Work Text:
Of all things Xisuma had planned to do with his Saturday morning - holding an impromptu emergency meeting with the omegas and their partners (along with False, the only beta on the server who would benefit from the announcement) was not on the top of his list. Only when one of his Hermits had come barreling over in the middle of the night a few days ago in a sudden panic about their potential vacation… activity results , he was left with no choice. As admin, it was his (sometimes unfortunate) responsibility to make sure his server was aware of any needed changes. No matter how embarrassing.
Resisting running a hand down the front of his mask, Xisuma stood to call for attention - immediately drawing in the gazes of the small crowd.
“Thank you all for coming on short notice,” he said, catching as many eyes as he could to make sure they were listening. In his peripheral vision, he caught a glimpse of Keralis who was grinning all too knowingly at him with what he assumed to be an ‘encouraging’ thumbs up. “I appreciate just how tricky this may have been for a few of you.”
“Eh,” Tango shrugged. “Skizz was happy enough to take the twins. They’re probably going to be on a sugar high by the time we get back.”
“As long as he doesn’t try experimenting whether he can roast marshmallows on their wings again…” Jimmy groaned. “They were just cleaned last night!”
Similar sentiments were shared amongst the other parents, about how Grian and Scar were able to get Mumbo and how Beef had graciously taken Beau and Maple (as one of the few Bdubs and Etho could trust to keep their accident-prone son out of too much trouble).
Xisuma called for silence once more. “So, you may have noticed that I have called just a certain group of you all here-”
“Yes, this doesn’t exactly feel like a HOG meeting,” exclaimed Bdubs, raising a questioning brow.
“Aw, I thought I got initiated into something cool,” False grumbled.
“Please, friends, this is important,” Xisuma groaned. Once the crowd had fallen silent, he took another deep breath. “So, a member of the server raised some concerns that they may be pregnant-”
Tango let out a bark of laughter. “Zed, are you serious?! Did you forget the settings?!”
“How the heck did you know-”
“Dude, you and Impulse just came back from your off server trip! It’s obvious!”
“Dude! Can you not?!”
“I was hoping we could be civilised adults about this!” Xisuma shouted over Impulse’s cry and the sniggering Hermits. “Right. Now unfortunately we can’t be certain for a few more weeks about whether or not Zed is pregnant - so for safety reasons, I have turned on the player breeding settings until everything is either confirmed or denied. So if anyone does plan on intercourse for the time being, please take care to use protection.”
There were a few grumbles, and a couple more giggles before being silenced with a glare from either Zedaph or Xisuma (poor, red-faced Impulse was too embarrassed to look at anyone in the eye, and didn’t even make an attempt to stop the light hearted teasing).
“So, if anyone has any questions or concerns, please let me know anytime,” said Xisuma.
There was a beat of silence; and then Scar slowly raised his hand.
“Yes, Scar?”
“...how long have they been turned on for?”
Xisuma only had to glance at Grian’s reddening face before he felt a pit of dread open within his stomach. “...since early last night. Why…?”
There was another beat of silence, and an awkward shared glance between the pair of mates before everyone else caught on and began to cry out.
“Are you freaking kidding me?!” Bdubs shouted.
“Excuse me?!” Jimmy exclaimed, eyes wide on Grian who refused to look at anybody.
“You guys are seriously like rabbits!” Tango laughed, leaning over to clap Scar on the shoulder.
Xisuma groaned out loud, and finally ran his hands down the front of his helmet. Turns out, it wouldn’t just be Zedaph’s code he’d have to keep an eye out for… Again.
“Girls! Come on, your mum’s here!” Mumbo shouted down the hall. It was for naught, as there were only loud, velociraptor screeches in response as the sounds of their toy lightsaber battle continued. Mumbo winced, strangely not worried about the near three year old or five year old getting hurt, but rather instead fearful for any delicates that were sure to be in their war path.
“I can grab them,” said Grian, leaning down to pick up Sunny, who had happily followed his uncle to answer the door and was now excitedly babbling up at his mother with grabby hands. “Oof, hey lil fella! You had a good time?!”
“Boories!” Sunny exclaimed.
“Yes, yes, we had some blueberries, didn’t we?” asked Mumbo, his voice a tad high pitched. His memory now stuck on not even half an hour ago when the beta had made the horrifying realisation that the toddler had snuck an entire punnet away when he had been distracted trying to untangle a doll from Lilac’s hair (though Poppy insisted she had no idea how it got there in the first place) and had almost choked on a berry just as Mumbo luckily noticed.
