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thedo0zyslider · 6 months

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Running Towards The North: Chapter Three; These New, Familiar Feelings - 15k Words

As the week drags on, Martyn gets further enamored with Mumbo and Jimmy by the day. But not even that can drive out the bad times or newfound suspicions of their other teammates.

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(@apollothetransboy @happyrome0 hi guys, remember this one lmao.)

A morning or two later, all five of them are sitting around the campfire again, as they do every morning. It’s Grian turn to pass a life around for their little trust exercise, and the avian doesn't seem too happy about that, despite being the one to make the damn exercise in the first place. But whatever, Martyn’s not incredibly suspicious of that at all.

“It’s your turn, G!” Impulse says, giving their friend a nudge with his shoulder. Grian just rolls his eyes, and seems to hold back a laugh. Said laugh could also seemingly be a sigh of frustration, in Martyn’s very humble and very unbiased opinion that is.

“Fine, fine.” The avian responds, a smirk sneaking onto his features. “But you’re taking it!” Transferring a life only requires thinking about doing so, as well as touching the person you want to give it too. So Grian takes this as an excuse to quite literally shove a life into Impulse, nudging him back in return and almost knocking his fellow Southlander from the log he’d been sitting down on.

Impulse makes a sound of alarm, failing to try and keep his balance as the life is transferred through his arm. Grian starts laughing, the rather manically one he does, and Mumbo lets out a snicker as well. They’re all laughing at that exchange really, even if Martyn’s is a bit more subdued then the rest of them, still a bit suspicious of his short avian friend of whatever.

“It’s yours next, Mumbo!” Impulse says, and the former gets ready to be shoved as well. Impulse doesn’t quite do that, but he does transfer the life with a slight tap to Mumbo’s shoulder. Mumbo blinks when it's done, seeming almost relieved, and Martyn smiles a fond smile at his friend’s skittishness. It’s like he’s some sopping wet cat or something, a sopping wet cat the blonde cannot help but utterly and absolutely adore with his whole being.

Speaking of Martyn, he is seated right next to the mustached man, so now it is his turn to partake in the trust exercise. Mumbo leans forward silently after a moment, still seeming all hesitant for some reason. Martyn damn near makes a face of confusion, almost wondering aloud why the man looks like he’s seen a ghost, until Mumbo leans closer. He transfers the life with a cheeky peck on the blonde’s cheek, and Martyn has to sit there for a second, dumbfounded and not even registering the feeling of having another life be shared with him or the feeling of it coursing through his veins like electricity.

When he tunes back in he does so to a rather flushed Mumbo, who’s rubbing the back of his head rather sheepishly. But there is also some pride mixed in there as well it seems. Grian and Impulse are making oohhhh sounds and wolf whistles, like they’re a bunch of teenagers again or something, and Jimmy is pitifully trying to join in on it. (Thinking back on it, Martyn will remember quite the strained look on his the canary’s face, but in the moment he is too flustered and preoccupied to notice.)

“Right then.” He mutters once his composure is back and the others have settled down enough, and turns to Jimmy. The canary blinks at him, maybe a bit hopeful for something Martyn cannot place, and the life is transferred the quickest Martyn thinks he’s ever done it. It is done with a touch on the shoulder, and there seems to be hidden and fading disappointment in Jimmy’s eyes upon the contact. Martyn has to wonder why.

The rest of breakfast goes smoothly after that, aside from the teases he and Mumbo are shot every minute or so. Those ones are horrible, actually, especially because Jimmy keeps screwing up his face. It’s that same look that he always shoots them, the one that looks like jealousy, and the blonde cannot figure out for the life of him what’s causing it. If Mumbo notices it, he says nothing, just buries his burning head in his hands at Impulse or Grian’s fifth cheeky remark.

After breakfast, he and Timmy get a chance to fluster Mumbo some more. Which is always a good thing in Martyn’s book. The two of them see him talking to himself, but not in the normal way. He’s talking to the sky, like there's an audience up there to listen to him. When there’s really just the trees and the clouds, and maybe some birds. Along with two blonde’s absolutely taking the mick out of him. And at the time, Martyn will think nothing of it. It just becomes a part of their daily routines. Later on he will realize he should’ve known better, because things are never as simple as they seem down south.

That is a lesson Martyn will learn a thousand times over, a lesson that will never really stick. It is a lesson he himself contributes too, because he can not help it really. He is complicated, they are all complicated. So the South is complicated, just as much as the North and the East and the West are.

There’s layers to all of them, and traitors under all those layers, and one of them seems to be right in his home, sleeping next to him like he was a friend. A traitor the blonde is determined to sniff out.

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The next day, Martyn feels like he catches the supposed traitor in the act of some kind. Or maybe, when you’re suspicious of someone, everything they do seems just as suspicious as your brian thinks they are. Maybe he’s just paranoid and crazy.

Him and Mumbo are just hanging out in the moment, rather close to the edge of their base, when the taller man sees a brief flash of feathers. The two followed the supposed direction the movement had gone, just to find a wild Grian, already hard at work this early in the morning. He’s up quite high, on an ever growing wall of cobble. One he seems to be in the process of building. Martyn can’t even fathom what is going through that man’s head in the moment, but he desperately wants to.

“Grian?” Mumbo calls once they’re in earshot, a puzzled expression already starting to form on his face. “What’re you doing mate?”

“Oh! Hi Mumbo!” The avian looks up, surprised, the red sleeves of his jumper having been rolled up. Grian’s arms, a rare sight indeed. Martyn doesn’t think he ever takes the sweater off for anything, so having the sleeves rolled up is quite the new sight, if he says so himself. “I’m just starting on a wall to surround the base!”

“Why, exactly?” Mumbo asked again, face twisting in further confusion. Martyn says nothing, just watches with what has to be poorly hidden suspicion shining in his eyes.

“I figured we just needed some more…defense..” Grian says, struggling maybe a little too much to find that last word. Martyn says nothing still, but just narrows his eyes at the small avian he calls an ally.

“Good plan!” Mumbo calls up, that easy going smile back on his face. And Martyn adores that smile, really, he does; but his friend shouldn;t be so ready to wear it. Especially around Grian, no matter how close the two are. Something about him just rubs Martyn the wrong way. In a way he can’t help or even try to ignore. Some weird feeling he just can’t shake. He wants to be true, genuine friends with the avian as well, but something just won’t let him, He hopes he can figure out what.

“Thanks!” The avian, his smile looking just a bit too toothy.

“You need any help with that?” Martyn is the one to call up this time. It would look better if he said something, instead of being uncharacteristically silent. Because Grian wasn’t stupid, and could probably see the glares the blonde had been throwing his way the whole damn time.

“Yeah, actually!” Grian starts pointing as he talks, gesturing to the area he’s soon referring to. “I was gonna clear some more trees to make a path, right in front of the base.”

“We can do that, can’t we Mumbo?” He grinned, nudging the mustached man in the side. His friend made a small oof sound, then nodded his agreement.

“Yeah, yeah we can.” At those words Grian smiled down at them again, and waved the two off as they went to get started on their newly acquired task. A task that Martyn was happy to do because he got to spend time with Mumbo, but unhappy to do because it was from Grian, of all their teammates.

He grabs Mumbo by the arm, and clumsily drags his friend over to where Grian had indicated just a few minutes prior. Mumbo almost stumbles on the way multiple times, and the two of them burst into laughter at one of his near face plants. Only then does Martyn slow his roll, but not by much, and maybe he cheekily tries to trip the other when they separate. He does so just to get a laugh, and just see his friend’s momentary panic and the way his long limbs fail when his balance is off put. Mumbo gives Martyn a hefty shove in revenge, and that is when they truly decide to start working. Lest one of them actually face plants into the dirt.

After a small squabble over who’s actually better at building, Martyn starts clearing away the trees, and Mumbo goes to dig out a path. He says Grian or Impulse can just fix it if it’s too ugly, and Martyn says nothing the other builds could ever be ugly. Mumbo just stammers and blushes, and tells him to get to chopping already.

He makes sure not to take down too many trees, only ones that seem to be in the way of whatever path Mumbo seems to be marking out. Martyn lets out an idle hum, and grabs one of the stray flowers that hang around the base. He crushes what was once a poppy, and the red dye formerly contained in the flower smears all over his fingers; it looks vaguely like the blood of a slain enemy, or a slain ally. He wonders why the thought of blood on his hands feels so familiar, and uses the red dye to mark what trees he needs to remove, right as Mumbo finishes marking out the general direction of the path. And then he gets to work, because you can’t really have a path if there’s trees in the way, now can you?

Chopping down trees is nice, relaxing even, despite the flying bits of wood he has to be wary of. It’s tiring work yes, but it also has a steady rhythm to it. And any rhythm is a good rhythm to work too, in Martyn’s opinion anyways. The axe feels steady and firm in his hands with every swing, and almost familiar. It feels almost comforting to hold this kind of weapon in his palms once more, swinging it against something, but the blonde cannot name exactly why.

He gets so lost in the rhythm of his work and familiar feelings, that he forgets Mumbo and the rest of the world is around them. Right until a flash of something red and black streaks across his peripheral vision, and a voice is breaking through the silence of their forest. It seems a stranger had entered the South while they had all been occupied and defenseless, and maybe Grian’s dumb suspicious wall was a good idea after all.

