Chapter Text

Palpers was down on his luck. He got paid minimum wage working at a shitty diner, had thousands of dollars in student loans, and constantly spent his paychecks paying off everyone he owed money to - which was somehow literally everyone he knew. His dream of becoming a film director was rapidly turning into a dream to not live paycheck to paycheck and moving of his tiny basement apartment in Texas. So when he saw the flyer, waving in the breeze like a sign from God himself, he knew he had to do whatever it took to get the money promised on that little piece of paper.

Looking for brave, willing volunteers. If you can complete the trials set out before you, you win a cash prize of $100,000. Only one capable player will be able to reach the end and win the prize. Simply call the number attached to enter.

He quickly dialed in the 10 digit phone number, but before pressing enter, he took another look at the other number displayed on the flyer. One hundred thousand dollars. It had to be a scam, right? It’s a random sheet of paper stapled to a beaten down hunk of wood on a public university campus. But when even the slightest chance for a better life calls to you, you have to answer the phone. Or in this case, dial the phone. So, he hit enter.

“Hello. Have you called to enter the competition?”

“Hello, yes, I have. But I need proof that this is a real event and not just a scam. How can you prove that the prize is real?”

“You will find out shortly what is and isn’t real. For now, go to the old student union building at dusk. You will find me there, and I will explain everything to you and the other contestants. This could be your chance to turn your life around. Do not give it up.”

Palpers heard the call end, listening to the static as he thought about what the man said. A chance to turn my life around. It all sounded fishy as hell, but he had nothing to lose - except his life - but there was no way this little event, if it even truly existed, would be that dangerous. If they tried to scam him or rob him, they would quickly realize he had nothing but the clothes on his back and a mounting pile of debt on his shoulders. And if the competition was somehow real, he would never forgive himself for being too much of a wimp to go. So he went to his dorm, grabbed a few essentials (snacks, a flashlight, a knife just in case) and waited until the sun began to set. He felt the seeds of anxiety bloom in his stomach, but he tried to ignore the feeling. What's the worst that could happen?

It was cold and painfully silent outside. Each crunch of his feet in the snow sounded like a cannon going off in the crisp winter air. Each shivering exhale was as loud as a gunshot. It was early for dusk - only around 4:30pm - but it was close to the winter solstice and the days were getting shorter and shorter. There were still students wandering around at this time, going to classes or building unnecessarily elaborate snowmen on the quad. He wondered if any of them had seen the flyers, but dismissed them as the scam they likely were. None of them had gotten as desperate as he had.

Finally, he found his way to the old student union building. What had once been a hub for student activity was now a run down, ivy covered artifact; overshadowed by the new presidential headquarters the university had deemed more important. It felt wrong to knock on the rusted down doors, so he just pushed them open and cringed as the creaking hinges echoed throughout the building. To his surprise, a number of faces turned to watch him enter - more than he was expecting. He felt a surge of relief; surely if this many people saw the flyer and came here for the event too, there was some credibility to it. At the very least, it would be hard for anyone to try to mug him with this many students nearby. He sat down with everyone else, listening to their quiet murmurs as they discussed what they thought the event would be.

“It’s probably some sort of intelligence test, run by rich psychology kids trying to boost their resumes.”

“I heard it’s an obstacle course set up by a kinesiology professor looking to get private funding for a new research area.”

“Guys, obviously it’s going to be like Squid Game and we’re all gonna have to murder each other.”

The students chuckled and the tension started to dissipate as more theories and jokes were thrown around. Palpers had even started talking to the girl next to him, a brunette third year named Georgia, when the crowd suddenly hushed and a new figure joined their mix.

“Hello everyone, and welcome to the competition! My name is Robin Here and I used to be a student at this very university. I am studying a new version of reality - a reality never seen before and incomprehensible to many - in order to understand the great mysteries of our universe. For this competition, you will be required to enter into this new reality and complete the trials laid out before you. If this all sounds crazy to you, don’t worry. It will all make sense once you see it for yourself. Be warned, however, that it could be very dangerous. If any of you wish to leave and avoid any risk, please take this opportunity to do so.” There was a quiet shuffling as a few students, looking bewildered, grabbed their bags and left. Palpers understood how they felt - the things the man talked about made absolutely no sense to him - but he needed this money. If he had to play into this man’s weird matrix fantasy, so be it. He wasn’t about to give up now.

“Great. As for the rest of you, please follow me.”

Palpers grabbed his bag and set off behind the rest of the students. Georgia was still there in front of him, glancing around the building as if mapping out the escape routes but following the crowd nonetheless. He undoubtedly felt the same way. As they approached a closed door, he thought he saw a murky green light pooling out from under the doorframe. It was hard to see with everyone walking in front of him though, so he figured it was just some weird trick of the light. Robin got to the door and glanced behind him, a look in his eyes Palpers couldn’t quite place. Curiosity? Determination? … Guilt? Lost in his own head, Palpers barely noticed as Robin pulled the door open. The screams of students in front of him quickly snapped him back into reality and the sudden and the intense pull of gravity dragged him towards the now blinding green light. He cried out, partially in shock but mostly in fear, desperately clawing onto the doorframe as the force became stronger and stronger. He locked eyes with Georgia as she came flying towards him, knocking him away from the doorframe and into the green abyss below.

