The journey was a blur for Tommy, as Keralis and Bdubs took him through the Nether roof to reach the shopping district as fast as possible. He had only been on the bedrock roof a handful of times on the Dream SMP and while he knew the hermits wouldn't let him get lost, the disorienting, red fog made his mind swivel around the thought. They had followed a distinct trail of nothing which the two hermits seemed to know by heart, passed by many portals before finding the one and since Tommy could not see said trail... well, let's just say that he was more than a just little worried.

But hey, he survived! He can't really complain.

Everyone was gathered on the main street of the district, outside the sandstone cavern where the Nether portal lit up with purple. Tommy spotted new faces in the crowd of hermits and his first thought when they landed was 'There are so many, what the fuck'. He counted at least thirty heads of which he only recognized about a third of! Well, he had met only a third of them, the hermits were very adamant about letting the teen know who lived where and what they did for a living. He had been given both funny and dramatic descriptions of some of them.

Like Hypno, one of the veterans and by extension one of the older members of the server, for example, who was an adequate builder with sarcastic humor. Or perhaps XB, whose voice Tommy was told sounded very much like Hypno's to the inexperienced ear. He hadn't seen those two's bases yet, as they were far away from the mainland and the teen didn't want to get stranded with on an island in the case that his elytra wings suddenly decided to fail.

He spotted the two chatting in the far left of the crowd with someone else. A person who looked... too blue and slimey to be a whole person. That must be Jevin, Tommy thought. False had told him that Jevin was the only slime hybrid on the server. Let's just say that Tommy was surprised to see the hybrid wearing a white hoodie of all clothes. Wouldn't he soak through the fabric? -and it already looked a bit murky in places.

There actually was a butcher amongst them, ironically named Beef, and the dog catcher, Joe, accompanied by a few fluffy dogs. Beef looked way nicer than he had imagined a normal butcher to be, with a well-kempt beard, casual wear, calm blue eyes -and he ignored the fact that there were red splotches on his bleach white apron. His face looked relaxed as opposed to the wrinkly mess of furrowed eyebrows that Tommy had imagined. Joe looked more normal, with a blue shirt and pair of skinny jeans. At least, he looked normal until Tommy noticed the lime green fringe of hair. The color choice unnerved him; surprisingly, it reminded him of Dream and for a second, he swore he saw the sadistic admin in the place of Joe.

A man with gray, spiky hair and a dark headband was at the back of the crowd. Tommy recognized him as Etho, with the whole ninja get-up and camouflage armor vest. He was quiet,  reserved, simply observing with childlike curiosity and making small talk with the hermits beside him. The teen really wanted to approach all of them and introduce himself, he really did! It was about time that he reached out to more people than the few that lived in the jungle and around the shopping district. But...

Tommy really wanted to run off and pet the dogs at Joe's side; give them belly rubs and kisses and all the love that Joe had not given them. He was preoccupied with remembering what dog fur felt like and he found it easy to remember; the feeling sparking at his fingertips and begging for him to go and kidnap both. Tommy would make sure those dogs were pet everyday. They looked so happy and wagging their tails, he almost couldn't resist! But he held himself back; because it would be very awkward to lure a dog away from a crowd and not get thrown into the Hermitcraft equivalent of a jail.

Xisuma was calling for their attention then, and the smooth, accented voice broke through Tommy's thoughts. Whatever they all had gathered for was important -Scar had told him that everyone being awake at the same time was a miracle on Hermitcraft; something that only happened on special occasions.

Keralis and Bdubs had rushed off to the front for a better view by the time Tommy was paying attention, seeing as one was too short to be in the back and the other went to find a friend. So, Tommy could give the admin his full and undivided attention.

Xisuma stood alone on the road, he noticed, not on some quickly put-together stage, but on the same level as the rest of them. If the hermits wanted, they could swarm him and kill him and the admin would be unable to do anything about it. The notion of what the gesture meant tickled something in Tommy's heart, strummed a string or two as well. It was blind trust, that's what it was, and the feeling of equality despite one's strengths in building, in redstoning, or in combat. They are all equals, he reminded himself and that small, little voice in the back of his head corrected him within a beat, saying WE are equals - because they had accepted him since the moment he had woken up.

