null momence
Heather stretched out her hand towards the irate horse, a shiny red apple laying in her palm.
"Here you go, bud…" She murmured, edging closer until the creature snuffled at her hand. It examined the apple for a moment, then snapped it out of her hand, tail swishing with delight as it swallowed the apple. Heather grinned, offering it another.
"Let me tame it," Herobrine urged her, hovering just over her shoulder.
"I can do it." She brushed him off.
"I promised I wouldn't let you get thrown again." Herobrine placed a hand on her head, and she sighed, tilting her head back.
"Fine." She continued feeding the horse apples. "Well, let me calm it down first, at least."
"Woo!" A shout caught her attention, and Heather turned to find a horse desperately trying to throw Steve off, who had a grin on his face as he clung to the animal's neck for dear life. Notch and Alex were watching with amusement, even as the miner was successfully shaken off and fell to the grass in a graceless heap. He didn't let it stop him, jumping up and brushing himself off before he clambered onto the horse's back again.
"I don't think either of us wants that to be us." Herobrine remarked.
Heather scoffed, shaking her head. "We don't have the resilience for that. I'm injured, and you're old." Herobrine made an offended noise, and she turned to grin at him. "Am I wrong?"
"Perhaps not." Herobrine crossed his arms. "But it's rather rude to call attention to it."
Steve had finally managed to tame his mount, which was now standing docile beneath him, and he slid off to let Alex saddle it while he spawned another horse and repeated the process. Heather's horse was now nuzzling into her empty hand, ears relaxed, and Herobrine eased close to attempt to tame it. He mounted up, and the horse tossed her head, but calmed quickly enough, and Herobrine patted her neck.
"Good girl."
"Heather? Do you need another?" Steve called over. Heather looked at him, but Herobrine cut in.
"Would you like to ride with me?" He offered her a hand, and she frowned, pondering this for a moment.
"Not because you want to baby me, right?"
"Can't a husband just want to spend time with his wife?" Herobrine gave her a small grin. "Though you can't fault me for wanting to keep you close." She rolled her eyes, sighing, then grabbed his hand.
"Sure. I'm good, Steve, thank you."
"Let me get her saddled." Herobrine dismounted, and Heather looked back to the others while he fit the mare with a saddle and bridle. Steve had tamed all three horses now, and Notch had mounted one of them, sitting with relative ease while he waited for Steve and Alex to saddle their own mounts. Even powerless as he was, he still exercised control over them, refusing to do anything for himself. It irked her, but Heather knew calling him out would just make him defensive.
Notch's presence here was going to make this a stressful journey for everyone. Heather knew he wasn't the biggest fan of her, but she did save him from Theo, so he owed her enough to tolerate her. Herobrine was in a similar boat, she guessed, since he saved Notch from Null's prison and also refused to kill him. So, while they were technically allies, she anticipated at least a couple of fights over stupid things. They really didn't like each other.
"Heather?" She looked up to find Herobrine's eyes on her. "We're ready." He beckoned her close, and, when she came, he placed his hands on her waist and lifted her up into the saddle. She settled in place as he climbed up behind her, his arms reaching past her to hold the reins.
"What direction are we headed?" Steve called, swinging onto the back of his own mount.
"It doesn't matter." Notch swung his horse around to face the east. "No part of the world has any greater danger. We should just begin." Without waiting for agreement, Notch urged his horse into a trot, heading off towards a distant forest. Steve and Alex followed without argument, and Herobrine huffed quietly before following behind.
"Be patient with him." Heather murmured, accepting her role as mediator between them. "He's stressed and he's gonna lash out."
"I'm stressed too." Herobrine muttered. "And considering he's the elder, I feel he should have the responsibility of being the bigger person."
"He's also spoiled." Heather reminded him. "And has never had to work for anything in his life."
"True. Perhaps this will humble him somewhat, if he doesn't spend the entire time being a haughty brat."
"Hey, well, we can hope."
"Look!" Steve lifted an arm to point, drawing the party's attention to the buildings appearing on the horizon. "There's a village up there."
"Indeed there is." Notch shielded his eyes with one hand, then lowered it with a nod. "We'll spend the night here, then move on."
"Are we sure that's wise?" Herobrine cut in. "If Null can control mobs, the villagers may betray us."
"The villagers are not hostile." Notch brushed him off. "On the contrary, Null will not expect us to be here, and the golems can keep the hostile mobs away. We spend the night here." Herobrine tightened his jaw, and Heather laid her hand over his, giving it a small squeeze.
"Let it go." She murmured. Taking this as a victory, Notch made no further comment, urging his horse into a canter as they headed towards the village.
"If he gets us attacked because of this, I will kill him." Herobrine muttered above her head. It had been a long day of riding, and the sun was starting to dip in the sky. They had been looking for a place to spend the night, with a backup plan of simply digging a hole and hiding underground if no place presented itself. But then the village appeared, and Notch announced that they were staying there, so. That's where they were going.
Heather couldn't help being a little excited. She'd had a very minimal amount of interaction with villagers over the years, and she was curious how they would act. If the hostile mobs were as intelligent as they were, how much more human would the villagers be?
She could see the villagers milling around as they got near, a few of them spying the approaching group and looking up in curiosity. After a few moments, they seemed to realize who was coming, and a few ran out to greet them.
"Hrrrm!" They clustered around Notch's horse, making excited noises at the sight of their creator. Heather couldn't understand a word of it.
