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the-tired-cat-hexer · 1 year

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Chapter III

The scream echoed around the underground base, waking up everyone with a jolt. It wasn’t the first time this had happened. Everyone knew too well what had happened, even if the first few seconds were confusing right after waking up.

“It’s okay duckling, I’m here,” Caroline soothed the taller hybrid, their face hiding in her collarbone.

Clay was a mess. Face wet with tears, trembling, sobbing with unkempt hair, and body that was still sweating from shock and fear. They kept mumbling that they were sorry and that they will be good, which, only told the others what kind of trauma the earth dragon must have gone through.

Again, this wasn’t the first time. And it wasn’t what they heard last time as well.

Patches was staying with them, purring and possibly realizing it was a bad idea to leave Clay alone for so long, especially after the visit to the Firefly village and L’manberg. But nobody could really blame her for that, as she was tasked with staying in the underground base, mostly to keep an eye on the others while Clay wasn’t there.

Brendan wanted to touch Clay’s shoulder to give more comfort but Sam quickly stopped him, lightly shaking his head in disapproval, calmly discouraging the inchling.

Cara kept on hugging and petting their curly hair. “You’re okay sweetie, it was just a nightmare,”

Clay’s heavy breathing started to slow down, which was a good sign. The comfort was working.

After a few minutes, the dirty blond slowly hugged back and buried their face in the crook of the sheep hybrid’s neck. They let out a loud exhale, keeping their eye closed and face in shadows of the dimly lit bedroom. Clay’s senses started to come back, along with powers, and they knew other hybrids were there, making sure that Clay wouldn’t…

“Feeling okay, Clay?” Brendan asked softly, not wanting to raise his voice. He received a slow nod. Patches quickly noticed the movement and stretched up on her hind legs to nuzzle their jawline, still purring.

Sam swiftly turned his head towards the moth inchling and whispered; “Think that George heard it?”

“He’s not here, so…” Brendan responded. Ponk just simply crossed their arms, her gaze fixated on one of his girlfriends, making sure nothing bad went down. They were just there to make sure Clay wouldn’t go feral again.

It was true that George wasn’t there, but who could really know if he was maybe behind the door, listening in? Sam just hoped that not much had to be explained if that was the case.

Sighing, Clay lowered one of their hands to search for their mask, but Sam quickly noticed that they would have to turn their body to get it. So, he walked over to the bed, picked up the smooth oval clay mask, and handed it in such a way to Clay’s hand brushed against it.

“There you go,” Sam said softly and watched carefully as they put on the piece of clay that immediately got caught in a bit of magic and stuck like strong glue to their face.

Clay lifted their head as the eyes blinked open and darkened into something like a black void, along with the curved line that indicated a smile. Blinding green pupils rose to life and blinked a couple of times once more as if trying to wake themselves up. A deep long inhale came out as a sigh.

Cara swept the hair strands away from getting into Clay’s face, “Need some time?”

Clay just simply nodded. But almost instantly looked at the door that faced the front of the bed as if something caught their eye in the dim light. Nothing was in front of the door though. Caroline, Sam, Brendan, and Ponk were the only ones in the room. Maybe someone was outside the room?

Diallo was the one to walk up to the door and open it, only to nearly have someone fall into the room from weighing at the door.

“George?” was his immediate question. “What are you doing here?”

The brunet stayed silent for a minute, breaking eye contact with Diallo and looking over his shoulder, seeing Clay on the bed still with Caroline and Patches. Looking back with slow and steady breathing.

“I…I heard, screaming…” he quietly answered.

Sam cursed himself for even thinking about it in his head. Speak of the Devil and he will show up. Damn it, he should’ve kept his thoughts away.

“I’m okay,” Clay stated suddenly, causing everyone to look back at them. “Just a nightmare…”

A nightmare. Just, a nightmare. A night terror was a better word to describe what happened. But then again, was it different? Would have to ask Ponk later.

George stared for a while, unreadable emotion flying across his eyes a few times before he looked down and gave a quick nod with a blink. “Alright…” Things were getting awkward. “I’m sorry, I just-”

“It’s okay, not the only one that got worried like Hell.” the slightly taller dark-haired hybrid sympathized. “Nothing to be sorry about, George,”

George bit his lip before nodding again, turned, and walked away. But it didn’t take long for him to break into a sprint back into his large hospital room. Shouldn’t have been a surprise, but it still kinda was. Paranoia was still strong, Sam presumed.

There was shifting on the sheets, and when Sam turned around to look, Clay was being sat back down by the sheep hybrid that liked to hide her spider side out of embarrassment. That did make Sam think briefly about if Schlatt knew of his sister’s pregnancy.

“Stay, he needs some time alone as well,” she explained. She could read the room and people much better than the others. “But I will go check on him just in case,”

Clay gave her an unreadable stare with a hint of pleading, but ended up backing down from the eye contact and got more comfortable in bed, holding Patches in their arms while the little creature purred. The rest was a blur for Sam, as his brain began to act up on the lack of sleep, along with the fact that it was like, two in the morning? Very much the time where he needed his sleep, even if the screams woke him up faster than if he got hit with a darn train.

But he did remember that Clay went back to sleep, with Cara going to check on George and the others going back to bed as well.

What he didn’t know was that Clay only pretended to be asleep, and waited for everyone to be in their rooms and for Patches to be asleep.

Clay was careful about these things. Being careful about not being seen or heard. They had eventually learned how to get through Patches too.

They crept along the walls, like a shadow searching for its master. Like the deep soothing depths. Like the silent flicker of a fire on a torch. Eyes shining in the darkness, a bright red. The echo of soft music played among the halls, with the occasional ding of a bell and the screech of something, like a bird signaling to the others another visitor has invited themselves in. It hummed, sending soothing vibrations against their paw pads. It felt peaceful.

Clay stopped by the door, wondering if they should even enter. Sure that Caroline was in her bed now, but, what about him? Was he asleep?

But, he needed to tell someone about the dream. Maybe telling him would create a bigger trust between them.

Maybe this was a stupid idea.

Carefully stepping forward, the shadow hybrid walked through the door, deciding that it was better than having to punch in the code. But then again, if George was awake…

A sigh came from the form in bed, fast asleep. Maybe it was the disorder, hypersomnia was to blame. It would be hard to wake him up if that were the case. But, it wouldn’t hurt to try waking him up for just a few minutes, right?

Slowly walking up to his bed, their form turned from a shadowy hybrid with a flowy mane and tail, to back to a tall dirty blond with longer hair in a loose t-shirt and baggy pants. Maybe not the best choice for something to sleep in but what can you do with anxiety and depression? It was sometimes just, way too hard to stay elegant all the time, it was time-consuming.

“George…” they said in a whisper, putting a hand on his shoulder and gently shaking him. “George, I’m sorry for waking you up but I…”

A low but slow hum was their answer before George turned over on his back, eyes still closed. “Georgie, just a few minutes, I promise,”

George exhaled before blinking his eyes open for a minute and then shutting them again.

“George,” that seemed to be enough to wake him up a bit.

