Archive of Our Own ^beta

If Skeppy was to be brutally honest, he hasn’t spent that much of his life alone.

Born into the lap of luxury he found the benefits of the finest things in life did not balance out the weight of a crown on his head. So, with much negotiation and several hundred years of peace between all relevant kingdoms, Skeppy had been granted a simple life. Stepping down from the throne -or would it just be skipping it completely?- he was happy to let his three most eager sisters take his place as first born and seat of royalty.

And why did he give up all this? Simple.

For freedom.

It took from the ages of eighteen to twenty- four before he was finally granted his complete and utter lack of royal duties. Six long years of work, and effort, and preparations, but he was finally free.

Skeppy's plan for income was simple; move to a place where gems were valuable and then use his innate connection to the earth to collect and sell them to people. Once he scouted an area south of his homeland, Skeppy ha promptly moved into a house with everything he needed, a small farm attached, and lake view out the window. It was exactly what he'd dreamed of.

And then… He met a certain demon down in the village. A one Badboyhalo.

They instantly stuck out, as more elusive species often do. Humans make up about seventy-two percent of the population to start with, and both Nether creatures and gem golems are rarely seen outside their communities.

Skeppy had been on several diplomatic visits to the underworld and interacted various representative nether beings; Blaze folk, Piglin people, Ender beings- especially during pest issues when the magma cube infestations happened a few years back. So he recognised tell-tale signs of a Neatherborn; though he didn't intentionally form any judgement when they first exchanged names and shook hands.

Bad on the other hand, had no qualms about his fascination with Skeppy.

The former prince was absolutely pelted with excited questions when the demon had cornered him at the punch table. Eager guesses as to what he was exactly, when he had got here, if he was new, and where he came from- all poured from the Nether creature.

Skeppy had laughed pleasantly and began to tell his story, bemused by the rapture of the demon.

It would later become clear that Bad had consumed more than a few glasses of spiced punch before having the courage to talk to Skeppy. The way the demon cupped his red flushed cheeks, admired Skeppy from across the table, and after a time- simply gazed rapturously at Skeppy... It honestly made the gem type feel more flattered than he had been at every palace Ball he'd ever attended.

Their relationship had only grown from there.

The following day just as the sun was about to set, a rapid knock on the door had Skeppy turning curiously to the unexpected visitor. Opening it had revealed a plate of the most divine smelling cookies Skeppy thinks he’d ever come across. Behind said plate was a figure hunched with embarrassment, and a quickly increasing ramble that seemed to infer ‘sorry for drunk hitting on you, please take my apology cookies in the hopes it makes up for that behaviour- oh muffins if you never want to see me again I totally understand-’

“Muffins?” Skeppy had interrupted curiously.

There was a stilted nod. “I… Work at the bakery in town- So- I- …Muffins…” Bad had explained sheepishly.

Skeppy had shrugged, taken the plate and leant back against his closed door. “Do you want to go out?” He’d asked casually, picking up a cookie to bite into.

The look on Bad’s face was, quite literally, priceless.

He’d thrown both of his hands out in expressive shock. His face had burned so bright red Skeppy could have felt it from where he was standing. Bad's entire body proceeded to clam up as he curled his tail around his legs, folded his arms, and stammered nonsensically for a good thirty seconds before Skeppy had waved a hand -no doubt spreading cookie crumbs across the porch, as he giggled brightly and told Bad he could say no if he wanted.

“No! UH! No, I don’t want to say no! No as in yes! I’d like to go out! Don’t take my no as a no to that! That’s a yes! I meant no as in I would never say no! I mean, not never, I mean never say never- never say never no? Uh, yeah! I would like. To do that. With you. Go. Out. Yes. Please. Thank you.”

Skeppy rumbled another chuckle through a cookie and gave Bad a smile.

“Okay then. Gimme your communicator.” Skeppy had pushed the door open behind him, tucked the plate onto the entrance table nearby, and pulled his communicator from his back pocket. They swiftly exchanged numbers, and Skeppy spied out of the corner of his eye the tremble to Bad’s fingers as he tapped on Skeppy’s screen. When they bid each other goodbye, Skeppy’s brow lifted as he opened his communicator, and the door shut behind him.

The first thing open was a message conversation open to Badboyhalo (please let me bake more for you it’s my love language also I really like you, you can delete this note okay bye)

Skeppy had saved the message as Bad contact name instead of deleting it, and it took years of convincing for Skeppy to change it.

Fast forward not long, and Skeppy and Bad had moved in comfortably together.

Fast forward again to Bad and Skeppy’s relationship thriving.

Fast forward again- and Skeppy and Bad are so confident they love each other, that they argue until their lungs are sore, and are back together by the end of the day.

Skeppy knows this. Which is why his decision to move out short term feels like it wouldn’t be a big deal.

That’s what he’d thought.

***

“You’re LEAVING ME!” Bad bellows, beside himself with grief at the canoe full of items sitting on the small river flowing through their wood house.

“No, I’m absolutely not, not long term- I just- I have this week off from work you see and I thought I could go on a little vacation-”

“A VACATION?!” Bad bursts out, tears running down his face as he sobs, sat on the wood floor with his knees either side of him. “You’re GOING somewhere, hic, and you DON’T WANT TO TAKE ME WITH YOU?!”

“No, Bad, come on it’s not like that! I’m literally going a five minute paddle away, just across the lake. I just want some time you know alone- I thought I could do some fishing, try and broaden my skills-”

“FISHING!” Bad throws his head back to wail. “I’VE LOST MY HUSBAND TO THE FISH! HE’LL BE GONE. FOR HOURS. IN A BOAT WITH SOME SMELLY MACRAL. HE’S LEFT ME FOR MACKAR-HA-HA-HA-HA-HAL.” Bad cries openly.

“Bad-”

“COOOOOOOOD. HE’S PROBABLY LEAVING ME FOR- F- F- F- FOR A COD!”

“Bad, no, just a couple days where I do some fishing and I’ll be right back as normal-”

“YOU’LL BE SWIMMING WITH THE FISHES BY TOMORROW!” The bawling continues.

“No I won’t.” Skeppy says firmly. “What makes you say tomorrow anyway? I’m very capable of looking after myself for a few days.”

Bad’s deep breathing regulates for a moment and he glances up to meet Skeppy’s gaze. “Last time I went out, you almost set fire to the house because you left the piece of paper with instructions on what to do, on top of the furnace.” Bad folds his arms challengingly.

“Ok, don’t bring that up, that was a lapse in judgement-”

“Oh, and what about the time, a creeper got in and blew up one of the walls, huh?”

“That was NOT my fault!” Skeppy shoots back angrily, because now Bad’s nit-picking at past issues. They both know it wasn’t Skeppy’s fault that time, and yet Bad’s acting like it was!

“Oh yeah? Well what about the time you broke our bed, and made me walk for TWO HOURS from spawn! WHAT ABOUT THAT-”

“Okay THAT’S IT!” Skeppy turns and marches across the room to his boat. “You need to CALM down mister! Maybe you should use this week alone, to think about the ratio of times you’ve noticed what I’ve done for you, and the times you’ve noticed everything I do wrong! Because you know what? I screw up a lot less compared to stuff I do well! I do five things right, and one thing wrong, and you never talk about the stuff I do right! You know what, I purposefully didn’t invite you to come with me-”

“HHH!” Bad gasps in shock as those words leave Skeppy’s mouth.

“-Yeah! Because I wanted some time by myself! I’ve barely had a moment alone since we moved in together!”

Tears are mounting in Bad’s eyes. “But I like hanging out with you.” Bad says in a small voice.

“I know!” Skeppy exclaims before softening. “Look, I’m not trying to punish you, okay? I just really need this time to rest right? Remember when I specifically put a bed on the other side of the house from ours, and went to sleep there? That was me saying I needed a night alone! And what happens five minutes later? You’re climbing into that bed without even considering why I’m not in our shared one!”

Bad opens his mouth as if to argue before pausing as the words register in his head. He blinks rapidly for a second. “...Oh. Well I’m-”

“Don’t apologise,” Skeppy waves one hand dismissively and pushes his face into the other palm before dragging it through his hair self-soothingly. “It’s fine, but it’s why I’m taking this break okay? I’ll- Look I’ll see you in a week,” Skeppy steps towards the boat.

