By: AHyperFerret, BarnowlNiza, _mochii112_, 1TheShadow1, Eteriiii, VintageBee_, and One_Pan_Band

Grian sat on a bench near his house, taking in nature's fresh air as he did, hiding his... noticeable features, such as horns... he shook his head, not thinking about the fiery pits he'd escape as he peacefully sat, looking down at his commutator and looking through a few things, not noticing scar until the other man tapped his shoulder.

At the touch, Grian snapped his head up, calming down when he saw just his best friend scar, smiling lightly "Hey Scar, whatcha doing?" He asked, waiting impatiently for a lively response, seeing his friend's excited expression.

"I just got called for a demon hunt!" Scar shared excitedly.

"Oh... that's great!" Grian couldn't share the same excitement that Scar had, not able to stand the thought of his brethren being hunted and killed.

In fact, he was also afraid, knowing that he too, would be killed if he were to be found out. 'Demon hunting'. That couldn't have been a term that was used lightly.

"What's the matter? You don't seem particularly excited?" Scar spoke with the slightest hint of a sigh, taking a seat next to his friend. "It's going to be thrilling. Are you not excited?"

Grian bit his lip. As Scar scooted closer, the blonde subtly shifted away. He was suddenly feeling conscious of the wings that weighed heavy on his back, though invisible to others. "It'll be dangerous, won't it?"

Scar scoffed in a teasing manner. "I don't think you of all people should be telling me about danger." Grian laughed softly in response, causing Scar to grin, glad that his friend seemed to be mostly alright.

However, just as quickly as the tension had eased, it had returned. Grian let out a soft sigh. "Why do you even want to... hunt demons?"

Scars eyes darkened at the question, and he looked away.

After a short and awkward silence, Scar turned back, looking Grian straight in the eyes.

When he finally spoke, his voice came out uncharacteristically cold.

"They killed my parents for no reason other than for the fun of it. They were the ones that gave me all of my scars. They tried to kill me, leaving me in a pool of my own blood to die a slow and painful death. I'm only repaying the favour."

There was a stunned silence, before Scar abruptly got up and left, leaving Grian alone with his own thoughts to think about what Scar has just told him.

Grian sat there, thinking about what just happened

Was he the one who did this to Scar?

He blinked a couple of times, surely not! Right? He thought back to his childhood, there was this one time...

"Fuck"

Grian felt the guilt like it was a sucker punch to the stomach. He felt the need to apologize, but then...

Grian shook away the thought. It was better to keep it secret- for everyone's sake. If he told a single soul then there was no doubt he'd be dead in a second.

"It's totally going to be fine. Yeah. No consequences whatsoever." Grian said, trying to convince himself that might actually be true.

"What's going to be fine?"

Grian turned around to see Scar looking at him with what seemed to be confusion. He felt himself panicking on the inside. He thought about his opinions: tell his best friend about him being a demon and maybe get himself killed, or forever feel guilty because he never told him the truth...

Unable to find a way to tell him at the moment, he decided to see if he could get away with it first, grian looked up "um, nothing!" Grian scolded himself for his tone and waited.

"Well... that didn't sound like... nothing" scar replied awkwardly, grian stared, unsure of an excuse...

Did he have to tell the truth? All these years of lies turned to dust?

"Well, uh, er-" Grian frantically tried to think of an excuse while Scar was looking at him oddly. Suddenly, Scar's phone rang.

He pulled it out to look at it, "Sorry, G, I have to take this" Scar answered and walked away, while Grian let out a sigh of relief. Hopefully, Scar would forget about it...

"Grian, the hunt was just cancelled, what were you saying again?"

Grian's eyes widened, rockets in tow, just in case he felt the need to run. He tried his best to calm himself down.

breathe, Grian

breathe

"Nothing important, I don't think" He lied, trying to come up with a believable excuse. He needed to get out of this situation to avoid getting caught. "We can discuss this later if you really want... I have a few too many projects overdue"

Scar seemed a bit skeptical at his excuse but thankfully didn't push Grian.

"If you say so. Oh well, I better let you get on with your projects then," he said, smiling at Grian.

