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hopepetal · 1 year

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This is for the double life enjoyers <3

Sitting astride her donkey, Pearl kept her eyes peeled as she traveled through the forest. The sun was setting, so she urged her donkey to go a little faster. Nothing good would come from being trapped in the forest at night, with mobs and red names on the prowl. Spying her base in the distance, Pearl breathed out a sigh of relief upon seeing that it was (mostly) intact, her shoulders relaxing as she approached the place that had kept her safe for so long.

Speaking of red names, however...

Pearl heard them before she saw them, the glint of armor and the shine of bloodred eyes that lusted for death. Keeping her voice light and nonthreatening, she called out, “Do I have some red names around my base again?”

Bdubs whipped around, his eyes shining. He gave her a toothy grin. “Helloooo, Pearl!”

Pearl gently pulled on the reins, bringing her donkey to a stop. “Hi... you're not here to burn it, are you? The server is burning!” Because everyone decided to make wooden bases as usual, having clearly learnt nothing from the previous games. And now that the majority of the server was red, the fire wars had begun.

Bdubs shook his head. “I can't burn a tower!” As he spoke, Impulse rode up beside him on a horse. Pearl felt herself tense again, now alone with not one but two reds. That was never a good predicament, even if she did have her dogs.

Opening her mouth to speak, Pearl was interrupted by the little ‘ding’ of a notification on her communicator. Checking it briefly, she had to do a double take. Judging by the exclamations from the soulbound pair in front of her, they were doing the same.

“Falling stalagtites?!" Bdubs shouted, saying stalactite completely wrong. “Wait, was that it?! Did they just-?”

Pearl gripped her communicator tightly, ghosting her thumb over the names on her screen. “They just- they just died! To a stally- to a stalitite!” What? It was a hard word to say! “When was that?” After a moment to process, Pearl urged her donkey forward. It had become night during the course of their conversation, and she was itching to get home. She felt an arrow whoosh past her, barely missing. Bdubs, clearly. “You get your butts out of here and go check on whatever's going on! Oh my gosh…” Briefly watching to make sure both Impulse and Bdubs were riding away, she turned back toward her base.

As she got closer to the tall tower, Pearl noticed a horse in the ground, golden armor glinting in the faint starlight. “Why is there a horse...?” Approaching the horse cautiously, she hopped off her donkey and tied it to a nearby tree before crouching by the edge of the hole the horse was stuck in. “Hey there, lil fella.” She reached out and gently scratched the horse under its chin. “What are you doing down there?” Glancing up at the dark sky, Pearl frowned. This would have to be dealt with in the morning, when there wasn't a danger of being blown to bits.

Worn down by exhaustion, she stumbled into her base, and that was the last thing she remembered before everything went black.

–

Scott and Cleo were traveling through the forest on their horses, laughing as they sped away from the red lives that shouted after them.

“Poor Bdubs,” Scott gasped out in between his laughter, “trying to get all the reds to do the same thing and be coordinated is harder than getting a bunch of teenagers to listen to their parents.”

Cleo barked out a laugh, shaking their head. “Right? That’s a good thing for us, at least.” They urged their horse forward with a soft command, Scott falling a little behind them as his horse kept at a more steady pace. “Means we can survive just a little more easily.”

“True, true,” Scott admitted, relaxing his grip on the reins. Despite his calm demeanor, he had to admit he was a little tense. Being around reds did that to you, it was a scary time in the life games whenever they were near. Scott knew firsthand the bloodlust and rage they all experienced, having been the victor of the previous game. “But our soulmates being who they are kinda cancels out that ‘ease of survival’ factor.”

Cleo groaned loudly. “Oh, don’t even. Your insane soulmate is nothing but trouble. At least mine isn’t as unhinged! He at least tried to make up with me!”

Scott laughed. “The server’s homophobic anyway. Doesn’t it know I’m a gay man?”

Cleo made a strangled sound that sounded somewhat like a laugh. “Scott!”

“What? It’s true-!”

The immediate, surging pain that didn’t belong to him ripped a strangled, pained scream that made him briefly black out. He woke up on the ground, unable to breathe, the impact against the ground having knocked all the air from his chest. Cleo, having jumped off her horse, stood over him, frantically shouting something that didn’t quite make it past the ringing in Scott’s ears.

“...what… Pearl… stupid-!” Cleo was saying, gesturing frantically before a strange expression settled on their face. They dropped to their knees, rifling through their inventory as fast as they could.

Scott coughed painfully, blood leaking from the side of his mouth and dripping down his chin. White-hot pain shot through his entire body, and the fact that the pain was lessened for the soulmate was impossible for him to comprehend. Surely it couldn’t get any worse than this. Surely there was no way Pearl was feeling even more pain than he was and still alive.

But the fact was that he still breathed, that his heart still beat meant that Pearl was alive, and so was he. And if she was alive, that meant she was dealing with about twice the pain he was. Alone. Scott didn’t really have the time or presence of mind to feel guilty though, not before something cold and tasting of magic was shoved into his mouth, and he bit down instinctively.

Immediately the pain cleared, the shock of artificial regeneration clearing Scott’s mind as he swallowed what he supposed was a piece of a golden apple. He spent a moment just laying on the ground staring at Cleo as he struggled to process what had just happened. She had a sort of guilty expression on her face, but one that said she didn’t regret anything at the same time.

Taking in a deep breath, Scott sat up, wiping the blood from his mouth with the back of his hand. Cleo put a hand on his shoulder, and he sighed. “Thanks, Cleo. We need to go check on Pearl.”

She didn’t even question him, only nodding and helping him stand. Picking up the golden apple, Scott placed it in his inventory just in case Pearl needed it. What was the harm- he had already broken his connection to Pearl by eating it, it wasn’t as though she’d be breaking the rules more than he had. They got back on their horses and rode toward Pearl’s base, the tall tower of cobblestone and deepslate that held that tiny little wooden hut in the air.

The scene was an absolute nightmare. The smell of gunpowder clued Scott into what had happened right away, and he cursed. Of course Pearl would get herself caught in an explosion. She wouldn’t have thought to double check. Urging his horse forward, he cleared the trees and saw firsthand how bad it was.

Pearl was trapped under a huge chunk of stone, unconscious as blood trickled down her chin, pooling in a small puddle beneath her head. One of her dogs- Tilly, Scott assumed, given how much love she had expressed for the dog before- lay next to her, whining and sniffing her hair, even pawing at her in an attempt to get her to stand. Scott felt his throat constrict. Now that he was in his right mind, guilt shot through him. She looked so small and helpless- and he had been calling her insane just a few moments ago.

Hopping off of his horse, Scott was followed by Cleo as they began to carefully and silently dig Pearl out of the rubble. It was a good thing they had all become more muscular over the course of the game, because Scott would never have been able to help lift the rubble before. Once everything had been shifted off of Pearl, Cleo pulled out a health potion. “Should we use this on her, or just wait?”

Scott frowned. “I was thinking of using the golden apple, but…” He pulled it from his inventory, noticing how the skin was rapidly turning brown. “...it seems that whatever runs this game noticed what I was planning. That’s a shame.”

Cleo shrugged. “Potion it is, then. I knew I had a good reason for making it a splash one…” She took a step back before throwing the bottle, watching the glass shatter and the effects take hold.

Scott looked at them in confusion. “Why’d you make it splash if you didn’t know you were going to need it?” he asked, receiving an amused smile in response. “What? It’s a valid question!” he defended, earning a laugh.

“For you, of course! In case you started rapidly losing health for some reason-” And she glanced at Pearl when she said that- “and weren’t able to regen fast enough or something. It was just in case,” she repeated, “I was worried!”

Scott smiled back, letting out a small huff. “Well, I appreciate the thought. Thank you, Cleo.”

A soft groan drew the pair’s attention. Tilly whined again, nuzzling against Pearl’s cheek before giving her blood stained face a gentle lick. Pearl groaned again, her eyes opening slightly before she closed them again with a gentle sigh. The health potion, while it had worked, hadn’t been quite as strong as Scott had hoped. But still, they didn’t have any other supplies they could waste on Pearl. Despite their bond in the past game, Scott felt absolutely no loyalty to her now. None at all. Absolutely not. He was not still yearning for past friendships in the slightest.

Okay, yeah, he absolutely was.

Nevertheless. Despite his feelings, all Scott did was stand there and wait for Pearl to wake up.

