(⚠️Warning: Some characters are going to be OOC [Out Of Character] and become homophobic and aggressively abusive in this situation. Death in this universe is permanent also!⚠️And before you begin reading this, I just want to say that I am eternally happy for the 100 followers. Thank you guys so much <3)

---

Flowers. 

So many pink begonias, littered across the white tiled floor, petals and stems painted with nothing but deep red. All of the flowers are wrinkled, broken, torn from the violent coughing and sharp blades on the stems.

Mumbo can feel a vine crawling to his mouth and another handful of flowers rising upwards in his throat. His airway got blocked, which promptly screamed his brain, and instincts, to start hacking as he hunches over the blood coated bathtub so the red substance doesn't splatter everywhere. 

His lips part open as petals among petals fall out, and he gasps for air loudly, gripping on the edge of the white bathtub so he doesn't topple over. His entire body is shaking violently, his body bounding every time he coughs brutally.

Xisuma rubs his back gingerly before wrapping his arms around Mumbo's torso, ready to give him any abdominal thrusts if needed. Mumbo continues to gasp for air, inhaling deeply but carefully since he didn't want to accidentally inhale any of the petals. Xisuma quietly reassures Mumbo, telling him comforting words such as "Everything is going to be alright".

As Mumbo pants, another round of flowers creeps along his throat. He begins to choke and wheeze painfully, instantly alerting Xisuma to give a push. Xisuma's clenched fists push onto the sternum of Mumbo as a full begonia escapes past Mumbo's parted, bloody lips. The full pink flower, dotted with red, falls down and lands delicately on the floor of the bathtub. 

Mumbo groans and lays down on his side, Xisuma releasing him after confirming that the little session of hacking is finally done for the day. Xisuma takes a glance at the bathtub, grimacing at the amount of red-coated inside and the intense, strong scent of copper.

"Come on Mumbo, let's get you into bed. I cleaned out your bucket so you can have that next to your pillow, alright?" Xisuma smiles nervously behind his helmet and watches as Mumbo shuffles before stopping.

"Everything hurts... Can you just get my pillow and bring it in here? I'll... I'll be fine sleeping in here tonight." Mumbo spoke in a very hoarse voice as it occasionally cracks. Xisuma sighs, wanting to shake his head. He argues with himself for a short, solid moment of silence before responding.

"Come on, I'll help," Xisuma places one of his hands on Mumbo and gently squeezes his hold on him to help ease the pain. "I don't want you sleeping in your bathroom tonight."

"Xisuma, I can't move. Everything... hurts." Mumbo says, his fingers weakly balling into a fist from the overwhelming pain. His body is enervated, sore, and exhausted from another tough round of flowers and he surprised himself since he survived this round since it's one of the worst ones yet.

"Mumbo, just let me help you, please. I can't see you like this, lying here next to your blood covered bathroom." Xisuma grabs underneath Mumbo's torso and hoists him upward with a good majority of his strength, grunting a little bit with a tired chuckle. He props Mumbo over his shoulder, like a firefighter, and wobbles out of the bathroom, keeping some of his adrenaline in his body for when he gave Mumbo the abdominal thrust.

When reaching his bedroom at last, Xisuma set Mumbo down as cautiously as possible, being attentive to all the actions he does. Mumbo feebly grabs onto his sheets and curls up in them. Xisuma takes a short break, sitting on the edge of Mumbo's mattress to compose himself and get a good view of the ailing man before him.

Mumbo's face has become incredibly pale, coming closer to a dangerous white color. He keeps a scarf around his neck and hides his chest since vines are seeping out of his skin, making scars all along his body if he ever gets healed. The only wear he has currently is a short-sleeved, plain t-shirt and black, wool pajama pants.

"Mumbo, maybe it's time to just do the surgery. I know you don't want to, but, try to think about your own health for once and not Grian's," Xisuma sighs, standing up from his spot on the bed. "Joe is on his way to help you get some rest. I will get you some healing potions in the meantime. If anything happens, just holler or call the emergency line since I will be around."

With those words, Xisuma heads out of the room, closing the door gently but leaving a little crack. Mumbo coughs with a tiny wheeze following it, feeling a little bud under his tongue. He frowns before grabbing the metal bucket next to his pillow and pulling his head over the top. He spits out the pink bud before plopping his head back down on his pillow.

The eerie silence was enough for Mumbo to relax his tense muscles, since his brain is still in panic mode still, considering he thought he was going to die once and for all. He listens closely, hearing some bottles clinking outside of his bedroom and liquids pouring from one glass to another and the sizzle of a brew stand being activated.

Mumbo closes his eyes after a few more minutes, enjoying the sound of the bottles and activity bustling on the other side of his door. It was faint but distracted his mind from the fine line of death that he was close to experiencing.

