Ren's form changes throughout the day as part of him being a werewolf. I had to figure out exactly how for literally one line in this chapter. So, well, I might as well share  (and also remind myself later). Somewhere in here, his bones probably change somewhat, but it doesn't hurt him any. 

12 am: fully wolf; prefers being on four legs, fur everywhere, claws, fangs, ears and a tail.

3 am: mostly wolf. Two legs, not as hairy. Claws are receding

6 am: Claws and fangs are gone.

9 am: Mostly human. No more fur, tail and ears are getting shorter

12 pm: fully human

3 pm: Mostly human. Ears and tail appear, chest starts growing fur

6 pm: Claws and fangs begin to grow. 

9 pm: Mostly wolf. Getting really hairy, can start walking on all fours, but doesn't prefer it. Fangs are fully in, and claws are getting there. 

♡『♡』♡

Martyn had spent the entire day fiddling with his communicator. He hadn't bothered joining the others for breakfast. Instead, he spent the time inside alone. That was fine; he usually never ate breakfast anyway. Too much wasted time. He wasn't here to socialize either, and given recent events, the idea of being with everyone was even less appealing.

Three lives. They each had three lives. And on the third life? Why was it so important that the server was named Third Life? That was what he really wanted to know.

His hacking was incredibly slow going. Now that Scott had cleaned up some of the things from the Admin-side of things, Martyn had more options to play around with. He could now message the server as well as view individual players. Messaging was such a huge win in his conquest for information. He could now input commands, which was one of the key elements to hacking. If he put certain commands in, especially in a certain order and pace, he could confuse the system into giving him more information than he really required.

Using his skills to drill into each person's personal data, he found nothing out of the ordinary. No one carried materials that would be impressive to have after only being here for a few days. If someone here had caused this, they were doing a very good job of hiding it.

Well, no one had anything interesting other than Grian, anyway. That necklace he was wearing apparently was called an amethyst, or otherwise known as watcher.soul.frag by the code. Something about that sent a shiver down his spine, even though he couldn't put a finger on why. More than that, even. He could feel his fingers tremble, his palms sweat, his breath quicken, as though something inside of him detested every bit of it.

Of course he knew Grian was a Watcher, and he had seen it before. So then why? He wondered if it was because of his own history with the Watchers, but even that didn't seem quite right. He couldn't figure out why that had spooked him in the end and tried his best to move on, though the thought lingered at the back of his mind and in his now-tense frame.

Annoyingly, that was the point in which Ren interrupted him. He knocked on the door before opening it slowly enough for Martyn to quickly put his communicator back on his wrist.

"Martyn? Are you up yet?" Ren asked. Martyn looked up just in time to see Ren offer him a plate containing two eggs, a piece of bacon and a few apple slices.

Clearly, Martyn was. He was sitting on a chair at a table rather than laying on the ground. He would say that his clothes, which weren't pajamas, should also be some indication, but these were all he had to wear.

"Oh perfect! Here, I saved you some before it all got devoured." Ren continued on as though Martyn had replied. He gave an almost comical smile as he set the plate before the other, showing off his teeth. They were smooth already, with no hints of fangs. 

"Uh, thanks, but I told you... I don't really need to eat. I usually skip breakfast." Martyn replied with a frown, eyeing the plate. Sure, he was hungry, but he had much more important things to do. And of course, out of all moments, it was that exact moment that his stomach decided to let out a growl, defying him.

It made Ren lift a curious eyebrow. "My, my, but you certainly sound hungry." He hummed, sounding amused. At the same time, there was something in his eyes that wasn't as playful. It looked almost something akin to a warning. He sat down on the chair opposite to Martyn and said, "You should have at least a bite."

What was Ren? His mother? He was tempted to roll his eyes and give some sarcastic remark like a teenager, but Ren gave an actual glare in warning, as though he was going to fight if Martyn didn't listen. Well then, Martyn thought to himself, he supposed that the sooner he ate, the sooner he could get rid of Ren. "Fine." He said. All he had to say those words and he felt some tension ease from his body, as though he was coming out of work mode for the time being. Dare he say, it actually kind of felt good. He lifted his fork, scooped up some food and held it up to his mouth. Then, he paused. "Er- thank you." He added, deciding that he may have come off as rude a moment ago. Not that he particularly cared about whether Ren liked him or not, but he wasn't an asshole. Not entirely, anyway.

