#he can get a new start with this mcc

[sl3epyaf]

What if you got turned into a 5 year old? WHB kings

Small fic based off of this post I made, tweaked the concept a bit tho

Not proofread, forgive me for typing mistakes-

GN reader/MC :]

This was meant to be done a lot earlier but I just didn't have ANY motivation to write sooo.. /ᐠ - ˕ -マ

Enjoy whatever this is- <3

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When you first woke up you felt weird.. not like sick but just weird. It took some effort but you finally managed to get a glimpse of yourself in the mirror- instead of your usual self there stood a tiny you- around 5 years old in front of the mirror.

Your thoughts were cut off by the door getting opened.

For the first 20 seconds or so you and Satan kept staring at each other before he finally manages to blurt out "What the fuck happened to you?". Honestly, that's what you wanted to know as well because how the hell did you just wake up on a Thursday like this?!

You open your mouth to say something only to manage to say "Don't know". It appears whatever- this was also turned your ability to speak back to the one you had as a five year old, but at least your mind was intact-

"Well shit" The short devil says before picking you up and placing you on his shoulders and bolting out of room straight over to where Sitri, Paimon and Ppyong were talking.

Paimon was the first one to notice you, a gasp escaping his lips "MCC～ What happened to you?" Oh boy, you were going to hear that question a lot.. You just knew it.

You shrug your shoulders. That gesture somehow earned you an 'aww' from Paimon- you could only guess he found you extremely adorable.

"We're going to Tartaros, perhaps Mammon knows how to fix you" 'Someone get me to Lucifer please because he's the closest person who can probably fix this' you think to yourself, internally facepalming. Though a certain concern quickly appeared in your head- how on earth were you going to get there so fast?!

Well you got your answer extremely fast as Satan bolted outside and into where he keeps his motorcycles..

And when Satan placed you on his motorcycle? You almost screamed. Surely he wasn't going to drive there with you on board?! Actually knowing him he would..

Unfortunately you fears were true as the devil of wrath started the engine and started speeding towards Tartaros but at least he was holding you tight so you wouldn't fall?

If you were to ignore the.. few panic attacks you almost got on your trip to Tartaros then you could say it was the best trip you've ever had in your life.

Instead of parking his motorcycle somewhere Satan decided 'fuck driving rules' and drove straight through walls and straight to Mammon.

The sudden stop caused you to fly out of Satan's arms and into Mammon's.

"Who are they?" "MC" "What happened to them?" Ah shit, here we go again. You lift your head "Don't know, woke up like this"

You then noticed Bimet looking at you with an appraising gaze before pulling you into his arms and then pulling a donation box from God knows where- You didn't even have to know that Bimet was going to use your tiny self as means to get money- probably charging Tartaros devils a hefty sum of gold to see you..

You poke Bimet's cheek "I want money." If that fucker was going to make money off of you then you wanted some of the share!

"Fine."

Anddd about three hours later you were regretting your life choices. You weren't going to lie, you were about 60% sure that Bimet wasn't going to try and make money off of you but he did- the good news is that you're keeping 60% of what was earned, the bad news was that you were EXHAUSTED, your legs hurting from walking around so much.. and so now you were leaning against Mammon's chest, his large hands patting your head which caused you to drift off and finally fall asleep.

You're not sure how long you slept but you were woken up by the slight smell of smoke and so you open eyes and you found yourself laying on the couch with Belphegor's arms around you.

"Huh-" you blink before looking around, now all eyes are on you. "His Maj' and I found heard about your situation and now we're here just chillin'". Beleth explains, squishing the cigarette he was smoking under his boot.

Shockingly that didn't comfort you in the slightest.. why? Because if Beleth and Belphegor heard about the situation then how many more- and more importantly- did the angels hear about it?! Or are they the ones behind it?

"Stop movin' so damn much" You hear a tired voice behind you. Apparently you moving around slightly woke the king of sloth up which to be honest made you laugh just a tiny bit.. "Morning" You greet him knowing damn well that Belphegor would rather not be awake right now.. in your defense- it was not your fault that he woke up.

In the corner of your eye you can see Beleth checking the clock, he sighs as he walks over to you, carefully unwrapping Belphegor's arms around you "Sorry we've gotta go, got some stuff to deal with"

You frown a bit- you've been up for about 3 minutes and hadn't had the chance to talk with Beleth and Belphegor much- at least you got to nap. You wave them goodbye and then look around the room "Where Satan?"

"He had something to do in Gehenna so he had to leave" Mammon explains, getting up "I'll get you something to eat". Now that food was mentioned you did realize that you were hungry-

When the door to your room was suddenly opened you almost screamed after realizing who came in.

"And here I thought you couldn't get anymore adorable～" Asmodeus greets you, picking you up. "Have the devils treated you well? Have you been fed proper food?"

'If by being fed means getting no food then yes i've been fed well, really well in fact' you think. But instead of voicing your- thoughts you shake your head and manage to respond with "No food".

Almost immediately Asmodeus frowns at your response, reaching down to boop your nose. For half a second you were temped to bite Asmo's finger like an angry cat but you didn't, instead you respond with "Mammon bringing food".

"I see～Let's hope he brings something that's edible for you, your teeth aren't good enough to bite down on gold". Oh crap- you didn't even think about that- Now you had to pray that whoever of the seven kings held their one shared braincell gave it to Mammon for a moment to make him realize that gold is NOT good food for a human child.. or hell a normal human in general!

'Thanks Asmo now you're giving my small brain the overthinking syndrome..'

Oblivious to your now panicking mind Asmodeus sits down and shockingly begins to tell you about his past wife and kids.

At some point Mammon had come back and (very hesitantly considering Asmodeus' presence) had given you a plate of normal food so now you were snacking on food while listening to Asmo's story peacefully-

Well until that peace was lost by a fly starting to buzz hear your ear!

You pout slightly "Bub.."

Your annoyance was either clearly written on your face or your tone considering the fly disappeared about 5 seconds after. Replaced with Beelzebub's figure standing in the middle of the room- .. holding a bottle of wine?!

"I heard you changed into a child so I brought you something to drink!". You widen your eyes, staring at Beelzebub like he was the biggest idiot in the room- which he was but you weren't going to say that out loud considering you didn't have the will or patience to deal with a fly bugging you for the next week or two..

"Wine is not safe for human children to consume" Asmodeus says in your stead, tightening his grip on you slightly as if he's worried that Beel might actually shove some wine down your throat..

"It's not?" 'Dear god never let this man have kids..' You think to yourself..

"It's not" You confirm with a sigh, focusing on eating your sandwich again. "Do we know what caused this?" Beel suddenly asks and you sigh again. Considering that you had food in your mouth you shake your head as a clear 'no', 'hell no' even.

"We should call Levi!" Beel suggests, earning nods from the two other kings with you. 'Solomon you saying these guys are idiots would be an understatement of the fucking universe time.'

When Leviathan got the call for him to come and take a look at you he almost laughed and he was internally laughing until he arrived in the room, immediately starting to glare daggers at Asmo who's lap you were still sitting in.

And then you were snatched from Asmo's lap by Levi- You weren't a devil but even you could sense the envy radiating from him. "Levi!" Beel greets Leviathan with a bright smile on his face which earned a scoff from him-

'I can't imagine just getting brushed off like that, i'd cry for 6 years at least'

"What happened to them?" Leviathan finally asks- shockingly you didn't hear that as much as you thought you would or maybe you were asleep when those questions were asked- honestly you didn't know. "We don't know, Satan crashed here with his motorcycle with them in his arms" Mammon responds- well at least you didn't have to respond.

"An angel attack?" THAT'S WHAT YOU WANTED TO KNOW. "Don't know" You respond, crossing your tiny arms with a pout "We thought you might know Levi" Beelzebub adds, smiling at Leviathan. "Well clearly I don't, I've never seen this before" Okay now you wanted to know- did Levi wake up on the wrong foot or something???

"I'm dialing Lucifer's number～" Asmo says with a slight smirk. "You're not blocked?" You ask with a straight face. In the corner of your eye you could see Leviathan get a small smirk on his face before it returned back to his original expression. The devil king of envy holding you slightly closer as Asmodeus frowns "Blocked"

Yeah you didn't find that part that shocking- almost everyone you know that isn't from Abaddon has him blocked.. more often than not you were this close to also blocking him.

"I'll call Lucifer for master" Mammon says, quickly dialing Lucifer.

[Can this mf just come home to me already? :( Alright back to our scheduled programming.. ]

Shockingly it didn't take that long for Lucifer to arrive. He knocked on the door before walking in, his eyes scanning the room before they fell on you.

"What happened to them?" He finally asks while picking you up from a less than willing Leviathan's arms. Lucifer places his hand on your small forehead as to check your temperature- well you didn't know why he did that but to be fair there was a reason he was a doctor and not you-

"They apparently woke up like this. I miss when my kids were this small" Asmodeus responds with a sigh, clearly reminiscing about the past. "Is it some sort of an angel attack?" Mammon continues, making Lucifer raise an eyebrow- 'Yeah I don't think he's too fond of his former brethen being blamed for everything even if my favorite motto is to blame Gabriel..'

"I don't believe it is" The fallen angel confirms, looking at you again before continuing "I've heard rumors of a mischievious devil going around and spiking other's drinks with magic that turns them into a random creature or in MC's case into a child for a day".

You look at Lucifer with a raised eyebrow- did he deal with someone like this earlier this week or something? "Harmless?" You ask, hands reaching to play with the messy strands of Lucifer's hair. Hell since you had the opportunity to do so- why not? In the corner of your eye you can see Leviathan glaring daggers at you- you were going to get hung for that later weren't you-

He pauses for a few seconds before nodding "I believe it is harmless"

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And that's how you got babied for the rest of the day with Beleth, Belphegor and Satan arriving back at some point.

[notscarsafe]

OKAY SO what with the TWO new Hermits implied by the updated banner I will say that, though the Skizz truthers have me convinced, I now have room to do my own crazy red string monologue and throw my hat in for my choice

1) Mythical J. Sausage (the J is silent) is a multitalented S-tier builder that absolutely deserves to be shoulder to shoulder with the Hermits. The man does buildings, interiors, terraforming, custom trees, and he does them SO WELL.

