Work Text:
Mirach wakes early, earlier than it needs to, there's no messages but the groupchat from last night, it fell asleep mid convo, can't be bothered to back read.
To the city today, end guesses.
...
Its heels click as it walks, the leather a dull sound against the blackstone surrounding the portal. A harsh shiver down its back is played off with shaken wings, a few feathers fall, left behind as the teen heads off for the Eastern District.
It's a bit of a walk from Acheron’s nether hub, but end could use some time to get used to how cold the overworld is. (It's 70° out, of course, but hey, end was raised in a realm with an average lowest of 95°.)
Mirach takes note of the difference in sound as blackstone changes to concrete, asphalt and back to sidewalk crossing the street. The sidewalk sounds almost like stone, just a bit more like it's hollow. The asphalt is a completely different situation, end cringes at the heavy sound, rushes through the intersection.
It's beautiful at this time of summer, even in the more industrial part end is passing through, maple trees lining the streets and sky as blue as can be. It makes the walk even more worth it, it smiles as it accidentally catches eye of a piglin waiting in line for the bakery.
End should stop by there some time..
Not much longer to the base now, it can see a flag waving in baby pink and silver. End tugs at its shirt, puffy sleeves not the best texture. At least it got to wear slacks, snorts at the memory of Chirp seeing the uniforms, throwing their hands up like they were presented a bomb.
Smiles properly as the memory continues to play, Nic’s cackling laughter as she spun around, the despair in Vic’s expression when he was spun too. Loki didn't seem to mind the uniform, only commenting when it requested slacks. Chirp said something about favoritism, end doesn't quite remember.. either way.
There's no one in the main foyer right now, it looks up for the clock on the far wall, they'll probably be here in an hour or two.. Mirach shrugs off its jacket, shifts up and breathes out a sigh. Feels a lot better to be tall like this, especially in Acheron, in the middle of what feels like the campaigns V used to get involved in.
It stretches ends arms high above it, startles as it catches one of the lanterns lighting the underside of the balcony. Right. This building was build for human sized people. End laughs quietly, dropping its arms and heading towards the stairs.
Some paperwork didn't get finished last night, end may as well do it.
...
Not much use for an executioner in the middle of an election, if they win it’ll have more fun then. Maybe end can convince V or Cy to come visit..
… }|{ … }|{ … }|{ …
An hour (or closer to three) later, the last paper is read through and carefully signed, set in a pile with the rest. At some point Chirp came in, filling the other needed signatures, then leaving again. Mirach twists its industrial slowly, making sure not to touch the still healing lobe piercing Vic did.
Tuning into the area around it more, its tail sways idly as the noise level rises. Chirp and Nic are in the next room, talking about.. something, there's an Election official in the room, probably, smells like rotting sage.
Weird.
A little further, end can hear someone trip up on the beginning to The Bug Collector, once, twice, figuring out their mistake before going over the whole section, moving forward. It hums along to the music, stretching again and walking out of the small office.
End leans over the balcony to the main foyer, smiles at the sight of Vic sitting on the meeting table, almost in the center of the wood. He doesn't seem to have noticed it on the second floor, still quietly humming along. Once the chorus starts up it teleports down, starts singing.
The guitar cuts after a second, it doesn't get through the whole verse without cracking into laughter at its fathers rapid cursing. The table legs jitter as he does but the whole of it stays steady, it sits at the edge and displays a sweet smile. (Little shit.)
Vic mumbles more than a few choice words under his breath, sets his guitar to the side and dramatically throws his arms out to greet it. That gets a laugh, doesn't say anything till he does.
“Hello, dear party member, what did you decide to scare the hell out of me for?”
Distracted for a moment as Chirp jogs across the hall, ranting about another party. ..Well then. ‘Dear party member,’ it grins properly, tail sways as it leaves Chirp to their chaos.
“Finished some work n heard you playing, wanted to say hello.”
“Work, of course. Very specific, I'm sure that was very important,”
He leans forward, almost falls when the table legs wiggle. Mirach hums its affirmation, drawing the noise out.
“Well of course, it was paperwork, god knows someone needs to sign it.”
Vic makes a vague gesture of affirmation, he knows full well the other party members have no patience for it. Except maybe Loki..
“Also, what else am I meant to do, learn cross dimensional teleportation?” Now that it thinks about it- Has it talked about that before? Blinks, misses the first part of his response.
“I mean it’d be useful, and I'm sure you're capable, so why don't you?” Well. He has a good point. End doesn't reply for a second, shrugs and rocks on its heels.
“I.. don't know, actually. Huh. That was just a joke, but I may as well try.”
Oh, wait, that's a thing you can actually learn? Surprised, he gives a nod, taps a tune he can't quite remember on the table. “..good luck on that,”
Deadpan, end murmurs a “Thanks for the vote of confidence” And vanishes from sight. Vic watches the empty space for a second, returns to trying to perfect The Bug Collector.
It's always the end couple notes that fucks him up..
… }|{ … }|{ … }|{ …
Particles gather around a cliff in the nether, sputter out after a moment. A minute later, and they gather again before sputtering out just the same. On the overworld side of the coordinates a young enderman grumbles, shakes out ends arms and refocuses, staring down at the grass.