"Joel!?" Mumbo exclaimed seemingly out of nowhere, right as the wizard streaked past them again, running like wind.

"Hey! What're you doing in our base!" Martyn yelled, removing his axe from the bark of the tree. His sword wasn’t on him, so if the red name had come for a fight, this was all he had. He just hoped Mumbo had a weapon as well.

"Sorry lads!" Joel called over his shoulder, a hint of laughter in his tone. "Just taking something real quick!" He said, and there was something clutched in his arms. How the man had managed to sneak past them and steal in what looked like a matter of seconds escaped Martyn, but maybe he had been so out of it, that the task had just been made far too easy for their little wizard friend.

"Wha-" Mumbo says, and starts to run after him, puzzled at what exactly the wizard had just done. RIght as Martyn thinks he just figured it out.

"He has sugarcane!? Since when did we have sugarcane!?" Martyn yelled out, finally recognizing the green stalks in Joel’s arms. He didn’t even know their group was in possession of the plant, or where it could’ve been, but it was far too valuable of material to lose regardless. At his enraged cry, the brunette started to run faster, and Martyn started running him. Mumbo made another sound from behind him, and joined in the chase as well. Again, Martyn hoped his friend at keats had a weapon. S shovel would do really, with how dangerous red names were rumored to be.

"Ey, get back here!" Martyn yells again, almost tripping over a rather large tree root. Joel is clearly trying to lose them, swerving and running in zig zags, right where they both know the dark oak trees to be thickest. Martyn doesn’t like that he knows where the thickest trees are, because that means he’s been hanging around the base. Like a little rat. Though hopefully the thickness of the wood will slow Joel down as much as it is doing to him.

He hears an arrow be fired from somewhere to his right, and determines Mumbo must have split off, and is now firing arrows. Which is good, because he had a weapon on him. Joel makes a grunt of pain, indicating the arrow is a success, and a few more follow it. Martyn’s grip tightens on his axe, and he picks up the pace a bit more. No one steals from the Southlands and just gets away with it, no siree. Not while he’s here.

Sudden Grian’s shrill and angry call came from behind them. “Joel! Get back here with my sugarcane!” It seems he had caught the intruder as well, and was just a little behind on his reaction. Though the my sugarcane thing is making Martyn more and more suspicious of what's really going on here by the second.

“No can do Grian!” Joel laughs over his shoulder, and the blonde loses sight of him. Martyn swears at that, thinking he must’ve used an ender pearl or something. Maybe a enderporter. But maybe they can still catch him.

A second later, Mumbo’s voice comes from further ahead, surprisingly. "I lost him in the trees, Martyn!"

"Dammit!" He says, and stops in his tracks, panting. If Mumbo was ahead, and out of his eyesight, then Joel truly must be long gone. And with their really damn valuable goods too! He lets out a frustrated groan, shoulders slumping, just as his two allies find him. Mumbo looks just as defeated as Martyn feels, and a certain sneaky avian is pouting like a little five year old.

“And that!” Grian exclaims, his wings puffed out behind him in irritation. “Is why I wanted to build the wall in the first place!” He throws his arms up in the air as he speaks, and Martyn can’t help but think of how his ally looks like an angry cat.

Maybe the wall was the wrong thing for him to be suspicious of after all, and maybe Joel had just proved Grian more loyal than expected. Other than the hidden sugarcane, that wasn’t very loyal at all.

"Why'd you have hidden sugarcane in the first place?" Martyn asks once he catches his breath, a hand being placed on his hips. Mumbo nods in agreement, and two expectant and maybe slightly angry gazes are on Grian, who doesn’t seem to fold even a little under the pressure. The bastard.

"Well, it's rather valuable, and I wanted to get a good stock before I showed it to you guys. And I was worried about someone using it all." The avian exclaims, shaking his feathers out as he does so. Mumbo makes a murmur of what sounds like agreement, but Martyn personally thinks their friend is full of shit; to be frank with it. How do they know he never planned on telling them? Or using all of the plant for himself, huh?

"None of us would do that, we all know how valuable it is." He argues, and unfortunately the other two don’t seem to find his words very convincing.

"Sounds like something I would do by accident really." Mumbo admits sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head. And he’s right, it is, but Martyn doesn’t think he’d use all of it. Just a little too much. Even if his friend is a bit of a spoon. (Maybe he’s being uncharacteristically nice about that, actually, but whatever. He’s very characteristically mad at Grian, so it doesn’t matter)

"Tim would." Grian suggested almost on instinct, like saying such a thing was normal for him, and Martyn didn’t know he could get more frustrated with this guy, honestly.

"He's not that stupid, Grian." He deadpans, trying his best not to glare at the shorter man. He turns to Mumbo, and punches him lightly on the arm. "And you're not that much of a spoon!"

Grian just gives an annoyed huff, finally showing any emotion besides controlled calmness, and waves his hand dismissively. “Whatever Martyn, let's go back.”

“What about the wall? And the path?” Mumbo asks, and begins to trail behind the avian as he walks away. Grian just shrugs, clearly in quite the bad mood now.

“We can finish it this afternoon, or tomorrow. It’s about lunch time anyways.” He says, and the other two Southlanders follow him back in silence. Martyn holds back a frustrated sigh, and slips his hand in Mumbo’s as they walk. His friend says nothing, just squeezes his hand in acknowledgement. Butterflies explode in his stomach, and the blonde squeezes back.

When they return to the base, Jimmy and Impulse are lying in wait for the three of them. The other two pounce as soon as all of them are properly in the base again, and Jimmy beelines for Martyn and Mumbo, entirely ignoring Grian. He almost shoves past him actually, his yellow eyes being wide and filled with concern for the other two. Martyn thinks it adorable, how worried he is over nothing. But he doesn't say so, because the cannery doesn't know it's nothing, not yet.

“What was all that screaming earlier?” Impulse asks, scanning each of them with concern. He seems to relax once there’s no sign of blood, but the redstoner does seem ready to go dad mode at any moment regardless. Jimmy looks like he’s going to hold Martyn or Mumbo’s hands in his, but stops when he glances down at them. Something briefly flashes in his gaze, and he settles on just standing close as Matyn starts to explain the last ten minutes.

“ Apparently Grian had hidden sugarcane! And Joel somehow found it and stole it!” He exclaims, shooting the aforementioned avian a withering glare. Grian just gals at him, a glare that is probably scary to other people; but it is not to him.

“What!?” Impulse says, whipping around to face their sandy blonde friend. “You had sugarcane this whole time!? And you didn’t tell us!?” Jimmy yells in almost unison with Impulse, throwing his arms up in the air in outrage. Grian just holds back a sigh, like he has any right to act all frustrated after lying to them all like that.

“I’m sorry, okay!?” He says, wings puffing out again. “I know I should have told you all earlier, but it;s all stolen now, so it doesn't matter!” The apology sounds genuine, even through the layers of frustration and annoyance. Though that all might just be lingering over for the theft. Regardless, grian slinks off as soon as he’s done speaking, grumbling to himself like a pouting toddler.

Impulse sighs, and follows their friend slowly. No doubt intending to go dad mode and have a talk with him. That leaves just the three of them alone again, and Martyn pushes his misgivings about Grian away. He puts his least favorite avian to the back of his mind, and goes to focus on his most and only favorite one, still remembering the flash of something in his the birdie’s gaze just a minute or two ago. Because he noticed that, he noticed every small shift in Jimmy’s gaze, big or small. He always did.

"Tim, you good?” Martyn asks, sparing a glance at him. The canary jumps, like he wasn’t expecting to be talked to, and certainly not by him of all people. He turns to face Martyn, and his gaze has something in it that the other blonde cannot possibly try and read.

“Yeah, I’m fine.” Jimmy mumbled, his wings seeming to fold closer to his backside. ‘I just need to get some sleep or something.”

Mumbo breaks out of his troubled staring at Grian’s tower, where the other two a;llies had disappeared, to try and help Martyn in this matter instead. “It’s midday. At least stay for lunch?” He proposes lightly, brows still furrowed like they had been for the past few minutes.

“Er, Mumbo, we can’t do lunch if Grian’s sulking.” Martyn points out quietly, knowing Grian and Impulse would be rather upset if a meal was eaten without them. Because part of the Southlands was that they always shared meals, all five of them, no matter the circumstances. It was half of their whole thing, and they couldn't just betray that now.

Jimmy shakes his head slowly, a decline of Mumbo’s offer, regardless of what Martyn had just said. “Yeah just…wake me when he’s done throwing a pity party, m’kay?”

“Sure. can do…” The mushcaed man says, as he and Martyn watch the rather deflated looking canary slink off to his own cobblestone tower. The blonde feels slightly guilty, like he caused that somehow, but isn’t sure why or how he did. Still, he wants to make up for it later. He wants to make it better. He wants to make up for whatever he did, but it seems that will have to be a mission for later.

He ends up in Mumbo’s bunker not even twenty minutes later, laying on top of the other. The taller man had dragged them both in there, citing they needed to de-stress of whatever, and Martyn could do nothing but nod and follow him. Like he had a choice when they were still holding hands and the other wouldn’t let go, but whatever.

"You're very clingy today." Mumbo laughed, running a hand through Martyn’s hair.

The blonde just huffed, and buried his face further against his friend's chest. "I missed you." He mumbled, the words slightly muffled yet still audible.