2) The production values!!! Beautiful replay mod sequences with shifting camera perspectives, shaders, music that sets the tone for each segment that's different from series to series. He already has more than a million followers on YouTube and for good reason!!

3) He has been SO consistent lately. He started a hardcore world about three months ago (about the time you might expect the Hermits to finalize their s10 choices maybe...???) and already has 15 episodes and hasn't gotten involved in any other big content. (He did just start playing a little of the BCG server but from what I understand that's super casual /copium copium copium).

4) That hardcore world is conveniently about to reach a good "pause" point. He started his world on a cherry blossom biome island that he's filled with a medieval village and starter farms, he's said it's almost full and what's left is the castle. I'm guessing the new season will start the first week of February, so if Sausage puts out a video this week building out that Castle and finishing that island it will be MIGHTY CONVENIENT TIMING.

5) This man can GRIND. His Hardcore world hasn't even been going half a year and he's built... So much??? Magnificent! And when he was on the Hermitcraft server he did the Razorcrest for scar AND the player head baby yoda/stormtrooper merch AND the noteblock themesong AND still built in the xmas village and other "diamond of peace" and so many other shenanigans. Did the man even sleep? He can grind with the best of them.

6) He can do redstone, too! Maybe not unique designs, I honestly don't know, but he builds farms for build materials no problem.

7) The DRAMA this man loves his improv and his backstory and trauma lore! For every series he does! Can you imagine if he gets to interact with Ren for an extended period of time, what that would do to them, to us?? Give Martyn a run for his money!!

8) Which brings me to my next point, which is that Sausage is already One of The Gang, because he's been in series with so many of the Hermits already! Empires and the crossover, obviously, but also Pirates with Cleo and Origins with Scar, and he's even done MCC! Joel is the only other player with the same depth of different series but there are other people truthing him already.

9) The EPIC BROMANCE with Pearl. My god the devotion of this man to his sunflower goddess bestie. I would try to do ot justice but y'all have seen floweroflaurelins work, you already know.

10) He's already a PG streamer but with HILARIOUSLY PG-13 tendencies. Imagine him and Cleo cracking each other up at an HHH stream, *grips your shoulders* IMAGINE IT.

11) Sausage comes with his own mascot in the form of interdimensional dog extraordinaire Bubbles, but he's also just an animal lover on general. Mans drinks his "I love Jellie" juice and had her in his world even before the sad news of her loss.

12) Diversity win! No one should be hired just for their gender, race, sexuality etc etc unless it's truly necessary to the job, but we were all happy when more women got added to the server in s8 and I know a lot of people would be happy to see some ethnic diversity added, too.

... That bulletin board had a lot more pins in it than I thought it did but anyway MYTHICALSAUSAGE TRUTHERS/ALL OTHER TRUTHERS RISE UP SPEAK YOUR TRUTH! we'll only get to wildly speculate for a few weeks so we might as well make it everyone else's problem ENJOY IT TO THE FULLEST!!

[rosegoldenatlas]

It is my full belief that you can connect every Minecraft series Joel has been a part of into one continuous storyline, here are some fun examples I thought of:

The Mezalean Matral Palace crumbled and became the cherry mountain in hermitcraft. The hermits move every few years, so do the empirians, so while the empirians were off in their new area for s2. The moss in Mezalea had time to spread and the clay to decompose. So when the hermits moved there not too long after there were no visible remnants of the empires that had once been there. That's why the color palletes of the cities are the same; the culture of the villagers who once were Mezalean stuck to tradition, still following the old goddess.

When the life series first started it was voluntary, they signed up themselves, but the contracts and wavers the watchers had them sign bound them to join the other series' whether they wanted to or not.

'The Mezalean King is Dead'. - ESMP S2 Smallishbeans EP1. That king died. He died from ignorance. From stupidity. Well- the person he was died. His body was fine. But the man who ignored the strange events that happened, the 'lore', he was gone. The new him would take action. Last time everyone was just making shit up right? He could do that too. Maybe he could even be a god like his wife was before, she had been brave and powerful. He could be that for her this time.

MCC invitation letters are sent two weeks before the event, an if you can't make it to the hub and to MCC? That's on you. Those coins are valuable. If you show someone your winners coin it could get you ridiculous discounts at the hub markets, especially if you have more than one.

[ceratedfish24]

So Scott has a unicorn horn from his mascot, deer antlers from ESMP, stars floating around his head from LL, how much more stuff can we put there so it's just absolutely ridiculous I had the thought of a halo and antenna from one of the times he played on an origin server but that's where I'm running out of ideas

Almost all of these animals have visible ears, so I will be avoiding mentioning ears. You can put any pair of ears on him or every pair of ears on him! I will bring up wings and tails, though.

RIGHT, okay, let's get into it.

Mascot (and a variety of other reasons) - Unicorn horn and any interpretation of a unicorn tail that you believe in

ESMP S1 - Deer antlers and white wings, implied to be owl wings, and crown

ESMP S2 - Heterochromia, the only thing "hetero" about him and crown

3rd Life - Poppy

Last Life - Stars and crown

Double Life - Soulmate tether and crown (if it had been any soulmate pair without a winner, we most likely would've called them both the winners. I don't think it's fair to say that Scott didn't win Double Life just because he's won before and wanted to put the spotlight on Pearl so that people wouldn't get mad about him winning twice)

Limited Life - Fins, coral, and fish tail

Secret Life - Rock band makeup

Wild Life - Creaking eyes, bark, and heart

Simple Life - Jester hat and crown

(Feel free to double check me on his MCC wins - or anything, really, but this in particular take with a grain of salt)

MCC - Red Rabbit tail, Orange Ocelot tail, Yellow Yak horns and tail, Lime Llama fur and tail, Green Gecko tail and sticky grippers, Cyan Coyote tail, Aqua Axolotl tail and feathery gills, Blue Bat wings, Purple Panda tail, Pink Parrot wings and tail, and 7 crowns

MCC (Seasonal) - Red Raven wings and tail, Ginger Breadman frosting, Mustard Mummy wrap, Teal Turkey tail, Aqua Abomination... monster parts (seems to be implied that "abominations" may have sharp teeth), Pink Present wrap, and crown

MCC (Retired team names) - Blue black cat tail, Green Guardian spikes and tail, and Cyan Creeper tail or scales or legs or however you interpret creepers

Origin SMP - Purple hair and cape

Afterlife SMP - Moth wings/antenna, vampire fangs, angel wings and halo, gills, kangaroo legs, pouch, and tail, red panda tail, carrot nose, macaw wings and tail (sorry to take your thing, Grian, but Scott was once turned into a parrot and made a direct reference to "pesky bird"), fox ears and tail

Pirates SMP - The grapple gun.

New Life SMP - Transporter outfit, mushrooms, puppet strings (though he's technically a "haunted doll"), general sparkles, butterfly wings

Rats SMP S1 - Farmer's hat

Rats SMP S2 - Rat tail and potion belt

Fantasy SMP - Tiger tail and claws

Witchcraft SMP - Crown, how would you even start on all of the scary stuff that he can do in this series

Misadventures SMP - Eyebrows😰

Crown count: 14

Thank you for the ask!!🩵

[megabuild]

"Is Etho's Lab Autistic?" - the greatest thread in the history of MCYTblr, locked by a moderator after 12,239 pages of heated debate,

NOT INTENDED to be a diagnostic resource or an "accusation/truthing" of Etho being autistic, but rather comparing autistic criterion as printed in the DSM-5 with various clips and common autistic experiences, since he has many autistic fans who relate to him. Also because it's a little funny and it's always fun to see more Etho clips. Some of these clips may overlap categories.

A: Persistent deficits in social communication and social interaction.

Unaware of social conventions or context; makes socially inappropriate comments (especially to strangers)

Bdubs: "One of the first things he said to me... Bdubs, you are always sick. I never get sick."

"I was at the DMV, for like, fifteen minutes."

(Gem: "Sometimes the things that come out of your mouth are... unexpected.") "That's how you get laughs, Gem."

Lack of theory of mind (difficulty or inability to recognise cognitive differences- assumes everyone thinks similarly and will understand any references or explanations made, no matter how particular)

"PLETHORA!"

"It's the same noise tigers make when they chuff."

"Feel free to boo if you wish." ("Boo!")

B: Restricted, repetitive patterns of behaviour, interests or activities.

Idiosyncratic or metaphorical language (language that has meaning only to those familiar with the individual's communication style) (also extends to a very particular or idiosyncratic sense of humour that appeals only to themselves)

"The Office is a good show..."

"Objectify them! Objectify them real good!"

"What's the deal with bathroom... peanuts...?"

"This is probably the greatest story you will ever hear in your lifetime."

"And he's like, Etho, don't go in there."

Echolalia (immediate or delayed repetition of sounds, words or phrases)

"Meow!"

"Deh-deh-deh!"

"We got go get wool!" (More mature jargoning than echolalia, but still)

Rigid thinking (difficulty or inability to understand humour, irony, or implied meanings)

"That's Not What That Is."

"I don't have social skills, Grian.."

Particular interests, often on unorthodox things or with uncommon levels of intensity

Sourcing exact clips for this one is tricky, but being a Minecraft YouTuber is one of the most autistic things a person can do imo.

Specifically, a redstone Minecraft YouTuber. Who invents stuff like the Nexus.

(On fireworks, something he's made frequent references to and also tried to make as a kid) "I'm like a kid in a candy store right now!"

Anxiety around change/transitional periods

"Whenever I'm recording a new series with a bunch of new people, the stress... I start to feel it in my stomach." (Gem: "Aw, that's anxiety!")

C: Other things I felt were relevant but couldn't decide on a category for

"I used to go out after rainstorms and pick (worms) up..." (Guude: "Would you let them go ever, or-") "No, I usually forgot about 'em... found 'em later all dried up..."

Cleo: "To be fair, Etho never claims he's a grown up, he just sort of.. giggles and runs away."

"Guys? GUYS?!"

Hiding in the bathroom at MCC

Vaxxed?

Mannerisms such as his "sleepy" or monotone voice from earlier years, or "whisper-shouting" rather than actually yelling.