–

Pearl woke to the sound of a dog’s soft panting and gentle kisses. Opening her eyes, she saw Tilly’s face immediately and mumbled out a soft, “good girl” before closing her eyes again. Everything hurt and she didn’t know why and all Pearl wanted to do was to go home, curl up, and sleep for a thousand years.

And then she remembered where she was.

“Scott-” Her eyes flew open as she remembered that she wasn’t just responsible for herself, but her soulmate as well. He must be furious, if not incapacitated from the pain. She had put them both in danger once again, without thinking. If he had-

“Hey, Pearl.” The familiar voice of her soulmate made Pearl gasp, and she looked over to see him standing there next to Cleo.

Unharmed.

Holding a rotting golden apple with a slice taken from it.

Pearl was quick to put the pieces together.

“You...” Pearl's voice was raspy, scratching against her throat in a way that made her cough painfully, “you ate the golden apple?” It may have been the pain, or maybe she had been hit in the head by some debris, but there was a delirious sort of denial in her voice. “Scott, that's against the rules...”

Scott's gaze was every bit of cold dismissal- though Pearl wanted to believe that she saw a flash of guilt in those eyes, even if just for a moment. “Given I was partnered with you, I had to break the rules for a chance to win. Besides, what's this stupid game going to do to me? Kill me?” He let out a sharp laugh. “News flash!! I'm going to die anyway! So why would I rather go out a loser than a winner?”

Pearl tried to push herself up, wincing when a sharp pain shot through her ribs and legs. She couldn't help but notice that her pain wasn't mirrored by Scott– her one and only, her tether, her soulmate.

Maybe it was never meant to be. Just like nations rose and fell, love was bound to do the same– even if there was nothing in Scott's heart for her to begin with. It still felt wrong, no matter how Pearl tried to deny the longing she felt seeing all the other soulmates getting on just fine while she was alone. The rules of the game had been clear– you have three lives, a soulmate, and an unspoken but clear need to be near your bond. She supposed the third unspoken rule wasn't official for a reason, and Scott had taken advantage of that.

Maybe it was something to do with Pearl. Everyone seemed to think so, anyway. “Crazy!” they shouted at her, “Wicked!” they cried from afar, “Witch!” they screamed while dying, dying in the arms of their soulmates. And maybe it was true. Maybe Pearl was all of these things. She probably deserved this, if she was being perfectly honest. The pain was welcome, but that didn't stop it from hurting.

Nothing stopped it from hurting. Nothing stopped her from hurting. She was destined to hurt. That's all she was good for, after all. If she wasn't good enough for her soulmate, then she wasn't good enough for anything. If the one person who was bound to her by the universe refused her, then what was stopping everyone else from doing the same thing?

Pearl laughed, even as tears burned down her face.

#my writing #angst #double life #dlsmp #double life fanfic #dlsmp fanfic #pearlescentmoon #smajor #scott smajor #pearl #zombiecleo #cleo #soulmates #life series #trafficblr

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sharklights · 2 years

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The night after the ranch burns down is quiet. Jimmy curls up into his soulmate's warm arms, trying to stave off the cold from the draft in the still-smoldering house. Neither of them are asleep, and neither are bothering to pretend that they are.

"Are you alright?" is the question Jimmy asks, softly, but deafening in the silence.

"I will be," Tango replies, and there's no heat in his voice when he does. It's just defeat. There is none of the violent, desperate anger that seemed to take over him only hours before. Jimmy hadn't known what to do, frantically trying to thank the helpers and calm Tango down at the same time. Tango had shouted to Etho first, which didn't sting (didn’t sting like seeing Scott make cottages with Cleo, didn’t sting like Grian and Martyn forbidding the server to reply to his horn, didn’t sting like loneliness at all), and Etho had laughed. Egged him on, even, and Joel joined in immediately. Tango reveled in it, or he seemed to, but his red eyes looked panicked as Jimmy stared into them, his pupils shrunk down to pinpricks and darting around, looking for a way to escape.

Jimmy had recognized the look. He'd seen it on his own face enough, after he did something stupid and had to worm his way out of consequences, or when he watched someone he cared about die by his hand, directly or otherwise. He tried calming Tango down with words first, and he felt terror that wasn't his flatten into a simmer of panic. He held Tango's arm tightly, squeezing his wrist in an attempt to ground him, and he felt the panic die down to a delirious exhaustion. He blew his horn, unique to the ranch, right in Tango's face, and when Tango pulled his own horn out to reply, it was with enough intention that Jimmy almost went limp with relief.

Jimmy repositions himself so that he can look at Tango's eyes. They look tired. Jimmy knows he looks the same. "What happened back there?" he asks.

"I think it was... mob instincts, maybe. I don't know. It's only happened once before, back in last life, when Bdubs killed me. I sort of... lost control of myself, I guess. And it happened again when Scar burned down the ranch. Stupid, I know," Tango laughs. He sounds embarrassed to admit it.

"Is that why you called out to Etho?" Jimmy asks.

Tango nods, rustling the sheets near his flaming head. The flames never burn anything unless Tango wants them to. They'd been burning blue-hot that afternoon.

"Well, I don't blame you. I'm not an expert or anything, but I feel like you were basically having a panic attack, right?" Jimmy says. Tango nods again.

"I'll try to remember that. I know how to bring you back now, at least. If that had happened in combat, or if we'd been red at the time, I don't know what would have happened," Jimmy elaborates.

"Sorry," Tango mumbles, like he's ready to fall asleep. "It's sort of annoying to deal with."

"Let's call it even. I do have a death curse, after all," Jimmy quips, coaxing a rumbly laugh from his soulmate. If he didn't know better, he'd almost call it a purr.

"'Night, Canary," Tango murmurs.

"Goodnight, Coal Mine," Jimmy replies.

And once again, the night is quiet.

#dlsmp fanfic #double life smp #double life tango #double life jimmy #trafficshipping #if you squint i guess but its shippy enough that its better to be safe than sorry #this shark can write!#shark talk #double life spoilers

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caleiiiii · 2 years

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i know that wicked shape to your smile

read here on ao3!

Crack!

The two men made eye contact as the dripstone hit Scar’s head for the second time.

Silence.

Jellie meowed impatiently.

The panda pushed Scar’s hand again.

Absentmindedly, Grian wiped away a trickle of blood that had started to run down his forehead.

The matching line of blood on Scar’s forehead stayed untouched.

“Oh my god.”

—————

Or, three times Grian used dripstone to hurt someone

The first time Grian uses dripstone to hurt someone, it's a last resort. He had been following Scar around the server for hours—if not days—and the man still hadn’t realized they were soulmates.

“Scar, I’ve got something really important to show you,” he shouted, placing a piece of dripstone on a low-hanging tree branch. “I’ve found a new trick, it’s really important.”

No response, except for cooing and the sound of bamboo being eaten by pandas.

“SCAR!”

“They didn’t breed Grian!”

An exasperated laugh bubbled out before he replied, “Come over here and stop messing with the pandas!”

Scar made his way toward Grian, pandas and Jellie following behind.

“...But could you explain why they didn’t breed?”

“SCAR!”

The taller man looked up, pointed dripstone staring back from above him as he asked, “Oh, why am I doing this?”

“Now look–, look directly at me.”

Grian swung his pickaxe at the base of the dripstone, sending it crashing into Scar’s head.

Crack!

Pain ran through Grian’s skull, a diluted mirror of what he knew Scar was feeling. He looked up, only to see Scar giggling at a rouge panda pushing his hand for more bamboo.

“Look at ‘em!”

“Scar–”

“Sorry–, ok, I’m looking at you.”

Grian stared at the man in front of him in disbelief.

“Scar–,” Grian started as he glanced down at his health bar, “ok, I can only do this one more.” He placed another stalactite on the tree branch.

“Ready?”

Scar stared at him. “Yeah.”

Grian took a breath and swung the pickaxe.

Crack!

The two men made eye contact as the dripstone hit Scar’s head for the second time.

Silence.

Jellie meowed impatiently.

The panda pushed Scar’s hand again.

Absentmindedly, Grian wiped away a trickle of blood that had started to run down his forehead.

The matching line of blood on Scar’s forehead stayed untouched.

“Oh my god.”

Grian burst into hysterics, cackling while Scar looked down at his hands before looking at Grian, as if looking for a green string of fate connecting them. (Only a Watcher could see the strings, of course, but both people would have to realize the bond for it to appear.)

“THIS WHOLE TIME???”

(Later, while the pair were walking back towards the base Grian built for them, Scar would ask, “Why didn’t you just punch me? Why bother with the dripstone?”