With half-lidded eyes, he twisted his head to look at the masked hybrid beside him. “Wha…”

“I’m sorry for waking you up, I really am,” Clay began, “but I need to tell you something.”

The brunet with the lack of antlers for now let out a sigh, not annoyed though. “What do you want?..”

Clay sat down on the bedside and gently grabbed ahold of George’s hand, smoothing over his knuckles with their thumb. “About the, nightmare, I wanna tell you about it…”

There was a pause before George blinked, his large doe-like eyes still half closed. He didn’t pull away from their touch. “Nightmare?..”

“I won’t bore you with the details but…” Clay sighed, looking down at the hand they were holding, noticing how almost frail the fingers looked. Yet so, delicate… “I’m not sure if you heard of him, Tommy, he is a friend of Schlatt’s son. It was about him, drowning. He couldn’t get out, because he was pinned under a rock…” They paused. “I was him at that moment, I could, feel everything he felt… Nobody came to save him.”

Looking back at George, his expression stayed the same, relaxed features and slow blinks every now and again. But he didn’t say anything.

“Sorry to bore you but, I had to tell someone, especially when-” Clay was caught off guard when George suddenly sat up and, with them still holding his hand, leaned against them.

Clay found themselves stunned almost, unsure what to do or say. This just felt unreal. Yes, they did have a similar moment a few days ago but, this one felt more special than the previous one. Clay nearly forgot to breathe for a moment. “George?..”

A pause. Dead silence, except for the rising beat of their heart.

“... Can you sleep with me?”

The question weight heavily on their mind, with Clay being on the fence about it. Wouldn’t George wake up thinking that something happened between them and be scared of them even more? Or would it be comforting for him? And due to the confusion and anxiety, Clay wasn’t able to see what would happen with each option.

George suddenly got heavier, with his head on Clay’s chest, breathing slowly. His held hand now by his side.

Maybe…

Maybe it wasn’t a bad idea to. They were just gonna be asleep in the same bed, nothing else. Clay wasn’t like that motherfucker. Which reminded them of the morbid fantasies about the guy. Oh, how much they would love to rip his guts out. Maybe even rip out his dick while they were at it.

But back to being wholesome.

“Do you want me to?..”

George let out a simple hum, slowly lifting his hand to grab at Clay’s bicep, causing their heartbeat to suddenly shoot up for some weird reason.

But they tried not to let that get to them. It was just a weird reaction.

---

Waking up next to him, while he was still asleep, embracing him, and having his face inches away. That was a weird feeling. It wasn’t bad or whatever, it was more of a, positive? Was it? Clay was not sure.

They didn’t wanna move in case they would wake him up, so, Clay just lay there. Watching silently as George breathed in and out slowly.

They took in every detail of his face. His hair parted in such a way that the first part went up, and the other went down, wavey at that. Someone would possibly call it bed hair, Clay being one of those people. George never really styled it to their knowledge. He had light eyebags that only showed more when his eyes squinted, which made all of his expressions mostly communicate with his eyes. If you caught him smiling, even lightly, his eyes smiled as well. Clay remembered one time seeing him genuinely laugh, just once though.

His top lip had a prominent cupid’s bow, while the bottom was more plump. They were parted, showing a bit of his white teeth. Clay did kinda wonder what if…

What the hell was that thought about?

Though, those crimson cheeks with white freckles looked adorable, Clay could be silently honest about that.

Again, kinda a weird thought but it was true. It did make Clay wonder if those thoughts were normal.

George let out a soft hum, slowly blinking open his eyes. Possibly got woke up by me staring at him, Clay thought.

“Hmm… What…happened?” George uttered with a groan. He looked more sleepier than ever, almost unaware of what happened last night, with Clay telling him about the dream.

Clay put on a soft smile that lingered only for a minute before returning back to a frown. “Hey, you asked me to sleep here,” They prayed that George wouldn’t freak out.

But George ended up being kinda freaked out; causing him to sit up with wide eyes and quickened breath. “What did you-”

“Calm down,” Clay managed to say calmly, sitting up as well with their hands up, “let me explain please-” “What did you do to me?!”

“You asked me to sleep with you, George. Not in that way, just sleep next to you,” Clay lightly raised their voice. Looking back up at George, they could tell that he somewhat believed them, at least a tiny bit. Maybe because both of them still were in pajamas, well, one in pajamas and the other in baggy clothing. Still surprised that Diallo’s pajamas fit him.

George took his time answering, pausing for a while, looking Clay all over. “You…didn’t do anything to me, right?..”

“I promise I didn’t.” the earth dragon hybrid confirmed in a firm voice. They weren’t trying to be intimidating, just clear that nothing bad happened.

“You…promise?”

“I promise,”

A pause. A breath. A blink. George was clearly going through multiple emotions, causing him to become more alert and scared. And Clay pitied him.

“I can leave if you want, I don’t want to make you even more uncomfortable,” Clay offered.

George thought for a moment, unsure what to say. Clay could sense not only the fear but the complete dread, and they did not want to make it worse.

“I…thought that you…” George murmured.

Clay lowered their hands to their thighs and let out a long exhale through the nose. “I would never do that to you. Heck, I don’t think I have something like that in me to do that, to anyone,” they admitted, looking down at the bedsheets.

Another pause.

When Clay looked up, they noticed that George was staring at them. Well, something beside them maybe? They turned their head to look in the same direction, but nothing was there. Clay nearly jumped out of their skin when they felt strands of their long curly hair suddenly press against their neck, along with soft fingertips.

“Why is your hair-”

The dirty blond turned back to him, and that was when they saw white hair out of the corner of their eye.

The spell fell apart.

“Oh, that’s just-”

“You got revived?” George asked, realization plastered all over his face. The question stung them in their soul, almost as if someone just shot a sharpened twig in their heart.

Fuck.

“You got revived…”

“...”

The silence was deafening before they spoke. “Many times…” Clay revealed.

“So it is real…”

“It always has been,” Clay breathed, “never part of a mythology, but reality…”

George continued studying the white parts of their curly hair, feeling almost ensnared by it almost. Being able to see this and not just hear about it in his childhood, it felt strange.

“So…” George murmured, “You are meant to be dead…”

Clay swallowed. “Yep, kinda lost a track, unless I…” They quickly noticed how George looked up in confusion. “I have a counter, here…” Clay put their hand on their neck, allowing a flow of neon green magic to reveal green emeralds embedded into their flesh. However, some were dull in color and cracked. “I can feel it draining with each death, making me… weaker.”

Furrowing his brows, the brunet carefully stretched out his shaky hand toward Clay’s neck, faintly touching the broken emeralds, only for Clay to twitch back, as if something shocked them.

“Sorry, this just… feels weird…” the dirty blond admitted.

“Weird?” George asked.

“Nobody really… touched me like that…” Clay mumbled, “It’s kinda weird…”

The stag and hare hybrid blinked in confusion, “But Cara, she-”

“Not this gently, I mean…” Clay clarified, suddenly feeling warm in their face.

George wanted to pull away his hand at that clarification, but something told him that it was safe, that nothing bad would happen. Almost as if Clay had that welcoming aura. So, he moved his hand up until he got ahold of their cheek, moving his thumb back and forth over the rough skin that wasn’t concealed by the mask. And to his surprise, Clay tilted their head into the touch, looking relaxed.

