Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

One of the best things in life is realising you’re perfectly happy without the things you thought you needed the most. And it’s not the absence of problems, it’s the ability to deal with them that brings that happiness.

When Luci was a child, she remembered the happy days the most. Of how Mother would dance with her in the fields and through the flowers. Of how Mother would hold her as they soared through the skies and across the town they called home.

But Mother hadn’t gone flying in many years, not since Mother’s second death, and not since Luci’s eighth birthday. And Father hadn’t been in the picture since she was five.

That was before she grew old enough to understand hardship.

When Luci was ten, she remembered when it started.

She remembered the day they came. 

Her Mother paused her alchemy work and snapped her leather book shut. “Luci. Come inside.” Mother spoke sharply, almost demandingly so as she ushered Luci inside. “Stay inside.” 

Peering from the window of Mother’s potion shop, the ten-year-old gripped the spruce frame as she watched. Three men, dressed in uniforms and armour, spoke to Mother outside. Their blades shone in the afternoon light that always bathed the Marina.

Luci had been told never to talk to others. Hybrids weren’t common, Birdfolk even less so. She let loose a yelp as a hand grasped her shoulder. She spun on her heels, glaring at the perpetrator. “Owl!”

“What? I wanted to see it too.” Owl chuckled, elbowing her lightly in the side. The young boy clambered up the ledge beside her. “What’s going on?”

“Mother told me to stay inside.”

“Are they human or hybrid?” Owl tilted his head to the side, questioningly. 

Owl, like Luci and Mother, was a birdfolk, the very same age as her as well. He always wore the colourful bird mask, smudges of orange and red under his eyes. 

When Luci had asked him when they were younger, his only response was that he thought it looked cool before listing off the benefits of owl skulls and their shapes.

“I think humans.” 

“Humans? Are they from D.I.R.T? Or from the Crimson?” He squinted, leaning forward. 

Luci’s eyes wandered towards the blue flag hanging just outside the window, flapping in the wind beside the Marina’s flag. “I dunno. But either isn’t that great. Mother said D.I.R.T’s been putting a lot of pressure on her business since the incident with Stonebrick.”

“I remember that. Is that Mayor Terrence?” Owl pointed a finger at the new arrival, the infamous mayor standing beside the men. 

Mother became more animated, her battered wings flaring behind her. She turned towards Luci, a mix of emotion in her eyes. 

Later in life, Luci would discover what had really occurred during that conversation between Mother and those men. She would learn of the threats and the rage and the bargaining that her Mother tried to do to prevent what would occur two days later.

Two days later, Luci was helping Mother pack her shulker box. Mother hadn’t told her why, only that she needed to do so. 

Flags and books and valuables were packed, the tiny decks of cards filling up the box so quickly. 

Outside, Owl was packing his own shulker, his shabby little fish shop battling against the wind as he packed his stock away.

“Mother?”

“Yes, Luci?” Mother glanced up at her, shaken and panicked over something that ten-year-old Luci couldn’t comprehend.

“Are we leaving?”

Mother didn’t respond straight away, her voice hesitant and shaky. “Luc, we… we need to leave. The Marina isn’t safe anymore. Not for us.”

“Is Owl coming with us?”

“Yes… yes he is.” Mother was brief, so very brief. 

Luci remembered the days before Mother’s final death more vividly than anything. She remembered how sullen she had been, the day spent packing their belongings and gathering their horses. 

And she remembered how it happened.

The day before they were to leave, on a calm yet chilly day. Luci was standing outside beside Owl’s familiar fish shop, leaning against the wooden counter as they played a game with stones. 

And then the explosions began, raining from the sky. Owl grasped her close, pulling her to the sandy beach as rubble fell on top of the fish shop. 

They fell into the ocean when the explosions struck again. 

Saltwater filled her lungs as she gasped for air, the surging sea trying to swallow her. Scrambling to shore, her wings hung behind her.