And instead of replying “I can’t stand the thought of punching you”, or “It brings back bad memories”, or even worse “Punching you would bring me right back to the desert and the sun burning above us and the ghosts of our friends cheering for a fight and the fire of being red coursing and tearing through our veins and I don’t think I would be able to live with myself if I had your blood on my knuckles one more time–”, Grian would simply answer,

“That doesn’t have near enough drama, though, does it?” and laugh.)

—————

The second time Grian uses dripstone to hurt someone, it’s a prank. A misguided prank, but a prank nonetheless.

“Scar,” Grian stood in front of a patch of dirt. “You wanna– you wanna come out of the hole now?”

Above the dirt sat a small bit of dripstone attached to a small overhang.

“I like my cocoon,” a muffled voice answered.

Grian dug out part of the side of the hill, only to meet Scar halfway. The man stood in his small hideout, dirt pieces staining his zookeeper outfit and floating in his hair from a night spent beneath the earth. Jellie briefly stood on his shoulders before meowing and hopping to the ground.

Scar smiled up at him. “Hello.”

Snickering, Grian broke the dirt overhang.

Crack!

Pain wracked through the pair, sending them both to their knees. Through the blood rushing in his ears, Grian could distantly make out the sound of Jellie meowing and circling him before moving to Scar.

He shakily stood up, and after a moment Scar asked, “What was that?”

Grian looked down at their health bar, guilt flooding his system. ‘Two hearts. A prank that nearly killed us.’

“Oh my–, I am so sorry.” A small part of him instantly wondered how this information could be used to get rid of some of the other teams in the world. An even smaller part of him wondered if he should be having these thoughts while not being red.

Scar climbed out of the hole in the hill as Grian walked towards their current base and tried to lighten the mood. “Ok so dripstone, even from like three blocks away, nearly killed us!”

Scar peers back into the hole and the dripstone shards that lie in it before whipping back around the Grian.

“YOU PUT DRIPSTONE OVER MY LITTLE COCOON???”

Grian’s eyes flitted between the clear sky, their measly belongings, even Jellie, who was attempting to climb up Scar’s pant leg. Anywhere but his soulmate’s face.

“... Yeah.”

He summoned the courage to meet Scar’s eyes, only to find his normally expressive face set like stone.

“I’m so sorry–”

Scar broke eye contact before turning to face the cactus next to their hideout.

(Even though neither one knew how the cactus found its way into the middle of an acacia biome, both secretly found comfort in its presence, like a small bit of home in enemy territory.)

Desperate to move on, Grian started, “Ok, right–”

Scar jumped into the cactus.

Grian froze.

Scar met Grian’s eyes again.

Jellie, who despised the cactus with every fiber of her being, sat down at Grian’s feet and meowed up at him.

“Scar, stop.”

The man in question stayed silent, a defiant tilt of his chin present in his stare.

‘You can kill me.’

‘What? No–’

Ice shot down Grian’s spine.

“Scar. Stop.”

No response.

Memories swirled around him, ensnaring him in place.

‘For–, For everything you did for me to keep me alive this long, you may slay me and take the enchanter.’

‘No. I can’t. No I– I literally can’t. I can’t do it.’

Jellie circled Grian’s legs, still meowing.

Grian squeezed his eyes shut, refusing to look at the health bar.

“Scar. Stop!”

He opened his eyes. (If Grian wasn't preoccupied, he might have noticed that their lime green soul string had managed to wrap itself around the cactus, fraying on the spines of the plant.)

Scar met them once more, stare never wavering.

‘Scar, I don’t feel good about this.’

Blood trickled down Grian’s right side, invisible pricks stacking on top of each other.

Jellie continued to cry.

“SCAR. STOP.”

The wind rustled the leaves of the surrounding acacia trees.

Ringing in his ears, Grian tore his eyes away from Scar’s face to gaze at their health bar.

‘Scar, I’m sorry.’

‘I’m sorry too.’

Looking up again, Grian searched for a sign of something, any emotion, on Scar’s face.

The face that stared back could have been carved from marble.

“SCAR, STOP!”

Tears bubbled from Grian’s eyes.

Jellie attempted to climb Grian’s leg.

‘I’m so sorry!’

He looked down at their health bar again. Two hearts.

He willed his feet to move from their spot, slowly sinking into the sand. Or at least, it felt like they were.

“NO!!”

Grian finally lunged towards Scar and broke the cactus, its parts falling into the sand. (The string fell to the ground as well, damaged but alive.)

(Later, after stopping Scar from jumping into another cactus, Grian would overhear the man quietly talking to Jellie in their little hole in the hill while he attempted to get sand out of his boots.

“Look Jels, I’m fine! It was just a couple of scratches.”

A pause.

“No, I wasn’t going to actually… y’know. I just–, I guess I wanted to prove to myself that he still cared– cares about me. That maybe he even–, no, no, that’s dumb. Even if he doesn’t want to be stuck with me, maybe– hopefully, he doesn’t want me to die, either. Although it could be because our lives are literally tied together, huh?”

A wet laugh.

Grian would look down at his right hand, where the green string wraps itself around his fourth finger before winding over to the hole where Scar sat.

“Hey Scar, you ready to go?”

A small sniffle before Scar’s head would pop up. “Yeah! Just had to give Jellie some food.”

Grian would search his face for any indication of the conversation he just overheard.

Nothing.

Scar would pick up the conversation, asking, “So, I heard the pool party was interesting! What did I miss?”

And Grian would smile and joke and ignore the slight red tinge to Scar’s eyes as they go to face the rest of the server.)

—————

The third time Grian uses dripstone to hurt someone, it’s for revenge. Even though Ren technically didn’t kill him and Scar, they did set up the zombie army, and that counts enough, right?

Grian looked out the window again. In the distance, he could see BigB and Ren running towards their house as its face turned to ash. On the floors below, Joel and Etho continued chanting about their ship burning. Next to him, Scar stood watch, rapid heartbeat matching his own. Although if the pace of their heartbeats were from nerves or excitement or simply the now familiar feeling of red running through their bodies, Grian couldn’t tell which.

As Ren and BigB approached, their shouting came floating through the windows.

“This is outrageous! Box cannot go down like this! You ready to go, dude?”

“I’m ready I’m ready I’m ready!”

Above the entrance to their house hung the sharpest stalactite available.

Grian looked at Scar, who nodded eagerly. He brought out his pickaxe before taking a deep breath.

He swung.

Crack!

The dripstone fell for what felt like an eternity.

Then, just as Ren entered the door, the spike met its mark.

As Ren’s body hit the ground, euphoria sparked and snapped through every cell in Grian’s body. (Out of his view, BigB also dropped, clutching his heart.)

The next few minutes were a blur, mainly consisting of Scar all but launching himself down the ladder to loot Ren’s body and Etho and Joel’s comments of disbelief and screaming for joy at the top of his lungs because he hasn’t felt this good since that enchanting table trap ended up working. ‘Ironic, I killed Ren with that one as well.’

Grian opened up his communicator to read everyone’s messages when one in particular stopped him dead in his tracks.

bigbst4tz2 died

The communicator bounced as it hit the cobblestone floor. For a moment, time stood still.

“Oh, BigB I’m so sorry!”

The raw delight and satisfaction that comes from killing as a red life seeped out of Grian from every pore, as acrid as raw sourdough starter.

Climbing down the ladder, Grian slowly reached the bottom floor where Scar was finishing picking up any useful items. Upon seeing Grian, he bounded toward the shorter man, arms full of his secret soulmate's stuff. ‘Does he still count as a secret soulmate if Scar knows?’

Scar dragged Grian to the corner of the room before excitedly whispering, “I got their gear!”

Grian stared.

“We need to have another funeral.”

Scar, to his credit, did not deflate at all. He simply nodded and said “Ok.”

(Later, when they had returned to their base, Scar would sit on the top of the hill and look out on the world, Jellie by his side. Above, the stars would blink sleepily and the grass beside him would wave in the gentle breeze. Grian would be nowhere in sight. When he squinted, he would be able to make out the flickering of a red string tied around his ring finger that snaked its way towards BigB’s grave.

Scar would sigh.)

#double life smp #double life #grian #goodtimeswithscar #desert duo #dlsmp fanfic #gtwscar #double life spoilers #trafficshipping #not really but theyre fruity so i figured id tag it

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ty-bayonet-betteridge · 7 days

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Chapters: 1/? Fandom: 3rd Life | Last Life SMP Series, Double Life SMP Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death Characters: Secret Life SMP Ensemble Additional Tags: Double Life SMP - Freeform, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Different Soulmates, not certain how else to tag this Summary:

Jade to green to gold to scarlet Names will fade and eyes will darken Lives will end and blood be spilled, Worlds that fall once all are killed.