Above all they were friends, a family that Tommy wanted to greedily sneak his way into (no one said that it is illegal to have two families) and seek out the comfort of everyone's arms, so very different from the ones on the SMP. The hermits were innocent, genuine. The people -even his own family- were thwarted and tired by the consequences and scars of prolonged warfare to be anything but that. Rare were the times that Phil hugged him tight and for more than two seconds, rare were the times Wilbur played guitar for him around the campfire, rare were the times that Techno did more than shake his hand and pat him on the shoulder.

Tommy realized that he, too, was just as tired. He was ready to fall into the open embrace of Stress or Iskall, to those who showed they cared, to have a semblance of kindness for his daydreams to fall back to.

The hermits had been kind enough to exchange handshakes and smile at him when all he did was scowl at them. They had sheltered him, taught him how to fly through the sky, gave him diamonds to buy his own things, introduced him to giant bugs and builds. They had let him get away with his hoarding (stealing) habit, eventually! It was more than anyone else had ever done for him and while he disliked owing strangers, he was eternally indebted to them -even if they told him that he didn't owe them a diamond, he felt the need to give.

It was too good to be true, that he could have this amazing, selfless and seemingly perfect family of what? Thirty-something people? Could he even be allowed that?

The same feeling had plagued him when he had met Tubbo back when they were children; before their hearts grew a cold and hard exterior and they were forced to mature into soldiers. He had wanted to give back to his friend for being there and comforting him during rough times; but with the war; with keeping an eye on Wilbur and not having a single idea of what to do to help his brother, he didn't get the chance to. He hadn't gotten a chance to help Tubbo in turn, to thank him properly for being such an amazing (and chaotic) person in his life.

He wondered if any of the hermits would help him make a gift for Tubbo, a nice bouquet of flowers for his bees, maybe something knitted for Phil -the old man needed a new shawl last time he checked- and as much as he wanted to hate Technoblade, the piglin hybrid would get a gift as well. A pair of mittens maybe, since Techno hated the cold and he had chosen to live in the tundra of all places. And Ghostbur could use a scarf or a hood as well for the rain and the cold that came with being a ghost.

Stress had flowers around her base, he wondered if she would let him make bouquets and flower crowns for his family in the SMP. Perhaps she knew of flowers and their meanings and all the childish explanations Tubbo had offered for alliums and daisies. He was sure that the woman would accept without wasting a second to contemplate the activity. And he could ask her or Scar to teach him how to knit or commission the gifts.

Sounded easy.

He felt like tearing up then, and he quickly dabbed at the corners of his eyes with the red sleeve of his shirt. One of the longsleeve shirts that he had stolen (and secretly paid for) from Grian's closet. It wasn't his signature white and red T-shirt but it was the closest thing he could find to it. The green shirts Iskall had lended him were neatly piled in his own small -and growing- chest monster in one of the many secret bases he had at Grian's, Iskall's and Scar's alongside Keralis' diamonds (he had not spent a single one like he had promised to himself). Green just wasn't his color and the least he could do was stash them away until he could find the redstoner's closet in the Omega Tree. Seriously, he had searched for two whole hours and didn't even find a chest containing clothes! Perhaps it was camouflaged, built of bark to blend in with the walls of the tree.

And Mumbo still looked at him and waved like nothing had happened; like his wallet hadn't gone missing or gotten misplaced a couple of times in the teen's presence. Tommy dreaded to think what the mustache man had made Xisuma do when the admin had showed up at his house -Stress' base- with a quick explanation and exchange of wallets.

The lack of scolding was, honestly, quite refreshing. Xisuma had only left him with a pat on the shoulder and the advice of asking before taking something. Which was by all means fair, though a bit confusing on the warning. How could someone be fine with him stealing? The last time he had stolen something, he had almost gotten stabbed in the gut for it.

He gritted his teeth for a second. Prime, he would do everything in his power to keep them all safe. Even that old man over there with the prosthetic wooden leg -what was his name? Tinfoil Chef? Tommy didn't know if that was his occupation or his name but the man looked like he had seen better days.