It was utter pandemonium. She could hear the screams of people, her own home falling to the chaos. The water that sat in the centre of the Marina washed over them, pushing both her and Owl back into the sea. 

And then she saw Mother, running as she held onto another child in her arms, fear on her face. A large gash on her forehead caused blood to flow down her cheek, mingling with the saltwater and tears. “Luci!” Mother screamed, running towards her after passing the child to another resident nearby. 

“Mother!” Luci moved forward, scrambling through the sand and the sea.

And then the third explosion rocked the earth.

It happened in a moment, a single moment that changed everything.

Luci saw her Mother, running as TNT exploded beside her. Mother’s comm skidded along the ground, cracked as a message appeared in chat. Her items followed suit, landing onto the sand, blocks away from Luci.

Lucy blew up.

The world came crumbling down, Luci screaming, desperately trying to claw her way forward. Owl came up behind her, holding her back as the explosions became nothing but background noise. 

Screaming, and crying and pounding against Owl’s embrace. Luci wailed and sobbed.

At ten years old, she had lost her Mother to a war that was only beginning.

Chapter Text

Luci had almost always kept a diary, just like Mother. That day, the day she would eventually label as the ‘Catalyst’, Luci picked through the rubble. Bodies had been buried and Father Dan, the leader of the local church, headed the repairs.

Father Dan was an interesting and peculiar man. Despite his status as a member of the Crimson, Father Dan had been somewhat accepting of the orphans and homeless that came from the Catalyst. 

His church, which once stood proudly atop the hill, had been somewhat destroyed, leaving exposed beams and sky in the cobblestone. 

Luci was a Blue, and despite that, Father Dan let her stay in the ruins of the church, helping them both shift through the rubble. 

The first thing Luci recovered was Mother’s potion book. An old family heirloom that had been passed down for generations. It lay, buried beside Mother’s corpse. The pages, stained with blood, was all she could recover. 

Notes slipped out, tucked away at the back of the book for safe-keeping. Pressed flowers and leaves accompanied it. 

They were notes, a letter, from a friend of her Mother’s that would later become a great ally but at the same time, a great enemy. It was a letter, addressed long before Luci had even been born. 

A letter about revolution and of safety, the promise of a new day. Reassurance that it would be okay, that the war they had been fighting was not just for them, but for their future. 

The Great Revolution had happened years before Luci had been born, before the Marina had become what it was. 

It was in this battle, Mother had lost her first life. She had told Luci of the incident, a haunting look on her face as she did so. “I lost my first life fighting in a war, Luci.” Mother had told her, shifting through the first-aid kit to find bandages. 

She pressed a bandage against Luci’s cheek, stifling a laugh at her daughter’s reaction. “We were revolutionists, fighting against people who wanted to drive us from our country. I lost my first life fighting, in battle. I was splashed with a potion of my own making, defending my friends against the enemy.”

She showed Luci the tattooed marks on her wrist, a single dull heart beside two bright red ones.

Luci would later learn that Mother had not died that way, rather, on one of the grimmest nights of the war, Mother had brewed a deadly potion and drank in a fit of depression. 

When the next morning broke, it was a cold one. So dreary and cold, that rain fell from the sky, leaking through the holes in the church. 

It was that morning when she met Comet. 

Comet was an interesting person to say the least, a being of stardust and void, a hybrid of some kind. When Luci awoke that morning, she saw him, staring in the doorway of the church, the heavy spruce door open and letting sunlight flow through. He was staring outside, at the ruins of the Marina, silent and contemplative. 

“Who are you?” She had asked, a very dumb question as he turned towards her, startled. Comet bolted, and so did she. She chased after him, dodging and weaving through rubble and trees alike. 

Luci’s comm buzzed, distracting her for a moment as she pushed through overgrown bushes, stepping over weeds that had overtaken the unused path.

Her communicator, an object larger than her hands, was something she treasured. Everyone had one, if they used it often or not was the real question. 

Luci’s was smudge with potions, like Mother’s had, and faintly smelt of marigolds. Owl said it smelt of straw, overwhelmingly so. She had little stickers and charms, one of Mother’s feathers dangling off of it.