"You're welcome." Ren said, easing as well. He leaned back in his chair now, lifting his arm and laying it against the top of the chair. An odd pose, but he seemed comfortable at least.

The food wasn't anything fancy, not that Martyn had to taste it to recognize that. Still, nutrition was nutrition, and he really didn't care what he ate so long as he could keep going. In fact,on second thought, maybe it was a good thing to eat something simple like this in case his stomach acted up again. "It's good." He said.

"I know it's nothing fancy, but I like to think eating with others makes things taste better." Ren said.

Martyn hesitated. Did he believe that? Thinking back to the old days, he supposed that he had to agree, albeit with people he loved and cared for; not strangers. He nodded anyway. "It's lonely eating alone all the time." He said.

"That's why I figured I'd pay you a visit." Ren said, though a twinkle in his eye hinted that he had come to make sure that Martyn actually ate something, annoyingly. "That, and I wanted to ask if you wanted to head back together."

"Head back together?" Martyn asked. He had to pause a moment to even remember that he had planned on building on that mountain by Ren. "Oh-- right. Sure." He supposed a change of scenery wouldn't be too bad. In the least, he would be a less centralized location. That meant less people-shaped interruptions to bother him.

"Sweet. Then we can move out whenever you're done eating." Ren said.

♡『♡』♡

So this really was how it was going to be. Grian couldn't hardly believe it, even as he pulled the lead on some llama Scar had seriously named Pizza. Absurd name aside, he supposed that for Scar's sake, he was glad for the llama. It wasn't a horse, but at least it could transport Scar, allowing him to save his energy.

Grian could just make out the desert now. They had left shortly after a group breakfast, and while they didn't have too long of a journey, Pizza was definitely slowing them down.

"Hey G?" Scar asked, leaning forward from where he sat atop the animal.

"Yes?" Grian asked.

"I've been wondering... what do you think of all the new people?" Scar asked. When it was clear that he needed to clarify, he continued, "You know, like Joel and BigB and Scott and all them?"

"Well, I don't know." Grian shrugged. It was a half lie, and he silently cursed at the way his body nearly shuddered. He took a deep breath, and told himself to focus on the three people he really didn't know. "They seem alright, I guess. It's good that Scott has Admin experience, at least." And thank goodness for that. Grian was a hopeless Admin, so to have a real trained one made him feel a little more at ease.

"Yeah it is." Scar agreed as he stared out at the landscape. The world felt untouched. He had almost forgotten what that felt like.

Hermitcraft had grown into countless builds. It was amazing what everyone could do. Even beyond the builds, the Hermits had touched all of the land for thousands upon thousands of blocks. Beyond the carefully crafted builds was where they gathered resources. They'd extract sand and other resources until there was nothing but large craters deep in the ground. It was worth it for their never-ending quest of creativity, but that also made sights like these so rare.

"Still though, I can't believe the chances." Scar went on to say, giggling to himself as he looked back at Grian.

"What chances?" Grian asked, only glancing back at Scar for a few moments before facing forward again. He needed to be careful in this terrain, seeing as their path was hilly.

"Now you know two people named Martyn!" Scar giggled. It was such an innocent giggle that, if Grian hadn't known the man as well as he had, he would have taken it at face value. Scar could be completely clueless at times, that much was true. At the same time, he could also act clueless when it was advantageous to him. He suspected this was one of those times, and so he stopped in his tracks.

And he would be right about that. Scar had wanted to bring this up, but he knew he had to tread carefully. At first, he was going to leave things alone because it wasn't his business. Grian probably would have called a Hermit code if he had tackled this head on. Although that would be enough to confirm what he was pretty sure he already knew, that wasn't the point of him bringing it up. The point was that Grian was upset about something, and guessing by the way he and Martyn had been avoiding each other, something had happened between them. And even though he couldn't be sure of their dynamics, knowing Grian it may have something to do with keeping secrets. He respected Grian's need for secrecy, but he really didn't want him to lose old friends over it, either.

Grian's hand tightened on the leash. "When did I say that name?" he asked, his voice level. He felt an anger rising, but at whom he didn't know.