His body began to go into slumber from utter exhaustion when suddenly a burst enters through with Joe speaking loud, clear, and a million words per second behind his door.

"WHEREISHE-HEISGOI-"

"JOE!" Xisuma shouts out and Joe went silent right after with a tiny slap, making Mumbo wonder if Xisuma slapped his gloved hand over Joe's quick mouth. Mumbo didn't want to admit but he jumped at the outburst outside of his bedroom before Xisuma and Joe went into a small, inaudible conversation.

Another few minutes pass by, Mumbo becoming more visibly relaxed again as footsteps thud around his base.

"He's gonna get the papa mode treatment on him," Joe's voice bounces down the hallway of Mumbo's base, and based on the proximity of his voice, he sounded like he was in the bathroom.

His door creaks open after a few more thumps, a man with glasses peeking his head through. Joe enters through without Xisuma, shutting the wooden door with a soft click to echo through behind himself. The brunette glances around with a curious gaze, pushing his black-framed glasses to the bridge of his nose.

He wonders over to Mumbo and places down a wooden planked chair next to the side of his bed. Mumbo shuffles to turn around, his lips tugging a frail smile when seeing Joe.

"How are you feeling, Mumbo?" Joe asks, pulling out a few items from his inventory and setting them down on the ground. A brown book, a few papers in a messy pile, a cup filled with a steaming liquid, and some bottled up fragrances. 

"I could be doing better," Mumbo spoke softly so he doesn't cause any flowers to crawl up his throat again. Joe nods simply and organizes his belongings before grabbing the book and a tiny, lavender essential oil bottle. He pops the lid open and sets it down on the wooden headboard frame of Mumbo's bed. 

"Do you need anything? Water? I have some tea," Joe lifts the cup before setting it back down by his feet. "I'll get you anything, just tell me." 

"I don't need anything right now. I'm just really tired." Mumbo says, closing his eyelids. Joe looks down at the items he has, placing a finger on his chin in thought. He presses his palm against Mumbo's forehead and smiles gently.

"Alright. Just remember we are here for you, Mumbo," Joe says in a soft voice, keeping his small smile stable and kindly.

---

"And so the rumors are true. Mumbo Jumbo, the redstone genius of Hermitcraft, has the Hanahaki disease for Grian. I cannot believe this." Doc snarls, pressing his boot against Mumbo's chest to keep him down. Mumbo doesn't even move, laying on the stone ground with blood trailing down his chin.

"Unbelievable! Disgusting! Mumbo, how does Xisuma handle this situation? Does Grian even know?" Cub spits in his face by crouching down to his level. Mumbo's exhausted eyes blink as he stays silent. "Answer me!" Cub raises a fist and punches Mumbo straight across his face.

Cub stands up with a growl, teeth being clenched violently as he balls his fingers tightly. Doc pushes harder onto Mumbo's chest, causing Mumbo to start hacking up. Cub cocks one of his eyebrows and tilts his head, watching as Mumbo begins to cough.

"P-Please, just let me go..." Mumbo says, grabbing onto Doc's boot to try to pull his foot off. His arms shake as he makes a puny effort to push Doc off but his weak body couldn't make his foot budge. Doc smirks, pushing ever so harder onto Mumbo's chest.

"Just tell us, Mumbo, how did you even catch feelings for Grian? How did this even all start?" Cub smiles and pulls out something shiny from his back. Doc raises his hand to stop Cub.

"There's no need for that, Cub. I think this gross disease will finish him off. Look at him, pale like paper and blood always falling out of his mouth. Pathetic," Doc releases his foot from Mumbo's chest. Mumbo takes a deep inhale after the pressure vanishes.

"So, what do you suppose we do with him? Xisuma will kick our ass from Hermitcraft if he finds out about this," Cub rolls his eyes. "I don't know where Scar is, either. He should've joined us a few minutes ago."

"I'm not worried about Scar," Doc grimaces down at Mumbo and adds a small sneer. "My main concern is if Mumbo over here tells Xisuma about any of this."

"Oh, Mumbo? Do you really think he would tell Xisuma any of this? We have been doing this for weeks and Xisuma hasn't caught on yet. Mumbo is just a baby, don't worry about him." Cub sets his weapon back in his back pocket. 

Mumbo begins to cough aggressively, immediately hauling both of their attention to Mumbo. The raven male starts to painfully wheeze out little gasps of air and he turns his body to hunch over on the ground. Cub scrunches his nose at the new scent of blood striking the air. 

"Hmm, when do you think he will die?" Doc asks, turning his head and averting his eyes to look at Cub. Cub waves his hand close to his face so the smell doesn't lock into his nose.

They both sit in silence as Mumbo starts hacking up flowers and blood soon begins to splatter onto the stone brick floor below him. He gasps for air, struggling to grab onto oxygen and inhale it to fill his lungs. Flower petals erupt from his mouth and shortly began to pile into a small bundle underneath.