Comet still stood where he was, staring at the Arena this time. A place of war and fighting. 

Luci had seen fights once before, with Mother as people and hybrids alike fought one another. It was in the Arena that Mother had lost her second life, a tragic accident. An utterly tragic accident. 

Luci had witnessed it.

Despite being an eight-year-old, Luci attended all of Mother’s matches, peering over the wooden rails as people fought. Blades clashed, iron against iron echoing in the air. Mother spun on her heels, an iron axe in one hand and a shield in the other. 

It was a performance, a dance of wits and skill. 

Mother’s wings flared behind her like a cloak, as black as night and just as ominous. 

Owl cheered with her, his tiny wings flaring behind him. Luci remembered the feeling in the air, the zealous apprehension overriding any probable fear the audience could have. 

The blade swiped upwards, striking Mother in the wing. The crowd cheered. Blood splattered onto the ground, but the cuts were merely superficial, at least that's what the crowd thought.

Mother steered herself, wings hanging slightly crooked. She took to the air, stirring up dust behind her. And then the blade struck her. 

A dagger, a tiny thing, flew through the air. It struck Mother in the throat. 

Luci screamed as the audience laughed. She fell from the sky, landing on her side with a broken-splitting crack. The blades were meant to be blunt but the blood pooling under her gasping Mother said otherwise.

Luci watched as a man jumped into the ring and ran towards Mother. He lifted her up, her wing now horribly crooked. 

Birdfolk had incredibly fragile bones, a strike to them could be fatal for them.

The Arena hadn’t been used since then.

Chapter Text

Comet and I built a house. We used to do that a lot when I was younger. We're rather close.

I don't know if the others see him or not.

He'll always be my best friend.

Luci kept a diary, not just to have a permanent reminder of her history, but to remember her mistakes. 

She and Comet had become friends after their first encounter, the strange being appearing every once in and while. 

He never spoke, not loudly. Few words were exchanged when they were younger, building shabby little homes together. Sometimes, Owl would join them, building tiny floating islands where they would sit and watch the clouds together.

Luci always doubted wherever or not the others could see Comet and when Father Dan caught her alone, he spoke to her so hushed, it cemented that doubt further.

“Luci. Are you talking to ghosts? Or perhaps demons?” Father Dan, so concerned with the sickly sweet smile. It was a farce, it always was. It wasn’t as if he truly cared for Luci or the other orphans. They were just a means to an end. For some religious reason or another, they didn’t matter to him.

They weren’t Crimson.

“No, I’m not, Father Dan.” He didn’t like her reaction, scowling as he turned. Luci never knew what he was trying to get from her that day, but he didn’t press her much after that. 

Maybe he realized it would be worthless to try and convince her that demons existed. 

Eight years later, Luci lowered her quill, wiping the smudged ink off of her cheek. It was cold, but not freezing. The snow would come in a few months, the clear mountain air filled her lungs as she sighed. 

Her sweater, a light lavender colour was rolled up at the sleeves. Her overalls were a pale blue and her pocket held her comm. She stood at the edge of the mountain face, the landscape below her unfolding into a spruce forest and then to large plain lands.

“‘ One of the best things in life is realising you’re perfectly happy without the things you thought you needed the most. And it’s not the absence of problems, it’s the ability to deal with them that brings that happiness.’ How eloquent of you.” Owl appeared behind her, looping his arms and peering into the book. 

She snapped the book shut with a smirk. “Shut it, birdbrain. Unlike you, I can write things other than essays.” 

“Heh.” He chuckled lightly, pulling back. 

Owl hadn’t changed much since their childhood. The mask had remained but instead of the ratty t-shirt and shorts he used to wear, he now wore a dress shirt with a pair of trousers and suspenders. His boots were caked with mud and stone dust, a pickaxe resting on his shoulder. His hair was coated with a thin layer of white and black, small specks of diorite visible.