Chapter Text

Palpers awoke with a pounding headache and an aching leg. He groggily looked around, his mind unable to fully comprehend what had happened. Rubbing his eyes, he touched the grass below him. Green grass. Green. GREEN LIGHT. He leapt to his feet as anxiety rushed into him, the memories of the door and the man and falling, falling for so long, all coming back to him at once. He inhaled shaky as he clutched his head, his headache quickly becoming unbearable. A question, the most important question there was, popped into his head. Where... Am I? He looked down at the grass his hand was clutching onto. It looked… different. It was green, but almost artificially so. Glancing up, he noticed he was standing next to an oak tree. But the leaves were… not leaves. They were more like bushes, strung onto thick branches of equally strange-looking oak wood. What is this place? Why does everything look so… blocky? Yes, that was the word. Everything was square-like in shape. Even the ground beneath his feet looked strangely uniform, as if part of a grid. Is this the new reality Robin was talking about? He thought that man was crazy. Some “red-pilled” loser trying to find meaning to his life. But holy shit. There was no other way to describe this place other than “a new reality”. Taking a step forward, he grimaced as pain shot up his leg. Must’ve landed on it when I fell. He snapped the end off a stick lying near him, hoping it’d do as a makeshift walking stick for the time being. Hobbling forward, he suddenly became aware of his hunger. He had to find something to eat, and quick. Luckily, he could see a fire going off a few miles from him and smelled what he hoped was a delicious roasting chicken. Shrugging his backpack onto his shoulders, he set off. 

As he approached the campsite, his suspicions were quickly confirmed. A whole chicken was being cooked on a campfire and an eager-looking young man was hovering over it, waiting for it to finish. Palpers approached slowly, not wanting to startle the other student. 

“Hello, I’m Palpers! Do you mind if I join you?”

The other student quickly spun around, sighing in relief when he realized it was just some scrawny kid. 

“I guess I can’t eat this whole thing by myself, and there’s not exactly anywhere to store it here - at least not as far as I know. Sure, join me.” 

Palpers grinned, glad to be around another normal person in this strange world. 

“Where do you think we are? What happened back there with the green light? Why is everything here so blocky??” The questions wracking Palpers’ mind came pouring out, each one only leading to more confusion. 

“Woah there, I dunno what you’re asking me all this for. I know as much as you” the man laughed, before looking down at something in his hands thoughtfully. “Actually… that’s not entirely true. When I woke up, I found this book lying next to me. It has the word “crafting” written on the front and there's a bunch of strange combinations of blocks in there. I tried one and it told me to punch a tree, so I did. Surprisingly, the trees are quite brittle and easy to break. After that, I could make a pickaxe and then get stone to make this furnace.”

“Wait, none of that makes any sense. I mean, cutting down a tree with your bare hand and using this book’s weird charts to make a furnace, not connected to any sort of electricity? It’s impossible!” 

“Not in this world. Anything you thought was impossible in the world we came from could very well be possible here. Just a minute ago I saw a bee literally the size of my head. I don’t know what this world is, or how that man discovered it… but it’s not like anything I’ve encountered before.” The man turned around, looking at Palpers with a small smile. “I’m just glad to finally see something familiar.”

Palpers smiled back, feeling the same way. In such a strange and terrifying new environment, having someone normal to talk to was doing wonders for his sanity. 

“Hey, I forgot to ask, what’s your name?” 

“Oh, I’m Palpers. What about you?”

The man smiled again and held out his hand.

“Nice to meet you Palpers, I’m Vivilly.”

Vivilly was, no doubt about it, the most handsome student Palpers had ever seen. In an objective, purely aesthetic way, of course. He had kind, gentle eyes; brown with a tinge of yellow like an oak tree in the summer sun. His hair was dark blond, perfectly complimenting his light, sunkissed skin. Palpers suddenly blushed as he realized he had been staring at this poor man for wayyyy too long. 

“I - Yeah! Nice to meet you too! So uh… are you a, uhm, a student too?” He stammered out, embarrassed at his total lack of social awareness. Luckily, Vivilly seemed oblivious to his awkwardness, continuing to smile at him warmly.

“I’m a fourth-year student. I study Botany. I don’t think I’ve seen you around campus, are you not in the science department?”

Palpers felt a tinge of shame. His family had wanted him to go into the sciences - that's why they had enrolled him at Durnhill, a university famous for its science departments. When he suddenly switched majors and went into film studies instead, a tiny underfunded field within the university, they almost cut him out of the family completely. He had to beg to come to Christmas dinners. It didn’t help that he was broke and working a crappy minimum-wage job at the moment. 