Grian relaxed inside and gave Scar a bright, almost genuine smile.

"Okay Scar! See ya!"He quickly turned around, activating his elytra and speeding off into the air, flying towards nowhere in particular.

Flying high above the clouds, Grian tried to think of a place to lay low for a bit. He had nowhere to go and if he told anyone his secret they'd surely kill him!

Then it started to rain, tiny droplets pouring down on him. "perfect" he sighed, there was most likely a storm coming in its wake; he landed outside a small cave.

There were no mobs but he lit it up anyways, he just had to wait it out

Grian walked inside the small cave, listening to the rain. It was oddly relaxing, although anxiety still racked at Grian.

"Maybe I could just make something up and tell him that's what I was going to say." Sighing, Grian laid against the wall of the cave. "Just keep lying. Just keep lying."

"If you don't, you won't survive."

Grian's teeth clenched as he thought that, his shoulders tensing up, as he sat in thought, not realizing the time ticking by as his worries got to him

'What if he finds out? What if they all... try to kill me? Wh-'

Grian's mind was like it was swirling, not being able to see logic and he worried over the fact that he was a demon, he felt tenseness rise higher in his wings and tail, begging to be let free for once.

Grian shook his head, not doing so as he quickly got lost in his mind and worries again, negative thought after negative thought came and left, to the point he could barely keep track of his own mind, the aching of his weird limbs being shut out by the thoughts in his hea-

He felt a finger on his shoulder, tapping him.

Grian whirled around, mentally checking to make sure his wings and tail were still hidden. "Scar? What are you doing here?" He asked once he figured out who had tapped him on the shoulder. "How did you find me?"

"I-I followed you, I'm sorry Grian, but you looked so upset." Scar hugged Grian, "I can't stand seeing that expression on your face.

Grian pulled away from the hug and briefly glanced at Scar's face before looking down. Scar's face was a mixture of disappointment from him leaving the hug, as well as concern for his friend. Grian knew he had to tell Scar, now. "Scar, uh, I have to tell you something'

A pause. A painful hitch in the air. Grian tried his best to sort his feeling into something coherent. He knew he was about to do something he would regret.

"It's... where do I start..." He chuckled dryly, as though he were telling a joke that only he would understand. His friendship with Scar had turned into a cruel joke that only he would understand.

Scar, with cautious movements, placed his hand on Grian's shoulder, silently promising that he would understand. That they would be friends, no matter what.

But would they really?

"Hey, Gri. There's no need to tell me if you don't want to-"

"But it's important..." Grian interjected, his voice barely above a whisper. Tears were welling up in his eyes. "And I know that you would hate me, but-"

"Grian..." Scar spoke with a heavy sigh, his voice solemn, yet caring. "I could never hate you. Please, trust me. I promise I'll understand"

Another painful pause.

This time, with more suspense as Grian slowly let his glamour fade away.

As he released the magic that had kept him safe and hidden for so long, Grian's more obvious features began to re-emerge. A pair of curling, red horns could be seen on his forehead, a small tail stuck out behind him, and most noticeably, a pair of translucent red wings, not unlike bat wings, sprouted from his back.

 Scar stood there for a moment, staring at Grian in his true form, unable to find the words to express his thoughts at this sudden transformation.

He was speechless, this is why Grian was so worried about the demon hunt. He was one of them. It was all so familiar to him, the wings, the horns.

Was this truly Grian?

Grian stood amidst the silence before finally speaking "Now I know what your thinking. 'Oh no Grian's a demon, what's he gonna do?'" he took a deep breath. "But there's something I have to tell you, although I'll understand if you hate me afterwards.."

Scar didn't know what Grian was talking about. He didn't care if he was a demon, yes he was confused, a tiny bit mad and sad that he didn't tell him sooner, but all of the characteristics matched his behaviour. It all made sense. Now, his best friend of many years was telling him that he was gonna hate him for whatever he was going to say next, it just made him even more confused, even a bit scared of what he would say.

All he could do was mentally brace himself for it.

