Chapter Text
I’m tired, you thought miserably to yourself, a small groan escaping you as you laid down on the nearest bed. It was bright, fucking massive and orange. Also very comfy.
“Bro— They’re laying on my bed— with shoes on!”
Turning your head, oh, yeah. Egg was laid down on the bed nearby you, on his back while you were on your stomach. You both giggled tiredly, ignoring the scandalized and calm-irritated yells from ManePear. (Not gonna lie; his voice was honestly peaceful to hear. He couldn’t sound serious to you even if he tried.)
The tree-house Wemmbu guided you both to, all the way from PrinceZam Empire (or, at least, the ruins of it) was nothing short of mythical. The large tree was obviously man made, yes, but it also held a sort of fairy-tale whimsy that seemed hard to replicate. The path to the entrance was clean and well kept, the inside warm and cozy— it mixed well with the orange theme.
The stairs up were long and purposeful, seeming made especially for privacy and security reasons. You knew, long before entering the tree, that it was likely you and Egg wouldn't be welcomed.
But with the confident way Wemmbu led you guys— the self assured smile and the more strong way of holding himself— well, it was hard to not follow in his lead. It was hard not to trust the instincts of the purple demon, the one who cared and protected you and Egg from the start— whether it be by brute force, smarts, or explosives.
Strangely, it all reminded you of a sunset.
Purple flashes through your mind. The constant enchanted netherite armor, the invisible people wearing them. Soft, shallow foot steps all around you— Mafia city.
Holy mission. Your smile is immediately wiped off your face as you remember how deep exhaustion runs through you. It hurts to move.
The distraction of seeing Wemmbu was almost enough to make you completely forget that you unintentionally joined the Invis Mafia with Egg. Keyword; almost.
“It’s fine, bro,” Wemmbu replied to Mane, just barely stopping him from critting you both. "They're just tired little chungies. Harmless.”
You… couldn’t even argue with that. You had been tired for a long, long time— and the little spar you both suffered against Wemmbu while invis back at Zam Empire didn’t really help.
“If it helps, I can take my boots off?” Egg hummed, already going to unequip them. As chill as ever, it seems— you were glad that attitude of his didn't change over the long period of separation. Something nice to count on, at least.
Mane takes advantage of the distraction, going to crit him out and knocking him off the bed in the process.
“Ow, bruh.”
“Wemmbu,” ManePear sighs, turning back to Wemmbu with a look that screamed irritation. “Why would you bring people here, bro?”
Wemmbu stared at you both for a few more seconds, something akin to worry on his face, before humming. “What? Dawg, when have you ever told me not to bring them? They’re my friends.”
“Does anyone have golden apples? I think I’m still bleeding,” you spoke up randomly, rolling over to reveal a harsh, wet blood stain on Mane's bed, right where you were laying. The front of your netherite chestplate was wet with blood.
The lion hybrid gaped. “Oh my— Wemmbu, bro. I can’t— bro, come upstairs. We need to talk.”
ManePear muttered under his breath angrily and walked out of the room, stomping up the tree house stairs with thinly, very thinly veiled frustration; the type that mixed unpleasantly with disappointment. Wemmbu hesitated, gaze flickering back and forth between the direction he left in and you two, obviously conflicted.
He didn't expect Mane to react like this when he brought you two here. Had he missed some kind of social cue that suggested others weren't welcome— 'others', including you and Egg?
Quickly, he dropped you half a stack of golden apples before murmuring a "be right back", and heading up.
Naturally, the apples spawned in your inventory without much movement. You ate the apples quietly, you and Egg both listening through the walls as Mane’s voice raised and Wemmbu came to your guy’s defense.
Damn. This probably won't end well, won’t it?
"I hate to say it," you whispered to Egg, mindful of the diamond mafia player literally guarding the outside of whatever obsidian box you guys were trapped in, "But I probably could've predicted this."
“Why is it always us getting kidnapped, bro?” he whispered back, one eye trained on the diamond trim through the iron bars. “Maybe one day, Wemmbu will get kidnapped, and we can aura farm and save him.”
“I don’t think Wemmbu would agree with that line of thinking, bud.”
You both giggled to yourselves, knees folded to your chests, completely cramped in a seemingly hopeless situation.
This was probably just another Tuesday, at this point.
What was it? Right; first, it had been the prison with Wemmbu, Egg and PrinceZam, of all people. Along with her guard— Pangi, you think his name was.
It was a tiring effort to get out of that shit hole— but, hey! You guys did it. Kinda.