Thanks

[teddybearsandspaceships]

For my own memory, in the hopes that Scar will put yesterday´s stream on his VODs channel because it was amazing and featured among other things:

Scar calling Etho “the Maple Prince”

Xisuma trolling Scar by mixing up Lord of the Rings, Star Wars, Star Trek, and Harry Potter

Mumbo showing Scar the llama death chamber, and Scar praising him for being weird

Scar and Mumbo having a conversation about social media and AI

Scar telling Etho not to worry and that he´s thinking about moving the mail box himself (after all he had two best-selling redstone shops so surely he´s qualified!); Etho: well now I´m worried… But right afterwards Etho says people forget that Scar is actually quite skilled at the game

Etho is just interrupting people today and Scar suggests just collecting people to procrastinate

I approve of Scar encouraging Etho to participate in MCC again

Etho asking how Scar got stamps already, Scar saying he´s been a part of a lot of Life series, Etho: “you and your wily words, you can get anything you want…”

Big Salmon decreed mercury = good

Cleo shows up! “lag busting” is the new “it lagged into my inventory”

Scar definitely not encouraging Cleo to kill all other villagers after setting up her own trading hall. Cleo wants organic free range villagers.

Cleo trying to sell the monstrosolith as a giant billboard

Cleo proved she can do valley girl voice, Scar and Etho are shocked. Then they´re discussing what "no cap" means. (Etho on stream: “big true, no cap.”) They talked about poggers, and Scar going wild with his pants off (after Cleo exploded them), and Etho didn´t know what Stitch is.

Scar starts talking about Disney and it takes him a minute to realize Cleo and Etho have run away

More maple syrup discussion (Etho telling Cleo if she likes the brand she gets it´s fine), and a frantic ride-by and log-out by Grian

Cleo and Scar want to start a cult. Etho wants to be a frat instead, something cooler. Frats have fewer rules, they´re more like “pants off, it´s fine.” Scar says he´d ask too many questions to be in a cult, Etho points out he could be cult leader. Cleo immediately offers to be his second, the person who does all the dirty work.

Shoe talk. Scar shows off his twelve-year-old shoes on stream.

Making fun of Etho´s set-up! Scar is horrified. Etho talks about his Kleenex box where his mike stands. It matches his desk! It has his settings written on it! Also his space bar broke during DO2 but he got used to it. Scar decides they need reinforcements and calls Bdubs over. Ren also shows up.

Etho mentions he didn´t get a Decked Out 2 desk mat (took to long to think about it) and Tango logs in to write in chat that he´s disappointed and logs out again

A wild Iskall approaches in the distance. Etho: trident brother!

Etho invented the minecart shuffle

Cleo: "I always want you to kill people, Scar. ...no not Etho."

And Etho leaves to shuffle snow like the Canadian cryptid he is

(how dare Ren interrupt Bdubs before he can give his current opinion on the kleenex box)

"Etho´s not one to lie" (are you sure about that? ^^)

...I look away for two seconds and did Mumbo just call himself a panda in chat. I was later told: a panda fiat! Which is a car, and Iskall is a Ferrari

Moonlanding with Gem! And some talk about bases and criticism. Gem: "I love making Etho mad," “Let Etho be mad,” What´s he gonna do, all he´s gonna do is go oh snappers ^^ "Scar, you are my Etho"

[riacte]

🥁 Welcome to the first ever "Choose an unhinged Renchanting moment" ✨ALL STARS EDITION✨!!! 🥁

In which winners of the previous nine (!!) polls and the Last Life burning tower scene will battle it out for ULTIMATE UNHINGED RENCHANTING MOMENT!! Deliberately made to cross over from 2023 to 2024 to wish for a new year full of Renchanting <3

If you don't want to read my lengthy and dramatic sports guy commentary you can skip to the poll right at the end.

Now, let's introduce our beloved competitors! With some clips sponsored by @ani-craft, thank you as always <3

Starting from Round 1, the OG, the beginning of this series in Feb 2023— congrats to "Ren calling Maidtyn "very very sexy" completely unprovoked"!. Now, fellow Tumblr users, this is a historical moment because the Maidtyn trend was the Tumblr response to Martyn being active on Tumblr, and it snowballed into the Mint Mistletoes of MCC19 wearing skins of maid dresses (and a butler suit). This is the tangible impact of the Tumblr fan community on MCC. And of course it's about maid dresses.

Round 1 was quickly followed up by Round 2, and narrowly winning by FOUR votes is... [drumroll] "r/place (2022) when Martyn helped place a pixel of blush on RK Ren"!. Truly a chaotic moment that somehow became a highlight even in the overall chaos of those few days.

But the numbers really peaked in Round 3, aka. the Limited Life edition when Martyn's lore stream repeatedly dropped bombs on us. 100% of these moments are from Martyn, by the way. But which unhinged moment was the most unhinged? Which moment will win like Martyn? Unsurprisingly, the most popular option are those two words that basically sum it up— "UNGUIDED HAND". An unhinged moment that won with a whopping 404 out of 1913 votes.

Things did not calm down after Limited Life. Some might say the moments only became more unhinged. 2.5 months after LimLife ended, Round 4 began. Most of these moments are also from Martyn. Most unhinged of all: "Martyn declaring in a low voice: 'Third Life never ended for me'." Yeah it sure didn't, buddy.

Fast forward to September 2023. Treebark Week 2023! Surely the perfect moment for a poll! Also, I need to add that I was so excited about Round 5 that I posted it before TBW ended and... let's say it immediately got worse the day after I posted the poll. My hubris for assuming it was the end... Anyways, Martyn's Tumblr shenanigans kick in once again. Congrats to "Martyn saying nothing about an ask that claims his character is in love with Ren", which also ended up being a significant post to Scurvyblr. For reasons.

Two months after TBW, the pining gets exponentially worse. And I do mean exponentially. Enter Round 6, which has a lot of insane moments, but there was one clear winner, a moment that swept with 32% of the votes— everybody clap and cheer for "Martyn's 50 word 3L AU drabble - "Luck be with ye.... Hand"!! At the time of writing, that post has 4.1k notes. Martyn's just like us. He's writing fanfiction and that's so real of him.

Merely ten days later, fires are crackling, demons are giggling— it's the Decked Out open day! And we got a Renchanting feast! Round 7 emerged from That Iconic Burning Stone Box and was dedicated to moments the stream day. With 39% of the votes, the unhinged moment that swept was "Ren to Martyn: You have very fine lips there and a wonderful neck for kissing". Honorable mentions go to Martyn's Twitch chat (for surviving), Martyn's viewers (for clipping it with varying degrees of "what did he just say??"), and of course, False (for locking them in and kickstarting whatever the improv demon roleplay was).

A few weeks later, the flames have died down— or have they? Round 8 enters with a steel chair and Ren has more unhinged moments now. Martyn's Tumblr takes home another win with "Martyn reblogging a post that calls Ren his “Minecraft boyfriend”!! This is the third win that's from Martyn's Tumblr blog. You love to see it.

Last but not the least, Round 9 from last week! It's finally Ren's turn to dominate. Our winner is.... "Ren mentions going to sleep and dreaming of Martyn’s 'beautiful, beautiful eyes'"!! Appropriately clipped with the caption "Insane".

But that's not all! In Round 1 + 2, I purposefully excluded the altar scene and the burning tower scene because I felt those two would sweep. Now, I think the altar scene is still untouchable but the burning tower seems almost normal now. (As normal as an unhinged moment could be.)

A new unhinged moment has appeared! Challenger approaching! Last Life Ren purposefully sets his tower on fire after knowing Martyn is watching him and Martyn runs to save him while screaming "Ren, what are you doing to yourself! Stop burning yourself!".

Okay, okay, my dramatic commentary is done. Hey, I'm not a Renchanting fan for nothing. Here's the poll. Have fun :D

Much love to all of you <3 here's to another year of unhinged Renchanting moments!

(Also sorry the r/place should be in 2022 not 2021)

[satureja13]

Rubyn is so glad the Boys are going to help Albaleyh - she ordered their uniforms right after she left. And the boxes already got delivered! That was fast! Luckily she has an instructor's license so she can officially teach them everything they need to know about space travels. And as soon as they passed all the tests, they can boldly go where no man has gone before! Or so ^^'

They all undressed to donne their new uniforms. Sai had to avert his gaze. Jeb is too hot to handle right now :3

Jeb opened the first box: "This is apparently the box with our pyjamas..." Kiyoshi spent enough time with Jack, the nerd, to know that: "These are no pyjamas. They're uniforms." They opened the other box. Vlad: "Is this a joke? I'm not going to wear the uniforms from the enemy!" Jack tried to pacify him: "Don't be upset, hm?"

But Vlad, who doesn't want to be pacified, shouted over to Rubyn, who was impatiently waiting for them in the yard: "Rubyn, they sent the wrong ones! We can't wear these!" Rubyn, on the verge of loosing her nerves with their whining and dawdling: "These are the right ones! Have you any idea how much a Star Wars™ instructor's license costs these days since Disney imbibed them? I had no choice! There are kids out there missing their father! Put your uniforms on and come over already so we can get your nagging asses off of this planet!"

Oh no! Rubyn is apparently a Starfleet instructor ö.ö' And she got them official Star Trek uniforms... The others think they are not exactly pretty, but they have no idea why Vlad is so upset. And Ji Ho thinks Kiyoshi looks quite dashing, which upsets Vlad only further ö.Ö'

Jeb: "Why are these the uniforms of 'the enemy'?" Jack: "These are Star Trek uniforms. We like Star Wars." Jeb: "What's the difference?" Sai was already googling: "There is absolutely no difference..."

Jack thinks it's better for Vlad's salvation if they stop this discussion before anyone gets hurt: "Let's go out and start our training ^^'"

Rubyn praised them: "Ah, how stunning you look! Nothing radiates distinctive authority like a Starfleet uniform! And Jack, I'm glad you choose Worf's uniform with the baldric! Suits you." Jack winced. Vlad can't believe what he just heard with his pointy ears: "You... you choose it? You knew? Why would you choose this?" And that was the moment where Vlad and Jack's eternal friendship was put to the ultimate test ö.ö Jack stiffened - but eventually straightened up: "Yes - I also like Star Trek and there's nothing wrong with it - I'm proud to be a Trekkie. So, I said it! And I also think Worf is as hot as the magma deep below Qo'noS! There you have it!"

