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Chapter Text

“Stupid… Reckless…” I mumbled as I limped through the forest. Burning Spice Cookie (the little sugarplum) was so psyched up when he couldn’t defeat his alternate, he needed to “get stronger.” And who better than a weakened, shaken jester to fight!

“The damn breadcrumb…” I groaned.

I held my arm in place. It had nearly crumbled off during the fight, but thankfully I was able to save it, unlike my head. What, didn’t know that the reason I can take off my head at will was because Burning Spice cut it off? Well, now you do!

The difference is that we were in our soul forms when that happened. Now, we have physical forms, and the damage can’t be reversed as easily. Something a dumb fudge like him didn’t account for!

“Ugh…” I grunt as I lean against a tree. It’s hard staying stable on your feet when you’ve just had two back-to-back fights. And I used the last of my energy to teleport away from the battle.

I’m stuck.

x        x        x

I felt a pulse from my Soul Jam.

Today we had decided to have a picnic in the newly growing forests near the Vanilla Kingdom. Thanks to Herb Cookie, it was growing relatively fast, of which I was thankful for. The people there were GingerBrave, Wizard Cookie, Strawberry Cookie, and Custard Cookie. Sadly, White Lily Cookie had not yet returned, but we all were having fun nonetheless. 

However, my Soul Jam was unsettled. I didn’t understand why, but I had an urge to go deeper into the forest to check if anything was wrong. The forest had been deemed safe from the Cakes, but it was still somewhat dangerous to go in alone. What a strange feeling…

“Are you alright, Pure Vanilla Cookie?” GingerBrave asked.

I looked up at GingerBrave, who was digging into a bear jelly. “Ah, yes. I’m just… lost in thought.” I looked into the forest. “GingerBrave, may I ask for your guidance?”

“Huh? I mean, sure! But I don’t know how I can help you.”

“Something feels off. I have the urge to look for something in the forest. I don’t know what, but I believe it may be important. It feels… hurt.”

“Hurt?” GingerBrave asked.

“Yes. I know it sounds strange, but I can’t help but think someone is in danger.”

“Well,” GingerBrave replied, “I always try to go with my gut! You know, like when you're faced with an important decision, like… sweet or sour jellies! If my gut says ‘sweet,’ I go with ‘sweet!’”

“I see..” I pondered for a moment. “Yes, thank you GingerBrave! You have helped me very much.”

“I have?” GingerBrave said.

“Yes, indeed! I must go for now. Please keep an eye on the picnic!”

“Can do!”

“Thank you.”

I walked off into the forest. I was not sure who or what I shall encounter, but I had a feeling that they were in trouble.

I felt my Soul Jam pulse again. I was on the right track. I turned the corner to see a very damaged Shadow Milk Cookie leaning against a tree.

“Shadow Milk Cookie?!”

He looked up, and I immediately saw the full extent of the damage done. There were small cracks all around his face, and he seemed to be covering a severe crack on his arm. There were blueberry jam droplets on the floor all around him. He gave me a harsh glare.

“What’re you… doing… here?” He struggled to say.

“I was having a picnic, and felt something off about the forest. It seems our Soul Jam’s were calling to each other.”

“Ha! Fat chance…” 

He slipped slightly and out of instinct I dashed toward him. He yelled in pain as I caught him.

“I’m sorry.”

“Yeah, right.”

I set him down, leaning him against a tree. He cradled his cracked arm. I looked at him concerned.

“Here, let me heal you-”

He pulled himself away from me.

“Do you really think as the former Fount of Knowledge that I wouldn’t know a spell to heal myself?!”

“I’m not questioning your Knowledge,” I explained, motioning to his arm, “I’m questioning your ability to cast.”

He looked at me, annoyed, and then looked away. 

Seeing his situation, and the fact he wouldn’t let me tend to his wounds, it seemed I only had one option.

“Please, let me tend to your wounds,” I said, a slight echo in my voice.

Shadow Milk complied blankly, and it was only after I started healing him that he realized what had happened.

“Did you just control me?”

“It’s a manipulation spell,” I explained. “I learned it back at school. We had a very strange teacher that year…”

“Oho! It seems we’re even more alike than we thought!”

“But, unlike you, I don’t enjoy using them. I only use them on my most stubborn patients,” I said teasingly.

He glared at me and looked down. At least he’s no longer fighting back, I thought to myself.

“Does that feel better?” I said as I finished healing.

He moved his arm in a circle. “I guess… What’s it to ya? Why’d you help me?”

“Isn’t that what friends are for?”

x        x        x

I looked at him, annoyed. 

Friends. 

He flaunts that word around like they last forever. He acts like the two of us, who are, by the way, on VERY different sides, are just that. Friends.

He doesn’t understand. We’re not just enemies. We’re enemies by FATE. This was bound to happen. I know because of an old prophecy. VERY old.

He doesn’t understand what’s at work. He didn’t understand that he couldn’t escape the ultimate end of the line, when he would have to put me back in the seal. Yet he said he understands my pain. A pain I didn’t even realize existed until…

No. It DOESN’T exist. It NEVER existed. I was never lonely. Only bored.

I turned away and started to walk off, but winced at sudden pain from my arm.

“Are you sure you’ll be fine?” Pure Vanilla asked.

“Shut up!” I yelled. “I’m fine on my own! I don’t need you, I don’t need ANYONE. I. Am. FINE.”

I walked faster, but I ended up tripping, and the pain burst throughout my entire body.

“DAMNIT!” I yelped.

Pure Vanilla came over to help me up, but I swatted him away.

“Don’t you get it by now?” I said. “We’re ENEMIES. And it will stay that way. No matter what we do or say, we can’t change that we are on different sides! I can’t be your friend!”

“Why not?” Pure Vanilla asked.

“What an idiotic question! I just told you, didn’t I?”

“You said we were on different sides. And that’s true. But how does that stop us from being friends?”

“Because we have to hurt each other!”

“Who says enemies have to hurt each other?”

This was getting annoying. Asking such silly questions! And yet… I struggled to find an answer to that last one. But I found one.

“It doesn’t have to be physical. You’re going to have to seal me. That’s an attack in itself. You say you don’t want me to feel lonely? Well, TOUGH LUCK! You have to trap me in that seal, or else the seal won’t work and the world ends! There. That’s your answer. Happy?”

I start to walk away again.

“I don’t want to.”

I stop in my tracks. “What.”

“I don’t want to seal you in. I don’t want to trap you again and make you feel lonely. Not to mention that the cookie who nearly crumbled you would likely be in there with you.”

I looked at him, shocked that he knew, but then again, the only options were me, the other Ancients, or the Beasts, and I’m smart enough not to go looking for a fight or hurting myself.

“It doesn’t matter if you ‘don’t want to.’ You have to. There’s no other way.”

“Of course there is,” he said. “There’s always another way.”

“And how do you know that? Huh? How could you possess such a power that can change fate itself?!”

“Because I’ve done it.”

“When-”

And then I remembered. He was supposed to stay as “Truthless Recluse” originally. And yet, because of his stupid friends, he went back to being his normal, kind, annoying self. Something even I can’t understand.

“Alright,” I say, “then how do you plan to stop it?”

He pondered for a moment. “I’m not sure,” he finally replied, “but I’ll find a way.”

I scoffed. All this big talk, and yet he doesn’t even know how to put it into action. Such an idiot. But it’s funny to see him try. 

Another sharp pain, this time more around my chest. I wince.

“Ow…” I mumble.

Pure Vanilla looked at me worriedly. “You know, you’re welcome to stay in the Vanilla Kingdom until you recover.”

I looked at him, shocked he would even suggest that. “What?”

“I know it wouldn’t be easy, but I’m sure I could find a way to-”

I held up my hand to shut him up. “Back up a second. YOU. Want ME. Your SWORN NEMESIS. To stay in YOUR KINGDOM.”

“I don’t see a problem with it. Also, ‘sworn nemesis?’”

“There’s a HUGE problem!” I yell. “You’re giving me a HUGE advantage! Letting me in your kingdom would let me learn EVERYTHING about you! I would know how to defeat you IN AN INSTANT!”

“And that means I would get that same advantage, correct?”

Oof. He got me there.

“Where would I even stay? If any of your friends found out you were sheltering me, a Beast, they would flip!”

“I have a secret room in my palace that you could stay in.”

In his palace. IN HIS PALACE!

I don’t understand him. He NEVER thinks about the possible consequences! And with everything I’ve done to him?! How is he MY other half?!

And yet…

“Fine,” I reply. “I’ll stay. But I WON’T enjoy it.”

Pure Vanilla smiled. “Of course.”

Chapter Text

After the picnic (I hid behind the trees for most of it), me and Pure Vanilla went to his palace. I still don’t fully understand why he would let me stay here, but, as long as I get info, I don’t really care.

Thankfully, by the time we got back to the Vanilla Kingdom, I had regained a small amount of power that let me hide myself, so there weren’t any issues on the way. And, since Pure Vanilla is such a chatterbox, (And I thought I talked a lot!) we got there really late, and everyone had fallen asleep by then. 

We eventually got to a door that had a mural of Pure Vanilla’s Soul Jam on the front.

“This is the door to my room.”

I jerked my head in his direction. “I’m sorry, WHAT? I thought you said you had a SECRET room I would stay in!”

“I do. This,” he put his hand on the mural and turned it upside-down, making it look more like MY Soul Jam, “is the door to your room.”

I should have known. After our last encounter, he prepared this room for me specifically using magic and likely his portion of the other-realm. He knew he would need a room for his new “friend.” That is, if he succeeded in becoming friends with me. Of which he has yet to do.

We walked into the room. Although I was prepared for a really bright room with lots of nice furniture, what I got was black walls, a wood floor, and a blue ceiling.

“... Where’s all the furniture?” I asked, confused.

“Well, I made sure you were able to access your other-realm so that you can choose the furniture you put in, since I don’t know your tastes,” he replied with that stupid, kind smile he always has on his face. 

“How thoughtful,” I groaned. I can’t blame him. It was nice of him to let me choose my furniture. It’s the “getting it in here” part that’s annoying.

He shifted over to a door on the far side of the room. It had the same mural as the door to his room. “If you ever need me at all, I’m right through this door.”

I faked a smile, making sure it didn’t look sincere. “Of course!”

He sighed as he went through the door. I was left alone to get everything set up.

“Alright,” I sighed, “let’s get this over with.”

*              *             *

It took forever, but I was able to get everything in its place.

There was a bed on one side of the room centered with the wall. A nice rug with my signature eye on it, all in shades of blue, at the end of my bed. To make the place feel more like home, I had added blue eyes to the walls as well. There was, of course, a nightstand with a blue lamp next to the bed. I had my closet in the corner to the other side of the bed. Since I wasn’t planning on leaving the room, I made it a touch bigger and added a kitchen on the other side of the room in one of the corners (as for where I would eat, I would just settle for my bed). And finally, to fill in the space I had in the last two corners, I put cupboards where I would store stuff for my entertainment (puppets, books, drawing pencils, etc). I was quite proud of it for sure. I hadn’t felt this proud of my hard work since…

Ah ah ah! He almost got me there. Trying to get me to want to go back to the way things were? Well, I’m sorry to say this, Pure Vanilla, but I know your tricks! After all, your memories aren’t the only ones that I’ve messed with!

My stomach grumbled. I guess I could go for a bite to eat. After all, I hadn’t eaten since… since…

Oof. Maybe I should have a bit more than a bite.

I started preparing some jellies. It’s been a while since I’ve cooked, but I was sure I could handle it. I went to grab the knife. 

I stopped. 

Maybe I should just wait a bit. I didn’t NEED to cut anything up. No need to risk hurting myself. Besides, I hadn’t handled a knife in forever. Who knows what could happen if… 

I grew nauseous. What was that? 

That cookie… He was holding a knife. With blueberry jam all over it. MY jam. 

I felt my eyecing ache. I put my hand over it.

He looked manic. I don’t understand. Who was he? And why was I so… scared?

My breathing quickened. It felt like I COULDN’T breathe. I sat down and leaned against the foot of my bed. I didn’t even realize I was crying until I saw the tears on the floor.

I heard someone mumble something. Only a little later did I realize I was the one mumbling. I was saying someone's name. Then I realized.

