Chapter Text
Avery waltzed down into a mine he definitely did not remember finding before.
At the end of a short tunnel sat a chest. Not just any chest, one he knew for a fact he hadn’t placed.
Inside were a couple of cool-looking ores… and a book.
“Awwww yeah! Guess I don’t gotta go mining in here today!”
…
“Huh?” Avery muttered, crouching down. “Cool-lookin’ book… I wonder what it says lowkey.”
He flipped through a few pages—
BANG.
Avery froze.
The sound echoed through the mine, sharp and sudden, coming from somewhere beyond the wooden doors nearby.
“Should I check it out?” he muttered. “What if there’s something there… Uhhhhhhh…”
He paused.
“…Fuck it.”
He pushed open one of the doors,left? Right? He couldn’t tell anymore—and stepped toward the source of the noise.
Then he stopped.
“…What am I looking at?”
A body.
No… not a body. The guy couldn’t be dead. He had to be the one who made the noise.
The man wore what looked like spartan armor, stained in a mix of red and yellow—blood smeared across the metal.
“Okay, Avery. Think,” he whispered. “Do I save this guy or leave him to die? Because if I leave him, I’m definitely gonna feel bad.” :(
He sighed.
“…Yeah, okay. Fine.”
Avery stepped forward and tried to lift the knight.
He didn’t budge.
“Dude—what are you made of?? Bedrock??”
After several failed attempts at a piggyback lift, Avery gave up and grabbed him by the arms, dragging him through the mine and up toward the surface, trying his best not to slam him into every corner along the way.
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By the time Avery reached his base (literally fifty blocks away) he kicked the door open and dropped the knight onto his bed.
“Jeez, dude, you’re heavy as shit :”D”
The knight responded with a weak grunt, trying to sit up—only to fall back again.
Avery blinked.
“Wait… who are you?”
His thoughts spiraled instantly.
“I JUST dragged some random, bleeding guy out of a mine I wasn’t even supposed to be in—what even happened to him—oh my gosh—oh my gosh—”
He glanced outside.
There was, in fact, a faint trail of blood leading straight to his house.
“…Oh. That’s not great.”
Avery shot up from the floor and scrambled around.
“Bandages—potions—food—anything—WHERE IS EVERYTHING—”
The knight watched him quietly, signaling for his attention.
“Okay I got—uh—this, that, blah blah blah—oh! You need something?”
The knight mimed writing in the air.
“…Why are you tracing something with your hand?”
The knight stared at him.
“…Oh. Oh. I’m stupid. You wanna write. My bad.”
Avery quickly grabbed the book and slid it over.
Skribble.
Skribble.
The knight held it up.
“Thank you, Avery.”
Avery froze.
“H-how do you know my name?”
Skribble.
“Did you read the book?”
“…Oh.”
Avery scrambled around until he found the book from the chest.
“Found it! You want me to read this…?”
The knight nodded.
“Okay… I’ll read it after I clean you up because—uh—you’re kinda… extremely bleeding.”
The knight sighed.
“Dude, how do you survive in this armor? You gotta take it off—I can’t treat anything like this.”
Silence.
“…Guess I’m not reading the book then—”
The knight started getting out of his armor.
Avery gathered disinfectant, water, and way too many bandages.
Under the armor, the knight wore a turtleneck and sweatpants—both torn. Deep gashes ran along his arms and across his chest.
“…Yeah, dude, you’re kinda messed up.”
Avery hesitated, then grabbed the disinfectant.
“Okay, I’ve used this before—it burns like hell. Try not to move. Sorry :”D”
The knight braced himself.
Avery poured it.
The knight jolted.
“Told ya.”
Avery smirked, way too proud of himself.
The knight almost laughed—if his entire back didn’t feel like it was on fire.
“Should I keep going?” Avery asked.
The knight gave a pained thumbs up.
“Alright… any other cuts?”
Skribble.
“The wound continues across my back.”
The knight removed his shirt.
Avery froze.
“…Okay. Didn’t expect that.”
He shook his head quickly.
“Focus. Help the injured dude. Not the injured dude’s—whatever—just focus.” Avery thought to himself
He grabbed a towel and cleaned the wound.
“…Yeah. You’re REALLY messed up.”
Skribble.
“I can handle it.”
“Okay then.”