Little Goat is proud of you, Jack :3 But Vlad's mouth became so dry, he has no more spit left to even hiss. And his fingers cramped - trying desperately not to shake and strangle Jack - to bring him to his senses... His best friend - a traitor! And he always thought the force was with him! (Vlad really was so, so upset all the time, omg! o.o)

Rubyn thought maybe it's the best to let Vlad work himself - and his anger - off. So he, Jeb and Kiyoshi started whith their combat training.

And the other group had to solve some of the easier Kobayashi Maru tests (= no win scenarios). Saiwa: "Ouf, this is hard. Shouldn't we start with a simulation on how to fly the ship?"

Jack: "I know how to fly a spaceship. I'll show you later. It's not that hard - and Albaleyh's ship has an advanced autopilot anyway." Saiwa: "Jack - you learned how to fly spaceships in your coma, that wasn't real..." Jack: "It was more real than a simulator."

Rubyn: "Concentrate now! I want you to be the bright new twinkling stars of the Starfleet!" (Their faces ^^')

And after everyone calmed down, they started a spaceship simulation ^^' Working together as teams/couples <3

Hahaha Sheldon, Raj and Leonard wearing their Star Trek uniforms ^^' (and Howard as Borg :)

Star Trek - The Next Generation Intro

From the Beginning 🔱 Underwater Love 🔱 Latest

Current Chapter: starts ▶️ here Last Chapter: 'Here comes the Sun' from the beginning ▶️ here

📚 Previous Chapters: Chapters: 1-6 ~ 7-12 ~ 13-16 ~ 23-28

[watsername]

honestly i love mcc i love competitive minecraft but the game just isn’t fun for anyone anymore. lots of players have dropped out are talking of dropping out or go on stream saying things like ‘this is the first mcc i’ve actually enjoyed in a while’ . like. thats not the sign that an event is successful . and i don’t really think that’s scott’s or the developers faults but it’s more so the culture around mcc that has changed drastically in the past year or so.

when i first started watching it, mcc was about cc’s learning to work together and competing in a fun event where there was no real stakes except the winners got a fun little token. mccs rise in popularity has snowballed a little to develop this culture of expectancy . as with all fanbases, some fans become a little too engrossed in the content and become a little overbearing about it creating this toxic culture of criticism under the guise of analysis . this isn’t to say that all mcc analysts are toxic or that the concept of vod reviewing and analysing a players performance is bad- but the attitude that a lot of the more vocal fans have been taking towards this has been .mm . not the best .

forcing players into rigid boxes based on their performance records and dogpiling them if they undeperform or over glorifying a players for performing above their average etc, it creates a competitive culture amongst fans trying to prove who suppprts the better player . very much ‘my dad is stronger than your dad’ kind of vibe.

this whole attitude also makes it less enjoyable for the players who may now feel a lot of pressure to conform to the expectations of their fans- of course everyone tries their best every event but if someone’s having a bad performance they’re more likely to experience genuine discomfort and self confidence issues continuing in the event because they know what people are expecting of them . even for lower ranking players it can affect self confidence because nobody expects anything of them .

its marketed deeply throughout the fandom as a for fun event with people who are naturally competitive being shunned for their competitive attitude but logging online and seeing people hating some people winning, hating on other teams for knocking their team out of top 2, refusing to congratulate the winners, even complaining over and over again that some aspects of the event like pvp and parkour are unfair to their streamer because their streamer ain’t good at them to the point where pvp and parkour games had their coin distribution rules changed . that doesn’t scream for fun behaviour .

that’s another thing . random changes to games that don’t necessarily need to be changed . the buildmart changes were good it make it easier to navigate and allowed people to move between sections faster and featured some new builds, the sky battle coin distribution prioritising the amount of time you survive over kills actually undermines the point of the game as a pvp heavy event . instead of fighting people you can get away with playing more defensively . we already have survival games for survivability . same goes for remixes i don’t think they typically go down well . some might but majority don’t tend to have a good reception .

even within the players themselves, there’s because quite a cliquey kind of dynamic where if the team with the most support doesn’t win, the winners are not congratulated. take last night for example . ponk and gumi scored their first wins, ponk being the first black person and as far as i can remember gumi being the second woc and first asian woman to win an mcc . let’s not even get into the diversity of mcc right now but only two people came into the voice call which lasted a while after the event to congratulate the team, only sylvee and scott and a few replies on twitter . ‘oh but the captain’ idc . i love him too but he didn’t win and it was a big day for the team that did with 50% of the team getting their first win and they played really well together. looking again at fan behaviour towards creators some players have felt unwelcome by the pressure of the competitive dynamic called bad sports for being upset with their own underperforming and alienated by the community for having multiple wins or because they just don’t want them in the event . that doesn’t scream for fun . and that in itself is really bad sportsmanship .

i think overall what started to kill mcc was it’s pandering really. i’ve fully done research on how scott puts together teams before but i still believe a lot of what goes into a team is how well it will be received. it doesn’t really force creators to get to know each other and work with each other it just takes groups of people who already know each other have relationships with each other and have relationships that are recognisable to the fanbase . this doesn’t allow people to meet and find new creators they might enjoy to watch and it prioritises some teams as the Ones To Watch because of certain dynamics pres t which undermines any smaller creators trying to make their way into the event . the insistence on changing games based on viewer complaints as opposed to suggestions from players themselves on how things can be improved is just odd to me too .

idk man mcc just isn’t what it used to be and a lot of people are becoming way too entitled over what they want to see there

[sdragontreasurehoard]

Ship's Ahoy!

Warnings: Currently, none, but please suggest if you see any

Major Spoilers from Mario and Luigi Brothership

The first thing that came to him in the empty void of unconsciousness was his hearing. There was a strong breeze, along with a steady splash that took him a moment to clock as waves. The second sense, touch, made him aware that he was laying on something grainy.

With a groan, he opened his eyes. There was the blue sky, sand and waves, along with cute little red guys scuttling about. A beach.

 

Impulse groaned again as he sat up from his uncomfortable position, his body sore. 

“Huh….?” What happened? Why was he here of all places? Alone? Where was everyone else?

“Hello!?” Impulse called out, finally standing up on wobbly legs, “Anybody here?! Gem?! Etho, Tango!! Grian?! Skizz?!!”

There wasn't anything but an echo, the beach and his scrambled bearings. Impulse sighed and paced across the beach, pulling out his com to try and maybe reach out with chat. Except, for some reason, it wouldn't turn on. Great.

“Ok, think Impulse. You're all alone on an island like a cheesy pirate movie, with…” he checked his shorts pockets, ��...nothing in your inventory- fantastic. What was the last thing you remembered before you got knocked out? Did I get knocked out? Or are we doing a new chall- Ack!!”

He jumped and scrambled to hide. Staying quiet to not get spotted by the big, massive, pink, pterodactyl looking bird flying over the sky, screeching a loud caw.

He watched it soar over him, turning around to spot some kind of uphill path, leading up to a flourishing forest area. Well- whether he's going to be looking for a familiar face or stay stuck here, he might as well go back to the basics and start gathering resources before mobs, both old and new apparently, start spawning at night.

He sprang to his feet and rushed across the path, skipping away from some seed plant looking creatures and across a few ditches in the ground. He couldn't help but wonder what had brought him here. The last things he can remember before waking up were in pieces. He and the others were doing another session of WildLife, the winner within sight. Then Impulse lost his final red life, but he was still there for some reason? And then… he wasn't sure.

Impulse sighed, coming across huge boulders blocking the path in front of him, but there was still more upwards. Climbing to the top, he cupped his hands, 

“Hellooo?! Jimmy! Scar! Grian!!” No answer yet… With a huff, he punched a tree, but barely got anything out of it except a few cracks.

“What…? What're we in, adventure mode? Augh, c'mon man. I just wanna know what's going on!” Impulse thunk his head on the tree. Just his luck. More walking then. Might try to see if he could spot anything or anyone familiar along the way…

Impulse 

He shot up his head, “Hello?”

Dippledop

Skizz?

Impulse sprinted over the hilltop. That had to be Skizz he just heard. It had to be! There was no one else- “Skizz?! Skizz! Where are you?!”

Impulse…!

He stopped on his tracks, noticing the edge of a cliff ahead of him. Kneeling for air, he took a deep breath, and shouted over the ocean “SKIZZ!!! SKIZZLEMAN!!”

“Impulse…!” Impulse turned where the shout came from, and was nearly taken aback by the giant floating island- that looked like a ship- floating its way towards the ledge he was standing on. And on that same ship island, was the most familiar person in a sleeveless suit waving at him.

“Impulse!!” Impulse gasped. The ship was getting closer, but it wasn't slowing. He was going to have to jump for it. He backed away a few paces, taking a deep breath and focused. Of all the times in the world, in his life, now would be one of the best for all that MCC parkour training to come into use, and not whiff it. 

“Skizz!! I'm coming!!” He shouted, and with one last deep breath, timing it just as the ship was nearing, Impulse started sprinting at full speed. With one, big, leap into the air at the last second, he soared across the water right towards the edge of the passing ship island. He was going to just make it- 

His feet hit the dirt, he pinwheeled his arms at the awkward angle he landed, but the ground beneath him still crumbled away, and he was falling. No-!! He scrambled for something to grip with and just as his hand slipped away, a second, familiar scarred hand gripped his own.

“I gotcha brother!!” Impulse heard him say, he looked up and his eyes confirmed what he was seeing was really true.

“Skizz!” Impulse laughed, his grin true as Skizz helped him up onto the island. With a pull and a grunt, they landed on their backs. They both sighed, exhausted but relieved. Impulse then couldn't help himself and started chuckling. What were the odds? Skizz turned, confused by Impulse's reaction, but the relief he saw on his best friend's face, made him also laugh along with him. Once they sat up, Skizz couldn't help himself and pulled Impulse into a hug.

“Dude!! You're insane!” Skizz laughed, “That was definitely more than a 5 block jump! Ten blocks at the least, and you just went for it!”

“If there was any time or place for the near impossible, it was then,” Impulse said, hugging Skizz back, “Dude, how did you end up on a floating island that's a ship?! And find me!!”

“Honestly dude, there was no better perfect timing,” Skizz chuckled letting the hug go. He smiled brightly, “If there was any time or place for the near impossible, it was then, hehe!”

