Hermitcraft One-Shots (S7)

deep breaths*

tw//death, mention of death

~~~~~~

In and out, in and out. Deep breathes-

Mumbo's hands shook as he fixed the red flower on the lapel of his suit. His face was hot and sticky with tears, his black hair unruly from only a rough brush earlier.

Iskall stood beside him, human eye dark and robotic eye flashing from teal to dark red. He had switched his usual vest and trousers to a silky black suit and red tie.

Furious words and ideas shot through Mumbo's speech, and he bit his tongue, trying to tame the bitter thoughts. He needed to stay calm.

Their heads were hanging over a casket.

An empty casket.

Grian's casket.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Tango tapped his finger against his temple, trying to calm the furious headache pounding against his mind. Choking out a gasp, he walked over to the large window of Toon Towers.

He knew that over an ocean, just a fly away, there was something happening. A funeral.

Tango wanted to attend, or at least he thought he did. Yet something was holding him back. He was one of the ones that made this happen. Grian might still be alive if not for him. Without him, there might be a body in that empty casket.

A silent tear escaped those red eyes, tangling in a fallen lock of golden hair. Tango bit his tongue, refusing to dishonor Grian by crying over him. Grian would want his friends to remember him in a happy way, not in a sad one. Besides, Tango was hardly his friend. He was his enemy.

His former enemy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~

Your mind. The one unescapable prison.

Scar was trapped in his own mind, his own prison. While no one forced him into jail, Scar locked himself in his office, refusing to leave or speak to anyone. If you happened to walk past the Town Hall, you might be able to catch his darkened face in the window, staring at you.

He murdered someone. Scar ended Grian's life- his best friend's life. At one point, he thought his closest friend was Bdubs, or Cub. But the man who was always there for him, always willing to help or trust him, was Grian.

Even if Scar didn't realize that.

A soft, fluffy body rubbed against Scar's leg as he gazed out the window with dead eyes. He reached down to rub Jellie's fluffy fur, but stopped short when he heard a soft creak of the door.

Scar turned around lazily, eyes slowly being pulled towards the door frame. Bdubs stood in the doorway, eyes red and puffy from recent tears. He smiled meekly as the mess in front of him, the former clean and orderly mayor in shambles.

"Hey, Scar."

BdoubleO100 pulled the door shut behind him, eyes crinkled with a sad smile. "Scar. How're you holding up?" Lips pulled tight and eyes emotionless, Scar looked away from the door and back towards the window. Bdubs sat in a plush chair and frowned.

After minutes of silence, Scar spoke.

"Today. Today is his funeral."

He stepped back from the window and sat at his desk, stroking Jellie in his arms. "I want- I want to go?" Scar whispered, head down. Bdubs blinked at him. "You want to go to his funeral?" Scar nodded meekly, a tear slipping down his face.

Bdubs sighed sadly. "Scar- I don't know- I don't know if you should-" Scar stood up from his chair angrily. "He- I need to go." He glanced at a mirror on the wall and straightened his tie. In one swift move, he was out the door and flying high into the sky.

~~~~~~~~~~

What is the afterlife?

Depends on if you believe in it. Grian hadn't really thought much about it, because he never thought he'd be dead. Well, not this soon.

But now he was a ghost. Haunting his friends. Well, was he haunting? More like watching over. Haunting sounded scary, and Grian was not a scary person.

Once he died, nothing very spectacular happened. He immediately appeared in the same spot, just in a ghostly form. Grian could move through walls.

His friends couldn't hear him. His friends couldn't see him. He was dead. He was gone.

And now, he floats above an empty casket. A private funeral, held at his Hobbit Hole. Solemn faces gave sad smiles to Mumbo and Iskall, uncomfortable to stay, and too sad to go.

Impulse and xB didn't hold back their tears, Ren and Doc held clenched fists. None of this was fair. Grian didn't want his friends to be sad, and he didn't want to be dead.

But he was dead.

And it was all Scar's fault.