“Pure Vanilla Cookie!” I yelled. I needed him. I didn’t know what was happening. I needed him to tell me everything was okay with that calm, kind, soothing voice of his. I couldn’t put my thoughts together at the moment. And, as much as I may hate it, all I needed right then…

… Was him.

x        x        x

I ran into Shadow Milk’s room. I had woken up early that morning to take a walk, but, as I returned, I had heard him call my name. He sounded distressed, and, knowing him, he wouldn’t call for me unless it was urgent. As I entered, I saw Shadow Milk in front of his bed, seemingly having a panic attack.

“Shadow Milk!” I exclaimed, racing to his aid. He didn’t look toward me. He only stared at the floor, hyperventilating and crying.

I sat down right in front of him and put my hand on his shoulder, which made him jump a little. He looked up.

“Look at me. Try to take deep breaths.”

He kept hyperventilating, but it had slowed ever so slightly.

“It’s okay, Shadow Milk Cookie. I’m here.”

His breathing gradually slowed. Eventually, his breathing was back to normal. He took a deep breath, then sighed and closed his eyecings.

“Thank you,” he said, after a few moments of silence.

Although a little surprised by that statement, I replied, “Of course! However, what triggered that panic attack?”

“I’m… I’m not sure,” he said. “I was just about to make myself some breakfast, and I went to grab the knife, then-”

He winced and put his hand on his eyecing, of which was strange, since that seemed to be one of the only parts of him that wasn’t cracked or crumbling when I found him.

“Hey, it’s alright,” I said, “There’s no need to overwork yourself. Here, I’ll make some breakfast for the both of us, okay?”

He stayed silent a few moments, and then nodded.

As I went to go make some food, I heard Shadow Milk open one of the cupboards. I then heard him plop onto his bed and start scribbling down something.

I smiled. I wondered whether he was writing or drawing, and, either way, I wouldn’t put it past him. He is quite the creative cookie after all!

After I finished making the food, I brought it over to him. “Here.”

He reluctantly grabbed the food out of my hands. Ah, so he’s grumpy again.

And yet, even so, he didn’t tell me to leave as I sat down on the bed and ate beside him.

Chapter Text

I had to admit, the food was pretty fudging good. I mean, for a blind guy.

Yeah, sure, he can still use that creepy staff thing he has to see, but he wasn’t using it right then. Which honest to goodness shocked me, because he used probably every item on the counter. He’s got some damn good memory.

While he was doing that, I got to work on drawing the cookie I saw in that… Vision? Flash? I don’t know what to call it, but whatever. I needed to sort out my thoughts so I could figure out what the hell just happened.

I put my hand on my eyecing again. It still hurt, but it was less than before. I’m not a hundred percent sure why it hurts, but I think that’s where the jam on the knife came from.

Before I knew it, he gave me some food, and I started eating. I knew I was hungry, but damn, I didn’t realize just how hungry I was until I was shoveling food in my mouth at a mile a minute. I didn’t even notice when Pure Vanilla sat next to me. I did realize he was there after a minute or so (I could feel his stupid smile), and I scooched away from him slightly, but I didn’t really care at that point. Hell, if we were gonna be living together, I was gonna have to learn how to deal with his annoying niceness. 

After I was finished eating (That food only lasted 2-3 minutes), I used my other-realm to put the plate in the sink and continued my drawing.

Pure Vanilla finished about 5 minutes after me and put his dish in the sink. He then returned to sit by me, his head in my direction.

“What’re you doing?”

I continued my art. “Drawing.”

“Really?” he said, although I doubt he was surprised. “May I see?”

I reluctantly shifted the notebook to where his staff could see it. He concentrated, and then sheepishly motioned to give it to him. I glared at him, but gave him the notebook.

“Who is this cookie?” he asked. 

“He’s the cookie I saw while I was having that panic attack. I think it was a memory,” I added when Pure Vanilla looked concerned. I don’t like it when he’s concerned about me. It’s weird.

His expression softened a bit, but he still looked concerned. “A memory?”

“Yeah,” I said. “Mine were jumbled up when I was corrupted. The others had it a bit less than I did.”

“The other Beasts?” Pure Vanilla asked.

“Yep.”

Pure Vanilla “looked” downward for a moment, then looked back up with that same soft smile. “Do you mind if I look through this book some more?”

I looked at him, annoyed, but that damn smile couldn’t be fought against. “Fine, whatever.”

His smile became brighter and he immediately started flipping through the pages.

I got up and grabbed one of my writing books from one of the cupboards. I could probably pass the time by writing down some more of my script for my newest play. 

The play is called “The Men Who Cried ‘Wolf!’” It’s about the story of the Boy Who Cried Wolf, but reimagined in more of the Boy’s story. It also includes the aftermath of the betrayal of the townsfolk, of which I’m writing right now, and, oh boy, is it fun!

I start writing down the first part of Act II, Scene V, starting with the setting. I got down to the first line of dialogue when-

“Are these drawings of me?”

I jolted up from my writing. He had found one of the pages I was drawing after he defeated me in our last battle, before Burning Spice decided to be a little sugarplum and ruin EVERYONE’S plans. 

“Give me that!” I said, grabbing the notebook from his hands.

He looked at me, obviously sorry to intrude, but beaming at the fact I drew him. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to invade your privacy! I just was a little surprised, is all.”

I glared at him. “You should be sorry!” I huffed, and then sat the notebook on my nightstand.

Pure Vanilla turned away for a moment, but then turned back to me. “They looked very nice. You’re a wonderful artist!”

I look at him blankly. “Thanks?” I replied. I go back to my writing.

He turned away again, and looked at the clock mounted on the wall above the kitchen. He jumped up.

“Oh my, it’s that time already?! I must go, I have a meeting with the other Ancients!”

“A meeting, huh?” I say. Well, good riddance. I was tired of him anyway.

However…

Going to the meeting might give me some more insight on their plans. As boring as it may sound, it would be very useful in the future. 

“Hey, mind if I tag along? Y’know, watch from the sidelines?” I asked.

Pure Vanilla turned to me, shocked. “You want to?”

“I mean, yeah? Who knows? I might just enjoy myself.”

He beamed. “Of course! Just try not to do anything to distract me, please.”

I smiled mischievously. “Oh, why would I do that? Don’t you trust me, Vanilly?”

He chuckled. “Surprisingly, not that much.”

“Ha ha,” I said.

We both smiled and I put on a cloaking spell.

*              *             *

I plopped down onto my bed. That meeting was an absolute snooze fest! I didn’t even get any information!

Pure Vanilla sat down beside me. “Was it really that bad?”

I looked at him. “It may have been fun for you, but I couldn’t interact with ANYTHING or ANYONE. It was TERRIBLE.”

He smiled a pitiful, pathetic smile. “I’m sorry. I didn’t realize it would go on for so long.”

I grimaced. “Of course you didn’t.”

The meeting didn’t have White Lily there (thank the fudging Witches), since she was busy training with her Guardian abilities. It was really just an excuse for all of them to complain about their Beasts. Pure Vanilla didn’t say much about me, and Hollyberry Cookie was a bit iffy on sharing her experience, but the other two WOULD NOT STOP. Then again, I personally don’t blame Golden Cheese Cookie. Anyone who doesn’t hate Burning Spice is either insane, or still knows him as Chili Spice. But Mystic Flour’s reason made sense, relatively. Did she really deserve what happened?

When we got back, the sun was nearly ready to set. I thought about how much time I had wasted. I could’ve finished Act II by now!

“Shadow Milk?” Pure Vanilla said.

“Yeah?”

“Can’t you shapeshift?”

I lifted myself up a little, confused. “Yeah. What about it?”

Pure Vanilla thought for a moment. “Why don’t you use that so you can interact freely with others?”

I sat up. “I… I hadn’t thought about that.”

Pure Vanilla smiled. “Why don’t we go for a walk tomorrow?”

Chapter Text

I walked through the forest trail with Blueberry Milk Cookie by my side.

We had decided it would be best to call him by his former name so that we could hide his identity, however much he despised it. He took a form that he said was similar to his old self, but was different in a number of ways, in case someone somehow recognized him. I doubted anyone would, but one could never be too careful.

“I’m still not sure this will work,” Blueberry Milk said, while clenching the birdseed I had asked him to bring. “If White Lily returns, let’s say, tomorrow. She’ll probably see right through my disguise!”

“You look different enough from your unaltered self that no one will notice, I’m sure,” I say, trying to calm him down. “Besides, I doubt you wanna stay cooped up in your room every day.”

“You know I don’t but that’s not the point. My eyes are the only thing I CAN’T change, and they’ll all see right through it! What happens to you when they find out, hm?”

I turn my head towards him. “Are you… worried about me, Blueberry Milk Cookie?”

He looked surprised at the words that had come out of his mouth. “No, I don’t! I’m just trying to… get you to understand the situation!”

“Well what about you? What would happen to you?”

“Oh, I would just teleport out of there,” he said. He then realized. “You little-”

I couldn’t help but chuckle. All this tough talk, acting like he hates me, but in the end, he cares about me just as much as I care about him.

He just stares at me as we walk. “... What?” I finally ask.

“O-oh, nothing,” he replied, turning away. 

Although his behavior was very peculiar, I didn’t ask any further questions. After all, he is a very peculiar cookie.

It was very early in the morning, and the sun was still rising. The light left a yellow tint on the world, making everything feel bright and happy. It seemed that even Blueberry Milk was enjoying himself!

I sat down on a nearby bench, and Blueberry Milk sat beside me. Soon, a couple of birds flew in from the trees. He clenched the bird seed tighter.

“Is this why you asked me to bring this stuff?” Blueberry Milk asked.

I nodded. “I feed these birds every morning. It’s become such a habit that I’ve named some of them!”

He looked at me, very underwhelmed. “You named them?”

“Of course!” I replied. I pointed to a white cream dove. “That one is named Pearl.” I turned to a small, slender bird. “That one’s name is Fry.” I put my hand down to the floor, and a plump little Blueberry bird hopped onto my hand. I pet him gently. “And this one is Blue. He’s my most recurring customer!”

Blue peeped happily. I set him down. Blueberry Milk looked unamused.

“I still don’t get the point of this.”

I smiled. “It’s to help others! Even if they are animals, they still are living creatures. They have souls, just like any cookie!”

Blueberry Milk looked at all the birds. “Again, I don’t get it.”

I sighed. “Here, let me show you.” 

I motioned for Blueberry Milk to open the bag of bird seed, to which he did. I grabbed a small amount and gently tossed some towards the birds. The birds immediately started pecking at the seeds.

I smiled, then turned to Blueberry Milk. “Why don’t you try?”

Although nervous (for what reason, I am not sure), he grabbed some birdseed and threw some towards the birds. Some of them scattered a bit, but then started pecking again at the seed.

As I was about to congratulate him, he whispered something under his breath. Soon, the birds started fighting over the birdseed. I turned to Blueberry Milk.

x        x        x

I couldn’t help but laugh a little. I could see why Pure Vanilla would enjoy this! Provoke them even a little bit, and they’ll fight over anything! He was right! They’re just like cookies!

I heard him clear his throat. I looked over.

He was glaring at me. A harsh, cold glare.

I had never seen him glare. At least, not as his normal self. He glared at me a lot when he was Truthless Recluse, but not now. It didn’t suit him, honestly. His smile is much nicer.

I rolled my eyes as I stopped the spell. The birds stopped fighting.

Pure Vanilla sighed. “Can you please just try to see through my point of view?”

I scoffed, but I couldn’t help but feel bad. I don’t know why, but something about the way he looked at me made me feel like I should do something different.

I turned away from him. These feelings were worthless. I shouldn’t even feel them at all.

Pure Vanilla put his hand on my shoulder. “Try again. Without the needless arguing,” he quickly added.

I grabbed a little bit more bird seed. All of the birds backed away, afraid. Except for Blue.

I tossed some to Blue. He, for some odd reason, did not hesitate to eat the seed. When he realized none of the other birds were eating, he chirped at them. They hesitantly came to join him, and they all seemed happy.

I looked at them in amazement, especially Blue. Despite what I had done to turn them against each other, they had still accepted my gift. It was so strange.

Pure Vanilla was beaming. “See? It isn’t so bad helping others!”

I turned to him, smiled, and turned back to the birds. “I guess not.”

