#orb smp

[bolticious]

If We Could Smile Without Effort ( Poppy Seeds )

Art by @missmaddles-uwu

Silly Happy AU - Belladonna

Summary  :  Fernweh was ready to leave; she was packed, but when Callisto asked to stay in town despite being hesitant to agree, she did. Little did she know, agreeing gives her the chance to hang out with a local witch who may give Fernweh another reason to stay.

Word Count  :  6,241

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  Fernweh has been staying with her brother in Thornbrook for the past three weeks. Well, not really her brother, but Callisto and Fernweh were as close as siblings were, and she was technically his aunt, so they were family in some way. The two were on vacation, getting away from their parents and school while on break; despite the two being in their now late twenties, their parents were still breathing down their necks to be extraordinary; even if it wasn't on purpose, it was a lot of pressure. The magic school was fun but stressful, especially as of late, as they were finally finishing up the last of their studies to graduate officially and find what they were going to do with their future. Fernweh wasn’t sure what she wanted to do; she knew she wanted a family, but that seemed like it wasn’t in the cards for her after her past romantic experiences, so she had given up trying to make it happen, even with Callisto telling her that it wasn’t worth giving up. That was easy for him to say; he had found his calling in his end magic and writings, so he only had to worry about the romance aspect, and even then his last relationship ended in the two agreeing to be friends, or at least that's what he had told her. So they decided to take a trip together to a small town, where Callisto’s parents had a small house the two could use for the length of their trip; today was supposed to be their last day, or that’s what Fern had thought.

  Fern woke up to a loud knocking on her door, her bags almost entirely packed and ready to leave. She was virtually dreading going home; she enjoyed the small and quiet town; it was homely. She could get used to life like this, with the people of Thornbrook, the friends the two had made. She knew that Callisto would stay if she did; he had gone everywhere she had gone ever since the two were little kids; he was protective over her. He would call her his “little sister” even though she thought it was a bit stupid; they were only two years apart, and she was technically his aunt. “Ugh, what is it, Callie?” Fern sat up, rubbing her eyes, as her long brown hair fell into place, the purple tips barely touching the bed. It wasn’t time to go, so why was he waking her up so early? The door cracked open, a set of horns, white furry cat ears, and blond hair poking in, followed by the two piercing, almost haunting purple eyes of her brother, the ones the two shared with her father. “So, you know how we’re supposed to be leaving?” His wings were twitching a little as if he was trying to fight the urge to flap them in excitement, and it got Fern a little concerned. He had been like this for the past week and wouldn’t tell her why. It wasn’t like the other to not tell her what was going on, especially if he was excited about something. “Just cut to the chase; I want to go back to bed.” Fern tried to sound mad, but she couldn’t, not when she had just felt the calmest she had felt since she was little, when she’d play hide and seek with Callisto and the other kids. When the two would play family with Metrodora and Bobbi, they would always fight over who would be the baby. From a young age, it was clear that the two were the best of friends and loved family, so of course they both talked about their kids being best friends. It was all okay back then, and it felt like it now too, the two of them looking for their way.

  “Can we extend the trip? Another week… or two even?” Callisto said as he walked over to the bed, giving her a pleading look; it was dramatic, but also genuine; he seemed to want to stay. “Tell me why, and maybe we can.” She raised an eyebrow at him; his recent behaviors made her more curious than she had been in a while. “Okay, so there's this guy… I want to introduce myself to him!” Callisto avoided eye contact with Fern and fiddled with his hands as he explained. “Get to know him maybe? I mean… He seems like a good friend or something. From what I’ve heard, I mean!” He kept rambling, mentioning small things he probably shouldn’t know about the man he admitted he’s never introduced himself to. “So, you want to stay this far from home to see if a man finds you cute?” Fern held back a laugh but let herself smile. “Three days, that’s all you got. After that, we can talk about it again.” Now Callisto’s wings were flapping, just enough to lift him off the ground and make a mess of all Fern’s perfectly packed bags. “On it! Wait till you meet him, Fern! He’s… He seems perfect.” Callisto exclaims and runs out; Fern can only assume to go talk to the guy he asked to stay for.

  Fern had intended on heading back to bed; she valued her sleep after all, but for one reason or another, she stayed wide awake. The bed was comfortable, surprisingly so, as she thought it was the same one Callisto’s parents had used before he was born. The room was clean; the two had made sure of that when they got there. They both hated dust and mold, but who didn’t, right? Something was keeping her up, a force, a feeling, something in her body telling her she couldn’t go back to sleep. It was aggravating, she wanted to enjoy her day and be comfortable, but whatever this feeling was, it wasn’t going to let her it seemed. “I have to make sure he’s okay.” What Fern wouldn’t admit is that Callisto can be overly trusting at times. She worried about his taste in men; they always tended to hurt him. Callisto had broken up with his last ex, Zephyr, a few months before coming to Thornbrook after he tried to get Callisto to make him poison from his blood, which concerned the family, especially when it came to this trip, but the two assured them they would be fine. 

  She stood up, moving over to her spilled bags to find an outfit to wear today. She picked a flowy purple dress with off-the-shoulder sleeves; it rested right above the ground so she wouldn’t step on it. It was beautiful, soft, and fit her style, yet she had no idea where it came from. She had no memory of buying this dress, and her parents had stopped trying to buy her clothes years ago, after the daffodil incident. She was looking at the outfit in the mirror when a small note fell out of the sleeve; she picked it up and read it, “Hey VeyVey! I had some extra fabric and thought you would like this for the trip! If I forget to tell you I made it, then surprise! From Callie.” She smiled to herself; of course, Callisto made her a new outfit for it; he was thoughtful like that, but she knew this wasn’t just from extra fabric. He never had any extra. He, of course, had forgotten to tell her; he must have gotten caught up in the excitement of being someone new and the boy he had been talking about. 

  She walked outside, planning to look around the entire town for Callisto, but she instead found him right next door. There was a small farm there; it seemed to be the only farm in town, so you can assume all the produce came from there, but Fern couldn’t tell you what it tasted like as she could only eat meat due to being a felvaxian. Callisto had tried to get her to try some, and it had ended with a long night in the bathroom and a lot of blood loss, which she noticed had thrown Callisto off of carrots. Why he could eat them and she couldn’t, she would never know. They both assumed it had something to do with his Stargazer bloodline, but even then they aren’t sure why it would change anything. But there he was, a bit far down the fence line, leaning over the wooden fence with his chin resting on his palm, talking to a guy quite shorter than Callisto, though he looked a little older. The only thing Fern could make out on the smaller male was dark curly hair, but Callisto’s smile was wide, and if she didn’t know any better, she would say he was blushing. She sighed a sigh of relief; he was okay; what reason did she have to worry again?

  She walked down the path; she didn’t want to seem like she was stalking Callisto, so she kept walking. Now a bit down the path, looking at the beautiful town, she wondered how a place so nice and calm could exist. She could live here forever if given the chance; maybe they should. That wasn’t more than a hopeful dream at the moment; for now, she needed to gather some potion materials and plants while she was out. One of the things on her list is poppy flowers since the seeds have healing properties; she likes to keep a small stash, and Callisto had gone through them all after nearly breaking his wing the other night. It was followed by her lecturing him about preening his wings properly, but besides that and a little bit of pain, he was okay but insisted on having some type of pain medicine, so she used the last of her poppy seeds. She sighed and shook her head, thinking about it; he was such a baby when he got hurt or sick. She felt bad for whoever he would end up marrying the boy, but she also knew whoever got the chance would be lucky; he was a good person. 