The separation of you three was painfully long, and, in seemingly no time, invis players had captured you and forced you to set a stasis somewhere you couldn’t recognize. The talking through signs was irritatingly slow.
The missions were hell. Being pretty useless when it came to PVP, not liking to be told what to do and skilled in yapping, well. Wasn't very pleasant or desired.
You remembered the soft punches from higher ups— golden chestplates— whenever you failed at a job. You remember the order to kill some random innocent player and your refusal to do so. The golden chestplate player that usually commanded your group of newbies had acted differently after— almost like an entirely new player— but you weren't sure. The whole invisible 24/7 thing made it hard to discern player from player.
And then, finally, though, also painfully, Wemmbu had found you and Egg. In all honesty, you didn’t know the chungie you followed out of Mafia City was Egg— but thank God, huh?
The short fight against Wemmbu was exhilarating, making you feel both guilty and determined, all at the same time, somehow. Wemmbu always managed to make you feel something weird, though. Stomach flutters, throw up inducing panic, a manic sense of joy— all of that.
You both lost the fight in the end, totems being popped around the same time.
And, now, to the present; you and Egg were randomly teleported via stasis, transported for miles, and now locked in a not so spacious obsidian box. You weren’t sure what the diamond trimmed player was waiting for, but you were grateful for the small break, at least.
“Yo, bro. Diamond player.” Egg spoke up, knocking on the bars to get their attention. His tone was inquisitive. “Can you kill other players in the Mafia? Like, what do you even do?”
The diamond player didn’t respond; obviously. But they did get a little closer to the iron bars, head tilted in a way that seemed like irritation, curiosity and impatience mixed all into one. Egg continued.
“Just a little food for thought, bro. Y’know? Like, what else is there…”
You tuned Egg out. What the hell was that sound?
Looking down at the ground where the noise was coming from, you squinted and realized the obsidian block right next to your feet, one of the blocks making up the box and keeping you trapped, was being mined.
Holy—
A hit was heard, a slashing of a sword, and then soft snickers.
Wemmbu.
Holy save. You weren't sure if you could take another minute of being trapped somewhere, far away from him and helpless with Egg. The pattern was starting to get old.
Who were you kidding— its been old. Words couldn't explain how ecstatic you were to hear the cocky chuckles.
“There's a diamond trim, here, bro," you called out, banging on the obsidian box to get Wemmbu's attention. Hearing the fireworks go off, the familiar sound of wings taking off into the air sounding shortly after, you were sure the diamond player had already heard and pursued Wemmbu for a fight.
“I can see that,” Wemmbu commented while flying by, tone dry. You could practically hear the smirk on his face through his words.
Egg paused in his rant about the Mafia's hierarchy. “Yo— Wemmbu! Welcome back,” Eggchan cut through, already giggling.
“‘Sup, bro.”
“Wait, so—” Egg continued with his previous (though, one-sided) conversation with the diamond trim, curiosity still leaking through his words, “Is there, like, a ritual?—”
“Shut up, dawg,” Wemmbu laughed, voice excited and anticipating, mace hits being heard left and right from outside. He was going all out. “Lemme focus.”
“My fault, my fault.”
With the distraction, you used your fist to mine through the iron bar separating you and Egg, punching him discreetly to tell him to help you try and mine the obsidian. Probably a futile effort, but who knows how long this fight could be going on for?
A totem pop is heard, and then a surprised, “Wait— Flame?”
Oh. Not that long of a fight, then.
Feet touched down on the ground right outside the box, Wemmbu’s voice drawing closer. “Dude, what are you doing in the Mafia?”
“Bro, what? Dude—” An enderpearl was thrown, bringing Flame right outside the opening to the prison, Egg and you standing there, vulnerable, no armor to protect you both from a fatal crit. Half a heart. “Just give me the mace, bro.”
He continued. “I’m not really— dude, I’m not asking. Just give me the mace.”
Wemmbu let out an incredulous laugh, still sounding unsure of how to take this or what to make of it. His name tag moved a step closer. “Bro— Okay, gimmie my Egg and Y/N back, bro?”
“Bro. I’ll kill them right now, bro. They’re literally in this box—” FlameFrags stepped closer to the hole, sword raised threateningly in you guy’s direction. Wemmbu stilled.
“”My Egg and Y/N’ is crazy, bro.”
“Pauuuseee.”
You and Egg both giggled, not at all taking seriously the conversation currently at hand.
It wasn't like it involved you two. Whatever happened was based on Wemmbu and Flame alone. You hated to admit it, but your life wasn’t in your hands right now. It was in stronger players’ hands.