“WAIT SKEPPY NO!” Bad shoots to his feet with a yowl, staring at him in desperation, “Wait, wait, I don’t work weekends, can I come and see you? It’s Tuesday today, can I come and see you over the weekend? Please, PLEASE, just a visit, I’ll be quick, I won’t stay, please let me come and see you!!”

“Fine, Bad. You can come and visit me on the Saturday, okay?” Skeppy hops down into the boat.

“WAIT WAIT SKGEPPY NO!” Bad yells with renewed vigour as he walks alongside the stream of water Skeppy is using to head out to the lake.

“What is it this time,” Skeppy rolls his eyes and glances at Bad promptingly.

Bad’s eyes are wide and pleading. “Skeppy, you aren’t actually leaving are you? I thought it was a joke, I thought it was a meme!”

“What about this seems like a joke?” Skeppy slows his paddling in irritation. “You know what- if you think me taking a holiday alone is a joke then maybe you deserve to feel bad for a bit! It’s perfectly reasonable to want to spend some time roughing it!”

“ROUGHING IT?!” Bad screeches furiously. “You are LAZY, you are SQUISHY, you are SOFT, YOU’RE JUST LIKE ME SKEPPY!” Bad insults as he walks down the grass lawn next to Skeppy.

“I’m NOT LIKE YOU AT ALL!” Skeppy yells back in frustration, “You’re the clingiest person I’ve EVER MET! Do you KNOW what you look like when I walk into the bedroom at night? That’s right; a giant terrified demon, and you look THRILLED when I come over, you know why that is?” The river is beginning to open up in width, causing them to raise their voices even further. “It’s because you’re a simp. You’re a greedy, oversized housecat-”

“Are you calling me NEEDY?! Bad screams with barely contained fury.

“NO! I’m saying YOU’RE JUST THIS CLINGY, NAGING, NEGATIVE PERSON AND YOU SHOULD STOP IT!”

“FINE THEN! I DON’T WANT SOME RUDE MAN AROUND! TELLING ME I’M WRONG! WHEN YOU PAIR THE SPEARMINT AND COOL-MINT COLOURED SOCKS TOGETHER!”

“GOOD! I DON’T WANT YOU MICROMANAGING ME WHEN I COOK DINNER! IF I GET OLIVE OIL ON MY HOODIE THAT’S MY FUCKING PREOG- PROG- PARA- MY CHOICE!”

“LANGUAGE!”

“FUCK YOU!”

”LANGUAGE!!!”

“FUCK YOU, FUCK YOU, I’M BORED OF ARGUING, I’M ANNOYED AT YOU, I HOPE I NEVER SEE YOU AGAIN, I’M MOVING AS FAR AWAY FROM YOU AS I FUCKING CAN- FUCK YOU!” Skeppy shouts the words as he paddles until Bad’s own screaming is too distant for him to hear.

Finally. Peace and quiet.

***

The first thing Skeppy does once he lands on the rented island is turn on music from his communicator.

It’s light, and he's happy, and he shields his eyes against the sun. Perfect. He has everything he needs to start his week of roughing it.

Skeppy decides the first thing he should do is seek shelter. He can either find some, or he can make some. The most simple plan he can think of, is to go up this small hill, use his shovel to dig away the dirt until he can mine some stone, and then use that to make a small shelter.

It seems straight forward, so with his music playing and shovel in hand, Skeppy heads up the grassy slope to get started.

Six hours later the sun is going down, Skeppy is soaked through with sweat, and he’s found four pieces of stone. Which would be fine if all he needed was to surround his legs and waist while standing still- and didn't need protection for his upper body or any of his belongings.

But he does need that. And at the moment, his shelter… It shelters nothing.

He does have a sizeable hole in the ground, and he knows he has some torches in his belongings… With a groan he knows what he has to do, and he moves all his things from the boat to the ditch, lights some torches, and eats a few handfuls of berries from the shrubs growing literally right next to the island. By this point he almost can’t see, and it’s not worth going to look for food in the dark.

Skeppy stumbles back to his ditch, blocks up the one entry to the ditch with a stone block, and begins to go through his things. It’s at exactly this moment that Skeppy comes across a huge oversight on his part.

He’s forgotten a bed.

Skeppy stares into the distance wide eyed. Where could it have-

Skeppy smacks a hand to his face. He moved it. He moved it out of the pile of things he was collecting for his break, and over to the other side of the house when he wanted to sleep away from Bad. And left it there.

Skeppy is too tiered for this. He curls up on a block of stone and desperately tries to fall asleep.

***

When Skeppy opens up the hole the following morning he finds dawn is just breaking. Luckily for him, going to sleep right after sunset had kind of put him in a good place for today, what with waking up so early. After he mines away the stone for later, the gem hybrid quickly finds and kills three wild chickens -they’re much harder to catch than the docile ones at home but he manages- and shoves them in the furnace to cook and starts planning things out.

The shelter is more work than he thought, that much is clear. So, instead of the other activities he’d planned to do; foraging, fishing, collecting firewood- instead he’ll change the shelter. He’ll make a bunker- a bunker is better than a hole for sure. He already has an idea for it, he can mine out the side which looks over the lake and have a window!

…Don’t ask him why he has glass panes in his chests and not a bed. Being completely prepared has never been Skeppy’s strong suit.

So he gets to work.

And by the end of the day he’s remarkably satisfied with what he’s managed to create. The walls are all still dirt but he’d mined down an extra block worth and filled out the floor with stone. Already that had been much nicer, but the edition of a window made the bunker more of a hut. A hut made of dirt, but a hut nonetheless! Skeppy had eaten his three chickens over the course of the day, and after a quick bathe in the icy cold lake, he’s warming up by the furnace inside again.

He sleeps much easier this night around, as the insulated walls keep it nice and warm, and the flat stone floor gives him room to lie down properly. Skeppy is asleep in seconds.

***

It’s day three where things take a dip again. Skeppy stands on the shoreline, pleasantly fishing for the first few… Minutes, before he starts getting distracted. He keeps pulling the line in with nothing on it.

Skeppy is stubborn though. He considers foraging, but Bad’s words of contempt are floating tauntingly in the back of his mind again. Skeppy is gonna prove himself. Skeppy’s a strong independent diamond golem. Skeppy’s gonna catch a fish and eat it.

…Skeppy ends up carrying a torch around in the dark and jumping at every zombie groan under the cover of night.

He Barely manages to shovel a few handfuls of sweet berries into his face before seeing the glint of undead eyes closing in, and booking it back to the hut. He goes to sleep hungry and cold because he ran out of the wood he’d brought along to stock the furnace… He had meant to go chop some once he caught his fish for the day. And since he hadn’t caught fish… He hadn’t chopped wood.

His sleep is restless. Light. And when sunlight wakes him he doesn’t feel close to rested.

***

Friday is a dejected day. There are no more sweet berries on the bushes, he’d picked them clean in just two meals.

He sets up his fishing rod but doesn’t spend a second hanging around, if there’s something on it when he comes back later that’ll just be a happy surprise. So instead he picks up a bucket, and starts foraging. He figures it can’t be too hard, as he plucks each mushroom he comes across out of the ground and throws it in the bucket.

He keeps a sharp eye out for anything else he could eat too- a cow, sheep, chickens, or rabbits. But he must not be moving quietly enough, because he comes across literally none all day.

He returns home glumly, reels in the fishing line -empty, what a shock- before figuring he’ll quickly chop some wood and turn in for the night. With a pot of water bubbling, Skeppy cautiously tips the bucket of mushrooms into the water. Skeppy blinks for a moment as he stares at them.

Shit, he should have had a closer look at them before chucking them all in there together, shouldn’t he? Should have gone through and examined them individually to see if there were any dangerous ones in the pile. Oh well… He says to himself nervously. It’ll probably be fine.

When Skeppy pours the mushroom soup into a bowl and hovers his spoon above the liquid, he genuinely intends to eat it... Then a single mushroom makes a bloop as it rises from the depths of the bowl and bobbs at the surface tauntingly. Skeppy puts the soup down.

He can’t do it.

He can’t eat it.

There could be something poisonous in it- he has no idea what the fuck he’s doing. He knows how to cook chicken. He knows how to cook fish. He doesn’t know for certain that the mushrooms he picked up are all safe to eat, and it’s not worth dying alone in a hole in the ground for a mushroom.