Pure Vanilla turned to me in shock.

x        x        x

Did he actually admit that he enjoyed helping others?

I genuinely couldn’t believe it. I was starting to wonder if helping him was worthless, but those few words proved me wrong in an instant!

He looked back at me. “What?”

I smiled. “Nothing. Don’t worry about it.”

He looked confused, but then realized what he had just said. He turned away. “I hate you.”

I chuckled a little. “Are you sure?”

He glared at me and opened his mouth to say something, but was quickly interrupted by Blue’s chirping.

He looked at Blue, confused. “What does he want?”

I smiled. “He wants you to pick him up.”

“I don’t know how to pick up a bird.”

I tilted my head playfully. “Really?” He shook his head. “Here, let me show you.”

I motioned for his hand. He hesitantly put his hand on mine. I cupped my hand under his, so that he would as well. Then I put our hands to the floor.

Blue hopped onto Blueberry Milk’s hand and I lifted them up. I then let go, and he pulled Blue closer. Blue chirped happily.

He continued staring at Blue. “What do I do now?”

I looked at him, still finding his odd behavior entertaining. “You could pet him, if you want.”

He stayed still a moment, and gently pet Blue. Blue cooed in delight. Blueberry Milk’s eyes brightened.

“Interesting…”

He stared at Blue for a few moments, almost inspecting him. 

Then I heard his stomach grumble.

“Ah,” I said, “I guess in the excitement of feeding the birds with you, we forgot to feed ourselves.”

“I guess so,” he said, placing Blue down. He stood up and grabbed what was left of the birdseed. “I guess we should head back, then.”

I nodded and stood up myself. “I guess so.”

As we walked back to the castle, Blueberry Milk clenched the bird seed tight. “Don’t think this means you and I are becoming friends. We’re still enemies.”

I turned to him and smiled. “Of course not, Blue Bird.”

Chapter Text

I ate my breakfast and started scribbling in my notebook. That walk was… weird.

First of all, being in my old form was just off. I haven’t looked like that in CENTURIES. 

Second, why was I acting like that? I was so… oddly nervous? I didn’t like it. It was weird.

Thirdly, “Blue Bird?” Is that my name now? Yes, I call him Silly-Vanilly sometimes, but that at least had to do with his name. I guess he does have to call me Blueberry Milk in public now, but still. Not cool, Nilly, not cool.

And lastly… His laugh. 

He’s laughed before. Hundreds of times, actually. It was kinda annoying how often he laughed. Why was now so different? What was it? 

It wasn’t comforting. If anything, he just made me more nervous. It was softer than usual, I think. More… sincere. It felt nice, having him laugh like that. Almost…

Oooooookay, let’s stop there. I don’t need to divulge on this any more than I already have. I REALLY don’t like the fact that I was subconsciously drawing Pure Vanilla.

No matter what, it was weird. And what sucks is that I was gonna have to do it later today.

Pure Vanilla had scheduled a meeting with his friends. Not just the Ancients, but Gingerbrave and his friends as well. He told them he was going to introduce a “special new friend,” aka, moi. 

I was more nervous than before. Birds were one thing. They were small and gullible. But these were Cookies. Not just any Cookies: The Ancients. The sworn enemies of the Beasts. Not to mention, Gingerbrave and the gang had seen me before. Gingerbrave may not notice all that much, and Strawberry Cookie barely looks up, but my main worry was Wizard Cookie. He was smart. TOO smart. He would probably see right through me.

However, I was a little relieved that White Lily Cookie wasn’t gonna be there. Seems training takes longer than we thought.

“Are you ready?” Pure Vanilla said, walking through the door.

I looked at the clock. 11 a.m. already? I had barely finished breakfast.

“Ready as I’ll ever be,” I said, closing my notebook before he could see what I was drawing.

He smiled that kind, ignorant smile that I wish I had. “Let’s go.”

*              *             *

I was NOT ready.

What do you expect? I’m the Master of Deceit! I live to lie!

I was sweating OCEANS. How the hell was I supposed to do this? I had never played a kind character before! I was always my manic, terrifying self! Now, the Wolf had to play Sheep!

Pure Vanilla looked at me. He probably knew how distressed I was, because he said, “Don’t worry, I’ll be right here to help you.”

Oh, I’m not worried about that, Nilly. I’m worried about THEM.

Hollyberry can’t see through her own Berry Juice, sure. But Dark Cacao is an AMAZING judge of character, and, as far as I’ve seen, Golden Cheese is suspicious of EVERYONE.

Before I knew it, someone had knocked on the door to the garden, of which we had decided was the meeting place. Alright, Blueberry Milk, it’s now or never.

Pure Vanilla opened the doors. I breathed a sigh of relief.

It was just Gingerbrave and his friends, thank the Witches. These guys were practically a warm-up. Although I was still worried about Wizard Cookie, he would help me get the feel for the role.

“Heya, Pure Vanilla Cookie!” Gingerbrave said, practically skipping into the garden.

“Hello, Gingerbrave! Great to see you again,” Pure Vanilla replied, as if he hadn’t seen him just two days ago (Or was it three?).

The other two entered and were greeted similarly. Pure Vanilla then stood beside me to introduce me.

“Everyone, this is Shadow Milk Cookie!”

I jumped. The other three did too.

“I thought we said we were gonna keep that a secret!” I said, whipping my head around to Pure Vanilla.

“We are, but I find it important that these three know,” Pure Vanilla explained, “since they could help us cover up.”

I glared at him. This was WAYYY off script. I wasn’t anywhere near ready for this!

And it seemed they weren’t either.

“Shadow Milk Cookie?!” Wizard Cookie practically squealed. “What is he doing here?!”

“During our picnic the other day, our Soul Jams were calling to each other. Shadow Milk was in terrible condition, worse than we left him, so I decided I would let him stay until he had fully recovered.”

The other three were shocked. I, personally, was still processing what had just happened.

Yes, it’s true, they could be very useful in covering us. The others trust them just as much as they trust Pure Vanilla, so it does increase our chances. In fact, it would be vital they knew, practically. But that doesn’t mean I wasn’t still a little angry. A heads up would’ve been nice, Vanilly!

Gingerbrave, for once in his life, put two and two together. “Oh, so that’s why you needed my advice that day!”

Pure Vanilla smiled. “Yes, Gingerbrave, that is why I needed your guidance.”

Wizard Cookie was still confused. “But why would you help him? Isn’t he your enemy?”

“That’s what I said!” I blurted out impulsively.

Pure Vanilla looked at Wizard Cookie, and then to me. “Well, it’s a long story to explain, but in short, I wish to be his friend some day.”

Wizard Cookie and Strawberry Cookie were shocked. Gingerbrave, however, was excited.

“That’d be amazing! I’m always open to new friends!” he said.

I wasn’t shocked by Gingerbrave’s openness, however, I was still a little amazed. I could see how he and Pure Vanilla were such close friends now.

Strawberry Cookie looked at Gingerbrave, then at me. “I mean… I guess we could give him a chance…”

Wizard Cookie, although appalled, sighed and looked at me. “During your stay, do you promise by Pure Vanilla’s Light of Truth, that you won’t hurt anyone here?”

I was a little shocked he would bring the Light of Truth into this, but I understood why. After all, I am the Master of Deceit.

I stared him dead in the eye, and said very unseriously, “I swear by the Light of Truth I won’t hurt anyone while I’m staying with Pure Vanilla. There, happy?”

Wizard looked at me suspiciously. “No. But at least you won’t hurt anyone.”

I rolled my eyes. Pure Vanilla looked to GingerBrave and his friends.

“Now, we need your help to make sure the other Ancients don’t find out about this. Can you all help me do that?”

Although slightly confused as to why Pure Vanilla would hide something so important from his closest friends, they all nodded.

Pure Vanilla let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you.”

We had a couple of minutes before the others arrived, so we spent those couple of minutes helping me get into the role of a goody-two-shoes character. Gingerbrave got comfortable with me pretty quickly, Strawberry Cookie seemed to only be comfortable with Gingerbrave, but what I was truly shocked about was Wizard Cookie. He said that he was interested in talking with me about the Virtue of Knowledge and what it was like. Of course, I couldn’t remember it all that well, but I just told him that he wouldn’t wanna know and that was the end of it. We instead debated some random topics, like what type of foods are actually the most healthy, or what magics are most useful to learn in the long run.

There was a knock on the door. Everyone in the garden stayed silent for a moment. 

Gingerbrave went to stand and get the door, but Pure Vanilla quickly motioned him to stay. Pure Vanilla then walked up and opened the door.

Chapter Text

“You won’t believe who we found on the way here!” Hollyberry Cookie said, gleaming.

White Lily Cookie stood in the doorway, looking happy as ever.

I was screwed.

She was the ONE PERSON that I knew was gonna spot me out right away, and, as fate would have it, she decided to surprise Pure Vanilla by appearing WITHOUT FURTHER NOTICE.

All of us were shocked. Pure Vanilla, thankfully, was quick to mask it with a happy shock instead of a “Well, fudge, we’re screwed” shock.

I wasn’t. I was scared out of my mind. I had to face the GUARDIAN and hope to sway her with my act. Believe it or not, that’s harder than it looks!

The other three soon followed Pure Vanilla’s lead. They all greeted her openly, as well as with the other Ancients. I mustered all of my strength not to teleport out of there immediately.

“So, who’s this ‘friend’ you wanted us to meet, Pure Vanilla? I can’t wait to meet him!”

I jumped. Of course Hollyberry had to bring me up.

I stood up and walked to Pure Vanilla’s side, more nervous than I ever have been before. 

“Hi,” I said awkwardly. That was NOT what I had rehearsed. I had rehearsed 126 times over (I counted) “Hello, my name is Blueberry Milk Cookie! It’s a pleasure to meet you!” and I came out with “Hi.” How stupid.

Hollyberry obviously didn’t care, thank goodness. “Well hello there!” She took my hand and shook it vigorously. “My name’s Hollyberry Cookie! Nice to meetcha!”

“Nice to meet you too,” I replied. Although I could feel the other Ancients' stares, I was able to find my composure. “My name is Blueberry Milk, by the way.”

“Blueberry Milk?” Golden Cheese said, suspicious.

“Uh, yes,” I stated. I pushed up my glasses, deciding to go along with the “shy” type. “I study paranormal phenomena, and my studies lead me to Beast-Yeast. That is how I met Pure Vanilla Cookie.”

“So you're a scholar?” Dark Cacao asked.

“Yes, I am!” I started, smiling the way I had seen Pure Vanilla smile. I guess his annoying smiles had a purpose after all!

“Interesting…”

I continued answering some of their questions, finding quick answers. A memory flashed through my mind for a second, but I pushed it away. I couldn’t let any memories bother me until this meeting was finished.

After the conversation, I looked toward White Lily, who was currently talking to Pure Vanilla. I sat nearby and pulled out a notebook. Yes, I’m eavesdropping. Could you blame me? I need to know what White Lily knows.

“Pure Vanilla, are you sure you can trust him? His name sounds a lot like…” She stopped. Ohh, so she’s afraid to say my name? Interesting! I’ll write that down.

“Yes, I’m sure,” Pure Vanilla replied delicately. “He has been very kind to us through our travels! In fact, he’s shared some insights that might help us seal the Beasts.”

Ah. Right. The seal. Pure Vanilla is at some point going to have to betray me and put me back in the seal. I hate having to be reminded of that.

Wait, he wouldn’t be betraying me. We’re not friends. We’re enemies.

Thanks to losing myself to my train of thought, I missed the rest of their conversation. Pure Vanilla came to sit next to me.

“Well, this is going better than expected,” Pure Vanilla stated.

“Sort of,” I said. “I didn’t expect White Lily to be here, so that was a down. I’m surprised we were able to fool her. By the way, those were some really good white lies you used back there. As the Master of Deceit, I’m impressed.”

“White lies?” Pure Vanilla inquired.

I sighed. Why did I expect him to know the difference between a normal lie and a white lie? “A white lie is just when you don’t tell the whole truth. For example, if your parents were to ask, ‘Did you talk to this cookie today when you weren’t supposed to?’ you would answer ‘No,’ because you talked with them yesterday. Not that day.”

