Archive of Our Own ^beta

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Welcome to my Cosmo multi-ship book! The rules for this book are (hopefully) very simple :)

1) No ships that are generally weird (Incest, abusive etc)

2)No hating other ships, if you don't like the ship don't read that chapter

3) If you have a request, feel free to comment it and I'll give it a read-through, just list the ship and prompt

4)This is a Cosmo x _ ship book, so expect only Cosmo ships. Please don't request non-Cosmo ships as that's not the point of this book

5)Updates will not be planned, this book is for fun and therefore i won't be prioritizing updates on this one

6)No hate of any kind, this is a place where we can ship in peace

I have a rough plan for the chapters, but just because this is the plan doesn't set any of the order in stone, these are just ideas i wish to put down

-Cosmo x Looey (Fluff)

-Cosmo x Astro (Fluff)

-Cosmo x Dandy (Angst)

-Cosmo x Goob (Fluff)

If you have any cosmo ships you wanna see, comment them below. 

Until then!

Chapter Text

Doors of the elevator opened with a whoosh, revealing the next floor. Floor 13. Cosmo sighed as he stepped out, Sprout beside him. They'd been sent on a supply run for both heals and whatever food they could scavenge, like chocolate or protein bars. It's like they did one every day, spending most of their day travelling to other branches of the building before returning to slave away over stoves and scrub off grim from much loved plates. Not much free time left after such a packed schedule, mostly being used for some much-deserved rest before repeating the cycle. 

"Only a few more floors till we can call it quits, m'kay?" Sprout nudged the pastry, who gave a sleepy smile and lazy nod. Cosmo didn't get any sleep last night; he was too kept up by his own thoughts. You see, A certain Swiss roll has recently gained a fruity (pun intended) boyfriend. And now? He couldn't think straight, and it was driving him up the wall. For example, he nearly burnt the bacon this morning whilst daydreaming about him and sprout the night before. No, he couldn't let his fantasies snap him out of focus. He wanted to go home earlier, so he needed to be quick. 

Seeing a machine in the distance, he made his way over before gripping one side of the cold chipping wheel with a stiff hand and starting to turn it. it gurgled before spitting a small stream of ichor onto the rusty basin of the machine, splashing onto the dirtied glass on the inside. Thanks to his thinking cap, sitting snug on the end of his head, he was able to hit the skill checks just fine. Paired with his manual hidden among his heal items stashed in his satchel sitting on his upper left thigh, he was a pro! Well, not as good as toons like glisten or vee, but good enough for a duo run! As he did machines, Sprout was distracting the copies of their friends, corrupt from a broken cloning process thanks to gone toon handlers. His high stamina paired with some new kicks and a support plush strapped to his hip made him the perfect toon to keep twisted occupied while his partner filled machines. 

"Holy shit, Cossie, come!"

Cosmo looked up from his machine, the third one out of seven. He saw Sprout, not too far away, looping poppy around a shelf of boxes. He hurried over, hiding a little away as Sprout lost poppy and watched as she shook her head with a huff, her ichor damaged bow swaying with her movements. When she was far away enough, Sprout grabbed Cosmo's hand and led him to a tv nearby. It fizzed with static, a boring buzz that drilled into the pastry's ears like an annoying alarm. "It's just a t-"

"Shhhh, it's gonna start!"

In a few moments, the static changed to the faint intro of their old cooking show. And, a few seconds later, on appeared Cosmo and Sprout, young and full of energy.

"Helllooo! Welcome to Episode one of... drumroll please!" Sprout smiled, drumming his hands on the counter in front of him. Cosmo giggled, drumming softly alongside the other. "Baking with Sprouty and Cos!" The strawberry grinned as he flung his arms back. The two giggled together before calming down and opening the Gardenview branded cookbook in front of them. A few pages were turned before a specific one is tapped by a rosy fingertip. "Today we are gonna make some peanut butter rocky road, full of fiber and sugar. Now kids, this recipe evolves some sharp knifes and hot ovens, so make sure mommy or daddy helps you to make these sweet treats."  

"Correct, we wouldn't want any of our friends at home to get hurt trying to make some goodies. Better to share baked goods then wounds." Cosmo re-euphuized, grabbing a large steel bowl and a whisk. He set them down before grabbing some more utensils. Sprout meanwhile, he took out ingredients, setting them one by one beside the equipment. 'For this recipe, we need 125 grams of unsalted butter." Sprout smiled as he held up a bar of salted butter. "Sprout, that's salted butter." The pastry giggled, lowering the other's arm. "Meh, what's the difference?" He shrugged, switching the sticks. 

Cosmo smiled, turning to face the camera. "Because salted better helps bring out the flavor of things, usually savory food like toast to prevent a fatty taste. Unsalted is used for baked goods, as salt is an ingredient usually already listed, but even if not, salt can take the sweet edge out of a yummy cookie or brownie." He clapped his hands together with a smile.

Cosmo blinked stiff eyelids closed, trying to wet them again as they dried out from embarrassment. "... what the fuck did i just watch?" He croaked, throat also dry from being too focused to swallow. He looked over to Sprout, who had a goofy smile on his face."One of our old episodes! Oh, I remember it like it was yesterday!"

The cameraman clapped a clipboard, turning the camera off. "Ok, cut! Sprout, go to Lily to get your leaves sorted out, they're a mess. Cosmo, fix your icing, it's dripping down your forehead." Cosmo grabbed a piping bag at the command whilst Sprout was gently ushered to the make-up artist (More like his make-up artist). He always found it annoying how he'd be treated like a weak gem whilst Cosmo had to fix himself up. Well, it's not like Cosmo can't take care of himself- he can, very well- but he's a littler weaker, having thinner arms, so him having to carry the heavy utensils, mixing the batter etc.

"Hey, cos..." Sprout asked, yelping when Lily tugged his leaves a little too harshly. "Wanna hang out after shooting? Delilah gave me some beads and string- well, i stole them but, anyways. We can use them to make bracelets. You wanna?" 

Cosmo smiled, lowering his arms to his chest. "Sure sprouty.

The pastry huffed as the strawberry pet his head, spreading out his slightly warmed icing from running around the floor. "You were such a cute toon, so little and innocent. You were also shorter." He chuckled, squatting down to Cosmo's height. The other whacked Sprout, pouting. "Hey, you weren't the same yourself! You acted like a little suck-up, being all buddy-buddy with the old toon-handlers and stuff." He smirked, elbowing the toon who now stood at his full height, a head and a half taller then Cosmo.

"All jokes aside, i sometimes miss the shoots. Y'know, where we would get to bake together, even if it was with a whole bunch of crew around, and eat them together. I mean, they barely let us hang out, let alone bake, so when we could it was like heaven." Sprout smiled, hugging the other's arm. 