He approached Stress, anxious yet curious, eyes darting from Xisuma to the murmuring hermits. Unconsciously, his fingers brushed the back of her hand as he peered over the shoulder of Keralis, who stood in front of him, talking to a ginger woman he had yet to be introduced to. He was surprised when Stress grabbed hold of his hand and gave it a light squeeze, grounding and calming in the same way that Tubbo's unnaturally strong hands felt. She had a bright smile on her face when he looked up from their hands, put on just for him.

"Are you alright?", she asked him.

He nodded, an act to say that he was fine and she turned to pay attention to the admin again, not letting go of his hand. Tommy did the same, ignoring how the tips of his ears were burning.

The short woman at his side felt too familiar. Tommy felt like a child beside her, even though he was sixteen and much taller. It was a weird feeling, honestly, one that he had been feeling since the time she checked him for a fever. He didn't want to admit it but she felt like a mother to him; cared for him like Phil had done for so long when she didn't need to nor had to, showed him the kindness he had missed in his teen years, wrapped him in pink blankets of warmth and comfort. The thoughts of Dream skewing her with a sword flashed through the front of his head and his eyes widened for a second.

He would not allow that fate to befall Stress if he could help it -or any other hermit for that matter.

"What's the meeting for?", he asked in a whisper. The brunette shrugged.

"I don't know actually. Iskall told me that they had something important to tell us", she bit her lip, seeming nervous all of a sudden, "I think it's about your server"

Tommy wanted to run. Really, he did, and his insides were screaming at him to run and find someplace safe to wait out the storm. He could feel the clouds approaching, looming over the crowd, just waiting for Xisuma to give the signal to strike him with lightning. But the hand holding his kept him there, assured him that he was safe even in the open street, promised that the world was safe and that he would not be stabbed or banished from the land or jumped in an alley on his way home. He was reluctant at first, not completely trusting it, but Stress was the most trustworthy person he knew of. All she had ever done was cook him meals and greet him every day he spent in that giant skull.

The only thing close to bad that she had done to him was appearing out of nowhere when he was looking through her shulkers and giving him a heart attack. Well, he was too young to be having heart attacks but still.

So he stayed.

"I have gathered you here to announce that Tommy will be staying with us on the Hermitcraft server for the foreseeable future", Xisuma started and Tommy raised an eyebrow. They still hadn't figured out whether he could stay, Xisuma had said that he would call him to discuss his accommodation when the admin would have time. What is going on?

The hermits stayed silent, nodding their heads like it was a well-known fact and not just a decision Xisuma had just taken. Like it had been established that Tommy would be staying with them and even those who he hadn't personally met yet seemed content with the idea.

"Am I being adopted right now?", he awkwardly joked and Stress chuckled. Keralis turned to him. The small smile Tommy had on his face fell into a thin, patient line. Was he about to be scolded for interrupting or thinking that?

"I thought we had done that already", he said, face as solemn as Xisuma's tone.

Tommy's mouth fell open.

"You're part of the family, Tommy", Stress added, bringing their tangled hands up to his face to prove her point.

Before Tommy could respond, Xisuma spoke.

"Things are... complicated on his server right now and sending him back would be a bad decision. I am relieved that I only contacted the Main Hub about this rift"

Huh? He turned his attention back. Okay, how did they know that? Tommy hadn't told them much about the Dream SMP and Xisuma didn't know who the server's admin was (Even though it was clearly in the name. Well, 'Dream' isn't just a name, it's a noun as well, can't really fault him for not realizing that)

Iskall then approached Xisuma, standing on the side as he cleared his throat. Tommy was confused about that but now that the man was in the picture, he paid double the attention he had been paying the admin.

"I went to the Dream SMP two days ago, to look around, see how bad it really is and speak with an old friend", Iskall said, sharp and quick, eyes scanning the crowd before finally landing on Tommy. "It... is really bad"

Tommy was speechless. He did not know what to feel at the revelation. He had been wondering where the man had disappeared off to. He had looked in the Omega Tree (of Doom) more than ten times, at the treasure island minigame he had learnt Iskall had built another twenty times. Stress had no idea where the man was either but told him that he had probably gone to collect leaves and twigs for his tree's canopy.

Betrayal. Absolute betrayal, because Iskall had done that all behind his back. He had not questioned Tommy, nor asked if Tommy wanted to go along to the SMP, his home, which he had asked to not be returned to. He was angry at that. He was angry at the redstoner for some reason that he did not want to say out loud. Tommy realized that he had come to care about the adults on the server too quick.