Winter's cold brings sleet and snow, Love that dies and hates that grows. Eighteen souls, but now nine hearts; Lives entwined to break apart.

* * *

A Double Life AU featuring all eighteen members of the Life Series and different assignments of soulmates. Updates on Tuesdays.

#our writing #18s9hau #trafficfic #life series #trafficblr #double life #double life smp #dlsmp #dlsmp fic #dlsmp fanfic

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thedialup · 2 years

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we'll go out in a blaze of glory (and we'll rise again from the ashes)

content warnings: none apply

words: 4283

summary: tango and jimmy, partners on a battle of the bands reality tv show prepare for their first performance. performance

curses, shitty producers, discussions of ranches and men in eyeliner ensue.

reblogs > likes!

#team rancher #solidaritek #rancherduo #jimmy solidarity #tangotek #dlsmp #double life smp #trafficshipping #dlsmp fanfic

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krynoss · 2 years

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⚠️TW: this following story contains topics such as death, possessive behavior, and gore. Viewer discretion is advised.⚠️

:.Love was a powerful feeling that some people would experience. Love was something that could be a burst of euphoria and happiness while also being just as dangerous. Love could be simple, easy. While also being hard and complicated. Love was what joined two, or even more, people together. Love was a riddle. Love was a choice. Love was love.

Joel discovered love in many ways before in his past lives, but none of those experiences was something like this one. He was never forced into it, but that didn't bother him. He was never tied down to someone unwillingly, but that didn't bother him. He stood still as his hand gingerly caressed Etho's cheek, his head tilting back ever so slightly to watch the taller male's eyes flicker from his, then to their chests, then to their conjoined hands as each finger intertwined with the other's. Etho's other hand was thrown around Joel's waist, and Joel sheepishly put all of his body weight onto it. He suddenly felt too tired to stand on his own, feeling his knees give out underneath him and causing his figure to slump slightly in Etho's arms, but the male only continued to hold him up. Etho's eyes were beginning to fall heavy, blinking away the drowsiness that seemed to take them both over. Joel finally closed his eyes, feeling something warm stick to his chin as he embraced the peace. Neither of them spoke a word. Etho's grip around Joel's waist falter and their conjoined hands slowly unraveled, falling limply to each of their sides. Etho hugged Joel closer, as if his life depended on it. He Joel guessed it did as he felt the half of the diamond sword plung deeper into his back while the other half plunged deeper into Etho's chest. Joel's hand slipped from Etho's cheek as Etho's fell from his waist.

Together forever.

Love was a weapon..:

#smalletho #smallishbeans #smallishbeans fanfic #etholabs #etholabs fanfic #double life #double life smp #double life fanfic #double life smp fanfic #dlsmp #dlsmp fanfic #MY POOR BOYS I AM SOBBING #KINDA PROUD OF THIS ONE NGL !!!

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caracuuw · 2 years

Text

What Makes a Home

Ao3 link :D

Jimmy had never known the world to be kind to him. Maybe it was fate. Maybe he was cursed. Maybe the universe was playing some elaborate prank on him. Maybe he was just so terrible at the game of life that he was just kidding himself, hoping for anything more than the cards he’d been dealt. Whatever it was, it didn’t actually matter. He was dead first. Again. Nothing he could do now would ever change that.

One moment, he was being clawed to death by a furious enderman, its talons digging deep gashes into his heart. Wishing he could be home, more than anything. Wondering where Tango was, desperately needing to tell him that he was sorry, he was so, so very sorry. The next moment, he was frantically gasping for the thick, damp, pale air around him. The cold dirt beneath his back also held onto the surrounding moisture, making it soft and heavy.

No, no, no, no, nonononono-

As Jimmy sat up slowly, his joints feeling stiff, he squinted through the dense, white fog nearly engulfing him. It wasn’t much use; he could barely see ten feet in front of him, if that.

He got to his feet, grunting as he did so, and brushed off his pants. He seemed to be standing on a grave, of sorts. His grave, he realized vaguely. Deep inside of him, he knew this wasn’t the first time he’d ever seen it, and judging by his track record, this wouldn’t be the last.

He shook his head. He couldn’t tell if he was frustrated or disappointed or sad— maybe it was all at once. Whatever it was, he still couldn’t do it. He still died first. Why should he have ever hoped for anything different? And this time, he’d had somebody to let down with it.

He glanced around, still seeing nothing else near him. He sighed, crouching down next to the headstone. On the headstone were a couple of engravings; a faded ‘Here lies Jimmy, Beloved Husband’, and ‘Should of watched TopGun Tim’ scrawled in the bottom corner. There was a small pile of things that had begun to accumulate by its base made up of a long dried up bouquet of poppies and tulips, a cracked and rusted spyglass, and, the most recent addition, a gently placed down goat horn.

Jimmy brushed his fingers over the goat horn, admiring the dull, roughly polished shine it had-

He was being clawed to death by a furious enderman, its talons digging-

He yanked his hand away from the horn as if he’d just been shocked by it. He blinked at it, then looked at his fingertips. He couldn’t seem to find anything remotely wrong with them, but in his inspection, he noticed the faintly glowing lines streaking across his chest and torso. He furrowed his eyebrows and glanced over the other items laid out on his grave. Cautiously, he pulled out one of the wilted poppies.

He was crouched low in a half buried bunker as war was waged outside right in front of him. Next to him, Scar peeked excitedly out at the chaos unfolding before them, shooting his arrows out to add to the crossfire. Jimmy did his best to aim at the Red Army through the small crack opened just a few inches above the sand that stretched out around the bunker. Grian had just been shot by Martyn, whose attention had turned to them. He went to go descend into the lower floor of the bunker, readying to-

He barely had time to register the arrow piercing through his skull before he was crumpling to the ground like a ragdoll, lifeless.

Jimmy dropped the flower, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes. He could almost see the light emanating from the long gone puncture wound on his forehead through his eyelids. He let out a long, heavy sigh. He opened his eyes back up, and for just a few fleeting moments, he swore the flower had been bright and lush and alive again, before it shriveled once again.

“What?” He said under his breath. His voice echoed through

He reached down, and placed his fingers atop the flower.

He was crouched low in a half buried bunker as war was waged outside-

He lifted his fingers, and the bunker dissolved, leaving him back at his grave. Just for a second, the flower was, in fact, a vibrant red, once again.

He was crouched low in-

He brought the poppy up to his face and breathed in its sweet scent.

The bunker swirled around him, like a thick mist would when a hand was dragged quickly through it. As the scene reformed, he was no longer in the desert bunker, but instead on a hilltop, sitting atop another grave, similar, but not the same as his other one. It had ‘Here lies Jimmy, Beloved Husband’ freshly carved into the top. Around him were a variety of multicolored tulips, a scarlet one planted directly in front of him. A few feet away stood Scott, his expression somber. A warm breeze blew gently through his cyan hair, though he didn’t seem to pay it any notice.

After a long silence, Scott finally spoke. “Jimmy, you will never be forgotten,” he said. “Your memory and… and the adventures we shared togeth-” He turned his head suddenly, looking at something outside of Jimmy’s view, exclaiming; “Woah- excuse you, ma’am, where did you come from?! I was just-” He had fully turned around at that point and was pulling out his bow. “You can’t just show up to the funeral!” He shouted, running off and causing the world to twist and swirl off once again.

Jimmy blinked, and he was back at his other grave, the poppy at his feet and shriveling to its prior state. He frowned thoughtfully at the other two items laying on his grave. He repositioned himself to be sitting cross-legged beside them, then reached over and took the old spyglass in his hands.

He was at Mumbo’s home built into the wall of the Southlands where they had set a trap planned for Grian and Martyn. Their facade had been seen through immediately, and in an attempt to get Grian inside, he gave him a hard shove. He was being chased, because he had just hurt a yellow life, he was trying to kill a yellow life, and he was a red life. He briefly wondered why the life of a yellow life mattered more than his own as he scrambled on top of the building. Grian had a life to spare, and he— he felt a sword slash across his back. His feet fumbled, and he tripped. He was falling, falling, falling for much longer than what seemed reasonable for the building, and then, finally, his head hit the ground with a sickening crack-

Jimmy lifted the spyglass to his eye. The building shifted, and he was watching Grian breathing heavily, standing over a pile of stuff— Mumbo’s stuff, he realized.