A sudden meow came from behind the door, along with claws scratching at the combination door. Clay immediately looked back to see who it could be. “Patches?” Another high pitch mew came from behind the door as a response.

Excusing themselves, Clay got off the bed and walked towards the door, opening it. Patches immediately mewed once more, nuzzling their legs before climbing up their sweatpants and t-shirt to get on their shoulders. She liked to make sure to stay with Clay all the time and would whine and be paranoid whenever Clay would go off on their own.

“She stayed in your room the whole day yesterday,” George commented, still sitting in bed. “She did? Not surprised,” the dirty blond replied, walking back to the bed and sitting down on its edge. “Patches… She is my service pet, a service pet that I sometimes leave here and forget about her,” Clay admitted, scratching her chin. “I have a bad memory when it comes to such things, the important stuff I mean…” “She said that she doesn’t want you to hurt yourself again…”

Clay paused, wondering how much Patches must have said. “Patches likes to exaggerate,”

“Patches said that you would do anything during your episodes…”

That… That isn’t really a lie…

George just stared for a few moments, as if realizing what Patches have meant by episodes. Maybe even realized how unstable Clay truly could be.

“I’m sorry, I just…” Clay tried to talk but found it hard to.

The brunet noticed it and slowly crawled towards Clay before settling down and resting his head on their thigh, almost as if trying to comfort them in some way or another. His attempt was joined by the patchy cat purring loudly. Clay let out a soft exhale and began to stroke George’s hair, finding it a bit too hard to stay up for one reason or another. Maybe because they were still waking up or maybe falling asleep.

After a moment, Clay finally spoke up, “Hey, um… George?” They earned a light hum as a response. “Is it okay if we sleep some more?”

George took his time answering, almost as if thinking too hard over what to say or do. But after a while, he nodded and lifted himself up to lie back down on the opposite side of the bed, giving Clay some room.

Carefully putting Patches on the blankets near George, Clay lay down and used magic to cover them both with the blanket. Patches got herself comfortable and continued to purr, creating a soothing lullaby for the two hybrids.

It didn’t take long for the three to fall asleep.

---

The two trainees, Grayson and Hannah were walking down the hallways, talking about meaningless things, just to pass the time.

“I mean, chickens aren’t very strong, unless we are talking about hybrids,” Grayson commented. “And to kill a lion at that.” Hannah giggled, skipping through the hallway, “Maybe they could cluck the lion to death,”

“Would the chickens even know that they are supposed to kill the lion?” the ash-blond asked, keeping on an amused smirk.

“Maybe one of the chickens would eat poison and kill the lion like that!”

Grason rolled his eyes, “That would just kill the chicken before it could kill the lion, unless…” he thought for a moment, stopping in his tracks. “Maybe you are right, if there is any leftover poison, then it could do the trick,”

Hannah smiled, twirling around in pure glee, giggling all the way. “See? I told you!”

Grayson just shook his head playfully and continued walking with Hannah, finding her childlike behavior amusing. From what he could remember, Hannah did that as a coping mechanism, which, wasn’t that much of a surprise to anyone. Little space was something that they all were taught about by Caroline.

What did kinda hurt about it though, was to not just see Hannah so happy and oblivious, but also oblivious to her self-harm. Just seeing the scars made his thighs twitch from a weird itchy and stinging feeling that would indicate that there were wounds, only to then touch the places to feel nothing but intact skin or dry pants. Even just remembering it was enough to trigger it.

But, if being oblivious was good for Hannah’s psyche, then…

It really wouldn’t hurt to play along.

“Wanna maybe play a game?” he asked, looking down at the brunette with roses in her wavy hair. He immediately earned a smile.

“Yes! Yes!” Hannah jumped in place. “Can we play the drawing game?”

It took a minute to remember what kind of game she was talking about. The one where you guess what the other person is drawing. “Sure,” Grayson smirked, letting out a soft huff of amusement.

#dream smp au #dream smp #mortalheirau #mortalheir

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the-tired-cat-hexer · 1 year

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Chapter II

“Clay? What do you see?” Brendan asked, crossing his four arms.

Clay lifted their head, their coat shining in the orange glow of the sun. Everything seemingly felt rather, not normal. It felt like danger was coming, but what kind of danger, they weren’t sure of. They haven’t exactly told the entire truth when it came to the very lucid vision, only a small part of it that could somewhat describe it. Even now, their whole body still felt sore from all the impact and running.

They let out a sigh and decided to follow the lichen and twisted vines for a little bit longer, just to see where they actually led. It shouldn’t hurt, should it? A sudden rustle came from the bushes where a crystal diamond form emerged from behind them, shimmering in the setting sun. Looking at him, nothing seemed to be wrong, for now at least.

Brendan immediately made it known that he knew something Zak didn’t. “Hey, feeling alright?”

The hybrid with the ore disease lifted a nonexistent brow, “Yes, I’m alright.” He shook his body as if like a dog shaking off water. “Why are you asking?”

“Just cuz,” the inchling instinctively, and on accident, pointed at the earth dragon with his thumb.

Zak stared for a minute before he turned his body to face Clay, or rather, lifted his upper body in a leap to do so. “Did you get a prophecy about me?!” He nearly yelled out, his eyes wide with awaiting excitement as he nearly ran towards them.

Should I lie? Clay asked themselves, unsure if they even felt comfortable sharing it. They were known for receiving omens, signs, and prophecies, but something like this felt too risky to mention. Like as if something bad would happen if they did tell him, or even make it worse.

They looked at the diamond creature in front of them. Zak had a unique shape to him, his back was smooth but with harsh edges, just like a diamond would, almost like armor to allow better movement. His claws weren’t retractable, they were sticking out and glistening in the sundown just like the rest of his body, the white coat looking lightly amber. His eyes were small, but looked too organic, with black scleras like Clay’s, but the irises were a shade of neon blue. There was no hint of red anywhere.

“I mean, yeah but, I’m not sure what it actually means-” “Oo! What if it means that I will be a hero?” he dragged out the word hero as if it was definitely what the dream meant.

Catching onto what Clay was doing, Charlie decided to lie further; “Again, Clay isn’t sure what it can actually mean, all we know is that-”

“It was you in red.” Clay ended up spilling out half the truth. Their gut ended up turning upside down, making them feel sick, but not enough to throw up.

The look of confusion on his face spread faster than a wave in a sea. “In red?”

Something told Clay that they knew of this omen. Something, familiar. Like the sea that felt both welcoming yet dangerous. Maybe… No, there are many more of that kind, it couldn’t have been someone like Nikita, she was far too sweet to do or get tangled up in something like that.

“But I’m blue,” Zak continued, “why would I be in red?”

“I’m… Not sure, to say as much as I can…” Clay admitted.

Something like the dark green depths with faint screeching sounded from nearby. That was only something that Clay’s ears picked up, at least. Turning to the source of the noise, they could only hear it coming closer, like it was dragging itself toward them. Then, something like a bong rang through the depths, along with frequent drums that were faint, but their vibrations still could be sensed by Clay’s paw pads and eardrums. It sounded, so odd yet so familiar. But why?