"We live together." Mumbo deadpanned, stifling another giggle.

"I can still miss you." The blonde protsted, smiling as a quick and affectionate kiss was pressed into his slightly ruined hair.

"Hm, you have a point." Mumbo huffed, wrapping his arms around the blonde tighter. "Maybe I miss you too sometimes." Martyn giggled, and lifted his head up for a moment. Mumbo smiled down at him, and their lips connected briefly. The blonde felt like he was in heaven, no matter how short their kisses were, he feels like he’s in heaven every time.

Later on, they have lunch just like they said they would. And he and Mumbo go back out with Grian to resume their earlier work, if only to help settle the now grumpy avian mind. Yet even as they work well into sunset, there is only one thing on Martyn’s mind. The only thing in his thoughts, and it is not the familiar feeling of an axe in his hand anymore. It is the frown Jimmy had sported just for a second, and what he could do to never see it again.

_________________________________

The next day is a little different, there is no chasing, or stolen sugarcane. All there is a few steady hours of building. Building that seems to start as soon as breakfast and all their silly games are over. Martyn beelines for his tower, and shuffles around in his chest for what feels like an eternity. But eventually, he finds what he needs, and sets off to work.

Mumbo is working nearby the whole time, actually. And apparently the mustached man had known that, while Martyn had been entirely unaware. But he is alerted when the other calls his name, and his nice and steady work rhythm is broken for the second time in two days. Not that he’s compelling if Mumbo is the one doing it, after all.

“Martyn!” His friend calls, somewhat near where the blonde is working. He nearly jumps out of his skin at the sound.

“Yeah?” He calls over his shoulder, leaning his head towards the noise.

“Do you have some obsidian? I need it for a portal!” Mumbo asks. Marttn cannot tell if his friend sounds excited or nervous about the idea of opening a nether portal. “Lemme check my tower!” He calls, and sets down his own materials for the time being. He starts the short walk back to his tower, and at some point Mumbo finds him, from whatever nearby corner of the base he had been working at. They walk into his room side by side, and the other stands there as he rifles through what little storage he had.

“Here ya go!” He says, pulling a few pieces of obsidian out of his chest. The blonde is mildly surprised he forgot to keep quite a valuable item on his person, but whatever, he can just grab it later; when he’s done with his own project for the day. He hands Mumbo the mineral, and gets a wide smile in return.

“Thanks mate!” Mumbo says. Martyn feels like he’s glowing.

“No problem!” He hums in response, taking note of how their hands brush for a second. “Need anymore help with the portal?”

“No, I’m just finishing it up.” Mumbo shakes his head, that wonderful smile still lingering on his features. “I’m not planning to go very far in, so I can come visit you after I’m done?” The two of them start retreating from the room as he speaks, Mumbo holding the door open for him like the gentleman he is. Martyn nods his head in response.

“Sure, that sounds good!” He says, and they part to go on their separate ways, back to their separate little corners of the base. He thinks he hears the sounds of a purple portal swirling just a few minutes later, even from all the way over there, the loudness of it disturbing the quiet morning peace every few seconds.

An hour of work and some mild confusion later, there are footsteps behind. Footsteps he knows belong to a certain tall and lanky man in a suit. He keeps doing what he’s doing despite the sound, only pausing when he can sense another person right behind him. Warm arms warp around his waist, and Martyn pauses his work, stifling a laugh in the back of his throat.

“What’re you doing now?” Mumbo asked, bending down and resting his chin on the blonde’s shoulder. Martyn smiles at the touch.

“Making a slime farm. Same as I was doin’ earlier.” He explains, stopping his work, because it’s a bit hard too with this guy clinging to him.

He could feel the slightly puzzled expression on his friend’s face without even looking at him. “Why?” Mumbo buried his head into the crook of the blonde’s neck as he spoke, and he was sure his friend was trying to make him melt. Or pull him away from work. Not that he minded either of those outcomes much is this is what he got in return.

Martyn shrugged, leaning into the touch. “Dunno, I feel like we need it.”

“Or are you just bored?” Mumbo joked, nuzzling further into him, and placing a kiss into his neck.

“Maybe.” Martyn smiled. That was the exact reason he’d made it actually, he’d been bored, and just really needed to do something with his hands that day. And making a slime farm had seemed like the next best thing to occupy himself with.

“Lemme help you then! I could probably make it faster with some redstone.” Mumbo pulls back a little as he speaks, much to Martyn’s dissatisfaction. He’ll just have to beg for cuddles later, he supposes.

“Oh please do.” He responds, a little relief flooding through him. The farm was probably going to need some redstone for the storage system of whatever, and he was absolutely useless at that stuff.

“Can’t we use sticky pistons for traps? When we’re red, I mean?” He asks, the two of them now on their way to Mumbo’s bunker to retrieve said redstone. Martyn thought he was meaning the redstone part of his farm, and suspected he would need the red dust sooner rather than later.

Mumbo hesitated, seeming a bit put off by his question. Yet regardless he gave an answer. “Er, yeah, probably. Me and Impulse could probably brainstorm something." “Good.” Martyn responds, his voice going maybe just a little too quiet. A little too deadly even. Much too deadly for a dark green, anyways.

“Is there any particular reason you asked me that?” He looked back to meet Martyn;s gaze, a little bit of concern shining in his own eyes. And if the blonde wasn’t mistaken, there was some fear hiding under there as well.

He gives a cool shrug in response, any true ideas of how he would use said sticky piston being saved away in his mind for later. When he was either yellow or red. Though hopefully that wouldn’t be anytime soon. “Ya know, just in case Joel tries to steal from us again. He already took the sugarcane.”

“Mmm, you have a point I suppose.” Mumbo crosses the main clearing of the base, his voice still sounding hesitant, and maybe also a little apprehensive about his friend's words. Martyn can do nothing but brush it off to the side, and file it as something to think about later. Right now he has a slime farm to build.

“Speaking of sugarcane!” Seemingly out of nowhere, Impulse’s voice rings across the base, and both of their heads turn at the sound, startled. They see him and Jimmy walking back into the base, a good amount of the green plant clutched in both of their arms.

“We got some!” The canary continues, sounding rather proud of himself. And oh, Martyn just has to know the story behind this. He needs to know where they got the sugarcane from, if they stole it, who they stole it from, everything! He’s gotta know absolutely everything about this surprise sugarcane heist as soon as possible. “You what!?” Mumbo seems just as surprised as he is, his eyes widening as he takes in the sight of that glorious, glorious reed. “Yeah!” Jimmy reaches them, his wings flapping behind him in excitement. “Me and Impulse went out to try and steal ours back from Joel, but he caught us. Then Impulse managed to distract Scott’s group, and I nicked a few pieces of theirs!” He explains it with such pride, his chest puffed out.It may be the proudest he’s ever seen the canary. Martyn can’t help but smile softly at him.

“That’s great Tim!” The blonde says, right as Mumbo walks up to Impulse, giving their own friend his own well deserved congrats. Some comment about how happy Grian will be is made, but Martyn barely hears them. All he’s focused on is the man standing in front of him.

“Yeah!” Jimmy smiles back at him, beaming like sunshine itself. Martyn wants to do something really stupid again, but he doesn’t. Instead, he gives his friend a pat on the back, and takes some of the plant from him. They’re going to plant this in Grian’s old sugarcane farm, since the small avian had shown them where it used to be, and surprised him when he got back from…wherever he was at the moment

They do just that, and then some of them set off again once Grian returns and is shown the good news. Impulse, riding off of the high of his earlier victory, takes Grian and Mumbo back up towards Magical Mountain. They come back empty handed and scammed, but even that cannot dampen the joy of their earlier heist. The sugarcane is just too big of a victory for that, and they will have to guard it with their lives this time. Because Scott’s group is sure to come after it if they find out, and so will Joel if catches wind of the news.

That night, when everyone is back home again, they trap a baby zombie in Mumbo’s bunker. There’s no real reason for that decision, the little guy had just gotten stuck in there, and three of them thought it would be quite funny to keep it in there for a little bit. To annoy Mumbo or something.

“Why is there a baby zombie in my bunker!?” Mumbo yells, right after he walks in on all three of them in the process of trapping it. Which, okay, no, it hadn;t gotten stuck there. They had trapped it. Because it would be funny, and now they had all been caught red handed.

“Congrats! You’re a father!’ Jimmy claps his hands together with a smile, the baby zombie seeming to groan angrily in the background. It struggles and fails to get out of the oak boat it's been trapped inside, but doing so causes no change in its situation. Martyn wonders why it can’t just crawl out of its prison, but doesn;t mind that it won't. Because it’s funny.

“With who!?” Mumbo squeaks, staring at the mob in his bedroom with pure panic and bewilderment. Martyn would feel bad, if he couldn't read the other so well. But he can tell that his friend is not truly upset, so it's fine.

Impulse glances between him and Mumbo cheekily, a smirk forming on his face. “Well, Martyn’s the one who brought it in, sooo.”

The blonde feels his face heat up instantly at the words, the redness on his face spreading like wildfire. He opens his mouth to say something, but no words will come out of throat. So instead he just shuts his mouth, and adverts his gaze to the floor. From what he can see of Mumbo’s face, the other is blushing as well, and seems to be stammering out some kind of weak retort. Impulse and Jimmy just burst into laughter at their embarrassment, like the cruel men they are.