Cub's expression turns into sheer horror at the sight. They both pursue watching Mumbo as full-on pink begonias fly out from his mouth. They all litter to the ground, coated with saliva and blood as more and more continue outpouring.

"Doc.. I'm not sure if we should continue like this. He seems to be in a lot of pain," Cub remarks and he takes a step back. Doc sends Cub a glare and turns his body around to exit, making sure he scoffs clearly at Cub.

"Fine, help him. I don't care now anyway." Doc growls and begins to walk out of the room.

"Don't you want to help him?!" Cub shouts with a horrified expression, his eyes glinting with newfound fright.

"You were just on my side and now you want to help him!?" Doc thunders out, turning back around to face Cub, his white lab coat spiraling around his green lanky figure at the sudden action.

"Doc, it's not right to let his life get wasted because he loves someone! He is a living human with a life, a life that he can only live once!" Cub begins and rushes over to Mumbo. "This has gone too far..."

"Go ahead and help him then, there's no point. He is going to die, we are all going to die in the end. If you want to help him since he is going to die first out of all of us, then whatever, help him! I am leaving!" the creeper hybrid hollers out before twisting around and exiting quickly. Cub rubs his hand along Mumbo's back and pulls out a few painkiller pills for Mumbo to take.

Days go by after that event, Doc going completely silent on the server without saying a word to the Hermits. To Doc's surprise, Stress still found this entire situation disgusting, along with Wels, Impulse, Scar, Tango, and Zedaph. The server is going into a war about the situation, Jevin, Joe, Xisuma, Iskall, Ren, and a few others fighting to protect Mumbo from the homophobic Hermits.

The only single Hermit who wasn't part of the war was Grian. He can sense the dread and the tense atmosphere all across Hermitcraft, but he didn't seem to catch on with the drama since no one is informing him about the issue. He asked Xisuma countless times, and Xisuma only kept it vague by saying "One of the male Hermits has a liking to another male, but some of the Hermits do not agree with two males taking a liking. They simply find gay couples disgusting."

When Grian got informed that, his mind took a twist. He wasn't expecting the Hermits to be fighting over a serious topic since he thought maybe it was another prank war. But based on the way Xisuma said it and the way he held his expression behind the purple lenses of his helmet, Grian couldn't help but feel scared about this entire subject.

"Xisuma, why won't you tell me?! I want to be on the good team, a team that accepts everyone no matter the cost!" Grian calls out in annoyance after the fourth week of being ignored. Xisuma sets down the pink bottle, something Grian has seen him hold commonly like he has been mastering brewing only healing and regeneration potions.

"Grian, this does not concern you, please do not engage with any of this," Xisuma begins. Something inside of Grian snaps, his fists balling tightly before he throws his hand, knocking several of the potion bottles out of Xisuma's hands. All the empty glass bottles that got knocked shatter on the concrete ground, piercing both of their ears from the sudden noise.

"You say the same thing week after week! Everyone has been at each other's throats, so this obviously has something to do with me if no one is telling me anything! I have asked Scar, Iskall, heck, even Jevin and those I don't talk to often! And with Doc, I have never seen such an angry expression from him!" Grian begins, tugging on his fluffy hair in stress. He only continues, pacing around the brewing room.

"I feel like I have been ignored! I haven't seen Mumbo during the entire time this started since every time I see him, he would run or hide! If I'm being such a nuisance, someone could have told me! Why, Xisuma, why has everyone been avoiding me?!"

"Grian!" Xisuma calls, setting his safe bottles on the counter next to the active brewing stand. He grabs a broom from the corner of the room, past the bookshelves and enchantment table. "I'm sorry you have been getting ignored, I truly am sorry this is happening. But... I cannot say the truth because, yes, it involves you."

"Just say it to my face! I am a bother to everyone! I am nothing but a heaping pile of annoyance across the entire server! Just say it!" Grian shouts, tears forming in his eyes, making his diamond blue eyes glisten as his voice begins to crack. 

The broom that Xisuma is holding snaps, the wooden handle breaking after clenching it very tightly. Grian takes a sobering step backward in fright and wipes his eyes with the ends of his red sleeves.

"Grian..." Xisuma drops the broom onto the glass shards and wipes his hands to clear any wooden particles. "Mumbo has the Hanahaki disease." Xisuma finishes off, sending a small, sad look over his shoulder and towards Grian's direction. 

Grian's voice cracks when he responds. "W-What?" And he wipes his incoming tears yet again. "Wh-What does that h-have to do with me?" His voice has become more collective and quieter, his throat now taking a small break from the yelling.

Xisuma uses his feet to begin dragging the broken objects to a nearby trash can. After failing miserably, he crouches down and begins to collect the shards and wood chips. 

"Think about it, Grian. Who do you think he has Hanahaki disease for?" Xisuma picks the pieces and puts them in his open palm, being calm about the process of cleaning.