  She walked up to a patch of flowers, picking a few poppies, singing a song to herself. “When the sun loves the moon…” It was just below a whisper, thinking she had the area to herself until she heard. “Even the ocean feels her pull.” She jumped and turned to where the voice came from, holding her poppies to her chest like the stranger would try to steal them from her, but then she saw the long brown hair in its ponytails, along with the tall antlers and doe ears. It was Mycena. She and Mycena had talked a few times since they had been in town, especially since Mycena helped out at the flower shop in town when she was here, or that’s what Mycena had told her. Something about her sister living in town, so sometimes she stayed, but most of the time she lived in the nearby town of Norwich. Fernweh enjoyed talking to Mycena; she was a witch and knew a lot more about plants than herself, which is how she found out that tulips can be used to fight fevers. “Sorry, Fernweh, I just love the song and had to finish it.” Mycena chuckled, giving the other a playful smile. Callisto entertaining the idea of a romance in town made Fernweh think a little, looking at the girl in front of her. “It’s alright, Mycena, I was just gathering poppies.” She sighed, giving the other an exhausted smile. “Callisto went through all of mine the other night, so I need more.” Mycena walked over to the taller one, pushing her teasingly. “You have a troublemaker with that one; he’s sweet, though. He made me these sandwiches the other day that were delicious.” Fern shrugged, thinking about sandwiches that made her hungry; she hadn’t eaten all day. “He likes his sandwiches; they’re how he makes friends.” Fern smiled, looking at the poppies; they all had their odd love languages. “He is a bit of a pain, but he cares.” She said, leaning down and picking more poppies. 

  The two sat in silence for a while, both collecting different types of flowers for their reasons, but they were still hanging out, and Fern would be lying if she didn’t enjoy it. Fern wondered if she should leave soon, but that feeling returned that she had to be here, here and now. She would never be able to explain why she was feeling it, but the tingle down her spine, the pull on her finger, the feeling that if she moved from this spot right now, everything would go wrong. Fern knew she believed in fate and destiny, but this almost felt like more than that. By the time Fern had gathered a dozen, she was wondering if she should get more, but before she could finish that thought, Mycena grabbed Fern’s hand and started walking. Fern let out a yelp in surprise, “Where are we going?” She wasn’t going to fight the shorter girl, but she felt she had a right to know where she was being taken. Being pulled along by a pretty girl was nothing she’d complain about, especially if they were staying; maybe she should talk to the shorter girl more; maybe she could get closer to the people in town. “First, we’re going to stop by my place, get some food, then we’re going to head to the flower shop, and I'll get you some more plants.” Mycena started, then ducked under a branch before continuing. “Lastly, we’ll head over to Meteli! They have a great bar there, the only thing this town doesn’t have, but Cecil owes me a drink.” If Mycena was looking at Fern, she would see Fern’s face had twisted into a goofy smile, one that said she was enjoying the idea of spending the day with the girl. “I would, but I don’t drink?” She didn’t mean for it to sound like a question, but she was so out of her element that she didn’t know what else to say. “You don’t drink? How are you and Callisto related?” Mycena laughed as if her question amused her. “He drinks circles around me like it’s nothing.” Fern joined in the laughter, nodding slightly and resting her finger across her smile. “Sounds like him! He’s been a heavy drinker since the end… thing.” Fern said while motioning to her face, where Callisto’s patch of void sat on his face. “He doesn’t talk about it, but he drinks. It’s been less over the past two years, but he can still handle a lot.” She sighed, worrying about the other more than she should. He wasn’t her responsibility; he shouldn’t be. “Well, we’ll still go out for a drink. He has amazing non-alcoholic options too.” She gave Fern a finger gun, along with a smirk, and Fern would be lying if she said she didn’t find the other cute. Mycena was charming; she had seen how the others acted towards animals and the plants she took care of. She trusted the other enough to not lead her astray.

  Mycena opened the door to the small house, letting Fernweh go ahead of her. “Guys! I’ve brought a friend over! Behave.” Her voice sounded more friendly than she had with Fern before, but she didn’t have time to question it before three little heads poked around a corner. One looked about six, the second looked about four, and the smallest looked about one, following his older sisters as they ran over to Mycena, giving her a giant hug. They all started talking at once; well, the youngest was babbling, with two sets of little wings flapping in excitement. Fern would have found it cuter if it weren’t so loud, her ears folding down to try and block out the noise to no avail. The downside of having cat-like ears is that they are sensitive, so being inside was harder for her. Mycena looked at Fern, lightly tapping the tallest child’s head. “I’m going to count; you better hide.” As she said this, the older two took off, with the youngest slowly following behind, making Mycena laugh. “Sorry about them; they can be so loud. Kids.” She sounded sad at the last word; Fern knew that feeling; she knew wanting kids but not thinking you’d ever have them. Or she was overthinking it, not that she’ll ever ask. Her ears slowly moved back into a resting position. “Thank you, and yeah, I know; my little cousins used to be the same way.” She smiled at the other, one she hoped was reassuring, and gave the impression that she understood what the other was feeling. “Let’s go talk to my sibling and sister-in-law; they should have some food ready soon that we could steal.” Mycena grabbed Fern’s hand and led her over to the kitchen. 

  The room smelt of freshly baked bread, a smell Fern only knew when her aunt Aikaterine would come over, and it had been a long time since she had come over. Two figures were working in the kitchen, one with long, straight black and purple hair; she was the shorter of the two, with two long black horns that stuck over the top of her head. The other was taller, with short, curly, green hair, two wings attached to her head, and two wings on her back, showing where the two younger kids got their wings from. The taller one turned around, the wings on her head flapping at the sight of the two. “Mycena! You’re back! It’s good to see you, sweetheart.” She walked over, hugging Mycena, wrapping her wings around her, showing how much she missed the other dearly. “Aelia! I’m happy to see you too, but we have a guest…” Mycena pushed the other off gently; she seemed almost embarrassed by the other’s affection. Fern smiled, giving a soft giggle; she thought the sight before her was sweet and reminded her of back home with her own family. How Fern and her sister acted sometimes whenever she and Callisto would come over. “Right, right, sorry.” Aelia was the name Mycena said before, she said while her wings went back, softly flapping as they did. “Is this Fern? You said she might be coming over today.” Mycena’s face turned a bright shade of red, which made Fern give Mycena a questioning look; she thought this had been spontaneous. Had Mycena been planning on asking Fern over? That made her smile, knowing the other had wanted to hang out with her. If they had left this morning, it wouldn’t have gone this way. “I didn’t say anything! Shush! Please.” Mycena covered her face and looked away from Fern, finally getting the other person’s attention. They turned towards Mycena. “Mycena, don’t lie in front of everyone; it’s okay to admit you want to hang out with Fernweh.” They sounded done with the group, quickly turning to Fern. “Hi Fernweh, I’m Sylvie, and that is my wife, Aelia. I’m Mycena’s sibling.” They put their hand out, which Fern took a little too fast out of panic. “It’s nice to meet you, Sylvie.” Mycena watched the group while peeking between her fingers; she seemed worried about how Fern would react to new information. When she saw that Fern didn’t seem to have reacted negatively, she put her hands down. “Let us cook, Mycena; go show Fern around.” Sylvie’s tone scared Fern; she wasn’t sure if they always sounded this way or if they were mad at Fern. 

