Mumbo always woke up before Grian. As the Chief Redstoner in the Fallen Kingdom—the name was so misleading because they weren't fallen, they were one of the largest Kingdoms in the area and Grian felt like they needed a name change—he had many apprentices to lead and associates to keep on track. Mumbo often griped that he was the only thing that kept the Redstone Company running, but Grian knew that he secretly adored it. If there was anything Mumbo loved more than redstone, it was teaching people who were invested in the craft. People came from all over the world to be mentored by him. Grian had his own little company, but it was much less formal. They did have a conference room assigned just for them in Mumbo's building as they were affiliated with them, but they rarely used it. They often met in Grian and Mumbo's house so they could discuss what they would be doing that day. He loved his job as Chief Builder just as Mumbo loved his. He taught many bright-eyed kids how to build and, when they had an especially good week, how to prank.

But they often met a few hours after sunrise, while Mumbo got up as soon as the sun rose to continue projects he had going in the company. Grian often woke up when Mumbo was slipping out of bed and getting dressed, and they would share a sleepy kiss while Grian tied his tie for him by memory. He had been doing that long before they were even together when he found out Mumbo wore clip-ons. This day was no different. Grian woke up when Mumbo was reaching over to turn on the light so he wasn't fumbling around in the dark, and he drifted off for a few minutes before Mumbo came for his kiss—and his tie. Shortly after Grian was dozing off only to find himself uncomfortable on his back. He rolled onto his side, pulling the blanket tighter around him, and that's when he saw it.

Mumbo's red shulker box, the one he used for his lunch, forgotten in the corner of the room.

So that's how Grian found himself up and about, beady-eyed and running on some makeshift coffee he was able to make from cocoa beans. He didn't want Mumbo to go hungry, especially when he worked around so many dangerous machines. He needed to be on the top of his game. Grian also didn't want to imagine him being hungry when Grian could have dropped off his lunch. While he probably could have waited a couple of hours, but once his day started he rarely had any free time. Sometimes he didn't have lunch. Mumbo didn't know that though.

After strapping on his elytra, he jumped off the roof of their house and took to the sky. If he hadn't been so tired, he would have been able to appreciate the sight of the waking Kingdom underneath him as the sun rose on the horizon. It was a short flight to the company, and soon the building appeared on the horizon. He had always been proud of that build. It looked modern, which he always struggled with, with its white pillars and curved roof. It was all made out of concrete, which had been very difficult to get. At the end of the day though, it had been worth it. The sign flicked on as he approached, showing him it was open for business. The sign had been Mumbo's idea, and all of the wirings had been done by him. It had pixel art of a piece of redstone, with the words Architech built in redstone lanterns underneath.

Grian landed easily on the platform in between the two flights of stairs, hurrying up the last one. The guard at the door looked surprised to see him. "Mr. Grain, hello! Is everything alright?" Grian smiled tiredly as the guard opened the door for him.

"Mumbo's forgotten his lunch," he said. The guard laughed and Grian smiled a bit wider as he ducked into the building. The guard shut the door carefully behind him. The lobby was Mumbo's favorite part of the build while Grian didn't mind it. It was a nice open circle, with the secretary's desk right in the center. There were a couple of chairs for people who were waiting for their meetings. There wasn't anyone in the lobby as they had just opened to the public for the day, so Grian made it to the secretary's desk without any interruptions. It was hard to go out into public now with how much the Kingdom was growing and his name was getting out there. While he didn't mind making new friends, a lot of them had a job offer and he usually had too much on his plate. Especially now. He needed to finish that church so the King and Queen could officially get married and that blacksmithy for that woman that's just moved into the Kingdom, his Majesty was talking about building an Orphanage, and—

"Hello, Mr. Grain! Going to see Mr. Mumbo?"

"Yes, he forgot his lunchbox."

The secretary smiled. She was a friendly young girl named Jaelyn. She had brown hair and hazel eyes, with large circle glasses that took up most of her face. Today she had her hair done up in a bun. She leaned back in her chair to point at a door that was off to the side. "Mr. Mumbo should be in the Testing Room B!" Grian smiled.

"Thanks, Jaelyn!" She waved goodbye as he hurried to the door, pulling the door open and ducking inside before he shut it carefully behind him. The corridor before him was long with white walls and a wooden floor. There were many doors, all branching off into different hallways or rooms. Near the end of the hallway, just before a sharp right turn, he found a door with a sign beside it, labeling as 'Testing Room B.' He pushed the door open and found himself in a two by one stairwell leading down. As he walked down the stairs he could hear people talking and the telltale sounds of pistons moving. He approached two iron doors at the very bottom, which opened as his feet touched the pressure plates in front of them.

The testing room was large, using every bit they could underground. Groups were working on different machines all meant for different things. Grian couldn't tell you what. To him, it just looked like a bunch of circuit boards and redstone dust. Speaking of redstone, the air was heavy with it. He was coughing before he had even taken two steps into the room. People were wearing goggles, visors; some had full masks as they worked deep in the circuits. People were shouting across the room to their partner getting more resources, others were chatting about their friends and families or what to do next for their project. Grian couldn't imagine working in such a chaotic environment. Despite his prankish natural and messy organization, he valued a quiet workplace above all else. He didn't even like to play a record while he was working! He couldn't understand how Mumbo dealt with it! He seemed to adore it, just as long as everything was organized. Grian found him just where he expected to, in the very center of the chaos.