Luci had always been jealous of Owl’s brown hair. It didn’t make him stand out among the forest. It didn’t remind her how much she missed Mother.

Mother used to dye her hair the same purple Luci had. That was, until Father left.

There was a bitter taste in her mouth as Luci rose to her feet, brushing past him as they walked back up to the hill. “So, how’s the mining?” 

“Mining’s good. I do believe I’ve got enough for a set of armour.” 

Luci knelt by the chests at the cusp of the hill, rummaging through it and counting her cards. The sound of iron against iron clattered in the air and she turned to see a group of figures appearing at the mountain edge. 

Snapping the chest shut, Luci spun on her heels towards the new arrivals. “Hello. Welcome to Norway. Our country.” She spoke hesitantly, eyeing the blades. Owl backed up slightly, sharing her concern. 

One walked forward, scoffing before speaking. “This is a country? Seriously?”

“Andy,” Said a man that had haunted her nightmares for years. Ever since the Catalyst. She thought he had died, among the rest. But she was sorely mistaken.

Terrence moved forward, tearing the hinges of the chest open as Andy, the first man, rummaged through. 

“Hold on, this is our land. We-” Luci protested but was shoved back by a third she eerily recognised. He smiled. Father Dan crossed his arms, shaking his head. 

“Hybrids like you don’t deserve to have land.” Dan’s words felt like a dagger to her heart, and he twisted it further when he spoke again. “Cross us and we will hunt you down like the vermin you are.”

“So you’ve allied yourself with Terrence? How long has it been since we last talked? Four years? Five?” She snarled, watching as Andy took item after item. Owl didn’t say anything, watching the blades cautiously. “You condone this now? Aren’t you a man of God?”

Dan didn’t say anything, bitterly turning away.

Staring at them, from across the snow, hidden just from sight was another hybrid. His ears perked, twitching as he did so. He vanished from sight just as quickly as he appeared.

“Nothing personal, Luc. Things don’t go as planned, now they do?” Terrence smiled, so sickly sweet and so easily faked. 

They left just before the sun set. 

Luci screamed and shouted in frustration, kicking up snow and stone as she did so. Five years, she hadn’t seen any of them for five fucking years and this is how they re-enter her life. 

The quill wavered under her grasp, dots of ink splattering onto the page. “ ‘We were pillaged by some folk from a nearby village. They don't like hybrids it seems.’ ” She spoke as she wrote. 

And then, out of the corner of her eye, she saw him again. Carrying a bundle of wood. He cautiously approached her, hesitation in his steps. “Hello.”

“Hello.” She responded, just as apprehensive. “I’m Luci.”

“I’m Tomothy, but my friends call me Tommy. Are you…?” He pointed a clawed finger towards her wings. He lowered his voice, so quiet it was almost hushed. “ A hybrid ?”

She nodded with a sigh, rolling her eyes as his eyes lit up. He dropped what he was doing and ran over, grasping onto her wings with keen interest. 

“I’ve never seen a bird hybrid before. Are you new? How old are you? Do you have any powers? Can you fly with these?” He rattled off, excited. “Hold on, I saw those men near you earlier. They don’t like hybrids, like at all.” 

A murder of crows flew overhead, shadowing the sun for a moment. Tommy shared an anxious glance with her. “I know where you can be safe.” He smiled shakily before ushering her down the hill.

They clamoured over rocks, Luci’s boots scraping against the stone. Hidden in the cliff-face, on a small plateau was a door. Two doors, actually. Nestled here was Tomothy’s home. He opened the oak door and rushing her inside as hooves clashed against the earth, rattling the ceiling. 

“I saw the birds. The birds only fly off when it rains or if the villagers come by.”

With a heavy sigh, Luci leant against the wall, her wings folding around her. The furnace nearby crackled with fire, more doors lining the walls and a tunnel heading downwards to what she could only presume was a mine as Owl emerged from it, carrying some iron. 

“Oh.” He said, shrugging as he inserted the material into the furnace. “So you met Tommy?”