“I can’t believe that’s just happened,” Martyn said, cautiously running down the hill to where Grian was.

“They should- back me up here, Martyn, they went for me.” Grian insisted.

“They did, they did,” Martyn agreed. “I mean, Mumbo literally crystalled-” He began slowly picking through Mumbo’s stuff. His voice lowered as he felt the immediate threat threatening Grian and himself was gone and he distracted himself with Mumbo’s things. “Using a crystal, that’s some real dedication to- to the cause,”

“Well, what’ve we got?” Grian said, kicking aside a couple of items. “Did he have any more crystals on him?”

“Err…” Martyn searched through the pile. “He had a ghast tear on him, but… no, no crystals…” Martyn picked up something small and circular, and he frowned, furrowing his eyebrows. Jimmy couldn’t tell what exactly it was from where he stood, but it seemed to be metallic, and it glimmered in the light slightly as he inspected it. “Uh, but there are some diamonds here, though,” he said, nodding off to his side but still clearly distracted. There was a look in his eyes Jimmy wasn’t quite sure he couldn’t place. It was almost cold, yet it had a fire hiding deep behind it, indicative of no particular emotion but still holding a deep grief that could be seen in the corner of his eyes. It was an emotion Jimmy had personally never been given the chance to experience. He pulled something similar off of his own finger and tucked both objects into his pocket. He stood up to follow Grian, who had begun walking away, and the world blurred.

When it came back into focus, they were back over at Mumbo’s house. Thunder rumbled in a loud, menacing roar overhead.

“Oh, boogie’s about to be chosen,” Martyn noticed, walking over to where Grian stood over Jimmy’s own things. “Look me in the eyes, look me in the eyes,”

“Hold on,” Grian said. “I’m still looting Timmy’s corpse here,”

“That’s on you, boogie-slayer.” Martyn said, then he shook his head. “Why’d I say boogie-slayer- red-slayer.”

“What’ve we got-” Grian mumbled, crouched over his scattered items. “Oh- hold on- three, two,”

“You are…” He and Martyn said in unison anticipating the boogieman curse potentially taking hold of either of them.

“Not the boogieman!” Grian chimed. “I haven’t been the boogieman the entire time,” he continued, but Martyn didn’t seem to be listening. His eyes had a glazed look to them that Grian didn’t seem to notice. They still held that same buried anger and grief as before, as well as a sudden, hidden bloodlust, but they also held something that looked almost like terror. He shook his head.

“Jeez,” Martyn said, trying to brush off whatever had just happened. “Who’s left that could be it, then?”

“There’s plenty of green and yellow names around,” Grian said.

Martyn quietly pulled something out of his inventory. “Dude, this isn’t good.” He bent down and looked through Jimmy’s things too. He pocketed a spyglass he found. “Oh, wait,” he said. “We still need to deactivate this thing as well, hold up” He said, moving away from the door. As he did, the scene began to twist away from Jimmy again. “Um, let me try the bow from a distance.” His voice grew faint.

“No,” Jimmy started. “No, wait, I had wanted to see that!”

It was no use. By that point, it was already gone. He nearly dropped the spyglass, frustrated and disappointed he hadn’t been allowed to watch for just a minute longer, but stopped when he heard a distant shouting.

“Wait- Timmy?!”

“Martyn?” He called back, confused.

“Timmy?!”

He was back in the Southlands. It was quiet, apart from Martyn, who looked tired and stressed, but he was there, and he was looking right at Jimmy.

“It’s Jimm-” He started. “Oh, it doesn’t matter- You can- can you see me?”

“I thought you were dead!” Martyn exclaimed. “How are y-”

“I- I am, Martyn, I died in Double Life to an enderman- I- why are we here? How are you here?”

“I- I just thought that, after last week, you know-”

“Last week… what are you talking about? I just died, it hasn’t been that long, has it?”

“Wait, what?” Martyn said, looking away from him. Jimmy opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by Martyn giggling. “Oh, oh, yeah, of course!” He laughed.

“What? Martyn, that’s not- this isn’t funny, why-”

“Oh, yeah, absolutely, yeah, yeah,” he said, holding his spyglass up to… the part of the wall that lead to Mumbo’s house.

“What are you…”

“Right, you ready for it?” Martyn grinned over at him, lowering his spyglass for a moment.

“I don’t-”

“Alright, let’s do it!” Martyn cleared his throat. “Welcome back! It’s Last Life, week eight,” he began, using a higher voice he put on when he was… imitating Mumbo… but Mumbo wasn’t there, so…

“What?” Jimmy muttered in a soft voice.

“And you know what? Turn that symbol sideways, and you get a nice little infinity. There’s almost something quite nice about that, isn’t there? I’ve- wha-” Martyn glanced over at him, still smiling. “Shut up- I-” He laughed. “I’ve woken up with a bit of a sore neck this morning, and uh, I might need the other boys to c-aha-rry the load.”

“You can’t see me…” Jimmy realized. “I’m not- I’m not actually here, am I? This is another one of those… weird… memory- scene things.”

“Oh, he’s coming, he’s coming, he’s coming-” He laughed again. “We got him!”

“But what…”

“Yes, we did! We totally got you! What are you talking about? Hook, line, and sinker, spyglass in hand, in your own little world,” he chuckled. “Oh, man. Ah, dude, it’s so funny,” he grinned over at Jimmy again. “So-” Martyn froze. He blinked and his expression dropped. “Wait, Timmy?”

“What is going on?” Jimmy muttered under his breath.

Martyn stumbled backwards a few steps, frantically looking around. “Mumbo?” His face grew pale and his voice distant as the fog began to return. “Anyone?!” The last thing Jimmy heard before the swirling mist fully enveloped him was Martyn’s final, panicked; “Hello?!”

There as a crack, and Jimmy blinked down at the spyglass rolling off of the base of his headstone where it fell. Green rust quickly frosted over its metal. It stopped as it hit the goat horn, the final item on his grave.

His mind was still racing with countless questions about what he had just witnessed there with Martyn, but he… he wasn’t certain the universe would be kind enough to give him the answers.

He sighed and looked down at the goat horn. He supposed he had nothing better to do. He picked up the horn.

He was being clawed to death by a furious enderman-

He brought the horn up to his lips.

Grian and Scar stood in the ranch, by the headstones Grian had just put up for Jimmy and Tango, one on each side of the grave for Ranchers’ Revenge. Scar had just etched ‘should of watched TopGun Tim’ on the corner and was grinning at Grian before going to see what was going on on the bridge.

“Um, there’s an amass of- of enemies on the bridge.”

“Wait, wait, woah, woah, woah, this is a funeral.” Grian said, joining Scar where he looked out across the lake. “Woah- do you see the pile of TNT?”

“No? Oh, what- dude, dude, okay, okay,” Scar started excitedly. “Please, can I go steal it?” He grinned at Grian.

“Ah, well, uh… okay, I’m just- we’re gonna have a funeral over here.”

“Alright, hold on, I’ll be back for the funeral, I just wanna-” Scar called his voice fading out as he ran off.

Jimmy took a deep breath, and he blew the horn.

Once again, the scene disappeared into fog, but this time, the fog didn’t morph into a new one. This time, he was left back on his grave, in the fog, still holding the horn. He stood up, confused, and looked around. He blew the horn again, its distinctive call ringing through the mist.

“You’re still here?” Jimmy turned around. A few feet away in the fog, where he wouldn’t have been able to see just moments before, stood a grave, nearly identical to his own.

Tango sat on top of his headstone. He had glowing lines marking his death across his chest, exactly like the ones Jimmy bore himself. He looked exhausted and resigned, but he didn’t look angry, contrary to what Jimmy would have expected.

“Tango,” he breathed.

“It’s over,” he shook his head. “Go home.”

“Tango, I-”

“Go.”

He paused, staring at Tango for a while. Tango stared back. “Where?” He said simply.

“I don’t know, Jimmy. Home. Don’t you have somewhere better to go when it’s all over, rather than waiting here forever?” Tango sighed. “It’s not a nice time, Jimmy; being here. Alone.”

“I know.” Jimmy said. “I don’t think I have anywhere else to go. All the places I’ve lived; the flower field, the Southlands, the Ranch; they were just houses, and they’re all gone now anyways.” He set the horn back down next to the spyglass and the bouquet. “Do you have anywhere that you go?”

Tango was silent for a bit. “No,” he eventually said. “No, I always just end up back here.”

