Chapter Text
The sun was shining high in the sky, casting a warm glow across the playground. Grian was sitting on a swing, his legs stretched out as far as they could go. He closed his eyes and leaned back, feeling the gentle breeze of the summer air against his face as he swung back and forth.
He heard a voice calling out. "Sorry, I'm late!" Grian opened his eyes to see Mumbo running towards the swingset on the mulch. Scar, who was already on the swing next to Grian's, kicked forward and jumped off. "What took you so long!" Scar yelled, shaking Mumbo by the shoulders.
Grian savored the serene moment, shutting his eyes once more in an attempt to block out the bickering of his two friends. He honed in on the delicate caress of the wind against his face, relishing the gentle warmth of the sun's rays as they bathed his skin in golden light.
“G, are you coming?” Scar shouted from across the playground, interrupting Grian's peaceful thoughts. With a grin on his face, Grian leaped off the swing and sprinted across the playground towards Scar. Scar quickly took hold of Grian's hand and began leading him towards the duck pond, with Mumbo chasing after them.
The boys run across a small bridge leading towards the pond at the edge of the park, Grian holds Scar’s hand so he doesn’t fall as they walk across the rocks lining the pond so they can get to the small pipe hidden by the trees.
Grian kicks a small rock into the pond while they wait for Mumbo to catch up. Scar, standing next to him, chimes in, "Hurry up Mumbo, you're too slow. Speaking of being slow, why were you so late today? It was so annoying having to wait for you." Mumbo hits Scar on the back of the head, and walks in front of the two boys, dragging his feet across the dirt.
"I had an interview for the hero program," Mumbo mumbles.
Grian looks up, "Mumbo, I thought you said you weren't gonna do that?"
Mumbo stops walking and turns around to look at Grian. "This is why I didn't want to tell you, Grian."
"And what is that supposed to mean?" The strawberry blonde asks.
"Being a hero is all I've ever wanted to be, and every time I bring it up you always say something like that," Mumbo says, kicking the dirt and sighing.
Scar grabs Grian’s shoulder before he can respond. "G, you know he doesn't actually mean it."
Grian brushes Scar's hand off his shoulder. "Shut up, Scar."
"Let's go. We don't have time for stupid arguments. We can talk about this later," Grian says, taking a step forward towards Mumbo.
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Scar grabs a slice of bread from his bag and hands Mumbo a piece. "Grian is just worried, that's all," Scar says.
Mumbo looks around to make sure Grian’s still sitting under the tree where they set their stuff. "Well, he’s not worried about you wanting to be a hero, is he?"
"I'm kind of worried too, Mumbo. You’re not a very strong person, you're a beanpole," Scar laughs to try and lighten the mood. "I hope you get in though. I know you can do it, but I’m still worried."
Mumbo throws a bit of bread to the ducks. "You both sound like my mom."
"At least you know you have friends who care," Grian says as he leans over Mumbo's shoulder.
Mumbo jumps at the voice behind him. "When did you get there?" he yells. Grian laughs and sits down next to the two boys.
From the other side of the tree line, a yell echoes through the air. "Are those kids not here today?" The sudden sound startles Grian, who taps Mumbo and Scar's shoulders to get their attention. Scar turns to look at him, but Grian puts a finger over his mouth, signaling for them to get down. "What is it, G?" Scar whispers. "Is that who I think it is?"
Mumbo whispers behind Scar, "Yes, now shut up or they'll hear us." The three friends huddle together, trying to make themselves as small as possible. They hear a group of high schoolers approaching, shouting and looking around. Mumbo ducks down even further, hoping to blend in with the dirt ( Spoiler he can’t blend in with dirt) and leaves around him.
"I think they're over there behind that bush!" one of the high schoolers yells, and the group starts moving closer. Grian whispers urgently to his friends, "Shit, they found us." Suddenly, they hear rustling from in front of the bush, and laughter fills the air.
"Look what we've got here!" one of the high schoolers shouts
“Leave us alone” Scar yells at the high schoolers
“Yeah, what he said” Grian scoffs.
One of the highschoolers grabs Grian and drags him from behind the bush “I don’t like your attitude” he says while dragging Grian, two other guys grab Mumbo and Scar and pull them towards Grian “Why are you always messing with us every day, it's getting annoying” Grian mumbles, the boy who was holding Grian lets go of him and slaps him across the face making Grian stumble backward, the teen hits him again and he falls to the ground holding his cheek. “STOP!” Mumbo yells and pulls out of the teen holding him grasp and runs in front of Grian “Leave him alone!” Mumbo yells at the older boy in front of him “Look who’s playing hero today”.
One of the high schoolers, a tall and muscular boy with a sneer on his face, grabs Grian and drags him from behind the bush. The boy's grip on Grian's arm is tight and rough, causing Grian to wince in pain. "I don't like your attitude," he sneers, his breath reeking of anger and aggression. Two other boys, equally as large and intimidating, grab Mumbo and Scar and pull them towards Grian. The three bullies form a semi-circle around the smaller boys, blocking their escape routes. Grian yells back at the bullies, "Why are you always messing with us every day? It's getting annoying!" The leader of the group lets go of Grian and raises his hand, his palm smacks across Grian's face with a resounding crack. Grian's head snaps back, and he stumbles backward from the force of the blow. The teen hits him again, and Grian falls to the ground, cupping his hands over his bloodied cheek. "STOP!" Mumbo yells, his voice trembling with fear and anger. He pulls out of the grasp of the bully holding him and rushes to stand in front of Grian, trying to protect his fallen friend. "Leave him alone!" Mumbo yells, his eyes flashing at the bully. "Look who's playing hero today!" the bully sneers, his eyes narrowing menacingly. The situation hung in the air for what felt like forever before anybody moved.