“I used to be, but then I decided to switch to film studies. I just feel like there's so many stories to tell that no one is telling, and I have so many ideas and there's just so much to learn - oh god I’m sorry, I’m rambling. But yeah, I’m not really part of that area of campus anymore.”

Vivilly’s face broke into a wide grin. “Oh shit, really? That's so cool! I didn’t even know we offered that. That sounds way more interesting than what most of my friends study.”

“Wait, seriously? Most people think it’s stupid that I’m not studying a science.”

“Nah man, trust me, half of them only study that stuff because their parents forced them to. You were bold enough to stand up and be your own man. That’s commendable as hell.”

Palpers smiled shyly, unused to the praise. “Well, that’s not the reaction I was expecting, but thank you. It means a lot.”

The smell of burning meat cut their conversation short. “Oh crap, I forgot about the chicken!” Vivilly exclaimed, quickly stomping out the fire and staring at their charred chicken in despair. 

“Eh, I’ll still eat it. Just pick off the burnt parts!” Palpers giggled, grabbing a leg off of the blackened bird. 

Vivilly smiled and took a piece. “I guess we can’t be too picky in a place like this.”

They ate together in silence, both just enjoying the company of another person. Palpers watched as the Sun - square like everything else in this place - sank below the horizon, and the moon rose up in its place. This evening ended up not being too bad ( good, even, because of Vivilly) but he had to find out more tomorrow. What was this place? What were the ‘trials’ Robin told them they would have to do? How do you leave? The questions swirled around in his mind as he drifted into an uncomfortable, uneasy sleep on the cold hard ground. 

Chapter Text

The sound of a booming voice shattered Palpers’ dream and woke him up like a bucket of cold water. 

“Your first trial is about to begin. Proceed to the open prairie field in the East. You have been given a compass and a map in your backpacks for guidance. I will tell you more once everyone has gathered there.”

The voice disappeared as quickly as it had appeared, leaving Palpers and Vivilly groggily looking at each other in confusion. 

“I recognize that voice… that was Robin speaking. How was he able to do that?” Palpers paused, thinking for a moment about everything that had happened. “Really, how much power does he have over this place? I mean, he’s the one who sent us through the gate. He ‘discovered’ it. And now, he’s able to send a broadcast across the entire world? It's a little bit… worrying, how much he’s able to do.” 

Vivilly nodded solemnly, likely thinking the same thing. “I know. I just hope he doesn’t control who leaves and who stays. I want to get out of here as soon as possible, and on my own terms.”

Palpers shivered at the thought of being trapped in this world against his will. This place was so unlike anything he had ever seen before, and as much as he wanted the money, he didn’t want it at the cost of having to stay here forever. He sighed and grabbed his bag and his makeshift walking stick, standing up.

“Well, I suppose we should get going and find that spot we’re supposed to meet at. Maybe he’ll explain something there.”

Vivilly nodded and stood up as well, but hesitated before walking. “Hey, by the way, is your leg ok? I noticed you're limping a little and you’re carrying around that stick.”

Palpers felt a twinge of pain rolling up his leg just as Vivilly mentioned it. He tried to hide his grimace. “Yeah, I’m fine! I just hurt it a little when I fell down here. It’s not that serious.”

Vivilly looked at him as if he didn’t completely believe him, but nodded anyway. “Alright, if you say so. Let’s go then. But please let me know if it’s bothering you and we can stop.”

Palpers hated being a burden, and he knew he wouldn’t mention it until he was literally unable to walk, but he nodded anyway. “Of course.”

As they walked, Palpers noticed more odd things everywhere he looked. The animals were all blocky and barely moved, there were random caves littering the ground that contained unusually large chunks of minerals, and he seemed to be able to throw a weirdly large amount of items into his backpack without it getting heavier - he threw more than 30 pieces of wood in there and the weight didn’t change at all. How was there even space for all that?

The walk went by quickly as both of them were deep in thought. When they arrived at the prairie, most of the other students were already there, sitting in a circle like they had been in the old student union building. It felt like deja-vu. Vivilly and Palpers joined the circle, unconsciously sitting closer to each other than most of the other students. They watched a few more students trickle in, and as the last student sat down, the voice of Robin returned. Except instead of booming from the heavens, this time he simply walked into the middle of the circle and started talking.

“I’m sure you all have a lot of questions. Unfortunately, there is no time for answers. Your first trial begins shortly. You must work with one other person to find a village. Once there, alert me using the flashlights you'll find in your backpack. Point it at the sky and I will find you. You must tell me as soon as you’ve reached a village. I will know if you’re disobeying the rules.”

He looked sternly at each person in the crowd, and - maybe Palpers was imagining things - but he seemed to linger on Palpers for a second longer than everyone else, long enough that Palpers had to avert his eyes from Robin’s harsh gaze. Then, with a final “ meeting dismissed ”, he let everyone start their quest. 

“God”, Vivilly whispered in Palpers ear, “that guy freaks me out sometimes.”

Palpers jumped, not realizing how close Vivilly had gotten to him. “Y-yeah, me too. I wonder what he wants with a village. Do you think there will be other people there, people who belong to this world?”