“Yeah,” Jimmy said. “Same here.” He paused. “Though, there’s never been anyone else here before. It’s always been just me.”

“Maybe it has something to do with us being soulbound.” Tango suggested.

“Yeah, maybe…” Jimmy trailed off. “Tango,” he started. “When I said that all those places were just houses, well, they were also my homes, but they weren’t home because of what they were. Don’t get me wrong, I loved the Ranch.” He stepped forward to stand right in front of Tango. “I really, really loved it. But on its own, the Ranch could never have been a home. Every single place I have ever called home has been a place where someone cared about me. The reason the Ranch was so special was because you were there.” He took Tango’s hands in his own. “If you really want to be alone, I’ll leave, or I’ll do my best to, at least. But I don’t know if I can keep going on like this; leaving the people I care about alone in the world. So, please, if you will… let me take this chance before it’s taken away from me.”

Tango let out a heavy sigh, letting his head fall forward and resting the top against Jimmy's chest. “I’m so tired of this, Jimmy. I’m tired of being alone. I’m tired of dying pointlessly.”

Jimmy let go of Tango’s hands. “Oh, Tango, I didn’t- Tango, I am so, so sorry. I- I should’ve been more careful. I-”

“I don’t blame you, Jimmy, I’m just tired.” Tango pulled Jimmy’s hands back towards him. “Plus, I’m pretty sure I’m cursed, at this point.”

Jimmy couldn’t help but laugh slightly. “Well, that makes two of us.”

Tango smiled softly. “We were just doomed from the beginning then, huh?”

“I guess so. It wasn’t all bad, though. For what it’s worth, I couldn’t’ve had a better soulmate than you.” Jimmy let out a light breath. “It’s been make very clear that the universe won’t let us keep a home, but if you wanted to, we could go figure out how to make one for ourselves.” He stepped back, but kept hold of Tango’s hands.

Tango pulled himself up with Jimmy's hands and into an embrace. “Yeah, I’d like that.”

Jimmy wrapped his arms around Tango, holding him tight. Maybe it was fate, and maybe he was cursed, and maybe the universe played cruel tricks on him and dealt him cards no person, no matter how good at the game they were, could be expected to win with, but dammit, in spite of all of that, Jimmy was loved. Nothing the universe had thrown at him had ever been able to stop that, and maybe it never would. And maybe that was enough.

#solidaritygaming #dlsmp #dlsmp fanfic #trafficshipping #flower husbands #solidaritek #<it’s a bit ambiguous and you can interpret it however you’d like #I wrote it as vaguely /r but if you wanna see it as platonic I’m not gonna stop you #there’s also some super minor Martyn ‘n Mumbo but only if you squint so I don’t want to clog the tag #ren.writes

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cactus-green-clay · 2 years

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Oh No! They’re both Stupid!

read on A03

word count : 883! fluff! set in session one!

Tango was going to rip his arm off if the thing didn’t stop itching. He had been furiously scratching at his forearm for the past five minutes to no relief. If he wasn’t so busy scratching he’d tell himself to later thank Impulse for reminding him to file down his claws and to wear his one of his thicker jackets.

Granted if he didn’t have the itch he’d be annoyed with how heavy his beetle like wings felt, they twitched with the urge to stretch out and fly as he thought about them. It was one of then many commands Grian had put in place place to make it a more fair fight. Tango understood that but that didn’t mean he had to be happy about it.

Idly he realize the end of the session was drawing near. Meaning soon they could all go back to their own servers and/or solo worlds. Void, Tango missed his own bed. Even the thought of curling up underneath the thick blankets after eating a lovely and filling meal made his wings flutter. But before he could dream about being back on his beloved sever Jimmy shouted his name.

“Tango!” Jimmy shouted once more, his voice was muffled. He must be underground with the animals they brought back, Tango realized. Tango quickly rounded the side of their house, the door creaked and heaved as he pushed it open. He added “get a better door” to the slowly growing mental checklist. Before he could begin descending down the ladder Jimmy’s head poked out from the small hole and startled upon seeing his soul bound partner.

“Tango I have claws!” Jimmy sound absolutely panicked as he thrust his hand towards Tango. The claws were similar to Tango’s, being same shinny and red color as his. However they were significantly shorter and looked more like long fingernails then claws. Jimmy was speaking again, saying something in an ever more panicked tone but Tango didn’t listen. No, he was far more focused of the fact that Jimmy’s teeth definitely weren’t that sharp earlier.

“Oh! You have fangs too!” Tango shouted once the realization set in. Jimmy immediately spun around and went to grab his sweater that Tango only now noticed he wasn’t wearing. And he probably wouldn’t have noticed if not for Jimmy’s yellow, baby bird like wings fluffed up and twitched in panic. Or at least Tango assumed it was panic, Grian’s wings would also fluff up when he was feeling strong emotion.

Jimmy fish out his communicator from the sweater’s pocket and turned the camera on. He dropped it a moment later and paled. Tango would have gone to comfort him or message Grian about whatever’s happening to his soul bound partner but the itch had come back. Decided that it’d probably be best if he actually looked at it, something he definitely should have done earlier, he tugged up his sleeve. A clump of small yellow, downy feathers was growing out of his forearm, just above his elbow.

Tango stared at his arm for a few long moments, his mind was whirling with thoughts. Trying to grasp onto any ideas for why and, more importantly, how this was happening-

And then it clicked.

Tango laughed, void he was stupid. Grian had reminded them shortly before they joined the server that this could and he still forgot. See the thing about soul binding is that whoever or whatever you’re bound to will take on some of your physical characteristics and vise versa. It’s the reason why Scar’s pupils dilate and constrict just like a cat’s, because Jellie’s soul bond to him. And the reason why Wels is a dragon hybrid, though Tango has no idea how that works.

Jimmy looked at Tango for a long moment, glancing from the feathers on his arm and then back up to Tango’s weirdly relaxed face. And then it clicked for him too. His eye widened and he straightened out his back from where he was hunched over his communicator. Jimmy bonked himself on the head with the palm of his head and laughed.

“We’re such idiots!” He fussed but there was no anger is his voice, if anything he sounded a little embarrassed. And Tango agreed, laughing along with him. Their communicators buzzed at the same time, a signal that the session was over, probably at least. They buzzed again a moment later, Grian was calling the usual end of the session meeting, probably.

And when the meeting opened with Grian reminded them again about that changes that may happen to them and their partners now that they’ve been soul bound, Tango’s face flushed with embarrassing. Thankful for him though they weren’t the only one who had forgotten. Ren let out a big sigh of relief and Bdubs looked incredibly confused about the whole thing.

Tango shared a look with Jimmy who snickered quietly to himself. Maybe they weren’t the only idiots here, probably not though, but it’s a nice thought.

#double life smp #dlsmp #tangotek #solidaritygaming #fluff #clay’s works #dlsmp fanfic #double life fanfic #team rancher

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eluminium · 2 years

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you guys remember that post i made a few days ago about the idea of that visual glitch in Session 4 with Impulse’s body remaining on the ground actually being Impulse’s corpse not despawning and how it had a lot of angst potential? i wrote a fic out of it https://archiveofourown.org/works/40228857 please enjoy this was made in the course of 2-3 days.

#impulsesv #bdoubleo100 #dose of impulse #dose of bdubs #my writing #double life smp #dlsmp #dlsmp fic #dlsmp fanfic #dlsmp impulse #dlsmp bdubs #impdubs #Bdoublepulse #Other double life members do appear but they're like #barely there #only 3 other people outside of impulse and bdubs speak

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eliias-bouchard · 2 years

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(this is the part where i ask you to rb, cus likes don't do much for getting my stuff out there. thanks 👍)

Dimly, she thinks that Martyn's a fucking idiot, attacking Pearl like that with no plan, without fucking talking to her. She wishes Scott was here, wishes he could at least hold her hand whilst a heart she doesn't own pumps blood out of an already dead body.

Scott isn't here. After a few moments, neither is Cleo.

She doesn't awake in her bed, but she does awake lying down.

She wakes to loud voices, yelling, grass and trees and bright light. The sky, clouds streaking across it.

Did Scott find her? Heal her? But, no, it was nighttime when she died, right? She would’ve woken up sooner.

Maybe that was a nightmare? The jagged glass of red-life bloodlust jolts through her veins, and she is painfully, terribly alive. Not a nightmare.

The yelling had stopped for a moment, but it's started back up, familiar voices arguing. There are dogs, two sets of them, snarling at each other, probably barely holding back from attacking. She can hear Martyn, and Pearl, and Scott, and Martyn again, and-

Wait.

