Chapter Text
"has he said anything to you since the server switch?" Pearl asks as she glides her fingers through Grian's feathers, The avian shrugs "No he hasn't, he said we need to break up, I mean were friendly when in groups but he stopped talking to me one on one. I think i really messed up in the death games, but I have no memory of it" Grian laid his chin on the tops of his knees. Pearl wants to help her brother but isn't sure how. He hasn't been shutting down as much recently, but that doesn't mean he takes advice well. Mumbo has been off the server for a minute now working on personal projects and Scar is avoiding the bird hybrid all together. The only two available to help Grian not self Isolate recently is Pearl and Gem.
Pearl finishes preening Grian's wings, concerned with the amount of feathers on the ground afterwards. Grian's anxiety is causing feathers to fall out in big patches Pearl wants to scold her brother for not taking care of his wings but can tell he can't handle it right now. "I just wish i knew what i did, or why i did it? like why would i cheat on the love of my life?" Grian wonders aloud. Pearl wanted to have an answer for her brother but she didn't, she didn't have an answer on how to help him, she doesn't have advice he would accept and she is lost on what to do, so she does the only think she can think of. The moth wraps her moth wings around him trying to confront him to the best of her abilities.
Life went on, the weeks pasted, Grian really got into finishing so much so he grew a beard for a period of time before Pearl made him shave it off. The avian's progress is slower than normal but it was still progress none the less. Scar keeps disappearing for weeks at a time worrying the avian and the other hermits but nobody could talk to him long enough to get an answer as to why. Grian felt helpless and doesn't want to accept that Scar is gone for now. One night Grian sits on the top of his house staring out at the moon dipping into the sea, the phantoms circling above him but he could careless, they could knock him off the roof for all he cared.
The hybrid hears the phantoms die above him, looking to the left he sees Gem with her bow shooting them down. The deer hybrid flies up the mountain sitting beside her friends "whatca doing up here G?" Gem asks her smile contagious. Grian smiles back before looking back out at the water. "Just thinking" he mumbles, She nods looking out at the water as well. "You know me and your sister are divorced now" Gem states causing Grian to whip his head staring at the deer hybrid shocked. "when did you get married?" he asks confused. Gem shrugged "right before secret life then we divorced shortly after that, though it wasn't a good fit" She looks at Grian's face whos mouth is still agape "Don't look so surprised, we just wanted a little ceremony, then we regretted it, my point is, me and Pearl are still friends and we still love each other just in a different way, Scar will come around again even if it takes a little while" Gem says gently shoving his shoulder.
Grian nods thinking on Gem's words, "you really think he'll come back to me, even just as a friend?" The red head smiles and nods. Grian for once is going to try to believe his friend. "you know even if you aren't married to my sister, your still my sibling in a way" Grian says laying his head on Gem's shoulder. "I know, you as well G" she mumbles laying her head on top of his. The night switches to day thanks to Bdubs causing both the hermits sitting on the roof to laugh.
Another week past and things started to feel normal again, Scar and Grian are talking once more, not like they used to but its progress. Gem comes over more often to keep the avian company while he worked. It was steady, easy, comfortable. Grian had blocked the watchers from his mind almost completely, there was the nagging feeling of being watched or of the newest death game but Grian kept to his work that was until one day in the permit office.
"We are only open on sunday's from two to three and its now my lunch break" Grian says with a smirk before walking to the back, a distressed Joel being heard in the background. Grian sniffled a laugh, the bird hybrid leans against the wall with a bright smile. He loves messing with his friends and the permit office is such a fun way to do so. Joel starts to hum the on hold song and Grian almost gives in but decided to let him suffer a little bit more. Grian paces the room when a thump can be heard.
Grian turns around and peaks out the hall, Joel is gone and the music is playing to nobody. The avian steps back out to the desks and clicks off the music. "Joel?" assuming the panda hybrid had gone home Grian shrugged put out his "gone fishing" sign and left. It had been a week since the permit office had been open and he was sure Joel would have come bothered him at some point but the sweater man just assumes he gave up and continued his snail Shenanigans.
"Grian? you here?" Etho's voice rings out, Grian flies down from his unfinished project "Whats up Etho?" The avian asks, "Have you seen Joel on the server? I can't seem to find him and I really wanted to bug him today" Grian shakes his head "last i saw him was at the permit office, i thought he was at his base" Etho shrugs "i checked the whole area and asked a few other hermits if they had seen the man but nothing" Grian nods "i'll keep an eye out for him" Etho smiles "thanks G" the dog flies off leaving a worried avain.