These kids… He loved them to death but gosh they were going to make him go grey sooner rather than later!
“Oh, yum!” Grian gasped, sending his friend a quizzical and all too knowing look at the beta’s tone. “Well, good to know you’ve had your blooben quota for the day.”
“So, what was the meeting about?” asked Mumbo curiously.
Grian suddenly stopped looking him in the eye. “Uh… there’s a bit of a pregnancy scare with a couple Hermits so we just need to leave the settings on for a few weeks at minimum until we know.”
Mumbo raised a brow. “Oh. A couple? Who…”
Grian’s expression finally gave way for a small smirk.
Mumbo’s moustache practically drooped. No… No, not again!
He turned around at once; ignoring the sound of something breaking and shattering in the background as two little voices shouted “uh oh!”
“Mumbo?!”
“Nope!”
“Oh, come on-!”
“I’m packing my things! I’m going on holiday again!”
“We don’t even know if I’m actually-”
“Four is too many! Oh gosh what if it’s multiples?! Then we're outnumbered even with Cub’s help!”
“You’re being ridiculous!”
“I must do what’s necessary for my sanity, Grian!”
Again. Mumbo adored his nieces and nephew to bits. But the potential of a fourth?! The mere thought was one of the most terrifying concepts he could ever think of…
The news travelled far, and quickly across the Hermitcraft server.
The first being the surprise of Zedaph’s potential condition, which shocked a lot of the Hermits considering just how careful the omega normally was.
The second was like a whisper of doomsday to come. That the GoodTimes family could soon expand from five to six. An idea that sent the servers into a tizzy of laughter and joking that the server was all done for. More often than not, playfully teasing Grian and Scar any time they were ran into. XB would exasperatedly sigh, trying to guess and work out what form of berry craving the omega would have and how he’d have to prepare to place an order of hundred of shulkers worth through Xisuma just in case. Doc warned them both that he was going to be upping his security around his redstone machines. Skizz was already working on designating which of the GoodTimes children could replace a member each in team ZITS when the time came. The other parents laughed how soon Grian and Scar would end up having more kids than the entirety of the server combined at the rates.
Despite the teasing and the mocking cries of dread and doom, the pair seemed to be taking it well. On the outside at least. Grian smiled and laughed, and Scar played dumb - not knowing why they were being made fun of. Though it didn’t escape the notice of the Hermits just how much more chaotic Poppy, Lilac and Sunny were, between “accidentally” kicking up some redstone as Grian exclaimed “oh nooo, how’d that happen?” or smear of suspicious paint across the builds of those who claimed they were bunkering down for the worst while Scar only shrugged innocently when questioned.
It was the slowest countdown of dread across the server. Just a few more weeks until they knew whether or not they would be overrun by more genetically enhanced menaces…
It was late in the evening, the moon just beginning to rise over the horizon and taking away the glow of the day to instead bathe the ground in moonlight. Grian lay upon the couch, lazily reading a novel as he listened to Scar bidding Poppy and Lilac goodnight. Sunny had been put to sleep in his crib an hour ago, and Grian had helped the girls brush their teeth and put their pyjamas on before they were demanding for storytime with Daddy. He was enjoying the peace to himself, reading his own book while he waited for his husband and mate to return.
The minutes ticked by, then shortly Grian heard footfalls approach from behind. He felt Scar kneel down behind him to rest his head in the crook of the omega’s neck, taking deep slow breaths. Grian hummed happily and tilted his head, allowing Scar to bury his nose deeper into his scent gland - relishing in the feelings of Happy and Content. Scar’s arms snaked around him and his hands buried themselves underneath his pyjama shirt, resting carefully over his lower belly.
“You’re pregnant,” Scar mumbled against his skin.
Grian hummed. “You think so?”
“I know so,” said Scar, pressing a kiss against his scent gland. “You got that smell…”
“You couldn’t figure out Poppy until her head was out of me.”
“Eh, she was our practice baby.”
Grian laughed, unable to bring himself to be mockingly outraged at the suggestion of their daughter being a ‘practice baby’. “Only took three babies for you to know if I’m pregnant or not, huh?”
Scar lifted his head up, smiling at Grian. “We’re gonna have four now.”
“We’re really outnumbered now,” mumbled Grian, no real exasperation behind his words. Another baby… Wow.
