Alter Ego - Rewritten (A Hermitcraft AU)

Chapter 3 - Meeting ..Friends?

Chapter 3 - Meeting ..Friends?

No TWs (That I am aware of)

1359 Words

I stepped through the portal, Xisuma at my side, and that was all I needed to feel safe. I knew I would be safe here, yet I still jumped at the frequent buzzing of the small device Xisuma had. Messages flashed on the screen and I couldn't help but read them, or at least try. They were all a blur as message after message came in, everything bright compared to the portal room. I looked at Xisuma who was immediately focused back on his admin duties, which made sense honestly. He seemed kind and caring - the kind of person who would do anything for his loved ones. That in itself made a good admin, but also courage and strength would help boost the respect the admins received. Not many admins were all of this, but it seemed like he was and I would respect him for it. Yet it still pained me how quickly he went from comforting me and making sure I was okay to getting back to his duties, even though I knew not everything was about me. That's what it felt like to me, like everything I did or said would mess up everyone else's lives, and most of the time it actually did.

"Hey Xisuma!" A voice called, causing me to look over. There were two figures, standing hand in hand, smiling as they walked over. They looked kind enough, yet I still flinched back to get away. I wasn't used to people doing things like this, at least not anymore. I took a deep breath and tried to regain composure, failing miserably despite knowing how to calm myself. I gazed at the two, taking in what they looked like for future reference. One had a more feminine figure, hair cut to shoulder length and a flower crown topping the brown hair. Their hazel eyes shone brightly, matching the colour of their hair. A pale pink cardigan was worn over a plain white t-shirt, along with a teal-ish skirt flowing in the wind. White socks embroidered with flowers and leaves met the skirt at the knees, flowing down to their black shoes. Accessories were worn all over, bracelets and necklaces clearly handmade with love.

The other had shorter hair, long enough to droop into their dark brown eye. The other eye was purely technology, easily catching my attention. The metal was a medium grey, yet the screens and electricity shone in a nice lime green. Their lime green hoodie shone out to me next, complemented with the dark leather of the sleeveless jacket on top, which gently reflected a bit of the sunlight shining onto it. A belt was visible underneath the hoodie, with other things like keychains and a sheath to hold a sword. Definitely not a threat then, I thought sarcastically. The jeans were a dark-ish blue, more of a royal blue than a navy. The jeans were cuffed and met the brown boots, which had been accessorised with pride flag laces, one with the non-binary flag, one with the omni flag. They also wore a few accessories, the main few being a choker and their keychains.

"Hey Stress, Iskall!" Xisuma responded after a few seconds, gesturing me over. I reluctantly walked to stand by his side, immediately holding his hand out of fear. I felt Xisuma's thumb rub the back of my hand in comfort before he continued speaking. "So, this is our new hermit, Grian. He's been through a lot from what I've heard from him, so just be careful."

I saw the other two smile at me, and so I tried my best to give a glad smile back. I looked from them to Xisuma, who looked at me, almost telling me to just go at my own pace. They wouldn't force anything out of me and would let me take my time speaking, well that's what I gathered. I let out a small sigh. "Yeah.. Well hello." I mumbled.

"Heya, the name's Stress." She beamed, her eyes shining brightly in the sun. "'n' this is Iskall." I smiled as Iskall waved, clearly also being semi-shy.

"It's nice to meet you both." I managed to get my voice to sound more confident as I spoke.

"And you, it's nice to welcome people face-to-face." Iskall replied, a heavy accent of some sort clear in their voice.

"Yeah, it's nice to actually talk to people for once. Years worth of exile does not do you any good with your social life, let me tell you that."

"Yup, I know that from experience. It was actually hell when I was exiled before."

"Tell me about it, I've been exiled for around 5 years total."

"Oh damn, it's only 1 year here for me to be honest."

I felt comfort in their presence, knowing that this was probably the person like me, yet I didn't want to jump to conclusions at all.

"So, why did you get exiled before? If you don't mind me asking, that is." I questioned, clear concern in my voice.
"Eh, just my life not working with me and these idiots being corrupted." They responded, gesturing to their head, assuming we knew what they meant. I smiled a sympathetic smile, knowing how hell it was when that happened. "What about you? If you wanna share."
I sighed quietly. "Same as you." I muttered.

"Really?"

"Yup, as much as I hate to admit it."

I saw the joy on their face as I said that, the same joy that showed on my face when Xisuma told me about them. The joy of knowing that they weren't alone anymore, the joy of knowing someone else has felt their pain, and that alone is enough to bring enough hope to people. I knew that from experience, a small thing was all that was needed to bring happiness, to bring hope. And that was what I would always hope to bring, even though I was deemed dangerous and harmful.

I knew it wasn't a mistake to come here, yet something in me was telling me I'd regret it. I hoped and prayed that feeling was wrong.

I watched as Iskall walked over me and practically dragged me to the other side of the tiny starter island, clearly wanting to talk more to me. I looked back to see Xisuma and Stress laugh at us before starting a conversation about who knows what. I knew that I could talk to Iskall and find safety in it, yet something still felt missing or not right about this whole situation. I mean, I got a new home and new friends without a fight at all, nothing like this comes for free, unless someone rich and famous is donating to you if you're on the streets, but that's not the point.

"So, how many of you are there?" Iskall questioned, curiosity shining in their eyes.

"Uhhh, maybe like 15? Probably more? But I only hear from 3 or 4 of them. What about you?" I responded, gaze looking down at the grass and mud below.

"4 I believe, including myself."

"Huh, I swear everyone else has such a small number compared to me. I don't know if it's just me being irregular or what."

"I mean, you do have quite a lot compared to the world average of 1.9, which I find ridiculous because how are you missing 0.1 of a person?" They giggled slightly at their own comment, along with my laughter as well. I then looked back up at them, smiling gladly.

"I really like your laces and your accessories and your whole outfit really! You look so amazing and I love it."

"Thanks!! I kind of shoved clothes on and let Stress sort out the rest but I mean I'm glad you like it."

"I mean it's better than this." I gestured to my outfit, a plain red sweater with completely destroyed jeans. "I look like a grandma that just got clothes out of the garbage mate."

We started cackling at my comment, the two of us losing breath very quickly over the jokes. It felt nice as I actually felt loved.

I knew this feeling wouldn't last long thanks to Grain, so I treasured the moment I had before he showed back up.

Today is the day I get to prove myself worthy.

Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
I'm a motivated gay,
So here's a new chapter for you!
:D

-Nether