the ending is suuuuuper rushed and i hate it but i needed to get it done with as fast as i could so here we are, maybe one day that's not october i'll redo it lol

~**~

Grian never wore blue.

It was a defining feature of him, something every Hermit had noticed. He's worn green, white, brown, yellow, red, of course, black, purple, every color. Barring those fifteen seconds he brought out his janitor outfit to clean up the mess in front of the button that one time, blue was the one color he's never worn.

So Mumbo and Iskall, they decided it would be interesting if their friend was challenged to wear this forbidden color.

It would just be for a day, one day, and he wouldn't even have to change the kind of clothes he was wearing. They gave him a blue jumper, nearly the same as the one Grian's trademark.

The Hermits saw when the builder accepted the challenge. He looked odd, though, and it wasn't just the fact he was in blue. It was his behavior, too: the usually chaotic and prankster of an architect, jumping at the loud sounds he often made himself? Actively avoiding people in general, getting pretty flustered whenever someone does talk to him--or maybe that was just Keralis. You would be flustered too if this person you barely know called you pretty and bought your rotten flesh for two stacks of diamonds-

"Iskall, is there a point you're trying to make?" Mumbo sighed.

Iskall nodded, "Maaayyyyyyyybe it was a bad idea to ask him to wear blue for a day?"

"So you're saying he's acting off because he's wearing blue?"

"Yes!"

"That is literally the stupidest thing I have ever heard."

"You never know!" Iskall pointed out, clicking a button to test out their new machine, "He could have been through something while he was wearing blue and now it's a trigger for him, I don't know."

Mumbo shrugged and rolled up one of his blueprints. "I guess it's plausible, there's no evidence saying it's true, but there's nothing that points towards the contrary.."

The communicators blipped, Iskall clicked theirs and opened up the holographic screen. "Oh, someone joined."

"Wait, who?" Mumbo asked, turning away from his work.

"It says..... mm, 'Salex-Brown-ghost'?"

Mumbo took a look at Iskall's screen. There was indeed the message "salexbrown [ghost] joined the game," which invited many questions from the Hermits in the chat.

<stressmonster101> ???

<cubfan135> oo, spooky

<TangoTek> i mean it is october now

<xisumavoid> a ghost?

<falsesymmetry> did you invite them or something

<xisumavoid> no

<Grian> oh

<cubfan135> *spooky*

<Grian> does anyboedy know where tshe is

<Grian> this is imporatatnt

"Looks like Grian knows something," Mumbo mumbled as he typed into his own communicator.

<MumboJumbo> do you know her??

<Grian> yes

<Grian> where is she

<xisumavoid> trying to figure that out myself

<joehillssays> is she the grey lady that wishes to rid us for the good of the world?

<Grian> we do not need a sad ghosts on our hand s right nowe

<xisumavoid> if anyone sees a ghost then tell the chat

<Grian> if shes here soemthign must be rellya bad

"Speak of the devil," Iskall said, pointing at the familiar blue-sweatered figure crashing into the nearby trees.

"Grian!" Mumbo called, "over here!"

His call was ignored, and Grian continued his erratic flying, like he was panicking about something. Mumbo and Iskall took one look at each other and took off after their friend, flying rapidly to try to catch up, chasing him, rockets being used at the speed of light-

and a blue ghost appeared right in front of them.

Iskall immediately took a turn to avoid impact, since, well, they're actually rather decent with an elytra, but Mumbo shrieked and ran straight through the ghost, but the only thing that happened to him was an immense feeling of intense cold, and he found himself shivering afterwards. He also found himself rushing towards the ground--he seemed to have forgotten he was flying in a spectacular feat of spoonishness.

Iskall, not being such a spoon, figured that if they were to fly fast enough, they'd be able to catch their friend and sustain minimal damage, so they did just that, scaring Mumbo senseless, but hey, he was alive and didn't have to go through the painful respawn process, so he couldn't really complain.

The two landed--well, Iskall landed, Mumbo was sort of just.... dropped on the ground. No landing rights for the spoon. The ghost, however, was following them--Mumbo was suddenly reminded of Grian and Xisuma's request to tell everyone else if they saw a ghost, so he opened up his communicator and hastily typed a message.

<MumboJumbo> foduodjnd it

<MumboJumbo> *foudns

<MumboJumbo> *fuodsnd

<iskall85> he means found lol

<Rendog> ohh

<iskall85> ya were being chased by the ghost atm

<iskall85> well not really chased

<iskall85> shes not realy fast

<Grian> wait where are u

<MumboJumbo> litersally where u just were

No response.

The ghost--Salex? Brown? whatever--was still pursuing Mumbo and Iskall, and had picked up its pace. It was getting closer and closer and oh dear gods why was it so intent on coming to them-

"Salex!" Grian's voice cried, and the redstoners heard the telltale sound of rockets being fired and fired as he neared and neared as well. "SALEX!"

The ghost, Salex, apparently, stopped in its tracks, instead turning to look with its torch-like yellow eyes at Grian, who was panting upon landing, glasses askew, blue jumper already cursed with multiple tears despite this being the first day of him ever wearing it. Typical.

"Gri.... an?" Salex slowly responded, simply staying in place while said man continued walking toward it- her- whatever, muttering under his breath in an unknown tongue.

"Yep," Grian sighed, "that's me."

The ghost continued to talk ever so slowly, "Your.... jumper...."

Grian looked down, seeming to remember he was uncharacteristically wearing blue. "Yeah, I know."

Mumbo and Iskall were confused, but only just. Salex had obviously known Grian, and likely knew he usually wore a red jumper instead of this sapphire shade, but where had she known him?

"It...." Salex paused, as if searching for the right words. "It looks like.... his."

Iskall glanced at Mumbo. His? they mouthed. Mumbo merely shrugged.

Grian nodded, looking a bit sad. "Is he why you're here?"

"Oh! Yes...." Salex trailed off, looking off into the distance, perhaps remembering a better time. Mumbo didn't know. He just wanted to know who the heck this guy they're referencing is.

Grian looked really concerned now. "What happened?"

Tears began pouring down Salex's face, tears upon tears, she was sobbing. The ghost vanished into thin air, the sound of her sorrow still hovering in the air for a bit after she disappeared.

Mumbo and Iskall were to busy quietly discussing among themselves to notice Grian drop to his knees, his own tears streaking his face, falling onto the blue jumper, the jumper that looked so much like the shirt of the man whose dead girlfriend came to relate the news that he, too, was gone.

Not that anybody else would know.