest and summons a single strand tied to the needle to clumsily throw it at the chain across from her.

The Hollow Knight looms above her. It holds its massive nail in one hand, broken and aged from disuse. The other is gone, orange and black rot seeping from the remaining stump. There’s orange contagion leaking from a wound in its chest. It looks awful, which should be expected given how long it’s been locked up.

Julia knows it’s not the Hollow Knight that’s looking back at her. It’s the Radiance that’s watching her. Gritting her chelicerae, she retracts her needle and stabs it into another binding of chains, leaving only one left.  The Knight begins to sway on the ceiling like an unsteady wasp nest.

Julia braces herself, pulls her needle back, and charges into the final chain.

She feels the heavy landing of the Knight, the chattering of collapsing metal, and the scream, making even the lantern cuddled to her heart waver some in its glass enclosure.

She turns to face the hunched-over, sickly puppet of a bug and braces herself against feeling ill.

“I’m not letting you control them anymore!” She yells, trying to push through her nausea. “They deserve to live their own life!”

She’s picturing her father in the place of the Radiance, falling back on her old familiar pain.  She lets her anger well up again.

“IT’S NOT FUCKING FAIR!” She shrieks, launching herself at the injured husk.  It tries to sidestep her, but she manages to catch herself on the ground under their stump and uses her bare fist to punch them right in a painful welt she sees on their chest under their cloak at this angle, giving them no time to properly react. A pained screech fills the air. This would have ruptured Julia’s eardrums, had she still possessed them.  Julia just narrows her eyes and fails to duck under the strike that hits her in the abdomen.  Her shell cracks, enough that the gold honey starts filling in the cracks.  Her lantern presses into the crack, and she uses the pain to ground herself. 

Julia screams right back, struggling to conjure up the strand of soul and throwing her needle at the Knight, aiming for that cluster of welts in their torso. She misses and the needle clatters to the ground. Julia scrambles to pick it up again, trying to come up with a plan.

She thinks maybe if she can tie it up she can get the Radiance out. Then she can finally punch that asshole moth right in her stupid fucking face. Julia really wants to punch someone. It might as well be the Radiance. She doesn’t even know what the damn devil looks like.

She spits black void into her hands and massages it into her palms as if she were still human, aggravating her spinnerets in just the right way to “wake them up” almost.  She snaps her fingers, almost imagining she’s sparking a flame like she’s in an anime (or Grimm) and she points a finger at the Knight.  She allows the slow drain as the silk wraps itself around the spikes of the Vessel’s horn.  She smirks grimly to herself and sets out in a dash, pinching her spinneret to stymie the flow of silk to conserve it, trying to wrap the larger creature with the single strand.  

She ducks under a second swing, sliding along under her knees and swinging the thread behind the moving arm. The Knight tries to struggle against the thread. It doesn’t seem to understand what she’s doing, thankfully.  She releases her forefinger and lets more threads fly and land across the Knight’s body.  Raking her hands through the air, she pushes back up into a run, jumping to cling to a drooping chain to make herself and her threads dodge another sword strike.  She hops back down and checks to see how silk-wrapped the Vessel of the Sun is.

It’s got the beginnings of a cocoon wrapping around it. Not enough to completely encompass it, but enough that its movements are becoming restricted. The silk has wrapped enough that if she wanted to, she could plunge her hand into the gaping wound in the Knight’s chest without too much obstruction.  With a grimacing smirk, she does, and that screaming enters her very head, words that she has no meaning for, words she can’t really understand.

She closes her eyes and, with a final thought of for them, presses her focus on drawing that unbearable heat within herself, to beat against her ribs and that lantern lodged in her chest like a bird in a cage.  Her mouth opens of its own accord, and a voice not belonging to her tears itself out.  

She rips the silk off her hand to cover her mouth, hugging her abdomen as if she were about to vomit.  Orange begins to drip from her eyes, and a chain wrapped in spells crashes down next to her.  

The huge mass of her sibling stirs, and she backs away.  Another chain shrieks down, and she can feel the soul radiating off of it.  The unbearable heat begins to cool some, smothering in the void within her body, and she doubles over, tears mixing with that sickly orange gunk as they both stream from her eyes.  

Chains begin to wrap around her, binding her in a shell of steel like she’d tied up her sibling in silk, and she feels both the flames of her Nightmare lantern and the Radiance herself batter against her chest. 

Her breathing falls shallow as the binding spell finally seems to wrap around her, and her head lolls back as she passes out.

Chapter Text

The Hollow Knight uses its one arm to push itself off the ground shakily.

What… what just happened?

It remembers something tying it in glowing silk. Hornet? 

But… No. This Vessel hadn’t sounded like Hornet.  Hornet is no Vessel, herself, but closely resembles one. The Knight's assailant had been different. The Nightmare Heart beat within her chest, somehow. 

It looks around and finds the one who freed it now wrapped in the chains that once bound it. She’s not Hornet. It’s never seen her before. Where did she come from?

“Julia!” Hornet’s voice comes from behind it, and it turns to see her standing in the entrance to the Black Egg. She looks horrified. 

The Knight is baffled. It feels as though it’s missed something. Who is this Vessel? Where did she come from? How could she speak and why did she use silk like Hornet?  

Hornet apparently decides to try her luck and sails in by way of needle and silk - much more swiftly, much more sure and graceful, to the heart of the Egg.  The failed Hollow Knight wheezes, realizing that it’s wounded, and Hornet whirls on them.

“... I need to get you up the well.  To town,” she decides aloud, helping them up by wedging herself firmly under their only arm.  “I’ll come back-” her voice hitches “- for her.”

The Knight makes a questioning noise, pointing back to the bound Vessel. They’d definitely missed something. Hornet knows this Vessel.  

"She-she came to Hallownest while you were sealed,” Hornet explains. “Heard what happened to you and wanted to help.  I was training with her, since she could make silk, and she befriended another sibling of ours.  Something… bad happened, and she seemed to go crazy.  Did she hurt you at all?"

That explains the screaming, at least.  Hollow mimes a punch to their chest then pulls at the silk still stuck to their head. 

“She restrained you while you fought?”

Hollow nods, picking off a bit more silk that’s still stuck to them.  They repeat miming a punch to their welts then signifies that it had been done twice.  Their throat hurts, as if a hole had been torn in it, and they wonder if they could still speak with the hole the Radiance had screamed through their body.

“I see...” Hornet frowns. “In any case, we should get you some healing.” She glances back at the bound Vessel with a mournful expression.  "Then look for a way to get Julia out of here so you can meet her properly."

She turns away, the red-pink flames of the lantern of Nightmares casting shadows in the darkening room.  Hornet manages to maneuver Hollow to the well, then uses her silk to pull the larger vessel up the well.  The mapmaker’s wife and a small miner bug see her struggle and run over to help her with the pulling to hoist Hollow out of the Crossroads.  They’re certainly surprised to see the figure from the statue standing in front of them, but then again strangeness seems the order of the day. 

“Thank you.” Hornet inclines her head respectfully toward the other bugs once they have Hollow free.  “Today has been… trying, but there have been some upsides.  Is there a hot spring in the town for my sibling to rest in?”

Already, she’s back to being Hollow’s crutch, and the two helper bugs wince at the state they’re in.

“I found one inside a bathhouse in the north of town,” the mapmaker’s wife supplies.  “The tools will be a little dusty, but the water still flows.  I can lead you if you like.”

“That would be wonderful, thank you,” Hornet says in relief.  

The mapmaker’s wife - Iselda, Hornet learns - pauses their trip to leave a note for her husband and any customers coming in.  She leads the two horned bugs north, going as far as opening the door to give them some ease. Hornet thanks her again, still holding tight to her sibling. Part of her is afraid they’ll disappear if she lets go. That it will all be just a dream.

Part of her is confused, too.

Why had Julia been so upset?  Sure, she had known Grimm a bit better than Hornet, but not much.  She can’t understand why Julia had gotten so angry and sad.  The girl had full rights to feel how she felt, but… it doesn’t make sense to Hornet.

Why had she just abandoned Hornet like this?

That’s the thought that keeps going through her mind. She’d spent so much time with Julia. Julia had taught her about humans. But Julia had abandoned her in a second. Had their time together meant nothing? She feels a bit like crying. Julia had left her behind. Just like her mother. Just like her sibling. Just like everyone else in Hornet’s life.

She feels a tap on her shoulder and looks up to see Hollow looking down at her with a curious expression. 

“Is something wrong?” She asks, forcing her feelings down.

Hollow shakes their head, pointing at Hornet and tilting their head to the side. 

“Oh...You want to know if...If something is wrong with me...”

Hollow nods. 

“I’m fine,” Hornet tries to assure them. But there’s no conviction in her voice. She feels tears welling up in her eyes. 

Why did Julia leave her?

Why did everyone leave her?

Even the Midwife with her appetite kept leaving Hornet.  She buries the chin of her mask into the collar of her cloak as she does her best to suppress her emotions.  

The door creaks open, and she glances over to see a little beetle girl standing there.  "Ah… h-hi!  I heard… about the commotion in town earlier.  I wanted to make sure the tall Knight was alright!"

“Y-Yes! They’re fine!” Hornet couldn’t be happier for the interruption. “See? They’re fine!” She grabs the arm of her sibling, who isn’t buying her act one bit.  Not even the stranger beetle seems to buy it.

“Are… you okay, Miss?” she asks, rubbing her foreclaws together nervously.

“I’m fine!” Hornet tries to insist, even as tears well up in her eyes.

“ You don’t… look fine, ” an unfamiliar voice rasps, and Hornet whirls to look for the source.  Hollow is staring at her.

“You can....talk?” Hornet whispers. 

" I think… it's because she screamed a hole right through me."

“I...I see...” Hornet nods slowly, 

“ Are you...okay...? ” Hollow asks, a hand on her shoulder. 

“I’m...I’m fine,” Hornet says. Her voice breaks on the last word.

“ You keep saying that but you sound less fine every time you speak.”

“I have to be strong. I can’t let myself falter. People are relying on me.” Even as she says this, tears begin to dribble down Hornet’s cheeks. “I have to be fine.” Her voice breaks again. “I...I have to be fine.”

Hollow hefts themself out of the water to stand before wrapping their only arm around Hornet.  “ It’s okay… to feel hurt.  Something bad… hhhhappened and it’s making you feel bad. ” Hollow protests.  “ I’m sorry. ”

“It’s not your fault,” Hornet murmurs, trying to wipe away her tears. “I just...Why did she leave? Why did Julia leave me?” 

It’s like the floodgates have opened and suddenly she’s starting to full-on wail as the tears gush forth. “I thought we were friends! I thought she loved me! I thought we were sisters!”  

" I do not know... was she the… Sibling... that… took my placccccce? "

Hornet nods, burying her face in her cloak.  Hollow cradles her like she's a child, easy even with only one arm as they're double her size.

“She was teaching me things,” Hornet bawls, curling up. “We were having fun! I thought she loved me! Why do they always leave? Why does everyone I love leave me?!”

" I came back. " Hollow tries to soothe her.  " Herrah… wished she didn't hafffffff to go.  You were… always in her thoughts. "

“But they leave...” Hornet whimpers. “They always leave...And then I’m alone...” All her fears and insecurities come bubbling up.

" I… came… back. " Hollow repeats, pressing their forehead to hers.

Hornet stops, their words finally breaking through. She looks up at them, her heavy heart lightening a tad.

“You...You did.” 

=0=

They wake up on the bench in the Royal Waterways.  They had been… ganged up on by the Flukes.  A quick check of themselves says that half of their void is missing.

They'd been killed.  Their shade is free.

They’d been killed by Flukes . A strange sensation wells up in their chest, a sort of burning feeling. They’ve never felt this feeling before.

How could they be so… stupid?   They press their hands to their face and shake their head.  "Why did I use Flukenest?!   That always makes Flukes mad!" 

They groan, wanting to roll up in a ball and just die. Well, not literally. They don’t literally want to die. But they feel like they do.  Have they ever felt like this before?!

They doubt it.  With a dramatic sigh, they get off the bench to go find their shade.

The shade isn’t hard to find. It’s exactly where they fell, floating in the air above the Flukes.  They’d at least had the foresight to take off the Flukenest charm to get their shade back.  It simply stares at them, lacking the mouth they currently wear.

Weird.

They wonder if this is what they looked like before. Before Grimm’s gift.  They tilt their head and slowly reach out to the floating shadow. They briefly wonder what will happen when they reclaim their shade. They’ve never died before. Surely, it won’t be anything spectacular. Just reclaiming a piece of themselves. 

For some reason, though, they hesitate.  This is their void, their very essence, but outside their body…

It lacks a mind.  It lacks will or personality.  Why is it so… different from them, despite being a part of them? Why are they different? They know they’re supposed to be hollow. They were born to be hollow, just like all of their other siblings. But even their sibling who would go on to be the being known as the Hollow Knight wasn’t completely hollow.

“Is it...bad that I’m not hollow?” They ask themselves.

They think back to all the other Siblings they had seen, corpses and the one infected.  If the Old Light latches onto ideals to infect and Nosk preys on the emotions of unsuspecting bugs, then…

"What if none of us are hollow?" They ask their shade quietly.

Their shade offers no response, nor do the Flukes who watch them from the shadows. There are no answers for them to find here.  They sigh and look at the floor for a moment before giving their Voidheart a prompt and accepting their shade back into their body.

