The Smiles of Hidden Ghosts - A hermitcraft and Evo fanfic (THIS IS A SEQUEL)

Chapter 2

'⍑ᒷ ᒷᓭᓵᔑ!¡ᒷ↸. ̇/ᒷꖎᑑ⚍ᔑ ᒷᓭᓵᔑ!¡ᒷ↸. ∴ᒷ ᓵᔑリ'ℸ ̣ ⎓╎リ↸ ⍑╎ᒲ ᔑリ||∴⍑ᒷ∷ᒷ.'

'⍑ᒷ ᒷᓭᓵᔑ!¡ᒷ↸?'

'||ᒷᓭ?'

'||𝙹⚍ ᒲᒷᔑリ ||𝙹⚍ ꖎᒷℸ ̣ ⍑╎ᒲ ⋮⚍ᒲ!¡ 𝙹⚍ℸ ̣ 𝙹⎓ ᔑ ∴╎リ↸𝙹∴?'

'╎ ↸╎↸リ'ℸ ̣ ℸ ̣ ⍑╎リꖌ ⍑ᒷ ∴ᔑᓭ ᔑᓵℸ ̣ ⚍ᔑꖎꖎ|| ⊣𝙹╎リ⊣ ℸ ̣ 𝙹 ↸𝙹 ℸ ̣ ⍑ᔑℸ ̣ , ||𝙹⚍∷ 𝙹ᒲリ╎ᓭᓵ╎ᒷリᓵᒷ! ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ∷ᒷ ∴ᔑᓭ リ𝙹ℸ ̣ ⍑╎リ⊣ ╎ ᓵ𝙹⚍ꖎ↸'⍊ᒷ ↸𝙹リᒷ!'

'ᓭ╎ꖎᒷリᓵᒷ!' ℸ ̣ ᔑ⚍∷ℸ ̣ ╎ᓭ ⎓ᒷꖎꖎ ᑑ⚍╎ᒷℸ ̣ ᔑᓭ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ꖎᒷᔑ↸ᒷ∷ 𝙹⎓ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ∴ᔑℸ ̣ ᓵ⍑ᒷ∷ᓭ ᓵ𝙹ᒲᒲᔑリ↸ᒷ↸. ⍑ᒷ ᓭℸ ̣ ᔑ∷ᒷ↸ ᔑℸ ̣ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ ⊣∷𝙹⚍リ↸.

'i'ᒲ ᓭ𝙹∷∷||, ||𝙹⚍∷ 𝙹ᒲリ╎ᓭᓵ╎ᒷリᓵᒷ.'

'⊣𝙹𝙹↸. ||𝙹⚍ ∴╎ꖎꖎ リ𝙹∴ ∴ᔑℸ ̣ ᓵ⍑ 𝙹⍊ᒷ∷ ℸ ̣ ᒷ∷∷ᔑ∷, ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ 𝙹ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ∷ ⊣╎∷ꖎ ⎓∷𝙹ᒲ ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ╎∷ ∴𝙹∷ꖎ↸ ∴⍑╎ꖎᒷ ╎ ᓭᒷリ↸ ∴ᔑℸ ̣ ᓵ⍑ᒷ∷ᓭ ℸ ̣ 𝙹 ⎓╎リ↸ ̇/ᒷꖎᑑ⚍ᔑ.'

'ʖ...ʖ⚍ℸ ̣ ||𝙹⚍∷ 𝙹ᒲリ╎ᓭᓵ╎ᒷリᓵᒷ!'

'⊣𝙹! リ𝙹∴! ᔑリ↸ ↸𝙹リ'ℸ ̣ ᓵ𝙹ᒲᒷ ʖᔑᓵꖌ!'

ℸ ̣ ᔑ⚍∷ℸ ̣ ╎ᓭ ᓭᓵ⚍∷∷╎ᒷ↸ 𝙹⎓⎓ ∴╎ℸ ̣ ⍑𝙹⚍ℸ ̣ ᔑリ𝙹ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ∷ ⊣ꖎᔑリᓵᒷ ᔑℸ ̣ ⍑╎ᓭ ꖎᒷᔑ↸ᒷ∷.