Grian took a deep breath, and it showed in their expressions how nervous they both were.   "I-... I-.... did... I killed someone, No. Not just someone. I killed them, I-" Grian was stumbling over his own words while Scar's expression was unreadable. Surely Grian hadn't meant to kill anyone or at least had a good reason... Right?

"Grian, I'm sure you didn't mean to-" Scar tried to comfort.

"No, I-I meant to, and I did it on my own free will. H-he had killed my friend... A-and-" Grian paused and took a shaky breath, turning away from Scar.

"I was... afraid..." He took in an audible gulp, trying his best to swallow the last of his fear. He didn't want to remember the incident. He didn't want his best friend to hear about what he had done. However, now was a test. A test to see how authentic their friendship truly was.

"I just... I didn't like it... not one bit... but I also didn't like that he had... killed one of my kind..." Grian sighed heavily, choking back tears. "I didn't like that... we were being hunted for game... we're not dangerous... not unless it's necessary!"

Scar's expression remained unreadable still. Grian didn't know what was going through his mind. Shock, realization, or another dive into the stages of grief? He couldn't tell. Grian knew he wasn't doing justice. Not to his friend, and not to the rest of his kind. He was the reason they were still being hunted. It was moments like these when they questioned their morality. Scar heaved a heavy sigh, bracing himself to speak.

"Grian... I... I understand- But.. I need to know. Did.. did you kill my family?"

Grian needed a moment to think through his options, however limited they were. Was it better to give Scar the painful truth, or to spare him with a comforting lie? Grian looked conflicted, tethering on the edge of lying to his friend when he decided against it. Scar was his friend! He deserved to know what happened.

"Scar... I'm so sorry, and I- I fully understand if... if you hate me after this but..."Grian began to choke up, struggling to get the words out of his mouth without breaking down. He took a deep breath, and uttered two words that could change his life forever."I did."

Scar was silent. Hearing that his own friend, a person who he would have trusted with his life, had murdered his family was shocking, to say the least. He needed time to think over everything that Grian had just told him. So Scar did the only logical thing. He turned and ran.

He ran as far as his legs could carry him, only stopping to rest for his asthma, leaning against a nearby tree. He needed to get the thoughts racing through his head in order. Grian wouldn't try to hurt him right? Right...Grian was his friend, he wouldn't try to kill him! Surely not.

And Scar just sat there, trying to convince himself that Grian wasn't bad, but the fact he killed his family lingered in the air. He stood up and continued to walk home. Might as well take his mind off it by thinking about Jellie.

~+~

Watching Scar disappear into the trees, Grian immediately regretted his decision. Panic stabbed at him as anxious thoughts ran through his head, each one worse than the other.

He doesn't trust you anymore. You ruined your friendship. He's going to tell everyone. You're going to die.

He wanted to take those words back. Say he was lying. Something. Grian needed to do something. He needed to run after Scar and tell him he was sorry. But he didn't. Grian just sat down and watched the surroundings blur, as tears filled his vision.

You're an idiot.

Grian stared to the ground, a sick curiosity tolling at his mind of what Scar thought. Could he really just leave him like that? He looked to the sky, begging for answers, for help with his troubles...But nobody came.

Grian shook his head. Heh... Screw it. He stood up, his teeth clenched and fingers locked tight together. If I'm still here, what's the point in moping around?  For once, only rational thoughts filled Grian's head, and he disregarded his emotions.  It was time he finally made up for his crimes.

Grian looked in the direction that Scat had run off in, hesitating for the slightest moment before following his trail. When trying to trek through the forest proved too difficult, Grian spread his wings and flew above the treetops, looking for any sign of his friend.

Eventually, he found Scar sitting on a rock, staring blankly at a tree. As Grian got closer, he saw dried tear tracks on Scar's face. Hesitantly, he called out his name.

"Go away, Grian." he winced at the monotone response.

"Scar, please" Grian pleaded, stepping closer to Scar, who slid away off the rock in response. 

"Stay away from me!" Scar's voice was cold. Barren. Absolutely devoid of the love and joy Grian had come to expect from his friend. Had they really been this superficial with one another?