“That would be crazy, but honestly, who knows at this point?” Vivilly responded, still standing right next to Palpers. “It would be interesting to meet some locals. Maybe they can tell us something.”

Palpers nodded, trying to regain his composure. He could still feel Vivillys breath, kept replaying his voice whispering in his ear - holy shit, get a hold of yourself Palpers. He took a deep breath and smiled at Vivilly, not sure why standing so close to him was making his heart beat so fast. For good measure, he took a couple steps backwards and stuttered out “alright, lets uh... let's go then I guess!”

Vivilly smiled back and started heading in a random direction - I mean, how else do you find a village in a world that you know literally nothing about? As they talked and laughed, they barely noticed the sun was setting - until they heard a low groan coming from the forest, and the rattling of bones filled the air. 

Chapter Text

Chapter 4 - Survive

Palpers could barely breathe.

They were running through the forest as god knows what was crashing through the trees behind them. All they could hear was the low groans of some creature and the sound of their own breath. and When Palpers tried to glance back, an arrow flew by and nicked the side of his head. His leg burned with pain but he knew they couldn’t stop - he wouldn’t endanger Vivilly like that. Just when he was about to collapse, he saw something. A light. Then another. Then, a whole street full of lights. 

“Viv, I see it! I see the village!” Palpers cried out, stumbling towards their only hope of survival. 

“Oh thank god. Come on, let's get inside one of the houses.” Vivilly grabbed Palpers wrist and pulled him towards the nearest house, a small wooden shack on the outskirts of the village. They flew inside, slamming the door shut as quickly as possible as another arrow whizzed past their heads. As they peered out the window, they saw a huge creature - made out of something that looked like iron (but that’s impossible, right?) thumping towards the creatures and sending them flying back into the woods. They exhaled in unison, Palpers heart finally slowing down for what felt like the first time in hours. As he got his breath back, he noticed Vivilly was still holding his wrist, which was honestly pretty comforting, except for the fact that he was squeezing just a little too tightly. 

“Uh, Viv? You got a bit of a tight grip there.”

Vivilly gasped and quickly pulled his hand away. “Oh my god I’m sorry. I was just so worried - I thought we weren’t going to make it. I didn’t hurt you, did I? Here, let me look.”

Palpers was about to shake his head and insist he was fine, but Vivilly was already holding his wrist up, gently inspecting it for any damage. There was a slight bruise from where Vivilly’s hand had been, but it honestly didn’t hurt. It was kind of nice, actually. A reminder that someone cared enough about him to try to save his life.

“I’m so sorry, Palp. I should’ve been more careful.”

Palpers couldn’t help but smile at the absurdity of it. “Are you kidding me?” He giggled, giddy from the adrenaline rush they just had. “You just saved my life and now you’re apologizing to me? I wouldn’t have made it on my own, I was ready to give up. But you made sure I kept going. I should be apologizing to you for slowing you down, you idiot.” He couldn’t stop giggling, and soon it wore onto Vivilly, both of them simply relieved to be alive. Out of nowhere, Vivilly pulled Palpers towards him into a tight hug. “God, I’m so glad we didn’t die,” he murmured. Palpers felt himself relax into the hug, thankful to finally be able to rest. “Ditto”. He was about to say something else, probably something stupid like I’m glad you’re the person I didn’t die with, but the pain shooting up his leg wiped any other thought out of his mind. He groaned and sat down on the bed next to them, trying to breathe through the pain.

“Woah, what’s wrong?? Are you ok?” Vivilly asked, concern lacing his voice. 

“It’s my leg,” Palpers said shakily. “I think running for my life in the woods may have made it worse.” He tried to smile and lighten the mood, but the pain was too much. 

“Oh shit. Alright, I may just be a botanist, but I’ve healed enough broken plants to know how to make a cast. Stay here, I’m gonna go get some materials.”

“Wait, no, it’s too dangerous. It’s still nighttime, remember? You are NOT dying just for my stupid leg. Please, don’t go,” Palpers pleaded. He was fine. He just had to tough it out, like his parents always used to say. He didn’t need anyone’s help, and he was plenty used to not receiving any. 

“Shut up, you idiot. Of course I’m going. You’re my friend, and I want to help you. That iron giant thing will protect me, remember? I promise, I won't leave the village. I’ll be careful. But I’m not letting you hurt yourself more.”

Before Palpers could get another word out, Vivilly was gone. He felt like crying. If Viv got hurt because of him, he would never forgive himself. He didn’t deserve this, he was just some broke, worthless college student who stupidly got himself hurt doing a stupid experiment for some stupid weirdo. Vivilly was smart, caring, stupidly handsome… he had everything going in life. Why was he even helping a loser like Palpers?

Lost in his own thoughts, he jumped when the door opened again less than 20 minutes later. 

“I”m baaack” Vivilly said in a singsong voice, hauling a copious amount of clay and paper behind him. “I don’t think this world has plaster, so it's going to be more like a paper mache type of thing. Luckily I aced those back in elementary school, so we have nothing to worry about.”