Mumbo runs forward and punches the teen in the face.
He grabs Grian and Scar and starts running away from the high schoolers.
“What the fuck Mumbo!” Grian yells while running after Mumbo and Scar, “That was awesome Mumbo!” Scar yells.
Mumbo runs forward as fast as he can, his fist flying through the air and connecting with a satisfying thud against the teen's nose. As the teen staggers backward, Mumbo grabs Grian and Scar and makes a beeline for escape, dragging his friends along as they dart away from the group of high schoolers. "What the fuck, Mumbo!" Grian exclaims, his voice a mix of shock and awe. "That was AWESOME, Mumbo!" Scar adds, his excitement barely contained as they race to safety.
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Mumbo, breathing heavily, leans against a tree trunk. Scar lies flat on his back, staring up at the sky.
"Mumbo, what was that back there?!" Grian says sounding irritated
"It was Awesome, wasn’t it!" Scar exclaims, seemingly not bothered by what just happened.
"It was stupid, Mumbo. What were you thinking?" Mumbo can tell Grian is irritated
The ravenette lets out a deep sigh, "I'm sorry, Grian, but they hurt you. I couldn't just stand there and watch."
"Mumbo, what you did was reckless. They could have seriously hurt you!"
"Grian, they hurt you!"
"I don't need you to protect me, Mumbo. You need to worry about yourself!"
Mumbo huffs and gathers himself up, walking towards his friend. "I'm sorry," he says, looking at Grian. Grian smiles, about to express his gratitude, but Mumbo cuts him off mid-sentence. "But I don't regret what I did. They had it coming, and you were being reckless too."
“You’re such a spoon Mumbo” Grian laughs and lightly punches Mumbo’s shoulder
“Guys it's starting to get dark we should probably head home now” Scar interrupts the boys.
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The three boys stop in front of Mumbo’s house, Scar and Grian bid farewell to Mumbo before continuing their journeys home.
Grian and Scar walked side by side down the street, their hands shoved deep into their pockets to protect them from the chill in the summer night air. The sky was overcast, and the scent of freshly cut grass lingered in the air. They walked in silence for a while, enjoying the peacefulness of the summer night.
After a few minutes, Scar broke the silence. "Hey, G, did you hear the news about the new game that's coming out next week?"
Grian looked up at Scar, intrigued. "No, what game?"
Scar grinned. "It's called 'Minecraft Dungeons'. It's supposed to be like a dungeon crawler game set in the Minecraft universe. I'm thinking of getting it when it comes out."
Grian raised an eyebrow. "Really? I thought you were more into Hello Kitty cafe type games"
Scar laughed. "I like all kinds of games. Plus, I've been playing Minecraft for years. It'll be cool to see a new take on the game."
Grian nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I can see that. I might have to check it out too."
They continued walking, chatting about the game and other things that came to mind. As they turned the corner, they saw a group of kids huddled together, laughing and joking around.
Scar nudged Grian. "Hey, check it out. Those kids remind me of us when we were their age."
Grian chuckled. "They only look a year or two younger than us Scar"
Scar grinned. "We’re still older!"
The two boys approached the point in the walk where they must bid farewells. “Well, this is where I must leave you birdie” Scar bows and holds Grian’s hand as if he's from the Victorian era bidding adieu to a fair maiden. Grian slightly exasperated by Scar’s theatrics, rolls his eyes and embraces Scar before walking down the opposite path. As he walks away, he waves goodbye to Scar yelling “See you tomorrow” to the brunette
Grian walks down the sidewalk of his road and hums to some song he heard Mumbo listening to yesterday, he looks up at the stars as he walks taking in the sight he breathes in the chill air of the summer night.
He listens to the sound of the cicadas as he walks down the street. SNAP
Grian stops walking and stands still in the dimly lit streets trying to see where the noise is coming from. SNAP
He can’t shake the feeling that someone is following him. He glances over his shoulder but sees nothing out of the ordinary. Yet, the prickling sensation persisted. His heart began to race as He started to walk again picking up his pace, his eyes darting back and forth for any sign of danger.
Grian's ears perk up as he hears a sound that sends shivers down his spine. Suddenly, he feels a frigid hand wrap around his neck and hears a shallow breath right behind him. His heart races and his breaths quicken as the grip on his neck tightens. With all his might, Grian attempts to pull the stranger's hand off of him, but the grip only strengthens.
He’s gasping for breath as the hand on his neck only gets tighter and tighter…
The world around Grian began to blur as if he were peering through a hazy, distorted lens. The pressure on his neck intensified, constricting his airways with a merciless grip. His vision dimmed, and he felt a numbing chill creeping up his spine. The stars that had once danced above in celestial splendor now flickered and waned, distant and unreachable.
Every frantic gasp for air seemed to echo in the emptiness, a desperate plea for help that remained unanswered. His pulse, once a steady drumbeat of life, faltered, the rhythm growing erratic like a fading melody. With each passing moment, the world receded, and the abyss of unconsciousness beckoned, its cold embrace waiting to envelop him.
In those final moments of consciousness, Grian clung to a fragile thread of awareness, the remnants of his willpower flickering like a candle in the wind. The night whispered its secrets to him, and the grip on his throat persisted, unyielding. His existence teetered on the precipice, the boundary between the known and the unknown, the living and the unknowable void.
He became fully engulfed by unconsciousness.