Pure Vanilla nodded. “I see…”

I looked at him. What was he thinking? It was hard to read him, especially since his eyes were always closed. All I could tell was that he was frowning. 

“Hey,” I said, getting his attention. I didn’t like it when he frowned. It just didn’t model his face all that well. “You… wanna see what I’m drawing?”

He perked up and smiled. There we go. “Of course!”

I smiled and scooted closer to him. I showed him my current artistry (which was what I remembered of the memory flash I saw of me teaching a class of young cookies) as I explained to him who and what I remembered. Wizard Cookie, intrigued and having nothing better to do, came to sit by us and listen. We ended up theorizing the entire rest of the meeting, while White Lily watched in the distance.

Chapter Text

I walk into my room and flop onto my bed. Now THAT was a meeting!

“You seem happy!” exclaimed Pure Vanilla, sitting next to me.

“Not happy, relieved,” I said, sitting up. “I mean, we fooled all of them! Not to mention, it was quite refreshing to interact with someone casually instead of just being stuck in my own head.”

Pure Vanilla gave me a stupid little grin.

I glared at him. Not very much, but still, it was a glare. “I’m NOT. LONELY. I’m just… Not very open. I mean, what villain is?”

He shrugged. “I guess you’re right.”

“Exactly.” I stared at the ceiling. “Still. It was nice. We’re still enemies, though.”

“Sure we are,” he replied, standing up and walking toward the door. “Well, I’ll let you have some sleep. Who knows what tomorrow has in store.”

“Another walk?” I blurted out. Wait, why would I want to walk with him? The first one was weird and confusing. 

But still, Pure Vanilla smiled. “Of course! Another walk would be great.” He opened the door and stepped through. “Goodnight, Shadow Milk.”

“Night, Nilly.”

He closed the door behind him. I started writing down lines for my play.

Sleep. Sleep? He thinks I need sleep.

Sleep isn’t something mandatory for a Beast. In fact, for me, it only reminds me of my time in that… that TREE. Everyone else just… SLEPT. I, however, was busy trying to get us out. They all have ME to thank. And yet, I haven’t gotten a SINGLE THANK YOU! How rude of them.

Anyway, that doesn’t matter. What matters is that we’re out, and I do NOT need sleep.

Now that I think about it, I can’t even remember the last time I slept. I think I last slept when I was still the “All-Knowing Fount of Knowledge.” Which is longer than I first thought, but still. Who needs sleep when you have FUN?

Besides, again, I don’t need it.

…

…

Okay, this is getting boring. Also, why shouldn’t I sleep? What am I doing making excuses, anyway? Excuses are stupid. I’m going to try and sleep!

I lay down, shut my eyes, and start counting sheep.

One… two… three…

…

…

Four…

Five…

Si- Okay, this is stupid. Shouldn’t I be asleep by now?!

I feel like “sleep” should be easy, right? You lay down, close your eyes, and BOOM! You're asleep. But for some odd reason, I can’t seem to get there.

So, what? I can’t sleep? I have some sort of insomnia? 

Actually, yeah, kinda. In the Spire, I wouldn’t really sleep. I’d just sit there, looking at the sky, waiting for Black Sapphire to have some sort of nightmare, or for Candy Apple to grow restless and come to me for a sleeping spell. I haven’t even thought about those two, actually. I wonder how they’re doing. I hope they’re okay.

But, no matter. For now, there were some problems I had to deal with.

Problem 1: I was SUPER bored.

Problem 2: I can’t sleep due to some strange insomnia thing that I for some reason have never noticed before.

Problem 3: I’ve got writer’s block.

Hmm. Some really bad problems indeed.

Well, Problem 1 can’t be solved until problems 2 or 3 are solved, so one is gonna have to wait.

I decided to work on why I can’t sleep.

Okay, so. It started before I became a Beast, so it can’t be trauma-induced from the seal. 

It could be stress. From what I’ve seen with the little visions, my life was really stressful. And after that, I could’ve gotten used to sleepless nights, and then we ended up here.

Alright, that one works. It makes sense and shows me what I need to do. I just need to work on my sleep schedule. 

I grab the supplies for a sleep potion. If that’s the case, I’m gonna have to force it. And I can’t put a sleeping spell on myself, because I might start to doze off in the middle of it and then I’ll just wake up again. So, sleep potion it is!

I finish up the potion and grab a vial. I then take a swig of the potion and crawl into bed. It takes maybe 5 minutes and I’m out cold. Magic for the win again!

*              *             *

I woke up with a start. Forgot a side effect of the sleeping potion was nightmares. A sad price to pay for such a glorious creation!

I gripped my chest. I can barely remember the nightmare, but it felt important. I remember hearing someone’s name, though. “Blueberry Yogurt Cookie.” 

I see tears fall from my eyecings and onto the sheets. Oh, wow, I didn’t even notice them.

A take a few deep breaths and regain my composure. As I’m wiping the tears from my face, Pure Vanilla walks into the room.

“Are you alright, Shadow Milk?”

I fake a smile and nod.

He walks over the bed and sits down beside me. “Are you sure?”

I nod again, but the tears are coming back. I try to keep from crying, since I’d rather not try and explain a dream I don’t remember.

He frowns, but he knows he can’t make me say anything. He puts his hand on my shoulder.

“You know, if you need anything, I’m right here.”

I looked at him. He was just so nice. I couldn’t understand it. After everything, even when he’s experienced all the same hardships, how did we grow to be so different? How was he still so kind?

I couldn’t control the tears now. They streamed down my face as if running from their problems.

Although looking somewhat surprised, he proceeded to wipe away my tears, trying to comfort me as best he could. 

When I was done crying, he pushed my hair out of my face and smiled sympathetically. “Would you like me to stay here and help you sleep?”

I was a little shocked, and my face was a little warm for some reason, but I nodded. To be honest, it was comforting having him here, and I wasn’t gonna fall back asleep without someone there.

He smiled and laid down beside me. I soon followed.

“Goodnight, Blue Bird.”

I smiled. I was starting to like that nickname.

“Goodnight, Silly-Vanilly.”

Chapter Text

I hadn’t felt this angry EVER. As the once holder of Happiness, it was hard to be.

“What on Earthbread were you thinking!?” I screamed at Burning Spice, after Shadow Milk had teleported to safety.

“Do YOU want us to lose this war?” Burning Spice retorted.

“Do you!?” I yelled at him. “Shadow Milk is the one who’s supposed to be making a plan! He’s the leader! And now he’s not only weaker than all of us, but we also have no idea where he is, so neither me, nor Mysty, can heal him!”

“He can heal himself,” Burning Spice stated.

“Not in his current condition, he can’t!” I retorted. “And we have physical forms now! We can’t be beating each other up without major consequences!”

“Whatever,” Burning Spice said, rolling his eyecings. “Besides, it’s time we got a new leader instead of that bumbling idiot.”

“That ‘bumbling idiot’ was the smartest out of all of us!”

“What, because his Soul Jam was Knowledge?” Burning Spice turned to face me. “Even Knowledge can’t stand against brute force. I’m a better leader than any scholar.”

“Brute force isn’t necessary or right!” I explained. “We can’t just rush into battle!”

Burning Spice picked me up by my robes. “And who’s to stop me? You? You know you don’t stand a chance against me.”

I glared at him, but he was right. I would have helped Shadow Milk if I could, but I didn’t have the strength. None of us did.

Burning Spice dropped me. Mysty walked up to me. 

“Perhaps you should heal yourself before you heal Silent Salt Cookie.”

I looked at her. “I will. I can’t heal him if I’m hurt as well.”

I healed myself as quickly as I could and hurried to Salty.

You see, the fun thing about being the past wielder of Happiness is that you can sense the emotions of others. So, as I started to heal Salty, I had a conversation with him.

“Ugh, I just hate how Burning Spice thinks he’s always right!” I said with a huff.

Silent Salt agreed with me, but that Shadow Milk deserved it.

“Of course he did,” I said, “but we need to stick together.”

Silent Salt became annoyed with his loss of his old virtue.

“Don’t blame yourself, Salty,” I replied. “You’re too kind for us. I admire your resistance to turn a blade at us at any moment.”

Silent Salt sighs internally, wishing that he got something different for his Soul Jam.

“We can’t control what we get, Salty,” I explained, “as much as I wish you at least could.”

He’s thankful for my comfort.

“Of course!” I exclaimed. “We’re friends, after all! We need to be there for each other.”

Black Sapphire and Candy Apple joined me and Salty as I finished up his wounds.

“I can’t believe the audacity of that big breadcrumb!” Candy Apple exclaimed, furious.

“Now, now, Candy Apple Cookie,” Black Sapphire quickly said as I tended to his cracks, “no need to swear.”

“There is a need to swear with that big fat buffoon!” Candy Apple quickly retorted.

“I would say I agree, but I, too, don’t like swearing,” I stated.

Candy Apple huffed. “I’m sorry, Miss Sugar. I just hate how he shames Master Shadow Milk Cookie! Ugh, like he could do better!”

“I wholeheartedly agree,” Black Sapphire stated, “but, sadly, neither of us stand a chance against Burning Spice Cookie. He’s too strong.”

“Ugh!” Candy Apple scoffed as I came to heal her. “I hate when you're right.”

“In this case, so do I,” Black Sapphire replied.

“If it’s any consolation,” I stated, hoping to clear the air, “I still feel his energy. He’s not dead yet.”

The two young cookies smiled. “Thank you, Miss Eternal Sugar Cookie,” The two said in unison.

“Of course!” I exclaimed. “I am the guardian of Happiness after all!”

The two smiled, and the four of us together gossiped about some of the juiciest rumors Black Sapphire could get his hands on.

Chapter Text

With White Lily Cookie back from her training, we had decided it best to work on how to defeat the Beasts as soon as possible. Because of the fact I said that Shadow Milk had information on the seal, the others had insisted he come.

I was worried about him, to say the least. Yes, he most likely had plenty of information on the seal, but to reveal information about it would be like signing his own death certificate. I had hoped to avoid something like this, but I’m sure it was inevitable.

Me and Blueberry Milk walked into the meeting room. We were greeted with kind faces, except for White Lily Cookie, who looked suspiciously at Blueberry Milk.

“So,” Golden Cheese started, “we’ve been told about this ‘seal’ that’s supposed to defeat the Beast cookies. White Lily has the power to activate it, but we still have something we need, and White Lily Cookie says you know something about it?”

Blueberry Milk nodded. As much as he tried to keep a smile on his face, Pure Vanilla could see the underlying pain. 

“Yes,” Blueberry Milk stated, “I do. You see…” he laid several books on the table. “… I have been studying the Beast cookies for years, as well as the seals and the times before they were ‘Beasts.’ However, I had never thought I would see one of them in-person.” 

“You saw them?” Dark Cacao asked.

“Yes, in fact. I had found the Spire of Knowledge, and seen Shadow Milk and Pure Vanilla fighting. Quite a sight to see, in fact.” He waved his hand, as if clearing the conversation out of the air. “However, the ‘seal’ that you wish to conjure is, in fact, not one singular seal. There are five pieces needed, each lost somewhere on this very continent, where the Beasts could never hope to find them.”

“So we’ll have to split up again,” White Lily stated.

“Yes,” Blueberry Milk confirmed. “And I believe it best you all do it as soon as possible, as there’s no telling when the Beasts will regain their strength.”

“I agree,” Dark Cacao stated, “but that will leave us vulnerable. They seem to be immensely stronger than all of us, and will most likely regain their strength faster. Being away from the Dark Cacao Kingdom for so long makes me worried still.”

“Well, luckily for you,” Blueberry Milk explained, “each of the seals are hidden in different biomes here on the continent, most of them being very close to your kingdoms. In fact, Golden Cheese Cookie, I believe you’re practically right on top of Burning Spice’s seal.”

Golden Cheese smiled at that.

“And if not, his seal is probably in the spice volcanoes. And Dark Cacao,” Blueberry Milk continued, “according to my research, Silent Salt Cookie used to be known as Sea Salt Cookie, so there’s a possibility you’re also near one of them.”

Dark Cacao nodded. 

“Shadow Milk used to be some sort of scholar, so that may be a clue. However, for the rest of you, I’m not sure.”

“Sounds like an adventure to me!” Hollyberry stated enthusiastically.