"You mentioned it in passing when you became a Hermit. You said that he was a healer." Scar replied. "I remember because it was the one and only time you've ever given someone from your past a name. I had always been tempted to ask more about him, but I wanted you to tell me on your own time, if you wanted to at all."

Grian could just about facepalm himself. He had been an idiot thinking that he could hide this from his best friend of all people. He forced himself to turn away and slowly begin walking again. At first, it felt as though his feet were stuck in the ground like tree trunks, but it quickly got easier. "Martyn's not a healer." He replied, shaking his head. He took a few more moments for himself before continuing. As much as he wanted to say that the Martyn Scar knew was a different one from the one he himself knew, Grian knew it was a useless endeavor to even attempt it. "He was just the one who got hurt the most. Our healer-- well, she's not here. Most of them aren't." He shook his head.

"Then... where are they?" Scar asked, lowering his voice as he stared at the back of Grian's head. He watched as Grian flinched at the question, momentarily stopping in his tracks once more before he continued on.

"It's--" A sigh. As much as he wanted to shut the conversation down, Scar already knew things he shouldn't. Maybe he'd regret it later, but he decided to answer. "I don't know. The Void, maybe."

"Oh..." Scar turned his face away as he frowned, choosing instead to stare at the ground. "I'm sorry, G."

"Thought they were dead." Grian mumbled under his breath, just loud enough for Scar to hear. Then, a little louder with less fire in his tone, "so you can imagine how shocked I was that three of them wound up here, alive and well."

Scar nodded in understanding. "That must have been a shock." He agreed. He hesitated before asking, "but Grian, why did you try to hide the fact you know them? Aren't they your friends?"

"I..." Grian had to stop again, sighing. "It's just, you know how I am about talking about my past..."

"Still, don't you miss them? Don't you want to catch up with them?"

"Scar." Grian said sharply, the annoyance in him spiking. This conversation was already uncomfortable, but this was getting to be too much. He had made the choices he had made, and he had made them for a reason.

Scar dipped his hat as though to hide his eyes. "Sorry." He said. "I won't ask any more questions if you don't want me to. I just... I mean, it's okay to act like you know them. We still won't ask you any questions; promise."

Grian hummed, not sounding so sure. Even so, he knew he had new material to ruminate over. After all, if Scar was right, that would imply that he may have been a little bit of a jerk to Martyn. Just a little.

He hated to say it, but things were easier when his friends— no, family rather— were dead. That was probably why he felt his blood boil, though he tried to stop it.

♡『♡』♡

As much as Martyn wanted to spend all day hacking, that was the end of it, it would seem. For now, at least; he was certainly returning to that tonight. But at the moment, he found himself helping Ren with his base. Ren hadn't even explicitly asked for help, but...

Well, him and Ren had gotten into a conversation about their favorite troupes on the way back. As it would turn out, they both agreed that the more drama, the better. It hardly mattered what else— romance, fantasy, adventure; if there wasn't drama in it, what even was the point?

"I'm telling you, my man, you and me have gotta plan something. As long as we're stuck here, we should at least have fun." Ren was saying. He had changed into a light t-shirt that he must have made recently because Martyn hadn't seen it before. From shelter, to clothing to even food, Ren seemed set on establishing himself here. That was, perhaps, the largest difference between the two of them. Martyn, on the other hand, hoped that he could get out and fix everything as soon as possible. He had no need to settle down.

"For sure, for sure." He replied, and for that moment at least, he meant it. Despite all the interruptions, he was finding that he actually did enjoy Ren's company. It was refreshing to relax a little, even if it were just for a little bit.

"Tell you what, how about we brain storm?" Ren asked as he lifted up a fence, adding it to the wall that he was building. The structure he was building already had a frame and a floor, but it seemed as though he was going for a rather unconventional wall and ceiling. As he set the fence in place, his sleeve rolled up slightly, revealing the tattoo that Martyn had seen before.

"Actually-- mind if I ask you about that?" He asked, nodding to Ren's arm.

Ren looked confused for a moment before the question seemed to register in his mind when he caught sight of it himself. "Oh, that?" he chuckled, smiling as he looked back at Martyn. "I was captured as a pup and was raised in captivity. I escaped, but..." He was still smiling, but he tilted his shades down so Martyn could see his eyes, which reflected sadness. He didn't need to say the rest. That tattoo was a branding, his identification rather than a name.