It dissolves into several particles and pulls towards them as if sucked by a vacuum. They feel more complete when their shade re-enters their body, the lost section now reclaimed. But that’s all they feel. Just the satisfaction of reclaiming something that was lost.

They need to hurry.  Something is clearly wrong with them.

They shake off the last of the void on their shell and set off dashing towards the Junk Pit.

Thinking about it, going down the tunnel under the Nailsmith's old workshop.  Would have saved them all this… thinking. No point in dwelling on it now, though. They have a job they need to do. 

They have to destroy the Radiance.  Containment is no longer enough.  They've seen so much death and destruction at her hands. And now Julia’s charged head long into containing Her. They know Julia can’t hold the Radiance for long. She’s inexperienced and rash. She hadn’t thought her decision through. She wasn't made for the task at all.

They've seen the rot spread at speeds tenfold the speed they'd been when the Hollow Knight had held the infection.  It's seeped all the way into Greenpath and the Fungal Wastes and the Crystal Peak.  The Crossroads are barely traversable.

This needs to end today.

They head back to the Godseeker. It’s time to end this.

=0=

Julia is sitting opposite a creature she doesn’t recognize. It looks like some sort of moth, although it’s like no moth she’s ever seen in her life. It’s gaze burns her, but she doesn’t look away. 

“So,” the creature speaks, it’s voice somewhere between amusement and disdain. “You are to be my new jailer.”

Julia holds her tongue, stunned a bit by the creature’s presence.

“Oh, don’t give me that,” it - she? - spits.  “I know what you really are.”

Julia looks away, blinking spots out of her eyes and wringing her hands.  What can she say?  She’s face to face with a literal god, and it’s hateful, baleful, and harsh to even look at.

“Getting cold feet?” It sneers. “You didn’t think this through, did you?”

“Shut up!” Julia snaps, more out of instinct than anything else. She hates its mocking tone, the way it looks down on her.

“Well, you didn’t, did you?” It almost seems to smirk. “You just charged in without thinking.”

"I still managed to do what I wanted," she weakly bites back.

"Did you really?  You just punched a disabled bug in a weak point then tied it up.  It's almost like you're not a bug at all."

“Gee, tell me something I don’t know.” Julia rolls her eyes. Newsflash, she’s not a bug. Or at least, she wasn’t originally. It’s only natural that she’s not much of a fighter.

“Oh, but you’re trying to be a bug,” her tormentor points out. “Not that you’ll ever succeed. Do you think you’re ever going to fit in with them? You’re not like them. You’re never going to be like them. No matter how hard you try, you’re never going to be one of them.”

“I know that,” Julia says, but her voice wavers. 

“But do you really?” The Radiance pounces on this vulnerability. “Or are you just hoping that things will magically be okay? Are you just hoping you’ll find a way to fit in?”

“They love me!”

“Will they love you after this, though?” Its voice is sickly sweet. "After you left them all behind? You had a good thing going with the spider, there. Why was the resurrecting moth god the one that made you berserk?"

Julia stiffens. The Radiance almost seems to smirk, knowing its hit on a sore point.

"Oh, wait, is it because she didn't fulfill your need for a father figure who actually cared about you?” It coos. “Maybe if she'd been older she could have been the mother you always wanted. Too bad she was only a child and didn't fit into your little happy family puzzle."

Julia scrambles for some form of recourse, but she's always been terrible with comebacks.  The giant moth leans in closer.

"She'll always be just another person you end up pushing away." The moth continues, the smile audible in her voice.  "Are all humans so quick to forget and abandon?  Or is it the fact that you seem to have been pinned as a broken one?"

"I'm not broken!" Julia finally tries to respond, her personal shadow writhing in pain in the proximity to the light.

The moth leans back, but Julia still feels burned.  "I hope you're happy with yourself then.  Can you, though?  With that deformed brain, that blasted shade, and that lantern you've got stuck in you, I'll be surprised if you can feel anything at all."

"Shut up!" Julia lamely shouts back.

That only earns her laughter.  "Ahhh, the way you wilt is simply pathetic , little moon."

“Moon?” Julia frowns. Where did that come from?

“That’s what you are,” it laughs again. “Didn’t you know? Just a pale imitation.”

“Of who?!” Julia demands. 

“Of so many other things, only catching their glory to show off as your own.” The Radiance shines brighter, illuminating Julia’s every shadow and flaw. The pieces of others she’d stolen to claim as her own. 

Hornet’s silk, Grimm’s lantern, her borrowed needle, the Hollow Knight’s place as the Radiance’s jailer. 

“I’m not imitating anyone!” Julia insists. 

“Oh, but you are. Maybe not intentionally, but you are,” it begins to count on its strange tentacle-like appendages. “Your so-called siblings, Grimm, the White Lady, even your parents. You try to be like them because you know there’s nothing special about you . Even your “art” is just copying others, isn’t it? Trying to be someone you’re not.”

Julia tries to turn away, but the Radiance spins to follow her eyes.  

“You can’t say I’m wrong because then you’d be a liar.” There’s an accusation in its voice. “Are you ever going to say sorry?  Maybe if you ever get out you can apologize to her for leaving like everyone else in her life did. That is, if you even feel sorry." It laughs, the sound cruel and mocking. “ Can you feel sorry?”

“I can...” Julia says weakly, on the verge of tears. “I can!” 

And she does feel sorry. Why hadn’t she thought before she’d done this? Why had she just charged in? Why had she left Hornet behind? It wasn’t fair to Hornet that Julia had taken off the way she had. Why hadn’t she stayed with Hornet?

“Of course you can,” the Radiance speaks in that baby talk voice that Julia has always hated. “Maybe you should just stay here with me, darling. You can’t hurt anyone here.”  A feathery wing brushes her shoulders, leaving a distinct burn in their wake.  "Maybe with that pretty metal cocoon of yours, you might come out with something to distract from how disgusting you truly are”

“I’m not disgusting,” Julia whispers.  

“Are you so sure?  There are so many ways that you’ve destroyed the people around you.  Much worse than anything I’ve done.” It lets out a simpering laugh. “Perhaps you aren’t repulsive in appearance, but I can assure you that your insides are ugly, my irritating little moon.”

“That’s not true!” Julia screams, covering her ears. 

You’re disgusting! Why can’t you just act like a normal person for once in your life, Julia?!

“I would think that a victim such as yourself would try to break the cycle, but I suppose not.” The Radiance pauses, watching her with an intensity that made Julia squirm. “It feels good, doesn’t it? Hurting those weaker than you. That’s how your father felt.”

“I’m not like him!” Julia shakes her head, curling in on herself. 

"You keep telling people that.  It seems you have a bad penchant for lying anyways."

"I'm not lying!"

"Are you so sure?  Your mother then,  not even bothering to keep the connections you have and ignoring the people that need you the most.  Not unlike the White Queen as well.  Such a waste, after all it took to get here in the first place."

“Shut up! Shut up shut up shut up!” Julia screams. 

“Don’t throw a tantrum because I’m right,” the Radiance sneers. “You’re not a child , are you?”

Julia screeches and launches herself at the moth.  She swiftly is knocked out of the sky with a quick, painful swipe to her legs.

“I think it’s time for a little… self-reflection , pesky little moon.”

Chapter Text

The Godseeker watches the little bug that had been visiting her swim its way over to her, something… off now about it.  More so than usual. Its presence is strange. Something about it has changed. She can tell. “Ah, you return, little phantom.”

“Hi, ma’am!” The strange bug chirps.  

She tilts her head. “Hello there.”

“I’d like to keep going,” they say. “In the Pantheon.” There’s an urgency in their voice. She hadn’t known they could speak.

“I see.” She nods sagely.  “You only have the Pantheon of Hallownest left to defeat, yes?  This will be your greatest challenge yet.  And the God of Gods seems distinctly more unhappy.  She’s found… another host.  A new battle on your quest.”

“I know...” Their expression falls. “That’s why I have to do this. I have to end it.”

They sound so solemn. She doesn’t think she’s ever seen or heard them this serious before. 

“Very well.” She lowers her head. “Continue.”

They pull out the pin they use to scry in the mind and let it charge up before striking and putting them both to sleep.  She next opens her eyes at the first battle of the Pantheon.

The little ghost stands on the stage, nail at the ready. They’re prepared to defeat whoever is sent their way. Their resolve is impressive, she must admit that. Few have made it as far as they have.  Few have even entered Godhome as they have.

She should instruct them on how to locate certain statues within the Hall after their battles. Perhaps they will find some interest in them. They seem the sort who would have respect for their fallen enemies.

The Vengefly King is the first of the gods, and the battle is almost laughably short. The Ghost has no trouble dispatching it, striking each time it dives for them until it can dive no more.

The Gruz Mother comes next, a bloated creature that floats aimlessly around the arena, slamming its body into the walls in a strange approximation of an attack. The Ghost has little difficulty with them either. Its screams with an intensity the Godseeker has seen in other battles, a mix of shade and Soul mingling in a powerful spell that easily kills the Gruz Mother in a few casts.

Battle after battle, she watches the bug of shadows ascend through the Pantheons.  During one rest, she closes her eyes and hums to attune with the latest jailor of the God of Gods, sensing the pain the poor being is in.  She debates on calling them in to watch some of the battles, to warn them of the upcoming fight, but no.  They will be busy holding the Old Light, so the Godseeker is content to simply attune for now.

She's never attuned with a god that's had a mind like that, however.  So complex and vast.  She wants so deeply to learn more. She feels such righteous anger from this god, such a wealth of emotions. This god burns bright. Brighter than any god she’s ever encountered before. She can feel this god’s ties to others in the Hallownest’s Pantheon.

She wonders what battle this new god will bring. The ghost wishes to destroy the old god it’s tied to. They said as much before. But she’s sure the god won’t go down without a fight.  It will be difficult, with the Old Light’s hand in the matter. She hopes the ghost will give her a good show. She’s sure it will be spectacular. 

For now, she shall observe.

=0=

Hollow is feeling much better after the bath and helping Hornet through a crying session. Hornet wants to be left alone for a bit, which leaves them to explore a bit on their own. They want to see all that has changed since they were sealed away. Many things are still the same, but many have changed as well. 

They find themselves wandering to the Archives, wondering if Monomon is still there. They know she’s probably gone, given that the Black Egg was opened, but they hope she might still be around.  It is a bit difficult to navigate.  Their light-ached void and missing arm make it difficult to traverse the kingdom, and their size only compounds that fact.

But still, they trek.  By way of the old Stag tunnels, they find the most ease in travel. The tunnels accommodate their size, and they know the ways by heart. They'd used to sneak out to explore during their training for their role by way of the stagways.  The Queen's Station is overgrown and beginning to crumble. They wonder if their mother would be happy to see them. All her other children are gone from what they’ve heard. 

Part of them wants to see her, to hear her soothing voice. She had loved them, they knew she had. She had loved all of her children. They want that comfort now, for her to enfold them in her arms as if they were a child again and tell them that everything would be alright.  But they wouldn't even begin to know where to begin a search.

Would she… be disappointed in them for failing their only purpose?  They fear that question too much to actually look.  So to the Archives it is.  They find themselves wondering what became of the Teacher's assistant. They had met him once or twice before being sealed. He was a kind enough fellow. They know he’s likely dead now too. Everyone else seems to be. Still, they hold out hope that at least one other figure from their past has survived.  So many people died from their failure.

They regret letting their own hopes ruin everything. Maybe if they’d been properly hollow everything would have been alright. This has to have been their fault. It has to have been.  It just makes sense that they’d need to be replaced.

They just hope the scent of infection was a trick of their mind.

The Fog Canyon is foggier than they recall, and the path up is narrow. They have to be careful navigating the path due to their size. They’re unfamiliar with navigating this place at this size with such reduced visibility.  Not to mention avoiding the Uomas and Oomas.  They’d like to remain un-exploded.

It takes a while for them to get across due to their slow pace, and they breathe a sigh of relief when they’re finally safe. They can see the Archive from here, surrounded by more of the jellies.  It’s darker than they remember it being, but it makes sense.  Only a few rooms seem to have the lights on from what they can see. They quicken their pace a bit, their heart leaping at the sight of the familiar building. 

It’s been so long since they’ve been in the Archives. They wonder if it still smells the same. They still remember that smell that’s so unique to the Archives, that of paper and acid.  They remember the confusingly phrased acid tablets and the talking computer that floated aimlessly around the Archive that would address them politely.  It had worn Monomon's face, so seeing it often confused them even after she'd explained what it was to them. Even if Monomon is gone now, it will probably still be there. It’ll be nice to see a familiar face. 

They push the doors open and venture inside, hope bubbling up in their chest. The Archive is the same as they remember. It hasn’t changed at all.  Sure, the power is off and the only lights are the floating Uomas and Oomas, but it’s just like how they remember.

They should look for one of those lighted rooms.  Maybe the computer is hovering in one of those. They begin to wander, taking in everything. They run their fingers over the glass of the tubes, taking small comfort in the feeling of the glass under their chitin.  The tubes are dim, off or empty, and they turn their eyes to the hole in the floor leading to the rest of the archive. They have to crouch down a little to fit through the hole, slipping inside and into the depths of the Archive.  It seems like there are lumaflies loose alongside the jellies.

“ Where did...you all come from? ” They whisper, reaching out a finger to them.  They just release small charges here and there. The lumaflies aren’t able to cause them any damage, so Hollow simply giggles at the tingling sensation this produces.   Their shell is too thick to register the shock, thankfully.  