  Mycena ended up dragging Fern out of the room, bringing her down the hall towards the last room on the left. The inside was decorated with a mushroom blanket, pillow carpet, and so much more. The room had a lot of plants, it was clear that Mycena loved her plants, but that made sense with her being a gaia. “I’m sorry about them both; they love to embarrass me.” Mycena sighed, not making eye contact with the other. Anyone could tell she was embarrassed. Fern could go two different routes with what she says next, and Fern is a petty bitch. “So, you planned on asking me to hang out?” She said in the most teasing voice she could, one she commonly used with her close family. Fern felt comfortable with Mycena, like she could truly be herself. Mycena sighed loudly; she was more embarrassed by the second. “Yes, I want to hang out with you.” She sat down on her bed and finally made eye contact with Fern. “Is that… wrong?” She sounded scared. What was she scared of? Did Fern make her scared? “I don’t think so. I’m happy to hang out with you, but I need to be honest with you.” Fern said, sitting down next to Mycena, her wings twitching slightly. She wasn’t sure whether or not she could wrap them around the other, despite wanting to. She wanted to try and comfort the other. “Callisto and I were supposed to leave this morning. The only reason we’re still here is because he wanted to talk to that farmer boy.” Mycena moved closer to Fern when she said that, laughing just a little. “He’s finally talking to Felis? Good for him.” She hesitantly rested her head on Fern’s shoulder, letting herself relax against the other. Fern took this as permission to wrap her wing around Mycena, pulling her closer. “I hadn’t heard about him until this morning. Has this been a thing?” Fern laughed; she wasn’t used to being this out of the loop. It was fun. “It has been since you guys got here! If I keep hearing about it, I might just die.” Mycena laughed as she said this, but Fern would believe it if what she said was true. “The first day you both got here, Cossy came and said hi to everyone, but he fell and Felis caught him. He ran off right after, but Felis asked me so many questions! I knew as much as he did, besides that Callisto had introduced himself as Cossy.” Fern pulled Mycena a little closer as the two laughed together. They were both relaxed, enjoying one another. 

  After a while of silence, they heard Aelia call that it was lunchtime from the kitchen. Fern moved to get up but found that Mycena didn’t move. She looked down at Mycena to see her asleep; it made her smile. She moved her wing off of the other and slowly attempted to wake her up. “Myce? It’s time to get up.” Fern didn’t even realize what she had called the other; she was just focused on getting Mycena up so they could go eat and then continue the rest of their day together. She kept moving the other, and as Mycena stirred awake, she looked at Fern with an expression so tired she felt bad for waking her. “It’s time to go eat; come on.” Mycena shook her head, nuzzling into Fern. “I’m not hungry…” Fern had to admit, the sight was adorable; she was close to letting her fall back asleep, but before she could decide to do so, there was a loud knock on the door. “Cena! Momma made pineapple carrot cake!” Fern assumed it was the oldest child based on the speech pattern, but she didn’t know them well enough to say for sure. What she did know was that the mention of the cake woke Mycena up fast. Faster than Fern expected, and it made her jump. “Just a second, Violet! If you guys eat it all again, I swear to God.” Mycena stood up and ran towards the door, leaving Fern behind on the bed, laughing as Mycena ran out of the room. Mycena liked pineapple carrot cake; she should remember this in the future. Fern took one last look around the room, taking it in, then standing up and walking out the door to follow Mycena. 

  Fern walked into the dining room; the first thing she saw was what she assumed was the pineapple carrot cake in the middle of the table, and then on each plate was a piece of shepherd's pie. It was something Fern could eat; she appreciated that. Mycena was sitting to the right of the youngest, with the seat to her right the only empty one at the table, so Fern assumed that’s where she should sit. She took the seat next to Mycena, attempting to not look as uncomfortable as she felt at that moment. Mycena smiled at Fern, giving her a reassuring nod. Aelia and Sylvie sat down just a few minutes later. “Please eat; don’t let it get cold.” Aelia insisted; it made Fern wonder if she should have started soon, but Mycena hadn’t started, so she hadn’t. “Come on, Aelia, we had to wait for the both of you.” Mycena gave them both a giant smile. “You two worked so hard.” Fern could tell the two appreciated Mycena’s words; it seemed Sylvie was just naturally stern because she was smiling but still felt mad at Fern. She could breathe now; she didn’t do anything before, or she hoped. Soon everyone began eating, Mycena talking to Sylvie and Aelia. She was laughing with the two, enjoying lunch together; she even got Fern involved at one point, which was a big step for her. They laughed and joked with one another while they ate their meal until they finished, and it was time for cake. “So, why pineapple carrot cake? I mean, I’ve never even heard of it.” Fern asked; she didn’t want to offend; she was just curious. The response she got, she didn’t expect; it was Sylvie of all people laughing at Fern, and based on Mycena and Aelia’s reactions, it wasn’t normal. “Our parents used to make it all the time; for so long it was Mycena’s favorite. Not so sure now.” They explained, their laughter dying down. “But whenever Mycena stays with us, we make it at least once, though if she comes by more because of you, we might have to cut back on them.” Mycena made an offended noise and put her hand on her chest. “Don’t cut me off, please.” Which made the older four laugh altogether. Fern enjoyed their company; the children were funny, Sylvie and Aelia were enjoyable as well, and she could get used to hanging out over here. Maybe Callisto was right to suggest they stay longer.

  After a while their lunch was over; Mycena and Fern said goodbye to the five and went towards the flower shop. They walked down the dirt paths of the town, laughter filling the air; the two couldn’t be quiet for a minute. Fern was taking all the time they had to get to know Mycena; she could live in this town; she wasn’t serious before about moving to this town, just one like it, but Thornbrook could be home. Fernweh could imagine herself living here, getting to know Mycena, and being able to see her every day. Her heart hurt thinking of not being around the other; it was a weird feeling for Fern. She didn’t normally get attached to people like this; how did the short girl worm her way into Fern’s heart so fast? “Fern, watch out!” Mycena yelled as Fern walked into a branch, cutting her forehead. She yelped in pain; it was small, but it stung. Mycena looked worried; she got on her tiptoes to try and examine the other. “You’re cut; let me see.” Fern laughed a little, leaning down to give the other a clear view. “I can heal myself; I promise.” Mycena shook her head, getting the two to the perfect level so she could kiss Fernweh’s forehead, then ran towards the flower shop. Fern didn’t know what to do for a second; Mycena had kissed her forehead, and suddenly the stinging didn’t matter anymore. Instead, all she was focusing on was the feeling of the kiss that was left even though Mycena’s lips were no longer there. As soon as she realized she was just standing there, she ran after the other.

  Fern walked into the flower shop, seeing Mycena running around, grabbing different seeds and flowers, and putting them into a bag. She was going around fast; she knew exactly where everything was, and apparently, she knew exactly what she wanted to grab the other. “Mycena, are you alright?” Fern was worried about the other. A kiss and run was not what she expected today, but it was not unwelcome. “I’m fine, Fern! Just looking for something.” She started running around more, cursing to herself about whatever it was she was looking for. Fern was curious, but the entire shop made her feel that way. She walked over to the poppies, looking at the seeds. She knew she needed to grab some more, but this would be easier than going and gathering them herself. “Mycena, how much are the poppy seeds?” She asked without looking at the other, just looking at the seeds. “Just take them! I was going to grab you some of them anyway.” She heard Mycena running around behind her, and Fern wondered if they were going to be awkward now or if that was just something Mycena did to her friends. Are they friends? Fern didn’t know the answer to that, and before she could think more about it, Mycena ran over to her and handed her a bag full of what Fern could only assume were different plants from around the shop. “Oh! Thank you, you didn’t have to do this.” Fern smiled, holding the bag close. Mycena gave her a warm smile, reaching up and tucking a sunflower behind one of Fern’s ears. “There you go, it complements your eyes, sunflower.” Fern put a hand on her cheek, feeling her face heat up at the other’s action. Mycena giggled at her. “Yes, you are red.” She moved Fern’s hand off of her face and gave her a small kiss on her knuckles. It was so fast Fern wondered if she had imagined it. “Thank you, Mycena.” It was all Fern could get out; she wasn’t sure what was going on, but she wasn’t going to complain. A cute girl giving her two kisses in one day, it’s like a dream come true. “Of course! Now, we have got you covered, so let’s head over to Meteli.” Mycena sounded hopeful; she also sounded nervous. Fern wondered if Mycena overthought the way she did. “Yeah, let’s go,” Fern said with a nod, moving to leave the flower shop with Mycena behind her.