“My line…” Impulse teased, punching his arm, Skizz bopped his head back. They both laughed, relieved to see a familiar face.

“No but honestly, I have no idea. I just happened to wake up on a bed, met this sweet girl named Connie and her pal, Snotlout was it?” Skizz shrugged,  pointing to the side where Impulse noticed the huge mast looking… tree?... “And they tried to explain to me that this is Shipshape island. I apparently fell from the sky when they steered the island just in time so the big tree would break my fall.”

“Oh geez,” Impulse winced at the explanation, “You didn't happen to have any ender pearls or golden apples in your inventory did you?”

“Nah, inventory was empty,” Skizz stood up and Impulse did the same, finally rested, “But the bed along with some snacks helped patch me up good as new. Oh dude! I should go take you to them so you can meet them! They're really awesome, and they know about this island like the back of their heads!!”

Impulse nodded. Getting some information about this world was a good idea. From the looks of things, they didn't start a new season of Naked and Scared, given that Skizz seemed to be in the dark as much as him. Also, Connie and Snot? He can't say he's met anyone with those names, so this is definitely new territory for the both of them. Not to mention, is it just him and Skizz? Or are more of their friends in the same world? And if they are, are they just as scattered throughout more islands, lost and confused as he was? 

He wasn't sure himself, but they were about to find out.

_______________________________________

...And that's the first chapter for my [Mario and Luigi: Brothership/3rd Life] AU, Fellowship AU!!

Ngl I pulled this all together in one go at midnight, but I like what I have so far enough to share yet another au!!

I don't have all the details finalized just yet, it's legit just a few days old like the Borrower AU, (that's right they're both baby au's) but I knew I wanted to have a go at an Imp and Skizz duo to start it off!

[cosmicgrapevine]

“Randall, cut the crap. Whatever you want, I’m not interested.”

“What I want? Kiddo, tell me what you want.” He grabbed the metal pole next to him with both hands and twisted it into an S-shape. That broke Tabby’s resolve: she shrieked and backed into a bench.

“Neat, huh? Showed the homies in MCC real quick that I wasn’t their bitch. And that’s what life’s all about, huh? Either you make someone your bitch, or someone makes you theirs.” For guys like him, that passed for philosophy.

“It burns me up what happened to you. You’re just a kid, you didn’t deserve to catch shit for what I done. But in my defense, ah, if it wasn’t me it woulda been something else, y’know?”

“No, I don’t ‘know’.” Tabby said raggedly. She kept one hand in her pocket, on the stem of the feather. Not yet, not quite yet…

“Look, take Steve. He’s my brother, I love him, but he never wanted to be a dad, and guess what! He sucks at it. He don’t even know you’re here right now, and he thinks I’m at a bar in Crestwood. And your ma, Jesus! I told him, Stevie, you marry that bitch and you’ll be miserable. She’s got this fuckin’ Martha Stewart magazine cover life in her head and you’re never gonna be that guy.”

“Get to the point.”

“Take this, rub it on your skin. For a couple hours, you’ll be the fuckin’ Terminator. Go back to your place and tear a phone book in half, rip the fridge door off, that kinda shit. Then tell her to her face that you ain’t her bitch no more. Eighteen more months of school? Psh. Over before you know it, once she gets the hint and starts treating you right. And that’s just the start of what it can do.”

“If that doesn’t work, ya smack her around a bit, and if that doesn’t work…tell her Jerry Longlegs is back, and he’s watching. She’ll know who you mean.”

You gangsters have the dumbest nicknames. “And then what?” Something had been happening, in the corner of her eye. Something that every nerve in her brain screamed in fear of. But fear had no hold on her now. Seizing control of her new life was like riding a tiger; she couldn’t dare let go. So she just nodded to the nightmare standing thirty feet away from her and said “I turn into that?”

“Don’t worry abou—oh, what the fuck, Jay?! I warned you not to huff that shit!”

Coyle had transformed. Or maybe ‘mutated’ was a better word; transformed would imply some sort of control. His arms now reached to his knees, thin as tree branches, with hook-like hands and too many bends. One eye had shrunken back into a bulbous, puffy socket; the other had burst outward to three times its usual size and was crusted over with little yellow scales. His jawbone had split down the middle and both halves were danging freely below his face. He’d turned into three different alien bug monsters at once, and Randall was only hectoring him like he’d had too much to drink.

Tabby got off to a running start, hit the bench with one foot and propelled herself into the air with the other. With a mighty heave, she flung the green feather into the air. It sparkled as it spun on the night wind.

She couldn’t deny that revenge for years of abuse was an appealing idea. That some part of her wanted to make her mother fear her. If she had nowhere else to turn, she might have taken it. But that wasn’t true anymore. She had Lynd. Lynd, who had come so far, just to be turned away, but still wanted to save the Kitzes. Lynd, who thought she was worth saving. The choice was obvious. Her only regret was that she’d likely never see Melanie again.

In the distance, something cut through the darkness. Two golden pinpricks, gleaming in the night, heralded Lynd’s arrival. And he had another passenger.

[rainbowchaox]

You are cooking too! Jimmy even keeping his sleeves rolled up so that he can see them any time he wants. Sometimes he gives them little kisses when he knows Tango is watching but Tango thinks he's being sneaky.

Also just. Just hear me out. People are there outside the cave, waiting to check on if Jimmy is okay. Okay, most of the server is. Okay, the entire server is out there nervously pacing around. It's nearly two hours before Tango finally comes out, trailed by Jimmy who is wearing a new mask. At least 5 people start asking if Jimmy is okay, but Tango ignores them, stomps right up to mumbo and punches him square in the face.

All Mumbo says is, "yep. I deserved that."

Tango is now chasing Grian while Screaming at him about that particular task.

As that happens, Scott asks Jimmy what happened and why he didn't tell anyone. Jimmy scuffs his shoe on the ground as he replies, "I didn't want you guys to know about it cause... I didn't want you to treat me any different. I just wanted everything to be Normal for a little while longer. I wanted to be able to keep playing in MCC a few more times- and I know! I know you wouldn't have made me stop because I can't really. See. Anymore, but if I got special accommodation for it, half the fans would start yelling about how it isn't fair I got an advantage, but if I didn't the other half would be calling you assholes for not giving me help and I didn't want any of that drama! I've figured out ways around it and I can still function, so why does it even matter if I only have one eye?!" as he continued with his rant, Jimmy was getting more and more nervous and worked up, tears starting to drip out from one side of his mask.

Jimmy looks away and backs towards the cave a bit like he might flee back down into his hiding spot again as he says, "I'm fine- Everything is FINE and NORMAL and there's no reason in the universe for anything to be considered wrong! Everything is FINE!" Tango has heard this and is running back to hug Jimmy and tuck him under Tango's chin for more emergency cuddles.

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS! All of the yes! I also think his shoulder has a scar from a enderman and Tango has the same scar in the same spot!

[fountainpenguin]

"I'm not the kind of girl to get messed up with you- Hello! ... You're all right, but I'm here, darling, to enjoy the party..." (x)

---

New Dog's Life chapter today! ~ 3rd Life series fan-season

Chapter 31 - “Flame (Etho, Skizz, Pearl)”

❤️ Read on AO3

💛 Start from Chapter 1

💚 More Pixels Imperfect fics

---

Scar files a microaggression complaint with the HALO team. Pearl helps Scott settle in while he recovers from glitchy code. They have a spat that's not about a sticker.

Meanwhile, SnifferMyFeet and Etho separate their souls… and start an honest talk about Sniff's identity as Sniff, not Joel. It was needed. It's for the best.

(First 900 words under the cut)

---

Etho - Fox

Status: Resting

Self-taught programmer, full-time hero

💙  💙  💙

He gets it now.

It's like ice in your water. It's like marshmallows in your cocoa. It's like wind beneath your wings. The final week before he's due back in Between (reluctantly, but definitely due), Etho flops on his bed and sprawls his arms to either side. Is he giddy? He doesn't mean to be, but this feels…

… Oh, it's a game-changer. Which is exactly what he texts Cleo after scooping up his admin panel. They won't see it if they've left their private server, and since Session 2 of Dog's Life could be starting any day now, there's no telling how long that may take.

Etho: hey so Etho: remember after limlife 4 or 5 when we talked about burnout?

Grocery shopping. For a family dinner- he and Cleo both made one (like a peace offering) in a way that wasn't really flirty married life roleplay, but more like… regular, everyday person roleplay. Did all their shopping together so they wouldn't cook the same thing. Call it 'date night' if you want; he walked her home and there might've been a little 'dramatic logout' roleplay in there. We don't… We don't need to go into detail about it.

To some people that's romantic and to some it's completely gross. Not really sure why… It's a natural process, isn't it? Soul-eaters can't help being what they are, and you may as well snap at endermen hybrids for struggling with eye contact or shame unthreaded players if they expose their glitches instead of keeping them covered up. This world's too big and life too long for arguing. Do you really want to make enemies and be rude to people who are going to carry the echo of your words for the rest of their lives?

Lend a helping hand. Extend a little kindness. Be polite. Respond to the hurt. Try not to avoid responsibility when others are counting on your strength. Sit with the injured, even when the night is cold. They're simple goals, but so easily forgotten these days.

Etho: I think you said if I felt stuck then I should break my routine for a while

Nothing happens for several minutes. Etho rotates words without meaning through his head, then types out something else.

Etho: you were right. I get now why you go on adventures with Martyn. Why you let him and no one else log you out all the time. Thanks for the advice. Let me know next time you need a favor. Rating this cycle 10 of 10 and I owe you big xD

He takes a long, guilt-free nap in his cushioned bed. Catching up on block updates and videos really drains a guy (especially this close to the end of the Hermitcraft season, not to mention Vault Hunters and a Life series on top of it), but he spent all morning prepping the bed and it's already providing every agonizing tick of its worth. Two hours later, he's stirred awake by a buzz on the admin panel.

ZombieCleo: yay! So glad that worked for you <3 I want to hear all about it. Maybe in a couple weekends you can watch MCC with me and the kids + Martyn? If we catch a minute alone, I can recommend more stuff you might be into ;)

The kids refers to Bdubs and Scar, who skated through Limited Life like energetic teenagers spreading their wings. It's goofy, it's endearing, and Cleo's got her roleplay voice on because she knows it makes him snort. His tail gives a twitch as he tries to keep a smirk from creeping out behind his mask.