Cosmo nodded, closing his eyes as he leaned against the other.

"I'd love to dive down nostalgia lane, but i wanna go home and the machines won't do themselfs." Cosmo smiled as he led Sprout out that room. He spotted a capsule. "OO, research!" 

He picked it up. 

CRACK! 

"SHIT!"

(They 'died' to twisted rodger and lost the supplies)

Chapter Text

Oh Cosmo. What a lovely toon he was. Soft-hearted, caring and always helpful. He'd give up any task he'd be doing just to help others; that's how much of a people pleaser he is. Everytoon (Except Shrimpo) loved him, a few more then others. Two such toons were Looey and Sprout. Sprout was Cosmo's best bud, always close to the other naturally. They'd cook the meals for the others during the day before baking in the evening, watching movies until late hours of the night once the sun had set. Looey, meanwhile, wasn't as close to the pastry, the two only communicating during runs or meal time. However, as of recent, Looey has tried to get closer to Cosmo. And Sprout? He didn't like it one BIT.

"Hey Cossie, um can i ask ya something?" The balloon squeaked, ears flopping down as he looked at the beautiful roll in front of him. Cosmo wore a baggy hoodie, draped over his thin frame like a long cloak. Tight black sleeves clung to his arms, up to his palms. Around his wrist was the bracelet he shared with a certain strawberry. Hidden under the length of the hooide were the tight biker shorts Cosmo always wore, shorts that drove Looey up the wall from how cute and hot he was in them.  "Oh, hey looey, how can i help?" He tilted his roll head at the balloon, a smile painted across his gentle face. Looey came closer, standing shoulder to shoulder with the other. "C-Can you give me some baking lessons?" He stuttered, not out of nerves of rejection but nerves of bumping into Sprout. The two had a clear rivalry, one established far before the shared love for Cosmo, and they both had their ways of attack. Looey with words; Sprout with actions. And Sprout was oh so terrifying when he death glares the poor balloon the second he gets a millimeter too close to Cosmo. And the balloon wasn't too keen on losing some quality time over a jealous fruit.

Once Cosmo said an enthusiastic yes, the two shared a search for a recipe to do. A few choices were a New York cheesecake, a double chunk brownie and some raspberry bark. "I wanna do a cheesecake if that's good with you Cossie." Looey smiled, elbowing the other as he turned back to the cheesecake recipe with his free hand. Cosmo hummed softly, reading over the ingredients. "I think we have these, though we'll have to substitute some for rationing reasons, since we couldn't find much new things on the previous run. S-Sorry about that Looey..." He apologized to the other, a frown on his face. If only he knew that he could never upset him, then he'd be feeling much more uplifted. But he can't, or else he'd be questioned by the Swiss roll and it could lead to a confession. And as much as he wanted to, it was too soon. Cosmo seemed reassured after a pat and a smile from the circus toon, taking a deep breath before listing out the items- watching the other retrieve each one he listed in order.

Sprout huffed. Where was his best friend?! He had to find him before Looey did, after all he needed to spend more time with him then that stupid inflatable. He knew that Looey liked Cosmo, as did he, and he wasn't going to let him take HIS best friend away from him. Not in a million years. He checked Cosmo's room first, nothing. Next, he looked in the stocking room, nothing. Bathroom, nothing. Laundry room, nothing. He. Was. Nowhere.

This was sometimes common; he was also a healer after all, and toons were on runs during all hours of the day- some treating of wounds was an expected chore for the support toons. Maybe he was in the lobby then? So, he began making his way to the lobby, walking to the elevator on the floor he was on. That's when he heard it.

Laughter.

Cosmo's laughter.

He tensed, and with anger starting to boil in his veins,he peeked into the room he heard it from- the kitchen. Inside was Cosmo, weighing flour and cream cheese. Aww, he was baking-

Looey stepped to stand beside Cosmo, standing close enough to touch shoulders with eachother. Looey...?

"Cosmo! Looey... What are the two of you doing?" The strawberry faked a smile, the corners of his mouth tense and twitching as he glaced between his sweet Cossie and that dumb balloon. He watched the Swiss roll look down at his hands, a soft smile on his cute-ass face, before having Looey nudge him. "Me and Cossie were just making some good'ol vanilla cheesecake, no need to get all pouty on him. Turn that frown upside!" He smirked,putting his hands on Cosmo's shoulders, making the Swiss roll blush. Not only did he just call Cosmo his nickname, but he had the audacity to touch HIS Cosmo?!

He smiled awkwardly, coming closer, and tugging Cosmo towards himself. Cosmo yelped, still being held back by Looey,s hands on his shoulders. "Hah, well i bet you two are having LOADS of fun, mind if i join ya?" He pet Cosmo's head, spreading the icing, warmed from mixing ingredients just moments prior. The Swiss roll didn't mind, after all it was his best friend that was asking to join them. He turned to look at Looey and-ooooh boy...

The balloon looked like he would pop- all tense and rigid. Even his ears stood tall atop his head like rubber trees, shiny and smooth. Cosmo gulped- he didn't think Looey could be this tense, like ever, due to his naturally positive and cheery attitude. It was kind of scary, but now was not the time to dwell on things so meaningless. "Sorry bud, but this a me and Cossie thing, not you. So, scram! I'm sure you're needed in a main meeting or what not." Looey waved Sprout dismissively, before shoving him out the kitchen. 

"That was a bit rude Looey, don't you think?" Cosmo sighed, crossing his arms. He didn't wish to be harsh on Looey, but he also had been too mean to Sprout by just shoving him away so quickly. The balloon shrugged, returning to the mixing bowl and grabbing the whisk, coated with cream cheese and shortbread crumbs. "C'mon, let's continue making this squak-a-rific cheesecake!"

Ta-da! Their cheesecake was done! Sure, the edges of the crust were slightly burnt from them forgetting about it whilst making the icing, but it didn't change nor effect the taste, so it was still tasty and sweet like it was supposed to be. Cosmo ate a forkful happily, rocking side to side as he sat on the counter. "We did great Looey, this is amazing!" He praised around a mouthful, swallowing with a smile. The circus toon nodded, and approached the pastry on the counter. "Ya got something..." He pressed a palm against Cosmo's cheek, feeling its warmth and softness. Then, with a carful finger, he wiped some cream cheese and shortbread crumbs off the corner of his lips. "Right there! All done." He smiled, smirking a little in the corners of his mouth. 

Now, Cosmo wasn't stupid. He knew that some toons liked him. But, if he had to list two toons he knew definitely liked him, he'd list Looey and Sprout. They were NOT sutble about their feelings, constantly at each other's throats over the plain swiss roll. He wasn't anything special- a common toon who sucked at machines so badly that all he can do on runs is look around for heals or wait by the elevator until it opened. So then why was he being fought over by two toons, one of which being a main?!