" Registering query… " a male bug's voice hums, and they turn to see the computer floating in the air with blank eyes not unlike theirs other than the glowing. It looks like the Archive Assistant with an Ooma sitting on his head.  What is this?

“ Qui...rrel...? ” They rasp, reaching for the AI.

“ Incorrect ,” the computer replies. “ This form belongs to Archivist Quirrel, however, I am not he. ” 

“ Archivist...Quirrel...? ” Hollow repeats. “ Not...Monomon? ”

“ Archivist Monomon is deceased, ” the computer continues calmly, floating down to Hollow. “ Archivist Quirrel has taken her place. ”

Hollow tilts their head curiously at the floating computer.

" How is… he? "  

“ He is currently resting ,” the computer says. “ Would you like to see him? ”

They consider before nodding slowly.  The floating apparition nods back before floating away.

The former assistant's voice echoes down the hall.  "This better be important, or I'm turning you off when I go to sleep." The bug can be heard grumping, and Hollow supposes that Quirrel must not have gotten much sleep. He’s probably not having a great time right now, what with his teacher dying. 

The pillbug turns the corner and flinches back with a loud yelp at the sight of Hollow standing there, and the taller bug waves laconically with their only arm.

"Dear sweet stars above!  How… how are you free?!  Is the infection gone?"

“ New sibling...took my place... ” Hollow explains. “ Infection is...still there. ”

The scholar has to take a moment to put the pieces together before gasping in horror.  "The stoic wanderer?!"

Hollow shakes their head. “ Different one...Hornet called her...Julia... ”

That seems to put the shorter bug at ease, but concern and confusion still line the features of Quirrel's mask.  "Goodness, I'm glad it wasn't them but… where did this Julia come from?"

Hollow shrugs. They’re not sure of that themselves. Hornet seems to know her, but that’s the extent of their knowledge.  

"Hm.  Is the entrance to the Black Egg open at all?"

Another shrug.  Hornet had been able to get them out but they have no idea if it sealed behind them.

"Waitwaitwait…  Did you talk there?” Quirrel asks, his eyes going wide. “I thought none of you were supposed to be able to talk!"

“ Radiance...screamed a hole....in me.... ” Hollow laughs weakly.  The pillbug immediately sobers up.

“Let me look at your throat to make sure your neck is stable.” Quirrel’s demeanor shifts and suddenly he’s confident and calm, drawing Hollow down to his level so he can look them over.  He pokes around their neck and chest, tutting at the exposed endoskin that’s scarred over from the infection.

“Hum for me please so I can pinpoint the exit point of the oxygen.” Quirrel politely commands. 

Dutifully, Hollow hums. Quirrel makes a small noise of understanding, nodding to himself. “Alright, it looks like there are no holes in your respiratory system up to your neck at least, so that means it must be exiting at some point inside your mask.  No visible damage.”

Hollow nods, looking down at Quirrel.  “Do you know anyone that would have information on this… usurper vessel?”

“ Hornet ,” Hollow answers simply.

“And...Where is Miss Hornet?”

Hollow turns, gesturing for Quirrel to follow them. Quirrel hesitates for a moment before stumbling after the towering Vessel.  Hollow takes the two of them to the Stagways with thankfully a bit less trouble than they'd had before, and hunches themselves over, giving the smaller bug a look.

" Climb on. "

“P-Pardon?” Quirrel stammers.

“ It’ll be...faster....if I carry...you... ” Hollow gestures to their back.

“Well, alright.” Quirrel awkwardly clambers on, holding tight to Hollow’s cloak to keep from falling off.  Hollow wraps their arm around Quirrel’s back to secure him before straightening some and taking off running.

“Which-which station are we stopping at?” Quirrel asks, voice jolting from bouncing.

“ Dirtmouth. ”

=0=

Julia feels her mind space buzzing some.  It’s a pleasant change from the constant barrage of the harsh sun moth berating her like clockwork.  Now it’s one of those moments where she’s stuck in what the Higher Being calls “thinking time” where her body is bound by harsh ropes of light that burn her to her core and she’s suspended in the mind space.  It hurts like hell, but she thinks she’s, horribly so, getting used to it.

She’s going to be alright, she tells herself. She can get through this. It’ll be fine. She’ll be fine.

Even as she thinks this, though, a sob rips through her body at the memories of the things the Radiance said to her. So much of it is true. She knows it’s true. Why did she do what she did? Why didn’t she just leave well enough alone? Why didn’t she stay with Hornet?

She wants to go home. Not to her father, not to her mother, just to her bedroom. Her bedroom was safe. Her bedroom was comfortable. So much has happened. She’s so far out of her comfort zone now. She doesn’t want to do this anymore. She just wants to hide in her safety and comfort. 

But that’s not an option anymore.

She can never go home again, for better or for worse.  She’d burned that bridge before she ever entered Hallownest.  She knows running away from home wasn’t the smartest idea, but getting lost in the caves had been a terrible mistake. She’d just wanted to get away. They’d pushed her too far and she hadn’t been able to handle it anymore. She’d thought it out and everything. But she hadn’t thought it out enough.  

She'd stumbled into a cave at night and had been completely unable to find the way out.  She hadn't packed enough to compensate.  She had been walking to the next town over and had been unprepared for cave systems in the nearby mountains. She hadn’t known there was a cave system there. She hadn’t brought a map or anything. 

She could have died. 

She feels like crying again. She could have died and no one would have cared. No one would have missed her. And all she'd wanted was for someone to appreciate her.  She supposes she found what she was looking for, even if she spit all over it.

She curls in on herself, shivering with her breath shuddering. She hopes Hornet can forgive her when she gets out. If she gets out.  She honestly doubts she deserves it.

She lets the buzzing soothe her aches and pains her joints and eyes.  At least that Hollow Knight isn’t living through this anymore. They shouldn’t have had to deal with this for so long. She’s still angry at the Pale King for thrusting this upon his child. For never giving them a choice to be anything but the solution to a problem he’d created. Like she’d told Hornet, she’s the spare.  She’d rather be the one here than one of the Vessels.  Someone who frankly has no history with anything here. And, as the Radiance so eloquently reminded her, no one will ever accept her. No one will ever love her. She doesn’t matter. So she can’t go back on any of this.  She just has to hold back the light, as hard as it is.

She cracks her eyes open, ignoring how they tear up at the brightness of the light again.  She wonders what’s going on with Hornet.

“Regretting your decision yet?” She hears the Radiance ask. “Want to give up?”  

Julia grits her mouth claw things. “You wish.  If I’m going down, the least I can do is take you screaming with me,” she responds wearily.

“Mm.” The Radiance hums. “We’ll see how long that resolve of yours lasts. You can’t keep this up forever, little moon.”

“Yeah, well, you’ve sort of exhausted my capacity to care, and that’s recently been sort of shortened so… like, I’m already tired of your bullshit.  But keep going, it’s better than pure nothing.”

She’s bluffing a little about not caring.  Her heart is still stinging from the moth’s scathing words. But she can’t admit that. The Radiance will take advantage of any sign of weakness. She can’t be weak. Not now.  She needs to keep strong for everyone else's sake.

She has the weight of a whole world on her shoulders now, and it's starting to weigh heavy. But she has to keep going. She made this choice and now she has to stick with it.  She can't possibly back down.  It doesn't matter if she wasn't born and bred for this.  She needs to persevere.

She looks away from the light as she feels a crack press into one of her mask's eye holes from the sheer pressure of the light.  Black smoke starts wafting up out of it.

“Oh, that doesn’t look good,” the Radiance coos. “Maybe you should take a break. Oh! Wait! You can’t!” It begins to laugh, the sound musical and grating at the same time. 

“I’m fine, I just wish you came with a dimmer or something,” Julia grumbles.  “Or maybe if I had some sunglasses.  I miss those.”

“Would you ask someone to turn down the sun if it hurt you?”

“I’m sure plenty of people would,” Julia responds with a huff.

The Radiance sighs and Julia can imagine it rolling its eyes. “Are all humans so foolish?”

“I mean, yeah. Kinda.”

“I suppose that explains some of your idiocy.”

"Well, my father isn't exactly the sharpest tool in the shed…" Julia mutters, deciding to amuse herself with a reference.

“You were doomed from the start then.” Predictably, the reference goes right over the Radiance’s head. 

"I've always been told I take after my mom.  Granted, I've also been told I absolutely have to work at the same engineering firm as my dad as an adult and I kind of ran away from home because of it despite being…" Julia pauses, racking her brain.  "Shit, I forgot how old I am.  I'm too old to be taking that sort of stuff at any rate."

“You’ve already forgotten how old you are?” There’s genuine surprise in the Radiance’s voice. “My, have I been that rough with you? Or perhaps the Void is hollowing you out more quickly than I expected.” 

A thrill of horror goes through Julia, but she does her best to mask it.  “Ahhhh, I think my memory is just shitty.  It always has been.”  She does her best to shrug in her bindings.  “It’s probably just escaping me right now.”

“Are you sure?~” The Radiance asks, its voice sickly sweet. “I wouldn’t think someone as young as you would forget their age.” Suddenly, it sounds as though it’s right beside Julia. “I wonder what else you’ve forgotten.”

"It's not like it matters." Julia snaps back unexpectedly.  "A lot of shit from my human life isn't relevant anymore."

The sunny moth stares at her before chuckling in an infuriating manner.  "However you wish to spin it. Still, I would think it would be upsetting for you. Your memories are a part of your identity, are they not? Aren’t you afraid of losing who you are? "

“Who I am doesn’t matter,” Julia mutters. “No one will miss me if I’m gone.”

The Radiance drifts closer.  "If only you had been born or became a normal bug." She hums in lament.  "I could have made you so much stronger and better."

Despite herself, Julia can’t help but ask, “What do you mean?”

“I am a Higher Being.  I can do anything I want,”  the moth whispers in where her ear would be.  

She shivers, unsettled. “Why was the literal god of nightmares less creepy than you’re being right now?”

The Radiance scoffs. “He was always so obsessed with being liked . I have no such desire.”

“If you don’t want to be liked, then why bother throwing a hissy fit about no one paying attention to you?”

“Being liked and being worshipped are different things,” the Radiance replies testily.

“Don’t you need one to have the other?”

“They aren’t mutually exclusive, little moon.” The Radiance taps the front of her face with one tendril. “I would rather be feared than liked.”

“Isn’t being likable a way to get more people to like you?” Julia keeps probing.

“I’m not a performer for mortals,” the goddess hisses.  “Not that you would know, having a Nightmare lantern on your person.”

“What’s that supposed mean?!”Julia snaps. 

“You’re like him now.” The Radiance runs a tendril over the Nightmare Lantern lodged in Julia’s chest. “Degrading yourself to perform for the masses.”

"Why is it degrading to make others happy?" Julia asks pointedly, not liking the moth's accusing tone.

“It’s degrading to make a fool of yourself for the amusement of others,” the Radiance sneers. “And that’s all you and he seem to do.”  

"Maybe it's all a matter of being humble.  Can you be humble, miss Mcfucking sunshine?"

“What use does a god have for humility?” The Radiance laughs as though Julia is a child who has just said something cute but ultimately stupid.   

“You might be right. I’ve never been a god.” She tries to shrug again.  “I just think being humble is neat.”

“I suppose you’re entitled to your opinion.” There’s such derision in its voice, such disdain.  It makes Julia want to smack her.  But she'd never be so bold and rash.  She fears the retaliation she'd get.

So, she keeps her mouth shut. She’s used to it at this point. Just keep quiet and let them scream. Just like with her father. She finds it a bit funny that all her years of abuse are actually paying off for once.  Another method of creating a hollowed-out husk.

“What’s got you so amused?” The Radiance asks in a purring tone.

“I’m just… reminiscing.”

She gets batted lightly and starts rocking.

“I wouldn’t think you’d have anything worth reminiscing about,” the Radiance sniffs. “Unless this is somehow reminding you of your father.”

Julia is silent. 

“Oh, so it is.” The Radiance lets out a short laugh. “That certainly makes sense.  Are you enjoying this, then? ”

“I didn’t say I enjoyed reminiscing,” Julia responds with a sigh.  “It just means I had a That’s So Raven moment.”

“I don’t know what that means and you know it,” is the flat reply.

Unable to help herself, Julia starts to laugh. It’s the first time she’s laughed this loudly or openly since getting into this situation.

“What? What’s so funny?” The Radiance demands.

“I thought you would have datamined my brain for all its knowledge by now!” Julia giggles once she regains control over herself.

“I searched for useful information,” the Radiance snaps. “Whatever that is, I doubt it’s useful.”

“Yeah, it’s probably not,” Julia admits, still giggling. “But it’s still funny. You not knowing something.”

“I’m glad you’re having fun.” Sarcasm drips from the god’s voice.

“I genuinely am, so joke’s on you,” Julia teases, aware she may be batting a thousand at the beehive.  “And you know what you gotta do to actually get my references!”

The Radiance grumbles, muttering about “useless region-based language.”

“Whatever you’re suggesting, I’m not doing it,” it says. “I have no need for your childish references and soon neither will you.”

Those lost four words chill Julia to her bones, reminding her that she will soon lose her entire identity.   She looks away, gritting her chelicerae again.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Did I ruin your mood?” There’s a smugness in the Radiance’s voice, as they know they’ve hit a sore point.  

“Isn’t that all you’ve been doing at this point?” Julia fires back.