Third times the charm, right? Ugh.
It's not quite sure if this is supposed to be instinct, knows it can be done because how else would end have gotten here, but it can't quite puzzle out the feeling. It's almost like a headache, trying too hard to focus on an image end doesn't quite have.
Maybe it'll be easier if end closes its eyes… No, that didn't do much.
A final ditch effort, end relaxes as many muscles as it can before reaching, familiar buildup and a soft fizzing sound. At last second it closes its eyes, if it fails at least end doesn't have to see it, right?
A moment, two, and- oh, that was a quick difference. End shivers involuntarily at the sharp temperature switch, opens its eyes and squeals almost like a small animal. It worked. It worked! There it stands, on the edge of a cliff, above a lava sea. A quick check, it's not even that far from home!
Its tail lashes around happily, quickly escalated as Mirach jumps, spins and warbles. The sound echoes but it doesn't care, continues in a little dance that so clearly gives show to how young end still is.
Through its excitement, end doesn't hear the netherrack below end start to creak, doesn't feel the slipping until-
CRACK!
The cliff edge crumbles, just the edge and then more, its hooves wobble and then slip, white eyes go wide as gravity drops from under it.
And ends falling, falling, falling.
It's been asked before, the classic question of fight or flight, and it's never really been able to answer.
Not many people care to mention the third option, freeze. Not many people care to admit that nearly all of them freeze, in a situation such as Mirach’s. It's a far drop, 20 or so meters of abject terror drowning out the excitement filling end just moments before.
It's used to warmth, overbearing and almost burning, but it's not used to- It hurts, it hurts so bad , the moment end hits lava. Aches like the first time end spilled lavalace tea, but this time Loki isn't there to save end.
(It doesn't want to die, it doesn't want to die, please mom )
Mirach falls from far enough for the impact into the viscous liquid for it to almost be a thud, jaw smacks closed and end bites its tongue, a pained warble that fills its mouth with liquid heat. The next warble is promptly burnt out before it becomes a scream, leather fizzling and cloth lighting aflame.
It's burning, burning alive, and end can feel every moment, can almost visualize its health leaking away. It can but then end can't think , vivid orange agony bleeding black as it sinks under.
Its face gets the worst of it, cheekbones fractured before skin, stretched muscle and fat melts, agony as even bone and nacre go. Nothing is saved, no one’s there, for the very first. The lava glows purple just for a second before it's gone, as if nothing happened at all.
archersandarrows tried to swim in lava
End respawns sobbing, open mouthed, brand new scars aching like overused wings.
It's in bed, shaking like a leaf, swallows down something, maybe blood, looks left to the open bathroom door, and catches raw pink in the mirror. Its head is deathly silent, but it aches like a new concussion, or maybe a migraine, ringing ears like the first and last time end fired a gun.
Complete stillness for a moment before before a wail rips out of its chest, cracks the delicate scar tissue. It hurts, everything hurts, and it just wants it all to stop.
And of course, it doesn't, won't for what feels like forever. 15 and freshly dead Mirach stumbles to its feet, lurches forward and just barely catches endself on the edge of its sink, goes wide eyed at the, thing, on the other side of the mirror. It can't be end, but there's no other option, there's.
It just stares.
The scars are so obvious, baby pink-salmon and raw, stretching below its cheekbones, the underside of its jaw and along the shoulder on the side of ends first impact. They sting something awful where the air hits it, end thanks everything above and below for the long sleeves of its uniform, just this once.
(The uniform is still pristine, as if nothing ever happened, as if ends not just felt the worst pain of ends short life. The shirt isn't even wrinkled, pressed just as it was on ends dresser.)
Its hands shake like nothing before when end reaches for its face, it doesn't feel real, it shouldn't. End yanks its hand away the moment it touches the burns, bile in its throat at the similar feel to new leather. It’s so painful, and so new, and end wants to be sick, but it’d hurt worse .
It almost whimpers as Streak pushes to front, as void whispers out in horror, as it.
End can't- can't go back to the base like this.
It flinches hard as ends comm goes off, one, two, three messages. Looks back, all usernames it knows well. It can't go back, it can't. For a second it thinks it hears something, but Vendetta is miles away, Cyrus wouldn't- it closes ends eyes sharply, and then.
“DAE!”
An anguished tone, Mirach sinks down to the tile floor and listens to its parent call for end. (They're going to think it's their fault it can't be responsible for that it can't it can't it-) End can't just leave them hanging, even if.
It's not the first time it wishes end never came home, it won't be the last time, they don't deserve this.
They don't deserve to watch it burn, they're not Daedalus. But they yell out again, Mirach bites through ends sniffles, forces its legs to cooperate and stumbles towards the stairs.
… }|{ … }|{ … }|{ …
Loki holds Mirach like end is going to vanish, like it'll reveal endself to be a shade or a ghost the moment they let it speak. It wishes end was smaller still, wishes it could still wrap endself up in one of her shirts and disappear into the soft fabric.
But it's not anymore, ends not a baby anymore, never will be again.
Instead end just digs blunt nails into the shirt, shakes and does it's best not to cry anymore, tries not to put more pressure against ends burns.