  Fern followed as Mycena walked behind the flower shop, heading down the path towards Meteli. As they walked, the two started laughing again. If you saw them in public, you would assume they’ve known each other longer than three weeks. “I’m sorry there isn’t a lot to do in town.” Mycena sighed, leading the other down the stairs towards the bridge. “Small-town things. It’s nothing like the capital.” Fern shook her head. “I prefer it actually; it’s nice to be able to breathe.” She explained as she picked Mycena up and then took off into the sky. Mycena screamed instinctively at being taken into the air; she knew Fern could fly, but a warning would have been nice. She covered her eyes, not wanting to look at the ground and see how high in the air the two were. “Fern, what the fuck!” Fern didn’t like the fear in Mycena’s voice. “Myce, it’s okay, I have you. Just look for a second at least.” Fern reassured the other, flying over the water towards the other town. She held Mycena close, but comfortably; she wasn’t scared to drop her. She knew what she was doing. Mycena listened to Fern’s words; she trusted the other, probably too much, so she uncovered her eyes and looked down at the water and the land ahead of them. Her eyes went wide at seeing the world below; it was beautiful. Fern flew closer to the water, letting Mycena look at it before speeding up and flying them both to the top of the hill ahead of them. She landed and set Mycena on the ground, giving her a proud smile. “I can fly pretty well!” She wasn’t wrong, but she still scared the other. Mycena made that obvious as she was clinging to the taller. “Give me a warning next time, please?” She clung to the taller tighter; she was shaking a bit and looked up to look Fern in the eyes. “But please let there be a next time.” Fern chuckled softly, giving her a nod. “Yes, I’ll warn you, and there will be a warning.” Mycena let out a breath Fern didn’t realize the shorter was holding and then let go of her, starting once again down the path. Fern watched for a second, smiling like an idiot. Mycena was good company; she wouldn’t deny that, and she was excited to keep hanging out with the others, at least for today. Before Mycena could get too far ahead, she ran to catch up with her.

  The two walked into town; Fern noted to herself how towns around these parts had so little defense. All that had been at the entrance of Meteli was a wooden arch with flowers around it. It felt cozy, like the rest of the town looked from what Fern could see. The two walked over to the tavern; it was near the front, so it wasn’t too far of a walk. Mycena held the door open for Fern, and then she was hit with the smell of alcohol, which she wasn’t fond of, but she figured she could deal with for the other. Mycena led the taller one over to the bar, giving the bartender a wave. “Hey, Cecil! My favorite brother-in-law.” She said as she took a seat. Making the bartender, Cecil, laugh. Fern took the seat to the left of Mycena, away from the man working, so she didn’t get in the way of their conversation. “It’s good to see you, Cena, but who have you brought today?” He asked as he leaned against the counter to talk to Mycena, giving Fern time to look at him. He had two black wings coming out of his head, with matching ones on his back, making Fern wonder what his origin was. Mycena wrapped an arm around Fern. “This is Fernweh! Fernweh, this is Cecil; he’s engaged to my brother.” Mycena explained as the two watched Cecil start mixing a drink. “Speaking of my brother, where is he now?” Fern was confused; how many siblings did Mycena have? She would need to ask about that later, as Mycena had mentioned quite a few names since they had started hanging out earlier in the day. “Oh, Cove is out on the sea for another week. Aikaterine insisted that she get him out on an adventure before the wedding.” When Cecil said the name ‘Aikaterine,’ it clicked in Fern’s head who Mycena was talking to. “Cecil, as in Cecil Bowen?” Fern asked, and when Cecil gave her a confused nod, she continued. “Aikaterine Vasilos is who you were talking about, right? She’s my aunt.” Cecil looked surprised, but it was clear he believed the other. “You’re that Fernweh! I’ve heard about you from Metrodora mostly; she speaks the world of you.” Cecil smiled fondly; Fern assumed the two were close if he was close with her aunt. “I haven’t seen her in a while now; is she in town?” Fern hoped she was; it would be nice to see her cousin, and Callisto would be excited to see her as well. If they got the chance, that was. Unfortunately, though, Cecil shook his head as he slid a slightly yellow, opaque liquid in a glass to Mycena with a slice of pineapple as a garnish. “She’s out of town with a friend at the moment, but she’ll be back in around a week. If you plan on staying that long. From what she says, you live near the capital?” Mycena was listening but happily drank her drink. She also wanted to know if Fern would be staying; she had grown to enjoy her company, not to mention she was beginning to get close to Callisto, so she hoped the pair wouldn’t be leaving just yet. “We do live near the capital, but I do think we’ll be staying for a bit longer.” Fern smiled softly, glancing over at Mycena. “Callie and I have both found out we have a few more things to do before we head home.” Cecil gave Fern a knowing smirk, looking at Mycena, then back at the Felvaxian. “Well, from what Mycena has told me, you have been here for a bit now. There is an old, empty building in Thornbrook I happen to own that would be perfect for a business to be started in.” The older man explained as he poured a drink and then took a sip out of the glass. “If you happen to need something like that, let me know, and we could work something out?” Fern looked at Mycena, who was finishing her drink as the two were talking. “I think I might take you up on that offer.” 

[dyno511]

My Funny Valentine, Sweet, Comic Valentine

Summary: Hireath and Mycena spend the afternoon attempting to make potions together and realize, maybe they both enjoy each other's company more than planned. (This is an AU where things went right in Orb.)

Word Count: 1018

Read on Ao3 | Masterlist

        Sylvie’s home was always a loud one. There were always children running through the halls and Mycena rarely got a chance to practice her witchcraft since they always begged for her to play with them. She’d managed to get this night to herself though, well, to herself and Fernweh. The garden behind the house was always a perfect spot for practice. Usually, Mycena was known for working with plants more than potions or direct magic but the felvaxian she was growing rather fond of was working with both. So, she decided she could at least give it a shot. 

        The small gaia had brought all her plants and Fernweh brought her books and the knowledge she had from her classes. She’d tried to teach Mycena some of the things she’d learned but Mycena just wasn’t a fan of how they taught at the academy. She was always more of a do it and find out the consequences girl. That was alright though, Mycena worked better with nature than more planned or predictable magic, and Fernweh was better with her experiments and plans. That was probably why they worked well together, why they enjoyed each other’s company so much.

        “Okay Sunflower, I have no idea how to do this. I don’t practice enough and I don’t… do normal magic really, what are we doing?” Mycena muttered the nickname like it was second nature.

        “Really? You wanted to make potions and didn’t even know how?” Fernweh’s soft laughter was music to the smaller witch’s ears. 

