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Scott focused on the sword in his hands, iron shimmering with imbued magic and reflecting a warped image of himself and the Skeletons that fell before him. The yellow tinge of his eyes was fading, his body becoming used to the additional life it had been granted, and the memories in his head were slowly beginning to align himself. He’d jumped when he’d seen Ren, given Jimmy a flower, and discussed friend points with Scar… But those things weren’t real. Not anymore. Not here.
He let out a quiet groan, one hand reaching to his temple and fingers pressing firmly where the dull pain behind his eyes felt worst. Gaining a life almost felt as awful as losing one did, and he wondered just how awful he would feel if he were to become cursed. If it was bad enough that killing was a justifiable cure then he could only pray he never became infected.
Skeletons dropped before him, several droplets of water splashing his face, and he swung his sword. Once, twice, thrice their bones rattled until they became dust before him and arrows dropped into the hopper below. They would be useful for the battles to come, whoever they would be against. Lines were only just being drawn in the sand but Scott had lived this hell once before, he knew something would spark conflicts again. Someone would fall into their final life, someone would take something that couldn’t be replaced…
Scar already had the enchanter for himself.
Lethargy clung to his form as Scott moved away from the spawner, storing his loot in the chests Pearl had so neatly organised. It had been a lifetime since everything had happened, but the flashes of desert and flowers still echoed in his head. It reminded him that it was real, that he’d done it all before: that despite the fact that everything had already been fought over, history was only going to repeat itself. Enemies would be made and lives would be lost.
This time, things felt different. If he turned red, would anyone have his back? They had lost so much before, who would stand with him again?
It was of no consequence now. He was green. That was enough.
Scott hung up his tools and stretched, trying to force the exhaustion from his bones as he began the slow climb back to the surface. Pearl would be asleep by now - at least she should be - so he did his best to remain quiet. It helped that his mind still wanted to be wary of the sounds of footsteps approaching. Ren and Scar were friendly for now, no one was red yet, but he still wasn’t prepared to take any risks.
What he hadn’t expected when he dug his way through the thin layer of dirt that hid their secrets was the sound of crying.
It was poorly muffled, carried by the midnight breeze that had betrayed whoever believed they could express themselves in peace, and Scott found himself wishing that he hadn’t left his sword underground. Maybe someone had been hurt and needed help. Defenseless, he began to quickly search in the strange, new and confusing world for whoever it could be.
Neither Ren nor Scar were close enough to be the source of the sound, but it hadn’t sounded like them either. It was distinctly feminine in pitch, which baffled Scott. Pearl hadn’t struck him as the kind of person to let herself be vulnerable. She was strong, she was brave, she was a talented builder and a hard worker. There wasn’t any mob that Scott believed she couldn’t hold her own against. And while Scott had seen the horrors of this server once before, Pearl was new. She didn’t know what lay ahead for her, she didn’t know what there was to fear. Maybe trading a life had hurt her more than he’d known, maybe…
Maybe all the maybes and what ifs didn’t matter. Maybe what mattered now was Scott finding her and seeing how he could help.
The sound wasn’t coming from their home, rather it was coming from some moss covered rocks and the stump of a fallen tree a short distance from where Scott was standing. It solidified in his mind that Pearl didn’t want to be disturbed, but what kind of ally would he be if he left her now? If she wanted to be alone he had no doubt that she would tell him. So he walked toward the pile, iron boots crunching over grass and making as much noise as possible to alert her to his presence. Judging by the hasty, shaken inhale and the sniffle that followed, it worked.
“Pearl?” Scott called out, just loud enough that she would be able to hear him but not that it would draw attention to others - or to any mobs that might have been lurking in the darkness. “Pearl, is that you? It’s just me.”
A rustling of clothes, armour and leaves was his first response, before brown hair and puffy red cheeks emerged from the darkness. The smile on her face told one story, the tear tracks told another. He wouldn’t push too hard for answers, he’d respect her privacy, but he had to try and help.
“Come on, let’s go inside.” He said gently, holding out a hand toward her. “It’s cold and dark, and you’ve only just given me this life. I don’t want to waste it.”