He was talking to one of his apprentices, looking down at a piece of paper where a rough diagram was drawn. Mumbo was pointing at one part when he saw Grian out of the corner of his eye. He recognized that bright red shirt everywhere. He looked up with a delighted smile. "Grian! Hello!" He looked back down at his apprentice. "Try turning down the time on the repeaters. Thank you, Carson." The apprentice took the paper and walked away to do as Mumbo asked. Mumbo turned his attention to Grian, grinning under his mustache as he walked up to him. "What a pleasant surprise!" Grian smiled as they shared a warm hug. "I'm sure you didn't stop by just to say hello, though. What is it?" Grian chuckled.

"You know me too well." He opened his inventory and put the shulker box in his hotbar, letting it appear in his hands before he held it up. Mumbo's mouth formed an 'o' before he checked his inventory. When he saw that his shulker made lunch box wasn't there, he laughed and took it from him.

"Whoops! I was rushing a bit this morning." Grian raised an eyebrow and Mumbo grinned. "You make it very hard to pull myself out of bed." Grian grinned back up at him rather cheekily- as cheekily as he could get so early in the morning. Beside them, a team began to test their machine. There was a dispenser hooked up, facing Mumbo and Grian from the angle they were standing. "Thank you Grian, it would have sucked to go without my lunch!" The leader of the team held up three fingers, counting down from them.

"I know," Grian smiled. "You're worth getting up for." Mumbo laughed as the team leader put down the last finger and one of them flipped the switch. The redstone was activated, glowing and letting off particles, as pistons began to move. One of them looked at the other.

"Hey, you deactivated the dispenser, right?" They blinked back at them before they looked at the dispenser and their eyes widened.

"Well, I should go," Grian yawned. Mumbo glanced towards the dispenser and paused as he saw the redstone lighting up towards it. His eyes widened. "I need to make myself breakfast and prepare for my own rascals to come and—"

"Sirs, watch out!"

Mumbo was already moving. He shoved himself in front of Grian, shielding him with his arms spread wide. Grian yelped in shock, falling back. At the same time, the dispenser let out a loud, ear screeching churn. A moment later, a thick cloud of redstone dust rushed out of the hole, striking Mumbo right in the face. Mumbo stumbled back, tripping over Grian's leg so he went crashing to the floor. He coughed up a few clouds of redstone dust as a few people scrambled over at the sound of the commotion. "Mumbo!" Grian shouted, pushing himself up onto his knees so he could wrap his arms around him.

"Oh my god, Mr. Mumbo, I'm so sorry!" The mortified team leader cried as they hurried over. "We thought we disconnected it from the system! It's faulty, we've been waiting for a replacement!" Mumbo coughed into his sleeve, his sides heaving.

"Can we get some water?!" Grian cried, his heart pounding as he saw his boyfriend fighting to breathe. The apprentice from before, Carson, rushed over with a potion bottle filled with water. Mumbo nodded thanks, always so polite, even when he was choking, before he chugged from it. Everyone watched with bated breath as he downed it all in a couple of gulps. He pulled the bottle from his lips carefully, panting for breath. His face was covered in the dust. It was in his hair, his mustache. Grian pulled down the sleeve of his sweater so it was covering his hand before he swiped the fabric over his eyes carefully, clearing them of the dust. Mumbo blinked his eyes opened and glanced around. Suddenly, he smiled and laughed.

"It's just a bit of redstone, everyone! Don't look at me like I'm on Death's Door!"

The atmosphere relaxed immediately and a few people began to laugh. The anxious team leader all but slumped against their friend, boneless from relief. Mumbo stood up with Grian's help. "Accidents happen!" He smiled. "Shame on me for not having my goggles!" He gestured to his face. "Take this as a lesson everyone! Keep the proper gear on at all times!" He smiled as someone handed him a cloth to wipe his face off. "Thank you, Chantel. Now, everyone! Go on back to work! I'm fine!" The crowd dispersed, chattering and still snickering before they came back to their projects. Mumbo turned to Grian who was staring at him worriedly, wiping at the rest of his face. "Don't worry Grian, that's a normal occurrence for Redstoners like us!" Grian sighed, relaxing as he was supposedly pacified by his words.

"Are you sure?" He asked. Mumbo nodded with a laugh.

"Yes, yes! Now," Mumbo suddenly grinned widely, leaning towards him. Bits of redstone was still stuck on his face, many pieces still stuck in his fabulous mustache. "Give me a kiss~"

Grian shrieked and ducked underneath him, slipping past him easily. "I think not! I'll see you tonight!"

Mumbo's laughter followed him as he hurried out of the room and up the stairs, and by the time he had left the building any of his worries for what just happened was gone. All he was thinking about now was what he had to build before sundown.