Skeppy doesn’t even LIKE mushrooms.

But he is still very hungry. Hungry enough that he knows there’ll be an option waiting for him just outside his door. Torch and sword in hand, it takes Skeppy less than three minutes to down two zombies and grab the non-toxic parts from them. Then he’s back down into his hut and putting them quickly in the furnace.

It’s not exactly good for you, rotten flesh. But Skeppy’s eaten it before when he’s been in strife, and he has a pretty good idea of what he’s doing here. He won’t die, he just might get a little… High, from the toxicity. He can deal with that.

***

“I’m coming over.” Bad says pointedly.

“Oh, I can come and pick you up-”

“Nope I have gifts! You keep your pretty head there and I’ll be over-”

“Bad you don’t even know where I am.” Skeppy deadpanns. There’s a pause. “I’ll paddle over to you. I can show you the way.” Skeppy compromises flatly.

“Yay!” The cheer comes over the line before there’s a beep.

Well. Skeppy glances around. He hopes this goes okay.

Its Saturday morning that has Skeppy paddling his boat until he’s at the shoreline outside their house. Unsurprisingly, upon arrival he finds there’s a oversized demon in a paddle boat just like Skeppy’s. And...

Its a full boat.

A very full boat.

“Bad, what’s all this?” Skeppy raises a warning eyebrow.

“Gifts!” The chirp comes happily and Skeppy looks at the boat warily.

“Okay, but I was implying you didn’t need to bring anything.”

“Don’t be silly Skeppy! Gifts are always nice when you’re going somewhere new!”

“Bad-” Skeppy starts in irritation.

“Come on Skeppy, show me the way!”

Skeppy narrows his eyes suspiciously, but lets it go. “Okay Bad,” Skeppy turns in his boat.

“Avast me hearties!” Bad calls from behind, the sounds of their oars breaking the silence.

Skeppy rolls his eyes. And presses his lips together to suppress a smile. It’s still Bad, after all. The former prince curses himself for being such a sucker for his demon.

***

“Okay, so, now we’ve arrived at the island we just go up here,” Skeppy hops out of his boat and ties it up, and watches Bad carefully step out of his own much heavier boat and tie it up. “We go around here, up here,” Skeppy encourages as they climb up the small hill to the part of the hut that’s above ground. “And here we are, come in!” Skeppy pushes open the door.

Bad follows him tentatively, stepping inside to look around. Skeppy closes the door behind them, watching Bad pointedly.

“It’s very… Interesting.” Bad turns to him, his voice wavering. “I like the stone floors,” Bad continues, and Skeppy feels his hackles rise at the challenging tone in Bad’s voice.

“Yeah, cool right. They took a lot of work.” Skeppy leans forward with crosses arms as the tension in the room escalates.

There’s a moment where it looks like Bad might say something, but then there’s a soft exhale, and Bad’s shoulders droop. “Geppy I’m sorry.” Bad says quietly, and instantly Skeppy’s crossed arms fall to his sides.

“I’ve been a mean muffin, and I didn’t really mean to be one. I was just… Offended when you said you didn’t want to bring me somewhere. But I talked it over with some friends and- I think I was being silly. You were right. If you say you need space, then I should respect that. If you want to fish, I shouldn’t stop you. If you want to try a new thing, that’s completely up to you. I’m sorry I yelled at you when you left- I know you were just matching the fact that I was acting rude and yelling at you.”

“Oh Bad it’s okay-”

“No.” Bad interrupts in a small but firm voice. “It’s not. If you need space, I can respect that.”

“Thanks Bad. That’s appreciated.” Skeppy smiles softly.

“I can’t,” Bad licks his lips for a second. “I can’t say I didn’t miss you.” Bad says, with a guilty hunch to his shoulders, and that stirs the beginnings of a grin at the corners of Skeppy’s lips. He thinks about how Bad being a demonic space heater is such a simple joy he hadn’t registered or could think of missing before this time spent apart. Thinks about all the little details he missed about being around Bad, bumping each other for fun in the kitchen, giving each other little gifts throughout the day, curling up on the sofa together.

“I guess I missed you too.” He murmurs kindly, and an “Oh!” Is shocked out of him when Bad darts over and wraps his arms around Skeppy tightly, scooping him off his feet to snuggle him.

“Oooooh Skeppy! You have no idea how much I wanted to hear that!” Bad squeals happily, and Skeppy gently pets the Nether creatures back fondly. “Thank you, thank you, the idea that you missed me too, even just a bit makes me so-” Bad falls still abruptly, and Skeppy’s brows furrow in confusion. Just before Skeppy opens his mouth to ask what’s up, he hears Bad breathe in deeply through his nose.

“Is that… Can I smell… Rotting flesh?” Bad places Skeppy back on the ground, and steps back in shock.

“No!” Skeppy yelps, and he dives for the furnace, in the hopes that Bad won’t notice it -though why he wouldn’t Skeppy will never be able to answer- as the gem golem swipes open the furnace door. Skeppy curses himself rapidly for not checking it was empty. Without a care for the molten hot meat, he throws the flesh into a bucket on a corner of the room with a squelch, and fixes a panicked grin in Bad's direction.

Bad’s staring at him agape.

The Nether born blinks a few times, and slides his mouth shut. His tail flicks sharply up and down.

“Skeppy, what was that.”

The diamond hybrid is distinctly unnerved by the lack of emotion in Bad’s tone, and he finds himself searching desperately for a good excuse, a distraction, literally anything he can come up with to move the conversation on- but he can’t think of anything.

“Um- nothing?” He tries, but it comes out worried.

“Nothing?” Bad says quietly, and crosses his arms.

“Uh- just, um- I burned something?” He goes with, praying that there’s a single bit of chance Bad will take that at face value.

“What. What did you burn Skeppy? What were you cooking, Skeppy?” Bad asks lowly.

“Um…” Skeppy rifles through his brain for an excuse, and then sees the expression on Bad’s face, and knows that lying is probably just going to make his husband even angrier. “It… Might have been rotten flesh.” He drops his head, but makes sure his words are audible. The worst thing to do right now is mumble- it makes Bad significantly more irritated with him when he mumbles to try and hide a situation like this.

Bad inhales very deeply, and slowly lets the breath hiss out from between his teeth. Skeppy makes the mistake of feeling hopeful that this is a tactic Bad is using to calm down -and unfortunately- it leads to Skeppy looking Bad in the eye right when he speaks.

“Are you-” Bad’s voice is soft before he clears his throat and stares down at Skeppy. “Are you actually admitting to me… That you are a five minute boat ride from me, your husband, with a kitchen full of food, and you CHOSE TO EAT ROTTEN FLESH!” The explosion comes.

“Well I-” Skeppy holds up a finger in protest, a weak smile gracing his lips.

“NO!” Bad shrieks loudly. “MY HUSBAND. HAS BEEN LIVING IN A DIRT MUFFINING SHACK. EATING ZOMBIE CARCESSES, WHEN HE’S A FIVE MINUTE BOAT RIDE AWAY FROM HOME!” Bad thunders.

“...Well it does sound kind of bad when you put it like that.”

A crack of lightning splits the sky through the window behind them, attracting both of their attention to the rain pouring down.

“Uh…Look it's raining!" Skeppy points out as a distraction "Do you wanna stay here… For the night?” Skeppy follows up nervously, expecting blatant refusal as he meet’s Bad’s lofty gaze.

“Yes.” Bad says shortly. “I very much think I will. Lest you start frying up another corpse for your dinner.” Bad leans down to hiss sharply, before striding past Skeppy to the door.

“Yeah, okay, I deserve that,” Skeppy mumbles as he follows Bad out to rescue his boat load of items from the rain.

***

“So, um, good news, now since we have food,”

“Since I brought food with me.” Bad interrupts with a huff, as he leans against the wall with his legs splayed out in front of him, and his arms folded pointedly, as he nails Skeppy with a glare.

That’s honestly kind of fair- because yes Bad had brought food with him, and yes Skeppy is grateful- but the demon’s contributions hadn’t stopped there. With Bad’s better tools and items they’d actually managed to make the bunker a little bit larger, which was sorely needed since they’re hiding out from the rain together- and it looks like the clouds aren’t going to clear up anytime soon. So yes- Skeppy is very lucky Bad brought enough food for them both, and used his height and tools to give the two of them a little more space to work with.