“Yes, it definitely will be,” Blueberry Milk said. He paused for a second, then looked toward me, looking at me as if preparing me for something. “However,” Blueberry Milk stated, “While I was watching the fight with Pure Vanilla and Shadow Milk…”

He now had the Ancients full attention. I prepared to explain whatever Blueberry Milk had to say.

“… I noticed something… odd, to say the least. There was a moment when the two stopped fighting and Pure Vanilla held out his hand. At first, I thought he was gonna unleash a final blow, but the two just stood there. And I could have sworn there were slight notions of guilt in Shadow Milk.”

“Impossible,” Dark Cacao said. “The Beasts don’t know ‘guilt.’”

“Maybe not all of them,” Blueberry Milk replied, “but perhaps, something happened. Something changed.” Hollyberry nodded in understanding. Blueberry Milk looked at me, smiling. It seemed sincere, in a way. Although I knew this wasn’t him saying we were friends now, I knew that something had happened.

“You can’t decorrupt a cookie,” White Lily stated. “Once it happens, it’s stuck.”

“That isn’t true,” I finally said. I inhaled, and then sighed deeply. “I was corrupted.”

The others gasped, shocked at this revelation.

“You were what?!” Dark Cacao exclaimed.

“I was corrupted,” I repeated, “but, because of Gingerbrave and the others, I didn’t stay that way.” The others still looked at me, shook. “However, when I was one with Shadow Milk, I felt something. He was lonely.”

“Lonely?” Golden Cheese repeated. “What, so this just justifies his actions?”

“Of course not,” I replied, “but it made me realize why he was corrupted in the first place. The Beasts, although they are his friends, may not act as such often. In fact, I’m sure he rarely sees them. So, I decided…” I paused for a moment, unsure whether or not to continue. However, I knew I must. “… I’d offer to become his friend.”

The others once again gasped, this time with an undertone of outrage.

“Friends?!” Dark Cacao repeated. “With a Beast?!”

“I believed that if he had a friend, he would decorrupt. Just as I had.”

“Pure Vanilla, he’s been corrupted for centuries!” White Lily exclaimed.

“So it would take some time, I’m sure.”

“He’s hurt you and your friends so many times!” Golden Cheese continued.

“And I forgive him.”

The group stood there, appalled. Blueberry Milk looked to the group, and then to me. He sighed.

“I believe the hope was,” Blueberry Milk explained, “that we could find a way to seal the Beasts individually rather than all together.”

“And how would you suppose we do that?” Golden Cheese stated sternly.

“I’m still not sure,” Blueberry Milk answered. “But the first step, I know, is getting the seals so we can figure out how they work.”

They all sat there for a moment.

“Pure Vanilla…” White Lily paused. “… Do you really think that the Beasts can redeem themselves?”

I pondered a moment. “I believe that it’s at least worth trying.”

White Lily smiled, and then turned to the others. “If there is a way, I’m willing to try it. Silent Salt was… On our side, believe it or not.”

Hollyberry nodded as well. “Eternal Sugar is only corrupted because she doesn’t understand Happiness is temporary. Sadness is important. I just have to teach her that.”

The other two pondered a bit, looked at each other and nodded.

“We’ll look for the seals,” Dark Cacao stated. “But this ‘redemption’ is your own journey. Those willing to redeem their own Beast may do so.”

I smiled brighter than ever. “Thank you all! Blueberry Milk and I will get started right away on finding Shadow Milk’s seal. I hope to see you all soon.”

They nodded to me, smiling, and soon, the meeting was adjourned.

Chapter Text

I was amazed at how well that went. When I brought up my ‘guilt,’ I wasn’t 100% sure we could pull it off. I am once again amazed by my other half’s acting skills!

However, as I was leaving with Pure Vanilla, White Lily Cookie stopped us.

“Blueberry Milk Cookie, might I talk to you?” she asked. She looked at Pure Vanilla. “Alone?”

Although I could sense Pure Vanilla ready to defend me, I stopped him. Nervous as I was, I knew I could handle it. I walked into a small room to the side with her. 

“Yes, White Lily Cookie?” I asked.

“How do you know so much about the Beasts?” she interrogated. “Few could learn that much in years.”

“I am one of those few,” I explained. “As I’ve said, I’ve spent years trying to understand the supernatural.”

She squinted at me, suspicious. “How did you come to know of the Beasts?”

“Well,” I stated, “there are a few runes here and there pointing to a greater power, the reason that Beast-Yeast is so dangerous, so unexplainable. Surely enough, the Beasts were the key reason.”

It was clear that she still didn’t trust me. Who should?

“And you have nothing to do with a certain blue jester?” she asked. I don’t understand why she avoided my name. I’m not Vulture Cookie from the Potter Cookie book series. (Of which I am, in fact, obsessed with.)

I couldn’t help but grin. I knew she saw it. I almost wanted her to.

“That is for me to know and for you to find out,” I said, bowing a little. “But know that I’m not sending you on a wild goose chase. Burning Spice Cookie has gotten out of line, and absolutely needs to be stopped. For both of our sakes.”

She looked angry. I knew it would make her angry. That’s what’s fun about it.

“Look,” I said, “I know you hate me as much as I hate you. But I’m not here to harm anyone. I’m here strictly to regain my strength. And Pure Vanilla has kindly offered to shelter me until I can leave.”

“You can’t yet?” White Lily said.

I paused. “No, I can’t. As long as Burning Spice is still around, I can’t do anything.”

“Why not?” White Lily asked.

I looked at her, annoyed. “He’s admittedly stronger than me, especially now. If I go back, he’ll beat me up constantly to ‘get stronger.’ I can’t take that amount of force.”

She now looked at me a little shocked. “So, you’re helping us because you were betrayed…?”

“I’m helping myself,” I said. “The only one who hurt me was Burning Spice. And I have a soft spot for Eternal Sugar, since we were raised together. But nonetheless, I’m extending my information to you. We can both gain from this.”

She pondered a moment. “I see…”

I looked at her. It was clear she wasn’t sure about this.

“Does Pure Vanilla know you’re–”

“Do you even need to ask?” I interrupted. She looked somewhat betrayed. I sighed. “Look, Pure Vanilla was nice enough to help me. And he’s growing on me. Like a rash. But,” I sighed again, “for his sake, we need to work together.” I held my hand out to her. “Truce?”

She looked at my hand for a moment, then shook it. “Truce.”

I nodded, and then we left the room. Pure Vanilla was waiting for us on the other side. I waved bye to her. She waved back. 

Pure Vanilla looked at me. “What happened?”

“I told her what I needed to,” I said. “We have a truce for now. I knew I wouldn’t be able to fool her. She’s the Guardian after that.”

Pure Vanilla gave out a guilty sigh. “I should’ve told her. Not you.”

I put my hands behind my head and leaned back a bit. “Hey, what’s done is done. She understands why you would do it, anyway.”

Pure Vanilla still frowned as we walked. I looked at him. “Hey, Blue Bird to Nilly?” Pure Vanilla looked a little shocked when he heard that. “Stop frowning. It doesn’t look good on you.”

He looked at me for a bit. Then he smiled. “‘Blue Bird?’ I thought you hated that nickname.”

I squinted at him a little. “Yeah, well, it’s only fair we both have a nickname. I call you ‘Silly-Vanilly,’ you call me ‘Blue Bird.’ It’s a fair trade.”

He continued smiling. “What you said at the meeting. Was that true?”

I looked at him for a little bit, then pondered a bit more. “Well, the ‘guilt’ thing may have been an overexaggeration, but I’m very sure something has changed. I don’t like it, but it has.”

Pure Vanilla was obviously very happy to hear this. I smiled as we walked back to our rooms. It was late afternoon when we started the meeting, since I had to find some books relating to the seals, (Thankfully that didn’t take too long) and it was nighttime by the time I left the room with White Lily, so it was very peaceful.

When we got back to our rooms, we walked into mine, and he crossed the room to his door.

“Goodnight, Blue Bird,” he said.

I smiled. “Night, Nilly.”

As he left, I plopped down on my bed. I thought about everything that had happened. I thought about how nice it had been since I came here. I felt so… happy. Eternal Sugar would be amazed to hear that. After all, I haven’t been this happy since I was corrupted. And it was all because of Pure Vanilla.

Funny. He was really sweet. Talking with him was always comfortable. Even after everything, he’s still been there for me. And his smile, the smile I’ve learned to cherish so much. The smile I rarely see anymore…

I hug my pillow as I turn to my side. My face felt warm again. But this time I had time to figure out what it was.

I was blushing.

Chapter Text

Oh.

Oooohhhhhhhh no.

It doesn’t mean anything, right? I could be blushing out of embarrassment. Or maybe it’s just a bit hot in here.

No, it’s definitely not hot in here. And what would I be embarrassed about?

I had a crush on Pure Vanilla Cookie.

This was an unexpected turn, and a VERY unwelcome one. I stayed here just to heal up, and then suddenly I became soft, I’m forced to work AGAINST my friends, and now this happens. Just great.

Besides, he has White Lily. He doesn’t want a romantic life with me. He wants to be my FRIEND. 

Great, now I had a new reason to hate that word. It means that I’ve been friendzoned. Ugh, unbelievable.

Look, don’t get me wrong, Pure Vanilla is practically the perfect partner. Funny, kind, trustworthy, hot as fudge. Only problem? WE ARE ENEMIES. That is enough to ENTIRELY mess up my plans.

I just hope this doesn’t cause anything bad like what happened with–

Huh. That’s weird. Another memory. With… who was that cookie? Whatever, no time to think about it now. Right now, I need to get rid of these thoughts.

At first, I thought sleep was the way to go. After all, sleep seemed to help the others. However, I quickly realized that there was the off chance that my dreams would be about him. No thank you!

My second thought was my writing. I knew that drawing wouldn’t work, since all I would draw was Pure Vanilla, but my writing could still work.

I, however, still had writer's block, and was too stuck on thoughts about Pure Vanilla to fix it.

At this point, I didn’t know what to do. I couldn’t get rid of these thoughts! I eventually came to realize they probably wouldn’t go away. 

However, that didn’t mean I had to accept them. I’m the master of Deceit after all. Fake it til you un-make it! I can just pretend that I never had these feelings!

… Right?

x        x        x

I chuckled as I closed the door. I hoped that, soon, he would admit we were friends. We were very close after all.

I sat down at my desk and started reading. 

I had barely ever gotten as close to someone as I did Shadow Milk. Perhaps it was because of our Soul Jams. But, no matter what, I knew there was something important between us.

In fact, I think the only other person I’ve gotten this close to was White Lily Cookie. The two of us had shared a dorm with my foster brother and my friend back at Blueberry Yogurt Academy. Ah, wonderful times. I wonder what Milk Chocolate and Orange Cream are doing now. Perhaps I should visit them after this whole ordeal is over.

However, that is something that will be settled later.

I thought for a moment. Shadow Milk was very much changing for the better. It was interesting, watching him grow like this. 

However, while Shadow Milk may think I’m just all sweet and kind, I do like to poke at him a bit. I enjoy watching him defy our friendship. It’s very adorable! Sometimes he even blushes out of embarrassment.

He also sometimes blushes when he’s just around me.

I hadn’t noticed that before.

…

… Wait, does he see me as possibly… more than a friend?

No, that can’t be right. He’s not the type for romance. He enjoys tragedy.

Doesn’t he?

…

… Do I see him as more than a friend?

Now that I think about it, we act quite like a couple. Not to mention, we stay in what is technically the same room. I’ve even slept next to him for comfort.

For someone who is the wielder of Truth, I seem to be very dense. Not just to others emotions, but to my own.

However, there’s also White Lily, who I have wanted to start a relationship with since the Academy. I haven’t told her because I haven’t had much time with her recently. Milk Chocolate said it was because I was “wussing out,” and I still do not like how right he was at the time.

I suppose if I can disguise my love for her so well for this long, I could do the same for Shadow Milk Cookie. I would love to be with both of them, but, knowing them, they probably wouldn’t do so well with that. I hope I don’t have to choose between them in the end…

Chapter Text

 The next day, me and Pure Vanilla left to find the seal.

My plan wasn’t to be completely awful to him, but to at least be defensive like when he found me in the woods. I needed to distance myself emotionally as much as possible.

However, to my disdain, he wanted to strike up a conversation.