Grian headed back inside digging through his old files and notebooks he brought over from the last server. He lays all the books across the wood planks. Maps, notes, history, and facts all laid out in front of him. Grian started to dig back into his work checking every page leaving every line of scribble, trying to find anything. A pattern, a trail Grian doesn't know for certain Joel could easily just be on a personal server but it is odd he didn't say anything about his departure.
The words started to blend together leaving Grian on his floor looking up at the ceiling, The code swirls above him his memory is fuzzy but not gone. "it looks like a tornado went through here" Gem's voice rings in the door way. Grian turns his head "and you look like you need water" the red head grabs a bottle from her inventory handing it to the avian. Grian sips at the bottle before looking at his friend "It doesn't make sense" he mumbles. "whats doesn't?" she asks. "This all of this, the watchers, the code, the notes, the death games, everything!" Grian flops back on the ground.
"Its on the tip of my tongue Gem, a finally piece that will put it all together and I'm missing it, i know i am" The red head sits on a blank spot on the floor crossing her legs "Have you retraced your steps? started from the beginning?" Grian nods "I've though back to the first death game and-" She shakes her head "not the first death game, to the beginning, Pearl told me you had a sever before, Evo i think" the deer hybrid states.
Grian thinks back to his time on evo....
"Whoa!" the evo team sees the ender portal approaching it, "See you guys later bye!" Grian says before jumping in the portal. The player woke up along in the end with confidence to take down the dragon after taking out the towers Grian starts to attack the dragon watching it explode into XP before jumping in the portal. But instead of ended up back on Evo or in a new world Grian was in a dark room, with a meeting table in the middle. The hooded figures around the room look down on him smiles grazing their faces. "Grian we've been waiting for you" one of them says "Where am i?" Grian asks confused.
"You are in the code, somewhere far beyond the end" Grian tilts his head to the side "who are you?" the figures smiled "We are the watchers and we've been watching you" the one speaking crouches down to his level "We are beings of great power, we wish to protect those who serve us. You have shown great potential Grian So much so we wish for you to become one of us" The figure guides it hand to Grian's back pushing the player forward slightly. "what do you say? join us?" Grian thinks for a moment looking up at the watchers "You protect servers?" the sweater man asks, The watcher nods "You were meant to watch with us, keep them in line, keep them safe, don't you want that?" the purple cloaked being says.
"that's all i've ever wanted, to protect my friends" the watchers smiles appear wider "perfect" Two small watchers come out from behind the others "these mini seekers will help you with your transformation, welcome to the watchers, Xequal" Grian went to correct the higher beings but was quickly shown out to an isolated room-
"Grian you ok?" Gem's voice registers in Grian's ears, "fine" he mumbled touching his face feeling tears, when did he start crying? "You don't look fine, should I get mumbo?" but Grian was already back in his head. Locking the player in a room Grian started to panic but was quickly forced to the floor, "what are you-" Grian was cut off by his skin being sliced open as something sharp is shoved in his back. Grian screamed out as he was sew up.
Grian passed out from the pain and woke up in a bedroom, purple sheets beneath him. Grian sat up sore and in pain. The player stumbled over to the mirror just to see white wings with purple endeds spread from his back. Grian tried to touch them but quickly flinched at the contact. "Good your survived the procedure" a mini seeker from earlier says walking into the room. "this is for you" the seeker says placing the purple cloth on the bed. Thats when Grian relased he wasn't in his red sweater and jeans. In fact he realized this was a very bad thing to accept. Grian wanted to make a break for it the second he realized these weren't the good guys but that became impossible.
After the fifth attempt on escaping, thats when they started the memory wiping, "it won't remove your memory entirely, just delay the recalling process Xequla" one watcher said before pressing into the avian's temples. Grian swore one time he heard Pearl shouting for him in the building, another time he saw flames before being blasted with the ray. Grian was shaking he looked around the room. He isn't there anymore, he's on hermitcraft, in his base, with Gem by his side.
"where did you go Grian?" Grian, Grian, Grian thats his name thats who he is, "They wanted me, saw potential in me, thought i would be like them, still think i'm like them, made to watch" Grian looked at the deer hybrid still shaken. "You are more than what they told you G" Gem states "I know that" Grian says finally believing himself, the words everyone has been telling him for years, he finally believes them.