"Scar..."

"I said go away!"

The taller stood up and lashed right out. His form towered over Grian. The demon shifted away in fright, taken aback by the outburst. He hated you, didn't he? He wanted you dead, didn't he? 

 "Please... leave" Scar's voice had weakened once again. "I... know where you're coming from... but... I... I need time..."

Grian nodded slightly, unsure if he wanted to stay and leave. It felt bitter amongst them both. Was there any way to fix that now?"I'm sorry..." Grian choked his words. "You can... hate me if you want... I'll understand."

He chuckled dryly. "Believe me, I do. I'm sorry I let myself get comfortable... Sorry if I took advantage...I'm sorry you... didn't hate me to begin with..."

He turned his back on Scar and spread his wings to fly. Tears pricked at his eyes, but he bit them down. He was just about ready to leave, and run away to hide when he heard a familiar voice calling his name.

"GRIIIAN! ITS TIME FOR HERMIT CHALLENGES-"Mumbo cut off, taking a while to take in the fact that his friend was suddenly sporting wings, horns and tail."You- You're... You're one of them-" 

Grian froze like a deer caught in headlights."Mumbo I- I... I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry."He turned around, pushing away the tears that were threatening to spill out and did what he had planned to do all along. And he flew away, planning to go as far as he possibly could from the people that he had once hoped to call friends.

Mumbo was left in the dust of what just happened, still trying to register it, despite being scared out of his mind. He made a dash for his base as Grian flew higher and higher above the clouds, away from everything and everyone.

All the places that were familiar to him were now like distant memories that the builder couldn't stand. Eventually, Grian landed, and noticed that there were twinkling lights in the distance and decided to check it out. From a distance, of course. "Could that be?..."

~+~

Mumbo bit his lip, thinking about what he was going to do next. He should tell Xisuma, right? Though, Xisuma was a Voidwalker, so he didn't know how X would react in the slightest.

Grian wasn't vouched for the way Tango was, which could cause lots of problems with the hermits. The fact that Mumbo, Grian's closest friend before Hermitcraft, was never told that Grian was a demon was enough to convict him already. And he couldn't say anything in Grian's defence, as he had no idea before today.

Though with the way things were at the moment, Mumbo wasn't quite sure if he wanted to vouch for Grian. That was what scared him most of all.

He had to tell Xisuma... But did anything really change? Grian was still the same Grian, right? But if he really was the innocent.. why would he hide it?

Mumbo's mind was a swinging pendulum for who knows how long, before Xisuma approached the scene, finally snapping him out of it.

"Hey Mumbo."

"Grian's a demon!" Mumbo blurted out. Xisuma was silent, and Mumbo silently scolded himself as he waited for a reply.

"He's a... what?" Xisuma asked bluntly, making Mumbo flinch.

"A-a... a demon," he repeated, staring into Xisuma's otherworldly purple eyes, The usually lovable admin's gaze was cold, as he stared in Mumbo's direction with disbelief.

"Call a meeting. Right. Now."

About half an hour later, most of the hermits had shown up in the shopping district. Grian was, of course, missing, though only Mumbo and Xisuma knew why. Scar also hadn't shown up.

Xisuma looked through the gathered crowd of hermits and cleared his throat, smiling behind his helmet as everyone went quiet. "Thank you, everyone, for coming," he started. "I regret to inform everyone that Grian is a demon, a fact he had been hiding from us since the start."

The noise that that statement caused was nearly unbearable. Many hermits were trying to ask questions, while others demanded he was banned. Few tried to vouch for him. Just as Xisuma was about to shut everyone up, a new voice beat him to it.

"He killed my family." Scar's voice had lost its energy, and it sounded like he was holding back tears.

~+~

Grian was shocked when he saw an entire part of the woods filled with small lights and fireflies. In the middle of it all, he saw a portal. And in front of it, stood someone he hadn't seen in years.

His brother.

"You haven't come around in a while." The voice almost mirrored his own, although it lacked any energy. Grian knew that he was tired. Right now, they both were.