“True.” The Radiance hums, self-satisfaction still plain. “You make it far too easy to get under your skin. Figuratively, of course, since you no longer have skin.”  

“That was a bad joke.”

“Well, it wasn’t a joke.”

Julia looks away, trying to avoid more cracks.

She tries to remember that she doesn’t regret this.

=0=

Hornet is still in Dirtmouth when Hollow and Quirrel arrive. She’s resting on a bench, trying to relax. She still has a cocktail of emotions brewing just under the surface, but she is feeling better now.  She’s managed to tamp those emotions down in the time Hollow has been gone, however, and now she’s beginning to wonder where they are.

There’s a tap at her door.  “You can come in,” she calls out in response.

The door opens and, to her relief, Hollow enters. But they’re not alone. On their back is someone she hadn’t expected to see, especially not now. 

“Quirrel?”

“H-Hello.” Quirrel sounds a bit shaky. She wonders if Hollow carried him the whole way there.  

Hornet stands. “The… the Little Ghost told me that you’d died in the Blue Lake,” she relays, confused.

“And I did!  I just got better.”

“I...Don’t understand.” Hornet frowns. “How does one ‘get better’ from dying?”

“Black magic, apparently,” Quirrel huffs.  “Just some sort of… final gift the Madam left for me.”

Hornet stares at him for a moment or two before shaking her head, deciding this isn’t worth questioning. Her life is strange enough already.  “Well, I’m glad you’re… not dead.”

Quirrel shrugs.  “I mean, I meant to die, but…”

“Why?” The spider girl asks.

Quirrel’s shoulders slump. “It’s...Well...” He sighs heavily. “I just...Didn’t want to live.”

“I see...” Hornet isn’t sure what to say to that. It’s an awfully heavy response.

“Yeah...”

A silence descends upon the tent. No one knows what to say after that.

“Well, I’m glad to see you’re alright,” Hornet finally says. “My sibling will be happy to see you as well.  The stalwart little ghost?”

Quirrel chuckles.  "I would have never guessed that you two were siblings,” he admits.  "You two seem like polar opposites."

Hornet shrugs.  "We have different mothers." She half explains, not wanting to get into the void part.

“ Both born from...Pale King...Though... ” Hollow chimes in.

Quirrel nods sagely. “Ah, I see.” 

“Yes.” Hornet can’t help but frown a bit at the memory of her father. The Pale King may have aided in her conception, but he was no parent to her. As far as she’s concerned, her only true parent was her mother. 

“Where is the little wanderer?” Quirrel asks.

“I don’t know,” Hornet says, settling back down on her bench. “They said they had something they needed to do.”

“Said?” Quirrel probes, eyes bright with curiosity.

“Troupemaster Grimm gave them the gift of speech before his death." Hornet elaborates.

"What do they sound like?"

"... Surprisingly polite."

“Understandable,” Quirrel nods. The little ghost has always struck him as the polite sort. 

“It is,” Hornet agrees. 

“ What do...they need...to do? ” Hollow asks. 

They’re starting to wonder what their little sibling has planned. Hornet is clearly in no shape to be stopping the Radiance, and neither are they, which leaves Ghost. 

"I will be frank, I do not know,"  Hornet admits.  "They left before Julia took your place in the Black Egg."

The spider shudders, running her fingers on the edge of the mirror she has tucked into a pocket on the inside of her cloak.  Hollow nods, looking away from Hornet.

"Julia?" Quirrel asks. “Is she a new sibling of yours?”

Hornet takes a few deep shaking breaths, nodding in affirmation. “She was...blessed by the White Lady. Made a Vessel.”

“Interesting,” Quirrel murmurs, his scientific curiosity now sufficiently awakened. “How did that happen exactly?”

“I’m not sure,” Hornet admits. “I only know what I was told.”

“Mm...” Quirrel is deep in thought, mostly about how a bug would be turned from an ordinary bug to a Vessel. "What kind of bug was she before?"

"She wasn't a bug.  She told me she was some kind of wyrm called a hyu-man."

Quirrel repeats the word a few times, the light of curiosity in his eyes.  "Can you share what you know with me?"

“I can try, although I know very little.” 

Hornet explains everything she knows about the situation to Quirrel, continually repeating that she knew very little. Quirrel listens intently, dragging out a notebook to jot down notes. 

Hollow stands awkwardly off to the side, although they too are listening. They can’t help but feel bad for Julia. She seems like a nice person. They don’t feel right that she sacrificed herself for them. This was what they were born to do.  

They feel like they need to save her.

They stand up but, at the insistence of Quirrel and Hornet, sit back down with their mind itching to go save her.

Quirrel asks questions now and again about the strange hyuman-wyrm things. Hornet doesn’t know all that much about them. Grimm knew, and she assumes the White Lady and other Higher Beings would know. But Hornet herself is not a higher being and thus has no experience with hyu-mans.  She conveys as much to Quirrel, who makes more notes.

“This is fascinating,” he says as he frantically scribbles in his notebook.  “I’ll need to see if I can talk to this Julia to get more firsthand information.  Until then… is there a plan?”

“ Save...her... ” Hollow says.

“That is an end goal, yes,” Hornet agrees. “But defeating the Radiance would be first, likely. To make sure the infection doesn’t spread. Which is...probably what our little wanderer is doing.”

“Are we going to be there to collect the current vessel in the Black Egg?” Quirrel probes.  “To bring her back into Dirtmouth?”

“That seems like the most logical course of action…” Hornet muses. “But then again, bringing her here while she’s still leaking infection would be ill-advised.”

Quirrel bows his head before seeming to get an idea.  "What if we all had turns keeping a vigil waiting for the stoic adventurer to defeat the radiance so we may collect the current vessel in the egg?" He suggests.

“ I’ll go first. ” Hollow practically jumps at the opportunity.

“Alright. You’ll take first watch,” Hornet says.

Hollow nods, internally planning out possibly reclaiming the Radiance.  

Hornet nods back, hugging herself and looking away.  “I doubt I should do this watch.  The Black Egg might simply drain me.  The Void is opposed to my father’s power that I have inherited.”

“That’s perfectly reasonable,” Quirrel agrees. He’s a bit unsure about doing the watch himself. The Radiance makes him uncomfortable.  But meeting another of the Pale King's vessels is such an alluring prospect. Especially one who was not originally a bug like the rest of them. He has so many questions he wants to ask her.  Is she awake, or asleep in the Black Egg?  He wants to know so much.

“ Can I...go? ” Hollow asks, an uncharacteristic eagerness in their rough voice.  

“Of course,” Hornet nods.  “Please stay safe.”

Hollow nods quickly before loping off.  Hornet sighs and looks to Quirrel.

“... I suppose you want the personal details?”

Chapter Text

They’re almost at the summit.

Almost.

The Godseekers seem to be turning their songs to them.  They’ve just defeated their Sibling, and they expect to face only one other god.

It comes as a shock to them when they’re faced with not the Radiance, but Julia. She looks different from how they remember her, glowing like the Pale King had, cloak orange and in strips connected at the collar like their own cloak, and the thread tied to her needle is fiery red.  She looks at him with spotlights in her eyes and holds up a scarred hand. 

“Come no closer, little shade.”

That’s not Julia’s voice.

“Julia?” They ask tentatively. This feels wrong. This doesn’t feel like Julia. 

"You poor thing.  You think the identity of the shell remains." Her voice is cold and flat, betraying no emotion. 

“I-If you’re not Julia, then who are you?” Ghost demands.

The not-Julia whips her silk, sending red flames along it.  “I am the Fey Mahina.  Face me in battle, small one.”

Ghost doesn’t want to fight her. But they have no other choice. To get to the Radiance, they must kill their sister. She’ll be fine in the real world, they assume. Or they hope, at least. They take a defensive stance, and she responds with an offensive stance. With a loud scream, she charges at them with her needle like Hornet does. 

She attacks aggressively, with no regard for her own safety. It’s hard to keep up with her constant flurry of attacks.  She does occasionally make silly mistakes that leave her wide open for attacks.

One strong strike, and the mask gets knocked right off her head, causing the battle to freeze on the spot.  Her head is engulfed by Shade-black fur, and the head turns to reveal a strange face, previously infection-orange eyes glaring at them like suns.

Ghost has never seen a human before. They don’t know what humans look like. And yet, they instinctively understand that they are looking at Julia’s human form. This is who she was before becoming a Vessel.

This is the soul behind the mask they’ve come to associate with the name.

“ MAHINA PANEA! ” She screeches, letting out a slash of holy energy from her needle and sending it their way.  She creates a second and a third, looking like crescents, that seem to “fill up” as they fly until they burst against the wall as perfect discs.

It’s all Ghost can do to avoid them, as they seem to home toward them as they arc. They briefly wonder how Julia got so good at fighting, then immediately remind themselves that this is not Julia. 

" HUKU! "

She throws the middle of her red silk out, catching Ghost in the loop.  She pulls the silk loop closer, and they manage to jump out of the line right before it sets ablaze near her.

They’re breathing heavily now. This is harder than they’d anticipated. They’d expected the Radiance would be the hardest challenge they’d face, not their new sister. They have to keep going, though. They have to win this battle so that they can defeat the Radiance and set Julia free.  They Focus some to heal some cracks in their shell while she sails above them in her next attack.

They make a more concentrated effort to strike her down, and she drops to one knee once she's defeated.  The spotlights migrate out of her dark eyes, and she squints at them.

"... Little Ghost?" She asks quietly as the Godmaster's bell rings to end the match.  Her eyes fill with tears as the room darkens, and they're both surrounded by vessels.

"... Please.  Tell Hornet I'm sorry," Julia begs, letting the younger version of the Hollow Knight hug her.  The sea of vessels, unmoving at first, seems to react weirdly to Julia.  She sobs and bows her head as the Radiance screams.

With a strength unknown to them, the Little Ghost screams right back.

As tired as they are, they ride the void up to the stage for their final battle.

It’s time to end things.

=0=

Hollow sits beneath the feet of their new sister. Their attempt to reclaim the Radiance failed. They were almost immediately ejected from their sister’s mind when they tried to commune. So now they sit beneath her, watching her.

“ Why would you...choose this...? ” They whisper.

Julia doesn’t answer, of course.  She looks to be in a deep slumber, strung up awkwardly and painfully in the chains meant to hold one twice her size.

Why did she do it?  Why did she throw everything away in the name of holding the Radiance poorly?

They had spoken, that much is true.  The mind space manifested as what looked like a point in Greenpath. Julia looked human there, or what Hollow understood a human looked like.

“I freed you, why did you come back?” She demands, looking agitated and upset.

" Our sibling… means to… dethrone the Old Light.  I am here… to catch you when… the chains no longer have… a target."

“So, you aren’t going to try and take the Radiance?” 

Hollow doesn’t reply.

"You are, aren't you?" She accuses.  "You… fuck, I'm bad at words.  You don't deserve eternal torment.  You didn't ask to be born and I figure it's a good middle finger to your dad.”

“ I was born for this ,” Hollow insists. “ You...weren’t. You don’t...deserve it...either. ”

“That doesn’t mean you should have to suffer!” Julia shoots back. “None of this was your fault! It was all your dad’s fucking fault and you shouldn’t be forced to pick up the pieces!” She begins to pace, wringing at her hands. “And...I-I do deserve to suffer. After what I did to Hornet. I just left her behind...” Her breath comes in short gasps as she hyperventilates. “I’m a horrible person.”

“ You’re not... ”

“But I am!” Julia lashes out, and the greenery around her bursts into flame. She recoils into herself at her anger, her breathing speeding up yet again.

“I abandoned Hornet,” she continues, wrapping her arms around herself. “I just ran off on a suicide mission. I hardly even knew Grimm. I got carried away over nothing.”

“ It wasn’t...nothing ,” Hollow says, taking a step toward her.

“It was!” Julia’s temper flares again and the flames spread. “I didn’t know him well enough to warrant my reaction! I shouldn’t have acted like that! I shouldn’t have abandoned Hornet!” 

“ She… will forgive you.  She will… welcome you back. ” Hollow encourages, but Julia shakes her head.

“I don’t deserve forgiveness.  I was stupid enough to get lost and risk dying on my way to Hallownest.  I pretty much deserve to be loathed and forgotten.”

Hollow feels a familiar stab of fear.

Julia… might be too emotional to hold the Radiance back.  Just like them.

“I’m fine here, okay?  It might as well be my lot in life.” Julia had frozen after that, then pushed them out mentally as a familiar scream had entered the space.  But in the place of the familiar KEKI POINO ANAI , it instead called out KEKI HONO MAHINA as they left.

So here they sit, watching more infection drip out of the former human from more places they ever had. They feel even more bad for her than they had before. She seems so broken, so sad. They want to help her, but they can’t do that at this point. She’s made up her mind.   And she’d seemed to get more… hopeless as the conversation went on.  Like her identity was being eroded. They want to get her out as quickly as they can. They can’t, though. They’re powerless. 

“ We’ll....get you...out... ” They rasp, looking up at Julia. “ We’ll...save...you... ”

The chained up bug doesn’t respond, staring straight up at the ceiling.  She looks down, eyes filled up with infection and leaking, cracks beginning to spread.  They can see where the infection is at its worst, her hands and legs visibly covered in the orange globules.