        She could have sworn there was the hint of a blush on her face but it was dark and the only light they had out here was the candles Sylvie kept around for any magic they practiced. They stood there, giggling over the situation for some time, finding themselves laying next to each other in the grass. You could see so many stars and the moon was shining amongst them. It was a beautiful view, and Fernweh beside her only made it prettier.

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        Their laughter died eventually, replaced with soft chatter from the pair. The potion idea had been abandoned the second they started giggling. Both were fine with that, Mycena didn’t want to embarrass herself and Fernweh seemed to be having fun either way. It was sweet, they’d spent the past few weeks together whenever Callisto was busy flirting with the local farmer. There was never a dull conversation for them, from Mycena’s stories of the village she lives in to Fernweh’s stories of her family.

        “Myce, I don’t think I want to leave, it’s.. It’s really nice here with you.”

        The gaia stared at the other. She wasn’t imagining the end of that sentence, her imagination was never so kind. As confident as she was, a pretty girl telling her she wanted to be here with her was one way to crumble it all. She must have stayed silent for too long, Fernweh sat up and stared back at her. She was definitely blushing now, even the poor lighting couldn’t hide it now.

        “You don’t have to, you know? I mean… I know you two have to go back home because of your family and all, but you don’t have to go forever.”

        Neither said another word for some time, they instead sat together, watching the stars. At some point, Mycena had found herself curled up next to Fernweh, the felvaxian’s wing wrapped around her. She didn’t want to leave either. She loved her family and her village but maybe there was more than Norwich for her, maybe this was her chance to have what her mothers had. A chance to be more than just the second youngest of the Amanita family and more than just someone that yearned for love like the pair that raised her. Maybe she was thinking too far ahead, she didn’t even know if Fernweh felt the same.

        Her thoughts were interrupted by soft snoring, the girl beside her had fallen asleep. She looked so peaceful, and for a moment, Mycena realized she would be fine spending every day this way. Something was missing though. Something felt off, and had she been a stronger person, she would have thought about it more, tried to find out what. Instead, she wouldn’t ruin this moment, or any others. 

        Deciding she would rather rest than think any longer, she carefully curled up closer to Fernweh, listening to the other’s quiet breathing and heart beat until she drifted off to sleep. The last thoughts running through her head were screaming that something was wrong but she was prone to over thinking and worrying. Tonight, she would sleep right here, next to someone she cared about so dearly and dream of a world she didn’t recognize, a tall girl with bright blue eyes, a shadow with four eyes sitting next to her with another smaller man as they all watched the sun set, and a glimpse of flames erupting around her.

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        The entire room was a mess now. Paintings were thrown on the ground and paint splashed across the walls and floor. She needed to clean up before everything she put together for her Myce was ruined, but in this moment, all she felt was rage. This was everything she wanted and she couldn’t be a part of it because it could be pulled apart by one little mistake. She’d have to settle for watching Mycena be happy with someone that wasn’t her and everything about that made her beyond angry. She hated this. 

        Picking up the paintings, Sibylle remembered why she worked so hard to do this. In this world, everyone was okay. Her father was happy, Mycena was alive. Hireath, Felis, and Cossy were happy too and even though she didn’t like one of them, they meant a lot to Myce. She was fine sacrificing her happiness for everyone she cared about to have a normal life. Even if it meant she would have to sit here with the endless rage she tried so hard to keep down. It’d be alright because Mycena is happy and that’s what matters to her.

[missmaddles-uwu]

oh… they’re forgots

lil shitpost of hireath, felis, and cossy :p

hireath’s my favorite alcoholic and the #1 hater in sandarce i love her so much <3

[cherryskeletoncake]

You know they be talking shit

[shroombell]

"we love planetlord" we all say in unison

unrendered version jumpscare

[blu-orb]

ok mcyt posting on main forgive us

BUT CONTENT SMP GUYS. ARE WE GOING CRAZY OR DID C!ASTRON HAVE A DIAMOND HELMET IN TALON'S VIDEO THAT *WASN'T* THERE IN BLAKE OR RAT'S????

[noahsey]

[forkzu]

this is what happened after deal with destiny

mm ocean orb

chomp

oh no.

[where-is-zedaph]

Has Zedaph taught Zedaph Junior to stare into the orb?

THE OOOOOORBBB

[sand-stinger]

Empirestober ; Homeland

Breaking news: orb cultists abandons home to become a government official, fails, and is now terrorizing other officials with catchy songs. More at 7!

(afterlife counts as oli's homeland, right?)

[bolticious]

Orb SMP Fics

Fics Based In Orb SMP | ao3 | twitch watch orb | masterlist

If We Could Smile Without Effort ( Poppy Seeds ) - ϑϱ

Fernweh was ready to leave; she was packed, but when Callisto asked to stay in town despite being hesitant to agree, she did. Little did she know, agreeing gives her the chance to hang out with a local witch who may give Fernweh another reason to stay.

[dyno511]

Thank You for The Best of You

Summary: Cossy's birthday is coming around and everyone's found out he's never had a Chuck-E-Cheese's birthday party.

Word Count: 4355

Author's Note: This was a birthday gift for my friend <3

Read on Ao3 | Masterlist

        Most mornings were quiet in the Fischer house, today however, was not most mornings. Any time Sibylle’s friends spent the night, it was bound to be a chaotic morning but the family would have it no other way. The laughter from the group was enough to let being woken up in the morning go. Heinrich made his way to the kitchen, starting breakfast for the bunch and his youngest daughter, waiting for Sibylle or Mycena to make their way down to apologize for waking him up.

        As the man cooked, a girl appeared across from him. A grin on her face as she watched her father make pancakes for everyone. To any outsider, it was clear they were related, the girl looked so similar to her father, they even had the same grin. Once you got to know them, It was even clearer. The way they cared about others, the way they talked to people, the way they joked, it was all the same.

        “Sorry we woke you up, Cossy had a nightmare and Myce didn’t know how to help so I just woke everyone up before they did,” His daughter nodded at him, taking a seat on a stool.

        “It’s alright, you don’t have them over that often anyways. Is everyone coming down?”

        “Yeah, Myce and Cossy are making everyone apologize to █████ for waking her up though so they might be a minute,” Sibylle nodded, doodling on some junk mail from the day before.

        Silence filled the room as Heinrich finished up the pancakes and Sibylle drew, only for it to be broken as Hireath and Cossy joined them, Mycena, Gail, and Felis following behind.

        “I’m fine Hireath! It was just a nightmare don’t- hey! Put that down!” The younger pleaded, laughing as the brunette chased after him with a spray bottle. The rest of the group watched, filling their plates with the finished pancakes.

        Before Hireath could finally get Cossy with the spray bottle, another interrupted, Felis, smiling at Cossy as he led him to the table.         “Eat before Hireath ends up dumping the whole spray bottle out on you,” A chuckle escaping him as he took a seat next to Cossy, nodding to Hireath as she joined them all.

        Quiet chatter emerged from the group as breakfast went on, silence never having a chance to emerge. Each of them looked so happy, from Sibylle and Mycena, with their constant stolen glances, Gail and her laughter as she spoke with everyone, Hireath’s snarky comments, to Felis and Cossy’s worrying over each other, making sure the other was alright after Cossy’s nightmare or the entire group being awoken to calm the former down. Heinrich wondered what it was like to be so comfortable in a group of people so different from each other. At the end of the day, it didn’t matter, as long as all of them were happy.

        And then the comfortable breakfast was interrupted as the youngest Fischer daughter ran down the stairs, yelling for her father and sister’s help with a fox that had managed to climb through the open windows of her sister’s loft.