The night ends with a baby zombie in Mumbo’s bedroom, two Southlanders hiding their snickers like school girls would, making jokes about them being dads, and Martyn more flushed than he thinks he’s ever been.

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Martyn walks through the spruce trees, Mumbo by his side. A flint and steel sits heavily in his pocket, even if it might go unused for the day. They are going to Magical Mountain for a little bit of theft, and he'll take any opportunity he gets to go through on his earlier threats towards Joel.

When they reach the mountain, Scar’s base is the first in sight, and none of the two wizards are there. Mumbo manages to convince to not commit arson, and that it would be better to go snooping instead. Martyn agrees with a sigh, and decides he can burn this stupid wizard hat down another day. Maybe when he actually has the urge and right to do that sort of thing.

They do not burn anything down, but they do find Scar’s hidden chest. And by god, that man is rich. Though he supposes most scammers are. There is lapis lazuli, and gold, and redstone, and all different types of ores and crystals in that chest. There's even a few amethyst and diamonds, one of which he snatches for Jimmy and all the new spy glasses he’ll soon have to make, and a few of the other rocks are snatched for himself. Mumbo takes the gold, the lapis, and more redstone than he probably should’ve. He also takes some magic crystals, random ones, without knowing their use, just to see if they do something. Martyn just scoffs and rolls his eyes at the idea that Scar’s stupid magic might actually be a real and tangible thing.

They descend down the mountain before any of its occupants come home, laughing at their victory, and their pockets full of newly claimed riches for them and their friends. And maybe, just maybe, they are holding hands all the while.

When they come back, Jimmy is all cute looking and proud of himself again, because he had found a spawner almost right as they had left that morning. And while the two of them were away, Grian had already started to make it into a functional farm. Which, counting Martyn’s earlier slime one, gave the two automated farms, and possibly a huge advantage over some of the neighboring groups. The only one missing when they return is Impulse, but he doesn’t stay gone for long, and returns from a quick mining trip within the next few hours.

Once all five of them are together again, Mumbo gathers the whole group together. He says he has something cool to show them, and leads his allies through the dark oak forest. The other four trail behind him, cactus yet excited chatter being passed between them. The suited man leads them to the edge of their world, to that weird, invisible barrier that never lets anyone cross. And his four friends remain puzzled as to what exactly they're doing there, right until Mumbo steps through it like some sort of magician. Then their befuddlement turns to excitement, and they all slowly clamber after him like riled up school children being shown a box of new toys, or something like that. Martyn isn’t good with comparisons.

“How’d you find this trick!?” Impulse asked, phasing into the woods where normally, none of them are allowed to go. Jimmy steps in tentatively after him, leaving just Martyn and Grian on the other side. Mumbo looks so triumphant, so proud of himself as he watches them, Martyn can’t help but swoon over it just a little bit.

“I just….stumbled into it one day, I guess.” Mumbo explains, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. As he speaks, Grian cautiously steps through the invisible barrier, with Martyn following slightly behind.

“We could use this!” The small avian says, his eyes lighting up with something dangerous. Something deadly, even. Something Martyn doesn't like.

“Oh, we could use it to hide from people!” Timmy says hopefully. Martyn has a feeling that’s not what Grian means in the slightest. He's sure their friend means to use this for the exact opposite reason, actually.

“Yeah, yeah, good idea Tim!” Grian responds, a soft smile still on his face. Jimmy beams at the others' encouragement. Impulse catches his gaze, and Martyn sees the same uneasy expression reflected in his friends. He isn’t sure why Grian is lying to Tim like that, why he seems to almost be babying him. Or protecting him. But Martyn doesn’t like it.

They leave soon after, because if you go too far back past the border, something starts hurting you, and all of them are reluctant to risk getting hurt seriously. Especially because they don’t know how much damage that mysterious force could do to a person. Impulse is the first to leave, Grian trailing right behind him. The smaller avian grabs Jimmy by the arm, and drags him out, like he never wants his fellow bird to go in there again. Martyn can;t help but note why he might want that.

That leaves just him and Mumbo in there, all by themselves. And well, Martyn inches ever closer, right into Mumbo’s personal space, deciding he might as well shoot his shot. It’s probably the one chance they can be completely and entirely alone in this game. Mumbo blinks down at him confused, right as Martyn puts their faces close together, far too close to be anything platonic, and their noses bump.

"We could do anything we want back here, couldn't we~?" He mumbles, pressing Mumbo right against the nearest tree. “And no one would ever think to look for us here.” Under him, the other’s breath hitches and his eyes wander maybe too far downwards on Martyn’s face.

"Y-yeah, we could!" He stammers out a response, flustered yet eager, and red lining his whole pretty face. That look is all the encouragement the blonde needs.

He connects their lips in quite a heated manner, a hand going to hold the back of Mumbo’s head. His friend gasps into it, and is soon kissing him back with more passion than he thinks they’ve ever shared. Martyn presses him further against the tree as their kiss deepens, all the way until his lungs are on fire, and they have to pull away to stop the burning sensation. And when they do, both of their lips are raw and red, and both men are panting rather heavily.

“Let’s go back, shall we?” He mumbles against Mumbo's lips after a moment of staring into each other's eyes. He’s mesmerized. He feels like he’s on cloud nine. The taller nods, his normally slicked back hair having become quite a mess, and follows when the blonde pulls them out of the world border, and back towards home.

When they reach all their friends, they act like nothing happened, even though it clearly did, for both of them are still quite flustered. Yet the other three say nothing, and the night continues as normal. Except for the troubled gaze of Jimmy bearing down on both of them once again and the worry it causes twisting itself into knots inside Martyn’s stomach, the day continues as normal.

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One morning, Martyn wakes up to Mumbo already hard at work. Their usual daily schedule is off put, because the redstoner is making a door. To keep all the enemies out, is what he says when the blonde asks about it, and he can only assume enemies mean Joel, and whatever other groups they’ve somehow managed to do puss off so far. Despite the five of them being somewhat solitary. Though he;s sure that’s going to change as more lives are lost between them all.

It takes mumbo quite a few hours to finish their door, but he is determined to do so before the sun sets. It’s hard, determined work, and eventually the effort pays off. The machine is done much faster than expected, with some last minute, additional aid from Impulse of course. It’s quite the cool contraption, Martyn has to admit, for he could never think of such an idea. Let alone execute it. Though you do have to be careful when using it, because being crushed is an opportunity. Which may or may not be an intentional part of the design, but Mumbo warns them all of it beforehand. So it should be okay.

About an hour after the door is finished, Grian is dragging a whole damn horse through their new door. A horse he claims to be Scar’s, a horse that’s apparently named yellow snow. For some odd reason the avian does not know. All he knows is that he stole it, aso some sort of revenge on Magical Mountain. And Martyn will never be one to complain about revenge on Magical Mountain.

They dangle the poor thing over a pit of lava, which they probably shouldn;t do, because of animal cruelty and all. But Grian won’t have it any other way, so that's what they do. They dangle a strangely nonchalant horse over a pit of lava. Not even twenty minutes later, Scar is below them, and they are trying to bargain with him. The horse for diamonds or whatever, like Martyn and Mumbo hadn’t just stolen from his secret hidden chest a day or two prior.

The horse dies in the end, Martyn being the one to break its lead and send it to its doom. Mostly just to get this whole exchange over with. Yet despite being the one to cut the rope, he cannot help but feel bad for the poor creature. Especially after what its supposed owner reveals literally right after it goes.

“It was never my horse!” Scar calls up, once the dying neighs of the animals have faded. “It was yours, G! From the first day, remember?”

“Oh dang it!” Grian examples, his arms and wings both being thrown out in anger. Impulse had to stumble back, lest he be off balanced by the sudden motion and thrown into the lava pit that still lingers below them.

Scar starts to retreat, a triumphant smile on his face. Because he had lost nothing, except a horse he probably had no use for, and all five Southlanders had just made absolute fools of themselves in the process. “We’re enemies now! Officially!” He says, his voice echoing somehow, right as the wizard disappears back into the wood. The blonde hopes it will be the last they see of the wizard for the next few weeks.

Yet Martyn does not miss the frown on Grian's face when Scar declares their group an enemy. Unless Grian is connected to that man somehow, probably in a dirty traitor way, the way Martyn suspects he is, the avian has no reason to look so sad and pathetic over that declaration. It’s something he takes note of, and also something Martyn will ruminate on for the following weeks, much longer than he should.

That night, after the sun goes down, there is a distant sound of cackling laughter, right as the smell or smoke hits Martyn’s nose. He stumbles out of his tower right as he smells it, instinctual panic already starting to set in. It seemed like someone had heard about their earlier horse shenanigans, and was maybe getting revenge. That, or this was just a really, really bad prank idea.

"Joel just set the trees on fire!" Impulse calls across the clearing, his voice already laced with panic. "Get some water quick!"

"You didn't stop him!" Grian yells out, sounding enraged. Martyn, who is a little frozen in place at the moment, catches a glimpse of his small frame running in the darkness, only illuminated by the light of the fire and the torches lingering around their base.

Impulse argues back, annoyed. "I only saw him as he started leaving!" The brunette seems to be shuffling through his pockets through a water bucket, to no avail just yet.

Mumbo manages to scream over them, more panicked than Martyn has maybe ever heard him. Which is a feat in and of itself, because that man panics a lot over a lot of little things. "Stop yelling and put out the fire! Before it spreads!"

