#first empires content i ever watched was scott s1

[relgnira]

Thinking about 1 (one) frosty boy. Let him live his elsa frozen dreams!!

[kiwinatorwaffles]

I found This is About a Stuffed Bird bc of you and its one of my favorite fics ever. Do you by chance have more suggestions?

hermitcraft/mcyt fic recs? :0 let's go!!

i get a lot of my fic recs from other friends since i don't really go out and search on my own all too much for this fandom. but there are lots of great works out here! i will be listing out some of my favorites :3 mostly hc but a couple general mcyt ones that i think are an excellent read no matter what. all of the fics i'm listing will be genfic without ships!

also i just realized a lot of my bookmarks are grian-centric which is funny i guess because i am admittedly quite picky about content of my other favorites and grian just tends to have the most content in the fanbase. hope that'll be alright

(i hope some of my friends and mutuals don't mind me tagging them for their works)

hermitcraft longfics:

the last days of the free angel of carrows by @theminecraftbee - loved stuffed bird? here's another great longfic by second! this one is about joe and cleo in an urban fantasy mystery setting. again, second writes our beloved hermits into an captivating au!

leaping and hopping on a moonshadow by @lunarblazes - a fantasy au by luna my beloved! pearl suddenly gains magical powers and goes on a quest to find her long-lost friend grian who might know what's happening to her. she meets a lot of familiar faces along the way!

Recall by @redwinterroses - hey, i was the artist for this one! :D mumbo goes missing, so grian and scar search for him. they find that grumbot has been up to some... things along the way. the fic isn't finished but i think the chapters red put out is worth a read if you don't mind leaving off on a cliffhanger because it really is super interesting

dramaturgy by wormcity - a universe where gem and pearl join in a season 7 that was never finished. mumbo became the mayor, but the turf war went so very wrong afterwards. admittedly i have not finished reading this yet because ummm short on time xD but it's super interesting with a lot of layers of drama(turgy hahaha)!

hermitcraft short fics/oneshots:

for trying. by @autistic-evil-xisuma - a stuffed bird universe oneshot of x and xisuma during their lab days. great if you want to be sad over the doomed brothers again :D

the wheels on the bus by sparxwrites - a hilarious post-s8 oneshot about grian being a little shit towards the watchers. one of the first fics i've read from this fandom and i still love it

a body is an object by ruffboi - grian is a mimic, and pearl's arrival in s8 shakes him up. she hasn't seen him in a while and is quite upset to learn that the grian she knew died a long time ago. a great read for familial connections and conflict of friendships!

Goatman and the Rift by TheDepressedCanary - doc's eldritch powers start acting up when the rift appears. what shenanigans will ensue?

other mcyt fics/crossovers:

late at night, when the stars don't look quite right by @lunarblazes - an excellent empires s1 and hermitcraft crossover longfic, where grian lands into the server and is discovered by pearl! very great worldbuilding and relationships, i especially love the dynamic between gri and pearl and pearl and gem :D

every new discovery is just a reminder by amaranthinecanicular - grian begins pulling alternate versions of the hermits from the life series into the server. he does save a lot of them, but at what cost? it does end on a cliffhanger but this is genuinely one of the most captivating oneshots i've ever read... argghhh

The Fair and the Brave and the Good by @slashmagpie - an afterlife smp longfic centered around the shelby, scott, and sausage. i have never watched afterlife smp before in my LIFE and this is still one of my favorite pieces of literature ever. the characters and worldbuilding is impeccable and perfect if you like something dark with themes of hope and renewal.

Two Can Keep a Secret (If One of Them is Red) by anonymous secretmcblog - a 3L oneshot! ren suspects grian has stockholm syndrome with his pact to stay with scar, but his expectations are wrong. a truly excellent read and one of them first fics i've read! i still go back to reread it from time to time

dog at the door by fluffy_papaya & iamsolarflare - a longfic where doc and ren take a trip on a van on their way to s8. ren, however, is not quite himself, and doc has to learn to befriend the red king.

devil town is colder in the summertime by @bananasofthorns - a oneshot from a 100hsmp/life series d&d au! team BEST ventures into a cursed evil fucked up forest. uh oh.