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        Gail and Felis had rushed out of the house the first chance they got, promising they’d meet the rest of their friends at the Chuck E. Cheese as soon as they were done. The pink haired of the duo had promised she’d help Felis pick out a good gift for Cossy in time, he just didn’t expect her to wait until the day they planned to celebrate. Then again, Gail always had an odd way of getting things done and never let Felis down when it came to helping him navigate his feelings for Cossy.

        The ride to the mall was almost as eventful as the morning had been, at some point one of them had turned on the radio and neither could help but sing along, whether they remembered the words or not. Then, they’d ended up passing the mall twice, getting distracted by whatever song they were singing or money making scheme they had come up with. On top of missing the mall, finding a parking spot ended in them almost running into a family that ran in front of them, only missing them by a hair before finally getting a parking space and rushing into the mall before anything else could happen.

        “Alright, Gail where are we going?” Felis turned to the girl next to him, unsure of where to even start.

        “Hmm, Let’s see, oh! That jacket Cossy’s been looking at everytime Mycena takes us shopping? Oh wait.. I think Mycena and Sibylle got him that and some clothes to match it..” She muttered, looking around as she thought

        “Maybe some cooking stuff?” She shouted, pointing towards a few houseware outlets.

        Felis thought for a moment. He knew Cossy would like that but he wanted it to be more special, something Cossy would smile at the same way he smiled at him. “What did you get him?”

        “Oh.. about that that’s part of why I came with you, I know what I’m gonna get him I just forgot to get it!” Gail sheepishly admitted, pulling out her phone to check what store she needed to head to.

        “We can head there first, I think I have a few ideas.”

        The duo continued their adventure into the mall, passing the clothing stores they’d gone to with Mycena a few weeks ago and the craft shop Sibylle had begged them to stop by on their first group mall trip. One shop caught Felis’s eye when they’d nearly reached the shop Gail was heading towards. None of the trips they’d taken had brought them in the shop but every time, Cossy would stop just for a moment and look at everything. A photography shop, Felis knew he liked photography, he just wasn’t sure how much, but remembering how his boyfriend had looked at the displays, maybe this was the gift he was looking for.

        “Hey Gail! I’ll meet you back at that pretzel place in the food court, I think I found what I wanna get Cossy!”

        Before giving her time to react, Felis headed into the shop and began looking for the best camera they had. That’s when he realized these were all too expensive to buy on the spot.. The only way he’d actually be able to buy it today without spending what he and Gail had made from their sandwich scheme was actually taking up Mycena’s offer to spend a bunch of her money to make sure this party went great. Felis sighed as he called the smallest of the group, hoping she wouldn’t put him on speaker.

        “Hi Felis!” Mycena’s high pitched voice came through the phone, he could hear Cossy in the background, playing with whichever of Mycena’s cats was by them.

        “Hey, um… how opposed to buying a really expensive camera would you be?” He whispered, hoping she wouldn’t blurt anything out and ruin the surprise for Cossy.

        Silence was all that came through the phone until he heard a door shut.

        “Text me how much and then… check your card balance and you owe me so much pineapple juice, Felis.” The serious tone at the end of that sounded nearly threatening if it wasn’t coming from Mycena Amanita, the kindest person any of them knew. However, she’s very serious about her pineapple juice so best not to get her bad side for that deal.

        “You got it boss, thanks, um.. What’s he up to?”

        “Playing with Max and Luci and Pineapple and Bink bonk too! Bye bye Felis, I’ll tell him  you said hi,” With that, the call ended, leaving Felis chuckling, questioning why that girl names her cats these things.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

        They had time to waste until the rest of the group got here and Heinrich showed up with the cake, so, as always, the two were ready to be the bane of every child in the building’s existence. Sibylle never really cared about games, she cared more for drawing and making people’s day worse. Hireath was near the same but she adored making children mad, especially these two kids that were always there when the group was.

        Both were shorter than average kids that never left Hireath and Sibylle alone, even though Mycena babysat them and begged them to leave her friends be. Though, now, it has turned into more of Hireath and Sibylle messing with them, only for Myce to start begging them instead of the children. There was just something about the brats that pissed the duo off, maybe it was Hireath’s general need to be a public menace or Sibylle loving to take up Mycena’s attention.

        “Hey, brat move. We wanna play,” Hireath grinned at the two in front of them, watching as the smaller of the pair backed behind its friend.

        “Back off, we were here first Hireath!” The older of the kids, Mossy, barked back at her, turning back to its game as the brunette joined them.

        “Too bad, you’ve had your turn now shoo.”

        Sibylle watched the children run off and joined Hireath as they went from game to game, waiting for the rest of their friends to arrive. Neither was sure when it had turned into a competition to get the most tickets, but at some point, they’d found themselves racing around the arcade for games to beat the other at or were easy ways to get more tickets.

        An hour went by before they’d even realized Gail and Felis had been here, waiting at a table as the two ran around, only joining them to set down their jackets and some tickets before heading back to their competition. About 150 tickets later, Heinrich showed up with the cake and █████. The pair giggled as they walked past Hireath and Sibylle, gesturing for them to join them at the table with the rest of the guests.

        “How much do you wanna bet Mycena gives all those tickets to Cossy later?” Hireath muttered, taking a seat across from Sibylle.

        “If she does, that’s up to her but she’d be adorable for it no matter what.”

        A collective sigh came from the group, all but Heinrich, who sat chuckling at his daughter and her endless love for that girl.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Cossy sighed, squeezing his eyes shut as his best friend dragged him along. Mycena made him promise to keep his eyes closed until they got inside this place and as much as he thought it was kind of fun, he hated not knowing where they were going. Especially with all the chatter and noise the building she’s dragged him into was filled with.

        Following along, Mycena steered him through what he’d guess was a crowd, stopping at a quieter area that reeked of cheap pizza and… was that cake? It smelt like cake, but he couldn’t be sure.

        “Mycena, can I open my eyes yet?”

        “Hm… not yet! Just stay right where you are though, and I’ll tell you when!”

        Cossy sighed, listening to the soft chatter around him while he waited. Before Mycena had told him he could open his eyes, singing emerged from in front of him as he opened them to see the people he called home.

        “Happy birthday Cossy!”

        He was shocked, they’d done all this just for him? There was a delicious looking cake in front of him, all his friends around him, a questionably huge pile of prize tickets and even presents. He didn’t get it, why had they done all this?

        Before he could find himself crying, Felis pulled him back to reality, leading him to the seat next to him and placing a couple party hats on both their heads.

        “Alright, guest of honor, what do you wanna do first? Pizza? Cake? Games? Presents?” Felis smiled at him softly as he waited for a choice. Really, Cossy would be fine just sitting here with him and their friends, but if he had to choose..

        “Cake first, maybe no pizza it kinda smells like fake pizza in here and then presents?” Cossy mumbled, looking away from his boyfriend’s adorable smile before he ended up staring at it the entire time.

        Giggling emerged from Gail and Mycena, watching the two sneak glances at the other as Heinrich cut everyone a piece of cake. Whether they were scheming or just happy for their best friends, Cossy would never know. He didn’t have much time to think about it anyways since his slice of cake was slid in front of him and Felis had already started talking to him.

        “What did you and Mycena get up to today anyways?”

        “We went to visit Ileine, he wanted to spend some time with me today but um… I’m assuming that was part of everyone’s plan to keep this a surprise?”

        Felis chuckled, leaving Cossy in awe as he listened to him speak.