“Uh-huh.”

The home was small, but snug.

Luci found herself grasping her quill again, the item dancing across the page. Owl sat down beside her, nesting into her feathers. 

A small fox creature named Tommy took us in for refuge. The villagers are hunting us being hybrids but for what other reason?

Chapter Text

They watch us. No matter what we do. No matter where we hide.

We left Norway in hope that we can build a new home far from cruel people like them.

Comet cares a lot, I can sense it. It worries him, I think, to see me so upset.

Comet had emerged from his hidey-hole the day after Luci met Tommy. His wreath of flowers shifted colour as he peered through her feathers. He was silent, quiet to the point it was slightly unnerving. 

They sat in a ravine beneath Norway, months after abandoning the mountaintop, leaning against chests as the cold and stuffy air of the cave filled their lungs. It would be winter soon, and soon it would be too late to begin planting crops, let alone harvest anything.

Bitterness was a feeling she was beginning to become accompanied to. They were hunting her, her specifically. 

Birdfolk came in two types, magically inclined or athletically inclined. Whereas Owl had a much better knack at flight and physical activity, Luci excelled in potion making and enchantments. Her feathers alone could weave together to create strong feather falling enchantments. There was no saying what her blood could do. 

That made her a worthy prize to sell to poachers and hunters.

But Luci couldn’t make potions, not anymore. There was no reliable way to obtain potion ingredients, not without risking her life. 

And Comet and Owl wouldn’t have that. While Owl stayed on the surface, tending to what few crops they had, Luci stayed put. 

Mother’s book sat on her lap, her hands running across the leather cover. The pages were so worn, some pages even missing parchment. Her eyes lingered on the front page, the faded ink staring back up at her. ‘Marigold Family Alchemy Archive. Property of Molly Rose Lillian Lucy Luci.’ 

She had crossed out her Mother’s name long ago when she was a child. She remembered it, faintly.

“Mother. I’m going to have this book one day, right?” Luci, five years of age said, peering over the cauldron at her Mother. 

Mother smiled, nodding. She flipped to the first page. She tapped the names at the bottom of the page, a smile on her face. “Each name is a previous family member. From my great-grandmother to my mother. Each of us have crossed out the name before and written our own.” 

Mother lifted a quill, dipping it into ink before pressing it again the page. “And even though it might be decades until you inherit this book, it’ll always be yours, Luc.”

And she crossed out her name, writing Luci’s beside her own.

Luci was crying before she knew it, shutting the book closed before they splattered against the pages.

Tomothy clambered down the ladder in a panic, his fur on end. “Comet! Luci! They found us!” 

Comet jerked upwards, sword already in hand. Cautiously, they made their way up the ladder, the sound of digging echoing above them. Comet held a finger up to his lips, shushing them. 

Slowly and methodically, he pulled a lever, the loud sound of rocks tumbling echoing above. Andy’s voice sounded as well. “What the fuck-Come out, you cowards!”

That was when Luci witnessed Comet take a life. He drew his blade upwards, in a spear-like motion. 

She could hear Andy’s gurgled cries, a loud thump as he collapsed on the ground.

Luci had never taken a life by her own hands but she had witnessed it before. She had seen her Mothers and even the execution of some people.

Comet’s blade withdrew from the dirt, dragging blood down with it. 

It was in that moment, she began to grow terrified of Comet. 

They left the ravine that night, gathering their things. Luci said a final goodbye to Owl before they vanished into the plains.

The nights grew tougher, harder as the damp walls surrounded them crumbled slightly. Comet would spend days at a time, wandering and gathering supplies. 

And then Tommy raided the village. He stole iron and gear, holding them like a little gremlin as he ran across the moor. He was splattered with blood and another animal’s fur, a wild grin on his face.

Those actions only brought Luci more strife. 

They relocated again, carrying what little they had. 

I'm so tired. Comet went and did a lot of mining and hunting for food and gear.

I want to return to the mountain. I want to return to my home and to Owl.