“I found something too,” said Scar, reaching into his pocket. Grian watched curiously as his mate pulled out a new locket, this one as gold as his own but in the shape of a heart. Scar pressed the latch, revealing the way it opened up like a four leaf clover.
“Oh, Scar…”
“We better be careful with any more babies,” teased Scar. “I don’t know if they make five pocket lockets.”
“You think you’ll have had enough?”
“Never,” Scar murmured, pressing another kiss to Grian’s neck. “Not as long as you keep wanting them, I’ll love them all.”
Grian leaned back, pulling Scar into a deeper, proper kiss. They pulled back, slightly breathless, but with a resounding Love, Love, Love beating through their bond. Scar’s hands settled back down over the omega’s belly and caressed it gently, as though already trying to feel their new miracle beginning to grow in his mate’s womb.
“We should probably get some rest,” murmured Grian, feeling tired.
Scar kissed him again. “Yeah,” he murmured too as he pulled back and offered a hand out to his mate to help him up. Grian accepted and stood with Scar’s help, unconsciously settling a hand over his lower belly instinctively. Scar wrapped an arm around his shoulders and guided him to their bedroom. “So we gotta think of a new flower, huh?”
“Oh no…”
“Hm, Tulip? Lily? Ooh, what if it’s another boy? Torch?”
“Let’s figure this out later, Scar. Rest first, then think about the baby…”
“Are you sure?!”
“Yes, Zed, I’m certain,” Xisuma confirmed, trying to reassure the nervous omega. “Your code is still only showing one entity.”
“What if it’s still too early to tell?!”
“Zed, it’s been easily two months now,” the admin confirmed. “You’re not pregnant.”
There was a beat of silence; and then Zedaph let out a long sigh of relief. “Oh thank goodness!” he exclaimed, wiping a hand across his brow. “Oh boy, that was a close one!”
Xisuma hummed in agreement. “Yes, well hopefully we can do our best to avoid these sorts of scares in the future… Of course, unless you and Impulse-?”
“Nope! I’m telling you, no babies here if I can help it!”
Xisuma laughed. “I understand. Well, of course, you might want to still be cautious in the meanwhile. We still don’t know about Grian yet.”
Zedaph gave an eyeroll. “I know, I know. Same as usual. Best brace myself for another half year at least. Jeez, still can’t believe they managed to risk this in one night!”
“Well, we can’t blame them for being unaware,” Xisuma tried to reason. “So, if that’s all and your anxieties are settled, Zed, I might suggest you head home for bed? It’s quite late,” the admin noted, seeing the clock tick over just past eleven pm.
Zedaph let out a yawn, not having realised how tired he really was now that his rush of worried adrenaline had left him. “Yeah, I might just-”
There was a loud buzz of Xisuma’s comm, and the admin quickly glanced down at the incoming message with a frown. There was a pause, and Zedaph almost recoiled at once at the sudden drop in the alpha’s scent.
“Oh shoot…” Xisuma whispered, eyes widened in horror. “Oh no. Oh no, no- KERALIS! KERALIS WAKE UP!” he yelled down the hall of the base, nearly knocking over his half empty cup of tea on the dining table the pair had been sitting at.
“X, what-?”
“You need to go home,” Xisuma snapped as Keralis wandered out, bleary eyed and confused.
“Sashwhamm, what’s the matter?” asked Keralis, looking over his mate’s shoulder to view whatever message had come through. Zedaph resisted pinching his nose shut at the sudden onslaught of rotting pine that joined with the murky ice. “Go now! Go now!” the omega shouted, now wide awake. “I’ll get the stuff, go now!” he shouted again, pushing Xisuma out the front door, who at once activated his elytra and flew off into the night.
Zedaph was properly freaked out now. “What’s going on?!”
“Later, Zedaph!” Keralis snapped, rushing past without another word as he too took off out the front door, still clad in his pyjamas.
The anxiety was back in full force, and it felt like a terrible black hole had opened in the pit of Zedaph’s stomach.
Something was wrong. Something was very, very wrong…
Mumbo couldn’t believe his eyes when he awoke to the sound of someone’s fist banging against his door and found just how late the time was. What on earth-?!
Pulling on a robe over his pyjamas to stave the chill, he made his way to the door and opened it up in a flurry - ready to shout at whoever was paying him a house visit at such a ridiculous hour. Only to find the words caught in his throat in a tight ball.
It was Xisuma, holding a tired and whining Sunny in one arm, a weepy looking Lilac in the other, with a very scared and pale faced looking Poppy clinging onto the admin’s hip armour with one hand, and clutching her stuffed Jellie in the other.
