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The spyglass in his inventory was worn and dented. Wifies had never used one before, but he'd read about them in books and saw other people with them. Despite the wear and tear, the metal was (mostly) smooth and satisfying to run his fingers over. He didn't mind it.
Parrot was sitting beside him, fussing with his feathers. They were taking cover in one of the houses in the Prince Zam Empire after fleeing from the aforementioned ruler and a player called Wemmbu. Wifies felt like he should be running. Avoiding this entire situation and going back to his peaceful life in the Hub with his friend Kenadian. But he'd already made the decision to join the server, knowing he couldn't leave again (even though he hated being confined), knowing it would be dangerous and scary and maybe even fatal.
He was having fun, despite it all. And he liked Parrot, for some strange reason, even though he was pushy and a bit mean. They clicked. Wifies felt it was inevitable that they meet and become friends.
The avian beside him sighed, letting his hands fall and his wings lay splayed out across his lap. The silence between them wasn't uncomfortable. It felt natural. As if they had, and would, sit like this many times again.
"So that didn't go how I hoped it would." Parrot said eventually. "And we haven't even found this "light" yet.
"It's ok." Wifies assured him. "I'm having fun.”
Parrot raised an eyebrow. "Really? You nearly died on your first day in."
Wifies shrugged. "Beats what I was doing before. Doing nothing all day. Being bored out of my mind. Now I'm flying around on a scavenger hunt and getting to have a little adrenaline because I'm getting chased by people I don't know."
Parrot stared at him. "You're a weird guy, Wifies. I like you."
Wifies couldn't explain the warmth that spread through his chest. He grinned.
***
"Negative 64." Parrot said. "That's void level."
A shiver ran through him involuntarily. Out of all places.
Wifies followed him down the staircase they found, feeling the air get colder and colder as they grew closer to the thing that haunted his nightmares, clung to him like a parasite. Or maybe he was just going crazy. He really hoped it was just a chest and they didn't have to enter, or get any closer than they had to.
He was very relieved for all of about five minutes, until Spoke's voice was telling them to bring lots of rockets and go into the void.
Wifies somehow managed to keep his cool until Parrot dropped down. He couldn't. He couldn’t.
No. He refused. It wasn't happening. It wasn't-
Wifies knew the void. He knew how it worked. He'd spent years down there, too much time. He hadn't known anything but the void. He couldn't go back, he-
"Wifies?" Parrot was back. And staring at him. Wifies regestered that he had fell to the floor and was curled in the corner. He swallowed.
"Sorry." He managed to get out, and then embarrasingly, a sob came out as well. He groaned, covering his face with his hands.
"Are you- are you good?" Parrot asked, kneeling in front of him. "No that was a stupid question, of course you aren't. Um, is there anything I can do to help?"
Wifies honestly found Parrot's bumbling attempts at trying to help him comforting. "I'll be fine, I'll be fine." Wifies waved him off. "Sorry, I uh. I don't really like the void very much."
Parrot frowned. "Oh. I can go alone."
Wifies liked that idea even less. He shook his head. "No I'll come. I just need to take a second."
"Yep." Parrot agreed immediately, and fully sat down with him.
Wifies didn't find his presence unwelcome. He didn't get the impression that the avian just wanted him to hurry up. They simply sat there together like they had in that random house, and waited until he felt better.
...
The void was cold.
Parrot's wings were puffed up as they tried to conserve heat, the elytra strapped under the limbs not doing much to help. They'd had to turn around twice already, and Parrot had managed to make a bunch of fishing rods when he saw the message.
Wifies fell out of the world
"Wait, what? Did you fall? What was that, bro?" Parrot demanded, twisting around to where he could see Wifies still there.
"N-no I'm just... having a good time." It was a lowsy excuse, his smile too big to be real and his voice wobbly. He was 100% lying and they would 100% be talking about this later, but for now, Parrot let it slide. They had bigger issues at hand.
...
Crap.
What was that???
How was he still here? The void should've consumed him immediately. Actually, Wifies was more surprised it hadn't dragged him right back down to that hell. He'd heard Their voice, yet...
They'd let him go. Why? To toy with him? Give him false hope? There was no reason They would let him go free, much less, keep him alive. It didn't make any sense.