“Very nice weather today, yes?” he said, smiling.

“Sure,” I stated, shrugging off his comment. 

He looked at me strange. He knew something was up. “Are you alright, Blue Bird?”

Ugh, that nickname. I liked it, but I needed to not, or else risk closer attachment. “Nothing, Pure Vanilla,” I say in an exasperated tone.

I had chosen not to use his nickname, which shocked him a little. He turned away and frowned.

Ugh! That frown! I hated it so much! It made me feel so guilty! But I had to pretend I enjoyed it. I forced a grin and we continued walking in silence for a bit.

“So, where do you think the seal is?” Pure Vanilla asked.

That hit me hard. No more small talk, no more smiling, not even an ounce of lightness in his voice. It felt like he was Truthless Recluse again. It hurt.

I had to keep the act up, though. It didn’t matter what I thought. We were enemies, anyway. We were going to hurt each other sooner or later.

“Remember that memory of me teaching a class?” I said. Pure Vanilla nodded. “Well, I think it’s at a school. Do you know of a school, most likely a wizarding one, that’s mostly blue and is known for being one of the best schools ever?”

Pure Vanilla looked a little shocked at the description, and then spoke. “Knew of.”

I motioned forward. “Lead the way.”

We walked forward as the guilt and sadness filled the air around us.

x        x        x

I knew exactly the school he was talking about. After all, I had gone there for years.

It didn’t shock me that Shadow Milk had a connection to Blueberry Yogurt Academy. After all, it very much fit him. What shocked me was that we had found yet another connection between each other. And yet…

As I guided him to my old academy, I thought about how strange it was. I seemed to have lost all progress on befriending him in a single night. How this happened, I’m still not sure.

I felt very defeated at that moment. All of that time and effort I spent on helping him. I wonder if helping him is worthless, just as the others said.

No. I can’t give up yet. I shouldn’t. 

I will not falter.

As we approached the academy, Shadow Milk stopped.

“What’s wrong, Shadow Milk Cookie?” I asked, concerned.

He looked at the school. “It’s… It’s nothing. None of your business anyway.”

I frowned, wondering if I had done something wrong, but continued on. We entered safely. It was somewhat still for the mess that White Lily had accidentally created all those years ago. It was broken and decaying, of course, but something still held it up somehow.

“Wow…” Shadow Milk stated. “This place is a dump.”

“It was much nicer before an unfortunate accident had happened,” I explained.

“Oh, yeah, didn’t White Lily open a portal to the Dark Side of the Moon?” he said.

I turned, a little shocked. “You know about that?”

“I mean, yeah,” he replied. “I spent most of my time there, remember?”

Ah. I forgot that he had mentioned that. It feels like such a long time ago…

“Anyways, do you have any idea where the seal is?” Shadow Milk asked.

I shook my head.

He sighed. “Great. This is gonna take a while…”

My frown deepened. I felt terrible. What had I done to anger him? I couldn’t figure it out.

He reached for the books in the forbidden section. “Hey, could you help me with these books?” 

Suddenly, one of the teachers appeared before us.

“HOLY–” Shadow Milk yelled as he flew backward, away from the books.

“Who dares to touch the books in the forbidden section?!” the teacher yelled.

“We’re very sorry, sir,” I quickly said. “We were only–”

“Wait a second,” the teacher interrupted. “I know you. Pure Vanilla?”

I nodded, shocked that he remembered me. “Yes, it’s me.”

He sighed. “This is your second violation of our rules. You don’t even attend this school anymore…”

“Wait, SECOND offense?” Shadow Milk said. “Ooooooo, you were a troublemaker?”

The teacher looked at Shadow Milk, shocked. “I’d recognize that voice anywhere. Is… Is that you, Headmaster?”

“Uhhhhhh… What now?” Shadow Milk questioned. I, for one, was appalled. He was a headmaster? It must have been far before my time.

“Don’t you remember?” the teacher asked. “You were the creator of this very school! You even named it after your son!”

I grew more and more shocked as the teacher revealed this. Was he… the FIRST headmaster?! And he had a son?!

“Uhh, sorry, buddy,” Shadow Milk replied, “but my brain was all jumbled up a while ago. I don’t remember sugarplum.”

The teacher, as they are in an unpredictable state, did not react well to this news. “Impossible! Blueberry Milk Cookie had a memory of gold! You… You must be an imposter!”

The teacher attacked the both of us, and we quickly dodged.

“You will pay for your meddling! Both of you!”

“Jeez, tough crowd, huh?” Shadow Milk said, as he effortlessly dodged another attack. “I would’ve thought the old me would have better taste in employment.”

I dodged an attack as well. “It’s obvious that we can’t continue searching until we’ve beaten him.”

“Agreed,” Shadow Milk said. “Don’t worry, this should be a piece of cake. After all, I’m a Beast!”

As Shadow Milk attacked, the teacher would occasionally dodge, but was hit with most of the spells. I stayed where I was, watching as Shadow Milk cast with ease. I was glad that he was able to cast so easily again. It seemed he was healing nicely.

The teacher, much to our surprise, deflected one of Shadow Milk’s attacks. 

Directly toward me.

x        x        x

As I displayed my amazing skills, of which I was very happy to have back, I unleashed attack after attack. Seriously, this guy was practically nothing!

However, just as I unleashed what I thought would be the finishing blow, the big guy deflected – let me repeat that, DEFLECTED – my attack.

And it went straight to Pure Vanilla.

I knew my attacks. They were fast and hit hard. And, with Pure Vanilla being caught off guard, there would be some MAJOR damage that I barely have a grasp on how to fix. I’m not even sure I would have the energy to.

“PURE VANILLA!!” I screamed. I quickly opened a portal and launched myself towards him, causing us both to fall to the ground, barely dodging the spell.

I quickly looked up at the corrupted creature before me. “I think I’m starting to realize why I hired this guy!” I pulled Pure Vanilla up and grabbed his hand. “Run!”

As we ran, the creature continued attacking us, causing rubble to fall from the walls and ceiling.

“Can you make a portal to get us out of here?” Pure Vanilla asked.

“I can barely fly right now!” I retorted. “I used most of my energy to save you, and I’m still debating why I did that!”

Suddenly, we approached a dead end.

“Hoo, boy,” I said, as the creature came up behind us. We turned to see him looming over us. I looked at the cracked floor beneath us, and a memory kicked in.

Blueprints.

“Pure Vanilla,” I yelled, “I need you to blast the floor!”

“What?!” Pure Vanilla said, looking at me.

“Just do it!” I retorted, as the strange being readied his final attack.

Pure Vanilla nodded, and used a spell to blast the ground.

“Hold on!” I yelled, as the ground crumbled beneath us. I felt Pure Vanilla’s hand grab mine as we fell into the lower levels of the school.

Chapter Text

I woke up with many crumbling remains around me…

… And Pure Vanilla right under me.

I yelped a little as I got up. His face and mine were wayyyyyyyy too close for comfort. 

My face was practically burning. But as I remember everything that happened, I gain my composure and check on Pure Vanilla.

“Pure Vanilla?” I whisper. I don’t know why I’m whispering. I guess it’s the subconscious fear of the thing that nearly killed us finding us again. “Pure Vanilla, wake up!” I repeat, shaking him a little. He slowly opens his eyes.

“Shadow Milk…?” he says, before sitting up and holding his head with his hand. “What…?”

“We were almost killed, remember?” I explained. “If it weren’t for my quick thinking and weird visions, you’d be dead right now!”

I stood up and looked around as best I could. I could barely see anything. Pure Vanilla had turned to me and smiled. I didn’t see it, cause my back was turned, but I felt it.

I looked at him. “What.”

“Thank you for saving me,” Pure Vanilla said.

I looked at him, realizing I had failed my “mission” of detaching from him. After a moment, I rolled my eyes. “Hey, now we’re even.”

Pure Vanilla continued to smile, then started moving small bits of rubble.

“… What are you doing?” I finally asked.

“I’m looking for my staff,” he answered. “I can’t see without it, after all.”

I look at him struggle for a couple of moments. He took the fall much harsher than I did. Which is funny, because I’m technically the injured one. I sighed.

“Here, I’ll get it,” I say, moving some of the rubble.

“Are you sure?” he asked, concerned. “I’m not sure how hurt you are–”

“Right now you’re in worse condition than I am,” I interrupted. “Besides, the sooner you can see, the better. Wouldn’t want another close call.”

He smiled again, and sat there, healing himself. However, no matter how hard I looked, I couldn’t find his staff.

Soon, Pure Vanilla had finished healing himself and turned toward me. “Come. Let me heal you.”

Hesitantly, I walked up to him and sat down. He motioned for my arm, and I gave it to him. Within an instant, I was healed completely. Even without his staff, he was definitely a powerful healer.

“Are you having trouble finding my staff?” Pure Vanilla asked.

“Yeah,” I answered. “Can you sense it anywhere?”

“Only in that general direction,” He said, pointing behind me. I sighed.

“Well, I guess we should go that way, then,” I said, standing up. I grabbed his arm and helped him up. Because of Pure Vanilla’s amazing healing, I was able to move the rubble out of the way, revealing a small, dark corridor.

“Uhm…” I mumble. “Do you happen to know any on-hand light magic?”

He chuckled and created a small light orb that followed me. How he got it to do that, I would assume was me or my Soul Jam’s energy force. I held his arm and we walked into the mysterious corridor.

x        x        x

As we walked down what I assumed was a corridor, we had stayed very silent. Eventually, we both decided to speak.

“I wanted to say–” I said.

“So, about earlier–” Shadow Milk said at about the same time.

We both looked away awkwardly. I felt almost like a teenager again, being very nervous about everything.

Shadow Milk sighed. “You go first.”

“Are you sure?” I asked him.

“Yeah, go ahead.”

I smiled. “I just wanted to say that I’m sorry if I made you angry. I’m not sure how I did, but–”

“No, no, that wasn’t you,” he interrupted quickly. He took a deep breath. “I was trying to distance myself from you emotionally. I-” He struggled to find the words. “… I was afraid that, if I grew attached to you, it would screw me over later. I’m sorry for making you feel terrible, I just- I can’t trust anyone anymore.” 

He tightened his grip on my arm slightly. I knew he was being very genuine, and I was quite surprised that he was willing to open up to me like this. However, I smiled sympathetically, overjoyed by this amazing step towards our friendship.

“I’m very happy you’re willing to tell me this,” I said.

I felt him shrug his shoulders. “Yeah, well, you have a really annoying way of making me feel terrible about hurting you, so, thank yourself, I guess.”

I continued to smile. I grabbed his hand and we continued walking in silence.

x        x        x

Holy sugarplum. We were holding hands.

This is the OPPOSITE of how this was supposed to go. I was supposed to ease away from Pure Vanilla, but, because he made me feel so terrible, we only grew CLOSER.

I am so glad that he’s blind right now, because my face is the deepest shade of blue you will EVER see. I never expected this to happen!

Wait, why did he even grab my hand, anyway? He was functioning perfectly fine just holding my arm. Why did he feel the need to do that?

Did he… maybe like me back? 

Witches, that makes it even worse! His friends AND mine are now gonna KILL us because we softened up too much to each other!

Also, what about White Lily? As much as Pure Vanilla thought he was great at pretending they were “just friends,” it was obvious that he liked her, A LOT. Why would he want someone like me when he has someone like her?

… Oh sugarplum, is he poly?

As I continued to trap myself in my thoughts, I saw a flicker of light out of the corner of my eyecings.

“Huh?” I mumbled, looking for it again. Once again I saw the flicker. I walked toward it, unsure of what it was.

And then I saw it.

“Did you find it?” Pure Vanilla asked.

I stayed silent. This was the first time I’d seen it in ages. I had forgotten it even existed.

“Shadow Milk?” Pure Vanilla called.

“The Book of Knowledge…” I mumbled, staring in awe.

“What?” Pure Vanilla wondered, as I released from his grip.

I grabbed the book. “The Book… The Book of Knowledge, this could help us find the seals! And your staff! This is perfect!”

“Shadow Milk?” Pure Vanilla said cautiously.

“Heck, this could even help me figure out my past,” I said as I flicked through the pages, which resembled that of a comic books’. “I can figure out these weird visions…”

“Shadow Milk?” Pure Vanilla said again, now worried.