"I haven't been able to come around in a long while" He chuckled lightly, rubbing the back of his neck in a near guilty manner. "I thought that I'd be able to live the rest of my life under false pretenses. On the basis of lies." He smiled, broken. "Judge me all you want. I know that I'm stupid."

"Hey, it's fine." His brother smiled at him, warmly. With the most warmth he had felt in a while. "You're here. You're alright. Let's go meet up with the others."

"Yeah..." Grian spoke, his voice unsure. However, he appreciated the gesture. "I think I'm here to stay. They wouldn't let me back, anyway." A thought crossed his mind, and he smiled. "We can build all the rustic houses in the world now. You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

NPG smiled and nodded. "I'd love it!"

~+~

Meanwhile, back at the shopping district, the hermits were deep in debate. A rift had formed between the usually tight-knit group of friends.

There were the ones demanding that Grian was banned straight away, the most prominent of which was Scar. Then, there were those who were vouching for him, trying to convince the others of his goodwill and his intentions, who were lead mainly by Iskall, who still couldn't believe that Mumbo hadn't taken Grian's side. Finally, there were the hermits who chose to stay neutral until all sides had an opportunity to give their argument. Xisuma was one of them, trying to convince the others to calm down before something irreversible happened.

In the end, though, it didn't matter. The damage had been done. Words had been said, and actions had been taken. The anti-Grian group left to gather resources for a demon hunt, as the pro-Grian group immediately tried to stop them. Once this was over, no matter how the conflict ended, it could be guaranteed that the Hermitcraft server would never be the same.

"In any case.. we should probably get going soon. I don't even want to know what's happening with the Hermits- but something tells me it's not good." Grian said, nervously glancing back. 

It was, indeed, not good. 

"Scar, think this through logica-" Iskall started, flying after Scar. "I'm thinking pretty logically Iskall, I'm thinking Grian is a fucking demon!" Scar retorted. "Watch your language!"

"Get your priorities straight!"

"Let's just calm down-"

"You're the one chasing me!"

"I know Grian killed your family, and that's horrible, but let's not go chasing after him? Why would you do that?! Some sick, twisted sense of justice?!"

"How can you defend a murderer?!"

"Well.." Iskall paused, searching for the right words and slowing.

"Well, think about this, grian was thought that that's how you survive when he was little. He didn't know better back then. Now that he's older he's got more friends and knows what dangers he has to be careful of. He can also control himself more and has a sense of right and wrong. You, on the other hand, didn't have to go through this at all, you never had to be scared because you could get killed at anytime one day, you didn't have to be careful of what you said and who you trust. You didn't have to be hunted for a game! Think about what Grian has gone through!

Now it was Scars turn to stop what he was saying, questioning if he was doing the right thing or not

Scar was in denial and began to stop thinking, strapping his elytra and pushing iskall away, darting into the sky before flying off, eventually making it to where grian was..

With someone else

"Grian? What are you doing?"Grian head snapped, the other stepping in front of him "le-"

Grian cut them off "no... this is my fault, I'll deal with the consequences" Grian stepped forward, looking scar with a look of remorse

"Why didn't you tell me!" Scar cried, tearing up "you... you killed them" he sobbed, looking Grian with a look of despair, Grian stared back

"Don't you understand why I told you this scar?..." he trailed off

"It's because... it's because I love you! I love you... so much, but now..."

despite scars posture, Grian hugged scar, sobbing lightly

"W-what?" Scar stuttered, breaking out of the hug, "Grian, I, I" Scar fumbled for his words before saying 4 words that broke Grian's heart, "I don't love you."

Grian took a step back from Scar, tears welling up in his eyes. He grabbed NPG and jumped through the portal, wanting to get home before he completely broke down.

Scar sucked in a breath. What had he done? It was a delicate subject, and he had ruined it completely. He had been too harsh, and the fragile sense of trust had broken completely.

He watched as the two disappeared, wondering whether or not it was in his best interest to follow.

.

.

.

"Shhh."

Grian had found himself entrapped in a hug, NPG hanging over him, rubbing circles on his back in the most comforting manner. He had never felt so warm.