I know Comet wants to stay here, but I feel that if we don't stay together, we might not live to see another dawn. 

I don't think I want to leave him behind either.

Beneath a great dark oak forest, Luci’s quill hovered over the page. 

It was late spring now, the rain pelting against the river outside. In her tiny hidey-hole, Luci’s hand wandered to pat her new pets. Blueberry the dog tilted his head, a lob-sided smile on his face. Her cats, Koolaid and Caramel were elsewhere, perhaps sleeping by the crackling furnace upstairs. 

Luci treasured those moments the most, the calm and quiet ones. Well, she used to before the voices crept in. 

For most of her life, Luci had heard voices in her head, twisting and whispering in her ears.

But it was only after she fled from Norway, did they let their presence become so much more known. Both Comet and Owl chalked it up to her stress, but deep down, Luci knew there was something eerie about the way they spoke. 

They never encouraged her to do terrible things, merely just another friend giving her advice to speaking about good things. Sometimes, they’d tell her stories or remind her how to properly brew a potion. 

It was the little things that made her enjoy the company of the voices.

Her stomach grumbled, hunger gnawing at her like a rabid wolf. Food was so scarce these days, the frost-bitten winter stealing most of the crops away before the harvest could be made.

Luci moved to split a loaf in half, taking a bite. Comet hadn’t returned since he left yesterday.

It was quiet, so quiet. 

The voices were so loud, blaring in her ears like an alarm. “Leave me alone!” She screamed, tossing her dairy aside as her wings flared behind her. 

But they wouldn’t leave her alone, screaming and shouting how useless she was. 

How could she stay here and not reclaim her land? How could she let herself get exile from her own country? How could she sit here doing nothing?! 

“Why am I so useless ?!” Luci fell to the floor, her clawed hands gripped her face. Droplets of blood fell onto the dark oak floor, splattering as more fell. Glancing up at a nearby mirror, Luci saw the marks.

A trio of scratch marks. 

A hysterical laugh echoed out of her as she raised her hand again. More blood flowed the deeper she dug her claws, tearing three gashes through her face. 

Soon, her whole hand was drenched with blood and she giggled, laughing at her hysterical reflection.

It felt so good but seemed so wrong at that moment. Maybe because, for the first time, it had been herself that harmed her. 

Chapter Text

We were raided and I fled. I don't know where Comet vanished of to, but he's been acting odd recently.

I've returned to the mountain and begun construction on Norway which we renamed Beetopia. 

Luci shifted the snow off her newly built roof, the frozen liquid landing on the ground with a squelch. Her hands adjusted her cloak, the fur-lined cloth draped over her frame. Her hair was tied up in a bun, displaying the trio of scars across her face. 

Owl never questioned where she got them. 

He was down in what once was Tommy’s home, the other hybrid having vanished off to another new country, called Mexico. It was far, distant apparently. 

Norway wasn’t Norway anymore. It was Beetopia.

It had been a peaceful few weeks, Luci mid-way through a potato farm before the cold gripped them in it’s maw and refused to let go.

And when Terrence returned, Andy occupied him. Forcing her into her own basement, they paced back and forth as Andy held a knife to the throat of her dog. 

They were using her beloved pets as leverage. “What do you want?” Luci questioned, hands gripped tightly on her stone axe as she watched. 

The air was tense, her wings brushing against the floor as she hesitated moving forward. They didn’t say anything until the door burst open and a man she had barely been acquainted with stood there. 

Earl rapped his fingers against the door, his voice hushed. “You killed my dog, Luci.”

“It was an accident, Earl. I swear it.” Luci inhaled sharply, raising her head as she spoke. It had been, purely accidental.

“And you killed Andy’s pets.” 

That made her pause, confusion fluttering across her face. “What?”

“You heard what he said!” Terrance snapped.

“No. I never-I-” Luci paused, readjusting her grip. “It was Tommy, not me, Terrance. NO!” 