Parrot managed to drag him back with the fishing rods to another void base, and Wifies had never been so glad to see cherry wood in his life.
"Oh my goodness." Parrot gasped, collapsing onto the floor. Wifies did much of the same, soaking in the solid ground.
They looked over at each other and started laughing. They'd survived. For better or for worse.
***
The next place on their journey was an ice spikes biome, but before they started scouring it for the next disc, Parrot couldn't stop thinking about what had happened the day before.
He'd given Wifies a bit of time to recover from it (he'd been shaking for hours after), but now he wanted answers.
"I was created in the void." Was the first thing the man had told him.
"Created?" Parrot repeated. "Not born?"
"Not in the traditional sense no." Wifies explained. "I don't have a mom or a dad, but I do have a Creator. That's what we call Them anyway."
"We? Do you have siblings?" Parrot asked. He decided not the mention the whole "being created" thing.
"Yes, I have siblings." Wifies huffed, sounding a bit exasperated. "We're not technically related, but what else are supposed to call ourselves. Anyway, my siblings and I were all trapped down in the void. We didn't know anything about the Overworld, except for the few things we managed to scavenge that had fallen from the bedrock. Down in the void, there is no colour, only grey. I knew about colours of course, because sometimes books would manage to get all the way down. Not just books though, there were things like scrapped clothes, papers, hairties, weapons, and even a mirror. When they make it all the way down, these items lose all colour. The only colours I knew were yellow, orange and blue. An odd assortment, but apparently even Creator gets bored of only grey. Creator Themself is yellow, my sister Rely's hair is orange, and my other sister Mable's eyes are blue. I was only able to escape that damned place because I met Kenadian and he brought me out. My other siblings are still down there."
Well. That was a lot of information that would probably take a couple hours to finally process.
"...I'm sorry you had to go through that." Parrot said eventually. Wifies shifted uncomfortably, fiddling with his hands. The talk had seemed to bring up some other unpleasant memories that hadn't been mentioned.
"I'm here now, aren't I?" He said, as if that would make up for a lifetime of nothing. "Come on, let's continue."
It was clear the conversation was over, and Parrot had no intention, nor need, of pushing further, so he accepted without a word.
***
Wifies didn't know what it was, but Parrot was very affectionate, in a "hitting" kind of a way.
It didn't hurt, but he kept smacking him for no reason and pushing him around. He didn't mind, but he'd never met anyone who expressed affection like that before.
In the maze they'd found themselves in, he kept shoving him around the tunnels, laughing. It wasn't a mean laugh though. It was nice, actually. Wifies retaliated by pushing him back, and they both bumped into walls, stumbling around the halls.
That was until they heard voices.
Parrot sobered immediately and dragged him into a corner, before splashing them with the invis potion he'd apparently managed to smuggle in. They weren't taking any chances, then. Smart.
Apparently, Zam and Wemmbu had found them. Again. These two were actually relentless. They needed a hobby. Wifies told Parrot as much and the avian scolded him for making him laugh. Fair. They were trying to be sneaky after all.
They crept through the maze again, no more pushing and shoving. It felt like they were in a horror movie, waiting to turn the corner and see the big bad monster standing there, looming over them.
They were able to find the centre thankfully, and the next few moments were a blur. Wemmbu found them, and then they lost the disc and turtle egg, and Parrot dragged him into a cave to hide, grumbling to himself.
"Can't believe we're gonna have to break into this guy's vault for the second time within a week." He complained.
"If he didn't want it broken into, he should just stop stealing from us." Wifies suggested. Parrot cracked a smile.
"Nah, he'd never. He'll just keep taking stuff and putting more guards. Not that that'll stop us. Come on, I think we're in the clear." He stood up, and stumbled out.
Wifies followed him. He'd found he quite liked doing that.
***
Parrot was so freaking glad they were out of the water. His wings were so heavy and uncomfortable, dragging behind him and getting sand stuck in them as well.
He'd hated every second of that, but at least it was over now. And hey, at least they'd gotten the next disc! Unfortunately for him, Parrot knew he wouldn't be able to focus on anything the device said before his wings were free of the dang wetness.