"It's alright. It's okay. You're okay."

Despite the oddly soothing voice, Grian couldn't find it in him to calm down. "I- I ruined everything..."

 "I- I had my chance to fix things, but I... I messed it up, just like I always do.

I had the chance to be with these incredible, amazing people, and what did I do? I ruined it."

Looking off into the distance, Grian sighed.

"I guess I got carried away. I forgot who I was, and what that meant."

Looking over at NPG, he gave a sad smile.

"I just... I hoped that people had changed. That the hermits would accept me for who I am. Why- Why does it always end like this! Why do I always have to run from the people I care about?"

He finally gave in to the emotions building up within him, and slouching against his brother, he began to cry, painful sobs racking his slim frame.

~+~

Iskall's eyes flared with anger. "You..." 

Scar looked guiltily to the other. "He killed them, I...I did what was right."

Iskall growled, "You didn't! Grian changed, he wouldn't hurt a fly now, and what did you do?" 

Iskall shook his head, grabbing Scar's hand. "C'mon... We're going to Xisuma, the antis are sick in the head, they didn't even give Grian a chance!...Just like you," he ranted out loud, flying into the sky towards Xisuma's base, his teeth clenched as Scat tried to wiggle free, and did, but decided to follow Iskall anyway.

Soon enough, they were in front of the base of the admin, and Iskall looked to Scar

"C'mon, I don't want him to become biased. Plus, I'm sure you have some words to say," Iskall continued inside, getting to where Xisuma was surprisingly easy.

The admin in question looked as if the whole world was ending, looking from book to book, trying to get some kind of info, but one phrase was notable on a screen.

"One, not two."

...

"Xisuma?"

The admin in question spun around quickly, mildly shocked at the sudden appearance of the Hermits. When he saw who was behind him, he let out a dejected sigh. "Hello. What do you two want?"

Iskall glared at Scar, while the latter stared at his feet, before speaking.

"I, uh, may have messed up..." 

Iskall frowned, turning to face Scar.

"Messed up?" he said mockingly. "You messed up? Scar. You accused Grian of murdering your family in cold blood, and proceeded to hunt him down without considering the reasons behind his actions."

"Iskall! I know! I--"

Scar was cut off by Iskall, who continued to rant.

"And what's more, you managed to rope in half of the Hermits and began a full-blown demon hunt. What were you going to do once you found him, huh? Were you going to ban him?"

Iskall glared at Scar, and suddenly all of his red-hot anger seemed to vanish as he saw the expression on the wizard's face.

"You were going to kill him, weren't you."

There was no response.

"You--you sick bastard! You- you were going to kill him!"

At this point, Scar snapped, finally losing himself in his anger.

"So what if I was going to! You would have done the same, Iskall! Don't pretend that you're better than me! Because you're not!"

At this point, Xisuma decided to step in, standing between the fuming Hermits.

"Now now, let's all calm down."

"Arguing isn't going to fix this, now let's have a friendly discussion, okay?"

Xisuma suggested, his helmet making it so neither Hermit could tell the admin's emotions as he addressed the issue confidently. Iskall and Scar both snorted, but Xisuma silenced that with a hand signal.

"How about...we all vote. Vote on whether to leave Grian be, get him back, or..." Xisuma suggested, but Iskall frowned when Xisuma trailed off.

 "The answer is the first one! We don't need to vote, and you know that!" Iskall declared, his robotic eye shining as he waited for the admin to respond in tense silence.

Xisuma let out a sigh, "We do need to have a vote, Iskall, because there are different opinions within the group," he explained patiently, then continued on, not letting Iskall get a word in. "We need to call a meeting, at the Shopping District. Around noon sounds good, right?" He walked off, not waiting for an answer, dragging Scar with him as to prevent the argument that he knew would start up again if he left the two unattended.

~+~

NPG sat with Grian as he sobbed. His brother never seemed to have good luck in finding people that would accept him as a demon. First, it was in Japan with Sam and Taurtis, then in Evo, when Taurtis revealed his secret to the others. And now Hermitcraft. He never seemed to catch a break.