And why was it coming from Darryl’s land?

Clay could barely hear someone, maybe Charlie or Zak call out to them, but they ignored it and started padding to the source of the noise once more, aware that the three were following them.

When they reached the large wooden bridge that smelled sweet of all kinds of flora that grew around its fence. Even some vines… Grew down the fence and nearly into the stream, both emerald green and crimson that looked brown in the sundown.

Letting out a sigh, the earth dragon with wavy stripes and ungroomed chest fur that smelled of old dried herbs walked forward and through the bridge, realizing that whatever the ambiance was, it was gone.

Looking at the cottage, nothing seemed wrong. The vines stopped just at the other end of the bridge, sort of reaching the middle. Maybe it was just starting, a calm before the storm.

“Darryl isn’t home,” Zak quickly mentioned. Well, that was convenient, Clay could explore the cottage without raising that much of a suspicion and Darryl asking too many questions. For now at least.

“Can I look around in there?”

Zak hesitated for a minute before answering with an agreeing; “Yes, of course,”

Clay nodded, opened the door with their magic, and walked through the doorway. They closed the door. And nearly gasped.

Through Clay’s eyes, the whole cottage was covered in red flowers and vines and lichen on the inside, making it hard to walk around without tripping. Looking around, it was hard to see what was the cottage, as the red overtook it. Blood lilies and spider lilies grew out of the vines, having a sick stench to them. Like something was rotting. Knowing what both flowers symbolized, they didn’t question what that could possibly be.

The ambiance rang in their ears, making it feel like it warned them of an upcoming danger.

Without realizing it, Clay started to breathe heavily, feeling a slight panic overtake them. Everything felt grim and dead. The fire had been burning for a while, the smoke covering the ceiling and now the rooms, making it hard to see. Crystals the color of blood sprouted from the ground, itching to impale themselves into them like before. Clay remembered the sharp teeth that tried to consume them, but they managed to break free by sending a wave of magic down the beast’s throat before being thrown down a hill of jagged crystals.

The dream kept on replaying in their head, haunting every thought that tried to overtake it.

Beware the evil that hides within… The voice whispered. It sounded like a young boy.

“Clay?” Zak’s words suddenly rang through the whole room, startling the young earth dragon out of the vision, forcing them to look down at what used to be a large dog hybrid, now overtaken by the shimmering diamonds. “What did you see?” was the immediate question.

Clay couldn’t find words. It all felt too real. Again.

The cottage was now a light brown color, made out of oak, birch, and some touches of spruce. The furniture was either out of wood as well or they were made out of stuffing and fabrics to give them a more cozy feel. Even the white windows were clean.

It was like it was never there.

Yet the crimson flame kept on burning somewhere, letting out clouds of smoke.

A wave washed over them, blood draining from the waters and staining their fur. Red.

Just red.

But why would something feel so familiar yet threatening?

“I think… I think that I saw a warning.”

---

The whole castle was surrounded by a large garden that was blocked off from the rest of the places scattered around. And around the whole kingdom of L’manburg, were walls of stone keeping the citizens safe from any attacks.

Clay and Schlatt were walking around the castle, talking about their day and about the alliances L’manburg had, even some little personal stuff, like which important figure had been horribly injured or what kind of great horrible things had happened in the kingdom or to Clay’s group. Clay kept the topic of the dream a secret for now, not wanting to draw too much attention.

Their laughter sounded from the royal garden. “Try and catch me if you can!” laughed the red and blond hybrid, having a set of horns that made him look like the classical depiction of the devil or a demon, just longer and more curved back. If Clay had to be honest, his horns looked rather bad for headbutting. Not to be mean, just that they knew enough from their own training to judge what was a hybrid’s weak point. Especially when the horns looked too thin and far apart.

The goat-spider hybrid rammed himself against Tommy, managing to actually headbutt him in the process, which the younger hybrid took as a challenge and forcing his forehead hard against his, causing the other hybrid to step back just to regain his balance.

Clay huffed through their nose and smiled, looking rather proud.

“Got something to say, Clay?” the rather rough voice sounded from beside them, a little farther ahead a few steps. The large wolf spider hybrid with horns was looking over his shoulder at them, dark-colored eyes watching rather intensely. It wasn’t a threat, just a try at sounding more friendly than he usually would sound.

Clay shook their head, “No, just thinking,” They kept looking over the stone railing.

“It looked like you were thinking of something to say,” Schlatt crossed his arms, looking more accusative now.

Knowing to be patient with him, Clay just simply shrugged and looked up somewhere as if to roll their eyes and began to walk forward, swaying their tail lightly to get some of the energy out. “Maybe you’re just reading into me too much, can’t read me like that when there’s nothing to look for,”

Schlatt blinked before following the earth dragon, “Rather cryptic there, aren’t we?”

“Maybe, maybe not,”

“Or maybe you’re just an idiot,”

“Wow, really? Didn’t know,” Clay said sarcastically but still grinned a little bit.

To their surprise, the older hybrid actually faintly smiled. Well, that was an achievement.

“Oh, hello,” a familiar voice greeted the two hybrids within the castle, its two tails wrapped around his leg.

Clay put on a quick smile, trying to avoid eye contact so as to not scare the enderman hybrid with lightly curved horns. Clay has never really seen an enderian that was a half-albino, let alone a full-on albino. But with also heterochromia and slightly furry? Now that was rare to see. But now, they have seen him a bunch of times, so it wasn’t that rare for them at least. “Hey there, how are you?”

Ranboo returned the smile, “I’m alright, just…” it looked over at the two wrestling hybrids who were having the time of their life from the looks of it. “Just watching,” Ranboo admitted, clutching the book closer to his chest.

“You better treat my son right,” Schlatt nearly growled, giving it a little overprotective glare at the tall hybrid.

From what Clay knew, some chemistry was developing between the enderman and Schlatt’s son. Toby was always the energetic kind, always being in someone’s business even if it didn’t evolve him, while Ranboo was more quiet and shy, respecting privacy and being a respected figure in L’manburg. Two opposites, yet both seemed interested in one another.

“I’m sure it does, spider momma,” Clay teased and earned a glare as well.

Appreciating Clay’s attempt at lighting up the mood, Ranboo smiled.

The three looked up when a scream echoed from the garden, only to see Toby chasing Tommy with a small beehive, which, strangely, fit too well with his personality. But then again, that was a problem.

“Tobias! Stop!” his father yelled, causing a burst of laughter and wheezing from the earth dragon and a very worried and nearly horrified expression from Ranboo, whose shoulders rose up and stiffened. This was the hybrid that Ranboo seemingly fell in love with.

That was one way to distract from the dream. Even if for a little while.

Clay let out a soft sigh after their laughter turned into giggles, their smile vanishing into a frown for another reason now, remembering a promise they once broke, yet couldn’t tell anyone other than Phil about. Thinking of that promise made them also think about…

They shook their head. They would find a spell soon for sure. They had to.