On top of it all, he was shocked that Iskall had gone to the Dream SMP alone -the place was dangerous, Dream could have killed him.

But Iskall did not know that and Tommy was going to have a long talk with the man about how stupid that idea was, no matter if it ended well. Prime, he was going to ground him or tie him down in the Omega Tree for a week!

(If they could parent him, he could parent them.)

"-ommy?", came Stress' voice that pulled him out of the trance he had fallen in, tone worried about something Tommy couldn't see. He realized he had balled his fists and that he was squeezing Stress' hand in his own. More like crushing, actually. Quickly, he let go, muttering a soft apology that was rewarded with a relieved laugh and a pat on the shoulder.

"It's fine, just got a lil' worried there"

Nope, he was going to give her half his riches for that. Sure, he didn't hurt her intentionally, but her rubbing her pained fingers was his fault.

Xisuma spoke again. Through his thoughts, Tommy hadn't noticed that the other two were still talking.

"-In fact, someone attempted to break into our server through the barrier just a bit ago", the admin said and his tone wavered just slightly. Tommy's mind filled with dread. "There have been two attempts or so and sadly, I can't be up all day and night to prevent the intruder from succeeding"

It had to be Dream, Tommy was sure of that. He was an admin and the only one who knew how the server barriers worked. Could someone create a rift by themselves? That was a good question; one that he would ask Xisuma right after thoroughly interrogating and grounding Iskall. And speaking of Iskall, it must have been a dead giveaway that Tommy had ended up on Hermitcraft. Dream was a sadistic asshole but he wasn't stupid not to connect the dots.

No, Dream was manipulative and cunning, impulsive and emotional and a monster with the ability to take without giving. Prime knew what would happen if he somehow managed to break through the barrier!

"So, I know this might seem stupid. It sounds stupid even to me!", there was a beat of silence, "I've brought Evil X back"

There was a chorus of hushed whispers. Stress beside him gasped in surprise, Keralis in front of him recoiled slightly and almost bumped into him, others had matching reactions or just wide eyes. Tommy was simply confused. There was nothing dangerous in Hermitcraft (excluding the night mobs, of course), he had well-established that so why were the hermits acting that way? Unsure and nervous?

Was that Evil X guy that bad? Well, there must've been a reason for that 'evil' in his name. Having just realized that little detail, Tommy gulped.

"Are you sure that's a good idea, Xisuma?"

It was Impulse who had spoken up. Tommy was surprised that Xisuma didn't buzz his wings in annoyance at the questioning of his decision or snap at the doubt. He seemed eerily calm about the situation, like he had placated them all a hundred times over. And he probably had, he was an experienced admin from what Tommy had gathered.

"I'll be honest Impulse, this is probably a very dumb idea", Xisuma sighed. Tommy perked up at the admission along with a few of the others, "But, he is also nocturnal, meaning that he will be taking over guard duty at night in case of another attempt at breaking in"

Right. Bee hybrids weren't exactly known for their ability to stay up late.

There was more chatter, questions being thrown at the admin and truths that really did not make Tommy feel like he wanted to meet the guy. He heard someone say how Evil X had almost drowned them a couple years ago, how he had critically injured two old hermits (who had long ago left the server or actually died at the hands of the guy), how he had unleashed the dragon of the End in the overworld for the sole purpose of destroying the server (and succeeding). Those were all accusations thrown at Xisuma, reasons to not to welcome Evil X back.

Tommy had to agree. If Hermitcraft became a copy of the Dream SMP, he didn't know what he would do. It was like this at the start of the SMP as well, everyone calm and collected until the storm hit and nations raised above the ground. He did not want to be part of another war, he did not want to see the hermits harden like a lake in winter and the smiley faces to become poker ones in the small span of a few days. He did not want to stand by and watch them destroy each other, to be on the sidelines because he was fed up with choosing sides. He did not want to watch more people spiral out of control like Wilbur had, or Xisuma to become manipulative and sadistic like Dream had. No, he refused to live through that Hell again-

"The last time you let him out, he scammed me!", said Impulse. Okay, Tommy did not expect the change of tone in that one. He had to do a double take to make sure he had heard right. Evil X, the one accused of attempted (or successful) murder and basically a war crime, tried to scam someone? What happened there? What? The teen was taken aback.