There’s a loud screech, and the infection bubbles pop all at once, alongside the chains all crumbling. Hollow scrambles to catch her. They don’t want her carapace to crack even more. They manage to keep her from hitting the ground, although they both end up sort of crumpling to the ground, with Hollow landing on their butt. They check her over, noticing that her legs look mangled and ripped open from the back.  Her eyes are cracked at the edges, and void streams from her eyes.

“What-what happened?  Where am I?”

“ You’re...safe... ” Hollow rasps.

Julia screams, trying to wriggle away from them. 

“No! Stay away from me!” She screams. She bursts out into more sobs, trying to curl into a ball as her hands spasm uncontrollably.

“ Wait… I… am not her… ” Hollow tries to correct.  “ She screamed… a voice into me.  It is just… her own… ”

“Please don’t hurt me,” Julia whimpers, still shaking.

It hurts Hollow for her to be so scared of them. They don’t want her to be scared. There’s not all that much they can do about that right now, though. She’s not in a state where reason will get through to her. Maybe they’ll try again once she calms down. 

They pick her up as best they can, deciding it’s best to take her to Hornet and Quirrel.

“ We need to get you… to somewhere safe, ” they tell her, concluding that she’s blinded at the moment.  “ Hornet and… the Archivist… can help. ”

She relaxes a little at the name.  “H-Hornet?  Is she okay?”

“ She’s...alright, ” Hollow assures her. “ She’s...worried...about you... ”

“Oh...” Julia wilts again. “I don’t deserve to be worried about.”

“ She’s...still...worried. She loves...you... ”

“She...She does...?” Julia asks quietly.  “Even after what-what I did?” Her voice is so small, and yet so hopeful.

Hollow doesn’t respond, walking out of the Crossroads and watching as the huge infection bubbles start collapsing into puddles of void.  “ Troupe is bright and colorful.  Something great must be happening. ”

“Wh-what?  You mean the tents?”

“ Yes. ” Hollow lifts her so that she can see better.  

She squints her eyes before sighing. “Can’t see.  Probably blinded from staring at a literal sun.”

Hollow is admittedly rather concerned by this. They’ll have to ask Quirrel about it when they bring Julia to him. Quirrel’s a doctor. He’ll know what to do. So, they keep walking.  They make a beeline for the hut Hornet and Quirrel have set up camp in.  They knock politely before entering.  

“ Sibling succeeded, ” they convey simply.  “Her eyes seem… Broken.”

“Broken?” Quirrel stands up. “What do you mean.”

“ Can’t...see... ” Hollow holds her out.

Hornet rises, immediately rushing to Julia’s side. The cracks around her eyes seem to have spread more. Saying that Julia looks horrible would be an understatement. Hornet’s heart aches as she stares down at Julia. 

“Are you...alright?” She asks, reaching out to touch Julia’s arm. She almost can’t believe this is the same Julia she’d known before. 

The former human’s body seizes, spasming in pain. “H-Hornet?” She asks in a small voice, reaching out with hands whose palms are warped and dripping with void.

“Yes, it’s me,” Hornet says, taking Julia’s hands without hesitation. 

“I’m-I’m sorry.” Julia begins to cry, fat black tears welling up and streaming down her mask, pooling in the cracks as they drip down the white surface. “I’m so sorry! I shouldn’t have left you! I shouldn’t have done that! I’m sorry!”

Hornet silently convinces Hollow to hand Julia over, and Hornet tries to help Julia stand. The slightly shorter bug’s legs buckle violently, and Julia clings to Hornet.  She apologizes the entire time, sobbing the whole way.

Hornet manages to ease Julia into the hot spring inside the building their group has claimed as their home base.

“Hornet, some-something’s wrong,” Julia manages to hiccup out once her sobbing peters out.  “I… I can’t see.  And my hands are numb.”

“I suppose holding the Radiance will do that,” Hornet says. “I’m sure you’ll be alright, though. We’ll get you healed.”

“I don’t think I can be healed,” Julia sniffles. “I’m broken. Just like I’ve always been.” She looks like she’s about to start crying again. 

“You’re not broken,” Hornet tries to assure her.

Julia shakes her head.  “I-I was born with my brain formed differently than it should have.  It makes me act differently than I would have if my brain was normal.  I’m-I’m sorry if I gave you a false impression, but I’m a bad example of an average human,” she explains.

“You don’t need to apologize.” Hornet can’t help but smile to herself. “That’s not something you could control.”

“May-maybe if I were normal, I wouldn’t have left you like I did…” Julia mutters, tears welling up again.

“Maybe, but dwelling on alternate possibilities isn’t going to help you.” Hornet sits down beside her. “I’m just glad you came back.”

“You...You are?” Julia’s heart leaps a bit at this confirmation. She’d been so scared Hornet would be angry with her.

“I was so worried about you!” Hornet confirms, pulling her cloak off.  “Do you need help cleaning up?”

“Yeah...” Julia nods sheepishly.  

Hornet climbs into the hot spring slowly. “What feels the stickiest on you?”

“My legs,” Julia admits.

“Then I’ll start there.” Hornet carefully begins to wash off Julia’s legs.  The backs of her knees look like they exploded from the inside.  Void dilutes into the water, and Hornet pays it no mind. 

“Your knees look rough.”  Hornet comments, and Julia sheepishly nods.

“They feel rough.”

“What else feels rough?” Hornet asks.

“Um...Pretty much all my joints? And my eyes?”

“Mm.” Hornet hums in confirmation. She’s being as gentle as she can so as not to hurt Julia. So much of her insides are exposed.  

“My chest is really bad, too.  From the fight to get to the Radiance,” Julia continues, rubbing one arm with her hand that seems less damaged.  “How-how bad is the rest of it?”

Hornet hesitates. She doesn’t want to tell Julia the truth of how bad the damage is. That would scare her sister more than would probably be safe for her. However, it seems she hesitates too long, as Julia becomes agitated. 

“You’re not saying anything. Why aren’t you saying anything?” Her voice rises, going high in panic. 

"I am unsure of whether or not my answer would do more harm than good.  I do not wish to cause undue stress, but I also do not want you to engage in activities that will make you worse than you currently are," Hornet nervously explains.

“What did I do to myself?” Julia whimpers, curling in on herself. 

“You didn’t do this.” Hornet puts her hands on Julia’s shoulders. “It was the Radiance. She was the one who hurt you.”

“But I’m the one who went to her!” Julia jerks away from Hornet. “This is my fault! I did this to myself!”

“You cannot blame yourself for this!” Hornet grabs Julia’s shoulders again. “You did not force her to do this to you! This isn’t your fault!” There’s a desperation in her voice. She can’t bear to see her sibling blame herself for something that was out of her control.

“It’s my fault I even was in the scope of the Radiance,” Julia sighs.  “I poked the wasp nest, and I got injured for it.”  She sighs, running her fingers on her legs. “... I brought it on myself, Hornet.  Please don’t try to pretend I’m innocent.”

“I refuse to stand by while you destroy yourself,” Hornet insists. “You made some bad decisions, yes, but I refuse to let you think you deserved this. You’re my sister. I don’t want to see you miserable.” 

She shifts her hands, pulling Julia into a hug. She’s not going to let Julia destroy herself emotionally. She refuses to let that happen.  Julia sniffles quietly as Hornet tries to pull her shell back into place after it’s been softened in the hot water.

“You… still accept me?  After what I’ve done to hurt you?”

“You recognize that what you did was wrong,” Hornet murmurs, holding her close. “And I know you’re going to try and do better.”

Hornet tightly binds Julia’s legs with her silk, and the sound of the water almost covers her sniffle.  Hornet looks back at her, and the vessel hugs her tightly around her arms with a sob.

=0=

A flame-heated chrysalis begins to split open. The Grimmchild has completed their transformation, and now it is time for the new Troupemaster to emerge. The Nightmare Heart has been reborn yet again.

The bug in the chrysalis falls out of their cocoon with an ungraceful splat on the floor, simply laying there to let their still-soft shell rebound back into place.

A flame-pink eye cracks open to look.

… Did none of his friends stay to watch him come out?  That's disappointing.  Though the shadows seem deeper since his slumber.

He clings to the wall to stand up slowly and shakily.  "Gah, this is always the worst part."

It's so… odd to hear his voice untainted by flames.

One of the lesser bugs pokes their head in, brightening when they see him standing up.

“Ah! You’re awake!” They dart inside. “My apologies that no one was there to greet you. Things have been a bit chaotic since that female Vessel freaked out.”

“Freaked...out...?” He echoes curiously. 

“She had a bad reaction after the death of your last vessel,” the bug explains. “Ran off and decided to contain the Radiance all by herself. It was certainly something.” They hoist Grimm up, wrapping his arm around their shoulder as they guide him out of the tent. “Of course, she and that knight are back now, although they’re a bit worse for wear. And that archivist’s assistant too! It’s been rather busy since you went away.”

Grimm brightens up.  "Where are they?" He asks insistently.  The other bug shakes their head and tuts.

"Nope, you are getting a bath after your wings fill out mister."

That causes the reincarnated bug to squirm.  "But I want to see my frieeeends!" He protests childishly.

"Your friends can wait.  Divine has already drawn you a bath." 

“NO!  She makes gross noises!”

“It will only take a bit,” the bug says. “You’ll get washed off and then you can go and see everyone.”

“But I don’t waaaaannaaaaaa!” Grimm whines, trying to pull away from the other bug. But his troupe member holds firm.

“Come along,” they say as they drag their troupe leader along.

It isn’t easy, but the bug manages to drag Grimm to the hot spring and get him in. Another bug steps in to clean their troupe leader off. Cleaning Grimm is rather like giving an upset child a bath, especially given how often he keeps trying to escape.  Which makes sense, considering their Troupemaster is still technically a child right now.

With all of the goop washed off, the mothlike bug is released onto the world to wreak havoc.  He goes jetting off almost fast enough to assume he’s teleporting.  

“LITTLE GHOOOOOST!” The childish bug calls, and the troupe members all share a tired look. The time after their master’s rebirth is always tiring. For a time they have to deal with an excitable child with more energy than he knows what to do with. It never fails to be exhausting.  But this timeframe is the most important in the new Grimm’s time alive after the ritual.  It’s what will form his personality later on and dictate how he presents himself to the next summoner.

Grimm darts through the grounds, calling out for his shadow friend. But he can’t seem to find them. It’s so confusing, too, because their presence is so strong in the dark corners.

Grimm frowns. “Little Ghost? Where are you?”

The shadows seem to darken.  Grimm turns slowly, following his sense of where the shadow is going. He feels as though he can see eyes in the shadows. Eyes that are watching him. The gaze feels comforting, though. Almost tender.

"Are you hiding from me?"

The darkest corner seems to stretch and expand, pulling out into a giant eight-eyed Wyrm made of darkness.

And yet Grimm isn't afraid.  He feels his friend in those shadows.

“My! It seems you’ve gone through a metamorphosis of your own!” Grimm laughs. "We both grew up, huh?"

Whispers enter his head, largely amounting to pleas for help.

"Help?  With what?"

Small again.  Not meant to… be large.

“I’m afraid I’m not sure how to do that,” Grimm admits. “But I’ll try to help you as best I can.” 

He can feel fear in the Ghost’s voice as their whispers pierce his mind. They don’t want to be like this.

"Do you have your old shell?  You could hide in it."

Broken.  Lost in ascend. Some terror enters the voice, and Grimm realizes the whisper is more solid sounding than it was before.  Oh wait, he gave them a voice.  Godseeker song shattered it.

"Geez, sounds scary."

Is. Is very scary. 

“Hmm.” Grimm taps his chin.  "Maybe we can enlist the Maskmaker in Deepnest and Divine's improvement stuff in her gulleyworks?"

Ghost nods. They’re willing to try anything. They don’t like this. 

“I’ll go try to build a charm that has a lot of shadows for you to hide in!” Grimm decides, taking one of the giant shadow’s giant lower hands to lead them back to the tent city.

The troupe members are a bit startled to see their Troupemaster guiding an enormous wyrm made of shadows through the tents, but they quickly decide that it’s not worth getting scared over. Whatever is going on, it’s probably fine.  

Grimm leads Ghost into his personal quarters before running for a charm-building kit he has.  “Let’s get to making a pocket shadow!”

Ghost watches with a mix of curiosity and confusion. This Grimm is so different from the one they knew before. So excitable and innocent. It almost seems wrong. Then again, though, it does make Ghost feel better to be around someone so full of life. The kid settles down to work, muttering under his breath.  After a while, he’s built the crude shape of a black charm.

Need help?

“Oh no, it’s fine.” Grimm waves a hand dismissively. “I’ve got this.  Just need to let Divine work her magic and it’ll be right as Lifeblood. ”

Ghost stares at him. They don’t know what that means. It seems like a good thing, though. And the charm looks nice.  It reminds them of the Void Idol that had been hidden in Godhome.

“Now to take this to Divine!”  Grimm chirps.  “Wait here!” 

And with that, the Nightmare Prince runs off. Ghost doesn’t want to leave the tent and scare the troupe members anymore. So they wait patiently for the new Grimm to return. They hardly fit inside the tent in their new massive state.  They elect to curl up in a mass of shadowy limbs and reach out their senses to find other siblings whose shades are still active, and even those alive.

There's more than they expected, but still, they put out a beacon.

All over Hallownest, the dead and cracked corpses of hollowed-out heirs to the throne of Hallownest rise up from pools of void.  Dead eyes stare into a world that has killed them once, but won't again with the union of the void.