Interview with the Aftermath by @ranchersrevenge (wanderlasts) - the last life contestants are invited for an interview. the responses vary greatly.

stars, smoke, and stolen car keys by wormcity - a 100hsmp modern au oneshot where grian, scar, and joel go on a hike. it doesn't go quite as they expected.

the beehive state by amaranthinecanicular - a dsmp oneshot after wilbur moves to utah. tommy visits him, and the two reconnect. i have to say i stopped following dsmp a long time ago but this fic made me BAWL. i don't even think you need to know any of the characters that well to really enjoy just how amazing the writing itself is

Can't Go Back (This Time) by @duckmumbo (musicaltvbooks) - soup group goes end raiding and accientally finds themselves in afterlife smp. nothing goes wrong, surely! also admittedly i havent finished reading this either but roy i swear i will. this is a great read nevertheless and the soup group dynamic is impeccable!

TommyInnit's unbeatable method of avoiding sudden death by eneliii - on the train of dsmp fics, this is the superhero au longfic that inspired my own hc superhero au, vdhau. it's a lot of funny shenanigans with tommy and his friends. the fic does take a dark turn at the end, but that can be skipped entirely (as said by eneli herself) if you just want the wholesome aspects.

if you don't mind a little self promo, here are some of my fics!

it takes two to play (the game of mutual secrecy) - the aforementioned hermitcraft hero au. this installment is centered around xisuma and evil x as brothers resolving their issues through hero work and solving the mystery of welsknight's disappearance :D there are other works that are set in the same universe if you're interested for more!

how to form the ultimate besties dynamic: an unreliable tutorial by hypnotizd - a oneshot! hypno is a warlock who goes treasure hunting under the sea. he meets a guardian who later becomes his unlikely friend.

smoke and mirrors, the hunt perseveres - grian's arrival in empires s2 unwittingly brings the watchers' suspicions with him. cue jimmy freaking out and a lot of shenanigans.

ballad of etho’s lab - my newest installment! a oneshot about etho's storied life as the redstone god.

i'm also currently working on the sequel to the game of mutual secrecy and a new (well not exactly new since i made concept art for it) au called private detective gem tasey! these will likely be released sometime late january or february. have fun with these fic recs! i haven't been reading as much lately but i hope ill be able to find more if anyone else asks in the future. cheers!

edit: the fics are out! here they are!

hiding in plain sight (the meaning of trust) - sequel to the hermitcraft hero au! it follows an escaped lab rat trying to acquaint themselves with human society while avoiding suspicion and making friends with familiar faces from tgms ;D

private detective gem tasey: a rotten mystery in london - a hermitcraft detective au where gem gets hired for a case that spirals completely into drama and politics!

[aesterium]

born of milk and love

a scott-centric empires s1 fic about his brother.

word count: 8,691

relevant tags and notes: this was written as a companion fic to my mdbb fic. you don’t need to have read that fic to read this one, but a quick run-down of info you might want to know is in the first author’s note on the ao3 link. pre- and post-canon content, some flower husbands content

read on ao3 || preview below

“Scott!”

Scott jumps out of his skin a bit when he hears his name hissed between bookshelves. Despite knowing exactly who it is, he looks around frantically, panicking when he doesn’t see anyone.

“▯▯▯▯?” he whispers, still trying to find where his brother is hiding. He hugs a thick leather tome to his chest.

After a second, a book slowly slides out from a bookshelf spine first, falling with a muffled thump on the gold carpet. As Scott watches, a chubby hand appears in the space where the book was. It awkwardly hangs there before more of the arm is shoved through, dislodging the books on either side of it, and twisting around to wave at him.

“You’re going to get in trouble,” Scott hisses, trying to hold back laughter.

Another hand appears and Scott watches his brother shove the two other books he’d loosened to the ground before hopping up on a shelf on his side. All he can see of the other boy is a lock of purple hair and a single dancing fuchsia eye.

“Hi, Scott,” he says, smiling toothily.

Scott smiles back, a giggle escaping despite his best attempts. “Hi, ▯▯▯▯.”

Before his twin can say anything, they hear a series of heavier footsteps making their way down the stone hallways. His twin lets out a squeak before hurriedly withdrawing from the bookshelf and scampering off. Scott’s about to loudly complain about cleaning up his mess when he reappears at the end of the shelf, rushing over to pick up the books he dropped down and shove them back in place.

“Don’t just stand there staring, idiot,” he says hurriedly. “Help me!”

“You did this to yourself,” Scott points out, but he puts his own book back before walking over and dutifully helping his brother clean up his mess before his parents noticed. He hears his father say something to the two of them, but he doesn’t recall those words.

There’s no continuation of this memory. It’s a single fragment, a piece of an idle childhood led by two boys who knew what their lives would be and how to seize it. It should be a perfect reflection of his childhood, of the simple joys that being young should give. Everything about it was polished in rose-tint, and yet he couldn’t view it that way.

Scott wonders why in even a memory so old and precious as this one, he cannot for the life of him remember his brother’s name.