“Yes! Since you, my darling husband, brought food, now we can spend some time-”

“Skeppy,” Bad interrupts, and his tone drops it’s frustration, his bright white eyes softening. “Look I…” Bad uncrosses his arms, and glances off to his left. Skeppy follows his gaze to the furnace, the glow of flames dancing in the low light, and the smell of cooking chicken and potatoes proving warmth in the small space.

“I guess I don’t… I don’t understand this need for being alone, that you have. In the Nether, it’s a harsh world. I know you don’t feel the same way on the surface- and you can’t fully understand it. But for me it’s just… The way things are. Nether demons have similar biological principles to all Nether creatures, we bond very strongly to things.” Bad pauses to think for a moment, and Skeppy lets him collect his thoughts.

“I suppose it’s foreign to me. The very idea of not wanting to be close to someone you care about. I know it seems… Trivial. To people on the surface. You guys- you’re magic really,” Bad’s glances up at the roof with a pained look in his eyes. “You just trust, that you’ll see that people again. You trust you’ll see everyone again. That’s harder for me. Us. It’s hardwired into us that because of how difficult the environment is, separating is one of the most dangerous things you can do. If you separate, you might never see each other again. And I try to fight against it- I really do, I promise- and normally I do trust you to be fine…”

Skeppy nods encouragingly. “Yeah it felt unusual when you were so surprised that I was leaving this time. Why was that?” He asks curiously.

Bad traces a finger across his leg. “It’s about what you were doing.” Bad utters quietly.

Suspicion about why Bad worried sparks in Skeppy instantly, but he doesn’t act on it. He’s obviously going to hear Bad out. “Continue,” He prompts with a raised eyebrow.

“I-” Bad starts and his gaze lands on Skeppy before he deflates slightly. “I don’t want to sound like I’m being mean. So just, know that... Look the thing is… I was caught off guard when you said you were going out into the wilderness to ‘rough it’. I know what you’re thinking and it’s not just- it’s not as simple as me thinking you can’t handle yourself Skeppy, because you can! You absolutely can! You can handle situations that I- I couldn’t even dream of! You’ll step foot in a cave, and by staring at the walls for a few seconds you can tell me which way to go for an emerald, diamond, or red stone, which way to go for lava, and which way to go for iron. It’s an innate skill set that you have polished over time with work and practise and it’s stunning every time we mine together!” Bad breaks off to inhale deeply and gather himself slightly.

“And you have all these other skills as well, you’re so smart with bartering! You pick up on things, and you actually bother to pay attention to the value of the emerald currency in the neighbouring villages. It’s so smart and I never would have thought of it as a concept until you told me! I was selling pastries for HALF of what they were actually worth for YEARS two towns over. You figured out their exchange rate and currency value compared to ours in what, one trip there? Two? If we’re being generous! You’re so-” Bad lends forward and holds his hands in front of his chest, clenching and unclenching them expressively.

“You’re literally one of the smartest people I know. You’re resourceful -muffin knows you’d have to be to eat rotten flesh for a meal.” Bad turns up his nose as he casts a glance to the corner where the cooked zombie flesh had been tossed. “You’re excellent at fighting, much better than me that’s for sure. There’s a lot you’re really good at!” Bad says, almost desperately honest as he looks into Skeppy’s eyes.

“But…” Bad drops his gaze. “I know you aren’t used to doing everything to care for yourself. I know you struggle sometimes- and I know you’re scared of being weak. I know you’re scared that you can’t survive alone because of how you grew up and that might be why you wanted to do this. To prove that you can. But the truth is Skeppy, no one survives completely alone. You could be the best survivalist in the world… But you have to have something to survive for. Wether it’s a pet, or a person, or a place, a feeling, a song, a skill- It’s always something. And most of us work better in groups anyway! Most species are heard animals on some level, and you and I aren’t any different! So, you can’t expect yourself to be the hunter, the gather, the builder all at the same time! You can’t do it all! None of us can do it all!”

Bad’s exclamation hangs in the air, and Skeppy finds himself mulling over the speech thoughtfully. “I guess… That makes sense.” He offers after a time, and his eyes meet Bad’s concerned ones.

“Really? You… Think I’m right?” He asks.

“Mmm, not all the way right- but right enough.” Skeppy nods, and when he hears Bad snort at his teasing jab- Skeppy flashes him a smile. “It’s fair for you to check on me- to want to be around in case I need help. I might have been a bit stupid with the idea of going off by myself for a week without any real thought put into it… I uh- did almost probably eat some mushrooms that-”

“Skeppy I haven’t showed you how to know which are safe ones!” Bad hisses- a literal instinctive sentence the demon can’t stop himself from saying. Skeppy knows Bad’s instinct to scold him comes from their love for each other though- so he doesn’t mind the interruption.

“Yeah- I chucked them out, that’s why I ate the rotten flesh, sorta didn’t account for my food situation very well.” Skeppy shrugs.

There’s another moment, and Bad himself inhales. “Well… You haven’t died yet? So at least… There’s that?”

If anyone else said it, Skeppy would be highly offended of this apparently being an up-side. However, he knows Bad means it genuinely. He knows that the genuine worst thing Bad can think of- is him being injured or dead- so anything that’s the opposite of those options are a genuine success to the demon.

“Yeah.” Skeppy gives Bad a satisfied smile. “And you know what? From now on, I probably will get you to help with my food because… I’m just not super great at looking after myself like that. A lot of the stuff I can handle for a day or two by myself but… I don’t really prove myself good at surviving if I just die from eating toxic mushrooms.” Skeppy realises out loud. “Like- better me to check in with you, even if that seems stupid, and make sure I’ll be alright, than to just assume I’m right and poison myself.” Skeppy rolls his eyes.

“Yeah.” Bad says, though his tone has dipped into something serious and quiet. “That’s… I’d rather be around at least every couple of days to make sure you’re alright.” Bad says.

“Of course you would- you control freak.” Skeppy jokes, but his smile fades when he sees Bad staring into his own lap and playing with his fingers. “Sorry- you’re not a control freak,” Skeppy lies gently, the questioning tone inviting Bad to speak.

Right on cue, Bad looks up momentarily, and clears his throat. “Sorry Skeppy- this was supposed to be about you…” He says nervously, and the diamond hybrid shakes his head in response.

“It’s not about me, it’s about feelings- and you’re allowed to tell me your feelings Bad.” Skeppy says as kindly as he can.

It seems to work, because Bad lets out a huge sigh, and opens his mouth.

“I guess it just… Scared me, when you decided to just go off by yourself without practising how to live properly… I felt like… I felt like you might get hurt. But I also knew if I followed you secretly, you’re way too smart and you’d know. You’d know I was here. But I was worried back home,” Bad’s voice gets tight with audible emotion, and it’s clear he doesn’t want to start crying.

“I was so scared something would happen and I wouldn’t be there. I know I can’t fight endermen like you. I know I can’t navigate the caves and tunnels like you. I know I can’t just deal with certain things- like how I end up frustrated by the aesthetics of a shelter instead of worrying about how practical it is. Sometimes I get stuck on stuff…" Bad gathers himself for a moment.

"But I can be another set of eyes looking out for you. I can make sure you’re eating three times a day, and that the food isn't going to hurt you. I can help you with your cuts and scrapes so they don’t get infected. I can make sure you have a dry set of clothes so you don’t catch a cold because I know you forget things like that. Because these things… While it might sound like I’m saying ‘look at everything I do for you’ that’s not just it. These reminders that go off in my head… the truth is they’re part of my routine, and they provide me stability and structure that I-” Bad’s voice breaks slightly and he swallows.

“That I value. To an extent I need those structures, I rely on those patterns because… Well they’re my normal. Sometimes… Not having you around throws me off, and I don't exactly know what to do with myself…”

Skeppy fiddles with his hands for a few moments. “For the record… I never meant to do anything to you. At all. Ever. Like this was just…” Skeppy drops his hands and glances away.

There’s a hand placed caringly on his knee. “Yeah?” The encouraging prompt comes.

Skeppy struggles for a moment before sighing. “I just- want you to know before I say this that I care about you and all that stuff. I love you a lot, blah blah, look. I never got the chance to… Have fun, like this. Most kids, they grow up in small towns like ours. They get to play in the woods, in the lakes, in the mud. They get to be free, they get to have fun. They get to be… Wild, I guess.” Skeppy says slowly. “And I didn’t.” He murmurs, almost to himself.