"Or chase him!" Jimmy adds from somewhere in the back.

"On it!" Marytn calls over his shoulder, making sure to grab his bow from where it rested against the wall. He starts running once he has it in his hands, and parkours his way up the wall somehow. He’s not sure which way he goes, just that he gets up the wall eventually, and once he is up there he is in full attack mode. While the fire sizzles and starts to rage behind him, and his friends yell in alarm, Martyn shoots what few arrows he has on his person in the woods down below, hoping to hit a target of any kind. But more specifically a target of the Joel variety, that would be a splendid result of all of this. He does so in quite rapid succession, only stopping when he has one left.

"Our base is made of stone! Idiot!" Martyn yells, cupping his hands around his mouth so the sound travels further. He scrambles to shoot his last arrow into the trees, and has no idea if it even hits anything, let alone the intended target.

"It was worth a shot!" Joel calls back, right as he once again disappears into the thick of the dark oak trees below.

"I'll burn your stupid house down for that! Mark my words, ya fake wizard!" He yells out one last thing, and gets no answer in response to his threat. A threat he fully intends to act upon, one way or another. Martyn sighs, and slowly makes his way down from the wall. He can worry about revenge on Joel later. For now, he needs to help his frantic teammates put out the fire. Before their whole forest burns down, and takes all their natural protection with it.

_________________________________

The next time the three of them are all together again, they are doing some interior decorating. Mumbo had been wanting to make his bunker look prettier for a while now, no matter how many times Martyn reasoned that there was no point if they were in a death game. And apparently, since he kept saying that, the blonde was going to be the one to assist him in sprucing it up a little. Literally. Because they were replacing the cobblestone floor with spruce plans. Dark oak was too ugly, in Mumbo's opinion. Martyn liked cobblestone quite a bit, but whatever. It wasn't his bunker after all.

He didn't really remember how they'd dragged Jimmy into this, but he was there. And the canary seemed to be enjoying himself, either liking the act of decorating or simply being around the two of them. Martyn likes to think it's a mix of both. Jimmy is currently next to him, trying to make some sort of self for Mumbo to store his spyglass and whatnot, while the other two work on redoing the flooring.

It's nice work, fun work, and maybe Martyn is being slowly convinced to make his own room nicer. Maybe make the whole base nicer. Not that he's going to admit it and prove a certain someone right or whatever. He'd never hear the end of it if he did.

“Mumbo!” Impulse’s sudden call distracts all three from their steady work, and the mustached man whips his head around in surprise. The other two share a glance, but continue their tasks in silence.

“Yes?” He yells back, already having moved to go and peek his head out the door.

“I need some help with something real quick! If you don’t mind!” Impulse yells again, sounding a little urgent.

“Oh, I don’t mind at all!” Mumbo responded, and got to his feet as quickly as he could. “I’ll be right back, you two.” The suited man called over his shoulder once more, right as he exited the doorway. Both of his allies gave words of acknowledgment, and continued the work. Martyn moved to where the other had been, the middle of the floor, and slowly started to replace the holes that had been left there.

When he next goes to grab another piece or two of wood, the blonde feels his hand brush sometimes in the process. He looks over at the feeling, and finds himself face to face with Jimmy, who is also trying to grab the same material as he is. Martyn feels a cheeky little smile creep onto his face, his fingers continuing to curl around and latch onto the wood. The canary knows what he's doing, right as he quickly gets to his feet, the item being kept as far from Jimmy’s reach as possible.

If the other wants this, he's going to have to win a game of keep away. A game Martyn started, and is very set on winning. Might as well have a little fun while working, eh? The canary stands as well, and makes a failing grab at the wood, wood that is currently being dragged right in front of him like a treat.

“Martyn give it back!” Jimmy laughed, trying to reach again for the planks. The blonde just moves away with another sly chuckle.

“You’ll have to catch me first!” He said, taking a step backwards. In response, Jimmy just pounced on him, and pinned his wrists to the ground. But before he could reach out and grab the materials, Martyn threw them a few feet further. The canary made a dismayed squawking sound, and Martyn squirmed under him, not able to ignore how his wrists were being held down and how the contact felt like fire.

Jimmy didn't seem to notice that fact at all, and let go of him to reach for the wooden planks once again. And Martyn followed after him, determined not to lose this stupid game they'd both committed themselves too.

In the end, the little play scuffle went very differently than Martyn could ever predict. The materials he’d been playing keep away with were dropped to the floor beside them, Jimmy ending up just…entirely sitting in his lap. The blonde looks thoroughly embarrassed, face flushed a pretty color, yet he makes no move to remove himself from the, ah …situation . Martyn, to his surprise, finds himself a little transfixed with the sight of his friend. He’s also trying to figure out just… how this happened. Ya know, processing and all that.

“Hi.” He chuckled, only a little awkwardly, his dark green eyed gaze locked with Jimmy’s yellow one. Gods above his eyes were pretty, Martyn doesn’t know how he never noticed it before.

“Hi.” Jimmy responded, hands coming to slowly cup his face. Martyn’s breath hitched, and he leaned into the touch without even realizing that he was doing so. His own hands rested on Jimmy’s hips, mostly just holding him there, because he wasn’t really sure what to do with them in the first place.

“Quite close aren’t we?” He mumbled, Jimmy going to hold the back of his head with one hand instead. He noticed how the other’s eyes kept flicking downwards, and Martyn found his own doing the same.

“That a problem?” Jimmy asked, their noses bumping against each other.

“Quite the opposite.” Martyn hummed, and the other blonde quickly closed the now small gap between them.

It’s a soft, gentle kiss that doesn’t last for very long. But it tastes sweet, and Jimmy’s lips are pleasant against Martyn’s own. It tastes familiar as well, like they’ve done this before, a million times maybe, somewhere long ago. It makes his head feel all fuzzy and warm, but in the good kind of way. He thinks so anyways.

They pull away slowly, breaths mingling together for a few fleeting seconds, and Martyn feels like he’s in the clouds for a minute. That is until Jimmy blinks, and moves off him. Martyn is only slightly disappointed by that. Only slightly, and he can’t quite place why.

“Sorry.” Jimmy mumbled, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly. “Don’t know why I did that..”

“Yeah…” The blonde agreed, gaze firmly fixed on the wall. “Don’t know why we did that either!” He tried to add a light laugh at the end, but it came out small and strangled.

“I know you’re with Mumbo or something-” Jimmy began, and was quickly cut off.

“It’s fine man, don’t worry about it!” Martyn said, waving his hands in some kind of vague gesture. Honestly his mind was far from the suited man at the moment, more focused on why he wanted to kiss Jimmy again all of a sudden. And why the blonde was giving him butterflies by being so close. Why he'd been giving him butterflies for the past few days.

Jimmy just smiles softly at him, and starts to stand up. Martyn thinks a part of melts at that smile, and then the rest of him melts when the canary offers him a hand. Martyn takes it, returning the smile he’s given, and resisting the urge to do something stupid. He fights the urge to pull Jimmy back down and kiss him again, and can only wonder if his friend would complain if he did so.

A minute later, once they are separated and the building materials are picked up off the floor again, Mumbo barges back into the room. “Apparently everyone is in a nether fortress right now!” He tells them, eyes wider than they normally are. "Impulse just went in! He said they're all in a fortress!"

“Looting everything?” Martyn asked, moving towards one of the chests in the room.

“Yeah, probably!” Mumbo confirms. He drops the wooden planks from earlier into the chest, for they can finish decorating later. The three of them are not gonna miss out on this opportunity, no siree. Nether loot can be quite the valuable thing, and he can only imagine the amount of golden apples and diamonds in those chests right now, being taken by all their enemies.

All three of them seem to be on the same page, obviously and thankfully. Though if they weren't Martyn would have dragged them into that portal kicking and screaming if he had too. “Then let's get some loot for ourselves!” Jimmy says, and the blonde can just tell what look I'd one his friends face at the moment. The canary hands him whatever decorating items that were still on his person, Martyn wordlessly taking them and shining them rather haphazardly in the chest. They needed to get in that fortress, and fast!

After a quick check of armor and weapons, the three of them are plunging into the portal, the one Mumbo had made only days prior, with barely contained excitement. They tumble out into the gross, humid and way too hot environment of the nether, and the fortress can already be seen in the distance. There is also a bastion somewhere nearby, in the crimson forest, but they decide that is better left for later.

Once they enter the fortress, their little group almost instantly runs into Grian, who's being happily trailed by Ren. Apparently the two of them were the first to venture in here, which explains where the little avian had disappeared to that morning. Once word had gotten around, basically everyone had slowly crept into the red dimension. If he listened close, Martyn could hear distant yells and voices of the rest of their friends deeper into the building.

The three of them join up with the duo, and they form a little group, running around to loot all of the chests they find, and also search for the blaze spawner. Though Grian is certain a few of the others are already looting it at the moment, which is a bummer. He stays at Ren’s side the whole time, Jimmy or Mumbo being on his other side at any given time. It makes Martyn feel safe, having those three so close. Grian might as well not even be here, and the blonde is only reminded of his presence when he goes to say something to one of the other three.

