"Well, he's pretty stable now thankfully." Stress rose from Ren's bedside, her eyes lingering on his form for a second more.

"Stable? He wasn't stable before?" Cub whispered uncertainly. He had been called in an hour ago by Xisuma, much to the confusion of the other hermits. The group chat was exploding, begging Cub to tell them what was happening, but he hadn't responded. He hadn't spoken a word since arriving at the house-turned-hospital, simply staring intently at Ren's eerily still body.

Stress shook her head slowly, tearing her eyes away from Ren. "No, when we found him he was in aweful condition. If a medic hadn't been on site, he probably woulda died. He's fine now though, we just have to keep changin bandages and keep his foot elevated."

Grian nodded, comforted by the statement. He and Ren hadn't always been the closest, especially after the civil war, but they had been spending more and more time together and Grian had gotten attached quickly. When everyone moved to Hermitville the pair discovered they had very similar building styles, and began collaborating whenever they could. They were also both very extroverted, which made it easy to have spontaneous hangouts whenever they wanted.

"So, do we know the cause?" Cub quizzed.

This time Xisuma spoke up from the corner, where his face had been hidden by screens for the last few hours. "We're not sure, but it appears that there are injuries both from a creature with claws and a dull sword. The broken ankle and assorted scratches are from running through the forest. I'm currently trying to search the code for some answers, but I've never looked for something like this before." The screens dispersed, revealing X's tired face. He had taken his helmet off, and it was clear the exhaustion went deeper than just today's incident.

Cub nodded slowly, taking in the information. Grian's insides twisted as he remembered how Ren looked, collapsed and ripped apart outside the forest. He admired Cub's bravery in the face of such terror, because Grian had always been squeamish about blood. Cub was one of the most level-headed hermits, and it showed in everything he did. He was the head of ConCorp, the biggest corporation on the server (still bigger than Sahara, as much as he hated to admit it). He was always calm, even in the face of danger, and was never afraid of the truth. Grain couldn't boast the same things about himself, so he was especially impressed to know that Cub wasn't squeamish about blood either.

"So why am I here and not the other hermits?"

Xisuma stared into Cub's eyes for a moment, seeming to decide what to say, then nodded subtly. "Grian brought up the point that we still don't know where Doc and Scar are, and being Scar's best friend I figured you should be included here."

Cub took a shallow breath. "What are you implying?"

"We think it might be a hermit that caused the damage from a sword."

"And you think it was Doc because of the claw marks as well." Cub nodded, swallowing thickly. "I can see the reasoning."

"It's not a happy thought, but it wouldn't be the first time Doc showed his savage side. I just figured since Scar appears to be involved somehow, you ought to know what's happening."

"Thanks for trusting me to know."

The room fell deathly silent again, each hermit lost in their own thoughts. Grian considered Ren's prone figure again, asking himself if he really thought Doc did it. On one hand, there were sword marks and claw marks, so Doc was the obvious answer. Python could also be in question, but the most threatening thing he'd ever done was hiss if someone got too close to his sunbathing rock. No, Doc checked off all the boxes, but Grian couldn't admit it. Doc could be antagonistic, sarcastic, and short-tempered, but there was no way he would hurt another hermit, especially Ren. Ren and Doc had been inseparable since the beginning of the season, which apparently surprised many hermits.

Obviously Grian wasn't around last season, but according to others, Renskall had been the power couple of the server. They shared an island, they worked in perfect tandem, and they were beyond best friends. So, when season six rolled around and Ren and Iskall weren't together, it was a shock for everyone. Stress and Iskall were building a lab together, and Ren and Doc were founding a stock exchange. When Grian mentioned to others how well they got on, they would agree with surprise. Grian had quickly learned that dynamics and pairings could change in an instant, which kept him extra cautious to keep Mumbo extra close. All the hermits were friends, but Grian didn't want Mumbo to leave his side for any reason.

Stress' voice snapped Grian out of his thoughts. "Well it's obviously not Doc, so are we sure those are sword marks? Could they all be claw marks?"

"It's technically possible, but just a simple look at the looks of the cuts makes it obvious they're different. I'm not saying it's Doc or Scar, but it's something we have to keep in mind for statistics sake," Xisuma sighed.

"Yeah, don't rule it out yet. As much as I hate to admit it, Doc does fit the criteria," Grian voiced his thoughts from earlier. Cub and Xisuma nodded with grimaces, but Stress shook her head resolutely.

"Nope, it's not Doc. I promise, Doc would never do anything like this."

"But I've heard about what happened last season with his club. This is pretty similar, isn't it?" Grian pointed out.

The room fell silent, and Stress tensed. Grian shrank under her intense glare; Stress was not someone you wanted on your bad side. "You weren't even there, what would you know about it? Besides, the nHo was a completely different situation out of his control."