While Toby was getting scolded, the enderman hybrid with a split-colored face turned to them, a little spark of curiosity in its eyes. “Say…” he paused, thinking over its question carefully. “I was wondering, you mentioned once how your horns help you hear sounds no one else can hear,” “Uh huh?”

“What kind of sounds do you exactly mean?”

“Heh, well, it’s funny really. Imagine ambiance, it’s, something like that. It’s magic, that’s what it is.”

Ranboo blinked, “Ambiance?” “The character and atmosphere of a place. That goes for my visions and prophecies as well.” Clay explained, looking forward into nothing. “Whatever happens in either, the ambiance connects to it.”

Ranboo paused once more, thinking over what the earth dragon told him. “Can you maybe, explain it more?”

Clay’s heart dropped but they managed to keep their cool. “It’s basically like,” Their first thoughts were of the terrible omen. Maybe, it wouldn’t hurt to actually tell it. Looking around for anyone that could possibly read minds before letting out a sigh and readying the quick spell, “Do you wanna hear for yourself?”

“I, wouldn’t mind it, if it helps you explain it,” Ranboo nodded, straightening its back as if to put on a brave demeanor. “If it’s nothing scary,”

“It kinda is, sorry if you run off,” the green earth dragon with wild dirty neck fur made a lighthearted joke and put the spell to work.

The gong returned as the deep dark depths hummed its lullaby. Something was slithering around too close around them, bringing with it the cold-crushing pressure along the beating of the drums. Something was making it hard to breathe.

Clay spared a small glance with their eye at the enderman widow spider hybrid, noticing how tense and faintly shaky he was. And when the gong hit again, Ranboo’s ears twitched along with its leg as he sensed the vibrations beneath.

“Should I stop it?”

“Yes please…” Ranboo murmured. When the spell stopped, he lifted his head, eyes unfocused as if it was still processing it. “That was… How do you-”

“I just do. It takes time to get used to, but it’s normal.”

Ranboo thought for a minute before shrugging. But then it just had to ask; “What kind of prophecy or omen did you get that it sounds like a nightmare?”

A nightmare. Clay wished it was just a nightmare.

“It was… Sort of one, I suppose. But I’m not sure if I should tell you in case there’s a change of panic.”

“Wouldn’t it be smart to actually tell someone?”

“I guess but-” “But?” another voice added, clearly British. “You’re pretty much just putting others in danger by doing that.”

The earth dragon turned around sheepishly, face cringing and ears turned back from being caught in the middle of an excuse. “Phil…”

“Do not call me by name like that,” the gold-haired avian with black raven wings growled, “you should know when to speak to about such matters,”

“No need to speak all royal, please,” Clay lightly pleaded, managing to lift up their head at the shorter hybrid. “And I know-”

“You know, yet you don’t tell anyone about it,” Phil added, wings twitching from the cold air. “You should tell us, even if your little anxiety is telling you not to.”

Clay gulped, feeling their head starting to hurt from the said anxiety. It really was hard to not think about starting a panic, especially when they had the reputation of a sorcerer. Knowing things that others didn’t, it put too much pressure on them. Now that Clay was the center of attention, it became even harder to speak. Tommy and Toby were seemingly away, still somewhere in the garden from what they could sense.

Letting out a sigh, Clay sat down and thought over their words. “I am not sure what exactly will happen but, from the looks of everything I’ve seen, danger is coming.” Looking up, everyone looked to be listening carefully from how they stayed silent and only watched them. Even Schlatt gave them his attention with yet again crossed arms.

“I ran into the Cursed Cave, where I had the urge to fall asleep, so I did. The dream was… It felt like I just woke up, just somewhere else… I walked around, seeing all deep shades of red, with the, I guess roof, pulsating with bright red veins showing with each heartbeat. I then got welcomed by someone, a cat hybrid with red eyes, telling me that I am someone they have been searching for, and led me into a cave where I could barely see anything. Then, a bunch of others jumped me, I managed to get away but they kept on chasing me until I got into the crystal realm, I suppose I can call it that.”

“The crystal realm?” Phil asked, sounding calmer than before, acting like he was asking a normal question.

“It was just a cave now that I think back on it, it was pretty much one of those that had many crystals and gems, but this one was just…” The thought of what the next part could have meant made their heart sink, along with sweat dripping down their forehead. “It was diamonds, not crystals… I was just aimlessly running around, unsure where to exactly go when I saw…”

Phil blinked, taking the pause as a challenge. “Saw what exactly?” he said more firmly.

“I saw Zak walking behind one of the protruding diamonds, where I lost sight of him… I couldn’t find him anywhere after that, so I just gave up and sat down, thinking that something might happen if I just wait. And something did happen… He turned into this, monster made of jagged diamonds, that were shining red, no, made of red gems, he was made of some red gems that I can’t think the name of right now but… He clearly was under some kind of influence of whatever the cat hybrid said that wanted me-” “You didn't mention that part,”

“I’m under a lot of stress right now, okay?!” Clay snapped before sighing, feeling now ashamed. “Sorry, just, listen, okay?” They felt relieved when the raven hybrid simply nodded.

“I think I remember the thing being some sort of, egg shape, with petals and vines around it. So, I tried to run away but, Zak caught me and dangled me over his mouth as if he was gonna eat me. So I, blasted the remaining magic I had down his throat out of pure panic, causing him to scream in pain and throwing me down the stone hill where, I rammed into almost every jagged gem, somehow breaking through them. At the bottom, I ran again, just ran forward and hopped I would reach somewhere away from that place and him…” They sighed, looking down at the tilled floor. “I did ran off, and ended up waking up, with the last image being Zak getting fucking strangled with those cursed vines. Brendan and Charlie found me soon after.”

Tears were threatening to leave their eyes as they looked up at Phil, who now had a more sympathetic look on his face. “Happy now?”

Phil nodded faintly and looked at Ranboo and Schlatt, who just gave one nod. “Will tell William about it, and see what he has to say on it,” he said, “if his faulty powers will show him something you missed.”

Sighing again, this time more forcefully, Clay’s look softened. “Thank you…”

Out of the corner of their eye, they could see the two teens hiding behind a pillar, both with wide eyes and lightly worried expressions on their faces.

The day continued as normal, with Clay now wandering the royal garden by themselves, hoping to get some kind of peace after that whole ordeal. The garden was stocked with flowers of all kinds, some exotic while some more basic. Yes, some were already wilting, but the rest, being able to withstand the cold, were still blooming. It was something to not only draw the eye in but to also offer comfort to those who enjoyed nature, with Clay being one of those people.

But they weren’t the type of people who liked being interrupted while seeking some peace.

“So,” Tommy said behind them in a loud voice. “How exactly does one become a pathetic prophet like you?” Well, that was a good start, not.

Rolling their eyes, Clay let out a huff and continued walking down the gravel path, trying to ignore the unintentionally annoying hybrid who was way too confidently honest.

“Really, how do you see the future and past, when you cannot even tell the others about it?” Tommy continued, trotting behind them. “Shouldn’t a prophet say everything bluntly?”