"I'm sorry. That must have been so hard for you." Martyn said quickly. He immediately regretted asking; he hadn't expected it to be something that deeply painful; meaningful, sure, but not painful like that. Martyn knew what it was like to live captured. At the same time, he at least had a good childhood. He could be thankful for that, at least. "And sorry if I asked too much."

But Ren seemed unbothered, shaking his head as his smile only widened. He adjusted his shades to once again hide his eyes. "It's quite alright, my man. It's all in the past now, and I'm pretty open with all of it." He turned, turning his attention back to his work. He wasn't shutting down the conversation; just getting back to work.

"But still... to have a permanent reminder like that..."

"It may have sucked, sure, but it also made who I am today. It allowed me to meet my absolute best friend, and Cleo, and eventually, all of the Hermits. It's what allowed me to find my family, Martyn. It's what allowed me to find a real home. And so, when I look at this tattoo, all I can feel is hope. It's a reminder to me that when life is rough, things will always get better. Always." Ren paused for a few moments to look back at Martyn to show him another smile before focusing again. "Hey, can you pass me some more?"

Martyn had to take a few moments to get himself to move, because for a moment, he actually forgot how to. He scrambled to the chest, grabbing a bunch of fences before passing them all up to Ren. All the while, he stayed quiet, reflecting on what had been said.

He and Ren were so, so similar. And yet, they were as different as could be. How was it that Ren could seriously be so positive? How could he seriously be smiling like this?

He meant... sure. He had found family too. He could sympathize with that, or at last he could before. Now with Grian... maybe that wasn't so true anymore, come to think of it.

He didn't want to think about that.

"Still..." he said reluctantly, unsure himself of what he was supposed to say in that moment. "I— I just mean..." a swallow. "I guess— I know a little of what that's like, but I could never say something like that..." he shook his head. He wasn't even sure if he should be saying this, but he felt really prompted to in that moment.

"It seems the Universe has been cruel to you too, Martyn." Ren couldn't help but frown, placing the next fence a bit harsher than he had with the ones before it. "It's cruel to far to many people, I'm afraid, but if we don't have hope, what do we have?"

A fracturing universe that was breaking more and more by the day, Martyn wanted to answer, because that much was true. He had seen all the little cracks that had begun to show through as his time as prince. He had to stand and watch as these hairline fractures steady grew deeper and deeper. The attacks grew more frequent. The king grew weaker. He may not have respected that king as his ruler, but to see the creature that was basically a god lose what was next to unstoppable power was unnerving. And now? Now, it was as though part of the Universe had shattered, sending them all here... wherever here was.

Hope was like faith, and faith was like trusting in fate. Fate, of course, being some mythical and elusive creature that did what it wanted. Fate, of course, conveniently mostly serving the Watchers. Martyn meanwhile, put his faith, if he had any, in action; in will. The worlds would not be saved by absent-mindedly standing on the side and praying for a better day.

He couldn't say any of that, though. "I don't know..." He said instead, sounding a bit too reluctant and redundant compared to the well-thought-out argument he just had in his own head.

Ren must have found that funny. He tilted his head, slapped his thigh and barked out a laugh. "Oh Martyn, you poor thing. You'll understand one day, I swear it." He said, glancing back and giving Martyn a warm smile. Then, he once again went back to focusing on his work. Right, Martyn should probably actually help instead of standing there doing nothing. He walked over to the little farm Ren had set up and began tending to it. When he had kneeled down into the dirt, Ren continued speaking. "Who knows, maybe I could even put in a good word in for you with the Hermits after all this blows over. You could be one of us!"

Martyn's heart skipped a beat and his hands froze as they touched the wheat. A home? With -- with the Hermits?

A home.

With the Hermits.

A home.

A real home. A safe place in which he belonged. A place he could be exactly what he was. A place he could thrive, without a million pressures on his shoulders. A place without countless eyes or ears observing him at every moment of the day. A place he could just simply be, and that was enough.

Something he hadn't felt he had since he left his home village. And, this place was with Grian.

His heart first grew warm, then it ached for all that he had missed. He forced himself to start working, not stopping the feeling, but not acting on it.