=0=

Julia and Hollow's heads turn in the same direction at once.

"You… hear that?" Julia asks tentatively.

“ Something is....moving... ” Hollow says. They feel a sort of...They’re not sure how to explain it. Something has changed. They can feel some kind of presence that wasn’t there before. More than one presence.

"It's like there's a beacon," Julia states plainly before there's a knocking at the door. Julia’s blood runs cold. She’s seen horror movies. She knows how this is gonna go. 

“Don’t open it!” She yells as Hornet goes to answer the door. That earns her a couple of odd looks.

“What?” Hornet asks, looking back at Julia. “Why not?”

“D-Don’t open the door,” Julia repeats. 

“Why not?” Hornet asks again, slightly annoyed.

"It's a one-way ticket to murderville!" She squeals, huddling in one 'corner' of the spring.

" Vessels cannot… die." Hollow communes, almost visibly confused.  

Julia shakes her head. "It-it happens a lot in warning stories humans have about the dangerous things out there for everyone.  Granted, they spiraled rather hard into bad scary fantasy in recent years, but the roots are the same, and fairy tales were fictional too!  Opening your door to a stranger is asking to have someone come into your home and kill you or steal everything you own that's valuable!"

“I don’t think the troupe would let in anyone who would murder us,” Hornet replies.

“ We’ll be...fine... ” Hollow wades over to put a hand on Julia’s shoulder.

"At-at-at-at least check out the window.  Please." The sedentary vessel begs.

Hornet sighs but does as Julia asks, peering through the window to see who was knocking on the door. 

“It’s Quirrel!” She calls back to Hollow and Julia. “And he has...” She trails off, staring intently through the window.

“He has what?” Julia asks, her voice rising a bit in panic. 

“He has a Vessel with him,” Hornet says slowly. “One with crystals all over them.”

Hollow jolts up so their horns bop on the ceiling before running to open the door.

"Hello, I met a friend in the map shop!" Quirrel chirps cheerily.  The Vessel bows its head, eyes covered up with a bandage.

“ I...didn’t know...there were other...Vessels alive, ” Hollow says. They can’t help but marvel at the Vessel before them. They haven’t met all that many other Vessels in their life. 

“Either husks, the elements, or my trials had slain the majority after your sealing.” Hornet agrees, staring at the gem-covered Vessel warily.  

Quirrel nods. “It was the strangest thing, the poor thing was walking in circles!”

“Can you speak, little one?” Hornet crouches beside them. 

The Vessel shakes their head, drawing into themselves a bit. 

“Are other Vessels not common?” Julia asks. She’s still in the ‘corner’ since she can’t really move.

“They were locked into the Abyss and left to die after the Pale King’s Hollow Knight was chosen,” Hornet responds, derision in her voice.  “The ones that escaped barely survived.” Her voice softens in the second half as she helps escort the Vessel into the waters of the spring.

The Vessel is surprised when they’re guided into the water, although soon enough they melt a bit at the warmth. They scoot along in the water, weighted down by the crystals all over them, while Quirrel talks with Hollow and Hornet to catch up on recent events.

“The troupe members informed me that their leader is awake,” Quirrel explains. “Apparently, he was seen with a large black wyrm.”

“A black wyrm?” Hornet repeats curiously.  It’s not missed by those that can see her that she tenses up some.

“Yes, one that is alleged to be made of the very shadows!  Makes me wish I didn’t leave my travel tablet in my bag here so I could record all the witness testimonies.”

Hornet and Hollow exchange a glance. For some reason, they both can’t help but think of Ghost. Neither of them has seen them in quite a while. 

“Perhaps we can investigate once we can get Julia up to par for travel,” Quirrel suggests.  “That gives us time to try removing those crystals from the Vessel’s head.”

“That seems the wisest course of action,” Hornet agrees.

“In the meantime…” Quirrel lowers his voice.  “Is Julia really from outside Hallownest?”

Hollow nods before Hornet can analyze Quirrel’s expression, and she realizes as the pillbug digs in his bag.

Quirrel is going to pick Julia’s brain for any information he can get, isn’t he? She can’t help but smile a bit. She hopes that Julia will appreciate the attention and sincere interest from Quirrel. 

Unfortunately, the bug seems to shrivel up when Quirrel tries to engage, effectively shutting down.

“Are you alright?” Quirrel asks, rather worried as he watches the light leave Julia’s eyes. It’s quite like watching the computer in the Archive power down.

“Sorry, I just…” Julia mumbles.  “... I don’t wanna get too attached to anyone older than me.  I have… family issues and my brain makes me try to fill in the gaps,” she explains awkwardly.

“I’m not sure I understand the connection, but very well,” Quirrel concedes. “Do you mind if I ask questions about what your homeland is like, however?”

He’s polite about it, and bright despite Julia’s curling up. Julia remains tense but nods slightly.

“Let’s start simple, yes?  What is the climate like?  Like, weather and seasons,” he asks, settling into a sitting position on the dry ground near Julia with his acid tablet in his lap.

“Well, it depends on where you are,” Julia says. “Like, some places are hot and dry but some places are really cold with lots of snow and stuff. It has to do with proximity to the poles and the equator.”

The pillbug nods and eagerly notes down the information.  “This is a generalization for the planet we live on, yes?  No matter how large a kingdom is, its size still won’t reach such breadths of ecological diversity - ah, it wouldn’t have such different zones, correct?”

Julia nods in confirmation.  “I learned about it in Earth science.  Earth is… this planet.  Our home.  It’s covered in two-thirds of water, third planet from the sun in our solar system out of eight or nine total, only one known to support life,” she rattles off such details offhandedly, as if it’s common knowledge. 

“Ours is the only planet of the inner four planets that has a moon, and it’s tidally locked.  That, uh, that means that it’s spinning at a speed that is the same as the speed it goes in circles around us - orbits is the word there - and it makes it look like the same side is always facing us.  People with access to the sky have learned how to use the stars to map out their place in the world.  And there’s one star in the sky that doesn’t move because the Earth is spinning too.”

As Julia rambles, Quirrel takes notes and watches the minute changes in expression around her eyes as she speaks. He takes a small amount of joy in seeing the lights return to her eyes. She seems like such a nice young lady. 

“- and if I had a signal on my phone, I’d let you read as many Wikipedia articles as you want.”

“What’s that?”

“It’s this encyclopedia on this information network thing called the Internet that has a whole bunch of information compiled by people across the world with cited sources.  There’s one guy that was on the news once that spends every day, like, writing and editing a whole bunch of Wikipedia articles.”  Julia smiles idly with her damaged eyes.  “There’s this game you can play on there, actually.  You choose a random article, and you have to use that starting article to reach another, unrelated topic on the site in as few links as possible.”

“Fascinating,” Quirrel whispers, his eyes shining as he frantically jots down notes.  "If someone were to create or get their hands on a connection, then we'd have access to limitless information?"

"As long as you can get it to work through all of the stone walls," Julia shrugs.  "Wireless connections usually have limited range, even through hollow drywall panels in manufactured houses on the surface.  That, or it would have to be super strong."

“I see...” Already the wheels are turning in Quirrel’s mind. He wants to find this “Internet” and discover its secrets.  This kingdom is frozen in time.  What is happening in other kingdoms, unburdened by plague and stasis, he wonders.

He wants to explore it all.

=0=

Grimm scoops up the improved charm with self-satisfaction and starts skipping back to the central tent. He’s rather proud of the work he’s done on this charm and rather hopes his little shadow friend will like it. Or at least that it will help them.  He runs his thumb along the white pearl-like bumps on the charm, admiring the way it weaves around itself.

“Little Ghost, I’m back!” He calls, bursting into the tent with a flourish of his cape.

Ghost hasn’t moved much since he left. They’re in about the same place they were before, huddled up in an attempt to make themselves smaller. However, there are now two creatures attached to their leg/tail area. 

“Who are your friends?” Grimm asks, creeping closer.

The creatures appear to be Vessels, although they are like no Vessels Grimm has ever seen before. The smaller is covered in moss and plants, with even their cape being made up of plant matter. Some of the infection-filled thorny vines in the Gardens and Greenpath curl around them with the occasional delicate flower peeping out for a splash of grey and white. The taller has delicate wings made of water and a cape of beautiful colors, royal pinks and teals patterned with clovers and raindrops.

New Vessels. I awakened them?

Ghost looks incredibly lost and very frightened.

“Wooooaaah, are they your siblings?” Grimm asks, dashing up to the Ghost’s side to extend a hand to the water-themed Vessel.  The Vessel stares down at him before fluttering their wings and showering water on him.  

Grimm hisses, the water sizzling on his skin.  “No, stop, I’m made of fire!”

The watery vessel seems to laugh, and the greenery-cloaked vessel peeks out from behind the shadows shyly to peep out at Grimm with their one unharmed eye.  Grimm waves hello with a toothy smile. They hide again, making the flower in their eye sway dangerously.

Shy. Ghost supplies. 

“I suppose the fire part might also deter them,” Grimm muses. “They do seem to be mostly plants.”

You’re scary too.

“I am not!” Grimm huffs indignantly. Ghost mocks a laugh at him.  “Besides, we have a water guy here, so if I make a mistake they can put it out!”

The dainty, tall vessel puffs up proudly.

“See? It’s fine.” Grimm puts his hands on his hips. Or where his hips would be if he had hips.  The reassurance of a safety measure seems to embolden the greenery-dressed vessel.  

“Ghost, Ghost, the charm is done!” Grimm decides to divert, showing off the bauble. 

Done? 

This seems to catch Ghost’s attention. They lean down to get a better look at the charm.

“Hopefully, this’ll help!” Grimm says, attempting to slot the charm into Ghost’s chitin.  It sort of… sinks into the goopy void substance.  The great black Wyrm tries to solidify its body and adhere to the charm, which thankfully succeeds with the clicking noise.  Then, they all wait.

After a moment or two, the body of the great black wyrm begins to shrink. The two Vessels gasp, scrambling away as the wandering Ghost gets progressively smaller.

The process looks, for the most part, painless. The shadows slide away, removed like the delicate bindings of a cocoon, and soon enough the little Ghost stands before Grimm once more. But they are not the same. They retain the head shape and the multiple eyes of their wyrm form, as well as the extra legs. 

On the wall of the tent, their shadow remains the same, towering over the other three bugs. But now, they are much more solid and present.  All the better to eventually shed the first body and adorn a second, in the steps of their father.

Grimm wonders if Ghost would like that.  A set of large hands gently scoop all of the smaller bugs in the vicinity to cuddle, and Grimm takes pleasure in the cool chitin. How old in Wyrm years is the Ghost? Probably not many. Ghost has to just be a baby.

“Better?” Grimm asks, looking down at Ghost. 

Ghost is nestled against Grimm’s chest, looking content. “Yes,” they nod. 

“Good.” Grimm grins, holding Ghost closer.

The other Vessels look a little unsure about this, but they’re still cuddled up along with Ghost.  Grimm elects to pat them on their heads before popping up excitedly.  "We should go tell the others!  Come on, I'll show you!"

Grimm hops down and pulls Ghost to their feet, and the other vessels orbit unsurely, making the young Troupemaster giggle.  

How know?  How find?

“I can feel my lantern in town!”

Ghost shrinks again, although it’s metaphorical this time. They’re not sure they want their siblings to see them like this. They’ve changed so much. What if the others are afraid of them?

“It’ll be fine,” Grimm assures them. “They’ll be happy to see you!  I imagine they're worried sick about you."

The Wyrm stares at the ground almost shamefully.

"Hey.  No sad.  It's not your fault," Grimm scolds.  "Besides, becoming a god is exciting.  You have that Kingsbrand, don't you?  Maybe it was inevitable."

“Mmm...I dunno...” Ghost mumbles. 

The other Vessels move closer to Ghost. The plant-covered Vessel hugs them, making a noise that was probably supposed to be comforting.

Grimm offers his hand to Ghost for comfort. Ghost takes his hand and holds it, taking some comfort from the warmth Grimm gives off. The campfire warm bug smiles and leads the Wyrm into town, taking them into an area they've never ventured to in their travels. The other Vessels follow behind them curiously.

“Everyone!” Grimm bursts into the hot spring. “Look! I found our wandering ghost!”

Several heads turn towards the source of the voice, and Ghost freezes at the sight of one.

Quirrel gently tilts Julia's head in the direction of the Wyrm, and from here the cracks in her eyes are still visible.

They start shaking violently.

" Quirrel? " They murmur in their monstrous, void-filled voice.

“Little friend! Hello!” Quirrel waves, brightening a bit at the sight of his young friend. “You look rather different. Are you alright?”

" Stepped in a dream and climbed too high. "

Hornet's brow furrows, and she shares a look with Hollow.

"... Dream?" She asks carefully.

“ The Godseekers. ”

“Is it gone now?” Julia asks. “Is the Radiance gone?” She can’t see Ghost so she doesn’t know what the others are talking about. She just wants to know if the Radiance is dead.

" Consumed completely. " The Ghost whispers like a shy shadow.

“ You did it. ” There’s such a sense of awe in Hollow’s voice as they stare at their sibling. 

Ghost did it. They destroyed the Radiance. It’s gone.  Julia starts quietly sobbing in relief, which causes Quirrel to dart over to her.  The vessels that had been clinging to Ghost peer over at Julia curiously. It’s only natural that they would be curious about her. Julia is an anomaly as a Vessel. They move closer to her. The plant-covered Vessel plucks a flower from their cloak and holds it out to Julia. 

