We need more members... let's see..

She picked up a small booklet, the names of hermits scrawled upon it, one after another. Some were crossed out, most weren't.

She looked through the list, grumbling to herself.

"Doc maybe? No, I remember him saying that he hated watchers... Xisuma? Maybe, but not likely... Ah! Grian! It's worth a try. Especially with those wings he's got, he'd be able to act a kind of in-between advocate? I mean, Watchers are bird creatures..."

She immediately took off towards Grian's base. She took along a couple of pamphlets and feathers with her, stuffing them into her already rather full pockets.

~ ⬩ ᔑ↸⍊ᒷ∷ᓭ╎ℸ ̣ || ⬩ ~

Several minutes later, she alighted upon the wooden planks of Grian's base. She called out for him a few times, but it seemed like no one was home. She went through the rooms, tripping over invisibility potions and black feathers.

In one room, she found a pile of crumpled notes, all with bits of some strange language scrawled on them. In another, she found an old photo of Grian and Mumbo from season 6. In yet another, she found a wardrobe, full of strange garments. A Christmas sweater. A little green hat. A guinea pig onesie.
She was about to give up when another thought struck her.

Grian's starter base! Wouldn't hurt to try, at least.

She zipped through the forest, and ended up perched precariously upon the canopy of one of the large jungle trees. She glanced about, forgetting exactly where Grian's base actually was. A flash of purple light to her side startled her, and she looked over curiously. Her face lit up with excitement as she saw a magnificent creature emerge from a glowing portal. Its glossy black feathers shone in the light, and sparkling lavender feathers poked out randomly like stars. A long tail swished through the underbrush. The most unsettling part about it, however, was the eye. The head of the creature was ringed with two glowing halos, and above this, a shimmering eye hovered ominously, peeking through the forest.

She watched the tall being take a few steps forward, the portal collapsing behind it. It reached up with one taloned hand and pulled a dark mask from its face. In a strange transformation, its limbs shortened and the feathers receded, leaving none other than Grian standing outside his hobbit hole. He still had the wings, and some feathers, but he was mostly back to himself. He was breathing heavily, and sat down on the forest floor.

False eagerly dove down, landing right in front of Grian. He jumped, standing and flaring his wings.

"Heya Grian! How are you?" False said, chuckling.

Grian seemed to relax a bit.

"I'm... I'm alright. How about you?"

"I'm doing alright. I'm here to ask..."

Grian suddenly seemed to remember something ,and interrupted her.

"Sorry to interrupt, but have you seen Tango lately?"

False thought for a moment.

"Uh... no, I don't think I have. Why?"

Grian seemed to panic a bit, spreading his wings and glancing about.

"Uhh... no reason. Anyway, continue?"

"I initially came to recruit you into my group, but..."

Grian's face twisted in confusion.

"What?"

"But then... I saw that you were one of them!"

False smiled and eagerly gestured to the hidden pouch that Grian had stashed his mask away into.

Grian's face went pale, and lightning crackled in his violet eyes.

"Oh, don't worry. I'm not afraid of you! In fact, I think that lightning thing you do is pretty cool!"

Grian took a step back, his face betraying confusion and dread.

"I... What..."

False stepped forward, and gently put a hand on his shoulder.

"Hey... hey.."

He brushed it off, his breathing heavy. Without warning, he grabbed both her shoulders tightly. His sharp nails dug into her arms, and she winced slightly.

He immediately loosened his grip, seeing her discomfort.

"I... Please don't tell anyone... please... not yet, at least..."

False, looked into her friend's eyes, and took a deep breath.

"I won't tell a soul. I promise you."

Visible relief washed over Grian's face, and he let his arms drop to his sides.

"So... this group?" he asked tentatively.

False nodded eagerly, pulling out a pamphlet and handing it to Grian.

She cleared out her throat, and began to recite a description she had practised over and over.

"We are a group that strives to respect, befriend, and better acquaint ourselves with the Watchers, for the good of ourselves and of the whole server."

Grian was silent for a moment, his eyes darting across the pages of the little paper.

"The- The idea is there... but... I don't think this'll work. I... I actually just got back from their... place? Home? Anyway, they aren't very nice. They didn't want me to come back here..."

"Yeah, but if we can just show them...maybe they'll see we could work together! With the kind of power they have, just think of what we could do!"

Grian's face was full of scepticism, but he just shrugged.

"I'm not going to get involved, but if you do... just don't get hurt... I need to go check on Tango, wherever he is..."

"Why?"

Grian's voice was soaked with guilt when he spoke.

"A Watcher came to help me, but it stabbed Tango in the process..."

False had more questions, but those could be asked after. There was one burning question, however, that she just couldn't wait to ask.

"Wait, Grian."

She called out as he began to spread his wings. He folded them again and glanced over his shoulder at her.

"Yeah?"

"Could I... maybe see you in your Watcher form again?"

Grian seemed conflicted for a moment. He looked at her, then at the pouch beneath the folds of his cloak, then back at her. Eventually, he sighed, nodded, and pulled out the mask. False inspected it closely. She pulled out a small notebook and began taking notes, much to Grian's amusement. The mask shimmered slightly, almost as if it was enchanted. It was a rounded rectangle, small curves forming a gentle point for a nose and tapering off towards the edges. Little lines of dark, abyssal black were etched across the surface.

Grian raised the mask to his face, grinning broadly. In a reversal of the process she had seen earlier, he morphed into a tall watcher.

He smiled, and False shivered slightly. She could still see her friend's face, but it was a bit odd seeing Grian taller than herself.

"Oh.. Wow..."

He laughed slightly, "Now watch this."

He lifted one sharp talon and pointed it at a nearby rock, old and covered in moss.

False watched closely as lightning began to flicker across the mask and through his wings. She felt the hairs on her arms stand up, and with a loud crack, the rock was struck with a bolt of purple lightning. Grian tensed suddenly, his wings flaring outwards.

"Woah! That was cool! How-"

He looked up at her, and even without seeing his eyes, False could see his look of pain. His expression changed suddenly, a broad smile spreading across his face. More lightning crackled around his body, charring the small plants at their feet. False winced and covered her face.

Once there was silence, she chanced a look. Grian was now hunched over, breathing heavily. Her friend's normally pale skin was pitch black, and as he stood up again, she took a step back.

His wings were completely black now, and glowing purple eyes lined the undersides, watching her every move. The halos and eye above his head were glowing brightly, and his now Watcher-like maw was scrunched into a snarl.

"G-Grian?"

He shivered slightly, and then collapsed, returning to his normal watcher form.

False rushed over. The hermit's eyes were shut, but his eyebrows were knitted together, and sweat beaded his forehead.

"Grian, what the heck was that?"

No response.

"Grian!"

She wrapped her fingers around the edges of the mask and tugged. Eventually, with a few flickers of lightning, it came off. Grian took a deep breath, and returned to his normal form, his eyes snapping open. He stood, but wobbled slightly, and False reached out an arm for support.

"What... what was that..."

Grian's face was fearful, but he shook his head.

"I'm not sure but... I need to find Tango."

Grian took the mask from her other hand and stashed it into his inventory, then bounded forwards into the clear blue sky.

"Can I come too?"

Grian paused, then nodded.

"If the injury I saw was as bad as it seemed, we might need the help."

...

I hope False can be trusted... and I hope you can be trusted to leave a vote! :D
Don't forget to let me know what you think in the comments, and follow me so you don't miss the next one!