Palpers gulped, hoping his leg will still be usable after Viv is done with it. 

“Here, sit on the edge of the bed. I’ll patch you up.” Vivilly patted the bed and Palpers swung his legs over, wincing as the pain flared up again. 

“Now, I’m going to touch different parts of your leg and you have to tell me what parts hurt and what parts don’t. Do you think you can do that?”

Palpers scoffed. “I’m not a kid, you know. You don’t have to baby me.”

Vivilly laughed, then coyly smiled. “Well, maybe I want to.” 

Palpers didn’t have a response to that. He just prayed Vivilly didn’t notice his burning cheeks. 

“Shut up, idiot. Just fix me already.”

Vivilly chuckled, but listened to Palpers. He started moving his hand down his injured leg, checking exactly where the injury was. When he pressed down near Palpers ankle, Palpers saw red. 

“Oh fuck, oh fuck, it hurts there a LOT.” Palpers whined, tears building in the corners of his eyes. 

Vivilly nodded and got to work on his makeshift cast, wrapping it around Palpers ankle so he didn’t make the injury worse every time he moved. 

“Aaand, there we go!” he exclaimed, finishing up the final wrap around Palpers ankle. 

“Yayyy, I’m gonna go jump on a trampoline now!” Palpers joked. Vivilly shook his head, smiling. “You better not. I can’t let you out of my sight, can I?” Palpers grinned. “I guess not.”

The light streaming from outside caught Palpers’ eye. “Hey, I think it’s morning!” he exclaimed happily. “We didn’t get any sleep but honestly, I don’t feel that tired. We should look around a little and then signal to Robin that we found a village.” 

Vivilly nodded in approval and they headed out together. 

As Palpers stepped into the morning sun, he thought about the last few days. God, so much happened he doesn’t even know where to start. This world that they’re in has so many mysteries, so much danger, but he’s grateful he at least met a new friend to help him get through it. A new friend. That’s all he is. Palpers doesn’t understand why that word, friend , causes a sinking feeling in his stomach. He doesn’t understand why his heart beats faster around Vivilly, why he blushes practically every time Vivilly talks to him. He can’t think about it; he can’t afford to lose the one person whose helping him because of his stupid, confusing emotions. Anyway, it doesn’t matter. It’s not like Vivilly thinks of him as anything more than a clumsy, scrawny mess who happened to be the person he first met and got stuck with. Maybe, just maybe, Vivilly consideres them friends, but that’s it. Friends. 

“Dude, get your head out of the clouds.” Vivilly says, snapping Palpers back into the present with a light punch on the arm. “I see someone.”

Palpers looks in the direction Vivilly is pointing and, oh wow, there's actually someone there. But they’re not a student… they’re blocky, like everything else in the village. They're also completely bald and have a HUGE nose. They honestly look kind of scary, but Palpers isn’t a baby. He can talk to people even if they look a little different from him. He slowly approached the mysterious villager, not wanting to startle them. Once they had turned and caught his eye, he started talking. 

“Hello, do you live here?” 

The villager just stared at him, arms crossed on their chest. 

“Do you speak english?”

The villager made a strange noise, almost like “hmm?” but didn’t respond further than that.

Palpers turned to Vivilly, shrugging his shoulders. “Maybe they don’t speak our language.”

Vivilly looked deep in thought, then grabbed a pencil and paper from his bag.

“Maybe not, but drawing is a universal language.”

Vivilly drew a quick portrait of Robin; he wasn’t the best artist but he included all of Robin’s identifiable features so that the villager would recognize him from it. Then he drew the portal and them (as little stick figures, of course) flying through it. He handed it over to the villager. The villager examined it, then stepped inside of his hut. Palpers and Vivilly waited outside with baited breath, not sure if the villager was simply done communicating or if he was going to show them something. A minute later, the villager stepped back outside with a drawing of his own. 

Palpers gasped as he looked at it. Vivilly shuttered. The drawing looked like something from medieval times. Villagers were lined up with shackles around their wrists and ankles, moving towards some sort of building. There was another drawing of villagers trapped in tiny homes, working at a desk, looking like they’re about to pass out from exhaustion. The final drawing: Robin with a red X going through him, placed on top of the other two.

“Holy shit, are they saying…” Palpers trailed off, too horrified to go on.

“I think so. Robin Here enslaves villagers. They’re warning us not to trust him. I don’t know about you, but I knew something was off about him from the moment I met him. There’s something… sinister about him. Now it all makes sense. He’s evil, Palpers.” 

Palpers stared at the drawings. He knew something was off about Robin, but God, enslaving these poor villagers? Making them work in these horrible conditions? It’s worse than he could’ve ever imagined. 

“We can’t tell Robin we found this village. I’m not going to willingly subject them to such cruel treatment.” Palpers finally choked out. Robin's words echoed in his mind. I will know if you’re disobeying the rules. He knows it’s stupidly dangerous, but he still has morals. He has to protect these people, even if he doesn’t understand them. He turned to Vivilly, desperately hoping he felt the same way. 