“Is that a present for her?” Quirrel asks. The plant Vessel nods, holding the flower out again. 

“A present?” Julia echoes. 

“One of the little Ghost’s new friends has a flower for you,” Quirrel explains. Julia's hands reach out, twitching and visibly blisters, and the delicate flower is handed over.  She curls it to her chest before Quirrel advises against it because of the flame stuck to her, and she instead tucks it in her collar.

" Julia hurt? " Ghost asks sadly, brushing a claw against Hollow's mask crack.

“ She tried...to contain...the Radiance... ” Hollow glances back at her. “ It didn’t...go well... ”

“ She okay? ” Ghost’s brow furrows slightly. 

Julia certainly doesn’t look okay and that worries them. She seems...broken. As though everything she has and is has been shattered.

“ She will...be...Hopefully ...” Hollow whispers. Their hope for Julia is the same as their hope for themselves. If Julia could be alright in the end, maybe they would be too.  They elect to gently nuzzle her, letting Soul and Void drip from their eyes and dribble onto Julia.  She sets the flower aside to wrap a clumsy hug around them.

“Thanks,” she mumbles, burying her face in their chest. 

“ You’re...welcome... ” Hollow holds her a tad closer.  The Ghost slithers over to them and uses two of their enormous arms to hug the two vessels close.

The proximity to the darkness seems to help.

“Thank you,” Julia mumbles again. Something about the darkness makes her feel better. There’s a soothing coolness to it.  She wants to just… melt into it.

Ghost cups her face with their giant hand and runs a thumb gently over one cracked eye.

“ Sorry... ” They say. 

“It’s not your fault,” Julia assures them. “I made some bad decisions. This is what I get.”

“ You still shouldn’t hurt… ”

The thumb moves out of the way of her eye, and she manages to crack it open.  Things filter in blurrily, as if she weren’t wearing glasses.

“Kinda wish my glasses didn’t get destroyed,” she mutters, raising a hand to instinctively rub her eye. “I think I need them right now.”

Then she freezes. She can see. Not well, but she can see . She couldn’t see before. 

“You-you fixed my eye,” she squeaks, looking up at the great Wyrm, who seems surprised themself.  

They take a moment of pondering before letting a glob of void drop on Hollow’s head. To the surprise of everyone present, the Void filled in the cracks, turning white and becoming just another part of the mask. It’s as though there was never a crack to begin with. 

“You can heal them,” Hornet gasps. “You can heal the Vessels.”

The Greenpath vessel is suddenly clambering on the Wyrm, almost beggingly so. It makes weird whispering noises as it climbs.

“ You want to be healed? ” Ghost asks. 

The Greenpath vessel nods fervently, patting the Wyrm’s chest.  Ghost carefully picks up the smaller vessel to clear the greenery from its cracked eye gently to assess the damage. It isn’t too bad. The cracks aren’t too deep and didn’t go too far. The only problem is the greenery that has grown throughout every part of the Greenpath Vessel’s body. They can even see the dirt clogging it up.  They still allow void to drip onto the free eye socket. The Greenpath vessel waits patiently. There’s a hint of desperate interest in their free eye. 

As with Hollow, the Void seeps into the cracks, turning white and blending into the mask. The vessel blinks furiously, shaking their head and seeming confused.

“ Are you alright? ” Ghost asks. 

Fixed.  Feel better.  Not ghost.  Sibling fix me.  Void lord?

A flurry of words enters Ghost’s mind, likely from the Greenpath Vessel. They seem incredibly excited by Ghost’s new capabilities. 

“Void Lord?” Julia echoes curiously. “What does that mean?”

Ghost promptly shrugs. They suppose they probably are some form of god now, which does scare them deep down.   Seeming a little nervous, they curl up in a ball.  They don't want to be a god, and they'll only begrudgingly become king.

Hollow and Hornet both notice Ghost’s discomfort. Neither had seen how uncomfortable Ghost had been with Grimm upon first arriving in their greater Wyrm state, but they can tell their sibling doesn’t like their new form.

“ We’re...still here...for you ...” Hollow murmurs, hugging Ghost again.

“You’re still our sibling,” Hornet agrees.

"You-you fixed me," Julia mumbles, awed. “S-So, um, thank you. I appreciate it.”

“ You’re welcome .” Ghost smiles shyly. Julia hugs them tightly.

“This is amazing!” Grimm exclaims, clapping their hands together.   “You’re finding your footing so easily as a Higher Being!”

Julia turns to Grimm.  “I keep hearing those words.  What’s a Higher Being, exactly?”

Chapter Text

“Simply put, Higher Beings are gods,” Hornet answers, prompting Grimm to glare mildly at her for stealing his spotlight.  She settles onto the bench perched next to the basin of the hot spring.

“Or as close to a god as you can get,” the little Grimm chimes in.

“So Ghost is a....god now?” Julia asks slowly, looking at Ghost. Ghost shies away at her gaze. They’ve managed to return to their tinier form, although they still seem uncomfortable with their changes.

“That certainly seems to be the case,” Quirrel agrees in a thoughtful hum. He hasn’t tried to probe Ghost, sensing their discomfort, instead opting to try chipping away at the crystals encasing the head of the vessel from the map shop using a nail - the nail that Ghost had first given Julia.  The poor creature barely reacts, letting the pillbug excavate the carapace carefully.  Nearby, the water-winged vessel seems to watch, letting its little bug feet dangle in the water.

Julia daubs at her itchy eyes with some towelettes that had been stored in a corner closet.  "What, uh… what are we doing about it, then?" she asks.  

The collection of bugs goes quiet in contemplation. There’s likely nothing to be done about Ghost’s new godhood. They are what they are now. 

" Putting aside the little ghost’s transformation ... Rebuilding Hallownest would be the next logical step." Hornet finally suggests, to slow nods of agreement.

“ Re...build...? ” Hollow asks tentatively. There’s a hint of hope in his voice.

“The Radiance is gone,” Hornet continues. “The infection should cease. We can begin to rebuild Hallownest.”

“And make it less dangerous hopefully,” Julia mutters. 

“It would be nice to see some life return to the city,” Quirrel says. He’s almost managed to free the head of the crystal vessel now, although it still isn’t reacting much. “Perhaps we could enlist help from others you’ve met on your journey, little Ghost.”

“ Other Vessels to be found ,” Ghost pipes up. “ Can help too. ”

“ More siblings? ” It’s difficult to tell his expression, but Hornet could swear the former Knight looks excited.

“ More siblings ,” Ghost confirms. 

Julia sits where she is, listening as the others begin to formulate plans for rebuilding and collecting their other siblings. A part of her still feels....other. Outside. Does she really deserve to be here after all the trouble she caused? She’s not one of them. Not really .

She bows her head at a bit of an angle, thoughts beginning to cloud her mind.  She lets herself become distracted from the conversation, doubting she'd be of any help in her current state. Or at all.

Her mind jumps around a bit, and she finds herself contemplating what her parents must be doing without her around.  Her head dips lower as her thoughts continue to gather like dust bunnies.

They're probably just fine without her, honestly.  Celebratory now that she isn't a stain on their lives. Especially her father. Maybe he’s already trying to replace her, finding a better child who will live up to his expectations. 

A hand rests on her shoulder, prompting her to jump a bit in shock and wince as her pained joints protest.  

The Hollow Knight is looking at her intently, almost sadly.  She does her best to force a smile at him, but he shakes his head slowly and scoots closer to her to wrap his one arm around her, making her feel like a battered secondhand teddy bear in his grip.

They just sit there as the plans for the future of Hallownest continue, And Julia finds herself feeling…

Not so out of place.

A real, genuine smile crosses her face behind the mask.

… Maybe things were going to be better than she'd thought.

=0=

Quirrel is watching the injured vessel - Julia, she had introduced herself as, Julia she had insisted when nicknames were offered - carefully.  He realizes the others may be monitoring her health, but he’s monitoring her behavior.  Just in case something is going on that had been missed.

She seems… reserved at best, he’s found.  Her injuries may affect her body language, but she still acts like she’s ready to be ousted from the room at any moment.  Which he truly doubts is normal. 

She’s very different from the other Vessels, he thinks. Given she is from outside of Hallownest, he supposes that makes sense. He wonders how she became a Vessel in the first place. From what he understands, Vessels are simply born. One doesn’t just become a Vessel. He still has so many questions he wants to ask her, but he knows from their earlier conversation that he needs to be gentle with her. 

Still, he inches over to sit beside her. 

“Might I ask you a question?” He asks. 

Julia visibly stiffens, drawing into herself. “I...I guess..” She says slowly. 

“I was simply wondering how you became a Vessel in the first place,” he says in an attempt to reassure her. “You don’t have to answer if you don’t feel comfortable.”

Julia is silent for a long time, starting to pick at the carapace around her fingers. 

“I got...mistaken for a Vessel by this tree lady,” she finally says. “And she gave me a mask and then...” She trails off. 

Quirrel frowns slightly at this response, attempting to connect the pieces.  From what he knew, the Queen wouldn't make such an assumption without some form of evidence . But what could scramble the senses so thoroughly to lead to that sort of confusion?

The only thing he can think of is void.  The Void.  He doesn't know if it permeates into the Queen's Gardens at all, however.

He has a tongue for asking questions, he reminds himself.

“Did you encounter any...strange shadows before you met the queen?” He asks. 

“I don’t know. Everything was really dark.” Julia shrugs slightly. “Why?”

“It’s possible you somehow encountered some Void essence that made you feel like a Vessel to the queen,” Quirrel explains. “She can identify magic using her roots.”

“Oh. Huh.” Julia’s response is barely more than a hum. 

Internally, part of her wants to scream at the ridiculousness of the explanation. But at the same time... It’s not like it really matters how it happened in the end. It can’t be changed now. 

Quirrel, meanwhile, gives her a mildly concerned look.  He lowers himself to the floor and looks into those pitch-black eyes.  “How are you feeling after some time has passed?”

She inclines her head and shrugs.  “Better than before,” she sighs quietly.  

Quirrel nods in response. “That’s certainly good.” 

“And Ghost healed me so...That’s good,” Julia continues tentatively.

“That is good,” Quirrel agrees.

They lapse into silence while the others continue to plan.

“Are you happy?” Quirrel asks after a moment or two. 

“Like...In general?” Julia asks slowly in reply. 

“Are you happy here ?” Quirrel clarifies. “Your induction into Hallownest was....unfortunate.” He pauses, laughing weakly. “And I wonder if you’re truly happy with where you’ve found yourself.”

“It’s better than home,” Julia says without thinking.

The quickness of her reply does nothing to alleviate the concern growing in Quirrel’s chest. Just what sort of home did Julia come from that a horrifying transformation and a vengeful god of light were better?

“Well, I’m glad you’re here,” he says. “I’ve always enjoyed meeting new people.”

Despite her lack of movement, Quirrel can feel her gaze on him from the corner of her eyes.

“Don’t do this,” she whispers. 

“Don’t do what?” Quirrel asks.

“Don’t make me like you. I can’t get close to anyone else. Not after....” She trails off.

"After what?" Quirrel probes quietly, and Julia actually curls her face deeper into the Hollow Knight's chitinous side. 

She lets out a shaky sigh. "I… made a rash decision recently.  And hurt Hornet."

“ She… took my place ,” the Hollow Knight says quietly. “ Threw... herself... into the Old Light's violence. ”

Julia tips her head back and gently clonks the horns on her head against the Knight's side.  Quirrel watches her jump.

"It was a stupid, self-serving decision just ended up doing more harm than good in the end," Julia continues shakily.  "Hornet got an undue amount of stress, I had my skull picked apart by a vengeful goddess, and this big guy could barely move out of the temple."  

She looks at Quirrel dead on, and he can't stop the feeling of his nerves fraying under it.

"My decision was a result of my views on a relationship I had with someone else and I… I don't wanna risk repeating it." The girl's voice breaks, and the Archivist feels his heart clench in time. "Please understand, I just-just-just… I don't want to hurt anyone anymore."

She draws into herself, the Hollow Knight enfolding her in a hug as best he can with only one arm. 

“I see...” Quirrel’s voice is quiet. “Your fear is... understandable, especially given what you’ve been through. However, I think it will only harm you more to cut yourself off from others.” He holds a finger up when it seems Julia is about to argue. “We can all work on helping you temper your reactions. I won’t allow you to isolate yourself away from everyone. It’s not healthy.”

“But I could end up hurting someone again!” Julia protests. 

“We’ve all made poor decisions that have hurt others before,” Quirrel says gently. “The fact that you made a mistake does not mean you are unworthy of love and affection. What is important is that we learn from our mistakes.”

She almost pointedly looks away from him before slowly aiming her eyes his way.  This time the gaze seems unsure, questioning, and Quirrel tries to keep his own from faltering.

"... Okay."

The two syllables are barely audible, and likely would have been missed had the room not gone silent from watching the interaction take place.

"I'm-I'm sorry for being so standoffish," Julia apologizes, raising a hand to her eye before quickly filling said hand with cloth to press into the open, slightly cracked socket.

“It’s alright,” Quirrel assures her. “You’ve been through quite a bit.”

“We’re all... going through a lot of stuff,” Ghost agrees.  The kid proceeds to do a little arm flap excitedly.  “But that just means that rock-bottom is solid ground to launch back to a better spot!”

“That’s a very positive way of looking at it.” Quirrel can’t help but laugh. 