Apparently, Martyn is more than a little obvious when he sticks close to certain people, and bumps their arms together gently whenever he has the chance. Grian arches an eyebrow at him and Mumbo at one point, but says nothing. He actually whisks Mumbk away from the blonde, lime a dickhead would. Because he probably thinks messing with Martyn like this is funny or something. But with Mumbo not there, he stays close to Jimmy, the other of them maybe pouting a little. With jealousy or annoyance, Martyn couldn't tell.

A few minutes later, after they find a particularly good chest and split the items evenly, Ren casts a glance between the three of them. He nudges Martyn playfully, a teasing smile working its way onto his lips. The blonde gives a light and meaningless scowl, then nudges him back. The exchange feels familiar, like they've done it a million times before, and he wants to ponder on why exactly that is.

Grian and Ren split off after that, chasing after the distant, rattling sounds of wither skeletons moving. Martyn is tempted to follow, but knows he should stay with Mumbo and Jimmy, considering they both have less lives than him. He also doesn't feel like getting the wither effect today, especially because he carries no milk on him, and doesn't really see a point in getting one of their skulls just yet. The skeletons will have to wait.

The three of them continue down the winding hallways of the fortress, and Martyn is starting to fret that they are lost. Just a little bit. The walls in this place all look the same, purple and ugly, especially when they are all filled with torches from their fellow players. Most if not all of the chests they are finding now have been looted too, meaning they could only have a shot at getting blazerods. If they can even find the blaze spawner that is. But even that seems pointless, because people are probably there still. And hopefully one of those people is Impulse and hopefully he's carrying their whole team right now. Hopefully.

Unfortunately, they don't run into any blaze, only skeletons and the occasional magma slime. The former of those mobs is the most annoying, Martyn barely having dodged multiple arrows getting stuck in him. And there always seem to be more of the stupid things, in front of and behind them, nearly at all times. Because apparently they have entered the skeleton heavy part of the fortress, just to their luck.

“Watch out!” Jimmy says, shooting a wing out in front of him. Martyn stumbles back a little, surprised, just as the canary’s wing takes a skeleton arrow for him. Mumbo makes an alarmed noise from beside them, and rushes forward to clumsily kill the mob, the skeleton already getting ready to fire another arrow.

Jimmy grabs him, and ducks around the corner. The two hide around it, once they are sure the rest of the hall is clear of danger. And as soon as the taller let's go of him, Martyn is moving like lightning to inspect the injury he'd just received. The injury this yellow idiot had taken for him!

“Why’d you do that!” Martyn pouts, holding Jimmy’s outstretched wing in his hands best he can. The canary just gives a huff in response.

“I was protecting you!” Jimmy says, sounding rather defensive about it. Mumbo returns to their sides as he does, a frown etched onto his face, his mustache pointing downwards along with his mouth.

Martyn barely notices that the other is beside him again, his attention fully focused on scolding the beautifully stupid avian in front of him. “You need protecting more! You’re the one with two lives!” He was flattered that Jimmy wanted to protect him, really he was, but he shouldn’t be doing it. Martyn should be the one protecting him , not the other way around!

“I know, I know.” The canary huffs, his wing twitching beneath Martyn’s fingers. The latter just pouts at his friend, and Jimmy glares back in response.

“He’s right, ya know.” Mumbo chimes in, hesitantly ghosting a hand over the wound. “You should be more careful.”

“Oh, not you too!” Jimmy groans, throwing his head back slightly.

Martyn frowns rather deeply at that, and scolds him further in response. “We’re serious Tim!”

“We care about you, okay man!?” Mumbo adds, his fingers starting to run through the now bloodied feathers, and his brows creased in concern as he stares at the wound.

“I’ll be fine!” Jimmy protests again, sounding a little more indignant than he had before, though it falls on deaf ears regardless.

“You have an arrow in your wing! That’s not fine!” Martyn nearly yelled the words, throwing his hands up in the air in frustration. The canary glared at him, moved his injured limb away from both of his allies.

Mumbo sighed, making a pretty good attempt to break the tension between the two of them. “Just…try to be careful, for my sake, okay?”

“For me as well?” Martyn added a little hesitantly, but only after a moment of Jimmy not saying anything.

It must've been the worried looks they were both giving him, because eventually the canary backed down. He sighed, and nodded his head in reluctant agreement. “...Fine. Fine, okay. If it makes you two feel better, I will.”

“Thank you.” Mumbo smiled lightly.

“Yeah….yeah.” Jimmy muttered, and leaned closer to them once again. A sign that he wasn't seriously angry at them, just a little peeved if most.

“We should probably get the arrow out.” Martyn says, his fingers ghosting over the aforementioned item. It seemed to be stuck in the canary’s feathers decently well, and he couldn't imagine it was very fun to have stuck there. Oh, and it was still leaking a fair amount of blood, which wasn't good.

“Oh, yeah, you’re right!” Mumbo exclaims, taking another glance at the arrow. Their friend nods in agreement, despite the apprehensive look starting to spread on his face.

“Sit down, Tim!” Martyn said, starting to shove the other down to the ground. Jimmy squawks, and loses his balance just a little.

“Fine! Bossy!” He teases, taking a seat on the nether wrack below like he was ordered too. The other two couch on either side of him. Mumbo is the one taking out the arrow, mainly because he sat down on that side of him; even if Martyn is the less shaky of them. The blonde sits on Jimmy’s other side, slipping his hand into the other. The other blonde leans into near instantly

“Stay still, okay? This is gonna hurt a lot.” Mumbo mutters, gaze already focused. Jimmy just lets out a rather scared sounding chirp in reply.

The suited man takes a deep breath, likely to steady his already shaking hands, and grabs a hold of the arrow. He yanks it out, the arrowhead thankfully coming with the rest of it, and Jimmy holds back a yell of pain, the noise coming out strangled instead. Martyn’s grip of his friend’s hand tightens, and the canary buries his head against the blonde’s shoulder, biting his lip to keep down more sounds of pain.

“It’s done, you’re okay.” Mumbo says, leaning in closer to both of them. He rests a hand on Jimmy’s shoulder, and the avian seems to lean into the touch. “You okay? Are you still in pain?”

The canary trills in response, doing so through slightly gritted teeth.“I should be good now. Sorry for all that.”

“Don’t apologize for being in pain, Tim.” Martyn huffed, moving a stray strand of yellow hair back into place.

“Right, right. Sorry.” The canary sighs, and gets a hard nudge to the side for saying yet another apology. When it looks like he's going to say sorry again, Jimmy just closes his mouth and quietly gets to his feet, flinching as he flexes his injured wing.

The three of them decide to continue on their expedition, even despite the canary’s injured wing. Though if Martyn stays a little closer to both of them, a little protectively even, none of them comment on it. Hopefully, they can get their loot and get out of them. Because this nether trip possibly can't get any worse, can it?

They enter a crimson forest on their way out of the fortress, disappointed they could not gain anymore spoils, and something Martyn is a little apprehensive about. He knows what lurks in these woods, he knows of the piglins and the brutes that inhabit every since of these places. Thankfully, they're still decently close to their portal. So if they need to, an emergency sprint back is possible. That doesn't make Martyn less uneasy though, nothing will in this situation.

Idle chatter takes place as they navigate through the gross red vines, not that Martyn participated much. He was more focused on the distant grunts of the pigmen, and determining how close they were. The brutes tended to be a little louder, not that he heard many. Martyn cringes as he steps on a mushroom for what has to be the ninth time, and hopes they can be clear of this disgusting forest soon, especially because he thinks this is the one with the bastion in it; and all three of them are absolutely stupid enough to go and raid it. The warped forests are much nicer anyways, even if they are crawling with an enderman.

Jimmy stops at one point, saying he hears something nearby. Martyn listens, and thinks he kisses the sound. Or maybe avian's just have better ears than the rest of them. They tell him there's nothing there, and to keep moving; the faster they get home the better. And the canary obliges, until the sound of something rather large charging through the undergrowth is upon them, that is when he freezes in place again. The other two walk on ahead, Martyn trailing behind, as he'd notice how one of them lagged back, and didn't want to lose him in this hell biome. In hindsight, he wishes he hadn't

"Mumbo!" Jimmy yells out, his tone full of alarm. Martyn whipped his head around in surprise for the second time that day, only to see a piglin brute charging towards the three of them. Towards Mumbo specifically.

Martyn thinks he shouldn't have run his big dumb mouth about the trip not going any worse. Because obviously it has.

Their friend turns as fast as he can, just as startled at the canary’s alarm call as Martyn was. But unfortunately it is not fast enough, because nothing is fast enough to escape a piglin brute. Literally the worst mob to encounter in this hell dimension, and of course the three of them just happened to do so; out of all of the people currently in there with them. Of course they did.

Before Mumbo even reaches them, or before he pulls out a sword, or before any of them knows what is happening, the suited Southlanders’ death message has appeared in chat, and many panicked reactions followed it; all indicated by pings on their communicators.. Martyn doesn’t know what he does, but he thinks Jimmy screams. Or maybe that was him, he couldn’t tell. Things had gone blurry again, just like they always did when one of those two lost a life.

After that, it is a mad scramble to dodge the hog beast, and to grab Mumbo’s stuff in the process. Well it is a mad scramble for Martyn, because he tells Jimmy to stay back. He might take a few hits from the things tusks in the process, but it’s okay, because he maybe steals one of the golden apples Mumbo had had on him just moments ago, and eats it as he dodges to piglin brute. He feels a little bad about stealing like that, but is sure Mumbo would understand, or would probably be more than happy for him to eat it.