Wemmbu was silent, out of you both’s view, name tag placed like he was still silently staring at Flame. A firework was heard.
Wemmbu came right back down just as quick as he left, trying to mace Flame. Flame blocked the hit and stepped closer to the both of you. “Are you trying to—”
“Yo, I just popped you in, like, ten seconds, and you’re trying to be intimidating?---”
“You won’t do it again, you won’t do it again!”
“Yeah— Wemmbu, you can take this fight, bro. Fight’em. Fight’em!” chanted Egg from the box.
Was this worth it? you pondered to yourself, silent as you gazed outside the limited view between the iron bars, worried but firm gaze fixed on Wemmbu and Wemmbu alone. Wemmbu without a mace would be a severe nerf, you couldn’t lie. You had seen how good the demon was at it— how it was quickly becoming his main way of fighting.
But was it also worth dying over? With one hit from Fragger, you'd be banned off the server forever.
“You know I’m stacked, bro.” Flame continued, ignoring the words coming out Egg.
Wemmbu hummed, then paused. He made a sneaky sounding noise, like he had just realized something that could sway the conversation to his will. “Wait— aren’t you supposed to be, like, dead? I popped your totem— you’re done if I snitch on you.”
Huh. He was right.
Flame laughed at that, his eyebrow raising in the way that felt like he was surprised someone could be so stupid. Was that not correct, then? “Bro. I’m a diamond player. The Mafia needs us."
He added on gloatingly, "Y’know, we could overrun the Mafia if we wanted to. Anyways— give me the mace, or they die. You have a few seconds, or I’ll just kill you.”
Wemmbu ate something— golden apples, you assumed. He was considering his options and getting ready based on the route he mentally chose. “I think I could take you.” he replied calmly, the harsh whoosh of air the mace made when taken out sounding clearly in the air.
“You think? You remember last time what happened, bro.”
Wemmbu bristled at the comment. “I was winning until you grabbed like two golden chestplates to 3v1 me—”
Pots were heard. Fireworks, and then voices arguing that got increasingly more distant as the fight went on.
Nothing to do here but wait, I guess. You sighed, slumping against the obsidian walls. Boredom washed over you, wanting nothing more than to be out of this place and find somewhere safe to hideout from the rest of the server with your friends. So much drama, here on Unstable.
“Being kidnapped is so tiresome, bro. This always happens."
Eggchan hummed, settling down right next to you. “Yup.”
And that was that.
Minutes later, the fight ended with Wemmbu giving up his mace for you both. It was bittersweet, walking out of the box. Flame was long gone by then.
Wemmbu's tail was curled protectively, bitterness on his expression as he mumbled about Flame's exit via stasis. He had fought the tiger hybrid one on one— multiple times, you remember— yet still couldn't beat him. The ending obviously wasn't ideal for Wemmbu either.
His tail, your mind suddenly reminded you, remembering the pleasant blush on his cheeks when you all were hiding from Flame that one time, way back in the Wemmbu Empire days. You paused, intently eyeing the body part.
How did it even work— and what did Wemmbu feel for him to start blushing so unabashedly?
Shows his emotions, then? you wondered quietly, picking up the shulker box Wemmbu drops you both, one each. You geared up with a familiar type of efficiency. Or does he control it? Maybe both?
Your pondering continued the entire fly back to the treehouse.
Tests, you eventually realized over the course of the next few weeks, no longer tied down to the absolutely depressing haze that worrying about the Mafia and getting kidnapped again was. You could probably figure out how his tail worked with small, subtle tests.
With how much you three traveled, it was getting easier to let your thoughts pass by with it, too.
It wasn't like you had anything else besides your friends. What better to occupy yourself with than learning about Wemmbu and his biology (not in that way, you freak) to better adapt to it?
Actually, it sounded pretty caring to you. Not at all due to personal interest for the demon. Nope.
You were just that good of a friend, you supposed.
"Y/N," a voice suddenly called, making you hum instinctively in response. "Come help me out with something real quick."
You nodded and stood up, shaking the numb feeling from your leg.
The Eggchan Empire so far was running. The process of getting the XP bottles was… wearing you both out, you supposed. But it was obvious Egg had at least some inkling to what he was doing. So, regardless of feelings, you went out on these missions with Wemmbu.
Speaking of; Wemmbu was currently pacing on a small hill nearby the Empire, elytra still equipped as he urged you to hurry up. Grunting, you trudged your way up the seriously large hill and stood next to him. "What do you need help with?"