Martyn, huh? he muses, but doesn't say that. Cleo circles between lovers, friends, and exes like a pollinating bee.

Etho: whoaaaa Etho: inviting a fox? that's dangerous! ZombieCleo: nose out of your tail, fur boy Etho: dibs on Martyn, I see ZombieCleo: If you're serious about returning the favor, Martyn says Rhetoric's down here and this might be our best chance at smash and grabbing from your mum's museum Etho: Hm… ZombieCleo: I mean, you did leave my eggshell when you rescued Grian and that other soul

Yeah- it looked distressed. Now Sniff's down here. He can actually talk now when he couldn't before. Honestly, not the worst decision he could've made.

If anyone's going to try getting into the Fox Dragon's museum, a fox has the best chance of doing so. It's kept separate from the nesting cave where souls respawn, but even the deadliest traps won't keep foxes out since they'll just respawn. Unless they're traps that can't be dodged even with careful planning, or some sort of system that short-circuits code. The phantom roost is nearby, right? Frankly, phantoms are excellent trackers, they can fly, and they're probably the fastest of all non-swimming hybrids, so a phantom alone provides great security as-is.

Etho: I'll think about it. Not tonight, though. Full moon fox face isn't for me. Also if there are raiders there then that's probably the worst time to show up ZombieCleo: Fair ZombieCleo: I can think of something else, but if you ever get the chance, I want it back Etho: duly noted ✌️ ZombieCleo: btw say hi to Scar and Bdubs when you see them. They've been cracking nonstop jokes since you disappeared. One can only imagine they're attempting humor to bury immense throes of pain Etho: D:

[Full chapter on AO3 - Link at top]

[em-mermaid]

my heart is wherever you are

Ren’s hand is warm between his own.

“You’re here.” Ren whispers, as they meet each other’s gaze. His eyes seem to search, drinking in Martyn’s face with a look that feels like he’s afraid he will disappear. “How?”

or: Ren finally gives up his role as king.

(also on AO3)

——————

Martyn is falling.

Falling.

Down. Always down.

A never ending plummet, tumbling towards an unknown destination. Sometimes, he wonders how he knows he’s moving downwards instead of any other direction through this liminal space, through this in between. He supposes he has to trust his gut on that one. No other choice really.

So he falls, ever downwards through the endless stream. A sort of stasis.

Usually, it ends with a phone call. Sometimes it’s Scott calling to say hello or one of the Noxcrew pulling him into another MCC. Other times it’s Grian on the other end, extending an offer to join yet another one of his experimental servers. An offer to join a game that he would accept without an ounce of hesitation, but boy is he getting tired.

Well, maybe tired is the wrong word.

He still enjoys them quite a lot. It’s a chance to see some old friends and make some new ones. A chance to strategize and have fun. But maybe, he thinks, after this last game the taste of victory didn’t sit on his tongue in quite the way he wanted it to.

And there are always the whispers. The taunts and bloodlust that he can’t quite shake. The voices calling for a rematch, for a victory, for a reunion with a king that is no longer his. A king he failed.

A king he lost.

A king he loves.

And still, he falls.

The shrill sound of his communicator startles him from the monotony of air rushing past his ears. He looks down at his watch to see… Cleo? Why is Cleo calling? Cleo never calls.

“Hello?” he answers, feeling a tug from his sternum. Well, that’s definitely her on the other end.

“Oh Martyn, hi!” Their voice crackles through the speakers. “I wasn’t sure this would work, I’m glad you answered. Do you have a minute?”

“I’ve got all the time in the world,” he replies. “Although, would you say this is out of the world? How would you classify the datastream?”

He hears her chuckle through the line. “I dunno Martyn, you’re the one who spends all their time there.

“You make a good point.”

“Yeah I do. Anyway, I have, well, a bit of a large request.”

Martyn hums inquisitively, unsure. What would Cleo need from him of all people?

“I know this is a touchy subject for you, but it’s important, alright? I was giving Ren a tour of–”

He cuts them off, talking over them, words tumbling from his mouth before he can think twice. “Whoa whoa whoa wait what? This is about Ren?”

Cleo scoffs. “Yes Martyn, it is. If you could give me just a minute to explain before interrupting that would be grand.” And oh, of course the sharp sting of her words is something reliable in every life.

He rubs a hand down his face with a groan. It’s not worth the argument now. He knows she would just hang up and leave him wondering, and he is far too curious to risk that at the moment. “Right, right okay. What’s this about Ren, then?”

“So, I was giving Ren a tour of my museum earlier and— you remember that he became king of the server for a while, yeah?”

Martyn makes a noise of acknowledgement. He remembers overhearing something about it in passing but never had the chance to ask about it.

“Well,” Cleo continues. “My museum has a lot of artifacts from then and he sorta had a bit of a breakdown after seeing them? And now he’s asking for you.”

“He–” Martyn hesitates. Surely that’s not true. It’s been so long since he’s heard from Ren. Why was he only reaching out now? Why through Cleo? After they had been allies at the end of last life, Ren had seemed distant. There was the sting of double life, where BigB had taken his place at Ren’s side, followed by Ren’s complete absence in limited life. Martyn had finally been starting to accept that maybe Ren was avoiding him, that maybe he had pushed Ren too far, gotten too close.

When Martyn finally speaks his voice is softer, with a quiver he didn’t intend to let through. “He wants to see me?”

She lets out a soft sigh, a noise far more genuine than he’s heard in a while. “Yes, Martyn, he does.”

“Oh.”

“X has already agreed, you’re whitelisted if you want to join us. Quite honestly, I think Ren would really appreciate seeing your face right now.”

This is his chance. Ren wants to talk. To see him. It’s almost bittersweet, but also too good to be true. After all this time. After all these months, nearly years of waiting for him. All those unanswered calls and messages and finally the chance at some answers.

“Yeah,” he says, and it feels like the right decision. “Yeah, I’ll join.”

“Perfect. Give me a minute to message X and I will see you soon.”

“Aye aye captain, see ya.”

And, with that, the phone call ends as quick as it started, leaving him in stunned silence. He’s going to see Ren. He’s going to see Ren today. It’s finally time to be reunited with his love. With his King.

His phone beeps.

[Join Hermitcraft Season 9?]

He clicks.

——————

The world spins when his feet touch down, the air squeezing on his chest as he struggles to adapt to the new environment. He can feel the busyness, how the air seems to almost vibrate with life. Redstone lag pulses from somewhere to his left and a drowned gurgles from below the soft waves to his right.

He feels a hand come to rest his shoulder, holding him steady as he finds his balance and blinks in the bright sunlight.

“Ah, are you quite alright, my friend?” A voice asks, and he finally regains his senses enough to see a helmeted face in front of him.

“Peachy,” he manages as Cleo touches down on the ground nearby. She stumbles slightly with the speed of the landing, but before he can say anything to her, she tosses him an elytra. It nearly knocks the breath from his lungs as he scrambles to catch the wings.

“What, not even a hug?”

“Not if you ask like that!” She quips back. Despite the sharp words, she squeezes his arm in greeting.

“Thanks X, I got him from here.”

“No worries. Let me know if you need anything else. And keep me updated on Ren, yeah?”

“Will do.”

Xisuma flies away, leaving the two of them alone at spawn. It’s quiet for a moment while Cleo watches Martyn put on the elytra. He takes a breath and Cleo fishes out some rockets, passing a handful to him. He feels unsteady, uncertain. Now that he’s here, he begins to wonder what he’s gotten himself into.

“It’s nice to see you,” Cleo says and they give him a small smile. It doesn’t fully reach their eyes.

“Right back at you. Are you alright?”

Her eyebrows pinch together and he sees a flash of pursed lips before she’s leaning in and wrapping him in a hug. It’s nice, he thinks as he returns the gesture. Her hair tickles his nose, but her arms are warm where they rest around his shoulders.

She steps back after a moment. “Ren’s at my base. We should really go.”

“Yeah ok,” he nods, holding out his rockets. “I’m ready.”

They take off together, the twin bursts of rockets leaving behind a trail of dust as they lift up into the air and steady out over the landscape. Buildings pass below, connected by paved roads and dark oak forests. He sees a few distant people walking below and some even flying around.

Cleo veers right, passing a towering bone hand and two large buildings before the ocean and a floating island comes into view.

It truly is a stunning base.

The dark towers and prismarine roofs are bold and powerful, but the whole area is softened by lush gardens and crawling vines. Sculptures of various people appear in windows and through doorways and hint at the life and love hiding just inside.

Cleo leads them inside, through a grand throne room and past a room of cards. When they reach a secluded door, she finally pauses.

“You can leave your elytra in here if you want,” she offers, opening a nearby barrel and placing her own inside.

He fumbles with his for a moment before placing it on top of hers. She nods and closes the barrel softly, turning towards the door.

“He’s in here.” She pushes open the door and gestures for him to go in first.

It takes a moment for his eyes to adjust to the dark room, but when they do, they are drawn to the man on the bed. He’s curled in on himself, tucked under a red cloak. His eyes are distant, unseeing, and even in the half light Martyn can see tears gleaming behind them, threatening to spill over.

“Ren?” he whispers, voice cracking over the word as he reaches out his hand, unsure.

Ren blinks, eyes struggling to focus towards the voice and a silence stretches over them. It’s suffocating and threatens to take over his already tight chest. For a long moment, the only thing he hears is the soft wheezing breath of Cleo in the doorway and the distant waves against the island below. And Ren just blinks. Blinks into the darkness. Blinks as a single tear trails down his cheek.

Martyn hesitates in the silence, looking on as Ren gathers his senses. It stretches long enough that he begins to believe that Ren hadn’t heard him. He wouldn’t ignore a direct call of his name, right? Martyn withdraws his hand, moving to tap his fingers on his thigh, anxious, unsure. Surely Ren just didn’t hear. Maybe he should ask again? He takes a breath in the stillness, opening his mouth, ready to speak again when a soft, broken voice burrows its way through the silence.

“Me Hand?”

At that, Martyn rushes forward, all hesitations thrown to the side as he falls to his knees by the bed, taking Ren’s hand in his own. “I’m here, My Liege.”