“X, what-?”
“Can you take the kids tonight?!” Xisuma rushed, already passing along Sunny.
Mumbo secured his hold on the little boy. “What’s going on?!”
“No time to explain,” said Xisuma, carefully lowering Lilac down as the toddler made to grab at the beta’s robe. “They can’t be home right now.”
Mumbo was confused (and very worried). “Xisuma?!”
“Right, you’ll just stay with Uncle Mumbo for a little bit, okay?’ the admin explained, kneeling down to face Poppy. “You’ll be a big help for your brother and sister, won’t you?!”
Poppy nodded slowly, releasing her hold on Xisuma and now moving to properly cuddle her stuffie.
“Good girl,” praised Xisuma, running a hand through the girl’s hair. “You’re being very brave right now… Right, I got to go!” he called out, not even bothering to look back at Mumbo as he ran off again… in the direction of Grian and Scar’s base.
Mumbo looked down at his nieces and nephew, still very confused and worried. “What’s happening?” he asked Poppy.
The little girl didn’t meet his eye, and only fiddled with the fur of her toy.
Mumbo took a deep breath. “Okay. Sleepover at Uncle Mumbo’s again. This is fine… Right, come on. Up we go, Lilac, that’s a good girl…”
He worked on autopilot. It wasn’t the first time he had to look after the kids overnight. First, easing Sunny back to sleep into his makeshift cot after checking if he needed any changing. Then, soothing LIlac from her confused and tired tears (which Mumbo wished he could shed for himself at this point), and then tucking her into her side of the bed designated for her and her sister for their sleepovers. Then once both the youngest were down, he went to check on Poppy, finding the little girl all curled up on the couch - still tightly clutching her Jellie.
“Would you like some warm milk?” Mumbo asked softly, sensing the girl’s distress and hoping the promise of a comforting drink would help. Upon receiving a very uncharacteristically silent nod, he stepped out to the kitchen to warm a cup’s worth of milk over his furnace while he brewed himself a tea.
Beverages in hand, he moved back over to Poppy and gave the girl her favourite pink cup. She didn’t even murmur a thank you, which surprised Mumbo and let him know something was definitely, very wrong. Poppy could be a cheeky menace, but she was always very good about remembering her manners.
“Do you know what’s happening, Poppet?” he asked carefully.
Poppy chewed her lip. “...there was lotsa shouting.”
“Oh no, was there?”
“From Mama…” Poppy warbled, her eyes filling up with tears.
Mumbo was only more confused. Shouting?! Did Grian and Scar get into a fight?! So severe that the kids had to leave in the middle of the night?
No. No, that didn’t make sense. The two of them were ridiculously in love to the point it made Mumbo sick sometimes. They wouldn’t… not after everything they had went through before Poppy. Besides; why would Xisuma of all people then be bringing the kids; and not Grian himself? Or even Scar.
Poppy’s hands were shaking, and Mumbo reached out to wrap an arm around his niece. “I… I went to see if he was okay… and there was all this blood…”
Blood?!
…oh.
Oh no…
A tear fell down Poppy’s cheek. “Is Mama gonna be okay, Uncle Mumbo?”
Mumbo’s heart shattered; and found himself unable to answer the girl.
[EMERGENCY IN PLACE. ALL HERMITS TO ATTENTION]
[XIsuma]
Urgent server wide meeting at spawn. ASAP.
Doc groaned at the message, and Ren and Teddy glanced over at the alpha curiously over breakfast.
“Everything okay?” asked Ren.
“Meeting at spawn, right now,” Doc grumbled, swallowing the last of his coffee and mourning at the loss of not being able to savour it. “X said it’s urgent.”
“This early?!” Ren cried out, then shook his head before looking over to his son. “Well, we better get dressed I guess. Come on, little dude…”
A few minutes later, they were all meeting up with everyone who looked as equally perplexed and disgruntled. Even some of the more rambunctious of the children were more quiet than usual in their confusion as to why their usual morning routines had been disrupted. Though as the crowd grew, it became noticeable very quickly that there was a certain family missing amongst the crowd.
This time, Doc had a very strong feeling it had nothing to do with them running late as per usual. “What do you reckon the odds are this is it?”
“What?” asked Beef, glancing over at the alpha’s question.
“This meeting’s about baby number four?”
“...oh no you could be right!” Gem shouted as a mixture of groans and laughter erupted amongst the Hermits.