He looked at you, seriously looked at you, and hummed unhelpfully. His mind was obviously distant. "I don't know, I just…" His gaze flickered to Egg's tower, up to the massive decorative head atop of it.
"Has… well, has Egg been acting kinda off, lately?"
You startled slightly. Huh? "… Like, how do you mean?"
You weren't stupid. You knew the way Egg worked, and saw how the recent developments of the Eggchan Empire had affected his personality towards you two— as if you both were just guards but not friends. You had seen that. You had felt the hurt of it. The distance between you and him felt wider than ever before, like something unbreachable. You drowned in it every time you both spoke.
But for Wemmbu to talk about how he felt? This was… surprising, to say the least.
Wemmbu hesitated, before continuing. "… I don't know, bro. But this just isn't… fun, anymore. It's becoming a drag to do these missions."
He spoke like it physically hurt him to say it. Huffing amusingly, you nodded, agreeing. "Well, yeah. I guess running an empire is never fun, but, uh. I didn't expect it to take such a toll on our friendship dynamic, I guess."
Wemmbu paced a few more steps before he paused, turning towards you curiously. His tail curled with the expression, heightening the puzzlement he conveyed. "'Dynamic'?" he asked, looking at you weirdly. "What do you mean?"
You nodded, not thinking much of your words. You settled down on one of the dirt blocks, faced towards the sunset and leaned on your hands behind you. "Yeah? Like, you protect us, and sacrifice." you explained softly, acting as if it was the most natural thing in the world. "I don't really like it, obviously, and I doubt Egg does, either. But it's just how things play out. You're the strongest and have a strong sense of justice."
"Egg is the smart one. He also is sorta the anchor. He, like… calculates things, almost. Not in a nerdy way but in a soothing, calming sorta way— y'know what I mean? He just knows what to do, suggests it, says his piece, all while being the kind friend you can lean on."
Your legs swung softly, just barely out of reach from touching the block beneath. Wemmbu sat down next to you, mimicking your movements faintly. "… Huh. And you?"
You paused. Your hands shifted on your lap. "… Mm. I don't know, to be honest. I'm kinda, just, like, here."
The sky turned a mix of purple, orange and pink, the night looming near but not yet there, giving a few more minutes of faint sunlight. Your gaze focused on it like it was the most important thing ever. The smell of something sweet mixed with lavender filled your nose.
Wemmbu, slowly, and carefully, scooted closer. His tail brushed against your side.
"I think," he stated quietly after a long pause, "that you're the cunning type. Or something close to that."
Your eyes lingered on his tail for a second, before switching to his face. "Cunning?"
He nodded. "Yeah. Like, I know you didn't exactly trust me at first. And it took a while for you to begin trusting me," he thought of his words carefully, trying, for once in his life, to actively convey how he felt. "But eventually, you did. And in turn, you sort've started trusting everyone around us (you, me and egg) less."
"You're smart about things and can see them faster than we can. You use that to our advantage and piece things together, quicker."
Suddenly, a weight was pressed against your side— the side Wemmbu was sitting next to.
It took you a moment to realize, but, holy shit— he was leaning against you. His head rested on your shoulder gently, trusting, open and for some reason, familiar. Pleasant, and calming in a way you haven't felt in a while.
"I guess you also kinda saw the whole thing with Zam and Mane before I could." he admitted quietly, now looking at the sunset with you.
You slowly relaxed at that, wrapping an arm around Wemmbu to reciprocate the lean. "I thought you didn't know about that."
Wemmbu snickered softly, his purple, silky hair tickling gently against your cheek as his shoulders shook. "Bruh. You, like, glared whenever they were brought up. Or tensed, more so."
You snickered along with him, cheeks heating up. Were you really that obvious? This was low-key embarrassing to hear— but something inside of you also felt glad that you had people around you, ones that cared enough to learn how to read you.
The conversation continued effortlessly, words flowing out of you both and bodies somehow pressing closer against each other. It wasn't awkward or forced. It was tender. Tender in a way that reassured safety and commitment— tender in a way that you felt yourself leaning more into, striving to keep that wonderful feeling flowing in the air.
Distantly, you can remember a time where you observed Wemmbu constantly, waiting for a slip up or lapse in judgment that ruthlessly showcased his malice or bad intentions.
Right now, though; he could stab you and you wouldn't bat an eye. You wouldn't even demand an apology.
Again, his tail twitched comfortably against you, slightly curling around the space surrounding your arm. You hummed, drawing his attention and making him pause in whatever he was saying.