        “Surprisingly enough, no, that wasn’t part of the plan. Mycena just wanted to tag along in case Ileine almost told you or ended up keeping you all day, don’t worry about it.”

        Their conversation went on as they ate, one of the pair always leaving the other watching with a smile on their face. Felis told him about the adventure he and Gill ended up having, Hireath and Sibylle butting in to explain their Mossy and Creature fiasco that wasn’t really a fiasco, and Cossy telling his boyfriend all about he and Mycena’s time with Ileine earlier. He could do this all day, talk to Felis, that is. He was a great listener and talker on top of being so lovable.

        “Oh, um.. Do you wanna go ahead and open your presents real quick? We can keep talking after it’s just that I think you’re gonna really like all of them so,” Felis smiled, stacking all the plates together as he waited for an answer.

        “Oh! Right, yeah.. Um… which one do you all want me to start with?” Cossy muttered, a little overwhelmed, it looked like each of them had gotten him something. They didn’t have to do that, really.

        Noticing the look in her best friend’s eyes, Mycena hopped up from her place across from him and handed over one of the presents. Probably from Sibylle considering the scribbled words on the card, Cossy couldn’t quite make it out so he settled for grinning and nodding towards her before taking everything out of the gift bag.

        It was the jacket he had been looking at weeks ago.. Cossy had been wanting it but just didn't have any clothes that would make it look good. Before he could thank Sibylle, he noticed the other clothes in the bag, the exact ones Mycena had told him would go well with that jacket. It was weird, as far as he knew, Sibylle didn’t really care for him at all, why’d she go and get him a gift?

        “Don’t give me that look, just ‘cause I don’t show I care doesn’t mean I’m not getting you a birthday present, you can be all sappy about it later.” She waved him off, leaning back in her chair as she doodled in her sketchbook.

        Cossy and Mycena’s quiet laughter went unnoticed as Gail sheepishly handed over the big box for him. Surprisingly, it wasn’t that obvious this one was from Gail, he thought maybe it was from Hireath or maybe Mycena, she was usually a go big or go home kind of gifts person. Opening the box, Cossy was greeted with tons of cat themed baking utensils. They were adorable, and he couldn’t wait to use them, even if it was just to make treats for everyone here right now.

        “Thank you Gail, these are adorable.” The boy grinned, giving the heterochromic girl a huge hug as a thank you.

        “Any time, Cossy. I thought you’d find them cute plus Felis wasn’t there to argue over which ones were cuter!” She chuckled, gently smacking the top of Felis’s head as she spoke before returning to her seat beside him. Only for the pair to start bickering immediately.

        Mycena hopped back up from her seat, grabbing a taller box from the presents, placing it in front of Cossy. A Build-a-Bear box? There were a million things it could be and with how unpredictable Mycena was when it came to gifts, there was no telling what it was. Careful not to break the box, the taller one opened it, staring at the stuffed animal it held. That’s why Mycena was asking what his favorite eevee evolution was last week.

        The stuffed animal in the box was an umbreon, taking it out of its box, Cossy grinned, hugging it only for the sound box in it to go off. Laughter and shouts of “We love you Cossy!” brought him to tears, he didn’t expect this at all. When did she even get everyone to Build-a-Bear for this? The tears wouldn’t stop falling. He loved his friends so much and this was such a small gesture but it moved him so much.

        “Wh- Cossy, don’t cry..” Mycena’s voice softened as she hugged him. Cossy knew she didn’t mean to make him cry, and they weren’t sad tears anyways, it was just unexpected and he loved it so much.

        “No! No it’s fine Mycena, they’re happy tears. I just,” a sniffle interrupted him as he returned the hug. “It’s just that I didn’t expect it, any of this really. Thank you, I love it and I love you guys so much, you mean the world to me.”

        He barely noticed when Felis and Gail joined the hug, Hireath following behind them. She wasn’t one for hugs so she settled for just patting Cossy on the back, and that was fine by him. The tears only stopped when he’d ended up sneezing, causing everyone to back away as giggles emerged from their group.

        Cossy decided he’d pick the next present, a smaller box with a note from Heinrich on the tag. A thank you for being friends with Mycena and Sibylle, hanging out with █████, and a happy birthday wish from both him and the youngest of the people gathered around the table. Turning over the note, he noticed a sentence written on the back, scribbled down in glitter ink. “Your gift from me is my silence and general not here-ness during this party, you’re welcome. From, █████ Fischer.”

        Chuckling at the note, Cossy opened the box. It was nearly filled to the brim with cat toys and treats, all for his pet, Max. The cat had ended up either losing or wearing out all his previous toys and Cossy just never had the chance to get him new ones. Max was going to love these, and he couldn’t wait to show him all of it.

        “Thank you, Heinrich, Max is going to love these. And thank you █████ for your gift too.” Cossy smiled at them both, placing the box with the other opened gifts.

        Only two were left unopened. He didn’t know which to open first, the smaller present or the one clearly from Felis. Maybe he’d leave Felis’s for last, he wanted to save it, maybe just so he could spend the time watching his boyfriend’s smile. So, Cossy settled for opening the small gift first. A small leatherbound notebook with symbols etched into it and a note on the inside of the cover. Hireath’s handwriting was familiar to him, they’d shared class notes all the time and too often, Hireath would toss notes to Cossy in the middle of class. The only thing is, he couldn’t tell what this was for.

        “Hireath, what is this?” He examined the small notebook as he waited for her response.

        “You wanted me to teach you about all the witchy stuff I get up to, so that’s where we’re going to start. We can stop by Mycena’s shop this weekend and get some stuff,” She grinned at him. A smile was always rare from Hireath, and she rarely ever admitted they were friends.

        A grin broke out from Cossy’s confusion as he sat down the book to hug her. To everyone’s surprise she returned it. Before the moment could last any longer, Hireath shrugged him off and directed him towards the final present, Felis’s present. Really, Cossy didn’t need any gift from him, Felis being with him was a gift he would take over any others.

        Cossy was careful not to accidentally tear the bag like he had with any of the other gifts, he wanted to hold onto this one most of all. He noticed Felis watching him as he took each thing out of the bag, a bunch of embroidery patches, a small bag, a photo album, and a heavier than expected box. The patches were the letters of his name, Callisto, and a small star shaped one as well. What he’d put them on right now, he wasn’t sure. Before he opened the box, he turned and placed a kiss on Felis’s cheek, a preemptive thank you for the gifts. Leaving Felis to sit there staring at him, Cossy opened the box, staring down at the camera it held.

        “Oh, Felis, you didn’t.” He turned, hugging the man next to him.

        “I did, you kept stopping whenever we walked by so.. I got you the best camera I could find, even if Mycena paid for it.” Felis snickered, returning the hug and the kiss from only moments before.

        “The camera's all situated so you can use it whenever you want. I just wanted to get it situated in case you wanted to take pictures now?” The small smile on his face only melted Cossy’s heart.

        Before he could get lost in staring at Felis, Cossy turned on the camera and headed over to a spot where he could see the people he considers his family. Each of them were watching him, waiting to see what he was up to, only for Cossy to snap a picture as █████ ended up throwing a napkin at her sister’s face, in turn causing chaos across the group. Cossy wouldn’t have it any other way though, after all, this is why he loved them all so dearly. There was never a dull moment with them.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------

        Sitting on his bed, Cossy had finally printed out the pictures from that party. Each one of the people he called family. The second picture he’d taken was of Mycena and Hireath arguing over some kind of flower, another of Felis and Gail scheming, Heinrich and █████ heading over to some games, and Sibylle sketching out someone, likely Mycena. That was around when Gail had ended up taking the camera from him. He didn’t really mind though, he wanted to sit with Felis for a bit. He loved him so much and the camera was such a perfect gift.