"We will be spending the night here." Notch informed them, seeming to have no trouble with their language. "We are being tracked by a creature that calls itself 'Null'. Have the golems patrol the borders of the village." The villagers nodded and bowed, then hurried away, communicating in hums and grunts as they rejoined their fellows.
Herobrine rode up alongside Notch. "Are you sure it's wise to tell them so much about our plight?"
Notch gave him an irritated look. "I told them next to nothing. It does not matter, they would not betray me."
"It isn't a matter of betrayal." Herobrine countered. "Before, Null was able to take control of Steve," he threw out a hand to gesture to the miner, "And he spawned a Warden that ignored him entirely. He may not have the control over the mobs that he once did, but he has something, and the villagers may well be within his power."
"You are being paranoid." Notch shot back. "And if they do report to Null, they would do so no matter what I said to them."
"Which is exactly why I said we shouldn't come here!" Herobrine hissed. "Forgive me for being paranoid when I can die."
"So can I, so save your whining."
"Stop it!" Heather cut in, interrupting what was sure to be another retort from her husband. "Enough. Let's just go." Notch rolled his eyes and kicked his horse's side, sending it cantering away towards the village. Herobrine growled lowly, and Heather patted his hand. "I know."
"If I tell him to do something, it strengthens his resolve to do the opposite." Herobrine muttered vehemently. "Whether or not I'm right."
"I know." Heather heaved a sigh. "But arguing is only going to make that worse."
"He's going to get us hurt, himself hurt." Herobrine nudged his horse, starting her forward again. "Keeping Null off of him is going to be increasingly difficult if he's sabotaging us."
"Maybe he'll learn when one of his plans blows up in his face." Heather suggested.
"If that would not endanger us as well, I would hope it does."
Herobrine rode into the center of the village, and the two of them watched as Notch dismounted and tied his horse to a lamppost.
"The villagers have offered us any building, or buildings, that we like to spend the night in." The creator informed them.
"We should pick one without windows." Heather suggested, hoping he didn't react to her words like he did to Herobrine's. "In case a mob gets inside the village and notices us." Notch's gaze hovered on her for a few moments before he broke away.
"Very well." He turned around, searching for a house that would be easy to hide in. Herobrine gave her an incredulous look, as if to say he listens to you, but not me? Heather offered him a helpless shrug.
"Heather, here." Steve swung out of the saddle of his horse, tying it up before hurrying over and offering Heather his arms. She accepted them, letting him lift her out of the saddle and set her on her feet.
"Can you understand the villagers?" She asked, curiosity getting the better of her. Steve nodded.
"Alex and I make dealings with them fairly frequently." He gestured to where some of the villagers were working at their respective tables. "They can understand us, too. We don't have to go hrmmm or anything like that."
"Oh." Heather blinked. "So… they can understand me?" Steve nodded.
"So be nice." He ruffled her hair, and she swatted at his hand.
"I'm always nice!" She paused, then amended her statement. "Except to people trying to kill me."
"I think that's a reasonable justification for being mean."
"Hey!" Notch's voice caught their attention, and she and Steve turned to look as Herobrine dismounted behind them. "Here." Notch was standing beside a larger building, one without windows on the top floor. "This should suffice." Steve and Alex dutifully followed him, and Heather found her husband's hand before trailing after.
Notch led them upstairs, which was a bit cramped, but should have room for them all to sleep.
"I'll trade with the villagers for some more beds." Steve announced, heading back down the stairs. In the meantime, Notch sat down on the existing bed, sighing.
"Alex, bring me some food." He commanded. Alex didn't argue, hunting through her backpack - Notch refused to wear one. Heather glanced up at Herobrine, who looked like he was about to set something on fire.
"Here," She tugged on his hand. "We're going to go… uh, come on." Herobrine let her drag him back down the stairs, and she didn't stop until the door was shut behind then.
"I'm going to hurt him." Herobrine hissed.
"Right. How about we find a different house to spend the night?" She suggested. Herobrine sighs deeply.
"I don't want to let him out of my sight."
"I know. But, if Null comes, we'll know, and I don't want you and Notch at each other's throats the entire time." Heather squeezed his hand. "He'll be fine. If nothing else, Steve and Alex can stall long enough for us to help." Herobrine's shoulders slumped, and he sighed, lifting his head to look around the village.
"Alright." He said. "Let's find another place."
"Heather?" She turned at the voice to find Steve approaching her. "Herobrine? You two alright?"
"We're going to spend the night in a different house." She told him. "Do you have beds for us?"
"Sure," Steve handed over the beds, in item form. Then, in a quieter voice, he asked, "Is it Notch?"
"It's Notch." Herobrine confirmed. Steve made a face.
"I'm… well, I apologize on his behalf, since he won't." He sighed, raking a hand through his hair. "This is really hard for him."
"That's a reason, not an excuse." Heather piped up. "And yeah, we get that. I just wish he would be mindful of us too."
"Yeah, same here." Steve patted her good shoulder, looking at Herobrine. "We just need to… stick it out until Theo does what he does, right?"
"Right." Herobrine didn't look any less upset, but he didn't argue further. Steve squeezed Heather's shoulder, then headed back into the house.
"Got any place in mind?" Heather asked, tucking the beds into her inventory. Herobrine gestured to where the party's horses were tied up in the town square.
"Let's move those to a more subtle location, first." He told her. "Then we'll find a place to spend the night." Heather nodded, heading for the horses.
"Okay."