He tosses the other apple Mumbo had to Jimmy, because the brute is still chasing them as they retreat, and doesn’t seem very determined to stop. The canary catches it with a scared chirp, and bolts after him down the nether wrack. The two of them don’t stop running till the sounds of a pursuing beast have long faded into this distance. They don’t stop until they are crashing through their portal once again, almost falling together on a heap once they reach the overworld.

Neither of them even stop to catch their breaths once they return to the base, and they don’t until they catch sight of their group's newest yellow name. But thats barely five breaths in Martyn’s lungs before the both of them are frantically rushing to their friends side in worry.

"Mumbo!" Jimmy runs over, as soon as he catches sight of their ally his wings starting to puff out in worry. "Are you okay?" He asks, grabbing the other’s hand and taking them in his. Mumbo smiles softly in response, and quickly bumps their foreheads together.

“Yeah, I’m fine, just yellow is all.” The suited man smiles, and gives Jimmy one of the softest looks the blonde thinks he’s ever seen. One of those looks they give each other, he thinks curiously.

“Yellow. Now I have to protect both of you.” Martyn mumbles, walking up beside them. It’s meant to be a joke, but really it’s not. He is never letting these two out of his sight again , not after that disaster of a trip. That much was certain. And they certainly weren’t going into the nether alone, not at all.

“Sorry about that.” Mumbo said, turning to him. Jimmy flushed, and let go of the other’s hands, going to look at the blonde as well.

Martyn shook his head. “Don’t be. Just be more careful from now on, both of you!” He said, his hardened gaze flicking to Jimmy on the last part of that sentence. Both of the yellows nodded at that, and Mumbo started to shuffle away from the two of them; seemingly back towards his bunker.

“I should probably go message Grian and Impulse about all of that, instead of waiting for them to get back.” He mused, fumbling in his pockets for his communicator. “They’re probably worried sick right now.” Mumbo started fretting before he was even typing anything into the device. The two can barely get a response in before he walks off, anxiety already having consumed their friend.

Him and Jimmy just exchanged a glance, before bursting into giggles. "He worries too much." The canary states, a smile lingering on his lips.

"Yeah…" Martyn agrees, and knows he wants to kiss it right off his face. He's not sure if he'd be allowed to do such a thing. He hopes he is.

"That was sweet of you, trying to protect me in the nether." He says, bumping the other gently with his shoulder.

Pink seems to dust the other's cheeks. Which is adorable, really. "It was?" He asks, a wing twitching idly.

"Yeah, just never do it again. Okay?" Martyn huffs, bumping him again, but just a bit harder this time. The canary seems to hang his head in defeat.

"Alright, I got it." Jimmy nodded, and began walking towards wherever Mumbo had run off too. They both still had his items on him after all, and needed to give all of it back as soon as possible. In case of any stray mobs sneaking into the base, or any sort of fall damage, especially now that he’s yellow.

He walks beside Jimmy, hand in hand out of nothing but pure habit, and knows he’s prepared to deal with whatever anxious state their about to find Mumbo in, if he hasn’t calmed down that is. Jimmy leans into him as he walks, wrapping a wing around Martyn’s shoulder unconsciously, and he thinks he is truly and utterly gone for this man beside him.

They kiss again the same day at sunset. They do it behind one of the cobblestone towers, Martyn not taking notice of which one they end up hiding behind. It’s a quick kiss, much like the first, but it’s a little more heated. Not much, just by a bit. They're both a little too hesitant to do much else for the time being. Martyn’s the one leading this time, Jimmy's back pressed against a wall. The avian leans into it, holding him close the whole time.

The other Southlanders are home now, both men able to hear their voices around the campfire. The five of them usually all share a meal around this time, and it’s a miracle no one has commented on why two of them are late. Or that no one saw Martyn pull Jimmy aside quickly, and probably very suspiciously too. Though it’s probably a good thing as well, the thought of Mumbo seeing them makes Martyn’s gut churn with something unpleasant, something akin to fear.

When they pull away, he mutters quietly against Jimmy’s lips. “Sorry, just wanted to do that again.”

“‘S fine,” Jimmy mutters in return, resting their foreheads together briefly. “I wanted to as well.” Martyn smiles at that, and leans into the other. Jimmy’s eyes are warm, and pretty, and full of something. He thinks it’s love, but he’s not too sure about that. But whatever it is it makes Martyn feel warm inside, and he wants to get lost in them for a while.

Unfortunately, Jimmy is a cruel man and shatters all of his hopes and dreams right there, the bugger. “We should probably go join ‘em now.” The avian says, moving away with a nod towards where the campfire is. Martyn nods in agreement, and stops pressing him up against a wall. They walk away from their little kissing spot, acting like nothing’s happened, and holding hands until they need to let go.

The other three Southlanders beckon them over to the fire once they're within eyesight, no trace of suspicion anywhere on their faces. Not even on Mumbo's, who is smiling at both of them so brightly, so they must've been way more sneaky than Martyn had originally thought. Thank god, because that would have been rather embarrassing to be caught doing, even if he and Mumbo have done worse than a few quick, stolen kisses in secret.

He sits down next to Mumbo by the campfire, and is pulled into a quick kiss. He smiles into it, yet can't think of how his lips still taste of Jimmy, and how the canary sat just to his other side, their hands close enough to brush.

Kissing both of them doesn't feel wrong, it feels like the most right thing in the world. The part that feels gross in his stomach is the lack of communication, the lack of definition for what the three of them are, the rather small possibility that he's playing with someone's feelings, and the uncertainty of how to cross that rather large barrier.

Essentially, it's everything else that makes him feel like some kind of dirty cheater in this scenario, despite all three of them still being single. Technically. It’s technically, because half of the server already thinks he and Mumbo are an item. And they're not, obviously, but they sure as hell act like they are. Martyn kinda wants them to be.

He eats dinner, his two favorite people on either side of him, and kinda wants all three of them to be a thing someday. But oh, a man could only dream of such luxuries, couldn't he?

_________________________________

Sometimes, Martyn cannot sleep. Because it feels like there are thousands of little eyes and ears watching him, listening to every sound he makes. And on those nights he slips into Mumbo’s bunker and huddles against him, and in return Mumbo holds him gently, and it is some of the best sleep Martyn will ever get in this game. When he thinks he has gone to Mumbo far too many times, or is simply just missing his other favorite person, he goes into Jimmy’s tower, and gets cuddled and the best sleep ever there as well.

And that is where he wakes up that next morning, all snug and comfortable there in his friend's bed once more. What warmth is still around him, the ones not from the sheets, has already started to fade; which tells him Jimmy has probably just woken up as well.

He opens his eyes slowly, blinking sleep away from them. They've woken up rather early again, as there's barely any sunlight shining into the room. Martyn sits up in no hurry, still rather warm and comfortable, and looks around for his fellow Southlander.

Jimmy stands at the foot of the bed, stretching in just a white t-shirt. The other blonde takes his sweater off when sleeping, in case he gets far too hot in it. And today, Martyn is a little grateful for that, because he gets to see the way Jimmy’s muscles move as he stretches. He wonders vaguely why he’s never noticed how well built his friend is before, while the rest of his thoughts stay occupied with the sight in front of him.

Martyn watches as Jimmy stretches out his wings, yellow feathers still all ruffled from sleep and lack of preening. His eyes trail downwards as well, watching as the end of Jimmy’s shirt pulls up a little, and he gets a rather nice view of the man's midriff. And suddenly Martyn’s staring. And he shouldn't be staring at Jimmy like this, even after yesterday, but he still does it anyway. He just sits there like a fool, mouth slightly agape as he watches Jimmy stretch.

The blonde must feel the eyes on him, because he turns to look over his shoulder. Instead of asking Martyn why he's staring, or calling him weird for it, Jimmy just smiles softly. He smiles again and for the millionth time he makes Martyn’s whole morning brighter than it already was.

“G’morning beautiful.” Jimmy smiles, still a bit groggy sounding as he moves to the side of the bed. Whatever happened yesterday had caused a small, yet welcome shift in their dynamic. Martyn’s very happy for that shift, because it is what allowed Jimmy to feel comfortable enough pressing a kiss to his forehead. Martyn smiles, and leans into the sensation a little more than intended. He wants to return the gesture, to kiss Jimmy in return, but he moves away before Martyn can even try too.

He wishes Jimmy hadn’t moved away a few seconds later for two reasons. One is purely because he misses his touch, and the other is because he can still feel the eyes and ears on him now that he's properly awake.

It's a horrifying realization, because usually sleeping with Mumbo or Jimmy works. But today it hasn't, whatever is watching and listening is still there .

He must be making some sort of face, because Jimmy’s brows knit together in worry. "Is everything okay, Martyn?" He asks, and moves closer again. Martyn wants to tell him that everything's okay, he wants to desperately, but he is struggling to get the words out.

Jimmy sits next to him on the bed now, a worried hand squeezing his shoulder. And well, one of those reasons for wanting Jimmy to not leave has been quelled, and his touch is helping with the other one. Until he moves back suddenly, and there's this uncertain look in his friend's eyes that Martyn can't quite place until he speaks.

"Is it because of me? Did I cross a line yesterday? With-" It's those words that suddenly makes Martyn able to speak once more, and he cuts Jimmy off with a rather loud yell.