He blushed at Looey's action, turning away. "T-Thanks...do you like the cheesecake?" He asked the other as he hopped off the counter, setting his half empty plate on where he had previously sat. Looey shrugged with a chipper smile, hugging the pastry's shoulders. "Oh i loved it! We made it together, after all. It's almost as sweet as you." He winked before letting go. Cosmo looked down, hiding his blushing face before he scrambled to his room. He stayed in there for the rest of the day. 

"It's your fault." Sprout hissed at the balloon, throwing a punch at his shoulder with clear annoyance in his words. The party balloon toon emitted a hiss of his own, one of air from his ears, as well as squeak his tail between his legs to nudge Sprout's ankle. "Not fully, you made him upset first." He pouted, crossing his arms which rubbed against one another causing some more squeaky noises. Sprout rolled his eyes at the other's childish behavior- the least he could expect from a balloon animal toon. "Whatever. At least he likes me." The strawberry smirked as he leaned back against the chair he sat on. Looey gasped, sitting straight far too quickly, becoming dizzy. He ignored the feeling though, too frustrated at Sprout to care. "What...?"

He tightened the yarn he was crocheting, resuming his work of the needles as he focused on his scarf. Recently, Cosmo had picked up crocheting, mostly to pass the time since he had too much time on his hands since he stopped being put on run teams anymore. He'd gotten pretty good, able to make scarfs and simple hats for his friends, but not much else without a bit of trouble or tons of tangled yarn. Peaceful lofi played around his room from a radio, creating a calm atmosphere-

"COSMO!"

He jumped, dropping his needles and yarn. At the door were Sprout and Looey, both red faced and panting. "WHO DO YOU LIKE? ME OR SPRoUT!" Looey demanded, voice cracking in a way that would of made Cosmo giggle if it weren't for how intimidated he felt having two taller toons surrounding him whilst he sat on his bed in only his panties and hoodie. Look, in his defense he wasn't planning on going out his room like this! 

"u-um...do i have to answer?" He shakily stuttered, closing his legs for some security, as he stared at the two by his bed side. Looey looked tense, limbs shiny and stiff; Sprout stood tall, eyes staring down at the pastry, waiting. Cosmo gulped.

He looked down at the bed. "I-I um... I like you both?.."

The two toons paused. Both of them? They glanced at eachother then back to the small Swiss roll, now curled up, sitting on the bed. "...really. You like this dumb strawberry?" Looey said in unison with Sprout who called Looey a 'deflating reject party balloon'. Cosmo just nodded at the two, hugging himself, Four sets of arms join in hugging him, making him lift his head up, before feeling two sets of lips kiss his cheeks with soft care. "Wanna be our boyfriend?" The two asked the pastry in unison, holding out their hands. Cosmo's eyes watered, he might just burst into tears or break down. Was this real?! 

"...Yes." He croaked, his tone soft and weak to try and not start crying. The other two smiled.

Chapter Text

Cosmo knew he wasn't the best toon. I mean, he was weak, a little too anxious- he couldn't even do machines without failing once or twice! despite those flaws, he was still useful. He could cook up some nice meals, produce much needed heals (hey that rhymed :D) and was a great source of moral support. Everyone appreciated his presence, even if he was only there for support. But so was Tisha, Astro, even his best friend Sprout! 

However, his usefulness became null and void when his cousin arrived.

He's not blaming Ginger; it's not like she did it on purpose! It's more accurately his fault for being so useless... 

Take her skill check, for example. She's so good at doing them, almost graceful as she turns the wheel and fills the machine in a few minutes or less. Meanwhile, he takes like 6 minutes or over to finish a machine, most of that time taken up by him trying not to fail skill checks and outrunning loose twisted when he does, and it rings out across the floor. She also could cook far better than him, taking less time and less mess to do so. And her heals, she could launch those across further distance's then he could. In short, she was the better out of the two sweet toons.

And the others proved it.

Cosmo served the plates of pancakes to the toons around the table with a smile on his face. His icing was a little drippy, running down his forehead-showing the amount of work he put into making the pancakes. "Eat up everyone!" He announced, wiping the runny icing to stop it from getting into his eyes. "Did Ginger make these?" Toodles asked, excited as she bounced in her elevated chair. He tensed, Ginger was on an early morning run for supplies, taking his place alongside Sprout as the healers, and leaving him all alone on kitchen duty. "No no Toodles, Ginger's on a run and unable to cook breakfast." He smiled sheepishly, watching her smile flip into a frown. "I want Ginger's food! Cosmo's is yucky." She pushed the plate away, unaware of how she hurt Cosmo. He knew he wasn't a 5-star chef but jeez, no need to call the food he worked hard on yucky. Rodger nudged his child, shaking his head disapprovingly. "We don't insult people's food Toodles, Cosmo worked hard on that and he doesn't deserve such cruel words. Apologize please." He stated sternly, his solo eye squinted at the 8-ball child. She pouted again, crossing her arms. "Say sorry or no sweets for a week." He stated again, watching as she huffed. "I'm sorry Mr.Cosmo. Your food isn't yucky."

He nodded his head, feeling tears start to prick the corners of his eyes. "No worries, just eat up ok?" 

He exhaled, wiping his hands on a cloth as he watched the clothes spin round in the washing machine. They weren't many tasks for him to do around the center, after all there were certain toons for certain tasks, so it wasn't like he was first pick for any free ones. He was supposed to be on a run, but Ginger took his place per Vee's request. Replaced... again.

No problem, he thought, just means more free time! He could try a new cupcake recipe, or make some hats for the others...oh who was he kidding. It hurt his heart when he was dismissed or rejected in exchange for his oh so perfect cousin. She had a pretty face, amazing at cooking and baking, had a girlfriend- she was everything Cosmo wished he was. 

He hadn't even realized he was crying until some tears fell onto his hoodie. With a few quick wipes, he got rid of the tears on his cheeks. What was his next task? Oh yeah, restock. He sniffled weakly as he made his way to the storage unit.

"Astro?"

The moon toon looked up from his star cloud, waving it away with a small blue star as he saw Vee approach his position on a sofa. "Hm?" He hummed, looking towards the TV. She crossed her arms, standing in front of him. "Why haven't you been attending the runs I've been running? We could really use a stamina toon, especially with how slow Glisten and I are." She almost demanded, a small, pixelated sign of frustration in the top left of her screen. He gave a shake of his head, tightening the hold of his blanket around his body. "I've already told you, Vee. I'm surprised you aren't aware."