He decided that while they waitied for the mining fatigue to wear off, he would preen.
Parrot settled down on the grass, and dragged his wing onto his lap, before realizing this was going to take forever. Wifies wandered over.
"You know I never really thought about how having feathers would work. I guess it's worse getting water on them then hair, right?" Wifies mused.
"Yes, bro." Parrot complained. "And it takes so long to dry, not to mention all the sand and dirt stuck in there as well."
"I could help you." Wifies offered out of nowhere. Parrot blinked.
"What?" He asked, completely taken off guard. Wifies' confidence went down the drain immediately.
"Or... not? Sorry, was that a wrong thing to say?"
"No, no, it's alright." Parrot had to take a moment to compose himself after that. "It's just... preening is very personal. Intimate."
"Oh." Wifies sat down in front of him. "Sorry, I won't ask again."
"I-" Parrot huffed. He kind of wanted the help. Besides, he trusted him. And it would probably be a one off thing anyway. It wouldn't even matter in the end. "You can help. I'll have to show you how to do it though."
"Really?" Wifies asked, surprised. Parrot nodded.
"Yeah. Let's get this over with."
And so Parrot turned around and they got to work, the avian going through the steps of how to preen, and additionally, dry his feathers. He made sure that he pushed back all of his instincts so he could focus. He didn't do this all the time of course, he knew that was bad, but they didn't have time.
Parrot found himself staring out at the ocean, watching the water ripple gently. "Do you regret joining?" He asked eventually.
Wifies' hands paused in his feathers. Parrot bit his tongue instead of demanding he continue. "No." He said cautiously, resuming his ministrations. "Do you?"
Parrot took a bit longer to reply this time.
"I don't think so." He said eventually. "But sometimes I wish I could leave."
"I've thought that for most of my life. But not here. I'm having the most fun I've had in my life for a long time. Or ever, really." Wifies said.
"That's kind of sad, bro." Parrot teased.
"Yeah alright, laugh it up feather boy."
"Ok, grey hair.”
Silence. The hands in his feathers paused again. Parrot twisted around to see him. “Wifies?”
“What?” Wifies blinked, shaking his head slightly. “Sorry, I zoned out there.” He laughed awkwardly. Parrot frowned. There was something he definitely wasn’t telling him. That seemed to be a constant with him apparently.
Oh well. He supposed he wouldn’t call him that again. “No worries.” He said, and turned back around.
Wifies continued preening a couple moments later. They didn’t speak again.
***
Confined. Hadn’t he said he hated that at some point? Ugh.
Wifies and Parrot found themselves in a giant facade of a mesa, obsidian walls caging them in on all sides. The escape room had been really fun, and Wifies had no doubt that this would be too. Parrot looked like he was done with this whole thing, but Wifies was in his element right now. He was already crafting up theories, muttering to himself and scanning the area.
One thing he'd learned about Parrot was that the man paced. Obsessively. All the time. Right now, Wifies was doing the pacing, bouncing around on the hill that the little iron house was on.
"Dude." Parrot huffed in amusement. "You're acting like some sort of excited dog."
"I take offence to that." Wifies said brightly, not taking offence at all.
"Come on, bro." Parrot said, grabbing his arm. "Let's go that way." He jabbed his thumb over his shoulder.
They started down the hill, looting a ruined portal and finding what looked to be the exit. Wifies examined it.
"We need more blocks." He determined.
With that, they began to look around further. Wifies kept a keen eye for anything that looked slightly suspicious. This caused him to pay way too much time examining every dead bush they came across, resulting in Parrot chuckling and pulling him away.
Eventually, the sun started to set. It had already fallen below the obsidian quite a while ago, but now the sky was turning orange and pink. Wifies didn't know if he'd ever get used to how many colours the sky could be. Some part of him always felt like he was still down in the dark, dark void.
Parrot was dragging his feet and Wifies' energy had finally depleted, so they burrowed into the cliff side to stay for the night.
"Man." Parrot huffed, flopping onto the dusty ground. "I'm so tired."
Wifies sat down next to him, much more contained then the sprawl his friend was in. "So am I." He agreed, yawning.
