The Broken Flame

Herobrine fell onto Celina and sobbed and wailed out as loud as he could, burying his face into her shoulder puff. He was crying out as loud as he could in his uncontrollable sorrow. His whole body shook and shuddered with his cries, and he held onto Celina as if she was his lifeline. The next while was filled with Herobrine’s cries. He couldn’t stop, couldn’t let go, couldn’t even open his eyes from the sheer emotional toll that telling his story had taken on his body. The Demi-God just held onto her, his tears soaking the fabric of her shoulder puff.

Herobrine’s cries sounded so human, so tired and full of emotion. Celina couldn’t help but let her eyes water as well. He was shaking and clutching onto her with everything he had. The Nether Prince couldn’t seem to stop and she didn’t make any move to stop him. She couldn’t imagine the grief he was feeling in that moment.

Celina moved a hand to gently rub his back, moving it in small circles to try and soothe the distressed Demi-God. He hiccupped and wept on her, holding tightly to her. The queen whispered to him as he cried. “It’s okay, Brine. It’s okay. I know it hurts. I know. Let it all out. I won’t judge you, and it’s not a weakness to mourn. You should know that. I don’t know who told you it was, but trust me when I saw: you are not weak.”

Herobrine gave a nod and continued his cries. He spoke with a hitching voice. “I--I could have… saved--her… and I didn’t.”

Celina felt her heart break. “Herobrine, you showed me your memories, and I saw it first hand: you couldn’t have known what would happen to Cebrina. You couldn’t have seen what Rose was going to do with that blade. You didn’t see what was going to happen coming, and it’s not your fault. You didn’t know.”

Herobrine let out a small howl of sadness. “But… if I had just… just tried--harder to--to free myself… she wouldn’t have… suffered.” He growled to himself. “I… I should--have… have tried… harder. It’s all my fault.”

“No, it’s not, Brine,” she told him. Celina carefully broke the embrace and placed hands on his shoulder, making the being look at her. He looked so innocent and heart broken and she couldn’t help but move a hand up to wipe his tears. “Brine,” she started. “I want you to listen to me, okay?”

The Lord of the Mobs nodded and sniffled a bit.

“It’s not your fault. You had no control over what Rose would do or what she had planned. You couldn’t have known, and it’s not your fault in any way. You were just doing what felt right in your heart, and Rose was just… a cruel witch who was envious of you. She wanted happiness, but she had no right to do what she did. And you? You were just trying to live.” She sighed softly. “And someone people just didn’t want to see that. You have every right to be angry, to be sad, to say what you want about those people. But just know: it’s not your fault. You had no control over some of those things, and you did nothing wrong.”

Celina looked away. “I don’t blame you for killing people after what I’ve seen. I never knew how cruel humans could truly be until you showed me. We’re fickle creatures, blinded by judgement, and you didn’t deserve what happened to you. You deserved to live a happy life with your wife, a long one. How… how old was she when she died?”

“She was 26 years old,” Herobrine tearfully spoke. “I met her when she was sixteen years old."

“And those ten years you gave her? Just like she told you: they were the best years of her life and you gave her happy memories no one else would have been able to.” She hugged the Demi-God, hearing him let out a tiny gasp. “You cared for her, Brine. She thanked you for all the wonderful memories you gave her in her dying breaths. You made her life wonderful, Brine. Never forget that she loved you to the very end. You gave her a wonderful life, and she loved you.”  

Herobrine was still a little stiff, but soon relaxed into Celina’s touch and held onto her. He nodded at her words. It was true. Cebrina had told him in her last moments that she loved him, loved him for all the memories he gave her, and that she would always be his. She thanked him for all the memories he made with her… and she asked his forgiveness for not being able to free him and save him.

Herobrine knew that if his wife could see him… she wouldn’t want him to be hateful and hurting people.

She’d want his trust in people to mend.

And maybe… he could fulfill that promise. 

As Celina hugged the Nether Prince, she could feel him relax into her touch. He weakly put his arms around her and hugged her. The two sat there for a few moments, with Herobrine leaning into Celina’s touch, the queen gently rubbing circles into his back. 

When the being finally pulled away, he looked at Celina, who gave him a soft smile. He couldn’t help but smile back. He could almost see his wife in her place. This girl’s kindness and capacity to forgive… it was all like his past lover. And it made him happy.

Celina could see Herobrine’s soft grin. It was a gentle one, a more human one. And it warmed her heart. “How do you feel now,” she asked.