“I’m not saying I’m not grateful for all the privileges I got, but- I missed out on this.” Skeppy gestures at the dirt hut around them. “I know, that you don’t see it that way. I know that. And that’s okay. You can think differently to me. But to me, this feels like… I dunno. Fucks sake Bad I’m twenty-five and I’m still dreaming that one day I’ll get to find a dog in the wild and hang out with it, that I’ll get to eat a meal I gathered myself, that I’ll get to see a glow squid finally. All these things I hear the village kids talk about every weekend… I don’t know. I just… I want those experiences, just to know what it’s like. And I had this realisation that… It’s just… Not gonna magically happen. I have to make that happen. I have to have go out and make these memories in order to gain the experience. It’s just something that I figured and… Yeah.”

“So…” Bad inhales “What you want, is some freedom to test out these things and experiment with them and- basically get to play because you haven’t before?”

Skeppy’s cheeks warm, because to be honest, it does feel childish when it’s phrased like that- but he knows Bad is intending this to be gentle, and isn’t trying to shame him. “Yeah,” Skeppy shrugs. “I just want to satisfy my curiosity. And, then I won’t be longing to try some of these things out, if you get what I mean?”

“No- but I respect it.” Bad tilts his head acceptingly.

Skeppy finds himself grinning in response, fondness warming his chest at this silly strange man he gets to share a life with. This demon who he yells his head off to, and who yells right back, and how much fun they have doing that. And who may not understand everything about Skeppy, but loves and supports him anyway. “Thanks Bad,” he murmurs, his tone softened with something far too loving.

It’s quiet for a moment, before Skeppy sees Bad’s brow wrinkle, and the demon glances around the space as if looking for something. Skeppy gets the distinct impression something has occured to Bad while he was thinking, and now he’s searching for it.

After just a moment, Bad’s gaze returns to Skeppy, and he looks confused. “...Hey Skeppy?” He starts off “Where’s your bed?”

Skeppy stiffens and sits up sharply, his hands already coming up to make a calming gesture to the demon. “Okay, Bad, don’t get upset, see, I know this also looks bad, in my defence I moved one out of my stuff to the other side of the house and-” Skeppy breaks off, as he meets Bad’s gaze which looks decidedly troubled at his words. “What?”

“No, nothing,” Bad waves his hand but the look in his gaze is edging towards upset.

“You sure?”

“...Well I’m just-” Bad starts before slumping. “I’m sorry for yelling at you earlier- it’s made you akward around me... I shouldn’t have gone on about the dirt house and the rotten flesh. I shouldn’t have yelled- it really wasn’t, you know, right for the situation. You shouldn’t feel bad about how I react to what you're eating, the concern should be that you’re eating zombies, not my negative reaction to that. I’m sorry I snapped. I guess in the heat of the moment I was upset at how you were treating yourself. I like…” Bad’s cheeks turn noticeably rosey.

“I- like- I kind of- enjoy spoiling you Skeppy. Giving you gifts it’s like- uh- like, represents that I’m looking out for you. Anyway, you leaving all of that- my cooking, my company, and our home… You leaving that for a dirt bunker felt like a huge rejection to me... But now I can see it’s obvious that you’ll come home and that you need this experience to feel settled.” Bad admits.

“Yeah,” Skeppy feels his entire body relax and he tilts his head back against the wall to let his eyelids slip closed.

“And anyway, I have a solution.”

There’s rustling, followed by thumping and a few clanks. Skeppy remains in his position for a moment before he opens his eyes.

“There! All settled.” Bad fluffs up a pillow.

Skeppy blinks twice from his place slumped on the floor. “You brought a bed.”

“Oh don’t worry,” Bad shakes a hand genuinely, before turning and fiddling with a knob on the side of the bed. The taller twists it until -with a snap that causes Skeppy to jump in surprise- the left side of the bed extends across a couple of feet. Bad nods in satisfaction, and he throws an extra pillow on the bed. “There’s space for you too!” He gestures proudly.

“You brought… A bed for me too.” Skeppy says in pure shock. The diamond golem glances up at Bad. “Did you… Plan? On staying the night?”

“It’s late Skeppy, let’s sleep!” Bad says cheerily, adamantly ignoring Skeppy’s look.

“You… Brought a bed… With space for me too…” Skeppy trails off, transfixed by the big fold out frame topped with a mattress already done up with sheets and blankets.

“Yes, now lets sleep, I think you’ve been working too hard mister and the rotten flesh might still be affecting you, off we pop!” Bad extinguishes the furnace and grabs Skeppy’s limp hand to help him up, and lead him over to the bed.

“Off we… Pop.” Skeppy repeats, with a note of pain in his voice.

“That goes there, that goes there- oh Skeppy wait!” Bad interrupts Skeppy’s action- pausing him where his hand is heading for the blanket.

“Yeah?” He asks, grip hovering above the fabric.

“Okay, um, I’m not… Going to tell you what to do… Except that maybe you should consider having a shower before we get into bed?” Bad clasps his hands together beside his face in a pleading gesture.

“I don’t have a shower Bad, I’ve been bathing in the lake.”

“IN THE- That’s fine!” Bad cuts himself off sharply, and a pained grin stretches his face. “-Ignore me just now! In that case… Could you go have a bathe and then come to bed? You smell like…” There’s six seconds of tense eye contact as Bad clearly battles internally for the right wording. “...Man. You smell like- man.”

“Oh, fuck off.” Skeppy growls, snatching his towel from it’s place, a torch to light his way, and lastly scooping up his sword.

“Thank you!” Bad chirps happily.

“It’s gonna be cold as- as… Cold as- something shit, I dunno.” Skeppy huffs through an attempt not to swear before giving up.

“It’s nice and warm in here!” Bad follows up, and Skeppy pauses halfway out the door. The hybrid turns slowly with an aghast look on his face to see Bad settled in bed, with his reading glasses on and a book sitting neatly on his lap.

“You’re not doing this to force me to cuddle up to you for warmth, are you?” Skeppy asks in a deep and suspicious tone.

Bad blinks owlishly at him. “Why would I do that?” He questions, and blinks again almost mockingly.

“I fuckin’ hate you.” Skeppy stalks out of the door letting it slam behind him.

The water is cold as fuck, but to be fair, it encourages Skeppy to be quick compared to if it was warm. Moving at a fast pace means less time in the water; and less chance of a drowned slinking up out of the depths to break the surface of the lake and scare him to death.

He washes himself briskly, towels off, and stuffs his feet back in his shoes as he shakes his hair rapidly to remove any traces of water. That done, he snags his sword, and the torch he’d used to ward off monsters, and sweeps back to the hut.

Skeppy extinguishes the torch as he enters the room, and puts his things away.

It’s very quiet, just the tap of Skeppy feet moving around and the sound of Bad’s thumb flicking a page of his book. They haven’t looked at each other properly, and they haven’t said anything. Skeppy hauls his gaze up after distinctly too long arranging his sword in it's holder, and rolls his eyes at the wall.

“What are we, one week into dating again?” Skeppy huffs as he turns, and fixes Bad with a pointed look. The demon's eyes snap to his- staring at him with his mouth dropped open, which he promptly closes with a shake of his head.

“N- uh- no?” He stumbles.

Skeppy rolls his eyes again, this time meant for Bad to see. “Then why are we tip-toeing around each other?” He grumps, and strides across the room before kicking off his shoes and unceremoniously falling onto the open side of the bed.

“I don’t know!” Bad exclaims, as Skeppy turns his head to look up at Bad. From his face being smushed into the mattress, he can sense the embarrassment cloaking the Nether creature's cheeks. “I just- we haven’t slept in the same bed in like four nights! It feels awkward!”

Skeppy rolls over slightly, puts his elbow on the bed, and leans the side of his head against his fist. “Four nights apart is a long time to you?” Skeppy asks playfully, and Bad blushes profusely at that.

“Yes Skgeppy! I already told you- I’m very! Attuned to being around you.” Bad huffs and crosses his arms.

“Simp.” Skeppy accuses with a grin, and when he blinks his eyelids feel heavy.

“I am not!” Bad retorts.