I flipped to a page where it showed me reading it. “Interesting…”

“Shadow Milk, I still can’t see,” Pure Vanilla stated.

I flipped to the next page, where I saw a picture of a large monster behind Pure Vanilla. I quickly turned.

“Pure Vanilla, watch out!”

Chapter Text

Silverbell Cookie had decided to join me in finding the seals. As the new Guardian, I now had a natural pull to them. And, although very able to defend myself, Silverbell had insisted he join me on my way to Crispia.

Hollyberry had also decided to bring a friend, of whom Hollyberry had saved them from her Beast.

“Alright, I’m here!” Hollyberry stated. “Who’s ready for an adventure?”

“Ooooo!” the cookie next to her said. He looked and sounded a lot like Silverbell, only different colors. “Your hearts are interesting!”

“Pavlova Cookie…” Hollyberry said.

“Right, sorry,” Pavlova mumbled. “But they are!”

Hollyberry sighed. “Sorry about him. He’s quite obsessed with the love lives of other cookies. For some reason…”

“Because they’re fun!” Pavlova said. “Especially tragic love.” He giggled. “That’s my favorite.”

“But… tragedy is sad!” Silverbell stated, confused.

“The saddest endings lead to the happiest beginnings!” Pavlova replied. “Also, not all tragic love ends in tragedy. It just means it’s more difficult to maintain. But when it works out, it’s always so sweet!”

Silverbell was still confused, but decided to drop it. “I guess…”

“From what I can see, your love, too, is a tragedy!” Pavlova said. 

“Wh-what?” Silverbell asked.

“Pavlova Cookie,” Hollyberry warned.

“You met a stranger one day, and haven’t seen him since, right?” Pavlova said. “It’s the most common tragedy there is! I hope you see him again, one day! Oooo, that would be so fun!”

“Alright now, Pavlova, that’s enough!” Hollyberry commanded.

“Awwww…” Pavlova mumbled.

Hollyberry laughed a little. “I appreciate your enthusiasm, but save it for when we hit the road, okay?”

“Fine…” Pavlova huffed.

Hollyberry turned to me. “Alright! Let’s head on out, shall we?”

I smiled and nodded. “Yes, I agree.”

*              *             *

“So…” Silverbell wondered. “Are you a faerie cookie? I’ve never seen someone like you before.”

“Well, sort of,” Pavlova answered. “I know I come from Faerie lineage, of which the story for that is just beautiful, but I don’t think that my wings are necessarily the kind you’d find on a faerie.”

“Interesting,” Silverbell said.

“I thank you for coming on this journey with me, Hollyberry Cookie,” I said. “I know that, with everything I’ve done, it must have been hard…”

“Ah, don’t sweat it!” Hollyberry said. “According to Pure Vanilla, it was out of your control. I may not necessarily forgive you, but I can’t just go on hating you all my life! You’re my friend after all!” 

I looked at her, slightly shocked, but smiled. “Thank you, Hollyberry. I’m glad you’re my friend.” I looked up at the moon. “I hope Pure Vanilla is well…”

Hollyberry looked at the moon as well. “I worry just as much as you. I’m not sure how much I trust the cookie he’s with, either. I just hope they don’t get themselves into trouble.” Hollyberry chuckled. “But, knowing him, he probably became friends with any ‘trouble’ already, haha!”

I smiled, although still worried. “I hope you’re right.”

Chapter Text

I used my magic to intensify the light spell Pure Vanilla had created, scaring the monster. I then quickly grabbed Pure Vanilla.

“What’s wrong?!” Pure Vanilla said.

“Stay behind me!” I replied.

“Stay behind me!”

The creature repeated my words. Echoed them, in fact. It sounded exactly like me.

It tried to stay out of the light. Must have been some sort of shadow creature. I made sure the light spell stayed strong.

“What are you?” I asked the creature.

“What are you?” It repeated.

I decided I would answer its question. Or, really, MY question.

“I’m a cookie,” I said.

“Cookie,” it repeated. So it could choose what it repeats. Interesting.

“You’re… some sort of shadow, yes?” I asked

“Yes?” it echoed.

“Are you friendly?” I asked.

“Are you-?” it asked in return.

I chuckled a little. Based on the fact it didn’t know what I was, it had probably been isolated for a long time, away from cookies. But it didn’t seem all that hostile. Was it because cookies need light to see? Was it down here for protection?

“Why…” I started. “… Why are you trapped down here?”

It stayed silent for a second, most likely processing the question. “Friend- I- stay-.”

“What?”

“I think it’s saying his friend told him to stay down here,” Pure Vanilla said.

That would make sense. But one question still filled my mind.

“Who… was your friend?”

It sat there for a second. “Friend- sort of- you-.”

I was shocked. “Me?”

“Yes?” it said.

I looked at Pure Vanilla. He was just as surprised as I was. “What…” I started. “… Can you repeat the last thing I said to you?”

“Can-t- repeat-. Can- sh-o-w-.”

It was definitely clever, using different sounds from words to make a new one. 

“You can show me?”

“N-o-t- w-i-th l-i-t.”

Not with light, huh? I looked at Pure Vanilla. He also thought it was ominous. But I needed to know. Something told me I needed to know.

I gave Pure Vanilla the light spell. “I’ll be right back.”

“I’m not sure about this, Shadow Milk,”  Pure Vanilla said.

“Hey, I’ll be fine,” I said to comfort him. “I’m a Beast, anyway. If anything bad happens, I’ll just use my oh-so powerful magic to get out of it!”

Pure Vanilla chuckled. “The Beast of Deciet… And yet you still can’t fool me.”

Although a little shocked by that statement, I smiled and left into the darkness.

“Alright… Show me.”

I felt the shadow swallow me whole as I disappeared into a memory…

Chapter Text

“It… It worked… It worked! It’s a success! *laughter* Oh my witches, this is a miracle! So many failed attempts… Hello. Your name is Echo. You are going to be my record-keeper!”

“Record-keeper?” 

“Yes! And, when I am not doing anything, I can teach you stuff! Like different words, math… you know, stuff I didn’t encode in you when I made you.” 

“Your- name-?”

“Ah, yes! My name is Blueberry Milk Cookie! Wonderful to meet you!”

“Wonderful to meet you!”

*              *             *

“This spell is going to be protection for the spire. So far, I’ve had some futile attempts. The combining of spells is a struggle, to say the least. Especially when creating new ones.”

“Combining- spells- would- be- hard-. Spells are very- complicated-.”

“Yes, but that’s what makes them fun! Failure is only the precursor to success! I’m sure I’ll get a good combination eventually.”

“Precursor-?”

“It means ‘to come before.’ You know, teaching you has been fun! Maybe one day, I can teach a class! Oh, that would be so fun! And it would help take some weight off my load–”

*              *             *

“Echo? Are you there?”

“Yes-, sir-.”

“Ah, there you are! How do you feel? How’s the new update to your spell?”

“Good-. How- did- you keep- memory-?”

“Good question! Want me to show you?”

*              *             *

“Echo, I’d like you to meet my son.”

“Son-?”

“Meet Blueberry Yogurt Cookie. The first of many!”

“How many-?”

“Who knows! I want to see what kinds of ingredients have different effects on a cookie’s personality. This is the way to do it! I’m planning on making a faerie cookie next. What ingredient do you think I should use?”

“… Cobalt-.”

“Perfect idea! Cobalt it i-”

*              *             *

“...”

“... Sir-? Lesson-?”

“... I need to continue working on this spell. Everything’s failed…”

“Failure is the precursor to success!-”

“... Yes, you're right. I must keep a positive mindset. Thank you, Echo.”

*              *             *

“Why does nothing work?! Every healing spell I can procure has failed! I can’t stop Yogurt’s flaking! What’s the point of being the Fount of Knowledge if I can’t heal my own son?!”

“Failure is the precur–”

“Shut the fudge up, Echo!”

“...”

“... I… I didn’t mean… Witches, what’s happening to–”

*              *             *

“Echo?”

“...”

“Echo, I’m going away for a bit. I have a breakthrough. If I can just find the Fruits of Knowledge… Maybe I can find a way. No one will leave because I’m ‘holding back my Knowledge from them.’ I can save my son. All I have to do is take a bite of the Truth. Until then, I need you to stay here, and defend the school. Defend the Book. And… Defend my son.”

“...”

“Echo… You’ve always been a friend to me. Please… Be safe. I’ll see you soon.”

“...”

“Goodbye, Echo.”

Chapter Text

I woke up with a start. That… I… 

“Shadow Milk Cookie!” I heard Pure Vanilla say. Echo backed away as Pure Vanilla ran up to me and set his hand on my shoulder. I jumped a little.

“Shadow Milk, are you alright?” Pure Vanilla asked softly, as he came to kneel beside me.

“I…” I started. What had I just seen? It was… Witches, I can’t even begin to describe it.

“Shadow Milk?” Pure Vanilla said, concerned.

I grabbed Pure Vanilla’s hand. Without another word, Pure Vanilla helped me up onto my feet.

“I…” I started. “How many…?” 

“F-or-,” Echo replied.

“Oh my witches,” I said. He knew exactly what I meant. 

“How many of what?” Pure Vanilla asked.

I stayed silent. I was so confused. Sick to my stomach, even.

“K-i-d-s-,” Echo answered.

Pure Vanilla was as shocked as I was. I looked at my hands.

“… And Blueberry Yogurt…?” I asked.

Echo stayed silent. I already knew the answer.

“Cobalt?”

“N-o-t- know-.”

“I’m assuming it’s the same with the other two?”

“Yes?-”

I felt terrible. I didn’t know I was even a father until just earlier. But I felt like an absolutely horrid parent. It wasn’t even technically me! It was the old me! But I still felt guilty.

I knew what it was like being a parent, and very much enjoyed it. After all, Candy Apple is technically my child, and Black Sapphire, I practically raised him from when I found him. They’re both amazing kids. And it makes me feel even worse that I had to leave them alone, with only Eternal Sugar to protect them. Even with her, I’m not on good terms with her currently. I have no idea how loyal she really is to me. 

I didn’t even remember what my old kids looked like. But something (call it father’s intuition) told me I needed to find them.

However, after regaining my composure, I remembered that we had different missions to work on. Ones that are much more important.

“Echo,” I said. “I told you I’d come back for you. I may not be ‘better’ yet, but you can still come with me if you want.”

“Yes-” Echo answered.

I nodded. I pulled out the Book of Knowledge and showed him Pure Vanilla’s staff and the seal piece. “Have you ever seen either of these?”

“Yes-” he said.

As a shadow, I couldn’t see him motion anywhere, and he didn’t make any noise with his feet. I didn’t know how I was gonna have him help us. Then I remembered.

“Can you become someone else’s shadow?” I asked.

Immediately, Echo knew what I wanted. He attached himself to me, and pointed the way. We followed his direction.

x        x        x

Eventually, we found my staff, and, thanks to Echo, we found the seal piece. However, I couldn’t help but notice that Shadow Milk’s demeanor had changed entirely. He seemed… Sadder. More tired. 

When we left the school, it was nighttime. The moon was only a sliver that night.

“Are you alright, Shadow Milk?” I asked him.

He looked at me, looked to the ground and smiled weakly. “I’ll be fine.” He sighed as his smile faded and he looked toward the sky. “I need to find them.”

“The kids?”

He nodded.

I smiled at him. “I’ll help you, if you need.”

“Yeah…” he said.

I felt so sad for him. I didn’t know what he had seen, but it was obvious it had affected him.

“Pure Vanilla?” he asked suddenly.

“Yes, Shadow Milk?”

He paused. “How do you deal so well with the truth?”

I looked at him shocked. But, after a couple of moments, I smiled at the ground. “I don’t.”

He looked at me, surprised.

“I often hate the truth,” I continued. “I’m angry at it, usually. It makes me feel terrible. I only accept the truth. I believe that everything happens for a reason. And as much as I may hate the truth, the only way to change it is to alter my own.” I smile at Shadow Milk. “After all, isn’t that what you do?”

He was very surprised at this, but smiled. “You’re right. A lie is only bending the truth. There’s always some truth in a lie.”

I smiled and looked at the sliver of a moon. “The moon is beautiful tonight.”

He looked at it. “It’s only a sliver?”