She huffed. "Cosmo not coming is NOT a valid reason. Ginger is a far more useful toon to our assets." Her words made Astro tense. Cosmo was helpful, just not to her stubbornly high standards. His smile made Astro wish to continue on in a run instead of catching a ride down with Dandy in his shop; his heals tasted like pure chocolaty heaven, sweet and soft in his mouth; the way he'd fumble the machine wheel and whimper whenever he did so. Cosmo was just so cute and-

Cosmo dusted his hands on his thigh high socks, staring down at the boxes. It did take him like two hours just to more like three boxes but that's ok! Just as he was about to start on the next few, in came Goob and... Ginger. "Cousin, Goob- what brings you here?" He asked with a chipper smile, hands behind his back. 

"Well, Cossie, Goob asked if I could help take some stress off you by taking the rest of your stocking?" She sheepishly smiled. Ah, she's here to replace him. Nothing out of the normal. He nodded weakly, just leaving the storage room. 

As he made his way back to his room, he felt a hand on his shoulder. When he turned around, he saw... Astro? 

"Hey Cossie... I got some new cookbooks; would you like to read them with me? I don't understand cooking nor baking that well, and i think your presence would be appreciated."

Cosmo smiled softly at the question. Someone wanted him!

"Sure Ashy. Sounds fun." He giggled softly, following the other to his room. 

(Part one of two)

Chapter Text

Cosmo smelled his freshly baked cookies, their warmth filling his body with euphoria. The others would love it, especially after such a long run! Vee had dragged a bunch of the toons on an early morning run for supplies, leaving him alone due to his new boyfriends being dragged onto said run. However, once they got back, he promised himself that he'd take extra care, since he was dating the two. As if on que, the elevator doors flung open, the noise of their metal sheets scraping the edges of the doorway. He turned his head towards the lobby, a smile creeping onto his face. "Welcome back!" He yelled, rushing with the tray to the lobby. 

All 8 toons exited the elevator, some stretching whilst others flopping forward. Two, however, looked as active as ever- cheery smiles on their faces and eyes shining bright with optimism. "That was fun, but I'm starving!" Looey smiled, wiping his shiny rubber forehead. "Me too, wonder if Cossie made anything while we were away." Sprout chipped in, dusting his shoulders as he stood beside the balloon toon. Their sudden closeness surprised the other toons, thinking some kind of 'friends with benefits' kind of situation HAD to be going on. They even traded distraction shifts for ichor sake! Something had to be up. "Yeah, i can already smell the sweets!" Goob giggled, trying to fit in. The two tall toons slumped, looking over to the fluffy craft with an expression of annoyance.

All the toons made their way to the kitchen, Cosmo beating them to its entry way. "Welcome back!" He smiled, holding the tray out. "Eat up."

Looey and Sprout hugged the Swiss roll from each side, lifting him up and nearly making him drop the tray. "Eek! Careful, I'm gonna drop the cookies! Sorry you 6, take one and rest- you all need it."

Never mind, the others figured it out. 

"Thanks." They all repeated one by one, grabbing a double chunk cookie off the cooled tray. Cosmo smiled before squeaking as he was raised higher. "Can we have extras?" The strawberry whined from below, giving puppy eyes to the one above. Shit, he can't resist puppy eyes- from anyone honestly. Looey followed suit, fluttering his short lashes up at the pastry, eyes shining with resin-like gloss. TWO weapons of adorableness?... IT may sound cringy but in the moment, it was torture to Cosmo. His reserve was crumbling like shortbread, the crumbs laying at his feet in shame for failing to say no so easily.

But it was just over some cookies, he knew the two too well to expect them to break his boundaries. (NOT Foreshadowing, ik it sounds like that but it's not i promise) 

"Fine, next batch you can have the first two." He sighed in defeat. "Now put me down!"

Astro adjusted his blanket, staring at himself in the mirror. Looey and Sprout dating Cosmo, huh? He never knew the pastry was into such... idiocy. Now, it's not that the reserved toon- he was more interested in sleeping alone in bed then with another toon- but he still enjoyed the toon's presence. And he also knew that Cosmo had a type, he knew all of the toon's types. So seeing the pastry date two toons opposite to the romance dreams he had been both asked and bribed into giving the other was surprising.

He shook his head, looking back into the mirror. He had faint eyebags under his normal eye, a faint sunshine glow emitting from his star eye; his small tufts of fluffy hair peeked put from his indigo night cap; a matching blanket was wrapped around his body, concealing his outfit of a band t-shirt and pajama bottoms plus his four arms. Since he hid his two sets of arms, he had the joy of wearing whatever clothes he wished to wear. A joy he took complete advantage of and abused. I mean, he's lost count of how many times he's worn only boxers under his blanket since no one dares to look under it (maybe for that suspension but whatever keeps them from looking). 

Today he had a little book session with Cosmo, the two were close friends after all, and it had been ages since the two sat on a beanbag and analyzed books until lunch time. Plus, the heal supply was plentiful, so he had no baking do to- meaning he was, or should be, free for Astro to take... not in a weird way.

And so, he made his way to Cosmo's room, only a floor below the main toon's rooms, taking the elevator down. It groaned as it stopped at the correct floor, he stepped out and made his way over. The hallway of the floor was bland compared to the main floor hallway. No fancy wallpaper with floral designs etched into it or posters advertising their specific episodes, not even photocopied fan-art from the children during the golden age of Gardenview. Just plain painted cream walls with swirls faintly embedded in the fading paint. He grimaced in disgust from the minimalism of the decor, speeding down towards Cosmo's room. Once he reached it, he knocked on the cedar wood door, which was decorated with little stickers around hobbies he was into- baking, drawing, reading, even some music-based ones. 

"Cosmo?"

No answer. He sighed, creaking the door open. 

On the bed, surrounded by two shirtless toons, was Cosmo- sweaty and panting as he was being bit at like a piece of fish lure, Sprout and Looey being little piranhas. "... Am i interrupting something?" He said in a monotone, closing his eye to stop his mind from wandering. The three scrambled to tidy both themselves and the sheets, avoiding even glancing at the moon's direction out of pure embarrassment. "Y-Yes Astro?" Cosmo stuttered, facing Astro only a little. He opened his eyes, seeing the more collected scene of the three sitting in a line on the edge of Cosmo's neater bed.

"I simply wished to ask if you were free for book club." He suggested, stepping closer with caution. Cosmo perked up at that, scrambling off the bed, he'd forgotten about that! "Oh, yeah, that sounds-"

Looey hissed. "Sorry Astro, but Cossie's a little busy." He smiled forcefully, getting a nod from an annoyed strawberry. "Yeah, we're having some lovey dovey stuff." Sprout's eye twitched, setting his hands in his lap. They wanted Cosmo, and they certainly weren't willing to share. The other main could tell, reading over the possessiveness in their eyes, glinting like drops of obsession. 