The moment Avery applied disinfectant again—
The knight jerked violently.
“Told you so. Again.”
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Finally, Avery finished wrapping the wounds.
“All patched up! So… that book?”
Skribble.
“Please read it. It explains everything.”
Avery opened it.
Tap. Tap.
“Oh—what now?”
Skribble.
“My name is D3rlord3. You can call me Derek.”
“Well, nice to finally meet you, Derek. Now could you explain WHAT I just read??”
Skribble.
Avery skimmed.
“…So let me get this straight. You found some yellow god, it gave you knowledge, then beat you up and dumped you back here?”
Derek nodded.
“You think you can talk? Because I genuinely cannot tell.”
To Avery’s surprise,
“Yes, I can talk,” Derek said, his voice low, with a faint German accent. “My throat just… hurts.”
Avery stared.
“…Damn. Your voice is hot.”
“What?!” Derek’s face flushed.
“I—NO—I meant—not—like—I didn’t mean—”
Avery immediately bolted out of the room.
“I’M GONNA MAKE FOOD BY THE WAYYYYY—”
Derek sat on the bed, staring at the blood-stained sheets.
“…Huh.”
He looked down at himself.
“…What does this slime even wear?”
Moments later, Derek stood in one of Avery’s Hawaiian shirts—unbuttoned—and his original sweatpants.
“…This is… acceptable.”
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“OH MY FUCKING GOD WHY DID I SAY THAT—”
Avery paced back and forth across the kitchen, hands gripping his hair.
“He’s gonna think I’m a weirdo and leave and then—”
He stopped.
“…Oh shoot, I gotta make food.”
Avery hurried over to the counter, quickly throwing together two bowls of mushroom stew—one for himself, one for Derek.
As he sat down and started eating, his thoughts immediately spiraled.
“…Derek is kinda hot not gonna lie.”
He froze mid-bite.
“…What.”
Avery slowly lowered his spoon and he buried his face in his hands.
That’s when he noticed Derek standing nearby.
“Oh—hey Derek! :D I made you some mushroom stew… not sure if you even like it, but—yeah.”
The knight sat down beside him, eating quietly.
Avery blinked.
“…Wait. Why are you wearing my clothes?”
Derek paused.
“Oh—uh, my other ones were kinda bloodstained and ripped. I just borrowed a top.”
“…Welp. I’m gonna go wash my blankets and clothes, since someone made them all bloody.”
“Hey, how is that my fault?”
“You were the one bleeding out on my bed >:/”
“You literally dragged me to your base, buddy.”
Avery opened his mouth to argue—
…and had absolutely nothing.
“…Okay. Whatever.”
He grabbed the blankets and sulked off.
Now alone in the kitchen, Derek stared down at his bowl.
His mind wasn’t quiet.
It never was.
He knew everything. Everywhere. All at once.
And it hurt.
A dull migraine pressed against his skull as thoughts overlapped and tangled—
—but one stood out.
The cause of all of this.
“Howdy hey—”
Derek didn’t even look up.
“King. I can hear you loud and clear in my head.”
“Oh, come on,” the voice chimed, amused. “What are you doing with this slime hybrid? He’d honestly be better than you for holding all that information anyway.”
Derek’s grip tightened.
The thought of Avery getting hurt made something twist in his chest.
“Don’t. You. Dare. Go anywhere near Avery. You hear me?”
“Jeez. He’s your boyfriend, not mine :/”
“FOR GOD’S SAKE, HE’S NOT MY BOYFRIEND—”
“Uh huh.”
“We met literally today! And you didn’t help either.”
“I mean, I did know he was going to drag you back here,” the King said smugly. “So technically, I helped >:D”
“You are so fucking annoying.”
“Hey, he said you sounded ho—”
“Nope. Nope. I am NOT listening to this.”
Derek pressed his hands over his ears, elbows on the counter.
“…You do realize I’m in your head, right?”
“…Shut up.”
A pause.
Then—
“Fine, fine,” the King teased. “But you like the slime back too, don’t you, my knight?”
Derek’s face flushed instantly.
He dropped his head onto the table.
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By the time Avery returned, Derek had fallen asleep at the table.
Still wearing his helmet. Still unwashed. Still tense, even in rest.
But for the first time in a while—
He felt safe.