Vivilly met his eyes and Palpers knew he did. “It’s a terrible idea, but… you’re right. We can’t help him get what he wants. I think we should leave this place before he starts getting suspicious and looking for us. At least then if he finds us, he won’t find them with us.”

Palpers sighs. “So, in simpler terms, we’re fugitives”. Well, better fugitives than slave owners , he thinks.

“Hey, it’s alright. We still have each other. We’ll be fine. Screw the trials, right?” Vivilly smiles at him, but it doesn’t quite reach his eyes. Palpers knows he’s just as worried as he is, but he’s trying not to show it. 

“Yeah. Screw the trials. As long as we stick together, we’ll get through anything. Plus, if we play our cards right, maybe we can hide out until everyone else has been taken back to the normal world and then we get the money!”

Vivilly stared at him with a touch of pity on his face. “Honestly, Palp, I’m not so sure about the whole money thing. I mean, this guy is bad. Really bad. Maybe he just said that so he could get people to participate in his sick experiment and help him find villagers to enslave.”

Palpers frowned. “But then… this whole thing, it’ll all be for nothing. I came here because I needed that money. If I leave here without it, I’ll… I don’t know what I’ll do.” Palpers put his head in his hands. God, you’re so stupid. You should’ve known it was a trick. What were you thinking? Now you’re trapped here and you might die and for what? Fucking nothing. You’ll be homeless if you go back. You’ll starve to death. Or worse, you’ll have to keep working shitty retail jobs for the rest of your life until you die.

“Hey… hey, it’s ok.” Palpers lifted his head as he felt Vivilly's arm wrap around his shoulders. “Listen, I only signed up for this because I was bored and just happened to stumble across it. I was gonna donate the money anyway. I live in a two person apartment, it's just me and my dog right now… I use one of the rooms as a makeshift botany lab, but how about this: when we get out of here, and we will get out of here, you can come live with me. My parents are rich. They pay for my apartment and don’t give a shit about what I do as long as I keep my grades up.”

Palpers stared at Vivilly for an uncomfortable amount of time, taking in what he said. When Vivilly couldn’t stand being stared at any longer, he used the arm not wrapped around Palpers’ shoulders to poke him in the forehead. “Hello? Anyone in there?”  Palpers slowly started shaking his head. “No, no, no way. I can’t just leech off you. You barely know me. I’m not some poor basket case. Well, maybe I am, but I don’t need anyone’s help. I’ll be fine. I’ve always been fine before.”

“Come on. Let me do this. I want to do this. I’ve never had a roommate before, and I really like hanging out with you. It’s a win-win for both of us. If anything, you’re doing me a favor. It’s really lonely living with just your dog and your thoughts all the time.”

Palpers looked hard into Vivillys eyes, as if searching for something. Finally, he sighed. “You’re not going to let me say no, are you?” “Nope,” Vivilly responded, grinning. “Fuck you. Fine. I’ll live with you once we get out of here. Dumbass.”

“Heyyy, who are you calling a dumbass?? You’re the dumbass, refusing a great offer because of your dumbass pride.”

Palpers laughed and pushed Vivilly away with his hands playfully. If he kept his arm around Palpers shoulder for one more second, he would actually combust. Vivilly took it as a playfight, tackling Palpers to the ground. “Hey, you think you can push me around?? You’re 5’7 and lanky as hell, you twink. I bet you’ve never won a fight in your life!” Vivilly taunted, laughing.

“WHAT? Twink?? I’m not a twink! And Excuuuse me, but I’m actually 5’8, and I have in fact won a fight! It may have been in first grade, but I still won it!” Palpers argued back, rolling around so he was on top of Vivilly.

“Ha! First grade fights don’t count. The day before we left, I got in a real fight against this guy who was yelling at a grandma crossing the road. And guess what? I fucking won! I kicked his ass! Cause I actually work out, unlike a little someone named Palpers.” Vivilly grabbed Palpers leg and threw him to the side, then grabbed his arms and pinned them by his sides. “Admit it, I’m stronger than you!” Palpers wiggled under his grasp but couldn’t break his arms free. “Ugh, fine! You’re strong, whatever. I’m still smarter than you though.” Vivilly shook his head, still holding Palpers down. “We’ll see about that, tough guy. Either way, smarts aren’t going to help you in a fight. If we see Robin, you let me handle it, alright?” 

Palpers groaned, knowing he wouldn’t ever let Vivilly deal with Robin alone but also knowing if Vivilly keeps holding him like this he will literally explode ( that seems to be a common thought lately). “Ughhhhh, whatever. Just get off me, nerd.”

Vivilly smiled and rolled off him. “Good. Now, we should probably get out of this area. We’ve been here for way too long.” 