"Hanahaki... Th-That's the disease with the flowers, right?"

"Yep."

"And... Mumbo has that?"

"Yep..." Xisuma sighs and stands up, his hands full but there are still more pieces on the ground. He walks over to the side of the counter and tosses the shards inside the trash bin. His feet bring him back to the mess and he begins to clean more of it up.

Just like a puzzle, the last piece to the mystery being put into place, finally fit into the only gap of questioning. His eyebrows curve and his expression is painted with not only fright but with shock.

"N-No... Xisuma, no... No no NO! This- This isn't happening! Xisuma, please tell me this isn't happening! No! I.. I don't like him like that, Xisuma. I only want to be his friend..."

Xisuma pauses, his breathing taking a rough hitch behind his helmet and his eyes growing wide. The pieces of glass in his hold fall down to the ground. He curls up and hugs his arms around his chest.

"No.. Grian, I thought you liked him... I was so sure you did, I truly thought you could save him. But... It's too late for surgery..."

"No! I can fix this! I can and will!" Grian's face starts to become flushed as his eyes water again. "T-Trust me, Xisuma!"

"Grian... If you tell him a lie and say you like him, it's not going to work. You have to love him but if you don't... it's only going to get worse."

"Don't say that! I will fix him! Watch me!" Grian yells, tears starting to streak down his face. He doesn't wait for Xisuma to reply since he turns around and darts out of the building.

"Grian! Wait!" Xisuma tries to stand up, but he ran out of energy a long time ago, making his knees crumple back down to the ground. Xisuma reaches his arm out, hoping Grian would hear him but Grian already soared into the sky without hesitating a tick. Xisuma begins to sob heavily, hugging himself and gently rocks his body side to side as he mutters "I'm a failure as an admin... I'm a failure..."

Grian crashes down into Mumbo's base without caring for his own health after flying in the air for a few minutes. He groans in pain, quickly realizing why he came to the location at all. He perks himself up and searches around instantly, trying not to get distracted from anything.

"Mumbo! Mumbo, please! I want to talk!" Grian calls around. He notices a gun on the ground, polished, and blood trailing in various areas. A name laced in silver lining the shaft of it. Cubfan. Grian grabs the gun and points it around, scared that someone might have possibly been here. The blood doesn't help. 

He keeps calling out Mumbo's name a few more times, seeing if he can get any sort of reply. He goes deeper into his base, going down the middle and entering the homely area. The odor of blood made Grian's leg tremble as he comes across more blood, splattered with beautiful, yet delicate, pink begonias dotting the floor.

"Pink b-begonias... My favorite flower..." Grian grabs one from the ground, not fazed over the blood that coated the silky petals. He feels another tear shedding, dribbling along down his ruby cheek.

A thud emits from the room with the door parted, leaving a small crack in the entrance. Grian drops the flower and looks at the door with a startled face, his eyes growing vast. He keeps the gun tightly in his hold and begins to creep towards the door.

After advancing slowly to the door and calming his palpating heart down, he opens the wooden door fully, the hinges shrieking as the bedroom gets revealed. He gasps when his eyes land on Mumbo's figure, lying motionless on the ground. 

Grian drops the gun and stumbles down to Mumbo. He pulls Mumbo onto his lap and cradles him as the held tears finally fall from his eyes. His teardrops begin to stain his cheeks as they freely flow down uncontrollably. He can see Mumbo's chest rising faintly and his eyelids begin to flutter.

"Grian...?" 

"Mumbo! Oh my stars!" Grian whimpers, pulling Mumbo as close as he can to his chest. Grian bawls unruly as his hands clutch onto Mumbo, his knuckles turning as white as snow. "I am so sorry. I'm so sorry this is happening to you." His voice begins to drown into nothing but sobbing.

Mumbo feebly seizes one of Grian's tense hands and interlocks his fingers with his with the last drop of energy in his body. Grian couldn't do anything, he was powerless. He wishes he can love Mumbo, wish he can love him with his heart, but he couldn't since his heart did not want to love Mumbo like that.

Grian's loud sobbing continued on as Mumbo begins to cough before going limp, flowers blooming from his mouth and little pink buds sprouting from his neck. Grian's fingers curl around Mumbo's tightly. 

He presses his forehead against Mumbo's. His hand lets go of Mumbo's interlocked fingers and he gently sets his pendulous arm down so he can brush Mumbo's cheeks.

"I-I am so sorry, Mumbo..." Grian's voice is just above a whisper. He keeps his forehead planted against Mumbo's and closes his eyes. His arm reaches out across Mumbo and he grabs the item he dropped. "I wish I l-loved you... And now, I can l-learn to do that with you, in heaven..." Grian points the gun to the side of his head.

His finger presses down on the trigger and a deafening blast strikes the room.