That's her voice.

She sits up, ignoring the sudden throbbing headache, looks around.

This is spawn. There in her peripherals is that stupid gameshow thing Martyn half-assedly built, and she can see-

"Oh, no." she half-whispers. Everyone (two Martyns; one red one green; two Pearls; one red one green; two Scotts; one red one green; one Cleo; who it probably doesn’t need stating is green), sort of looks over at her. "Oh, no no no."

"Cleo!" Scott - her Scott, she can see the curl of red in his hair, and there's the other version of him just behind, sword in hand, green lock falling across his forehead. Her Scott (she doesn't really know how else to differentiate the two, in her mind), grabs her hand, pulls her up to standing and lets her lean on him. Her Martyn looks at her, confused and aghast.

"We died." he says.

"You killed us!" A well of anger she hadn't had time to even acknowledge, let alone process, pushes its way into her lungs. Maybe it's just the red in her. "You attacked Pearl, you didn't talk about it, you never talk about anything!" He doesn’t even look annoyed, or ashamed. He just looks resigned. She wants to hit him, but she remembers how well that went.

Red Pearl (she'll just refer to them by their life colour) laughs. It's that unnerving, high-pitched, absolutely insane laugh.

"Scott. What did you wish for? When you won Last Life. What’d you wish for?"

Both red and green Scotts look surprised, but red Scott (okay, she's still definitely thinking of him as her Scott, but she won't refer to him like that. It's not nice, it's not fair to him or Pearl) cuts in.

"Companionship."

"How'd that one work out for you?" She laughs again, and before either Scotts can say anything, she continues "I wished for an opportunity to do better, and now look where we are!"

She gestures to their surroundings with a grand flourish. Cleo's pretty sure they've all put it together by now.

They've time travelled.

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platonicwizard · 2 years

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Saving You

https://archiveofourown.org/works/39911871

A rewrite of Impulse, Bdubs, and Etho's during the second session of Double Life.

--------

“If you are not feeling comfortable with your alliance, Impulse and you could potentially go get some enchanted gear for us” Bdubs spoke softly as he looked directly at Etho, smiling at him lovingly. Impulse knew from the way Etho looked back that he was hooked again by Bdubs, a look he often gave him in Last Life.

“We could set you up a third bed in the house” Bdubs looked to Impulse, giving him the same look. Impulse felt his heart fluttered as he formulated the plan in his head, “Yep, could do”

They both looked to Etho, who slightly blushed, “Yeah, yeah that’s an idea. I would go for that”

“You would?” Bdubs’ eyes lit up brightly, a grin breaking across his face as Etho nodded. “Off you go! To adventure! Be gone, I have a house to build”

It had all started when Bdubs said he wanted to play homewrecker to the other pairs on the server. He said it was to make allies, but Impulse knew it was because he wanted Etho on their side, he had even said so himself. But, nonetheless he went with it, especially after hearing how Scar reacted about the white lie. It was a decent play in the short run too, with the potential to have each pair hurt each other possibly letting them win.

So when Etho came by and Bdubs started talking about how he should be careful, Impulse with it. Etho had seemed to be unsteady, both of idea of his counterpart and of the duo themselves. He even was surprised that the two of them were still hip to hip after a week on the server. Impulse observed Etho as he had hurt himself after Joel got hurt, showing signs that the two of them had grown slightly unstable. Who would purposely hurt their partner after they get damaged? (Impulse realized later that it seemed more common than he would have originally thought)

While Etho wandered around them for a bit, after getting the horses set up comfortably, Bdubs turned to the other two.

“We could set you up a third bed in the house” Bdubs looked to Impulse, giving him the same look. Impulse felt his heart fluttered as he formulated the plan in his head, “Yep, could do”

They both looked to Etho, who slightly blushed, “Yeah, yeah that’s an idea. I would go for that”

“You would?” Bdubs’ eyes lit up brightly, a grin breaking across his face as Etho nodded. “Off you go! To adventure! Be gone, I have a house to build”

Etho and Impulse laughed at Bdubs' proclamation, following him into the house to grab some items. Impulse showed Etho the sound mechanism that he would use down in the Deep Dark before they headed off. Bdubs took a hold of each one's hands before lightly kissing them each, winking at Impulse after Etho had turned his back and headed out the door. “Be careful down there, and don’t forget to bond with Etho he can join us” and with that, Impulse was pushed out of the house.

Impulse showed Etho the way down, watching as the other carefully climbed down to him into the ravine. They walked far down into the ravine and entered the mineshafted, twisting and turning around corners as they inched closer to the Ancient City.

“So I’m a little worried Impulse, I feel like Bdubs was trying to get rid of you there, I don't know if you noticed that” Etho muttered as they turned down another shaft. Impulse turned back to him, a confused look on his face as he responded, “You think so?”

Etho looked him in the eyes, unreadable and closed off, but concern was something could feel as the other rung his hands together, “He was like, ‘Please take Impulse get out of my hair’”

An ache set in his heart at the thought, but he knew Bdubs wasn’t trying to throw him away. He, himself rubbed his hands together, let off a bit of anxiety as he continued down the cave, Etho still following him. “Well, we’ve pretty much been inseparable since day one so I don’t blame him. Everybody needs a little me time, you know?”

“Yeah, I get it. With Joel man, I needed a break from him too” Impulse smiled to himself as he heard Etho’s words. “Yeah, he told us”

Etho let out a laugh as he came up behind Impulse, wrapping an arm around his shoulder, leaning down on him slightly, “oh did he! Did he really?”

The familiar stab of anxiety raced through Impulse’s chest as he patted Etho’s arm and ducked away from it, “Well, we did, uh, we promised- I can’t say anything” his voice lowered as he continued on.

“Uh huh” Impulse could feel the way that Etho didn’t believe him, dripping acid as his own heart twisted as he nodded along, trying to stray away from the conversation at this point. “I’m going to have to have a talk with that guy”

“Yeah, that might be a good idea. See what’s up with that” he didn’t turn back, as he began to mine his way down through the deepstone. Etho didn’t push him for much of a conversation after that as they dug down. Impulse was thankful, letting himself push away the thought of each of their soulmates to instead think of a plan for how to get to the enchantment table. When he finally dug through the wall and found the Ancient City sat beneath them, he let out a sigh of relief. He turned back to Etho, who wasn’t very far from him, mumbling something about his health and Joel.

“You found it?” Etho rushed over to him, looking down onto the broken arches. Impulse took his arm lightly, holding onto him. Etho laughed lightly, as Impulse himself let out an anxious laugh. They turned down and began to mine and build a staircase down to the cave floor. Etho glanced every once in a while at it, eventually he asked if they could bring the Warden to the surface.

Impulse shook his head as he laughed quietly, hyper aware of their surroundings, “not with your armor, you’ll be dead in two, three hits”

Etho’s eyes widened, clearly uninformed about the monster that guards the decrepit city around it, “So this is dangerous, is what you're trying to tell me?”

“Super. Super, super dangerous” Impulse watched as Etho all at the same time he said that became much more guarded and anxious, standing behind him as they finally reached the floor. He turned away, carefully watching the area as he took in everything. Etho grabbed onto his arm, a shield in his other.

Impulse has known the other for a long time, and he has known him long enough that the cold exterior that he showed laid a rather anxious man. Etho has always been considered strong and brave to outsiders, but he knew better than that. He was cowardly at worst, and cautious at his best. People knew him for keeping himself together through stressful times, and even at one point considered a great fighter in other worlds. But, that title has long since faded, overpowered by the new combat skills taught but new fighters. So, to have Etho pressed against him, quiet anxiety hazing through him shouldn’t have caught him off guard at all.

But, it did. He jumped, causing Etho to lose grip on his shield as it dropped to the ground. Impulse could see as a few sculk sensors went off around them, but they didn’t alert anything else. He bent down and grabbed Etho’s shield, and when he turned to Etho he noticed him just staring at him. Fear was written across his face and on his tensed shoulders.

“We’re okay. There are no sculk shriekers around so nothing bad happened. We’re safe Etho” he put his hand on Etho’s shoulder as he handed him back his shield. Etho adjusted his shield as he leaned against Impulse’s hand.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to scare you like that” Impulse laughed lightly as he patted the other lightly. Etho untensed as his hand was grabbed Impulse’s own. Quietly, he started to walk on the wool path in front of them, placing down wool themselves along the way.

Etho pointed to the large building, “maybe the enchanting table is over there?” Impulse nodded, and began to make their way to it.