Letting out a sigh, Clay looked down at the gravel beneath their paws, “Not every prophet has confidence, Tommy,”

“But they should, like, how else can danger be avoided?” It sounded almost sarcastic, maybe even meant to be rude and mention the stereotype of prophets, Clay wasn’t too sure about that. But they weren’t there to judge that. Clay just needed some time alone, but Tommy wasn’t about to give up that easily.

“I already told them, Tommy.”

“You could have told them way before!”

Sucking in a lung full through the nose, Clay stopped in their tracks and decided, fuck it, show Tommy that just because they have anxiety, they can tell the future to him. “Do you then wanna hear what will happen in, two days? Along with other information?”

Tommy paused for a minute, unsure of what to say at first, as if he did not expect them to suddenly say that. “Well?” he growled as if to pretend that he was waiting for them to speak further in the first place.

“Well, I see a future romance with two other hybrids, those two would soon introduce someone else into their relationship, cherishing him truly to bits. But, about those two days,” Clay paused, wondering if they should continue. But they already said it, so why stop there? They indeed let Tommy know they will say it.

“I can see you trying to fly above an ocean, where you keep on bouncing off the jagged rocks when all of a sudden-” they turned around, eyes glowing blinding green. “-a strong wave comes in and sweeps you underneath the ocean along with one of the jagged rocks, pinning you between it and the sand.” They kept their voice calm, but still bit the inside of their cheek. Seeing the vision in front of them, feeling the salt and weighing ocean enter their lungs and nostrils. It was getting to them again. The visions.

Tommy was staring at them in disbelief, face twisted in slight worry and confusion. His round grayish blue eyes were filled with those of a deep ocean, drowning and gulping in the salty liquid. It was horrifying for them, and Tommy wasn’t aware of that.

“If there will be anyone to save you, you’ll be lucky, unless, you are alone.”

“Shut the fuck up!” Tommy yelled, arching his back and taking a defensive stance like a cat. “You’re just trying to scare me, you weirdo!”

Clay fought the urge to smirk, finding the behavior amusing now. Just for now that is. Still so young and naive, just like they remembered when they last saw him. “I didn’t say you definitely won’t be saved, despite your stupidity, Tommy,”

“Oh now you’re calling me stupid, aren’t you?”

“I’m talking about your risk-taking,”

“You’re the one that’s stupid you imbecile!” Tommy hissed, feathery-and-bat-like wings twitching nervously along with his swaying tail.

Suddenly, Toby sounded from behind the young red and blond hybrid, which caught Tommy’s attention a little bit. “Tommy!”

“I think you should go,” Clay said calmly.

“Yeah, while you should-” before Tommy could finish, Clay turned into a peacock of greenish-blue flames and flew off into the cloudy gentle gray sky, vanishing among the clouds. Leaving Tommy to wonder if they were joking, or were actually serious about the prediction.

#dream smp au #dream smp #mortalheir #mortalheirau

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the-tired-cat-hexer · 1 year

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So this is how Dream's hybrid form looks, it's an old art so I will have to redraw. Along with a lot of the other characters. Dealing with a huge artblock so that can take a lot of time so please have patience with me, it takes time creating stories and characters.

The flowers are primroses and marigolds.

#mortalheirau #mortalheir

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the-tired-cat-hexer · 1 year

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Update

So it's been a while, mainly due to personal reasons, but I am trying to work on the story when I can. Sorry for the inactivity

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the-tired-cat-hexer · 1 year

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Chapter I

“Liam, stop bothering him.” the sheep hybrid said firmly, not trying to sound angry.

It had been a few days since George's settlement in the underground base, but it seemed he had been adjusting somewhat to it. To the others as well. And from what Caroline had noticed, he had taken a good interest in the two children, Erica and Liam, Clay's niece and nephew. He seemed to be more on the positive side, sometimes even letting Liam crawl over his back, which was adorable, but it wouldn't be something that would make George feel better.

She knew that a victim like him wouldn't even consider a touch, but seeing that he didn't seem too bothered or terrified, she didn't scold the small feathery hybrid that much for it.

With his tiny paws, Liam pushed himself up and crawled onto George's back, messing up his fur as he continued to move. He carefully turned to the side, his paws slipping a bit as he tried to keep them on the stag hybrid's spine. He then took strands of the darker fur which resembled moss and tugged on it. All the while, George just let it happen, chest slowly rising and falling as he rested on the couch while Cara was reading on the carpeted floor.

It was hard the first two days, he barely ate or drank, but after he realized that Cara wasn't there to hurt or poison him, it went more smoothly. He still didn't eat much, though. Caroline knew she had to be patient with him, and let him fully adjust to those that are willing to help.

Cara shifted her front legs, making sure to not scratch her belly with her hooves, and glanced over at the resting hybrid. She watched as he let out a large exhale and bury his muzzle into his front leg, completely unbothered by the small hybrid who was just a year old. His features were soft, eyes closed, rhythmic breathing undisturbed.

“How is he?” a soft whisper sounded from behind her, a voice she recognized.

“He's doing alright,” she replied. “Just resting now.”

The giant creepling centaur hybrid nodded and carefully laid down beside her as his size shrunk closer to her height. Normally, Sam would be more comfortable in his actual nine-foot-tall self, but he didn’t want to intimidate the sheep hybrid, especially when she was going through that part of life.

“He has gotten better, hasn't he?”

Cara nodded, “Not fully, but a little bit.”

“Still a good process” Sam glanced down at the book for a minute before he remembered the question he wanted to ask once he came back from his job. He was surprised he even remembered it, knowing how hard it was to be a captain of the guard, but if it made the money and kept the others safe, it was worth it being there. Especially when he had most of the control over the guards.

“Say,” he began. “How do you feel about it?”

Caroline looked up from her book, a little confused. When he gave a quick glance at her stomach and back to her eyes, she blinked in recognition. “Oh, well…” She paused for a while, thinking over her words. She looked down at her swollen belly, a light smile curling up on her lips. “It's, honestly nice. I was, always the motherly one, so I only have experience from babysitting during my teen years, but now,” she blinked. “It feels almost unreal to me. I think it was also unreal to her.”

Yep, it sure was. “He burst into the living room, ya know?”

“He did?”

“Yeah, Ponk literally ran in yelling they're gonna be a dad. Poor fella started crying even.” Sam chuckled. It was a sweet memory, even though Sam nearly jumped out of his skin when Diallo burst in and yelled.

Cara giggled. “I know, they almost started crying when I told her.”

Letting out a yawn, Sam simply put his paws underneath him and folded his four arms to get more comfortable. It was a rather long night, having to stay guard once more ever since another incident happened, which, somehow, George didn't know about. But then again, he was asleep when it happened, in the more soundproof room. The incident didn't last too long because Luke caught it before anything happened.

But now, it was better. He just hoped that nothing would happen while a small part of the group was in the village.

---

The village was quite busy this autumn. Shops, trainings, trades, smithing, you name it. Many hybrids came to visit the place, as it was very welcoming to them, even offering up a shelter for a few nights.

Clay's ear twitched as the sound of swords clashing together sounded not too far from when they were. Today, they decided to visit in their hybrid form. It wasn't much; it made them more recognizable from the crowds of villagers, people, and hybrids. Now that they thought about the swords clashing and that some of the grunts and yells sounded familiar. Wouldn't hurt to check it out.