Parrot looked like he was debating something internally, and then eventually came to a conclusion. That conclusion turned out to be him throwing a wing over the other man.
Wifies stilled, surprised, but then relaxed. Parrot gently tugged him to lay on his shoulder when he yawned again.
“…I’m sorry for roping you into this.” He said after a while. “You don’t deserve to live in fear.”
Wifies was already half asleep. He’d never been so comfortable wrapped up in someone’s warmth like this. Even still with his eyes half open, he wanted to respond. “I already told you I’m havin’ fun.” He slurred. “Don’t be sorry. I’m excited…” A yawn interrupted him. Wifies cuddled a bit closer. “…excited for tomorrow.”
…
Parrot knew Wifies had fallen asleep immediately after speaking. The words had brought him a bit of comfort, but he still felt guilty. This is why people didn’t like him. Because they were always yanked headfirst into some stupid situation, forced to deal with Parrot’s bossiness and temper.
He knew he wasn’t the best at emotions. He didn’t know how to control the tone of his voice, or make it clear that he cared.
But he cared about Wifies, however short a time he’d really known him. And he could tell Wifies cared about him. Maybe that was enough.
…
Wifies woke up in a cold sweat. He stared up at the terracotta ceiling, trying to remember how to breathe.
He sat up, clutching his chest. He stayed there for what felt like an eternity and didn’t feel any better.
I need to get up. Wifies thought, stumbling to his feet and moving to the edge of the cave he and Parrot had fallen asleep in. In his haste, he knocked the avian’s spyglass out of his inventory and it clattered to the ground. He froze.
Parrot slept on, completely unfazed. Wifies let out a small breath and crouched down to pick it up. He examined the surface. Had that scratch always been there? That dent was there before, right?
He gently rubbed his thumbs down its length, trying to look for any damage. There wasn’t any that he could see, thankfully. And huh, that felt kind of nice.
Wifies sank to the floor, thumb going up, down, up, down until his breathing calmed and his eyes were beginning to struggle to stay open.
He hummed, gazing down at the item. At first, when Parrot had given it to him, he hadn’t really cared that much. They’d just met after all. Of course he’d appreciated the gesture, but it was hard to really care when he didn’t have any connection.
Now, he felt like he’d grown closer to it, as stupid as that sounded. It was just a spyglass. But yet, if anything happened to it, Wifies would be heartbroken. Funny how that worked.
The man yawned and decided it was time to go back to bed.
He slid the spyglass back into his inventory and half walked, half crawled back over to Parrot, lying down next to him.
His breathing deepened and his closed eyes felt heavier. Something warm covered him. In his sleepy haze, it felt like a wing.
***
“It’s all yours.”
Parrot stared at the spot his best friend had just been, spyglass cold in his hand. Wifies voice rang in his ears. Or was it Spoke’s?
The guy was still talking, going on about being glad that he could hear the secret. Parrot didn’t care about a fucking secret anymore. He wanted Wifies back. And he would make sure it happened.
As soon as he stepped backwards into the chunkban, Wifies regretted it immediately.
The world vanished and suddenly he was in a small void. It was dark and cold and lonely and oh no he was back again please no, what did he do to deserve this, he'd been having so much fun please let him go he didn't want to be stuck in this black hell of a place, seperated from all of his friends and everything he'd come to know-
"Hello, Wifies." His Creator above him, yellow body shifting and pulsing. They're hands reached out and cupped his pale face. "My favourite. I finally found you." They crooned.
"No." Wifies choked out, ripping away. "Please."
"Aww, poor thing. I've been looking for you for so long, puppy. Aren't you so happy I'm here?" Creator cooed.
"Don't call me that." Wifies snapped, stumbling away further. He backed straight into a wall.
"Come on puppy, calm down. I know you're happy to see me-"
Wifies clapped his hands over his ears and curled up in on himself, whimpering. "Please.." He sobbed. A hand settled itself in his hair and he flinched but couldn't pull away any further. He was cornered. He missed Parrot.
***
Parrot was tense.
He couldn't think of anything else but getting Wifies back so he could be his side again. Not even that, but he couldn't stand the thought of him being stuck in a chunkban. It didn't even kick him off the server, it just held him in a sort of stasis. Parrot already figured Wifies didn't like being stuck in places, considering how he would act sometimes and then try and play it off like it was nothing.