This close, he can see the tear tracks along Ren’s face, the way his laugh lines look so jarring against the furrow of his brow. His eyes are red, but not in the way they had been during The Games. Now, instead of irises shining with an unnatural color, they are a gray-blue surrounded with a redness only found in a man who is holding back far too many tears.

Ren’s hand is warm between his own.

“You’re here.” Ren whispers, as they meet each other’s gaze. His eyes seem to search, drinking in Martyn’s face with a look that feels like he’s afraid he will disappear. “How?”

There is a quiet chuckle from behind him and Cleo’s voice melds into their shared bubble of silence and not silence. “I might have called in a favor from Xisuma after you asked for him back at the museum.”

Ren gives them a shaky smile, something much closer to a grimace than Martyn prefers to see on his face. “Yeah, sorry about that my dudes.”

“It’s fine, Ren.” Cleo says, moving into his periphery to sit on the edge of the bed. She places a hand on Ren’s knee comfortingly. “Although, you did kinda space out there for a while after the tour. You kept asking for your Hand and I thought you meant Bdubs at first, but–”

Martyn whips his head around to look at her, a sudden fury rushing through him. “Bdubs?” he exclaims, something far louder than anything else being said. Cleo only rolls their eyes at him.

“Yes, Martyn. Bdubs. I thought I told you about Ren being king of Hermitcraft.” The words aren’t exactly unkind, but he can feel his hackles rise at the thought, the implication that anyone except himself could ever be Ren’s Hand.

And sure, she had mentioned to him that Bdubs had given him the crown and played that role, but that didn’t mean Bdubs could just take that from him during some silly copycat event. Martyn is Ren’s Hand. Ren is his King.

He feels a gentle squeeze of his hand, drawing his attention back to Ren. His King, who is now smiling so softly up at him, despite the tears still lingering just behind his eyes. “I missed you, Me Hand. But surely you must know that Bdubs could never replace you.”

How, Martyn wonders, is Ren able to make him crumble at just a small handful of words? To take such an outburst of emotions and cradle them so gently when he is so clearly fighting an emotional outburst of his own. Had it really been long enough for him to forget how Ren cares so deeply for those around him? How he dismisses fears of his own when someone else needs guidance?

Or, a voice in the back of his head whispers, is it that he had thought Ren had moved on? It has been so long since they last spoke, last touched hands, and even when they did it had been fleeting. Watcher assigned soulmates tugging them away from the possibility of rekindling what they once had.

But the hand in his own is warm and real and he’s certain Ren can see the war in his eyes as much as he can see one reflected back from his King’s.

“Do you really mean that?” Martyn asks, his voice now barely audible in the quiet room.

“Of course I do,” Ren whispers back, lifting their hands to press a soft kiss onto Martyn’s knuckles.

The surprised noise Martyn lets out lands somewhere between a laugh and a sob as he falls forward to tuck his head into Ren’s neck. “I missed you so much, my Liege.”

For a moment they sit in the quiet, breathing in each other’s presence. It’s nice, relieving, like releasing a breath he didn’t even know he was holding. He already feels lighter, more at home than he’s felt in years. Ren is here. Ren is safe. Ren missed him too.

Martyn starts to become aware of an ache in his knees where they are pressed against the hardwood floors. He shifts minutely and leans up to press more weight onto his arms.

“Oh, it’s been a while since I’ve been on my knees for you, my Liege. These joints aren’t as young as they used to be.”

Cleo snorts while Ren, his lovely Ren, lets out the loudest laugh. It’s still tinted with tears, but it’s real and genuine and it’s music to his ears.

“Get up here, you old man,” Cleo says fondly, nudging Ren’s legs out of the way so she can slide across the bed. Ren shifts with her, sitting up to make space for him.

I’m younger than you!” Martyn deflects as he pulls himself up off the ground and onto the bed, earning himself a threatening glare and a pillow to the face. “Alright, ok, I earned that one.”

He delights in the way Cleo’s eyebrows scrunch together in a scowl and how Ren tilts his head back as he continues to laugh at their antics.

“Ok Ren,” Cleo prompts once the laughter dies down. Her words are direct, yet laced with concern. “What happened back there?”

And Martyn sees the way Ren hunches as he pulls the red robe tighter around his shoulders, how his eyebrows pull together and a frown takes over his features. There’s a hesitancy in his actions, like he is holding back. Making himself smaller despite the joy he usually finds in being at the center of a conversation.

“I don’t know,” he mumbles, and Martyn’s not sure he’s ever heard him that subdued.

Cleo reaches out to place a hand on his knee. Something about the touch seems to relax him slightly. “Then what can we do to help?

Martyn, for all his love of words and jumping into action, sits in stunned silence watching the pair. Sure, he had seen Ren in the quiet, tense moments between battles, seen the way he would analyze their previous moves and strategy before marching on to the next task. He had seen the way he sometimes doubted if he was making the right choices, but still managed to talk through a solution.

And even in the calmer moments, curled up together to ward off the chill and loneliness of the night, never had he seen Ren unsure of his actions to this degree. Unsure enough to fold in on himself and hide away like he would be shamed for even admitting to his thoughts or actions.

For a moment the three of them just sit, waiting for Ren to collect his thoughts, watching how his face twitches with hints of fleeting expressions as he works out what to say next. He opens and closes his mouth a handful of times before settling on a statement that feels like a punch to the gut.

“I was never worthy of the crown.”

“What?” Martyn can’t help but exclaim, the words finally spilling from him without thought to the delicacy of the situation. “Of course you are! I mean just look at all you’ve done. I’ve never met anyone else who cares about his friends and subjects as much as you. You put so much time and attention into every detail, every plan, just to make sure no one is excluded or left behind. And you give so much of your time and resources and energy to everyone regardless of their rank. It’s so obvious to anyone that sees you, that you are a natural leader and anyone would be lucky to have you as their king!”

Martyn sees how Ren’s eyes widen at the outburst, how tears gather in the corners as he stares back.

“But, me Hand, you weren’t here when the shopping district fell to ruin. They hunted me down, I was slain in mine own labyrinth.” His hands rest in his lap, fingers fidgeting with the diamonds in his cloak. “I let them down. They needed a king who could improve the server and all I did was make it worse.”

“Ren, Martyn’s right.” Cleo says, lightly squeezing his knee.

“Of course I am!” Martyn interjects

“He’s right sometimes,” she jabs lightly before continuing. “You were an amazing king. Yeah you made mistakes, but who doesn’t, y’know? No one is holding that against you.”

“But the people grew tired of me. They hate these robes and everything I did.” His voice wilts. “I see the looks they give me. I barely see anyone in the shopping district anymore. It’s like they are avoiding me.” He takes a shaky breath. “I never wanted them to hate me.”

“Oh, is that what this is all about?” Cleo asks softly, leaning over to cup his face with her palm and guiding him to meet her eyes. “Listen to me, Ren. No one hates you. Not for what you did as king and not for any other reason.”

A tear finally breaks free and rolls down Ren’s face. His voice cracks when he speaks. “Thank you, Lady Cleo.”

She smiles fondly at him, soft in a way that Martyn has never seen. “Anything for you, Ren.”

They sit for a moment, quiet and still, before Ren takes a steadying breath, squares his shoulders and slides off the bed.

“Me Hand,” he announces, with a dramatic twirl to face them. The pose he strikes is tall, powerful, and authoritative, despite the tear tracks on his face and Martyn finds himself moving closer on the edge bed, sitting on his knees before him. “I think it is time for me to pass on my crown to the next in line.”

“What? Really?” Martyn exclaims, and Ren nods slowly at his incredulous question. Ren lifts an eyebrow at him and it’s then Martyn realizes what is happening.

Ren is offering them both closure. He is, in his own way, reaching out for this one final scene, one final moment, for them to truly be a King and his Hand. They’ve both been hurting, longing for a past that will never return. For a reign that was far too short and ended far too bloody. He’s offering this chance to wrap up this chapter of their lives by passing on the title, passing on the crown. To finally move on, to have this moment together.

An unguided Hand, now guided to freedom.

Martyn takes a breath, bowing his head in respect and allowing himself to slip back into his role as Ren’s Hand. “Who will it be, my Liege?”

And his King flashes him the brightest smile. “Why, it is Lady Cleo, of course!”

“Cleo?”

Cleo huffs, but joins the pair at the edge of the bed, her thigh brushing against Martyn’s own. With a small smirk, she joins their scene. “It would be an honor to wear the tiniest of crowns.”

“Then shall we starteth the ceremony?”

“Yes, my Liege.” Martyn agrees with a bow of his head.

His King stands tall and begins his speech to a crowd of two. “Hello, citizens of Hermitcraft! We have gathered today on this most glorious of occasions–”

Martyn snorts. “You make it sound like someone is getting married.”

“Hush,” Cleo retorts, elbowing his side. “I wanna hear where this is going.”

Ren, for his part, only gives them a small smile before continuing. “We are here today, because I have decided to step down as King of the Server. I know this might be a shock for some of you, but please hear me out, friends, and know that this is not a choice I make lightly.”

“As some of you must know by now, my popularity as King is dwindling. I’ve heard the rumblings of rebellion, I know the people want me gone. I know you are unhappy with the economy, with my Royal Emeralds. With me.”

It’s at this point, another tear pools out and makes its way down his King’s cheek. “This is why I have decided to pass on my crown.” His voice warbles. “Lady Cleo, would you please stand.”

“Yes, my King,” she says. They step into his space, brushing the stray tears from his face. When she whispers near his ear, it is almost too quiet for Martyn to hear, even in the otherwise silent room. “I’m proud of you.”

After moving to face him, she nods her head. She looks good there, next to Ren. She stands tall, red hair curling around her shoulders and her majestic blue dress already looks like it is worthy of royalty.

“Now presenting, Lady Cleo of Atlantis!” He speaks towards Cleo, towards the otherwise empty room. “As most of you already know, Lady Cleo is one of the knights of the square table and one of my most trusted advisors. She has put up with much of mine shenanigans. She is always around to tell me when I am being ridiculous, even if I choose not to heed her advice. They are smart and logical, and I know in my heart that the kingdom will be well taken care of in their hands!”

Cleo smiles. “Aw thank you, Ren.”

“Me Hand,” Ren addresses him, voice quieting. “It is time.”

