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Wemmbu is a very sentimental person.
It’s a trait Eggchan had noticed ever since they knew each other, something he kept in the back of his head that kept popping up whenever the purple haired demon boasted about how nonchalant he was. No matter how much he brushed off events, deep down Egg knew how much it actually affected Wemmbu.
Hell, he even remembered when Manepear made fun of him for it. Maybe that's why the demon hid the items in his enderchest from then on.
The demon had kept the dried pressed sunflower from Rejoice taped on his enderchest’s walls, it stayed at the same spot. The torn and dirty cape he always wore was something Prince Zam gave him when the empire was still standing tall. He made his tea just how Lopezz had taught him ages ago. He trained just like when Manepear was his teacher.
Egg also noticed how his tails wag when he gets praises from Jaden, or a subtle smile from Minute. Like right now, he can scientifically measure how excited Wemmbu was because of the redstone machine they had found. He might as well release a written report of how tails on demons indicate their emotion.
So much for the ‘nonchalant’ strongest player of the SMP.
“ —Well I already had my own insignia, actually,” The demon absently said. They were talking about making their own symbol as they’re looking around the Farland’s Orbital Strike Cannons.
The vast land of the Farland seemed infinite in front of them. The sun was still blazing on them, like an eternal summer. Through the endless field, there's no end to the world in sight, despite it feeling like it is the end of the overworld. It gave Egg the creeps the longer he stays here, so he shoved the thought right back in his head.
“You do? What’s your own insignia?” The angel replied, His hands traced the smooth diorite railings. Egg remembered a certain purple smile but they really were just talking nonsense to fill time as they walked through the ridiculously long bridge.
“Y’know the dumb smiling face I had on my shield?”
Egg could easily picture the shield. Bright purple with a small smile drawn crudely with homemade dye on cotton cloth, something he’d seen Wemmbu doodled on pages of his research paper just to annoy him, “The one that broke?”
“Yeah man!” Wemmbu grinned, dumb and wide, something preserved only for certain people, “I gotta get it back sometimes bro. It really matched my whole fit, didn't it?”
“Honestly, you gotta cut down the purple bro, people are definitely gonna find you easily,” Egg joked lightly, punching Wemmbu’s back, knowing it didn’t do any damage to his best friend. The purple demon just snickered as they continued to climb up the machine.
Wemmbu helped Egg climb up the machine, dragging the angel’s outstretched hand up to the roof, “Maybe I can just make it again, lowkey.”
“I mean, we can have a small break just dying a bunch of banners bro, it’d be kinda chill, don't you think?”
The demon scoffed, but his tail wags in excitement, “Hah! Yeah sure, now hold on to these for me, Egg.”
Oh well, they have fishing rods to refill, and an evil organization to defeat. Maybe then they’d make the shield again.
****
“Wemmbu!” Eggchan’s voice echoed through the district 13’s hallway. It bounced around, dimming the subtle hum of the underground base. It was loud enough to stop the purple demon from going back to meet up with the others.
The purple demon really couldn’t wait to have his revenge on the Law. His fingers had been restless, stretching and reaching to his mace whenever he got slightly bored. He ended up pacing around the district while the others were talking about plans and strategies. And now that it was time, his heart thumped so loudly with excitement he could already envision the fight.
But he stayed anyway, because Eggchan had called him with a higher pitch than his usual monotonous tone. It was one of the hints he knew to find out what the angel’s currently feeling, knowing his entire head was just an eyeball. Wemmbu had came to appreciate the function of brows and facial muscles nowadays.
Or maybe it was just Eggchan, and Wemmbu would always hear his best friend out no matter how stupid it was.
“I have a gift, I have a gift” Egg said, catching up to him.
The demon turned around, his eyes glinting with curiosity and impatience. His fraying cape swirled around him elegantly, despite its shape. Egg should really get more cloth to patch them up. Maybe once everything is over, he can clean up their memorabilia together.
He was about to open his mouth, before his attention got caught with a certain, purple shield. In front of him, Egg handed him the missing piece of his aesthetic. The angel’s wings fluttered in the same excitement, though not as active as Wemmbu’s tail, which seemed like it had its own mind as it wags behind him.
“Woah…” Wemmbu awed, his fingers traced the form of the shield on his hands.
The shield was brand new, not something Egg had stolen from leftover law soldiers or whoever had the misfortune to meet the duo– Wemmbu could tell that much. The wood smelled of fresh varnish, but carried a fine aroma of pine wood underneath the chemical. And the carving wasn’t as perfect as the Law’s or the Invisible Mafia’s was, something factory made with flawless cuts and printed designs.
It was homemade, a craft that took time and effort to create. The shield had wonky edges and awkward cuts where it looked like it wasn’t intentional. And the smile looked as stupid as he remembered. Wemmbu could see the wobbly line dyed with black staring back at him. And his eyes caught how some of the dye had escaped and tinged outside of its line of design. It was far from perfect, not a copy of the shield he used to wield.
But the grip was comfortable, a padding had been glued onto the metal, keeping it strong while still soft enough to not irritate his wrist. And the purple was perfect, pulled from the freshest rose and cornflower blend. The stitch was recognizable, something he’d seen on his own cape he adorned.
It was as if it had been sculpted to perfectly fit the demon’s form.
As if Egg hadn’t been trying to keep track of Wemmbu's figure when he’s busy macing their enemies. Or staying up late night just to make sure the dye was the perfect temperature under their tents and the cold night sky. Or maybe learning new ways to carve wood as he became an autodidactic to all things craftsmanship through their journey. His hands slowly calloused from constant carving and focused hand steadying practices.
“You made this, Egg?” The demon said in the midst of his amazement, his gaze locked onto the wonky smile.
“Brother, I spent most of the alone time I had to finish that,” Egg answered, his tone as monotonous as usual. But if you’re his best friend, you could catch the small sign of relief in it, “You gotta use it for the big battle, bro.”
“Oh bet!” Wemmbu grinned, bright and open. He swings it around, feeling the calm recollection of using his shield, and not some quick drop from a corpse. Something that was made for him.
“Yeah, I'll drip out with the Law shield instead, they’d never know that it’s me,” Egg dryly joked, showing around the shield he had picked up from a few battles ago.
Their laugh bounced through district 13’s hallway. Giggles and snorts follow them as they make their way to the entrance room, where everyone supposedly has been waiting for the duo. And when the others asked about the shield, Eggchan would see his tail wags as Wemmbu explained casually and normally how his branding was back to its peak.
Wemmbu is a patchwork of the people he appreciated; unique and flawed at the same time. And Eggchan would be lying if he said he didn't notice that his influence thread had been right between those patches, sewing and keeping them together.
“Yo, thank you,” Wemmbu said.
“Anytime, brother.”