“I’m… I think I feel better now that I’ve… vented a bit. I… I really needed someone to listen to me, who wouldn’t just sit there and judge me for what I’ve done.” He chuckled and that sound made Celina’s heart happy. “Thank you, Celina… I… I haven’t talked to anyone in such a long time. Doing so made me feel much better. It’s been so long since someone was nice to me. I guess… I forgot how wonderful humans can be.” He beamed. “It really helped out with all the conflict going on in my head.”

Celina smiled. “I’m glad I could show you kindness. You didn’t deserve what happened to you. Maybe… you can change for the better. And I know how you can start.” She gestured to Steve as he laid on his bed. “He’ll be asleep for a while, but maybe, in the morning, you can apologize to him.”

Herobrine looked at the miner. “Do you think he’ll even forgive me?”

“I’ve known Steve for a long time, Brine. If you truly do show him you mean it, he’ll forgive you in no time.” She saw him turn to her again. “So… can I ask you more questions? I just wanted to ask you some little things, nothing else real big.”

Herobrine nodded. “Ask away then.”

“Okay… so… first thing: what’s your favorite food?”

“...Pumpkin pie. Cebrina used to make it for me all the time. You reminded me of that when you pulled out that pie, which is why I panicked the way I did. But… pumpkin pie is nice.”

“Is that why you smell like it?”

“I… didn’t realize I did.”

“Well, I’ve noticed a lot of little things about you in the time you’ve been here.” 

Herobrine raised a brow. “Like what?”

“Like… you’ve got curvy hips, pointy ears, your hair is kinda curly, and you’re really warm. Those are just a few things I’ve noticed.”

No other human had really ever noticed those things about him, so Brine was impressed. “What else did you want to ask?”

“Um… what’s your favorite color?”

“Orange.”

“What’s your birthday?”

“October 31st.”

“Oh, that’s Steve’s birthday too!” 

Brine raised a brow. “Really?”

“Mmhmm! We like to do costume parties for his birthday here! Since his birthday is on Heroween, we also eat lots of candy!”

Brine chuckled softly. “That’s adorable. So how about you? Why don’t you tell me a little about yourself?”

“Like what I asked you?”

“Yes.”

Celina shifted in her spot on the floor. “Well… let’s see. My favorite colors are magenta and pink, my favorite food is rainbow brownies, and my birthday is January 31st.” She looked at him. 

“Interesting. What’s a rainbow brownie?”

“Do you know what a brownie is?” When he nodded, she smiled. “Well, I make them with white chocolate and food dyes and make a few batches of dough in different colors with the dye. I layer them, then bake them, and it makes some brownies with rainbow colored layers!”

Herobrine laughed a bit. “What is it with you and rainbows?”

“I… don’t know. I guess I just really like rainbows.”

Brine laughed again. “Well, it’s endearing.”

Celina smiled. “Okay… what’s your favorite music disc?”

“Pigstep. Yours?”

“Far.” A thought struck the queen. “Out of curiosity… why did you flinch when I tried to hand you the water bucket a while back?”

Brine’s smile fell a bit. “I’m a fire Demi-God. It’s in my nature to be afraid of my opposite element.” 

“Ooooohhhhh, that makes sense,” Celina responded.

The rest of their time awake was spent with the two going back and forth, asking about favorite books, holidays, and other little trivial things. It was actually really nice for Brine, to have a casual and human conversation with someone who reminded him why he once adored humans. She was so sweet and tried not to step over his boundaries. She was… kind, and that was something he admired.

By the time they finished talking, Brine let out a yawn and Celina echoed it. She pulled out her clock. “Well… it’s getting late. I think I should be getting to bed. I’m… tired.”

“I am too,” Brine murmured. “I think I’ll go lay down as well.” He looked at the queen with a gentle smile. 

The two made their way out of the throne room after giving one last check on Steve, and made their way to the grand room. The queen watched the Nether Prince climb onto the bed, and she smiled. “Sleep well, Brine,” she whispered.

Brine nodded. “I will. Thank you… for everything, Celina. I didn’t realize how much I needed that. Thank you.”

The queen nodded and when the being before her fell asleep, she moved up the stairs to her room. She could hear him snoring softly down below, and as she got into her room and got into pajamas, Celina couldn’t help but smile. She had truly changed Herobrine, the legend himself. She had changed him for the better. She had heard his story. Of course, she wasn’t going to go and tell everyone his story, but she knew now he trusted her. She had truly found friendship in him. And honestly? It made her happy.

She looked out her window as she climbed into her bed. “Let’s see what tomorrow brings,” she murmured, before falling asleep, her dreams calm for the first time in a while.