Palpers nodded. They had to protect this village, and that meant they had to leave it, as much as they wanted to stay and guard it. They began heading North, trying to stay under the cover of trees so that if Robin was looking for them, they would be harder to spot. “I wonder if anyone else realized what we realized, or if they all led Robin right to the poor villagers.” Palpers mused sadly. 

“Well, we can only do so much right now. At least we protected these guys. And those students are smart. I’m sure at least some of them realized there was something wrong.” 

Palpers nodded, feeling slightly better. “Hey Viv? Despite everything that’s happened since I came here, I’m really glad I met you. It’s the one good thing that’s come out of this mess.” 

As soon as he said it, his face went beet red. Oh God why did I say that that's so cringe he’s gonna think I’m weird now oh fuck-

Vivilly put his hand on Palpers shoulder, looking softly into his eyes. “Me too, Palp. I would do this all again if it meant I got to meet you.”

Palpers stared at him for a few seconds, beyond euphoric, before quickly averting his eyes to the ground, hoping the approaching darkness would hide his red face. Wait - approaching darkness? “Viv, bad news, it's getting dark again.”

“Oh fuck. Ok, hold on. I learned a new crafting recipe.”

Viv dug around in his bag for a few seconds before pulling out a stick and a piece of coal. He placed it on his crafting table and poof, a torch appeared. “I am never going to get used to this place” Palpers muttered, and Vivilly laughed. “Hey, at least we have light now. C’mon, let's find a place to wait out the night. I can’t have you injuring your leg even more.”

They searched for a few minutes, wary of the scuttling sounds, hisses, and groans coming from the forest around them, until they found a small cave. “In here, quickly,” Vivilly whispered. Palpers followed him in and watched as Vivilly somehow crafted a door using the wood he had in his bag. “Who's the smarter one now, huh?” Vivilly teased, setting the torch on the ground.

“Whatever. I’m just happy to not be eaten by the forest monsters” Palpers replied, and he meant it. They lied down on the cold stone, using their backpacks as pillows. “We really have to figure out how to make beds soon,” Palpers complained, already feeling his back start to hurt. “You’re right. But for now, this will have to do” Vivilly responded. “Hey, wait, are you cold?”

Palpers was trying to hide it, but he was freezing. He was never good with the cold, and the lack of blankets wasn’t helping. “N-n-no” he lied, his teeth chattering. “C’mon you idiot. It’s obvious you’re freezing. We may not have blankets, but we can do what the penguins do. Huddle.”

Palpers’ face flushed. “I am not h-huddling with you. I- I’ll be f-fine.” God his stupid chattering teeth won’t stop giving him away. “You and your pride.” Vivilly scoffed. He moved his backpack by Palpers head and laid down next to him. “Would it kill you to just rely on the kindness of others for once?” Vivilly muttered, his voice way too close to Palpers ear. Palpers rolled his eyes. “Yes, it would.” Vivilly ignored him and pulled him closer. Palpers felt like his whole body was on fire - although, the body heat coming off of Vivilly mixed with the heat of his brain straight up bursting into flames was doing wonders to warm him up. Before he knew it, he was drifting off. His dreams, for the first time since he got here, were warm and pleasant and safe. As long as they stay together, they can get through anything.

Chapter Text

Palpers woke up alone. His back still felt warm from where Vivilly had pressed against him, but he was starting to shiver again as the cold morning air crept in.

“Viv… Vivilly?” He croaked out, his voice hoarse from sleep.

A shadow covered the doorframe and his breath quickened, afraid it was another monster, or worse, Robin. 

“Hey man, calm down! It’s just me. I was out getting some more materials. Here, I got us some breakfast.”

Vivilly’s face poked in and Palpers exhaled. “Don’t scare me like that. I thought you were a monster!”

Vivilly chuckled and threw a piece of porkchop and a cooked potato at Palpers. “Nope, just me. Don’t you think if I was a monster I would’ve, I dunno, been making gross monster noises and not smelled like delicious breakfast foods?”

“Whatever man. I just woke up, ok?” Palpers rubbed his eyes and greedily dug into his breakfast. They didn’t have much time to eat yesterday and he was starving. “Man, as much as I wish I was home right now, the food here honestly isn’t half bad. It tastes like the food from the real world.” 

Vivilly nodded in agreement. “I know, right? I’m glad we don’t have to eat weird monster food or bugs or something. By the way, I also made you this. Hopefully it’ll help you stay warm.” 

Vivilly tossed Palpers a jacket made of leather. “Holy shit, how did you make this??” Palpers exclaimed, throwing it on and smiling at the warmth it gave him. 

“It’s a recipe in here. A “leather chestplate.” It’s not very protective but it’ll keep you warm. Plus, you can use it as a blanket when you sleep, since I know how much you hate huddling together for warmth.”

Palpers blushed, wishing desperately he could tell Vivilly that he did like it… in fact, he probably liked it a little too much. But no… that would only scare him away. This was fine, he could use the jacket as a blanket, and he would never have to cuddle - I mean huddle - with Vivilly again. God dammit. I need to go burn this jacket and make it seem like it was an accident. 