“Siiiiimpy boy halo,” Skeppy hums deep in the back of his throat, the roughness of it making Bad glance at him for a moment before he clearly remembers he’s supposed to be annoyed- and pouts away from Skeppy.

“Aw don’t give me that. I know you like me.” Skeppy feels the grin on his face stretch wider, and the spark in his eyes get twinklier.

“I most certainly do not.” Bad hisses under his breath.

“Okay then,” Skeppy shrugs and rolls over. “Goodnight.” He grins and blows out the candle next to the bed plunging, the room into darkness.

“Hey! I wasn't done reading!” Bad yelps in annoyance, and Skeppy can imagine the exact balance of frustration and surprise on his face, as the gemfolk snuggles into his pillow pointedly.

“Okay that’s it you little muffinhead.” Bad grumbles, and there’s the sound of Bad dropping his book on the floor and moving to lie down. “Stupid muffin,” Bad hisses with a trace of anger, and seconds later Skeppy is completely surrounded by a warm and heavy demonic body.

“Bleugh!” Skeppy yelps involuntarily, because he’d genuinely assumed Bad would play up his annoyance for a bit before he gave in to the everpresent desire to snuggle Skeppy.

What a mistaken idea that was.

Skeppy grumbles audibly, as Bad wraps around him happily.

“Oh what, did you think I’d be mad at you,” Bad hums tauntingly, as he squishes Skeppy for just a second before relaxing.

“Yes, you’re always annoying when you get mad at me.” Skeppy points out, before his hair flops forward into his face frustratingly. He inhales deeply and then puffs the air out in an attempt to push it up into place. His hair lifts momentarily, and then flops in front of his eyes again. Skeppy wriggles his left arm in an attempt to get it out from Bad’s hold, and there’s a protesting whine pushed into his shoulder reproachfully.

“Bad, can you let me go for a second, my hair’s in my face.” Skeppy asks in annoyance.

There’s a moment where nothing but their breathing fills the air, and Skeppy senses Bad thinking quietly at his words. “Mmmmmmm- no.” Bad says plainly.

Skeppy squints in the low light. “No- Excuse me?” He asks in annoyance.

“I said, no.” Bad says, and his tone is almost proud.

“What the frick, get off me th-” Skeppy starts with clear frustration in his tone. He’s rudely interrupted by the actions of said annoying partner however.

Because there’s a hand in his hair. Gently petting him. Pushing the hairs delicately out of the way. “Aw, is that better princey-poo?” The affectionate yet mocking giggle is breathed into his neck.

…Skeppy’s really taking a second here to reevaluate his life choices.

“Bad.” Skeppy says, and he intentionally channels barely restrained fury into his tone.

“Yeahhhhh,” Bad draws the word out, his tone high and giggly as he continues smoothing a hand through Skeppy’s hair.

Skeppy honestly doesn’t know where to go with his sentence. He wants to be annoyed. He’d really like it if he could be snappy right now, and break away from Bad’s pleasant rumbles of happiness, his incredibly caring touch, the way he gently nudges his nose at the back of Skeppy’s head.

But he just… Can’t.

He can’t make himself hate this.

God fucking damnit. Stupid, idiot, giant oversized, too friendly and happy about cuddles, demonic husband. It's idiodic that Bad's being so cute. Its annoying that he’s so pleasantly warm. Its absolutely abominable that he’s kind, and cute, and that he gives a shit about Skeppy, and that he fucking dares to like Skeppy. It’s ridiculous that Bad likes him so much, that Bad wants to protect him, that Bad wants to be around him- that Bad dares to like him as much as he likes Bad. Skeppy curses the demon spitefully in the back of his head.

“You don’t mind this, right?” Bad asks curiously, right on cue.

Skeppy closes his eyes in defeat.

“No.” He utters tieredly.

There’s a thumping sound somewhere nearby, the sound of Bad’s tail happily wagging.

Skeppy has to fight the smile that crosses his face at that.

***

“I’ll see you in a couple of days Bad.” Skeppy calls, as the taller carefully climbs into his canoe.

“I’ll visit you tomorrow Skeppy,” Bad suggests.

“Bad-”

“No, no, just for friendliness! I’ll miss you, please let me come tomorrow morning, I start late on Mondays!” Bad turns around and gives him puppy dog eyes.

Skeppy feels his lips twitch for a moment before he rolls his eyes hugely. “Fine, I’ll see you tomorrow morning.”

“I’ll bring you some bread, oooh! Or muffins for breakfast!” Bad says, his eyes lighting up happily, as the boat slowly drifts away from the shore.

“No- Bad- I don’t need, I don’t need food! You don’t have to bring bread or muffins, I’m fine!” Skeppy’s voice steadily rises in volume as Bad drifts away.

“Yeah that’s what I said! Muffins for breakfast sounds good doesn’t it Skeppy?” Bad turns the boat slightly so it’s parallel to the shore line.

“No, no! I don’t, need it!” Skeppy insists.

“I’ll just bring it for me then!” Bad calls over to him, with a genuine smile on his face.

“But-”

“Bye Skgeppy, I’ll see you tomorrow!” Bad calls musically, as continues to leave.

Skeppy’s shoulders slump in defeat. “Bye Bad.” He calls back with a halfhearted wave, before turning and heading back inside his hut. He puts down his sword and goes for the fishing rod in the corner, intending to head outside and fish for the day when he pauses and scans the room. Something’s not right… His eyes land on the double bed, the sheets carefully made up by the two of them once they’d risen from its warm embrace this morning.

Bad left the bed behind.

Skeppy charges out of the house, skidding to a stop and turning to dash down onto the lake shore where Bad had departed from. He’s still visible just in the distance.

“BAD!” Skeppy cups his hands to his mouth and shrieks.

No response.

“BAD! YOU LEFT YOUR BED!”

If Skeppy squints very hard, he thinks he can see Bad’s head turn in what must be confusion. The boat slows and turns.

“WHAT?” The call travels for a few seconds and Skeppy clears his throat to shout a response.

“YOUR BED! YOU LEFT YOUR BED!”

There’s a pause.

“MY HEAD?” The confusion overt in Bad’s tone.

“NO! NOT HEAD! BED!”

“...FED? FED WHAT? DO, YOU, NEED, FOOD?” The confused and slow shouts return to Skeppy.

“NOT FED! BED! B! E! D! BED!” Skeppy sounds out the letters carefully.

“I CAN’T HEAR YOU SKGEPPY!” Bad hollers. “WE’LL TALK TOMORROW!” And Bad starts to turn the boat.

“NO WAIT-!”

“TOMORROW SKEPPY!”

“BAD!”

“I CAN’T HEAAAR YOU!” The demon sings loudly, and resumes rowing away.

Skeppy’s hands flop to his sides. He yelps quietly in shock when, in a demonstration of truly horrible hand eye coordination, the fishing hook catches him across the cheek. Apparently he still had the fishing rod in his grip after sprinting out of the house. Skeppy sighs and puts a hand to his cheek. It doesn’t hurt, just a little nick in the skin. He rolls his eyes and stoops down to the lake, using a handful of fresh water to rub on his cheek and clear away any fast drying blood.

This has been way too chaotic of a ten minutes, he decides, and Skeppy promptly plonks down on the grass and casts his line out.

At least Bad had given him some tips about fishing, that he should cast his line out further, and do something productive like go get coal or firewood when he starts getting bored.

…Even if the Nether being is a jerk for pretending he can’t hear Skeppy and that he didn’t mean anything by exposing Skeppy like this. Skeppy can’t help but assume Bad probably meant to leave the bed behind. Skeppy shoves his face into a palm. He’s been trolled, no doubt about it.

Fuck. Either he’s becoming a simp, or he’s losing his touch. And he honestly doesn’t know which one is worse.

Skeppy shakes his head and stares resolutely at the fishing line disappearing into the water. Just focus on the fish. Think about fish. The fish won’t judge you. The fish know you’re strong, independent, and that you’re still excellent at sniffing out scams and trolls, and they would support you and- Wait why is he personifying the fish? Nevermind, it doesn’t matter, you know what- fuck this.

Skeppy feels his fishing rod jolt and tug at precisily that moment, and he tightens his hold instinctively. Carefully he reels it in, and when a salmon flaps at the end of his line Skeppy stares in disbelief. Before quickly snatching it, removing the hook and dropping it into his bucket of water.

He caught a fish.