"Really? I thought someone told me the jungle made them all go feral, and that's why none of them are here any more." Grian shot back.

Now Stress was livid. "Exactly, it wasn't their fault! The jungle possessed their minds. Doc wouldn't do it on purpose, and it'll never happen again."

"But it did happen again, that's the problem. All the evidence-"

"Shut up!" Stress screeched. "Shut up shut up! You don't know what you're talking about!"

Cub leapt toward Stress, hugging her tightly to restrain her. She held her ground, but the daggers she was staring into Grian were as effective as real knives.

Grian stood slowly, but didn't step closer. "I'm just trying to protect my friend, okay? If Doc did this," Grian waved at Ren. "Then we need to be ready to find him and help him!"

"No! Doc didn't do it! Don't talk that way about my friend!"

"Stress, you're coming with me. Grian, stay here." Cub forcefully took Stress by the shoulders and practically flung her out the door, the loud slamming of the spruce door swiftly ending the conversation.

Grian growled, pacing the floor with his pent-up frustration. He didn't want Doc to be the culprit, obviously. But, there was more evidence pointing to it than not. For the past couple weeks, Grian had been concerned for Doc and Scar, seeing how they disappeared off the world, but he was just as worried about Ren. He could see the way the disappearance was affecting Ren and it hurt Grian. He knew how that felt, and he didn't wish that pain upon anyone.

The pain of friends disappearing without warning. The pain of worrying that they're gone for good. The pain of wondering if you were the one that forced them away. The pain of loneliness.

Maybe that was why Grian got so worked up over all of this. He knew what Ren was going through, and he knew the mental damage it had done in himself. He knew that Ren's circumstances were different from his own though. Maybe his story had a tragic, backstabbing ending, but Ren's didn't have to. Grian wanted to do everything in his power to find Doc, to set everything back to how it was supposed to be.

But, there was also a deep, burning rage deep inside of him, directed towards Doc. How could Doc ever do something like this to Ren, not to mention the rest of the hermits! He had no awareness for those around him, and Grian couldn't stand it. According to what he knew about last season as well, this wasn't the first time Doc had done something like this either. To his credit, it wasn't his fault the jungle corrupted his mind, but it left a suspicious mark on his record in Grian's eyes.

"Well now that was uncalled for." Xisuma lifted an eyebrow from his seat in the corner, having watched the events play out. Grian sagged with a sigh, dropping into his chair again.

"Sorry I got so upset about that, it just struck a nerve I guess." Grian mumbled, embarrassed. He had just yelled at Stress, the sweetest girl in the world.

"History repeats itself, hm?" Xisuma's cool tone sent chills down Grian's spine. There was no way X could know everything, not after Grian had been so careful. Not even Mumbo knew the whole story, but suddenly the thought that Xisuma was an admin made Grian wilt. If anyone knew his past, it would be Xisuma.

"Now, are you going to apologize to her or what?"

"Right," Grian whispered. He felt like crap. Slowly pushing the door open, he found Stress and Cub sitting on the front steps. Cub smiled warmly and Stress managed a bashful wave. "Hey, sorry about all that. I guess seeing Ren like that got me on edge..."

"No, I'm sorry Grian. I shouldn't have raised my voice at you." Stress jumped to her feet and threw a huge hug around Grian's neck. He was so grateful for such fantastic friends.

"No really, I shouldn't accuse friends of maiming other friends, that's uncalled for." Grian stared down, suddenly very interested in his red shoes.

"It's okay Grian, I understand." Stress patted him on the shoulder. She didn't understand, but that was okay. No one would ever understand how Grian felt, but that was how he liked it. If no one ever knew what he had been through they would never treat him any differently than anyone else. If they treated him different, he would be the new guy, the fragile guy, the guy who can't do this and can't do that because it makes him anxious. No, nobody could understand, but Grian had convinced himself that was a good thing.

"Well, I suppose all we can do for now is tend to Ren and wait for more information," Cub piped up.

"Yep, our mystery has come to a standstill," Stress giggled, stifling a yawn.

"Here, you two go home and sleep, Xisuma and I will keep an eye on Ren tonight." Cub nudged the two off the porch, and everyone expressed their thankful farewells before going their separate ways, with Stress agreeing to take over watching Ren in the morning.

When Grian made it home, he collapsed in his bed instantly, gripping his pillow with a trembling fear that he had restrained until now. He knew it was all going to be fine in the end. This was Hermitcraft, not-

He couldn't bear to think the name. He stuffed his face in his pillow, letting out one large sob. This was different, it had to be. Grian could make it different, he just had to find the truth.

Love you, my little stars!
-RaeTheStar