        Huh. He didn’t remember Gail taking this picture. It was of him and Felis staring into each other’s eyes. Cossy never realized how the way they looked at each other looked from the outside, but he loved it. If he had any doubts that Felis loved him just as much, this photo took all those away. Felis was looking at him like he was the only person in the world. And it felt a little selfish, but Cossy, quite frankly, wouldn’t have it any other way.

        The next photo was one of he and Mycena fiddling around with the Build-A-Bear’s accessories and Sibylle sitting next to them, playing with Mycena’s hair. Sibylle didn’t seem to like Cossy all that much but she tolerated him, for her. Anyone that would do that much for Mycena was good in his book. Especially considering she never intended to actually hurt his feelings.

        One of the last photos he’d printed out was another of Felis and himself, this time, the kiss they’d shared before everyone was getting ready to head home. Maybe he understood why Gail and Mycena were always giggling over the pair, they were pretty cute when they were like this. Cossy smiled at the photo, reaching for a pen as he flipped over the photo. Scribbling down on the back of the photo, Cossy smiled down at the note.

        “I love you, Felis.”

        The last photo taken, he didn’t even remember. He knew █████ was helping carry everything to Heinrich’s car, just not that she had taken a photo of everyone on the walk out. Mycena and Cossy were running ahead of everyone, laughing over something he couldn’t remember. Felis and Gail were following behind them with Hireath, each waving their hands around, likely arguing over something. A little closer to the camera, Heinrich and Sibylle were following behind everyone, as always, so clearly father and daughter.

        Cossy loved everyone in the photo so dearly. Mycena was the best friend he could ever ask for. Felis was in all honesty, the love of his life. Gail was an amazing friend, even if she wasn’t the brightest at day. Hireath was one of his first friends and that meant so much to him. Even Heinrich and Sibylle, despite not being close with either, loved them too. Heinrich was like a father to him, always looking out for Cossy when he was over and Sibylle, despite not really talking to him, cared about him because Mycena cared about him, and that was alright with him. Every single one of them, Cossy loved them so dearly and wouldn’t know where he would be as a person without them.

[appleflavoredkitkats]

Would love to see schlatt or fundy drawn in some fucked up scribble type style to match how fucked up they themselves are

like father like son

[cherryskeletoncake]

Smol dnb doodle

[mittenk1tten]

Mourn stimboard

the loss and desperation of the night, a weeping deity watches, and wraps moonself in a blanket from, his latest victim. It feels nothing but a sick delight to watching their "beloved friend" recoil, break and suffer to the island's horrors. A new vessel full of sorrow.

x -- x -- x || x -- x -- x || x -- x -- x

Art by my friend :3

[blu-orb]

Honestly very intrigued by pantheon smp but I haven't played minecraft in a hot minute (kh hyperfix hit HARD). would you mind talking a little bit more about it? Like what sort of gods are there and who are they, how do they interact with people, how important they are to playing? Do individual players have individual gods or are there more groups? Is it an server that's easy to take a break from?

Thanks so much <3

OK OK SO. hitting a read more on this one because we're DELIGHTED to get so many questions this might get a bit rambly

SO ok the pantheon has. a main pantheon of gods, with no side gods

There is: Sea, the God of the ocean and technology! they/them pronouns, loud and LOYAL to those they consider a friend. the kind to stare you down because you made a REALLY COOL redstone machine.

Conflict, the God of harvest, conflict, and blood sacrifice, but she's also got pretty strong ties to protection and loyalty. she/they pronouns. she isn't actually a god that encourages war, despite what her name may make you think. she herself leans more on the side of protection, and doesn't really instigate any fights.

Forage, the God of forage and the hunt! she/they pronouns as well! a god that likes to watch mortals, and is rather friendly when you encounter her. unless you upset them. and well you don't want to upset them. she's got a fun two sides of one coin /pos thing going with conflict that we ADORE in regards to domains and vibes

Monstera! God of monsters and fear, she/her pronouns. a very quiet god who holes up in her own little area, but if you upset her somehow despite that you'll Know

Creation! God of life, birth, healing, AND (natural) death! he/him pronouns. a god that holes up and hides a lot but when he's being social he's being *social*. many contrasts contained in this one.

Color, the god of. well. color! He/him. a very... chaotic god, this one. constant, constant antics. never a dull moment with color, and that isn't necessarily a good thing.

Travel, the God of travel and trade! they use they/them pronouns. a wanderer, who never stays in one place too long. ALWAYS an interesting encounter, even by godly standards (at least, in our opinion)

The Unknown, one of many names. God of mysteries and secrets. a god that's hard to find, and perhaps you do not *want* to find it, if you are not a follower. following the unknown is a path that may lead to dangerous knowledge, and once you learn you can never unlearn

Chance!! (HIII THIS IS OUR SPECIAL LITTLE GOD!!) The God of music and chance! Any pronouns, keep shuffling them, keep that fresh. a god who constantly watches, and is rarely seen. if you listen, though, you may hear vem. if you surround yourself in song, you will likely catch the eye of this god, and if you're in its favor you WILL know. chance has a funky two sides of the same coin/neg relationship with the unknown, and they are BEEFING. the only two with genuine, eternal rivalry. the unknown has closed chest imagery, while chance has opening chest imagery. we could go on about this but we will not, here

bonus round!

Tangerine Boy/Tangy is NOT yet an ascended God, and is not followable, but WILL be so once he ascends. he/him pronouns. god-to-be of civilization, and love of the world. just a silly little guy under the impression he's totally mortal right now.

Gods WILL often interact with mortal characters, whether that be because that god has picked up a new little favorite, or because they feel SLIGHTED by an offense. Or because you just randomly ran into a god. that happens with some sometimes. it's fine.

They're pretty important to playing, but mostly in a "what gods you follow will flavor how your character interacts with the world in a way, or vice versa" way! for example, we have a character who's planned to constantly engage with the archaeology aspect of minecraft, and they follow Sea, Travel, and Chance! Sea because... "Please don't make the oceans maul me while i'm at underwater sites", Travel for safety in traveling the many blocks they go, and Chance for luck! There's also an offering area when the server is up, and messing with that usually adds both fun lore AND gameplay aspects.

people usually end up with individual worship, or using the collective shrines! tho if you asked us as a god we'd looove to see more people doing more group worship things and engaging with the godly aspect of the server like that. but individual worship is fun! a mortal can follow multiple gods, but watch out! if you follow the wrong set you might get beefing gods around you.

It's relatively easy to take a break from, yeah! the server gameplay wise isn't going to rush towards major game milestones, and in fact the end is LOCKED until a major, in lore event regarding the gods called Dragon Day! at the same time, if you want to wither fight a ton PRIVATELY for beacons that's also allowed, when the server's open. it's very much focused on being a slow, player interaction roleplay focused server.

We're all working on upgrading the modpack, and finding a set of mods that is both fun for everyone AND is able to be played on low end computers, so right now is the great preparation time! plenty of time to sit and ask questions about the setting, and make a character with no rush.

in fact, if you have further questions, and the interest, there are multiple questions channels in the discord, or if you're not ready for that, we know we've got a couple of the other mods of the server who got SO excited upon learning you asked so many questions, and they'd be glad to answer any you may have in comments/reblogs of this post!