He sighed. "You can't control the poor pastry, if he wishes to spend time with another toon besides the two of you, he is allowed to. Cosmo, would you like to join me?" 

The pastry looked between his partners and his friends, before he tugged at the silk blanket around the main moon. "Book club please. I kinda missed them."

Silence. Warm, cozy silence. It filled the bedroom of Astro Novalite, wrapping both him and the pastry in a sense of comfort and familiarity. Cosmo smiled with a small hum on the tip of his tongue as he read his book, one themed around musical history. He enjoyed expanded his knowledge on different topics- his previous book was on the history of WW1, which was both very gruesome but knowledgeable!

"What are you reading, dear?" Astro gave a soft smile, looking up from his encyclopedia. He knew his book choice was a little more out there, but he enjoyed learning about things just as much as Cosmo did. That's why the two got along so well- they enjoyed learning about new things. The pastry looked up from his book before showing off its cover. "Music through the eras. Found it in the library." 

Astro hummed, dragging his eyes back to his book. Cosmo was a cute toon, he's not denying that. He could understand why Looey and Sprout wished to keep him close- but that didn't permit them to chain the poor roll to their bed and keep him hidden from the world. "Are you enjoying it?"

The pastry nodded. 

Astro smiled. "I'm glad you are."

"Fuck this, i need him."

Desperate for a toon like Sprout, but at least he had someone who related to him. 

"I know right?! I mean, i know we shouldn't feel this way but my heart just hurts that he's not here. That's... not normal, is it?" The balloon asked, hugging himself before latching on to his other boyfriend. Sprout pecked the other's cheek, rubbing one of his ears. "It's something i feel too. But we can't control his actions- no matter how annoyed it makes us feel."

The two blinked before getting up. Nope.

"Thanks for the biscuits, Astro, but if you wanted snacks, I could've baked some beforehand." Cosmo giggled, grabbing and inspecting a custard cream before nibbling a corner. The taste was ok, a little stale but expected for a store bought (or more accurately floor-found) product. The moon shook his head. "No, no- this was my little idea, let me spoil my friend." 

The Swiss roll smiled at that, yelping when the door was busted open. At the now jagged doorway, were two particularly pissed toons, ones the two recognized. "Sprout... Looey." Cosmo sputtered, closing up. He trembled as he watched them approach, closing his eyes after, did he do something wrong?

"Back up."

Cosmo opened an eye, seeing the back of Astro. "Get out of my room, before I force you."

Sprout came closer, eye twitching. "We want Cosmo back." He smiled tensely, being backed up by a nod from Looey. "He's our boyfriend, we deserve to see him when we wanna." 

If Astro could teleport Cosmo away, he would. But he couldn't, so standing in front of him would have to do. He took a deep breath before speaking. 

"He is your boyfriend, but he is my friend. Just because you are dating him does NOT allow you to control who or when he hangs out with others. He is his OWN person, and he will prioritize what HE wants to. So for the love of ichor, get yours HEADS out your ASSES and FIX YOURSELFS!

He exhaled after, turning to Cosmo. "If they pull something like this again, tell me."

"WE'RE SORRY!"

Cosmo yelped as he was snuggle-bombed by his boyfriends on his bed. It had been a few hours since Astro put some sense into their hollow brains, the two only returning to his room after two hours of assisting Tisha as punishment for breaking Astro's door. But once they returned, Cosmo could only see his mobility disappear as they crowded him with affection. It was warm, don't get him wrong, but some space would also be appreciated. 

"Boys, it's ok, I forgive you- now get off me so I can breathe!"

(Spoiler alert- they didn't for another hour :D)

Chapter Text

Three weeks. That's how long Cosmo has been being replaced for ginger- Astro kept track. He noted in his memory every smile that flipped into a frown whenever he was swapped out with Ginger; the glint in his eye dulling as he was subjected to chores instead of runs or something exciting; getting switched out even on the chores he was assigned on. He noted every last change, and it hurt his heart. He liked Cosmo. He's always had a soft spot for the Swiss roll, finding his sweets to be comforting and filling, his smiles soft and his presence a great addition to the toon list. If Cosmo needed a bed for the night or a shoulder to cry on- Astro would volunteer as tribute. Every time. 

He watched from the corner as Cosmo was ushered away from the elevator, whilst ginger was brought in by a grinning glisten, bow swaying as he did so. "Sorry Cosmo, maybe next time? Looey suggested, patting the rolls shoulder with a hopeful look on his face. All he received was a nod before Looey was called back in. In a matter of seconds, the door/sheet slammed down and shut, a soft churring of gears indicating its descent down. Cosmo just sighed, maybe he could bake some heals for when they return? 

"Hey Cossie"

He spun around to see Astro, a smile on his face. He had a soft navy blanket around him, his signature indigo in the wash due to a batter stain a few days prior. "I'm planning on re-organizing my books, but I think i need some help. Are you free, because if so could you help me? You can even take the books I no longer wish to keep." He took the pastry's hand into his blanketed ones. He loved to watch the glisten of hope, the joy of being wanted by someone as important as a main- or anyone at all for that matter! He gave an eager nod, following the other to the .5 floor elevator.

In the present...

"Sure Ashy. Sounds fun."

Those were the words that led up to everything. Well, at least triggered it. 

When the two reached Astro's room, they began scanning through the cookbooks. For being a non-baking toon, Astro had a surprising range of books based around it stashed away in his shelfs. Ones themed around French recipes, another on Japanese food- he had at least one book for each region of the world- and they were a perfect bribing tool for whenever Astro wanted something. Its not like he had to try hard though; Cosmo would say yes in a heartbeat- Astro was such a great friend!

Don't think he's cheating on Sprout as a best friend, but Astro was one of the top contenders for that spot- especially since they've been hanging out less and less nowadays. It's now Ginger & Sprout, the duo seen cooking in the kitchen after runs...

"Oh, you guys started without me? Cosmo giggled, tying an apron from behind the kitchen door.  Sprout and Ginger were both making something-Sprout was cutting some carrots whilst Ginger stirred them into a pot of water sitting on an unlit stove. Everyone in the kitchen was doing something, but Cosmo was sure he could slide in somewhere!

He looked around- maybe there were some other veggies to cut? No, Sprout was cutting the last few... Maybe he could cut up some herbs? No again, they were already in the water. "Is there... anything I can to help?" He shakily asked. Sprout looked up from his cutting. "Oh, you didn't hear? Ginger's doing the meals with me now. Sorry bud, i tried to get them to let you help but Vee kept saying no..."

Vee...why would she kick him off the cooking? It was the one thing he was good at, being able to make meals and treats for his fellow toons. And now he didn't even have that?