Skeppy casts his line out in mild shock, blinking at the water for a moment.

He caught a fish! He grins joyously.

If he was around anyone he’d probably be embarrassed about his unadulterated excitement, but truly his combined shock and pride at this sucsess leaves him genuinely happy right now.

The rest of the day goes on with just as many achievements. Skeppy chops down a tree to stock the furnace with wood, he catches a total of six fish, which he’s very proud of. He wanders around for a while, and despite the fact that he doesn’t find an animal to tame, he does enjoy just walking in the woods by himself.

He returns to the hut with a beautiful sunset backdrop. He cooks three of the fish on skewers, and he kind of messes up taking the scales off, but he’s still proud of the dinner he’s made. It’s lopsided, and messy and he did burn one small patch on one of the fish to inedible charr- But he’s proud of himself still! And he sits on the grass outside the hut to eat his fish, watching the pink and orange mixed with pure gold of the sunset. He hears the birds twittering around him. And he feels… Satisfied. Relaxed. Happy. He washes himself off just as the sun disappears, and opens the door of his hut just as a zombie starts to appear out of the trees.

He turns around with a relaxed sigh. Okay, everything’s chill and he’s ready for-

Skeppy’s eyes fall to the opposite side of the room.

Bed. Right.

Oh shit- that’s what he’d forgotten. Skeppy slaps a hand to his face. He’d meant to make a bed today, just so he didn’t have to use this one. But it’s way too dark to go out and collect the necessary wood and sheep wool- damn he hasn’t even seen a sheep the whole time he’s been here… So he decides he only really has one option.

Sleep here tonight, wake up early tomorrow, and scramble until he can make a bed, and then convince Bad that he definitely didn’t sleep in this one. Skeppy nods definitively to himself, and proceeds to extinguish the furnace and collapse forward onto the bed, wiggling around until he’s settled comfortably on it.

Skeppy falls asleep almost instantly, the tiredness of walking for several hours while exploring today combined with the poor sleep earlier in the week has him nodding off bare minutes after his head hits the pillow.

A train of thought vaguely floats across his mind about the fact that Bad left the bed behind for him, how annoying that is, how much of a muffinhead Bad is for probably choosing to leave it behind, how stupid it is that Bad is so loveable, how silly it is that he can smell Bad’s scent of baked goods on the pillows, how stupid Bad’s face is when he’s sleepy and talks about random things like muffins and potatoes and… Coconuts… And… Some other stuff he can’t remember…

***

There’s a rapping of knuckles against the door insistently, that breaks Skeppy out of sleep. “Mmmmhhhhh?” He groans, turning from his sideways position to burry his face in the pillow completely, hoping whoever it is will go away.

The knocking pauses for a second, and Skeppy settles down happily.

The knocking resumes, and Skeppy grumps in annoyance, becoming frustrated with the person now.

“Skeppyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy!”

Skeppy freezes, his eyes snapping open. Oh no.

“Skeppyyyyyyy I know you’re in! The torch is on!”

Fuck. What time is it! Skeppy snatches his communicator up. OH JEEZ IT’S ELEVEN- How did he over sleep this long?! That hasn’t happened all week- and now Bad is here, he isn’t ready-

Skeppy flings himself out of bed with a clatter, and throws off his pyjamas, shuffling around to tug on his pants and shirt. Right, right, what does he need now- Skeppy glances around in a flurry- food! He said Bad shouldn’t bring breakfast because he has some and he’s a responsible adult who can make his own breakfast- okay so food. Skeppy tosses some salmon into the furnace before lighting it quickly.

“Come on, come on,” He mutters under his breath, as it finally sparks to life.

“Skeppyyyyyyyy my arms are getting tiered!”

Shit, shit, shit, the room is much messier than he’d like it to be, uh, okay, fuck, shit. How did it even get this messy in twenty-four hours what does that say about him- NEVERMIND JUST FIX IT!

Skeppy dives to the ground and scoops up a pile of clothes, swinging open one of the storage chests and dumping everything in. Okay, that’s an idea, this could work, this could be fine. He dashes around and snatches everything that isn’t meant to be on the ground and throws it into the chests. He slams the last one closed without thinking, and then cringes hugely as he realises that Bad definitely heard that from outside.

“Skeppy? You okay?”

He snatches two skewers of fish out of the furnace, does a last mental check of the room and then skids over to the door.

“Of course! Never better!” He smiles politely a split second after opening the door. “Come in, come in!” He encourages, and Bad steps up into the hut. “I made some fish skewers, I know they’re not like a normal breakfast food for most people but I actually find that the protein early in the morning is… Bad? You good?” Skeppy breaks off to question the way Bad is staring distractedly at the wall.

“Hm? Oh, yeah! Continue!” He turns and dips his head at Skeppy kindly.

“Okay well… Do you want a fish skewer?” Skeppy holds one out, and Bad takes it staring at the fish with a raised eyebrow.

“Wow, you cooked without burning something for once,” He hums playfully, taking a delicate nibble from the side.

“Pff, yeah.” Skeppy rolls his eyes with a smile. “I can cook some things you know.” He grins before gesturing to the chests. “Take a seat, we can eat and then-”

“Mm! I brought muffins!” Bad says eagerly as they take a seat side by side on the chest, and Bad plonks a basket for truly divine smelling muffins between them. The fish skewers are demolished quickly, along with a bread roll each as a palate cleanser, and then a couple of blueberry and chocolate muffins to nibble. They catch up on their day’s and Skeppy feels relaxation replace the anxiety from his scramble to get organised earlier.

“Skeppy?” Bad catches his attention, as Skeppy busies himself with tossing the paper muffin wrappers and the wooden fish skewers in the furnace to burn away.

“Yeah?” He replies, closing the furnace door and blinking curiously at Bad.

“You know, when I was waiting outside I had a bit of time to look around.”

Skeppy’s brow furrows in confusion. “Okay?”

“You know… I really would have expected to see some like, wood chips, and fluff around here.” There’s something in Bad’s gaze, something telling… Skeppy just can’t decipher what the message is.

“Huh?” He blinks, utterly stumped.

“You know. For your bed. The one you built.” Bad casts his gaze pointedly to unmade bed just across the room, and Skeppy goes still with realisation.

Oh no.

That’s what he forgot about.

“No, no, Bad it’s not what you-” Skeppy can feel his cheeks flushing as Bad looks increasingly smug.

“Oh really?”

“Yeah, it’s not, this is, a different, bed I promise you-”

“Uh huh.” Bad stands up to step over to him, neatly backing Skeppy into a corner.

“It just, looks similar- I used your design okay! It’s a good design! You made a good design and I copied it-”

“You used the bed I brought you-” Bad leans over delightedly.

“No, no, this is-”

“It’s the same bed Skgeppy, I know it is.”

“It’s not, Bad it’s not!” Skeppy’s defence is all but rendered moot when Bad leans his head on Skeppy’s shoulder, purring loudly and snuggling into him.

“You did! You used my bed, you used my gift to you! I’m so happy-”

“Baaaaaad, get off me, I didn’t-”

“No, I won’t, you slept in the bed I made you! Did you miss me? Did you like it? Was it comfortable for you? I can adjust it while I’m here if you want-”

“It was perfect, SHUT UP!” Skeppy seethes, his face hot with embarrassment. “And I don’t want to talk about it anymore!” He exclaims sharply.

“SKEPPY!” Bad scoops him off his feet and pulls him into his chest. “I’m so happy, and I’m also proud of you because you caught the fish for us to eat, and you chopped all that firewood-” Skeppy wiggles out of his grip and jumps to the floor.

“Stop talking, in fact get out, leave, we had breakfast together like I promised, and now you can get out, so get out-” Skeppy shoves Bad to the door.

“No-”

“Go! Go!”

“I don’t wanna, let me stay!” Bad’s voice pitches up in protest.

“I’M DOING FINE BY MYSELF!”

“Oh my gosh, okay, fine, I’m leaving,” Bad says mournfully, as he steps out the door.

“Okay-”

“I’m leaving, I’m leaving, goodbye.” Bad repeats with clear upset in his tone.

“Okay fine, fine, fine-” Skeppy starts, following him outside.

“Okay I’m leaving,” Bad turns towards the outside wall of the house and places down a chest.

“What- is this?” Skeppy demands, his tone switching from commanding to confused in seconds.