His team of prison breakers was growing. This was good, but Parrot still had that seed in his chest that was brimming with anxiety. What if it didn’t work? What if they couldn’t break the ban? What if they tried and it didn’t break? Was that even possible? What if Wifies was stuck in there forever and they could never see each other again?
He needed to calm down.
Parrot sighed, rubbing his temples. It would be ok. He just had to keep focusing on the fact that he wouldn’t give up until Wifies was free.
***
Wifies was losing his mind.
His Creator had sat there rambling for a while, but then vanished, and now Wifies was alone.
He kept sitting in that spot he’d found himself in, arms clutching his knees close to his chest.
He wished he had the spyglass here to hold instead. He wished that Parrot was here to keep him sane. He wished Ken and Wato were here. They would understand. They would tuck him tightly between them and talk about nothing until he calmed.
Wifies sniffled, scrubbing his hair. He hoped Parrot was doing better than him. He hoped the secret was worth it. He hoped the avian would remember him.
***
The explosions were loud, and every time one went off, Parrot expected guards to come pouring in through the hole above them.
His wings were permanently puffed up and he couldn’t stop moving. There were so close. They were-
Wifies joined the game
Wifies left the game
So close!
“Only a few more.” Ken said behind him, sounding just as anxious. Parrot wondered why. He hadn’t ever heard that he and Wifies had interacted, but then again, the only person Wifies had really been with were Parrot, Zam, Wemmbu and a couple others.
The others around him murmured in agreement. Parrot watched the next canon go down the line.
Wifies joined the game
Ken gasped and let out a small shriek. Parrot’s wings spasmed. They waited in a tense silence for a couple seconds, before Parrot decided they probably needed to leave. Wifies was smart. He could figure it out himself.
***
He’d felt the sensation of a pulling for a while now. It was strange, and it definitely didn’t help Wifies’ mental state.
He sat there, as he had for hoursdaysweeksmonths, before the pull became a sharp tug, and he gasped as light flooded in and the wall behind him vanished, sending him toppling over.
He whined, blinking harshly, and covered his eyes with an arm. The ground beneath him was obsidian. It was brighter now, but still dark. Where was he? Was this still the Unstable server?
He’d clearly gotten taken out of the chunk ban, but now what?
…
Wifies panted, collapsing under an oak tree, the prison he’d apparently been kept in sitting in the distance, menacing as ever.
The sky was blue. The grass was green. The sun was warm. It was not dark. It was not black. It was not cold. …But he was still lonely.
He pulled out his comm.
Direct Messages - ParrotX2
[ParrotX2] Wifies?
[ParrotX2] You good?
[ParrotX2] Did you get out ok?
[Wifies] I got out fine
[Wifies] Are you ok?
The avian responded immediately.
[ParrotX2] Oh thank goodness I was so worried
[ParrotX2] Where are you
Wifies heart warmed. It would be ok.
***
As soon as Parrot saw him he came barreling forward, nearly toppling him over. Wifies was caught in both wings and arms, and he hugged back fiercely, lump in his throat. He buried his face in the man’s shoulder.
Someone was here. He wasn’t alone. He was safe.
A small sob escaped him and his knees buckled.
“Wifies?” Parrot asked as he was dragged down to the sand underneath them. Wifies couldn’t respond. He was too busy trying to silence anymore sobs. Parrot gently tugged him closer. “It’s alright.” He soothed.
“It was so dark.” Wifies broke, cries coming now at full force. “I couldn’t see anything, it wasn’t- it-“
“Shhh.” Parrot hushed, wings fluttering anxiously. “It’s ok dude. I’m right here, you’re fine now.”
The attempt at comfort was awkward, but it was sincere and that was all he could ask for. Parrot stayed, didn’t try to rush him, and waited for him to calm down.
…
“I’m glad you’re my friend, Parrot.” Wifies says, an hour later. They’re both back at the aforementioned man’s base, sharing a bed even though Parrot had made another.
Parrot’s breath caught in his throat. He settled a wing across him, spyglass cold in between them. “..Me too.”