He shook the memory away, focus on the now not the happened. Which book first, Cossie?" Astro asked, tilting his head to the Swiss roll. 

Cosmo looked up, blinking a little before looking over the choices. There were four of them spread out on the silky soft bed sheets, sinking into them like a pillow. Each were about the history of the cuisines from different countries, each more intriguing then the last. Eventually, he settles on a book called "Japanese cuisines and history". Bland title but probably full of useful information. 

Once the book was chosen, the two snuggled under a soft velvet blanket as Astro began to audio dub the chosen book. His soft tone and the way his voice growls softly whenever he reaches the end of a sentence makes Cosmo's heart skip a beat and his legs to squeeze together. Weird?.. Weird.

Astro was internally smirking. He could feel each tense-up and every squeeze the smaller would make against his chest, continuing on as if he didn't. Oh, how he enjoyed the effect he had on him, making sure he kept it up to feel his little roll get horny. But it wasn't enough to just watch him. His hands itched to touch the other, so he started slow.

(START OF SMUT)

Astro leaned closer to Cosmo's ear, lips grazing the edges of it as he whispered. He watched as the other shivered, closing his legs. "Have i ever told you how cute you are?" He growled softly, snaking his arms around the other who whined weakly. "Mmh, such an adorable sound. Y'know, I never understood why you're replaced. You're so useful and helpful, not to mention a cute sight to see."

If Cosmo could melt, he would. Right into a little chocolate puddle. He could feel a cold liquid run down his thighs, soaking his shorts and inching towards his thigh highs, that's how turned on he was in the moment. Light blue hands crept to his waist, flicking the band of his shorts. "May I?" Astro asked, the teasing gone from his tone and now replaced with care.

Cosmo would've yelled yes till his voice was horse, but he had no voice so just nodded. Scratch that, he had enough voice for a squeaky yes, which Astro took and used to take off his shorts. His panties were still on, skintight and suffocating against his heat. "Ashy, please." He whined, bucking his hips up. Astro chuckled, kissing his cheek. How cute.

His vocabulary was getting repetitive, huh? He couldn't help it, though- Cosmo had that effect on him- reducing his intelligence to one of a newborn toon. but he wasn't focused on that, he was focused on pleasing the sweet roll in front of him. "Course Cossie. Lift your legs for me." He smiled, watching as he did it on demand. They hung high in the air, almost as if he was trying to show his arousal off to Astro's collection of nick nacks. 

It took a bit of effort, being stuck to his cunt and all, but he got it of in the end. And he nearly died from the sight. Soft, hazelnut folds pulsing in need, dripping with a rich slick that reminded him of icing. He re-positioned Cosmo to lay on the bed, setting the other's legs onto his now bare shoulders. He knew what he wanted, but he prioritized Cosmo's wants over his own needs. With soft hands, he slipped his discarded blanket to rest under the body of the pastry, a soft support. Then, he dived in-

"W-Wait..."

He peeked up from between his legs, watching him. Cosmo's eyes were clouded and half lidded, teary almost; parted, quivering lips panted uneven breathes; arms trembled as they clutched the blanket now beneath him. "I'm n-not ready... wait..." He whimpered, weakly closing his legs around Astro's neck. He smiled, closing them for him and setting them down against the blanket. "I'll wait as long as you need."

An hour.

He waited an hour.

Now, he's not complaining here. However, his only complaint would be what they did in that hour. Cosmo? He slept, drifting into slumber in the 20-minute mark. Astro, though? He just... stared? Admired? He couldn't find the right word, but all he did was watch the sleeping Swiss roll with soft eyes. Not much else to do when you're holding the other's legs shut for if you didn't, they'd fly open, and he's rather stare at his face whilst he's sleeping then his pussy. 

A soft stir threw his staring path off, skipping his stomach and looping back to his face. Eyes blinked open, soft honey eyes showing through fluttering lashes. "Ashy?"

He hummed, rubbing his thighs. "I'm here... You ready?" Astro asked, tilting his head. A few minutes passed before he got a soft nod, watching the other's eyes flutter close once again. With careful movements, he spread Cosmo's legs and went in.

It was warm and soft between the other's plump thighs- thighs that he could previously only admire through stripped long socks. But now he got a private showing, seeing every mark and freckle scattered around the skin. He pressed kisses along the path to his core, licking a little, before stopping at the final destination. Bingo.

Soft folds greeted him, pulsing around emptiness and ready for something to enter them. Slick dripped down from it, sliding down to the tops of his inner thighs and onto his blanket. He would just wash it after, no big deal. He gently let his tongue unravel from his mouth, the purple appendage eager to delve into his sweetheart. 

And how eagerly it did.

Cosmo gasped, back arching and legs bunching up around Astro's shoulders as he was eaten out. It felt heavenly, dulling an ache he'd felt for far too long. "A-Ashy, fuck!" He whined, looking down. His eyes met a ruby on, clouded with lust as he ate like no tomorrow- minding to be gentle of course.

This proceeded for a few more minutes before Cosmo felt a knot in the pit of his stomach, growing tighter with each lick of his clit and inner walls. "S-Shit, ashy, wAit"

Astro paused, withdrawing with worry. "Everything ok? Did i hurt you?" 

The pastry shook his head. "I-I don't know, it started feeling...too good, and I had a knot in my stomach." He whimpered, ready for Astro to laugh at him. But he didn't. Instead, he hugged the other. "OH baby, that's normal. It just means your organism is coming."

Cosmo relaxed. "Ok, you can keep going."

(END OF SMUT) 

Cosmo panted, coming down from his high. That was incredible, for his first one anyways. Yes, he was a virgin, but he knew about those kind of things- he was new to the experiences but not to the concept overall. 

He now laid in a tub, muscles relaxing from the bubbly water surrounding him. His new boyfriend- yes, boyfriend! - was cleaning the bed up from their previous fun in the next room. He never thought he'd get his dreams of a partner, let alone one of the most notorious mains (Outside of Dandy, duh), but he was grateful, nonetheless.

He did it! Astro giggled like a little schoolgirl as he changed the sheets, trying not to collapse onto the bare mattress and kick his feet in glee. He was dating his crush, finally! And he'd praise Cosmo so much, he'd take him on runs- he'd make him feel needed and wanted again. Plus, more than one person knew about his arms now. Before their little exploration, only the other mains knew.

Dandy knew since day 1.

Vee found out from interrogated him after his twisted clone had four arms and cracked him enough to get him to tell. (Rodger tried as well but failed.)

Sprout had walked in whilst he was stretching, seeing him doing the splits with two arms above him and the other two holding a book.