Pearl nodded, the smile on her face vanishing as she took his hand, and as much as it hurt to see his friend upset Scott decided it was a step in the right direction. If she trusted him enough to stop pretending, maybe she’d trust him enough to help.
Without another word, the pair headed inside, Scott only letting go of Pearl’s hand when the door to their home was closed and he knew they were safe from the outside world. He shimmied out of his armour, preferring to be without it while the world they existed in was relatively safe compared to what it would become, and he moved over to a small fireplace. It would be the perfect place to heat water for tea, and tea would be the perfect solution for whatever the problem was.
Tea and a blether could fix anything.
“Do you want me to ask questions, do you want to tell me, or do you want to have a couple of minutes of distraction first?” Scott asked when the two were settled - a blanket wrapped over Pearl’s shoulders and held in a tight fist. She looked vulnerable, and he didn’t like it. It wasn’t a look that suited someone like her.
“I’ve just… I’ve heard a lot about this place.” She began, and Scott sat back against the stone wall behind him. “When I was with the Hermits - before coming here - I saw how Impulse and Bdubs tiptoed around each other, I saw how Grian flinched at deserts and how Scar ran from creepers. I saw what this place does to people.” Pearl spoke slowly, her free hand tapping a rhythm on her calf that must have been grounding her. Providing comfort. “I accepted Grian’s invitation to come, I didn’t think it would affect me the same way, but now that I’m here it feels different. Bdubs has already killed Grian, people are already making threats, even though there’s no red lives I know I could wake up tomorrow to the Boogeyman standing over my bed. I trust you, but tomorrow you could want me gone.”
Scott nodded, swallowing as he took the water he’d been boiling and poured it into two cups. Pearl wasn’t wrong, she was repeating all his own fears, and somehow making it better seemed like a completely foreign concept.
“You could promise me now that you won’t hurt me but when the time comes, I know those promises will mean nothing. I know one day I’ll be red, and I know every promise I’ve ever made will be broken. I’m prepared for it, I signed up for this, but… I’m still afraid.”
There was silence as Scott added milk and sugar to their drinks, a silence that Scott left to allow Pearl to say anything else she wanted to without feeling rushed. He didn’t want to reply until she was ready, and he wasn’t sure he even had an answer when he handed her one mug.
He took a sip of his drink, the warmth running through him and soothing his aches, and he pursed his lips together as he tried to think of the right thing to say.
“It… It does hurt. A lot. And it is scary. I’m terrified.” He began. The truth seemed better than sugar coated lies. Their tea was sweet enough already. “Things are different this time, I don’t know how everything is going to work going forward and I think after having some idea of what happened last time the unknown is worse than anything else, but that’s okay. I’ve got you by my side for now, we’ll take everything one day at a time and we’ll figure things out. We’ve got food, we’ve got a couple of friends, everything is okay right now. I won’t lie to you and say it will be forever, but right now we’re okay. And right now we’re allowed to be scared, but that fear has to drive us forward rather than back.”
Pearl nodded, and Scott figured he was saying the sort of thing she needed to hear.
“You’ve already given me an extra chance. If I ever have more lives than you I’ll return the favour. I’ll keep you safe for as long as I can, I promise.”
“You promise?” Pearl asked, and Scott nodded. She chuckled in reply, her hand dropping the corners of the blanket she had pinched together and instead coming to lift her drink to her lips.
“All we have on this server is promises. I can’t make you take my word, but I can give it to you.”
The sad smile on Pearl’s face confused Scott, her gaze focused on the flames that flickered before them as she sipped slowly on her tea. Her eyes were full of unspoken words, he could see her brain thinking of a response. He had laid his offer on the table and regardless of whether or not Pearl chose to take it, he would let his actions prove his words. They couldn’t be alone in this world, no matter what memories they had of the past or what fears they had for the future.
“I guess I’m a fool, then.” Pearl whispered, her eyes flicking up to meet Scott’s. “But at least I won’t be the only one.”