Gem stayed the night then they called Mumbo over the next morning. "I was looking for a pattern" Grian says with a smile "But it was right in front of me the whole time, its me" Mumbo and Gem look at their bird friend confused. "i though we already knew that?" the mustache man asks "We do, did, but" Grian picks up a stack of paper from the floor, "I knew when i landed in hermitcraft they weren't going to let me off the hook easily, i though keeping it to myself would mean you guys wouldn't be involed, i was very wrong and i'll admit that" Grian handed Mumbo the stack of notes.
"I'm an Avian, I have watcher powers, but i'm not a watcher and they won't quit making my friends suffer until i accept that I'm one of them and let them, according to them I was made just to watch but i refuse to think that about myself" Gem leans over to Mumbo "he's very passionate about this" She whispers, Mumbo nods "so what do we do?" the mustache man asks. Grian smiles "I'll accept" that causes Mumbo to stand up dropping the papers on the floor. "No you will not" he states "Grian why?" Gem wonders allowed.
He shakes his head. "You'll see, look i love you two dearly, i love my sister and I'm still in love with Scar and i want all my friends to be safe. I have a plan, but the spies are everywhere" Grian steps forward taking Gem and Mumbo's hand's. "i'm telling you two because i have a very specific job for you, Gem" he looks at the redhead. "I'm going to cast a spell i need you to kill me Immediately after I do" Grian turns to look at Mumbo "as my best friend I need you to bring me back, I need you to trust me" He slips Mumbo a note, "this, plus the stack of semi organized notes will tell you how to do that, I also need both of you to warn the others. Another game is approaching, and you all need to be ready" Gem and Mumbo looked worried but they trust their friend.
"I hope you know what your doing old friend" Mumbo says pulling Grian into a hug. "I do" he smiles before heading out into his wheat field. "Gem" she nods "i know what i need to do" Grian smiles "ᓭᒷリ↸ ᒲᒷ ʖᔑᓵꖌ ∴⍑ᒷ∷ᒷ ᒲ|| ᓭℸ ̣ 𝙹∷|| ᓭℸ ̣ ᔑ∷ℸ ̣ᒷ↸" Gem looked terrifed gripping her sword in her hands "∷ᒷℸ ̣ ⚍∷リ ᒲᒷ ℸ ̣ 𝙹 ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ᒷリ↸ 𝙹⎓ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ∴𝙹∷ꖎ↸" Grian's wings spread a purple symbol appeared above his head. He looked over at the redhead "tell Scar goodbye for me" he mumbles to Gem who nods silently Grian mumbles the incantation once more before his eyes glow purple. "Now Gem!" He shouted, with out hesitating she swung her sword a few times before in the chat appears, Grian slained by GeminiTay. The deer hybrid looked up at the sky, "I hope you know what your doing Grian" she mumbles before going to find Scar........
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Grian woke up on an obsidian floor head throbing in pain. Grian surveyed the area grimacing at the sight, it has barley changed from when he left all those years ago. The whole atmosphere is still unwelcoming. "we knew you would return" Grian looked up from the floor being faced with his mentor, the one who pulled him through the first time, the one who told him to kill his friends. "Xequla we've kept a spot open for you" Grian stood up dusting himself off, his sweater was turned back into the purple cloak, it made him sick, but in order to keep them on his side he has't to blend in.
"Follow me" the watcher lead him to the meeting room, The room was dim, purple curtians lined the walls Grian shivered from the cold as he approached the table. "We have a new game and in order to prove your loyalty we want you to design it" Grian nods, "we have layed out the world now you just have to add the rules" the watcher hands over a screen, "Xquin will be watching you, don't mess this up Xequla" The watcher left leaving Grian and Xquin alone. "We've met before but you probably don't remember umm what are you going to add?" Grian looked down at the screen and smiled "anything i want" he mumbles before getting to work....
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When Joel went to the permit office he expected to have to wait a long time not appear in an obsidian room. "we have to keep him here until the game" whispers were heard on the outside, faint but there "This is not ideal for them, they would rather we stay focused on the target" Joel presses his ear to the cold obsidian, "...What the elders are unaware of isn't of your concern" the two bicker back and forth, Joel tried to listen to more but it was incoherent. Laying his back against the solid wall Joel prayed for a way out, and somehow he was teleported into green grass, coincidence or not he was happy to be out of that box and even happier to see his wife's pink hair. Before he could run over and shower her in kisses. Grian appeared in the middle of the circle looking more purple than when he left....