(3rd Life and Hermitcraft? Yep.)

(Warnings: Panic attacks and mentions of death)

Grian sat on the edge of his bed, shaking. In less than an hour, he, as well as several other Hermits, would be sent back into that hellish game known as 3rd Life.

He didn't want to go, of course. No one in their right mind would. But he didn't have a choice. No one did. He gripped his knees as tears dripped from his face. There was no escape.

A sudden knock on the front door tore him from his thoughts. He stood, frantically wiping the tears from his eyes and cheeks. He took a deep breath as he reached the door. Forcing a cheerful smile, he opened it and was greeted by another smiling face.

"Hey, Grian!" Mumbo stood on the other side of the door. "Just thought I'd say bye one more time before you head off to visit EVO."

"Oh, you didn't have to." Grian half-protested, though he was glad Mumbo had come. It would be good to see him one last time before heading off.

"Of course I did. And besides, I wanted to give you something."

He didn't give Grian time to ask what that was before hugging him. Grian was a little caught off guard, but not against it. He returned the hug, trying to burn this moment into his memory; the feeling of warmth and comfort, the smell of cinnamon. He knew this was a memory he would recall many times to get through the next few weeks.

It was probably the last bit of comfort he would feel for a long time, and it was over all too soon.

"Well, I guess I better not keep you here too long." Mumbo said as he released the hug. "Say hi to your EVO friends for me, will you?"

Grian's vision was beginning to blur again. "Will do." He responded, trying to keep a smile on his face.

Mumbo waved him goodbye as Grian reluctantly took off with his elytra. A pang of guilt shot through him as he ascended. He wished he had told Mumbo the truth. He wasn't going to EVO, he had never even visited since he left. But what was he supposed to say? That he was headed off to a death match that he had no choice in? No, he had never told the rest of the server, and had done his best to hide the scars.

He veered off into the birch forest to where the others had chosen to meet up; a place to spend their last few minutes of peace together. Upon landing, he saw the others standing about a clearing in the trees. Some were talking, most sat in silence, and several looked as if they had cried not too long ago. Cleo, Ren, Bdubs, Impulse, Tango, Etho, and Pearl. Pearl still looked worried, but was the least devastated of the group. Grian envied her lack of knowledge. But it wouldn't last long, and there was no way she could be mentally prepared for what was ahead.

Upon surveying the group again, Grian noticed something. "Where's Scar?"

"Probably at his base," Impulse said quietly. "I haven't seen him for a couple of days."

Grian had the sinking feeling he knew what was going on. "I'll go check on him," he said as he flew into the sky, headed back to Boatem.

It didn't take long for him to get back to the village and head into one of the many large wagons Scar had constructed as a starter base. At first, the silence led Grian to believe the build was empty, but, upon listening, he could hear something coming from the floor above.

"Scar, are you alright?" Grian called up as he climbed the ladder. When he reached the top, he found Scar sitting on the floor. He was shaking, his knees tucked to his chest, his hands over his ears as if to block out noise, and he was muttering to himself.

"I can't go back. I can't go back. I can't go back."

Grian quickly crouched by Scar's side and placed a hand on his shoulder. "It's gonna be alright, Scar, I'm right here. Just breathe, okay?"

Scar made no sign that he had heard him, so Grian gently took one of Scar's hands off his head and placed it on his own chest, continuing to speak softly. "I need you to take deep breaths, Scar. Focus on my breathing and try to copy it. Can you do that for me?"

This time, Scar fell silent except for his breathing, broken by sobs now and again, but slowly becoming more controlled and even.

"That's good, you're doing great," Grian whispered reassuringly, wrapping his other arm around Scar. It hurt to see his friend like this, and all Grian could do was be there to try and comfort him. He couldn't do anything about the problem itself.

Scar was shaking much less, now, and he leaned his head against Grian's shoulder, exhausted. "I can't do it, Grian," he whispered. "I can't go back there."

"I know."

"I just- I can't go back and... be forced to- to kill people-" Scar sobbed, the pitch in his voice rising.

Grian pulled back to look Scar in the eyes. "Scar, listen. Whatever this thing throws our way, we will make it out. You will make it out of there, understand? We'll get through this together." Scar still looked terrifying, failing to hold back more tears. "...do you want to talk about something else?"

Scar nodded slowly. "Y-yeah..."

"Alright." He pulled Scar into another hug, gently rubbing circles into his back as he tried to think of a memory. "Remember all those years ago, when you were the Jangler? Of all things, you chose to leave cookies as your trademark... Your baking could still use a little work, though."

This got a laugh from Scar, and Grian smiled.

"That really was quite the mystery, you had the Sherlock stumped for a while."

Both friends' arms began to glow a pale yellow, the glow becoming brighter as it spread upwards. Scar whimpered in fear, and Grian struggled to keep the panic he felt rising in his chest out of his voice.

"Just when it seemed like the mystery would never be solved, the Sherlock pulled one last move, setting up a scene so ugly he knew you wouldn't be able to resist fixing it." The glow had completely covered both of them, and Grian knew it was only a matter of seconds before they were transported away. "And that's how he figured it out. The case of the Jangler was solved."

"Did the Sherlock like the hunt?" Scar asked quietly.

Grian smiled. "He sure did."

(This has got to be the fastest I've finished a one-shot, solely because I wanted to get it out before 3rd Life season 2. So yeah. *dances in angst*)