Pebble tackled him and made him drop his blanket, showing Shelly his embarrassing attire of a Cosmo merch T-shirt and pajama bottoms (Oh, and his four arms too he guessed.)

And now Cosmo, from seeing two arms massage his thighs, one holding his chin and another gripping his waist. 

"Ashy? Can you give me a towel?" Cosmo called out, sitting in the drained tub. He waited, hearing rusiling before astro came in, now in shorts and a nirvana shirt. "Course, use mine." He smiled as he wrapped Cosmo uo in his navy towel. The other blushed, not used to sharing such vulnerable items. I mean sure, he's shared stuff like t-shirts or stationary, but never towels! He guessed he should start getting used to sharing things like this, since the two were together now...

(The next day)

Cosmo hummed softly, waiting by the elevator with Astro. He'd been invited on a run, his first one in what felt like years but was more likely 4-5 months. Nonetheless, he was excited, practically bouncing on the bench the two sat on. "Calm down Cossie, you need to save that energy for the run. They get tiring, especially if you sprint around the whole time like Sprout does." Astro sighed, smiling at the pastry. He nodded, calming down and choosing to fidget with his hands instead.

Eventually, the others came. The team consisted of Vee, Glisten, Goob, Sprout, Pebble, Tisha and Ginger. They were still a fair distance away, not able t seee the pastry due to the angle that Astro had so specifically positioned them at.

Vee was over the moon. Astro, a toon who had denied every invite to a supply run, now hosting one?! It was a surprise, but one thst Vee wouldn't let slip. So, she gathered up the usful and ready toons before venturing down. But doubt was pooling in the back of her cervos, was Astro pulling her microphone? If he was, she'd make him-

Nope. No mic pulling or tricks, he was serious. She could see him, soft smile and all, from the bench in her sight line. She grinned widely, he was here!-

And... Cosmo?

Why was he here?

She made it clear how Ginger was more usful, yet he never listened did he?

"Cosmo, what are doing here? I thought you had chores to do in Tisha's absence." Vee said sternly, eyes squinting at the cake roll. He tensed under her gaze, inching closer to Astro. "U-Um... Ashy said I was invited to this run..." Ashy? No one ever called him that, only Dandy if he was teasing him over his crush-...No... Please don't tell her-

Vee's circuits hissed in anger- she HAD been tricked, just not in the way she'd expected. Ginger smiled, "He can tae my place, I am exhausted from going on all these runs daily. plus, I'd love to get to know the others through talking rather than serving them food." She inquired, taking a step away. In truth, she was getting annoyed at how the others rejected her poor cousin, and wanted him to have that sense of normalcy she took away on her arrival. She wished to just relax for once, and not be a mutil-use maid for the others. But Vee was having none of that, dragging Ginger back. "No. I made it clear in yesterday's dinner and other dinners prior that Cosmo wuld no longer attend runs due to slowling us down-"

"No offense to Ginger, but she's slow in movement. She's always one of the last in, alongside you, Vee. If Cosmo is slowing us down and is therefore off the run team, should'nt the same go for you two?" Astro sternly stated, sick of Vee's insults. If she wanted to play smart, he'd play smarter. 

Vee's screen displayed a shocked emote. He did NOT just insult TGe Vee version 1. That little astrology bit-

"L-Let's not start any arguments!" Cosmo squeaked, standing between the two angry mains. HE swore he could feel their anger radiating off one another. "Vee, Ginger needs a break, plus i have a thinking cap and my manual- I can tackle any machine far away since you and Glisten are on the slower side- no offense!"

Glisten chuckled. "None taken from me darling, I'm aware I'm not the fastest- hence my extra bow and new sneakers. Vee just struggles to admit it, but she has a speed-"

"It's only the bow! I also have a magnifying glass!" Vee defended, not enjoying the ganged-up attack on her speed and solution to it. "And fine... but if you slow us down by even 1 FLOOR, you're out."

Cosmo smiled, watching Ginger leave with a sigh on her lips. "Thank you, Vee. You won't regret it!"

Chapter Text

Ever since the handlers abandoned them in the Gardenview center, no one really knew what to do. The doors had been locked, and no one could pick their locks, so they were just stuck inside. Things started off ok, they had food and drinks and entertainment.

But then the power started going out, flickering on and off during the day. Sometimes it would be off for hours, leaving them to sit around the tons that could glow until Dandy restored the fuse box with spare batteries. Their supplies also started to dwindle, leading to them to start rationing or even going a day without food.

"We HAVE to find a way to get more stuff, we can't keep rationing forever." Vee huffed, pacing up and down the room. All the mains had met up in a spare room which had a long oak table with around 8 chairs surrounding it. "We can't exactly leave though." Sprout rolled his eyes, sitting with his legs up on the table and crossed at the ankles. He didn't wanna be here, mostly because they have this meeting once every few weeks with no solution. "Well done, smartass." Vee snapped, slamming her hands in front of Sprout. 

"Vee, calm down... and Sprout, don't egg her on." Shelly smiled, holding her hands together in her lap. She was worried about the whole thing, always stressing on if everyone will be ok. She knew too much, but she couldn't tell anyone- and it was showing. Her shell was cracking a little due to dehydration; her eyes were dull from stress; her posture was slipping when hers were off her. "We need to be calm enough to think rationally."

Dandy snapped his fingers, sitting up from the head chair. "I have an idea! Why don't we use the elevators?"

They all stared at him. The elevators?

"Dandy, do they even work?" Astro sighed, tightening the grip on his blanket. He rarely talked in these meetings, but when he did, he was very rational. He never took a specific side, the neutral mind of the mains and a voice for reason alongside Shelly, but inside of being kind he was harshly true. "If our power doesn't work, then what makes you think they will?" He sat up, getting off his chair. With a scrap of chair legs and soft cotton footsteps, he left.

Vee sighed, twirling her mic in her hand. "Sleepy guy has a point, our lights barely function- why waste it on the stupid ele-"

"You do realize they have their own generators, right?"

...

Scanning...

DING!

...

"...F-Fair enough." She stuttered, blushing in embarrassment from her search results- yes, the elevators did in fact have their own generators. Dandy just smiled. "So, why don't we bust one open and get it running?"

Clunk! Clunk!

Dandy dusted his hands, stepping back to join the weird line of Shelly and Vee who had just been watching him work. It took maybe an hour... or 5, but he did it nonetheless! And now, it was working decently. Usually, the elevators could carry 10, maybe 20 toons, but since it wasn't in use for so long, they'd better start small- for safety. Maybe 7-8 toons at max?

"So, Danicus, what next? You got it running, you gotta use it now" The tv sassily spoke, a hand on her hip. Honestly, he just wanted to power her off at times. "Well, we can explore the floors it takes us to." He went inside, scanning the buttons. The panel was old, dusty and rusting around some of the buttons, as well as a rotation feature. However, that button was jammed, only allowing them to reach floor 50. "Panel goes up to 50, enough floors for supplies. Could send 8 of ya down, oo i could even do my shop sketch again!"