Martyn stands, a tight feeling in his chest making itself known as he does. “Of course, my Liege.”

Ren takes his hands and pulls him close. His eyes are somber, yet determined. “Thank you, for all you have done for me. Your support, loyalty, and kindness have not gone unnoticed. Even in our years apart, I have wished only the best for you. But now, it is time for our reign to come to an end.” He lets out a shaky breath.

“Martyn,” says the voice of his King, of his love, his Ren, who presses their foreheads together as he speaks Martyn’s name for the first time in far too long. “Would you please do me the honor of crowning the new king?”

Martyn breathes in. The smell of Ren’s shampoo surrounds him and he remembers all the nights spent in the snow fort, all the days spent crafting and trading and planning. The way Ren would brush kisses across his forehead in passing or jump into his arms in excitement. And now he breathes out into the dimly lit room, on a server that is not their own, in a castle that isn’t theirs. But still, in front of him is the same set of bright blue eyes. “As you wish, my love.”

Ren kneels.

And Martyn knows it is a final bow.

This is his last moment as King. Martyn’s final moment as his Hand. All they have done is through, and it’s time.

Martyn brushes Ren’s hair from his face, tucking a strand behind his ear. “It has been an honor serving you, my Lord.”

“And I you.” Ren whispers.

The crown is small, but Martyn holds it between his fingers with overwhelming care. The jewels shimmer in the soft light of the room. It’s different from the original crown of iron Ren had designed in secret back in their other world. Back when resources and tools were limited. That one had been rough, uneven, with dents along the edges and a single rare diamond held firmly in place. This new one is smooth, golden, and the numerous jewels around it display the wealth and prosperity of his kingdom. Oh how far he has come.

Martyn lifts the crown, and with it, the burden of being King. The weight of countless difficult decisions. The need for perfection and protection and poise.

The crown feels heavier than it has any right to be and yet there is a lightness in the air.

Cleo smiles when he turns to her. Her hand finds its way to rest comfortingly in Ren’s hair.

He places the crown on her head. Her red curls wrap around it like snakes who have just found their new treasure. It looks stunning, like it was made to fit her.

“Now introducing, King Cleo of Hermitcraft. Long live the king.”

Martyn joins Ren, kneeling before their new King and sighs, taking Ren’s hand in his own.

It’s over.

A new chapter has begun.

Cleo is the one who finally breaks their shared silence, extending her hands to help them up. “Oh come here, you two. You’re being far too serious for such a joyous day.”

Ren grunts as he stands. “You’re one to talk, King Cleo. How do you think the dead king feels?”

“I think being dead is a wonderful thing and I’m glad you’re giving it a go!”

Ren laughs. It’s light and magical and so very him. “Ah, I should have realized you had nefarious undead intentions!”

Cleo takes Ren’s jaw in her hands and guides him closer. Martyn watches as he turns to putty under her gaze. “If I had truly nefarious intentions, you would have known a long time ago.”

Ren licks his lips, glancing down at Cleo’s, which are now just a breath away from his own. “But, you are known to play the long game.”

“Hmm, I suppose I am. Time will tell then, won’t it?”

He hums an acknowledgment before she pulls him the final stretch, kissing him firmly.

The kiss is fairly short, but undoubtedly full of love. Martyn can’t help but watch, taking in the way Ren leans into her, his hands wrapping around her waist as her’s continue to cradle his jaw.

It’s nice, he thinks as they part, to be privileged enough to be privy to this moment of softness from Cleo. To see that Ren has been treated well in his time between the Games. It soothes a tightness in his chest that he hadn’t realized was there.

“I love you,” Ren says to her, voice gentle.

They stroke a thumb along his cheek. “Love you too. You did good today.” She glances over at Martyn. “You both did.”

He startles slightly at the genuine tone of the compliment. It’s few and far between when he is on the receiving end of their kind words. Not unlikely, but still, he wasn’t expecting to be included in their little moment.

Despite this, the words settle themselves across his shoulders like a warm blanket, and he can feel a light blush begin to color his cheeks. “Aw, thanks Cleo.”

She reaches out, offering Martyn a hand and a smile, guiding him into their space.

How very fitting it is.

A Hand and his Kings. Guided by them, towards them, to them. Pulled into their gravity, always finding his way into their orbit.

But maybe, just maybe, they were always meant to collide.

So when he falls into their space, Cleo’s hand is warm where it squeezes his own.

And Ren’s lips taste like coming home.

[twodiamondhoes]

how do people learn all their names in the only silver universe? are they given their names at birth like human children, or are they just something that they instinctively know, or something else?

Oh this is SUCH a good question, Mars!!

So this is actually a question I've asked myself a lot regarding the concept of faeries true names in fiction since I was young, and when I was starting this fic I didn't want to get too in the weeds with it. I wanted there to be the three-tier name system because I am a sucker for the intimacy of handing out your true name, and I wanted an excuse for Jimmy to be called "Solidarity" because I'd recently watched... Idk it was one of the game streams, maybe an MCC, where one of Jimmy's teammates called him "Solidarity" instead of Jimmy and it threw me for SUCH a loop that I had to turn the stream off XD

But now that we've gone full worldbuilding central, I have a genuine answer for this!

Putting it under a cut because I got lost in the worldbuilding sauce and explained all three of the name tiers oopsie

In the Only Silver universe, before a fae is born, one of their parents gets a dream of their true name. Once they're born, they whisper the name to the child and promptly forget what it was. It's such a known way of life that no one really thinks about it, or why it happens. It's just "always been that way." Except... it hasn't. Before they died, True Names were understood to be gifts from the gods. There wasn't a three-name system, because everyone used the name given to them by the gods. No one would dream of misusing such a thing, so there was no worry of someone using a True Name against another fae.

Now that they're separated in the cultural consciousness, only the truly religious "remember" the origin of a true name.

Bond Names and Use Names evolved as a natural consequence of losing that direct connection to the gods. The fae needed a way to refer to one another, and the layers of the societies that sprung up eventually became the three-tier name system. Bond names are a secondary layer of trust, and they're the closest thing most people get to handing out their true names. It's a level of intimacy that is reserved for family, really close friends, and, if you're Jimmy, the core of the Citadel, because he's extending his name as a courtesy to the Winter Court as a way of showing gratitude for Tango saving him. He's essentially welcomed most of the inner court as his family at this point. There's a reason Tango was so shocked at first and why Etho was so against accepting it for as long as he could hold out. It's something that really isn't done. Cub gets away with it because he's old enough to be eccentric, and the way his magic works means that he feels that he's giving parts of himself to his patients.

Use Names are part of my favorite part of the system, actually, and I haven't gotten a chance to talk about them much, aside from Tango's being Industry and Revenge sort of putting in motion his "secondary" use name of Tek.

However, a fae can change their use name whenever they feel it's necessary. This generally is expected to come with big life changes, such as taking over as head of your family, getting married, being taken on as an apprentice or given the title of master in a guild, things like that. It represents a new chapter in your life beginning. Jimmy changed his Use Name to Solidarity when Gem was born, because even as a child he knew that it was an important enough situation to call for it.

Most people believe that Fia changed her use name to Matriarch when she took on the role as Queen, but she actually changed it when Jimmy was born. There's an understanding that Gem can and possibly will change her Use Name whenever she takes on more responsibility as heir and climbs further up the rung of titles that the Summer Heir has (there are three steps before Summer can be called King/Queen: Summer in Waiting, Summer in Ascendance, Summer in Radiance, and Summer King/Queen. Gem is currently pretending to be Summer in Ascendance, because she's acting as Summer during the Solstice, but she hasn't taken over as Interpreter of Echoes yet. In generations past, some Summers have done the opposite and taken over as Interpreter before taking over during the Solstice. Yes this is needlessly complicated and yes it is plot relevant XD).

It doesn't have to come with big life changes, it can also just be when you feel you need a change of pace or are in the process of reinventing yourself.

[megabuild]

mumbo said in his recent video that he sees etho as someone who "doesnt show a lot of positive emotion towards people " and thats why he kept the mumbo statue that he thought etho built of him even after joel said he was the one who built it and said he made it ugly on purpose and was surprised mumbo didnt tear it down . said he nearly cried seeing it. what do u think about etho "not showing a lot of positive emotion" do you think thats true

i don't think it's necessarily true but i can see where mumbo's coming from (with the obvious disclaimer that this is all just my own personal feelings, and mumbo is the guy who actually knows him in person and has for some time).

mumbo and etho's relationship or lack thereof is generally pretty fascinating to me because while they both have been on the same server for a long time they've rarely, if ever, interacted or collaborated. unsurprising given that both tend to keep to their own respective groups. agonising for me as a big fan of them both but anyways. i think it's also important to remember that mumbo started mcyt pretty young and watched a lot of his now friends before knowing them (eg. in the same clip you mentioned above he talks about being a big fan of joel's!) so i don't think it's a stretch to say that despite knowing etho personally, i think he could still be in that stage of mythologising etho that a lot of creators who collab with him have went through in the past... tune into 3rd life, mcc 33, hell the elybeatmaker among us stream. i don't think i gotta explain how many people look up to him as this unknowable figure of old mcyt. factor in that he has his hand in a lot of early redstone developments and continues to achieve new things with it to this day and i think it's understandable why mumbo might idolise him to the point of dissociating etho the redstoner from etho the guy

this also isn't helped but the fact that while etho does show positive emotion, definitely, his positive emotions towards others often come across in a way that can be hard to recognise if you aren't looking for it.. etho is full of snark and callbacks and if you don't understand the context around those they might not make sense, but his way of showing care is also far from obvious. another recent example would be the tour of bdubs' base where he told people how to set their light levels. a lot of people on here freaked out over that but if you step back and look at it it's not really.. that obvious that it's a sign of care and positivity towards bdubs, because he's just stating facts. etho can be very literal and i think he likes to rely on stuff like that to show his affection, but that might not be obvious to everyone.

ultimately while i get what mumbo means i think a lot of it comes down to etho being very particular, and they just haven't spent enough time working together one on one to figure out those peculiarities yet. despite everyone on hermitcraft knowing each other and being friends to a degree it's undeniable that parts of the server are more split into groups than others, sort of like a fucked up venn diagram of common collaborators, and etho's in particular is pretty small. but i hope they do collab properly someday.. i really really hope they do