"I know and I'm still mad at him for stealing everyone's diamonds too", Xisuma sighed, tired or exhausted, Tommy couldn't quite tell. "But I made him promise me that he will not explode any bases and that he will not look through people's chests"

One by one, the hermits agreed to that; to having Evil X back. Tommy looked at all of them weird. A person who had done everything mentioned above and somehow not caused a war, later returned to petty scamming and thievery... and they just forgave him? Without an apology? Not even some form of atonement? He guessed there were stuff he didn't know about the past of the hermits but this?

Well, they had been letting him steal so, he couldn't really talk about the fairness of it, could he?

"Xisuma", he started and the admin faced him. The name felt alien on his tongue, having not uttered it in a couple of days, "Who the fuck is Evil X and-"

Before he could finish, the sky turned red. Red and orange and gray, like it had been set ablaze. Clouds swirled and lightning struck above their heads, rumbling thunder disrupting the calm ambience of the shopping district. Buildings caught on fire, some of the diamond trees rustled with sparks that burnt the bark. Many screamed in terror (or surprise) as the skies opened up to lava spilling over, like the Nether itself had manifested in the overworld.

It ended as swiftly as it had started.

The fires were extinguished by magic, the crackling of lightning and booming of thunder stalled, the sky cleared. It was as if nothing had happened at all. As if the sky had not just cracked in the middle and sent the world into a frenzy of... something. Something that was wrong. That felt wrong.

Tommy looked around, like many of the hermits were already doing. Xisuma and Iskall were still standing isolated at the front, Keralis and the ginger woman were uncovering their ears and opening their eyes. Scanning the crowd, Tommy couldn't make out Bdubs' form but he did catch a glimpse of his signature blue jumper. He saw the spiky hair of Tango, noting that it looked more frazzled than usual and somewhat black at the tips -did he get hit by lightning and lived?  Right in the middle of them all? How is that even possible? Everyone was safe at least. Tommy let out a sigh of relief until he realized that he hadn't seen a certain brunette at his side.

Before he could panic, he felt someone tap at his arm. Looking down, he saw Stress, tangled in his arms as he hunched over her. She awkwardly smiled up at him, pushing on his chest to pull away.

"You can let go, Tommy", she said and he obliged, his cheeks immediately flushing hot red. Prime, that was embarrassing.

Hopefully, no one would bring that embarrassing, instinctual act of protective-ness up ever because he would rather die than deal with all the teasing. 

"What happened?", he asked.

"Mu-hahahaha!", someone laughed.

Someone who Tommy couldn't see and immediately, he turned and shifted to pinpoint where the voice had come from. It sounded exactly like Xisuma, except it was metallic, scratchy and slightly deeper than the admin's. The accent was unmistakable, though and the buzzing of wings was also very distinct.

"Fools! Ahahaha!", the voice said and the air filled with the scent of soot and coal.

Everyone was unnerved, paranoid, or so it seemed. Tommy couldn't really tell.

The teen expected to see a giant demon with curved horns, wings and a flicking tail. Something with seven mouths and speaking in weird tongues, straight out of Techno's books of folklore and legends and scary stories. Something like the Wendigo or the Goat Man. Instead, what he saw, was a bee. A bright red and black bee, the size of his pointer finger.

He let out a startled laugh. He had not expected that! Was that little bee Evil X?

"Wait, why am I a bee?!", came the distressed response from said bee. So it was Evil X!

Did that mean that Hermitcraft bees were dangerous? How could such a small insect cause so much damage?

Some of the other hermits were stifling laughs and giggles as well at that. Tommy could almost see the grin behind Xisuma's bee helmet. The teen didn't hold back. He laughed at the evil bee's misery as it groaned and complained.

"What are you laughing at, you butt?!", the bee was right on his nose and Tommy sniffled and tried to back away. He couldn't help the cackle that bubbled out of his throat. Somehow, the bee, Evil X, narrowed his eyes. Since when could bees narrow their eyes? Then, it flew off, sting-first into Xisuma, who couldn't contain his laughter anymore.

"What did you do to me?!", the bee screeched. Xisuma poked him away.