She moved too slow, the axe already falling towards her dog. Blueberry whimpered, his breath wheezing out, raspy and thin. She clutched his head, the blood pooling beneath them. “Hey bud, it’ll be okay.” She was shaking, her tears rolling down her cheeks. “It’ll-It’ll-”

Blueberry wasn’t moving. Blueberry wasn’t moving .

And then they struck again, striking her cat this time. Koolaid fell to the ground with a yowl, hissing and fighting against the blows as Andy reared his sword, striking again.

Caramel, her other cat, darted under Luci’s wings, puffing up in fear. Luci couldn’t confort her cat, fighting back every urge to murder the men in front of her. 

They left after that, leaving Luci even more broken.

She fell to her knees, sobbing and crying as she cradled the bodies of her dead pets. The world fell, her reality falling with it. 

Luci’s world spun, flipping over itself and summersaulting at the same time. She fell back, gripping the matted fur as she felt a deadly cocktail of emotions bubbling to the surface. 

Blueberry.

Koolaid.

Her pets. Her children.

She didn’t know when she had been moved outside, Owl now beside her. Her brother was a blur, his cloak so bright against the ashen colour of the sky. It was cold, so cold as they sat there.

Arms embraced her, grounding her for a moment. 

They were on the floor, Owl kneeling as he wrapped his arms around her. 

They were on the floor, and Luci was crying. She was crying, guttural sobs overlapping with the wind.

“Luci, deep breaths okay?” Her brother muttered, desperately holding onto her.

“ Owl .” Luci’s voice didn’t sound like her own, so hoarse and broken as she clung to her brother's back. 

“It’ll be okay. It’ll be okay.” Owl sounded distant as he spoke, like he was in a tunnel far away. “Everything will be okay.”

“ Blueberry- ” Luci spluttered, choking on her words. “He-”

“Did they hurt you at all?” Owl ran a gentle hand across Luci’s head, searching for any lacerations. Fingers dancing in desperation, clinging and tugging tightly, only to discover nothing. “Did they do anything to you?”

“ I- ” She felt so small, like she was a child again. “ No .” Her voice didn’t come out as brave as she intended.

Owl didn’t notice the garbled sobs or the way Luci clung even tighter. Her brother’s cloak pooled around them, mixing with her own, as snow began to drift from the sky. 

Their wings entwined, feathers brushing against feathers as her hair slipped from it’s normally tight bun.

“Hey.” She whispered, the tears finally subsiding. “Hey birdbrain.”

“Hey.” He responded, his smile twisting wider. 

“Thank you.”

“No problem.”

Andy, a villager I've seen before, raided my home. 

Blueberry and Koolaid perished. Yet I saved Caramel.

I can't have anything nice anymore, can I?

Owl has gathered enough wood for us to construct a farm and a livestock pen.

Things are looking better, nothing has bothered us for months.

Things returned to some kind of normalcy, the cold days becoming fewer despite the mountain top location.

Luci held onto her newly harvested crops, the ground firm but not frozen beneath her fingers.

Like an artist with a canvas, Luci dove her hands into the dirt, sowing new seeds. Her farm was her pride and joy, a thing she loved as much as anything else. 

Recent news had arrived from Mexico, from Tommy, about how he’s doing and his new friend, Nico. Luci had met the young man, who wore green so much it was sometimes an eyesore.

With a smile on her face, she rose to her feet, brushing dirt away. Lifting a bundle of wood, she turned back towards the mountain top. The icy air filled her lungs, her bare hands resting against the wood. She pulled her gloves back on, the fur of her coat tickling her neck. 

Luci unfurled a piece of parchment, scratching off another thing from the list. Her eyes wander up to our half-finished transport line, tracks hanging loosely around the scaffolding. 

It’ll be finished soon, hopefully. 

Bricks made of stone lay in a loose pile at the foot of the hill, sitting outside Owl’s little hobbit hole of a house. She heard a voice as a figure peaked through the portal. 

Nico stepped through, instantly shivering. He complains, rolling his eyes as he steps down the hill. 