"I was kinda wondering," you said, letting go of the 'tests' thing you thought of earlier, more comfortable now with just asking it outright in the small moment of tranquility instead of plotting on it, "What's up with your tail?"
Wemmbu stilled for a moment, before relaxing again. "What do you mean?"
His voice was softer than you ever heard it be.
"Like, how does it… work? What does it move based on, and how does it feel?"
As a plain old human, you couldn't deny the fact that you were uneducated on any hybrid stuff. Just the basics, like, don't touch someone's wings, tail or ears without permission! or, in combat, don't move to target those spots specifically!
It was basic moral principles. Weaponizing their own biology against a person was seen as low, dirty and creepy. You agreed with that standard.
Not to mention, trust wasn't something that you came across easily in anarchy servers like Unstable— or any Minecraft server at all, actually. Research was a fickle thing, usually because nobody trusted anyone enough to let their guard down like that. You hear stories all the time about people being weaponized or used. Second-hand accounts of it— bedtime stories, at most; ones passed down and worn out by time. Everyone knows of it.
Most don't really entertain the thought of experiencing it themselves.
"… Sorta just think of it as another bone, or— nerves, I guess." Wemmbu breathed, sounding a little lost for words.
Your face heated up. Was what you said weird to ask? You weren't sure, at all— maybe it was too forward? Fuck, you should have worded it differently.
"So—Sorry. Was that insensitive to ask? I swear, I didn't know—"
"No," Wemmbu interrupted, making your words die in your throat. His head shook softly. "No, it's fine. I just didn't expect it."
You slowly calmed, sighing in relief.
By now, the sun had completely set, leaving just the faint lights of the empire behind you both to illuminate the forest around— just barely. Your eyes went to the short demon horns atop Wemmbu's head. "So… those also, right? They're another nerve thing." you continued, words soft and assessing.
Wemmbu nodded slowly, catching your gaze. "Yeah."
"Do they hurt when touched?"
"No. Though, it kinda—"
Your hand reached out before you could listen to the rest of what Wemmbu said, finger tentatively touching the tip of one of the horns, faint and careful. The world seemed to slow for a moment.
They matched the demon's color scheme well— hence the purple demon thing people usually referred to him as whenever they didn't know his name. They were a nice, dark puprle, sticking out from the high temples of where his hair started, just shy of his hairline. It was obvious you weren't going to hurt him or handle them roughly, but—
Wemmbu suddenly trembled, body shooting off of you in a small yelp. Your hand shot away, alarm flashing across your face, thoughts immediately plunging into worry. "I— Sorry, did I hurt you? I thought it doesn't hurt?!—"
He was slightly curled in on himself, eyes wide like he didn't know what to do. Again, the blush adorned his cheeks, intimately reminding you of the hiding-from-Flame thing, again. "W—What? Oh, no, it doesn't hurt— but, uh," he rambled needlessly, words making less and less sense the longer you looked at him. His gaze seemed to go everywhere but at you.
"They're— just, sensitive. Yeah, that's it," he tumbled out, nodding viciously. You couldn't tell whether he was telling you that as a fact or if he was trying to convince you. He coughed awkwardly, turning away with a bright red face.
You gaped. Seriously, what was happening?
As the silence went on, your mind raced with possibilities, immediately plunging back into the rabbithole that Wemmbu's feelings were. Probably shouldn't have touched them so suddenly, you admitted to yourself, still reeling from the interaction. But you'd expect the guy to get mad. Not tremble and blush.
The horns were slightly pointy at the tip. If he wanted to, Wemmbu could probably nick someone or stab them with the sharpness.
Everything below the tip, though, was soft and smooth. They still held the necessary structure and hardness that horns needed, yeah, but they still somehow were silk like all the same. His hair seemed to also match that pattern of feel, at least.
You found yourself wanting to touch them again.
Another day, though, you thought quietly, chuckling slightly at the way Wemmbu seemed a bit flustered the entire time after that.
The next day was the blur of flying and killing people it always was. Stealing XP bottles, supplying them to Egg and leaving to do whatever. The mood was tense between the three of you, sure. Awkward in a way that made conversations feel too-long or a bit cold. Nothing exactly like the warmth of a joke before the empire— but not lacking entirely in sincerity, you supposed.
It worried you, sometimes. Even you had to admit that. Thoughts sometimes plauged you with 'what-if' scenarios, scenarios where nothing would ever feel the same again due to the empire. That everyday would be business and never fun.
But that was just it, you supposed. Those were thoughts, nothing more, nothing less. Insignificant things that passed by and didn't affect reality.
In reality, you'd always have your friends. You would make sure to keep it that way.