"You can turn back into human during nighttime. Your bee form is just a safety precaution"

"You will pay for this, ya butt!"

Tommy found that hilarious. All that show of power and control over the world just to be turned into a bee in the end. Well, it wasn't the worst thing that could happen, right?

Evil X flew away grambling and plotting his revenge, surely, against Xisuma.

The crowd dispersed soon after.

Φ

In the afternoon, Tommy found himself cornering Iskall in the Omega Tree. Chasing the man up the stairs and to the canopy was part of the interrogation and Tommy had hid the man's elytra in his ender chest so that he couldn't get away. After he announced his reason for the visit, Iskall had attempted to change the subject more than once.

"You realize you could have gotten fuckin' killed?", Tommy asked, arms crossed over his chest and a raised eyebrow.

"I do", Iskall started off in a guilty tone. It did nothing to calm down the blond but before he could explode, Iskall raised a hand. "But I had to go see why you don't want to return and also to see if Fundy was alright-"

"Oh, don't you try to change the subject-"

"I found Dream"

It caught Tommy off guard, that small piece of information. And for Iskall, it had been a long shot, an attempt to hush the teen and have a moment to speak. Tommy blinked.

"You what?.."

"Well, he actually found me and we chatted. Not the most talkative person I've met"

It took a minute for Tommy to process that. The very man who had give him half his wardrobe was in talking distance with Dream, the very admin who had made his life hell. He could just imagine how Dream had reacted, with a hand on his axe, ready to chop off the head of the hermit. And he just... exploded.

"You absolute fucking idiot! You fucking spoon! Do you know what that man is capable of?!", he screeched and grabbed a shocked Iskall by the shoulders. He couldn't bear to think that the man was in so much danger just two days ago, where he could have gotten killed or worse and there would be no one there to save him. He didn't realize that there were tears in his eyes until Iskall put his hands on his forearms.

"I'll be honest, I didn't at first, no. I was looking for Fundy and he bumped into me. He looked... weird"-he quickly hushed Tommy, who was about to snap again-"I had been on the server only once before that to help Fundy with a redstone project so I knew my way around the main area of the SMP"

Tommy slowly nodded, his grip on the man loosening just a bit. He remembered Tubbo saying something about Fundy walking around with a stranger, moving pieces of iron and redstone from one place to the other, or walking from the mines with dull pickaxes and scuffed clothing.

"I remember a friend of mine mentioning a stranger accompanying Fundy"

"Tubbo, yeah?", Tommy nodded. "He looked like an, um, interesting kid. He chased us around the main path with cooked chicken"

Yeah, that sounded like Tubbo alright. Tommy couldn't help but let out a chuckle. The mental image of Tubbo chasing an innocent hermit and a fox around with a cooked chicken in hand was too funny not to crack up at.

"You know, Fundy freaked out as much as you, you are the second person to scold me about this", Iskall chuckled.

Tommy looked up at the man's eyes, one a calm brown and the other mechanical one that shined green that the tears in his vision blurred. He blinked them away quickly and his arms trembled, shoulders slumped.

"I'm here, kid-", Tommy pulled him into a hug, wrapping his arms around the man's back and locking there. Iskall let out a surprised 'oh and after a second, he returned the gesture.

"Don't do stupid shit, you bastard"

Iskall hummed. Tommy took that as an agreement to his words. He didn't care that he had swore in front of him, nor did he care if he was sent a couple disapproving glares from the man. What he cared for was that Iskall was there, in one piece and not in the hands of Dream.

He felt Iskall nod against his shoulder.

"Noted", Tommy was relieved to hear that. "By the way, did you call me a spoon?"

A beat.

"...No, I didn't"

"You've been hanging out with Mumbo a bit too much"

"I don't!"

===================
So this was fun to write. I have to say that I shed a few tears laughing over Evil X being a bee! Also, the plot heavy chapters are now done, the following should be fluff and pranks and the usual, maybe a bit of plot but not much! Also, I have much planned with the smaller hermits, especially with Tinfoil Chef, and there are three hermits left to introduce.

I have also found how I want to end this story -you see, so far I was just jumping between ideas but now it's set! No, you're not getting spoilers!I hope you enjoyed this one! <3