∴╎ℸ ̣ ⍑𝙹⚍ℸ ̣ ᔑリ𝙹ℸ ̣ ⍑ᒷ∷ ⊣ꖎᔑリᓵᒷ ᔑℸ ̣ ↸𝙹ᒲ∷ᔑ𝙹.

Pain. Fear. Cold. Branches scratched at his skin as he woke, scrambling into a sitting position. Panting, he tried to recalled who he was, but the dull fog of amnesia filled his brain instead, and he gave up.  

He fought his way quickly free of the trees, crawling his way to his feet and taking in his surroundings. Blood ran down his arms, and his sweater was falling apart from all it's holes. It was red, and old, and torn to make space for a pair of wings. He felt them with interest, accidentally marring them with his bloody fingers. He flinched away, not wanting to cause damage to his feathered limbs. He could swear he'd never had them before, but where would they've come from? With a shrug, he gave up pondering and took to observing where he was again.

It was a forest, and he was alone. Trees surrounded him, stretching as far as he could see. A small pond lay nearly, and he walked cautiously over, staring in to get a better look at his reflection.

His hair was a mess - mousy brown and tangled, a long dishevelled fringe covering his forehead. Sticks stuck out from it at random angles as it braided together into a rather inelegant waffle. His eyes were purple, which somehow seemed to be a surprise. He seemed quite small, and his wings were about the same size of his body. No wonder they were the first thing he noticed...

Suddenly, he stood bold upright, an idea coming into his mind and refusing to disappear. He needed to build... something. He didn't know what, but something. His brain switched to autopilot as he gathered wood and built a small old-fashioned cottage in the middle of the clearly. It looked good, and a sense of achievement filled him. He should build another one. Another... the words were right on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn't find them. 

'Rust... rust...' he figured out the words aloud, hoping it would form as he did. 'Rustic? Rustic what? Rustic shack? Rustic home? Rustic... house! Yes! Rustic houses! Must... build... rustic houses!' He grinned to himself, admiring the rustic house he'd made. But it was only one... he needed to build more of them. A town, no, a CITY full of these brilliant buildings. He grabbed some more wood and began working again. 

Just as he'd finished his fifth house, he froze, as footsteps came from behind. Someone was running towards him. No, more than one person. He looked behind, just as a stranger with a stetson and a badly scarred face appeared. They too paused, as if in a dream, before coming closer and hugging him.

'Grian! It's you! It's really you!' The cowboy sobbed. 'What  happened? How did you escape?'

'Who... are you?' He stepped away, looking past the cowboy to where another person with blonde hair and a black bandana was standing. 

'See, Scar? I told you he was here. Looks like he's been busy...' 

'I'm... not Grian?' He forced his way out of the hug, frowning at 'Scar', if that was what the cowboy was called. 

'N...no, you're Grian. You're my friend. You sacrificed yourself to save me, back in Season 7...'

'I've never seen you before in my life. I'm not Grian. I don't know who you are, or what you're talking about, but I'm not your friend.' 

The other figure - the one with the bandana, took a step towards him. 'I found you unconscious in the bushes earlier, you must've experienced some kind of memory loss. Don't worry, you'll be ok.'

'I'm not your friend! I don't know who you think I am, but I'm not Grian.' He insisted again. 

'We'll help you remember. Come on, Grian. I'm Hypno.'

'Hypno, and Scar?' He repeated the names. 'And you think I'm Grian?'

'Yes, you are. Let's go.' 

'Wait... I remember something... I have another name... Enpy ... Enpygee...' 

'Enpeegee? What do you mean? I know the watchers call you Xelqua, but never that... Grian, Are you sure?' Scar frowned at him again. 

'I'm Enpygee. That's my name. Call me that. En-pee-gee.'

'Enpygee... En-pee-gee...' Hypno figured out the name. 'NPG?' 

'Yes! Enpygee! NPG!' NPG smiled as he remembered. 'That's even better! Yes! Thank you, Hypno!'

'You're... welcome...'

'B...but you're Grian...' Scar muttered, confused. 'You're not NPG...' 

'I AM.'

'What?'

'MY NAME IS NPG.' The words came out different to before, colder, more metallic. 

Like... a robot? 

OhmygoodnessthischaptertookthelengthoftheknownuniversetowriteAndIstillreallydislikehowitturnedoutahhhh.