As NPG comforted Grian, their older brother, known to the Hermits as Poultry Man, whose real name is Xelqua, walked into the room. He took one glance at his two younger brothers, Grian crying and NPG rubbing his back, and sat down on Grian's other side, also comforting him. Xelqua sent a meaningful glace as NPG, silently asking what happened. NPG shook his head, indicating that he would explain the best he could later.

Xelqua nodded in understanding. Perhaps now wasn't the best time in the world. He placed a hand on Grian's back, rubbing soothing circles. In turn, Grian leaned his body ever so slightly towards his older brother. NPG hugged him tightly from the side.

This was as good as it was probably going to get for them, was it not? For a moment, right here, right now, there was no fear, no running. He was where he should be, amongst the people who actually loved him back, despite who he was. As far as breaks go, this would likely be his only one.

In the distance, a storm was brewing in the horizon line that they called the future.

Back with the Hermits, the said future was currently being determined. Team ZIT had volunteered to put together a quick set of voting booths, which weren't unlike the ones from the mayoral election, ensuring the Hermits' privacy while voting on the sensitive matter of what to do with Grian.

Xisuma had hastily made a set of voting papers, with 3 options available to tick: They could leave Grian where he was, find Grian and bring him back, or ban Grian. Xisuma personally didn't see the point of the last one, but he knew that he needed to remain impartial in the matter, which meant keeping all options in mind.

After explaining the voting procedures to the hermits, Xisuma watched as one by one, they entered the booths, taking their time before leaving again. Some seemed to be relieved after voting, others looking suspiciously guilty.

When it finally became his time to put his opinion down on paper, the admin was surprised to find himself shaking, and a cold sweat forming on his hands. He had once sworn an oath to protect the Hermits at all costs, and he knew that he needed to get this decision right.

~+~

"We should probably go now...shouldn't we?" Grian nodded, taking a deep breath and regaining his composure. "I'll see you on the other side." Xelqua gave him a small, sympathetic smile before walking through the portal.

"Are you okay with going? I know you were really close to them.." NPG trailed off. Grian looked back to where he'd come from, the sun was conveniently starting to set, draping the whole server in darkness

I really should just...give up. Grian thought. Things have never ended up well. No one ever understands...

"Yeah," Grian whispered, turning back to the portal. And just like that, he'd given up. He'd given up on all other servers. None of the others had ended well. Why would he expect anything else?

If you have to pretend to be something you're not to be accepted by your friends, then they aren't real friends, and it's not worth it.

The words echoed through his head, and Grian's expression hardened. "No looking back." NPG nodded hesitantly, walking through the portal. 

It was good Grian made the decision he did, because then, the Hermits made the decision for him, and he disappeared from the server.

~+~

Xisuma looked over the answers each Hermit had given, throat drying. He never thought...

He never thought he'd ever had to do this.

Shakily pulling out his admin screens, Xisuma typed out the words he'd only ever used for his brother.

/ban Grian

All were silenced.

The hermits, the trees, nature, all waiting for the notification on all the Hermits' communicators, signalling that Grian had left.. but nothing came, Xisuma blinked, he knew, but words stuck in his throat, like a burden in the way of the finish line.

Thankfully, Doc spoke up.

"Grian left on his own..." his voice seemed blunt, but hidden beneath was a tiny bit of betrayal over what had happened. This, the banning of someone because of this race...

It was the start of Hermit War 2.

~+~

Grian felt grass tingle around him, the fresh air filtering through his nostrils as he jumped to see over the tall foliage, he saw grass, bright, nourished green grass, bright, beautiful flowers, he smiled, touching a poppy and picking it up, before seeing a red figure, at the sound, it turned around quickly but recognized who was there.

"Grian...?"

Grian stared in silence, and NPG spoke up.

"Yes, Grian."

 NPG pushed Grian forward playfully, much to the dismay of the former Hermit. He saw other people gather around, curious, and then surprised.

The Evolutionists...their flare of colours all too familiar to Grian.

He was back with what he had lost.

Some stories can actually have a happy ending for him, even if Hermitcraft was left behind.