Luci hesitated, biting her lip slightly. He looked different than the last time they had met, his coat patched together with leather.  

Mexico won’t trade with Beetopia, they won’t have it. They’re too loyal to their local economy. 

It would be fine, Luci knows they had more than enough to scrape by. They always had crops growing now, the system working in even the coldest weather. 

Weather they knew too well. 

“Nico, what brings you to Beetopia?” Luci greeted, brushing snow and dirt off of her as she moved towards the man. Her wing tips brushed the snow like a dark cloak over her shoulders. 

“Hmm.” Nico’s fingers drummed against the hilt of his sword as he stared down at the crops below. “Nice farm.”

“Yeah. Best on the server.” Luci narrowed her gaze. “Alright, cut the niceties, why are you here?”

“Just checking in.” With that, Nico vanished through the portal, disappearing in a swirl of nether energy. 

That was the first sign something was going wrong, terribly wrong.

The second being the horse Luci found.

Luci had stumbled upon the horse when searching for carrots in the nearby village. It had been abandoned, long since left.

There were no villagers, no traders. Not even any livestock.

It was empty. 

She treaded carefully, axe in one hand and a shield in the other. And then she saw it. Sitting in a pen, overgrown by weeds with hair so shaggy was a horse. He was sitting in the worn pen, seemingly waiting for someone. There was blood crusting over an arrow, the flint head seemingly so deep. 

It looked fresh.

His armour was scuffed, no longer reflecting the light. She raised a hand towards the horse, carefully approaching the beast. “Hey.” She whispered, fingers digging into the matted tangles. “Hey bud. Where’s your owner?”

The horse didn’t respond, merely staring at her. “Did someone leave you here? I promise I’ll fix your armour for you.”

The horse looked so… broken. So sad. Folding her wings onto her back, Luci lowered herself so she was sitting beside the horse. His breathing was laboured, so raspy.

The horse was going to die. And Luci didn’t have anything to assist, nothing but herself.

“Hey, it's okay, bud. You can rest now, okay?” 

Luci sat there until the horse slipped away, the great animal resting his head against her leg. Carefully, Luci pried the armour off, setting it aside. The saddle followed next.

She carefully withdrew a water bottle, wiping away as much grim and dust as she could with it. She attempted to detangle the hair but it was far too matted and neglected.

Luci then dug a grave. Her hands gripped the shovel, digging deeper and deeper until she could properly bury the poor thing. 

She left a tombstone, hastily carved out of a wooden sign as a herd of horses galloped over. They nudged against her, seemingly understanding somewhat of the loss that had just occurred. 

One lowered her head, resting against Luci’s palm. Luci took that horse home with her, swearing to uphold that promise she made. She never told anyone about that horse, not until the info was pried from her against her will.

I found a horse whilst gathering for food. I took it home.

I still haven't seen Comet. 

It concerns me.

Chapter Text

You know what?

I don't care about those people who helped shape this story somewhat anymore. I want to write this story because I want to and because I can.

And those who want me to shut up and take it down can take a hike.

Try and sue me, I dare you.

If you think that'll stop me for writing my story about my experiences and character, you are sorely mistake.

This is my story to tell.

So fuck you, and your shitty little servers. The only good thing to come out of them was this.

- Lucy.

Chapter Text

Hi,

To anyone reading this story, I'm not going to finish it.

I've moved on.

I wrote this fic to get my anger and feelings out and that's not a healthy way of coping. It just made me angrier.

So I've moved on, left this fic to rot and started writing new character lore for myself.

For those of you who continue to harass and carrying on the drama that happened over a year ago,

Fucking grow up, seriously.

I am done with you people. You were terrible friends and continued to degrade and belittle my mental health when I was in a terrible place. This is in no way excusing my actions either but yours were just as bad.

I hope that one day, you can see what you also did wrong.

To those who enjoyed the story, perhaps read some of my other work, you might enjoy it more than this.

-Lucy Marigold. :3