They did get there after a few of the members of their group got sent to get some trades and some extra money from selling some of the handmade weapons and herbs from the greenhouse. So maybe someone decided to do that, but by placing bets on who will win the fight.

Pushing through the crowd, Clay found a vast circle around the training base, blocking the view of what was happening. With a little annoyed sigh, the earth-dragon with a dark shade of blue over their back decided to break the rules a bit, like the others, go around the training ground, and climb on top of the wooden planks that were built to stack on top of each other, creating seats for the rule breakers. It didn't take much, and soon enough, Clay had a complete view of what was happening.

Clay should have expected him to be the center of attention amongst the orcs, piglins, and other warriors that enjoyed a good fight or two. It earned him an amused huff from Clay.

“How can ya see through the dang thing, slime?” The young dark-haired orc asked, tightly gripping the sword in his hands. He did look to be half-orc, half-human, as he was around Luke's height.

The blond chuckled, chest shaking. “I just do. Just because I'm half blind doesn't mean I can't fully see.” That sounded a bit ironic with the cloth over his eyes. But then again, he didn't earn the nickname The Blind Warrior for nothing. “Now,” Luke readied his sword, “show me what else you got!”

Clay let their upper half lie down with their front legs folded as they continued watching the small training.

After a while of swords slashing and parrying, Clay heard a familiar voice from behind them. Which made them slightly raise their shoulders in a tiny bit of fear.

“Hey there, beast!” Darryl said energetically, plopping down next to them with crossed legs.

“Do you need to call me that?” Clay said, almost monotone.

The incubus let out a muffled giggle, waving his tail side to side. Darryl put their knuckles to his lips, as in thought, before speaking. “How's your day going?”

“Could be better, just hanging out here, really.”

“I never noticed how buff Luke is,”

“He is taken, you know?” Clay turned their head to look at him, looking rather done as if knowing where this was going.

“I'm just saying,” Darryl defended themselves, “isn't it normal to just compliment someone?”

“For an incubus, it can be pretty suspicious.” They flicked their tail.

The ebony-black-skinned incubus let out a tsk. “You think that I will eat him?”

Clay blinked, a little amused. Letting out a little huff, they said, “Oh, you will eat something from him if you keep staring like that, alright?” They felt a little sick after saying that.

Darryl stayed quiet. It wasn't hard to know why. But it didn't stop them from changing the topic.

“How's his brother doing? Any better?”

It happened two years ago, of course Grayson would most likely heal from the manifested guilt after two years. “Yes, he still has nightmares about it, but he doesn't let it get to him that much anymore.” It wasn't a lie, Grayson had improved quite a lot, but the scars could still reopen if the right trigger is found. And the trigger seemed to be seeing his brother's face without the blindfold.

Darryl smiled. “That's good, glad he's doing better.”

Clay's tail twitched. It, wasn't the first time it happened. It wasn't a normal twitch, it felt like more was coming. They gulped, unsure what to do when they were in such a large crowd of people. It was something that they wanted to keep a secret, and it wasn't something that would be normal.

“Darryl?..” they asked, softly.

The incubus turned his head to look at their friend a little puzzled but clearly worried.

“Can you teleport me into the forest? It's important.” “Can't you do it on your own-”

“My powers are weak due to using this form a lot, and I doubt that they will work,” It was true that they were a powerful hybrid, but even those had their weaknesses and limits. And they knew what would happen if they pushed themselves once again.

The incubus paused. “Alright, anywhere specific?”

Clay shook their head, “no, just anywhere out of the village. But maybe just outside the village.”

Darryl nodded in understanding, although he seemed a little suspicious about what Clay was on about. “Alrighty, see you then, will tell the others that you left.”

“Thank you,”

With a small shimmer, Clay quickly found themselves near the guard towers from where they took off into the dense forest. It was hard to go at full speed with their long tail that had long and thick beige fur at the tip, reminding others of a fox's brush. But Clay got enough speed to get away from there in time before the twitching got worse. And worse it got.

---

“Have you guys come back without Clay?”

Grayson looked at Sam, confused. “I thought that they went back here?” “Yeah, that's what Darryl said!” Charlie chimed in.

Sam felt his heart drop. This could only mean one single thing. “Grayson, you and Ponk go northwest from here, and you Slime, you will take Brendan and go southwest.” Sam then sighed, “I will go with Jack to the west.”

Everyone nodded in unison, put their bags on the couch, and ran toward their assigned destinations — Slime to Brendan's room, and Grayson to Ponks office. Before the large creeper hybrid could do anything, he noticed that the loud and quick footsteps woke up the mushroom rabbit stag. He could hear the low whimpers from the younger hybrid as he shifted on the couch, antlers poking from the top of the backrest.

George hummed before whispering in a low voice; “What… What's happening?..” His words were dragged out, almost as if his brain was still processing words. Just seeing him like this, so vulnerable, sigh, it was just sad to see. Sam knew what had happened and felt terrible for the frail hybrid.

“Hey, slept well?” Sam asked quietly, folding his arms on top of the couch, trying to keep his voice down so as to not scare him.

George drew in a large shaky breath through his nose, his chest rising high before lowering and returning back to stable breathing. His body was lightly trembling, possibly recognizing Sam's voice. He shifted some more on the couch and pressed his chin into the leather.

“It's alright, keep asleep,” he said, resisting the urge to pet George's hair. “Cara will stay with you along with Niki and the kids, alright?” He watched as George weakly nodded, his white freckled cheeks tensing up and he squeezed his eyes shut. This time he drew in a shaky breath.

“Where… Where is…”

“They're still outside, will come back soon…”

---

It was far into October, nearing the middle of the month, which made everyone on edge, knowing it was just a few days away. Slime might have been not the brightest, but he was aware of what this could mean for everyone, especially every predator. He wasn't dumb like that. Yes, he did act like an idiot, but that did not mean he had low intelligence.

Searching through the bushes, he knew they were getting close to the Cursed Cave, which could be dangerous taking in the fact that the cave has very much a bad reputation for being, as the name says, cursed. Nobody knows where the curse came from, but whoever walked in there, either never came back, or came back deranged and clearly not sound of mind, living the rest of their lives in a mental hospital. He was aware of that, he saw it once, a dare. A dare that paid the price.

“Anything yet?” Brendan sounded from behind him, having to yell just to be heard. For his hybrid size, an inchling, he really was confident in what he did. A blue moth that could fit in any nook and cranny and change his size along with it.

“No, nothing yet,”

An audible sigh came close as the inchling flew onto his shoulder. “This is getting real bad,” Brendan groaned. “Grayson also said that they haven't found anything and are already scouting the whole area. Sam also hasn't found anything.”

Charlie nodded, feeling a shiver down his spine. This was indeed getting really bad. “Do you think that they actually…”

“Went into the cave?.. I mean, the possibility is there.”

“But you know the curse that lingers there, it is risky.”

Brendan shrugged, “Do we have any other option at this point?”

Slime bit his lip. “I guess not.”