 ☾○☽

 Scott first meets the heir of the Grimlands on her tour of the lands, the strange practice that some of the human Empires employed to ensure that the continuation of their bloodline was well-documented everywhere. She is one of the sharpest people he’s ever met despite being five years younger than him, and they fall into an easy rapport that translates well into letters. Scott soon finds himself looking forward to such letters, even when his brother teases him for being so interested in what a woman has to say.

“▯▯▯▯, I’m gay. We’re both gay.”

“And yet you’re talking to a woman?” His twin peers over his shoulder. “With such perfect, impressive penmanship?”

“Fuck off,” Scott says, pushing him away.

His brother gasps. “Oh, Exor,” he breathes. “Scott? Little Scotty? Perfect little baby boy Scotty said a  fuck word? Call the presses! Tell the papers!”

“Aeor’s antlers.” Scott is about to throw his hands in the air when he realizes that he’s still holding his quill. “Can I  please finish this letter?”

“Oh, so now you’d rather talk to a girl than your own dear darling brother?” His twin sticks his nose in the air and sniffs haughtily. “I see how it is, straightie.”

“That’s not— I’m not— how did you make ‘straightie’ sound like a slur?” Scott sputters.

“Who says it isn’t one?”

“Me! I say it!”

His twin pouts at him. “Oh, poo. I thought I got that one past you.”

“Leave me  alone, ▯▯▯▯,” Scott says, turning back to his letter. “I’m going to have to ask Father for permission to go into the archives to answer a question from here, and I’d rather write the rest of it up before doing that.”

“Nerd.” Before Scott can defend himself, his brother sweeps out of the room with one final, “See you later, idiot.”

“Nincompoop!” he shouts at the door.

“Who says ‘nincompoop’ anymore?” comes from down the hall.

“Boys! Stop shouting inside!” their dad calls from downstairs.

“Sorry, Dad!” 

 ☾○☽

  Hello, heir Scott! I hope you’re doing well— and yes, I know you hate your status being brought up, but cut a Grim heir some slack, I’ve got tutors breathing over my shoulder about this sort of formality.

To answer some of your questions: yes, multiples are well-documented in the Grim dynastic line. Some even say that our founder was himself a twin! Our succession isn’t guaranteed by birth order or anything, though; it’s not like the oldest of a set of triplets automatically is the most fit for ruling. Usually, any other siblings are trained in other tasks around the Empire so that the leader (the Count) can focus just on leading the Grimlands. There aren’t any set titles for the other positions those heirs attain; in the past few generations alone, there have been Smiths, Scientists, and even a Horsemaster, though that last one seems to be an exception and not a particularly historical example. 

None of this is the information you asked for. I’d erase it if I didn’t write it all in ink.

Most of the documented sets of multiples in my family are fraternal twins, but there have been identical twins as well. There is only one record of mirror image identical twins. Those two were the third Grim Count and her brother; according to that Count’s journals, he served as simply her Advisor, and together they expanded the Grimlands’ trade routes all the way to far-off Pixandria. Not too much of a concern anymore, of course, but back then it was truly an accomplishment. It’s said they wrote new legal proposals together, side by side, one writing with their right hand while the other corrected with their left. Fun anecdote, perhaps, but no real evidence to show for it.

I hope this helps your research.

 ☾○☽

 Scott has prayed to Aeor for as long as he could remember. He prays to Exor too, of course; you can’t deny one god over the other, even if you’re only the champion of one.

His twin joins him in his prayer today, and though Scott stares at him out of the corner of his eye, he doesn’t say anything about it until he’s standing and leaving the Church of Aeor and his twin is following behind.

“Are you good?” Scott asks, idly kicking a rock down the street.

“Yeah.” He sounds uncharacteristically downcast.

“You don’t sound very good,” Scott says.

His twin sighs loudly and glares at unlit candles at the side of the road. “Scott, have you ever thought about what it’ll be like when we become kings of this place?” he asks.

“Not really,” he admits. “We’d be living in the castle, I guess? And consulting Father about things that the court thinks are important. You’d be the one making the big decisions for Rivendell and I’d be talking to the other Empires for support. Just what the current Vaeorin and Xornoth do, I think.”

“I suppose.” His twin’s neck cranes as he stares at the sky. Scott looks at him with confusion before following his gaze up. “What’re you looking at?”

“Do you think the gods love us, Scott?” he asks.

“I’d hope so,” Scott replies, and the two of them stare as the sun crosses the sky. Scott feels his brother’s hand reach for his and they lock fingers, even now when they’re not children running down hills anymore.