"The Hermits? The big group of you? But-- why would you do that?" he asked instead. It was a genuine question. Ren had only known him for what? Two days? They had gotten along, sure, but how could he be so sure that Martyn wasn't dangerous? Why would he even consider going out of his way like that, even if he was sure that Martyn was safe? 

"Well, why not, my man?" Ren asked, as though it were an incredibly obvious answer that it hardly even needed to be said. When he looked over and saw that Martyn really did need more convincing, he continued speaking as he went back to building. His movements had become rhythmic since he had been doing nothing but building this wall for what felt like hours. "Hermitcraft is a very special place. It's a safe haven for people who have been down on their luck. Some of us are being hunted, or were outcasted from many worlds. It was built as a place to protect people like me-- us, rather-- and where we can be ourselves. To live freely, my man."

"But-- but you barely even know me!" Martyn couldn't help but blubber. He just could not understand in the least. He forced himself to yank out the first bit of wheat with extra strength, adding it to the food chest.

Ren only laughed again. "And we've taken bigger risks than that before. We once had someone force themselves through our firewall, and guess what? He's a Hermit now."

"Force themselves through the firewall?!" Martyn asked, his eyebrows raising as he glanced over at Ren. "Like, without any hacking or anything? You have to be absurd-- no, suicidal to even think of attempting such a thing!" It would be like walking through a literal wall of fire, hence the term firewall. No one in their right mind would do that.

"That's exactly what we thought. Whoever he was, he must have been incredibly desperate to decide to attempt such a thing. We treated his injuries and nursed him back to health. We learned about him bit by bit, and sure enough, he was running away from something. We brought him under our wing, and we never looked back."

"But weren't you afraid that he would be dangerous? What if he was someone hunting you?" Martyn asked warily.

Ren hummed, as though he was pretending to consider the possibility. It was half-hearted, though, so Martyn was pretty sure it was just for show. "Then we would deal with it together, I suppose." He replied, unbothered.

"But-?"

"Martyn." Ren said, a slight sternness in his tone, enough to quiet the elf for a moment. "There was once upon a time that I was a stranger to the Hermits. They put blind trust in not just me, but my friends as well. If they hadn't given me that, I don't know where I would be right now. Maybe dead or captured elsewhere. I don't know. I never forgot what they did for me. In that way, it's only fair that I give everyone else the benefit of the doubt, yes?"

And it was in that way that Martyn finally understood, his eyes widening slightly. He couldn't lie; he was not that kind. He could not put so much blind trust on a stranger, but he could understand exactly where Ren was coming from at least. He swallowed hard. "I'm glad that you had that." He said, and it was genuine.

"Me too. And that's why Martyn, if you want it, it would be something I would like to extend to you. That is, with the others' permission of course." Ren nodded, smiling once more.

"That's—" Martyn swallowed hard. That was quite possibly one of the nicest things someone had really offered him— him, not some persona, but him. And why? He meant — well, Ren had just told him why, but still. He couldn't quite wrap his head around it. It didn't benefit Ren in any perceivable way, and it even opened him up to a very reasonable danger. 

He could almost hear Netty in the back of his head, nagging him for being so pessimistic. This is exactly the kind of reckless thing that she would do. It was the kind of reckless and selfless care that he had fallen for. And so, for her, he tried to push away his doubts and fears, instead taking Ren's offer at face value. "I mean-- thank you. I'll think about it."

"That's great. I know it's a big decision, so take all the time you need to think it over. I'll wait to suggest it until you're sure." Ren replied. 

In that way, the warmth and excitement buzzing in Martyn's heart propelled him forward for the rest of the morning and afternoon. He worked hard, not because he needed to, not because he would be a failure and a loser and an idiot if he didn't, but because Ren's kindness had given him an energy boost and motivation that he hadn't seen in himself in a long, long time. Fear, self-hatred and perfectionism had been his driving forces. Now he was running on a drive that was much more sustainable, one that left him with rapidly replenishing energy rather than exhaustion. 

♡『♡』♡

A bit of a fun fact... I started writing a one-shot with Ren, Cleo and Doc's backstory. However, I started it a year or two ago now, and kind of lost motivation for it. Maybe I'll get around to it one day...