“An emergency meeting for that?” Cub asked, one of the rare few who didn’t seem convinced.
“Yeah, because they’re raising an army now, we have to prepare!” Doc reasoned with an eye roll. “It will be the end of Hermitcraft before we know it!”
They all quickly fell silent as at long last, Xisuma and Keralis arrived. It didn’t escape anyone’s notice just how exhausted the pair looked… or how sour and rotten their scents were. A few began to nudge each other's sides, claiming this was for sure it. That the poor pack leaders were dreading the new arrival just as much as they were and were already tired from it all.
“Little ones, to me,” Keralis called out softly with a very forced smile. “We’re gonna play a game!”
Teddy, Beau and Maple cautiously made their way over as Ember and Phoenix were carefully passed along to the omega by a very confused Jimmy and Tango.
“Too young to learn about the birds and the bees,” sniggered Impulse, as Skizz broke out into a fit of giggles next to him.
“Thank you all for coming,” said Xisuma loudly over the buzzing crowd. “I’ve called this meeting for some… some hard news.”
There was anticipated silence. Xisuma let out a tired sigh. “So, Grian will be out of commission for a while, along with Scar-”
“CALLED IT!” Bdubs shouted as a few Hermits playfully groaned.
“Another one?!”
“Lock down the redstone!”
“Protect the diamonds!”
“We’re done for!”
“Those two are building an actual army-”
BANG!
The Hermits fell silent at once as Xisuma slammed his hands down on the table before him, and there was a mixture of sourness as they all submitted a little in guilt at the clear distress rolling off their pack leader in waves.
“...as I was saying,” growled Xisuma. “They will both be out of commission for a little while. Last night… Grian had a miscarriage.”
A pin could have dropped a hundred blocks away from spawn, and the crowd would have heard it.
Xisuma sighed, leaning back and rubbing a hand down along his mask. “So, if possible, someone might need to help keep stock on their shops. I’ll help with any compensation of your time-”
“I’ll do it,” Etho claimed at once, hand clamped over his mate who had begun to silently weep.
“Same here,” croaked Skizz. “Don’t even want compensation,” he added as Etho nodded in agreement.
“Thank you. If possible, help to watch the kids when needed.”
“Of course…” said Cub, his glasses turning misty.
“Anytime,” Pearl added thickly.
The Hermits wished it could have been Doomsday.
This was worse than any form of horror their minds had made up before the meeting. Leaving a cloud of sadness over spawn that followed them all home. That left Doc later that morning shedding tears of regret as he held his son close. That had Bdubs and Etho repetitively telling their children just how much they loved them, despite their confusion. That had the twins fussing as their parents held them and cried. That left everybody feeling nothing but guilt and regret.
They would have given anything for the fourth menace to wreak havoc on the server instead…
Mumbo got no sleep. Though he knew there was no way he looked even as close to tired as Scar did before him. There had been a quiet knock on the door mid-morning, and Mumbo had gone to answer it after leaving the kids to watch Toy Story. He hadn’t been expecting the alpha so soon; and therefore had no idea what to even say.
“I…I…” he stuttered, barely able to get the words out. “I’m so sorry…”
Scar didn’t even say anything back, but quickly reached up to wipe a hand across his still puffy and red eyes before fresh tears could fall. The poor guy looked a mess, rumpled with hurried clothing put on, face swollen with past tears, and his scent so bitter with grief it nearly had the beta recoiling. He took a moment to take a few deep breaths. “We wanna have them home,” he eventually croaked out. “I just need to tell… I think Poppy saw some of what happened before I could get her out…”
Mumbo nodded. “She’s a bit spooked,” he whispered. “But she’s been very brave and been helping look after the others.”
Scar’s lips finally turned up in the slightest, wobbly smile. “That’s my girl…Just like her mama.”
“They’re just watching TV now,” Mumbo explained, indicating down the hall. “Do… Do you want some help?”
Scar shook his head. “No. No I need…” Another deep breath. “I need to do this.”
“Okay…” Cautiously, Mumbo glanced at Scar and caught his eye. “Do you think I could… see him?”
It wasn’t often he experienced the feel of instincts kicking into high gear, but it had been impossible to ignore the way they had been clawing at the edges of his mind and itching like fire ants under his skin. Desperate to see his pack mate and comfort him at such a horrible time.
Slowly, Scar nodded. “Yeah. Should be okay. I’ll just stay here for a little bit then bring them back.”