“Welp, shall we go there? It's close from here.”

With a sigh, Charlie moved forward, unsure where exactly, but the fact that Brendan didn’t protest made Slime think that he was going the right way. Again, wasn’t completely sure, but there was no time to lose.

They eventually got there, he could tell by the jagged rocks coming into view from below the crowns of the trees. It was as terrifying as it was when he saw what the cave had done to one of the teens. He gulped.

“Nervous?” The inchling asked. Slime just nodded, “I don’t know if this is a good idea.”

And it wasn’t, it really wasn’t. Slime was scared, visibly shaken almost. He wanted to forget that cave. He wanted to forget that crazed expression the teen was wearing after running out of the cave. He wanted to forget the screaming. It genuinely felt horrifying to be near it again. Heck, some have said that it goes much deeper than it looks, maybe miles and miles into the ground, going deep into the earth’s belly. Who knew where the cave actually went? Where it actually lead to. Some say it is the portal to Hell, so…

Please be okay…

Gulping once more, Slime parted a few thick layered leaves from his view and nearly gasped when he saw the mouth of the entrance staring back. Just seeing it again made him shiver.

“We don’t have much of a choice here, Slime,” Brendan nearly growled, not at Charlie, more at himself. He didn’t even realize that Brendan had changed his size, although he was still a bit short than Slime, just by a few inches. “We are either going in there, or going back empty-handed.”

“Would it be bad for me to say that I prefer the second option?” the brunet asked, staring blankly into the abyss.

The not much of an inchling sighed before turning his head at the slime hybrid, head tilted to the side. “I wish I could say the same if it wasn’t for the risks and consequences we would face.”

Without protesting, Slime followed Brendan into The Cursed Cave, feeling the temperature drop along with the air growing thin, making it hard to breathe.

The two, with Brendan acting as a sort of glowing stick due to his glow-in-the-dark markings, walked deeper and deeper into the cave's stomach, with Slime growing more and more anxious as they kept walking.

The stone walls were decorated with gems of all colors, making it look just like another gem mine, but each gem shimmered in a strange way that Charlie couldn’t put his finger on. The gems just looked, wrong.

“Feeling alright back there, Slime?” Brendan said in a lightly hushed tone as if he didn’t wanna scare him off. When the slimy brunet hummed his response, the inchling turned his head to smile at him. “We will find them, don't worry.”

“I know, just too scared to find the worst…” Slime admitted.

Brendan was about to say something when he stopped in his tracks. His antennas twitching as if to find something. Some noise.

It sounded like…

Crying.

“Boss? Is that you?” Brendan yelled, his voice echoing. “Hey!”

A loud gasp sounded from the unknown source. The two knew that it came from deeper within the cave.

They ran towards the heavy breathing, which was under-layered by their footsteps, but still loud enough to recognize that they were growing closer.

Suddenly, it stopped.

“Boss?” Brendan nearly whimpered after they stopped running.

There they were. Body parts twitching, tears streaming down their lime green and white fur. Looking at them with terrified eyes. Their stripes and spots glowing in a neon cyan, illuminating their surroundings like Brendan’s did.

Had they actually gone mad? thought Charlie as sweat dripped down his temples.

“Oh… Hey…” Clay said, voice lightly shaking before wiping their tears. That meant they were still sane, still the same hybrid Charlie and Brendan knew.

Brendan asked; “Did something happen?”

“Just…” Clay sighed. “Just a vision,”

That could have meant anything.

“About what?” Charlie asked, stepping forward.

Clay paused, looking down blankly as if thinking over their answer. “It was Zak, surrounded by red vines and lichen.”

---

George woke up, slowly opening his eyes. He could hear the slightly muffled voices of others talking about something he couldn’t understand. He caught the last bit of conversation before they realized he had woken up. Something about red.

George let out a loud exhale before slowly getting up by his upper body. He felt weak and scared. Where was he again? Oh, with, them. The adrenaline started to pump through his veins again, remembering all the members he met, the ones he feared the most. His breathing became heavy, legs lightly twitching.

A voice he recognized quickly made him pause. “Hey, did we wake you up dear?” It was the ginger-and-purple-haired woman, Minx, was it? “You slept for a while, must have been relaxing ey?” She rested her forearms on the backrest of the couch, looking down at him with an unreadable expression. Although he could make out the small amount of sympathy in her eyes. “But guess what, we found something you might like. Boss mentioned it because you two talked about it once.”

George lifted himself up into a more sitting position to look over the couch, watching as the taller female hybrid walked over to a basket, which she picked up and brought over to George, going around the couch to reach the brunet. “Here, I think it will help you out.”

After looking over the basket that had something covering it, he hesitantly took it, looked it over again, and peeled the cloth away to expose whatever was inside.

The little creature mewed, awakened from its sleep. It shook its head and looked up at him with round hazel eyes. A silver tabby kitten.

“We thought that maybe, it could help.” Her tone was still monotone but had that light hint of compassion toward him.

George wasn't too sure what to think. Was this maybe a trap to gain their trust? To then abuse it? To then… Take advantage of him?

The kitten mewled again, sitting up and slowly blinking at the hybrid. It tilted its head as if fascinated by him.

“It’s a girl by the way, haven’t given her a name yet since, Caroline said it will be more appropriate to let you name her.”

“I can?..”

Minx nodded simply, crossing her arms and swaying from side to side in a soothing and patient manner.

Returning his gaze back to the kitten, George managed to lift his hand and pet the silver tabby, earning a loud purr. It was, more comforting than expected. A tiny smile spread across his lips.

“She’s adorable, I know,” Minx half-smiled, looking almost amused.

Smoothing his thumb over the she-cat’s face, George found that his heartbeat had slowed, being calmed by the kittens purring. It was comforting, really. He didn’t know why, but it just was. Not that he was complaining.

“Say, kinda wondering,” Minx said flatly, “do you maybe wanna name her something like, McKanzie?”

“McKanzie?” George repeated, it sounded strange in his opinion, maybe because he never heard such a name before. But looking at the silver kitten, it strangely fit.

“Yeah, the first name that I thought of when I saw the little cutie.”

George thought for a minute. “I think… I think I like it.” He really didn’t get to choose the name, but he did not mind the name Minx suggested. It was a nice name despite it sounding a bit strange, but it suited the kitten. He repeated the name once more; “McKanzie…”

Now named McKanzie, the silver tabby mewed as if she recognized her name. She lifted herself up on her haunches and put her paw on the bridge of his nose, making him and the mountain lioness hybrid chuckle.

“I guess she likes it too,” she grinned.

---

“Think that they are getting a prophecy?” “It’s called an omen or a sign,” Brendan explained. “I think that whatever it is, Clay is getting some kind of warning.”

Clay shrugged the conversation behind them off and continued following the thick red vines with sturdy looking twisting branches. They kept on going, leaning on rocks and twirling around trees, taking over the greens and browns of the forest. That was when they realized that they were coming closer to the land Darryl made his home. Why was it coming from there? Was it metaphorical or literal?

Beware the evil that hides within…

#dream smp au #dream smp #mortalheirau #mortalheir

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