As they got closer, Impulse accidentally tripped on a block, falling onto the ground. Multiple sculk sensors went off, and suddenly a sculk shrieker went off. A wave of blindness settled around them as Etho helped Impulse up and pulled out his sword. Impulse placed his hand Etho, stopping him from moving. Etho looked at his grip on his sword tightening. Impulse put a finger to his lips, silently shushing him. Both of them looked into one another's eyes as time ticked by, unable to take in anything else in their surroundings. Finally, the blindness ceased, and nothing was around them. Slowly, Etho put his sword back in its sheath, not moving his gaze much from Impulse.

“It was just a warning, when they go off three times the Warden will come out. We will just have to be more aware of our surroundings” Impulse nervously rubbed the back of his neck, letting go Etho. Etho grabbed onto his hand though, his grip tightening. They stood for a bit, gaining their breath as they let go of the anxiety in their chest. Impulse felt a pinch in his arm, bringing him back to the point of this trip. He wonders if Bdubs feels his anxieties.

“We should go enchant our stuff and get out, I think I see the enchantment table actually” Etho nodded, and started his way to the large building, Impulse not far behind.

Finally, they got to the building, and like Impulse said he saw before, the table sat in front. Both of them started to set out their items and armor and began to enchant. Off in the distance, though, they both began to hear the voices of the other players on the server. They looked to one another and began to put on their enchanted armor.

Grian was the first to reach them, freaking out the entire time as he stumbled his way to them. Not too far behind Ren, Big B, and Martyn followed, jumping over to the area they stood in.

“Is it safe? Have you done it already?” Grian said as he moved over to the enchantment table, quickly enchanting all of his things. Impulse gave him a dumbfounded face, “No it’s not safe. It’s never safe down here”

And as if on cue, the minute the other three stepped closer to the table, a shrieker went off. Martyn began to panic, causing everyone to panic. Blindness took over all of them, and the sound of the ground ripping apart as the Warden took its first steps to them set everyone haywire. Impulse grabbed ahold of Etho’s arm, dragging him away from the noise the four of them were making as they ran away. He pulled them higher onto the building, and began to build high, prompting Etho to do the same.

Impulse took a deep breath when they built high enough away from the Warden, and sat down. Etho did the same, sitting down right beside him and leaned against him. Impulse was done with this place. He wanted to make and get Bdubs armor too but, he can already see the others coming back, which just meant more trouble and a chance for his own soulmate to be hurt. Etho looked over it too, as he pulled out his pickaxe and looked at the ceiling.

“Let’s leave, we got enchantments. No point of staying” Etho pulled out some blocks

“Yeah, not with these guys around. Watch Grian be the reason he and Scar go to yellow” Impulse said, making Etho laugh lightly. Impulse felt himself grow lighter as he released the fear the Ancient City had caused him. Both of them began to build to the roof of the city, and when they reached it, the sounds of screaming beneath them grew quiet.

They slowly made their way to the surface, and when they finally broke through the ground they were met with the sun. The warmth on their skin was much better than the cold touch of the broken city. Impulse laid onto the ground, making Etho laugh loudly as he plopped down right by him. He laughed too, relieved that they were both safe.

They laid for a while, just taking in the sounds around them and the warmth that covered them both. And when they finally sat up and stood, they made their trek to the house. Etho stuck by him, never too far away from him. He now walked differently than he did underground, though, much more relaxed. It brought a smile to Impulse’s face. When they saw the house upon them, Etho stopped, grabbing onto Impulse’s arm one again. This time, he looked directly through him as he spoke, “I’m going to go talk to Joel. But, I don’t know if I’ll be coming back over here today. I know Bdubs’, so be careful, don’t let him trick you into anything too devious. He may be sweet right now but he's going to turn. If he hasn’t already that is.” He gave Impulse a knowing look, lightly squeezing Impulse’s arm.

Impulse widened his eyes at Etho, caught off guard, “Wait, you seemed okay with staying earlier, what changed?”

“You are a horrible liar, Impulse. But, so is Bdubs” Impulse sighed in defeat, rubbing his temple with his hand. “I mean it though, be careful around him. Take it from me, I was his partner last season. He is super loyal but he causes a lot of problems that lead to people getting hurt. I care for you both, but you can at least stop some of his plans.”

“You care for me?” Try as Impulse might, he couldn’t let the deep sorrow sound his words gave as he spoke. Both of Etho’s hands went for his own, and he held tightly onto them. Impulse felt like his heart was going to implode in himself.

Etho blushed deeply, unable to hide it even under his mask, “Well, yeah, of course I do. You did protect me after all. And you know, all the other mushy stuff. That’s besides the point, just be careful is all.”

“I thought you liked Bdubs though” Impulse looked over to the house, but didn’t see his soulmate. Etho sighed, making him look at the other again.

“I do. Both of you. But now isn’t the time for it. Joel is my soulbound of this world and Bdubs is your soulmate too. A death game doesn’t sound like the best place to learn about new feelings either” Etho let go of his hands, and looked to the sun, now setting over the hill. Impulse looked too, but was caught up in Etho’s words.

“New feelings? Wait, last week, when you asked if we were actually a happy couple. I thought you were angry that Bdubs wasn’t your soulmate” Impulse looked to Etho. Etho shrugged his shoulders, “Not really. Come on, it’s me of all people, I just like to make problems”

Impulse sighed as he shook his head, “What is it with me being in love with people who cause problems on purpose.” Right after he realized what he said and covered his mouth. Etho laughed brightly, leaning onto him as he laughed harder. Impulse let out a groan as he felt his entire face glow red with embarrassment. After a moment, Etho stopped laughing and took Impulse’s face into his hands. Impulse could tell that he was smiling though, which relieved him.

“Aww, how sweet of you. I really do have to leave though. Maybe, once this is all over, you, Bdubs, and myself can talk about us” Impulse hummed slightly before nodding his head. Etho let go of his face, but pushed his forehead against him. Impulse felt soft as he leaned against the other, letting himself feel content in the moment. They took a deep breath together before pulling apart.

Finally, Etho moved away, “thanks for the help with the enchantments though. I’m never going back down there again though”

Impulse laughed loudly at that, lightly tearing up to it. Etho snickered before he started to walk away though, waving to him. Impulse waved back before turning back to his home. He sighed as he walked to the house, still unsure if Bdubs was there or not. When he got to the door, he could hear his other muttering to himself.

Impulse pushed open the door, yelled out, making the other jump, “Honey, I’m home!”

Bdubs turned to him, and smiled. He came up to him and pulled him into a hug, “You made it!”

Impulse spun the other around, taking in the laughter he made, “I did! Sorry I didn’t get you a set of enchanted gear, I was going to make it but then we ran into some.. problems”

“Don’t worry about it. We are tied together, anything you receive, I receive” Impulse put Bdubs down, still slightly concerned for his partner. Bdubs let out a huff, “I’m fine, I’m all geared up anyway. We can go down there anytime anyway. Don’t worry your pretty little head with that.”

Bdubs did look to the door though before turning to look at Impulse, “What happened to Etho, though. I thought you two were getting along fantastically?”

Impulse blushed slightly, before he slumped his shoulders, “We were, but Etho said he wanted to go talk to Joel. Also he said that you are a bad liar.”

Bdubs let out a dramatic gasp before huffing loudly, “What a pain he is! We’ll win him eventually though. He can’t beat our lovable charm!”

“I don’t think he will, B” Impulse grabbed Bdubs’ hand, “He seemed rather, how do I say this nicely. Um, he seemed rather disinterested in working with you again because of last season though. Said he still cared for you though!”

Bdubs let out a sigh, burrowing into Impulse’s chest, letting the other wrap him into a light hug. He muttered incoherently to himself before pulling away slightly to look up to Impulse, with a smile.

“We’ll catch him next time, whether he’d like to or not, maybe we’ll have to drag Joel along too, maybe even form an alliance with them” Bdubs began to scheme out loud to him before stopping all together and pushing himself back into Impulse. Impulse lightly laughed, smiling down to his counterpart.

“Also, he mentioned how all three of us should talk about us after the series” Bdubs made a confused face before it lit up brightly, letting out joyous sounds. Impulse laughed, feeling his face heat up again from just the thought of the three of them together. Bdubs grabbed onto his face and kissed him.

“We’ll just have to work extra hard to show Etho that we are worthy partners!”

They smiled at one another, feeling the other’s love flowing through them, and hopefully soon, the third will feel the love too.

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