Safeguarded Heart

Worth It

Despite the chest being small; there were quite a few things inside, Netherite tools and ingots, a couple of discs and fragments of discs, there were a handful of diamonds, a partially rusted iron chestplate with the royal insignia on it, books of enchantments, unlabeled potions, a shining golden apple, shards of amethysts and some dark green crystal-like material, candles, and a stack of deepslate bricks.

There appeared to be several more things at the bottom but they were all buried and Stephanie really didn't feel like moving things around, if she left the items alone it would be as if she had never looked through the chest at all. Though deep down she already felt a sense of guilt for prying his belongings in the first place, there was no turning back now. She never knew Herobrine fancied music; that was something new to add to the book of legends considering all the discs the guy had. She wondered if he ever listens to them, he already enjoyed her singing; so maybe listening to music was a secret pastime of his.

Steph was about to close the chest when something reflecting light caught her eye, close to the small stack of enchanted books and discs was a small and familiar round-looking object sitting on its side in between the enchantments and potions; obviously it was recognized as a compass just from the shape alone. However; it was what was on that compass that made her gape and actually reach in to take the object into her hand. She pulled the item out and blinked in both shock and confusion, the small glass covering was cracked in two places, the fluid inside was dried up and had been a long time ago, and her initials were written on the side with black ink. S.S.

"My old broken compass? But what is it doing here?" She asks quietly to herself as she examines it, she could have sworn that she threw the piece of junk away a while ago when Steve crafted her a new one since she did a pretty poor job at making her own. It at least proved to be useful for some time but then cracked, leaked, then stopped working properly. It was tossed out after she was going through some of her things once and noticed that she still had the useless object. It was handed off to Alex along with a box of other junk to go and be burned in a fire pit, yet here it is in her hands now.

Steph couldn't understand why it was in Herobrine's chest or that even still existed, it serves him no purpose. She then stood up while still staring at the silver compass, eyes now wide in realization. If such a thing of hers was in Herobrine's box of personal treasures; then perhaps it has some sort of value to him. Not because it was being used but maybe just because it was hers? Did she dare to hope?

"Why do you have my old compass?" She asks quietly in astonishment and took steps back while shaking her head in utter disbelief. She then gasped as she backed into a firm surface.

"You mean, 'my' compass?"

His deep, silky, dark, dual-toned voice makes her pull away immediately and she swiftly turns on her heels to face the last person she wanted to see at that moment. Herobrine stood there with a deep frown and slightly slanted eyebrows; he looked mad but not overly so; he actually looked more disappointed than angry. "I-"

A hand was then held out at the woman, the silently scolding white flaring gaze on her made her feel so small and ashamed; one small impulse had just buried her deep into a world of trouble when she had known better. Stephanie feared the worst but had no choice but to accept the consequences of her actions, she should've just taken some of her own books even if she's read them a dozen times now; it would have been better to be bored than to betray Herobrine's trust by even stepping a foot into his room without permission. She gave the compass one last quick glance over and then placed the item in the man's palm while looking away from his disapproving, unrelenting, and unblinking gaze.

His fingers carefully fold over the compass and holds it loosely in his grasp so as to not accidentally break the damaged object any further. "Why are you here in my bed chamber?" He now asks with arms folding and posture becoming tauter.