“Take the time you need,” said Mumbo, placing a comforting hand on Scar’s shoulder, before releasing and watching after the alpha as he walked towards the room where his children were. It was as though there were weights clamped to his ankles, as he slowly and somewhat forcefully dragged himself to where they were waiting.
Trusting Scar was going to be okay, Mumbo finally left and made haste for his friend’s base.
It was dark, dim, and the place reeked of sadness and grief that stung his nose and drew a rare whine out through his teeth. He hurried up the stairs, only coming to pause outside the bedroom door where an overpowering stench of rotting wildflowers seeped out from underneath. He hesitated, and held his breath as he knocked on the wood lightly.
“Grian?”
It was silent.
He knocked again. “Can I come in, mate?”
Silence.
Taking a deep breath to compose himself, Mumbo eased the door open, and his heart cracked in two at the sight before him. Grian was facing away from the door, lying on his side on his and Scar’s shared bed, wings limp. The beta tiptoed forward, unsure if his friend was sleeping. He did his best to ignore the open ensuite where an ominous, pale pink washed stain stood out on the once stark white tiles. Edging around, he could see Grian wasn’t asleep, but rather staring off into nothing, his dark eyes dull and lifeless.
Mumbo knelt down, reaching out a hand. “Oh, Grian…” He couldn’t even bring himself to form an apology; knowing it would mean nothing to the omega.
Grian blinked and looked up at his friend briefly, acknowledging his presence, before looking back down into nothing. There was silence for a long time, before the omega took a shuddering breath.
“...You don’t need to pack your bags anymore.”
Mumbo’s heart completely shattered into a million pieces. He didn’t know what to say, other than pull his best friend in for a hug as the omega began to cry. He didn’t care how long he remained here, rubbing the space in between his wings as his shoulders shuddered. He would stay as long as he was needed and wanted. Even after his knees and back gave out from the awkward angle. He just didn’t care.
“I’m so sorry…”
Time passed quietly on the rather subdued server. Days of Hermits reaching out to do whatever they could for the grieving mates, whether it was collecting supplies, stocking their shops (and buying them out, making sure they were loaded with diamonds), delivering meals, or offering to babysit the kids. (Or in Doc’s case, all scenarios possible, wanting to alleviate his guilt for having teased the idea of a fourth baby so much. As much as he had teased, he never wanted this to happen. He would have rathered countless sleepless nights redstone proofing his base than this.)
Keralis and Xisuma were frequent visitors, checking in on their charges and helping them through their grief. Xisuma had taken Scar for a walk to clear his head one sunny afternoon, regaling tales of his own experiences with multiple miscarriages with his own mate and assuring his fellow alpha he knew how he felt - offering to help in any way. Keralis comforted Grian many times, knowing all too well the pain the poor omega was going through in his grief - reassuring him he did nothing wrong and being a shoulder to cry on.
“Does it get better?” Grian had asked one day, eyes dark and glum, his scent still horribly wilted.
“Over time, yes. You’ll never forget them, but it will get easier. Some days might be harder than others.”
“...do you miss them? It’s silly… they weren’t even alive… but I miss them.”
“...all the time. It’s not silly at all.”
The days continued to pass, until one calm afternoon found Grian outside and leaning in the garden. Scar was inside, setting down Sunny for his afternoon nap while the girls were playing over at Bdubs and Etho’s. Grian brushed his knuckles against a set stone, making sure it was steady. There was nothing spectacular about it, revealing nothing more than an engraved butterfly.
Grian sat there, relishing in the breeze, trying to make peace with himself.
There was a shuffle of footsteps and a figure knelt beside him.
“It’s a nice spot,” murmured Scar, admiring the stone.
“Mmm, I thought so too.”
“What’s with the butterfly?”
“Keralis told me… He said that butterflies represent…” Grian still can’t utter the words, but Scar doesn't push - understanding completely.
Scar shuffled a bit. “Can I…?”
Grian looked over curiously, noticing Scar holding a handful of petals. He sits back, allowing Scar to get closer to the stone. The alpha lowers one hand, digging a small hole, before lowering flower petals in carefully.
“For what they could have been,” croaked Scar, hurriedly wiping his eyes.
Grian helps to cover them back up with dirt. He doesn’t say anything, but leans up against Scar - grateful for his mate’s presence. His eyes drift, noticing the heart shaped locket. With four spaces. One for a poppy petal, one for a lilac, one for a sunflower… and now one that would forever remain empty.