“Yeah, I guess.” Julia laughs softly as well. The Hollow Knight gives her another one-armed hug.

“We can fix things!” Ghost says in what they likely hope is a comforting tone. 

“What are you all talking about?” Hornet asks, having noticed the small group gathering around Quirrel and Julia.

"Yeah, what are we t alking about?” Grimm jumps in. 

“How we’re going to fix everything,” Ghost supplies.

“ Learn from...past mistakes, ” Hollow agrees.

“We will do better,” Hornet agrees with a solemn nod. She kneels in front of Julia, taking Julia’s hand in hers. “We will build a better Hallownest. Together.”

Quirrel can’t help but smile a tad. He’s certain Herrah would be very proud of the strong leader her daughter has grown into.

Chapter Text

It takes a little before they feel ready to move, but once they are, they return to Dirtmouth to speak with the other bugs and share their plans. Not everyone is completely on board, especially given the dangers that likely still lurk in the depths of Hallownest, but the Radiance has been defeated. They have nothing more to fear from the orange infection. 

There is some rejoicing at this revelation by the inhabitants of Dirtmouth. They had all long feared the infection and the idea that they could fall victim to it. The knowledge that they’re finally safe is a joyous relief.

But then there comes the issue of those their saviors have decided to ally themselves with. They trust the little Ghost and Hornet, and even the Hollow Knight to an extent. But Grimm is strange and otherworldly, and the Vessels the group has collected thus far don’t exactly look like ordinary bugs. 

“They will not hurt you,” Hornet assures the other bugs, but they aren’t quite sure if they believe her. Still, if the little Ghost and Hornet trust these strangers, then they are willing to attempt the same.

Discussions begin in the mapmaker’s home of expeditions to clear out the remaining vestiges of the Radiance and reclaim Hallownest. Cornifer knows the passageways well and can provide insight into the safest routes to traverse. The first step in these expeditions, of course, is to accrue a team of volunteers to head down, fighters that can traverse the place easily.  Check for survivors.

Ghost is not allowed to go whatsoever.  Despite their feats and knowledge of Hallownest's roads, they are also the only holder of the King's Brand, and it would do better to play safe than sorry in regards to that since the shell used to collect a new one had collapsed a long while ago. Ghost is, of course, not happy about this. They want to help the people and their siblings. But Hornet manages to convince them that they should stay and protect Dirtmouth. The other collected vessels will be staying with them, along with Julia and Hollow. Julia is still in no shape to be fighting, no matter how much she insists she needs to help.

“You still need to heal,” Hornet tells her when Julia protests. “We have it handled. It will be alright.”

Quirrel and Hornet will each be leading their own expeditions. They’re logical choices due to their combat prowess and leadership skills.

Julia still isn’t happy, but Hornet assures her that she can come with them once she’s fully healed. 

“There will likely be many expeditions,” Grimm points out. “I’m sure you’ll be able to participate in at least one!”

He’s right. There are many expeditions. Julia is unable to participate in the first few due to her recovery, but once she’s well again she goes along with Hornet.

Those puppeted by the plague of the Radiance lay dead now, gone for good. It’s refreshing, Julia surmises, to not see any scalding oranges glaring out from the husks.  

She feels her void stir flush to her carapace - still a strange sensation to her - in the comforting darkness of the tunnels.  She fiddles with the nail that had been lent to her by someone up in Dirtmouth.

"Ah, what are we looking for again?  I forgot," she asks with a little embarrassment.  

Hornet turns to her, dark eyes glinting faintly as they catch the dim lights available. “Survivors and supplies,” she answers. “As well as any places that could possibly be reclaimed as living spaces.”

“Right.” Julia nods as she falls into step behind Hornet. She still isn’t sure what to expect from this, but she wants to be helpful.

There are still enemies in Hallownest, although they pose much less of a threat than the infection of the Radiance did. They’re easy enough for the two of them to dispatch, even if Julia remains unsure of her fighting capabilities. 

“You’re handling your nail much better,” Hornet remarks as they delve deeper. 

“I am?” Julia can’t help but be surprised at this. In comparison to Hornet’s graceful fighting, she’s little more than a child swinging wildly about.

“You are,” Hornet assures her. “I was a bit worried about bringing you along, but you’ve been holding your own quite well.”

“Oh, uh, thank you. I’m glad the training’s paying off.” 

“You’re welcome.” Julia can swear Hornet almost seems to be smiling at her. 

Julia ducks her head a bit, a warmth welling up in her chest at the praise. It feels good to have someone be genuinely proud of her, even with all her recent failures.

This moment doesn’t last long, though, as she’s distracted from her thoughts by Hornet’s voice.

“Did you hear that?”

“Hear what?” Julia looks quickly around, getting ready for a fight. 

“I heard something moving,” Hornet says, also adopting a fighting stance. “Is someone there?” She raises her voice. “We’ve come from Dirtmouth. We mean you no harm.”

For a moment, there is nothing. Then a face peeks out from one of the tunnels. It is not the face of a bug. To the surprise of both Hornet and Julia, a human emerges, clothed in what appears to be clothing scavenged from fallen bugs. 

“You’re...You’re sure they’re gone?” The human, a young man not too much older than Julia, asks as he clutches his cloak tighter around himself. 

“I....” For a moment Hornet falters for words, but she quickly recovers and nods. “Yes. We’re sure the infection is gone. You’re safe.”

“Okay...” The young man emerges fully into the central tunnel.

“May I...ask how a human like yourself found your way into Hallownest?” Hornet asks, slowly sheathing her nail.

“I kind of got lost while hiking,” the young man admits sheepishly. 

“And you didn’t try to leave once you realized where you were?” Hornet presses. 

“I mean, I tried .” The young man sounds a bit defensive now at Hornet’s questioning. “But those zombie things wouldn’t let me.”

“My apologies.” Hornet bows her head. “I meant no offense. I’m simply...unused to seeing humans in these parts. I had no idea your kind even existed until very recently.”

“That’s fair.” The young man seems to relax a bit. “I didn’t know sapient human-sized bugs existed until recently either.”

“It seems we’re both learning things.” Hornet lets out a soft laugh. 

As Hornet converses with the young man, Julia stands behind her. She clutches her nail, staring firmly at the dirt. She has absolutely no idea how to react to this new revelation, to the knowledge that she isn’t the only human who’s found her way here. 

A part of her is overcome with jealousy. Why had this man gotten to keep his form when she hadn’t? Why had she suffered so much while he hadn’t?

This jealousy is quickly brushed away, though. There’s no doubt that this man likely suffered as well. Perhaps not in the same way as she had, but she was sure he’d suffered all the same. Trapped beneath the earth with no way to defend himself, no idea where he was or how to get out, no idea what threat he was facing. 

She’s startled out of her thoughts by Hornet tapping her shoulder. 

“We’re heading back to Dirtmouth,” Hornet says. Her voice has gotten soft and there’s a worried undertone to it.

Julia nods, trying to stay close and avoid the gaze of the young man as they begin their trek back to the town.

“Are you alright?” Hornet whispers, staying equally close to Julia. 

Julia nods once more, mechanically. She’s not entirely sure how to nonverbally communicate her feelings to Hornet, so she just bumps her shoulder against Hornet’s and nods again. Hornet still looks worried, but she seems to understand what Julia is trying to tell her. 

The rest of the walk back to Dirtmouth is relatively quiet, although the young man does have his fair share of questions. Hornet answers them while Julia listens. 

Upon returning to town, Julia retires to a tent to recover for a bit. She still isn’t sure how she feels about another human being present in Hallownest. 

However, the young man is not the last human they find in the remains of Hallownest.

There aren’t many, but there are more than any of them would have expected. Most have similar stories to the young man, saying that they’d gotten lost. A few had deliberately been running away from something. None of them had expected to end up in Hallownest.

Quirrel is delighted to have more people to ask about humans and human culture, filling notebook after notebook with information. The other bugs in Dirtmouth are similarly interested to learn, which leads to the humans having a small group of bugs following them a good portion of the time.

Julia has been keeping to herself, even more than she usually does. She goes out of her way to avoid the humans, although she tries not to be too obvious about it. Those close to her have noticed, though. 

“ You...alright? ” The Hollow Knight asks when Julia enters his tent. She’s been hiding out with him and the other collective vessels quite a lot as of late. 

Julia doesn’t answer. She’s been going nonverbal more and more.  Considering her current species, she shouldn’t be so surprised about it.  But even so…

The tall knight stares at her, a long dark gaze that flits over her in a manner she finds somewhat comforting.  She trails a carapaced finger along her arm, hooking it in the groove of her elbow joint as if to attempt peeling her shell off, as if the soft human skin could possibly remain within.

The giant of a bug hunches into the tent and parks himself next to her, the velveteen feeling of the oddly winglike cloak he wears draping over her face.  The sudden blindness makes her splutter and try to flip it over her head, causing the other vessel to laugh softly at her.  Without much warning, the Hollow Knight curls his one arm around Julia in the form of a hug.  Julia goes rigid suddenly, before slowly relaxing into the hug.

Strange, how contact without warning can still make her jump so.

“ Is the humans’ presence...troubling you? ” The Hollow Knight asks. 

“...It’s fine,” she mumbles. “You shouldn’t worry about me, Aegis.”

The former Hollow knight can’t help but preen a bit at the use of his new name. He had expressed discomfort with being referred to as “Hollow”, which had led to suggestions from his family for a new name. Aegis had been the one he’d settled on, given that it meant “shield”. 

“ You’re family...We’re always going to worry ,” Aegis says, gently bumping his head against hers. 

“I’m not your family.” Julia hunches her shoulders, drawing her knees up to her chest. “I’m only here because of some dumb accident. I don’t deserve your concern.”

Aegis lets out a bit of a huff, gently bapping Julia’s head. 

“Hey!” Julia protests. 

“ You’re family, ” he repeats, his voice soft yet firm. “ We love you. That won’t change .”

Julia falls silent, sniffling slightly. Void tears well up in her eyes. She knows logically that her issues aren’t just going to magically go away, even if she’s in a better situation now, but she still can’t help but wish it would all just magically fix itself. Everyone is dealing with so much. She shouldn’t be dragging them down with her own issues. 

The tent flap opens and a few of the collected vessels poke their heads into the tent, then beeline over to flop on Julia. They can probably feel her stress. 

“Thanks,” she whispers, patting the head of the moss-covered vessel.

“ So...problems with humans? ” Aegis asks again. 

“...A little bit,” Julia admits. “They...remind me of...who I used to be.” Who she can never be again.

“ Are you...still sad? About being... ” He trails off. They both know what he means. 

Julia shrugs slightly. It’s still a lot to process. One doesn’t get over this sort of change quickly. Although she’s happy to have found these people who care for her... It’s still a lot to get used to. All her feelings are so jumbled up.

She’s been feeling so much more lately than she ever did at home. Her emotions feel stronger now. Although, maybe they had always been strong and she’d just never had a chance to feel them before. After all, her father had punished her for emotional outbursts. Maybe she’d just stuffed them all down to avoid punishment from her father.  And at first, the Void had helped to swallow them whole, but now… it was like a well during a flood.  Overfull and spilling over.

She’s interrupted from her thoughts by Ghost bursting in, literally throwing the tent flaps open.

“I felt a sad," they announce. “Who’s sad?”

All the vessels present point at Julia, before quickly scampering out. Julia breathes a sigh of relief. She’d been starting to get a little overwhelmed with all the Vessels. She can handle just Ghost and Aegis better. 

“What’s wrong?” Ghost asks, walking over to sit in front of Julia. 

“I’m just having a lot of feelings,” Julia says, leaning further into Aegis’ hug. “Still dealing with a lot of stuff.”

“Oh....” Ghost nods solemnly. “Makes sense.”

“There’s probably nothing that can be done right now,” Julia quickly adds, hoping to avoid any solutions Ghost might offer. “It’s just something I need to work on myself. Y’know, work through my feelings and do some self-reflection and all that.”

“ We’re here for you ,” Aegis reminds her. “ If you need help. ”

“It’s too late. You can’t get rid of us now.” Ghost wiggles their arms ominously.

Julia can’t help but laugh slightly. Even if she doesn’t quite believe she deserves their love, it’s nice to know they care.

“I was wondering where you’d all gotten off to.” Hornet’s voice draws the attention of all three to the tent flap. 

“ Hello .” Aegis raises his hand to wave. Julia tries to hide a bit in his cape. She doesn’t want to burden Hornet with this. She’s already burdening Aegis and Ghost enough.

“Is everything alright?” Hornet’s tone changes at Julia’s actions, becoming concerned.

“Julia’s going through some stuff,” Ghost supplies. 

Hornet’s concern only seems to intensify as she moves closer to sit beside Ghost, kneeling in front of Julia. 

“Is there anything I can do to help?” She asks. She sounds so desperate.

Julia pokes her head out from under Aegis’ cape. She doesn’t want to shut Hornet out and make her even more worried. 

“Not...Not right now,” she admits. “But, uh.....I can tell you what’s going on. So you...So you know....”

Hornet visibly brightens. “I’m happy to listen.”

So, Julia takes a deep breath, and begins.

Chapter Text

We've come to a realization that we didn't really know what we were doing with the beginning of this fic and so we're discontinuing it. We'll be rewriting it and posting it in a new doc.

Thank you for everyone who has followed this fic thus far and I hope you'll enjoy our new attempt.