"No! No, it wasn't you! It's never you." Martyn says, and shuffles closer so that they're touching again, and he can bury his head against Jimmy’s strong chest. Jimmy doesn’t say anything, just wraps his arms around the other a little hesitantly. Martyn hates that he's being hesitant.

"It's just…something else. Not you, something else." He mumbled the words into the canary’s chest, and made them as reassuring as he could manage.

A hand slowly cradles through his hair, still all messed up from his rather restless sleep the night before. "...Is it Mumbo?" Jimmy asks, his hand trailing down from Martyn’s hair and brushing over the back of his neck ever so slightly.

"Mm, a little bit." Martyn buries his face further into Jimmy’s t-shirt, able to feel his friend's heart beating right under it. It's a nice heartbeat, one he likes hearing quite a bit he decides.

"Yeah, yeah I've been worried about that too…." The canary sighs, and another, more comforting kiss, is pressed into Martyn’s hair. The blonde leans into the touch with a murmur, and Jimmy lets out what seems to be a quiet, fond chirp.

“What’re we gonna do about….all that?” He mumbles hesitantly, breathing in the cinnamon scent of his friend, one that smells faintly of flowers, if Martyn thinks about it too much that is. He doesn’t know where that comes from, but he doesn’t exactly care at the moment. Jimmy hums thoughtfully in response.

“We should probably talk about it.” He huffs, burying his nose against still messy blonde locks.

"But how do we do that?" Martyn asks, finding that he himself has no answer for it, and that he hadn’t for a good few days now.

It seems like both of them are clueless in this particular matter, because Jimmy shakes his head almost as soon as his friend is done speaking. "I dunno. Guess we'll have to figure it out."

"When we're ready?" The blonde asks, like Jimmy would ever force him to do it before he’s ready. Like either of them would ever do that, like Jimmy isn;t too perfect to do such a thing.

"When we're ready." The canary confirms with a hum, and presses a comforting peck into his hair.

Martyn smiles softly at the action. "Mm….good.”

“We should probably go join the rest for breakfast..” Jimmy thinks out loud after a second, looking out the window. It is about breakfast time, for sunrise is almost other, and he can hear both of their stomachs rumbling already.

“Yeah…’M starving…” Martyn agrees, and the two slowly untangle themselves, but not without quiet kisses exchanged in the process. The canary helps him stand, the blonde being slightly off balance when he first leaves the bed. When he is steadied and (sadly) no longer has to lean on his friends' big, strong, muscular and nicely toned arms, it is time for the both of them to get properly dressed. To go make themselves presentable or whatever, and like they weerne;t just cuddling all night.

Jimmy grabs his sweater, and throws Martyn his hoodie. He makes some comment on how he’s been wearing the same outfit for too long now, and needs to shower or something.

“You also wear the same outfit everyday.” Martyn says, putting on his regular hoodie as he does so. He turns away from the canary, looking around for where he’d put his headband the night prior. Momentarily, he hopes he didn’t leave it back in his own tower, right before spotting the familiar black fabric on the floor a few feet away.

“I have different undershirts! And I wash my clothes!” Jimmy says, his words slightly muffled as he puts his sweater on over his head. Martyn can’t help but crack a small smile at the sound.

“Sure you do.” He teases, tying the ends of his headband with practiced ease. After that he grabs both of their shoes, and passes Jimmy his sneakers as he keeps on yapping, like a little corgi dog or something. Not that Martyn’s ever met a corgi, not in this world. All they have here are those weird tamable wolves Grian seems so fond of, and so fond of collecting for some reason. (Martyn doesn't like his dog pack, because they are loud and noisy and poop all over the base, even if they are just supposed to stay on Grian’s side of it.)

“We all wear the same outfits, it’s not just a me thing.” The canary points out, a playful scowl dancing on his lips. None of them had spawned in this world with more than the clothes on their back, so no one really had many. Most of the clothes they made were just replicas or different variants of their original ones, because the design was easy to copy and gather the materials for. And the man in front of him was no different!

"You say that like your wings aren't a total mess." He says, gesturing at the canary’s yellow wings. Which clearly haven't been cleaned in weeks. Said wings are actually on good display, on account of their owner leaning down to tie his laces.

"That's a little different!" Jimmy gives a weak protest, one that fails immediately, because they both know it's really not. Martyn finishes getting his own shoes on with an eye roll, musing briefly that both of their hairs still look a mess, and takes an extra step towards the door.

"It's still self care! Preen your wings, Tim!" He says, tone going all serious like for a second. Because those wings did not look good, and if his friend didn’t do something about it soon, Martyn would take matters into his own hands.

"Fine. I’ll do it later." The canary huffs in defeat, leaning into the others personal space as he does so. Like he wants something. And if he wants something, Martyn is determined to give it to him. Anything this man wants, he can have, no questions asked.

Martyn smiles, and reaches to hold the canary’s face, cupping it gently. He feels Jimmy’s breath hitch a bit, and sees how his eyes go all wide, almost cat like. The blonde smiles at that, and leans in, his lips only ever ghosting the over others, holding the promise of a kiss, a promise of more. He wants to connect them, oh so badly, but something in Martyn stops him. He wishes it didn’t. He moves away, feeling Jimmy’s breath hitch again, before their faces are properly apart once more. Maybe just as they should be.

Jimmy doesn’t seem to mind the almost kiss, in fact he seems rather flushed by it. Martyn laughs at his friend’s beet red face. In retaliation Jimmy grabs him by the waist, and pulls the blonde closer until he’s flushed against the taller’s chest. He does so right as they reach the tower’s doorway too, the sneaky little thing.

Martyn feels his own face heat up, able to feel Jimmy’s broad chest against his back. He flashes further, the feeling of a kiss being pressed to the side of his neck. He gasps at the sensation, and Jimmy presses more feather light kisses against his skin, until Martyn is holding back soft giggles.

“Tim!” He says quietly, unsure of what Southlander might be nearby, and listening in. “Stop it!”

“Why? I’m not trying to leave a mark.” Jimmy says, a smile and what must be the millionth kiss being pressed into his skin. “Unless you want me too~” At that he damn near bites down on the blonde’s skin, sucking at it a little bit. Martyn gasps again, and has to stiffen what would’ve been a rather needy whine.

“Tim!” He exclaims again, certain that his flush has spread all the way to the tips of his ears by now. The canary just chuckles, and buries his head into the shorter’s shoulder, his frame wracking with laughter. Martyn can’t help but smile, and lean into the arms wrapping together around his waist.

He adores this man. Gods he adores him so much.

“I swear to god if you gave me a hickey.” He huffs, feeling Jimmy begin to untangle them. His friend just gives a cheeky smile in response. Martyn wants so badly to kiss it right off his face.

“I didn’t, don’t worry!” He laughs as he says it, but the canary's tone is genuine. Martyn runs a hand over that spot, and can do nothing but sigh and relent his worries. He supposes the others right, unless he’s lying just to embarrass him. Which he better not be doing, because the blonde will make sure Jimmy gets worse than a single hickey in retaliation, Martyn will make sure of that.

“Let's go get breakfast now, for real this time.” He says, a fond smile flighting it way onto his face. Jimmy gives his own, lovely and beaming one in return, and the two blondes head towards the campfire together. They hold hands until they feel like they can't anymore.

When the group's morning activities are done, Martyn heads back up north, towards Magical Mountain once more. He can't quite get the enchanting table, but he does manage to snatch some amethyst crystals right from under Scar's nose; the wizard just going on and on about all his sales and scams he had to offer, turning his back at comedically perfect times like some kind of cartoon character.

Yet even as he goes home, crystals in hand and a happy smile on his face. Even as he proudly shows them to Jimmy and gets his face peppered in kisses for the gift, something still feels off.

If Martyn focuses, he can still hear the near menacing whispers and eyes bearing down onto the back of his neck; like some sort of heavy weight weighing him down and dampening all the joy he manages to grasp that day.

Right, okay then. Looks like he's not sleeping alone that night either. Because what the fuck. Why hadn't they left? Why were they still there?

The next morning, Martyn wakes up in a bed that is not his own. But this time it is Mumbo’s bed instead of Jimmy’s, and he wakes up first that day. He tends to, when he sleeps alongside Mumbo. The man has a habit of working on redstone or whatever else far too late into the night, a habit Martyn has desperately been trying to break for about a week now. Dragging him to bed for cuddles the night prior had seemed to help in his goal, at least a little.

He turns over, and buries himself further against the other, sleep still tugging at the corner of his mind. Mumbo makes a small noise in his sleep, and reaches out to pull the blonde closer. Martyn cannot hold back a sigh as he does, and he melts into the other's touch like ice cream would on a hot summer's day.

The mysterious voices still plague him, but leaning into Mumbo or Jimmy on sleepy mornings makes it more bearable. Even if they will never go away, lying in bed with his favorite people will always make them more bearable.

Martyn feels himself start to drift off once again as he snuggles closer to Mumbo still, and hopes he can always have moments like this. He hopes the voices and eyes won't be so cruel as to wish this all away. He hopes and hopes, right as he drifts back off into dreamland.

#this one. this one fucking got away from me #/gen the longest chapter ive ever written #i got possessed i think #ron.fic #ron.writing #last life #trafficshipping #redwood #mirror birds #solidwood #jimmy x mumbo #trafficblr #running towards the north

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