I chuckled. “Wrong moon.”

He blushed, of course. “I have a question.”

“Yes?”

“Are you poly or something?”

I looked at him and laughed a little. “Yes, I am. How did you know?”

“You treat me the same way as you do White Lily. Maybe even better. And it’s pretty clear you like her.”

I was a little surprised. “Really? I thought I hid it pretty well.”

“It’s too obvious,” he teased.

I smiled. “Well, I see it as there are two sides of the moon. A dark side and a light side. One side lights up the world around you. The other allows the stars to shine. Both are beautiful.”

He smiled. “And what side would I be?”

I looked at him. “It’s too obvious.”

He chuckled, and we held hands as we walked in the light of the stars.

Chapter Text

Golden Cheese and Dark Cacao had found their seal pieces after a few days, and Hollyberry and White Lily had recovered their seal pieces even sooner than us. This, of course, was something I expected, since the Guardian has a natural connection with the seal. However, when we met together, there was something I wasn’t expecting.

“Oh, wow, aren’t you two interesting!” Pavlova Cookie said.

Pavlova looked at me directly. I acted quickly. 

“Who is this?” I said, making sure Pavlova KNEW I was hiding. He nodded as Hollyberry spoke.

“This is Pavlova Cookie. We saved him from Eternal Sugar’s Garden! You may have heard of it in your studies.”

“‘Heard of’ is one term for it…” I mumbled.

“You all have some very interesting hearts,” Pavlova said.

“Pavlova, we’ve talked about this…” Hollyberry stated.

“Please, Hollyberry?” Pavlova begged. “They’re so fun!” 

“I would actually like to know what he sees in our ‘hearts,’” Dark Cacao stated, amused. It was obvious that Hollyberry had talked about Pavlova before.

“Agreed,” Golden Cheese said.

Pavlova looked at Hollyberry pleadingly. Hollyberry sighed, then nodded.

Pavlova twirled with excitement, then went to Golden Cheese. “You have a heart of gold that you keep to yourself. You’re too greedy to share it with anyone.”

“That sounds about right,” Golden Cheese stated.

“And you,” Pavlova said to Dark Cacao, “your love is far beyond your reach, in a place you doubt you’ll ever see again. But you still hope.”

“Hmm,” Dark Cacao mumbled.

“You,” Pavlova said, moving on to White Lily, “your love has been standing for many years. But neither have confessed anything.”

White Lily chuckled nervously.

“And you…” Pavlova said, looking at Pure Vanilla. “You have a heart split between two. One side is for someone that you’ve known for forever… And one is one for that in which you want to save. Oh, will he be forced to choose between one or the other? It’s so exciting!!”

“I hope I won’t have to,” Pure Vanilla said.

“Oooo, a double-trouble!!” Pavlova exclaimed.

“What about Blueberry Milk?” Hollyberry asked.

Pavlova, although begrudgingly, looked at me. His face was a little shocked, which made me confused.

“Your heart is healing after being broken for a long time…” he said. He mumbled, “Never thought it might happen in my lifetime…”

“Your heart was broken?” White Lily said. 

“Yeah, you seem pretty upbeat to me,” Hollyberry said.

“Yeah, well, don’t believe everything you see,” I said.

I was too occupied with Pavlova to notice Silverbell in the corner, next to White Lily.

“Trust me, I don’t,” Silverbell said, squinting.

I chuckled nervously. 

“Well,” Hollyberry said, “on that note, we should probably get to figuring out these seal pieces.”

“Agreed,” Pure Vanilla said. “Everyone, give the seals to Blueberry Milk, please.”

Everyone complied, although it was clear Silverbell was strongly against it.

“We’ll get to work immediately. White Lily,” Pure Vanilla stated, “would you mind joining us? This is an all-spellcasters-on-deck situation.”

“I would love to,” White Lily said.

The others left as the three spellcasters studied the spells in front of them.

*              *             *

Ugh… I understand why my old self went insane.

This is so annoying! Trying and failing and trying and failing and trying and– UGH! It’s terrible!

“Shadow Milk-?” Echo said.

White Lily jumped a little when he talked. She thought he was actually my shadow. Hah! If only she knew the truth.

I chuckled a little before turning to my new-old friend. “Yeah, Echo?”

“Try- Crea-m-i-an- writing-.”

“Creamian? That’s a long dead casting language. I doubt it would work.”

“Try-.”

I sighed before using the dead language. Surprisingly, it did, in fact, get much better results.

“Told- you-,” Echo said smugly.

I rolled my eyes. “Yeah, yeah, one point Echo, zero points me, I get it.”

Pure Vanilla chuckled. White Lily looked at me with a tinge of jealousy. I grinned.

The sun had started setting, which was my cue to go.

“Alright. Silly-Vanilly, Light Side of the Moon,” I said. “I’m gonna step back for now. As much as I would love to continue work, I have something more important than dancing with my demise.”

“Light Side of the Moon?” White Lily said.

“Yes,” I said. “You're shiny and pretty and steal all the attention.” White Lily frowned at that. “Anyways, I have to go. Seya, Nilly!”

“Goodbye, Blue Bird!” Pure Vanilla responded.

As much as I would have loved to see White Lily’s reaction to my nickname, I needed to find something else first.

After all, my bloodline was still out there. And I had centuries of absence to make up.

Chapter Text

“Blue Bird?” White Lily said.

“Yes,” I answered. “To acclimate him to his ‘role,’ I brought him to a park where we fed some birds. He wasn’t very good at it, at first, but he turned around in the end. One of the birds, Blue, was very friendly with him. So I decided, since he calls me ‘Silly-Vanilly,’ I would call him Blue Bird!”

“I see…” White Lily stated, frowning. She looked out at the setting sun. There was no moon tonight. “Pure Vanilla?”

“Yes, White Lily?” I responded.

“When Pavlova Cookie said your heart was torn between two…” White Lily started. “Is… Shadow Milk one of them…?”

I looked at her, slightly shocked. I hadn’t expected this moment to come so soon, but now it seems it hadn’t been “soon” at all. 

“Yes,” I answered. “He is.”

Her frown deepened. She seemed torn. I approached her, and took her hands in mine.

“And the other is you, White Lily Cookie.”

She was surprised, and seemed happier, but soon that was replaced by discouragement.

“So…” she started. “Which of us will you choose…?”

I frowned. “I don’t want to choose. In fact, I don’t think I can choose. I wish to be with both of you. You both bring happiness to my life, and I can’t imagine losing either of you.”

She looked down for a moment. I wondered if those weren’t the words she wanted to hear. But when she looked back up at me, she was smiling.

“If it makes you happy…” she started. “I… I can try. But I’m not sure how Silent Salt will feel about it.”

I tilted my head, confused. “Silent Salt?”

She nodded. “He’s… agreed to be the anchor for the second seal. He was… also good friends with Elder Faerie Cookie.”

And that’s when it hit me.

“Oh,” I muttered. “I… I see. That will make this… complicated.”

White Lily nodded. “I can try and convince him. He… doesn’t believe all that much in redemption for the Beasts, but if he learns of your own redemption… Perhaps he will change his mind.”

I nodded. “But what about…”

“I can see to that, if I must,” she stated. “But I will need your help.”

I smiled. “Thank you for doing this. I know this isn’t easy for you, either.”

“It’s not, but…” she said. “I only want you to be happy. And if this is what makes you happy… I’ll have to try.”

I smiled, and gave her a kiss on the forehead. “Thank you.”

x        x        x

I entered my room and immediately got to work…

… Except I don’t know what I was working on.

You see, the only thing I had to go off of was “Cobalt,” and that was only one kid. It was also evident he was a faerie cookie, but something told me that he didn’t live among the faeries anymore. It would take FOREVER to find them! Not to mention they might not even remember me, or hate me for abandoning them.

Still, something stirred in me that told me I needed to make amends.

I remembered the Book of Knowledge on the nighstand. I didn’t want to look in it for too long. Knowledge could be maddening. I mean, take a look at me!

I had made a promise to myself that I would only use it as a last resort in every case that it could be needed. It was dangerous. In fact, I probably shouldn’t leave it out where anyone could find it.

As I grabbed it to put it in the high shelf of one of the cupboards, I felt the overwhelming urge to open it. Who knows what could be held in here? It could have the secret we need for the seal! And it would make finding my kids so much easier! Why go through all the trouble when it was all right here at your fingertips?

I shook my head and quickly put it away. It was there with Echo guarding it for a reason. The Fount of Knowledge is in the past. Besides, if I’m gonna learn something, then I’m gonna learn it myself, dangit!

I sighed, thinking of ways to find my kids. Well, I don’t think I can go everywhere on Earthbread looking for them. That would take wayyyyy too long. And there’s no place where records on every living cookie existed. And no one knew everyone…

… But there were people who knew a lot of them.

x        x        x

“Heyyyyy, GingerBrave!” I heard behind me. I turned around to see Shadow Milk, or now Blueberry Milk, waving at me. I quickly threw on my happy mask and turned fully to face him. Guess I’ll have to wait a little longer to get home…

“Heya there, Blueberry Milk Cookie!” I practically cheered. “Whaddaya need?”

“Would you happen to know anyone named Cobalt Faerie Cookie?” he asked.

I searched my brain, but it was hard at the moment. I was tired, and I just wanted to get home and let myself breathe for a moment. “I dunno about a Cobalt Faerie Cookie, but I do remember hearing about a Cobalt Cookie. I’m pretty sure he lives on a different continent, though.”

“Which one?”

“Well, he comes from where Golden Osmanthus Cookie comes from, but I think Wizard Cookie knows more about that than me.”

“Alright, I’ll go find him. Thanks!” And he disappeared without a trace.

As I finally stepped into the doorway of my home, I sighed, closing the door behind me.

“Another rough day, huh?” GingerSnap teased me, floating around to the kitchen.

“Oh shut up,” I said, walking over to grab a jelly from the fridge. “Don’t act like you pity me.”

“Just because I gain power from your Despair doesn’t mean I can’t pity you,” he said matter-of-factually. “Besides, if you hate it, I get more Despair when I do.”

I rolled my eyes as I took a bite of the sour jellies. Despite what I told everyone, I preferred sour over sweet. I didn’t hate sweet food, it just wasn’t my favorite.

“You know, we might meet in person soon,” GingerSnap stated. “So, remember to act surprised, or your friends will know about the… Y’know,” he pointed to his arm, where a deep indigo Soul Jam resembling a four-point star sat embedded in his dough.

A while ago, back when we had first escaped the witches, I found a weird gemstone in the ground. I didn’t know what it was until I met Pure Vanilla Cookie. Before that, I just… held onto it. It felt… important.

I remember the first time I saw GingerSnap. We had just released Dark Enchantress Cookie from her prison, and it was our first bit of rest since then. I had been putting on the brave and Hopeful act for a while, and it was the first bit of time I had to myself for a while. 

“So, you're my other half, aren’t you?”

I remember I had swung my candy cane right to him…

Only for it to pass right through.

“Wow,” he had said. “That hurts. I've done nothing to you..”

He explained that he was known as the “Ultimate Cookie,” how he had gotten there, and how I could see him. I was Hope, and he was Despair. Since then, he’s been the only one I could really talk to… sort of.

“Yo, Beast to Main Character?” GingerSnap said, waving his hand in my face. I pushed it away. “You’re really out of it today, aren’t you? You should probably just head to sleep after that.”

“No, I promised I’d hang out with Strawberry today…”

“Okay, fudge her,” he said.

“Watch yourself, Snap…” I warned.

“Okay, whatever, but seriously. Can’t you just think of yourself first, for once? I promise you, it’s so much easier.”

“But I’m not considered a nice person then.”

“Okay, but are you really nice? Like, the real you?”

I’m not. I knew I wasn’t. But I didn’t want to be rude. I was Hope, after all. I was GingerBrave.

“Look, I can’t force you. Sadly, I don’t have Shadow Milk’s cool possession abilities, especially not now. But, you might wanna try saying ‘no’ a bit more, m’kay?”

I paused, swallowing another mouthful of sour jelly. I was crying, but I didn’t know if it was the jellies or something else. “M’kay.”

And then I heard a knock on the door. GingerSnap had disappeared. I sighed.

I put my mask back on and opened the door. “Hey, Strawberry Cookie! Ready to go?”