Vivilly smiled at him, looking pleased. “There, now you look much more comfy. Are you ready to head out?”

Palpers smiled back, nodding his head and pushing the other thoughts out of his mind. “Yeah! Let's go!”

They continued heading away from the village, stopping for food and short breaks along the way. Just as they were approaching a new biome with beautiful pink trees and falling petals, Vivilly suddenly stopped. 

“Hey… do you see that?”

Palpers looked around, clueless as to what Vivilly might have noticed.

“Uh, no? What do you see?”

Vivilly squinted at the sky for a second longer before suddenly tackling Palpers to the ground, clamping his hand over his mouth. Just as Palpers was about to pull his hand off and ask what the hell he was doing, he saw something flying in the sky above them. Squinting his eyes, he could just make out a light blue shirt, blue pants, and brown hair. Robin. He met Vivillys eyes and Vivilly slowly removed his hand from Palpers mouth, putting his finger to his lips instead. Palpers nervously nodded, continuing to watch as Robin surveyed the land. He was clearly looking for something - or someone. Luckily, when Vivilly pulled them down, they landed in a patch of tall grass. He shouldn’t be able to see them from up there. Palpers just prayed he didn’t decide to come down and take a closer look. 

Just when Palpers was sure he was about to spot them, Robin finally moved away, heading back the way they had come from. Palpers thought his heart was about to beat right out of his chest from fear. “Oh… my… God. That was way too close” he said shakily. Vivilly still had his arms wrapped tightly around Palpers from when he had pulled him to the ground, but he quickly loosened his grip as he realized they were safe. Palpers turned towards Vivilly to talk about what just happened, but his voice cut off when he saw Vivillys face. Oh my god, he’s blushing. Unmistakable in the morning light, Vivilly’s face was bright red as he quickly untangled himself from Palpers. 

“Sorry for… y'know… pulling you down so suddenly. I was scared he was going to see us.” Vivilly sputtered out, avoiding Palpers eyes. 

What is happening right now. He’s acting like ME. It’s probably just because of the adrenaline though… right?

Palpers smiled, trying to act normal despite his stomach feeling like it was about to explode from the amount of butterflies he had. 

“Don’t worry about it. You have a bad habit of apologizing everytime you save me, idiot.” He responded, playfully punching Vivilly in the arm. Vivilly chuckled, seeming to snap out of whatever headspace he was in before. “Really? I’m an idiot? Says the person who couldn't see Robin when he was literally right in front of us. Do you need glasses, you blind baby?”

Palpers gasped. “Rude! I was too busy thinking up genius ideas and scouting out the area to be idly looking at the sky. How was I supposed to know he could fly? ”

“Touché” Vivilly responded, shaking his head with amusement. “C’mon, let’s go this way, these trees look nice.”

You look nice. Palpers thought, then mentally slapped himself. Oh my god, I need a lobotomy. 

Out of danger (for now at least), they could enjoy the beautiful scenery. Petals floated down around them, and Vivilly laughed as one landed right on Palpers nose. “Come here,” Vivilly laughed, plucking it off Palpers face as he leaned towards Vivilly. Palpers was close enough that he could see the different hues in Vivilly’s eyes. He wished he had enough time to memorize every detail on his face. All he wanted to do was to lean in and - holy shit, get ahold of yourself. He’s just your friend. You’re just his friend. There is nothing more to it, so STOP BEING INSANE. 

Vivilly looked at him, furrowing his brow in confusion. “Hey, are you ok?” 

Palpers realized in his spiral of self-hatred he had physically pushed Vivilly away from him, as if that would push away the thoughts too. Vivilly didn’t seem mad, but he looked concerned and a little sad. “Oh man, I’m sorry. I didn’t hurt you, did I? I’m just… really stressed and confused and my head is all over the place. I didn’t mean to do that, I swear. I’m really really sorry.”

“It’s all good Palp, just take a deep breath. Do you want to talk about what’s bothering you?” Vivilly asked, putting his hand gently on top of Palpers’ shaking one. 

“B-bothering me? There’s nothing bothering me! Well, other than the fact that we’re trapped in an alternate world with no clear way out and there’s an insane villager-enslaving psychopath on our trail, but I mean beyond that, I’m all good!” Nice save, Palpers. 

Vivilly nodded. “Yeah, that’s been bothering me too. That was a close call back there, wasn’t it? I think we’re both a little rattled. How about we walk a little further until the sun sets and then call it a night.”

Palpers sighed in relief, thankful for the attention to be off of him. “Yeah, sounds good man. Let's go.”

They walked together in silence until they found a safe-looking cave, just as the sun began to set. As Palpers got ready for yet another night on the cold hard stone, he couldn’t help but think how nice it would be to share an apartment with Vivilly. Comfortable beds, a proper roof over our heads, a fridge full of food, warmth, a cute dog, a cute roommate… I wish we could just get out of here so I can experience it all. He tucked himself under his leather jacket, wishing he could feel Vivilly next to him again, and drifted off into an uneasy slumber.