“I’m just, putting that there,” Bad says, and begins to back away.

Skeppy’s not having that, and he instantly reaches over and flips it open. There’s multiple loaves of bread. And a load of extra blankets in it.

Skeppy thinks about being mad. He considers letting his annoyance out. He ponders if he should tell Bad off for leaving him more ‘gifts’.

He doesn’t do that. He snorts, and then chuckles under his breath at the behaviour. Bad’s gonna Bad. He decides in loving annoyance. “I don’t-” Skeppy starts with a fond roll of his eyes.

“Goodbye…” Bad's voice comes from where he's slinking away.

“Bad! I don’t need your-”

“I’m leaving…” Bad says sadly as he gets into his boat.

“No Bad, I wanted to hang out with you more! I want to hang out with you more!” Skeppy raises his voice to carry to the lakeshore.

“Really!” Bad jumps out of his boat eagerly.

“...Yes, fine.” Skeppy flicks his hair in annoyance. “Look, how about you stay, help me out a bit? Tomorrow is my last day here and I’ve got… An idea about how you can help me enjoy my time today.”

Bad’s ears perk curiously. “What idea?”

Skeppy feels a grin curl up the corners of his mouth. “I don’t know how much you’ll like it, but I think it’d be sick.”

Five minutes later Bad is looking far less enthused than before. “Skeppy this is a horrible idea.” He says dejectedly.

“No it’s not, come one, I get what I want, and you get what you want!” He offers brightly.

“How is this giving ME what I want?” Bad demands, though he really should have thought of a different complaint than this one.

“Oh come on, I know you like giving shit to me, how is this not your dream?”

“My DREAM?!” Bad’s face burns bright red, which makes Skeppy giggle brightly because it’s so obvious from knowing Bad that yes, this is indeed his dream, and that’s why he’s so embarrassed about it.

“Yeah, look, this is my holiday after all! You can be the guy that stops me poisoning myself!”

“You want me to be a maid. And clean you up after running around in the woods all day.” Bad deadpans.

That catches Skeppy off guard, as he stares incredulously for a moment. “That- is not what I said! You aren’t- You don’t have to- I can clean up after myself just fine thank you!” Skeppy’s face is scarlett in embarrassment.

“Skeppy, if I wasn’t around, everything you touch would turn into a disorganised mess.” Bad folds his arms.

“That is so not true! I can be organised if I try!” Skeppy spits back, in a feeble attempt to defend himself.

“No, you can’t-”

“Yes! I can!”

“No you can’t!”

“Okay fine!” Skeppy huffs in annoyance. “You know what, maybe you’re right and I do need help, and you’re actually just brilliant, and hard working, and wonderful to me, and I!” He gestures emphatically at himself.

“Am just a short little gremlin thing who can’t remember what to set the washer to and you know what!? THAT JUST PROVES MY POINT THAT YOU ARE VERY HELPFUL TO ME! You know what Bad! I know you like fussing- so fuss over me! Give me attention, and care, and get really upset when we figure out I’ve hurt myself but didn’t realise-”

“You are so annoying.” Bad interrupts and crosses his arms with a snort. “...But. I concede that… Well if your plan is that you're going to do this either way… Then I guess I’d rather be here to help you when you’re back… In case you injure yourself like a muffinhead.” Bad flicks his hair out of his eyes pompously.

“Yep! I’m gonna do it, whether you’re here or not! So I guess you’re free to go home… If you want to. But then… Well you know how much I actually know about patching myself up.” Skeppy says with purposeful casualness in his tone.

“...You’re gonna kill yourself if I’m not around,” Bad pales.

“Soo…?” Skeppy leans forward on his tiptoes hopefully.

“...Fine. I’ll stay and do your smelly house work while you go and do smelly man things in the woods, and I will even improve your house because I care about you even though I wish I didn’t.” Bad folds his arms in faux annoyance.

“YES!” Skeppy cheers and pumps a fist in the air. “Thank you,” He adds on, with a sincere expression on his face as he gazes into Bad’s eyes.

“Go get muddy, you mashed potato,” Bad says and firmly pushes Skeppy towards the door.

“Bye Bad!” Skeppy hops on his feet for a second before diving out the door, sprinting down the hill towards the extra little bit of water leading to the main land beside his hut.

“Stay safe muffin!” The call comes.

Skeppy grins, and pumps his legs faster.

He runs.

He sprints.

Sometimes he slows to a walk but only when he’s physically forced to.

Otherwise he’s moving. Sliding down rocky hills feeling the grit and gravel under him. Letting his feet thunder through the forest-y undergrowth, feeling the slap of ferns on his knees and calves. He eats the sweet berries off the bushes he passes, unaware and uncaring if they stain his finger tips, tongue and mouth red and purple. He doesn’t care. He doesn’t stop. He feels alive.

He feels wild.

When Skeppy jogs slowly back to the familiar hut, the sun is just beginning to dip below the horizon. His legs feel wobbly with exertion, and there’s a part of him that worries if he stands still, his legs might lock up completely, so he keeps his pace up as he runs over. “Bad!” He calls brightly, and the door opens with a sweep.

“Skgeppy!” Bad says happily before seeing him properly.

“SkGEPPY!” Bad admonishes, and he reaches out to gently catch Skeppy as he arrives at the door, the diamond hybrid panting happily.

“Hi, Bad,” He gasps with exhaustion- though his grin is huge, and his eyes feel shiny with glee, the dopamine hit of running around freely all day zinging in his head.

“Hi, Skeppy.” Bad repeats, and this time there’s something incredibly warm in the demonic gaze. “...I’m guessing you had a good day?” Bad tacks on, and there’s a small smile blooming on his face.

Skeppy’s cheeks are aching with the stretch of his smile, and he nods his head aggressively enough that his neck clicks. He’s still slightly too out of breath to voice his full agreement. “Uh- huh-!” He says and Bad’s gaze softens further if possible.

“Well in that case,” Bad leans over and gently dislodges a stick and a leaf or two from Skeppy’s hair before dropping them on the grass. “Your holiday was probably all worth it.” He hums and guides Skeppy inside.

As soon as the door is shut, the fussing starts, and Skeppy basks in it honestly. Muttered notes of scratches and bruises has Bad using a cloth and a bowl of water to gently clear away blood and dirt.feom Skeppy's tan skin. Bandages are carefully pressed across Skeppy’s scratches, along with gentle caresses to help soothe any lingering pain away.

It's only after all that, that Bad actually realises how cold Skeppy is. The sharp cry of- “Are you trying to be an igloo Muffin!?” -Filling the hut rhetorically. And naturally, Bad finishes his tirade of tutting by demanding Skeppy cuddle up close to him so he can warm up.

Skeppy likes it a lot.

For the second time in nearly a week, Skeppy gets a meal from Bad- baked fish, crispy potatoes, and warm bread simply melt on Skeppy’s tongue, as he devours the food after his long day. And once Bad has placed his dirt covered clothes away to be washed the demon has a gift for him. Skeppy perks an eyebrow as Bad had presented him, not with his normal pyjamas but with a new set made of soft cotton that Bad had apparently ‘whipped up today on the side’.

Skeppy could not be more eager to get into bed just looking at the new sleepwear. The idea of warmth, and softness, and rest sounding like music to his exhausted yet satisfied mind.

Bad looks absolutely thrilled when Skeppy hops up onto the bed in his new blue and white sleep clothes. The demon looks even happier when they lie side by side, and Skeppy leans forward to cup the demon's cheek; murmuring how lucky he is, how good today was, and how free he felt. How the idea that he would get to come home to somewhere safe was one of the biggest things that helped him feel so good running in the woods.

“I’ll always come back,” He murmurs to Bad, as they curl up together under the blankets, bathed in silvery moonlight. “Let me go, and you know I’ll come back- right Bad?” He asks genuinely.

A purr sounds softly in his ear. “I know that now.” The acceptance comes in return. “You can run as far away as you want… As long as I get to treat you like a prince when you come home.”

Skeppy can't help but chuckle softly at that. "Deal." He promises, and Bad smiles hugely at him in return.

"I love you Skeppy," Bad gives the diamond a warm squeeze.

"I love you too Bad." Skeppy snuggles into his hold, and presses a kiss into a flushed demon cheek.

And there, under the silver moonlight, they giggle softly- before curling up to go to sleep.