And so, here they were.

Glisten- polished to perfection and ready for an exploration, not far from the elevator of course.

Looey- bouncy and ready to run around in search for stuff!

Shelly- not as excited but mostly happy to be somewhere new again.

Rodger- curious to see what Dandy's plan has to offer for his research on the center's closure.

Sprout- dragged here by a certain sweet toon, not eager and most likely will only look around for useless gunk.

Connie- Astro's replacement, to sneak around in case something's crawling around. Never know what could be on those floors.

Vee- only coming to prove Dandy wrong.

And Cosmo- here for baking supplies and moral support.

With their team assembled, they headed out, standing in the elevator and conversing until its door creaked shut and chugged them down into the center. Cosmo stood in the corner with Sprout, the two talking about their current situation. "Why'd you drag me here Cossie? I love you like a brother, but dude you can't abuse that love for this." He pouted, arms crossed and leaning against the cold metal and cedar wall of the elevator's interior.

He giggled. "Because it's fun! We can't stay cooped up in the kitchen using up the supplies for muffins or donuts. If we're gonna use the food store, we might as well help find more." Cosmo explained as the door opened, the two exiting alongside the others. It seemed fine- just a replica of an old set. Their posters were still on the wall too, dated and everything. Sprout whined in embarrassment, seeing a younger version of himself grinning against a strawberry cupcake. So cringy.

"HOLY COW!"

They all turned around, seeing Looey running away. And tailing behind him was... Poppy? It didn't look like her, all changed and twisted. Her bow was longer and coated in a weird black gunk- dripping in a spotty trail behind her; her eyes looked dead and empty; her arms were up and pointed forward in a straight line, like a zombie. She was terrifying, and definitely not the poppy they knew.

She wasn't the only creature, a twisted version of Looey here too. Something weird was going on, and no one knew what.

Well, after some exploring, they had a better grasp on things. 

Those weird monsters of their friends were clones, made prior to their abandonment by the handlers for recording purposes only. They were corrupted by something black, and the others dubbed them as 'twisteds' due to their appearances. Vee could track them with her mic feedback, so they could see where they were, and Looey could walk around with ease as they chased after him whilst he looped around a stack of boxes against a broken shelf.

Scattered around the room were weird capsules of a thick inky liquid, and hidden inside them were little cards about the clone in some weird language. Rodger seemed to infer more from the, so was collecting more to learn as much on the two on the floor as possible. 

One final thing that was new were these tall, empty glass tubes. Machines, they planned to call them, as that's what they looked like. Attached to their base was a rusty red wheel, and when turned it gurgled out the same liquid from the capsules and on the twisteds. Glisten was most efficient at filling them to the brim, same with Vee. 

Cosmo and Sprout kinda just looked around, Sprout collecting some old tapes whilst Cosmo stashed the food items away in a backpack separate from his pockets- since everyone was doing something specific.

DING!

The elevator opened, a soft ticking noise coming from it. Everyone rushed over, collasping in almost. It shut, and cheerful music began to play.

"Welcome my friends. I've got some goodies for ya!"

Dandy, all chipper and vibrant, swayed to the rhythm of his radio. What a great day it was today- he'd come up with a solution to their decreasing food supply and found some new floors for even more fun!

He looked out to the crowd, and saw a bunch of disappointed or terrified faces, set aside from Cosmo- but he was just happy to see his boyfriend moreover the stock he had to sell. "Dandy, oh I'm so happy you're here. S-Something weird is on those floors, and they're terrifying." Cosmo stuttered, grabbing a protein bar off their mats. The flower grabbed the pastry's wrist, softly. "Pay first. 35 tapes! Cmon Cossie, y'know the rules."

Cosmo giggled and handed them over. "Wait, aren't they 45?" He questioned, unwrapping it and taking a nibble from the corner. Stiff and a little cardboard like in flavor, but it gave him a little boost. "But seriously, what is going on?"

The flower shrugged, leaning forward. "In truth, I don't have the finest clue what you are on about." He tried to sound confident, but the worry in Cosmo's voice seemed genuine. He watched as Vee spammed the floor 0 button. "Screw this, I'm outta here. This is too risky."

Clunk!

The elevator reached the main lobby floor, releasing the others. Except Cosmo. He stayed in, waiting until it clunked shut and led him down. The protest from his friends threw him off at first, but he knew he wanted to go through with it. Find out more about those twisteds. He knew he wasn't the most experienced, but it's not like he'd die from it.

Floor 1- easy enough. Sure, completing machines were slow since he only wished to touch them with one gloved hand, and he would sometimes mess up those little pipe check things but he could run decently fast away from the clones. The floor this time was different from the one they first arrived on, and the twisteds were different too- a clone of Shrimpo and a clone of Boxten. But still, he finished the floor and went in the elevator.

"I thought you all...Cossie?!" A confused then shocked Dandy nearly jumped out from his shop. Why was he all alone?! "Where are the others, why are you alone?"

Cosmo rubbed the back of his neck. "They quit, so I kind of... went on my own?" He chuckled, looking over the items. Gumballs, a pop and a stopwatch. He blinked a little, jumping at the change- the items now a medkit, a bandage and a box of chocolates. "Wait, did you-?" He started to ask but Dandy pulled him up due to his closeness. A few seconds passed before the shop closed up and dragged down to under the elevator. "Dandy!" He whined, squirming.

The flower just smirked, peppering kisses on the pastry's face, cheeks and neck. He wouldn't let his little honeybun get hurt, even if he had to take him down into his shop. With a flip of a little switch, fairy lights flickered to life with a soft peach glow that painted the walls and other objects in the space. It wasn't filled with old junk or dusted like Cosmo expected but was instead decorated in a cozy vibe- photos of Dandy and his friends in painted wooden frames on the walls alongside posters of him and Cosmo. How wholesome, he though as he was still being kissed by Dandy. "Ok, ok- that's enough Danny!" He giggled, trying to push away. But Dandy's grip wasn't letting up, pampering the Swiss roll. 

"We're going home, ok? I don't feel safe with my sweetheart out there alone in a place no one knows about." He smiled, rubbing the other's back as he pulled the lever to take the elevator back up to the lobby. Or he tried to, but Cosmo stopped him. "Hold on, I wanna stay here a little longer. It's comfy here."

When they arrived, Cosmo was showered with worry- question after question as to why he would do something so risky, and if he was ok after taking so long. He just waved them off, not willing to reveal that the reason he was gone so long was because they spent time under the elevator making out and snuggling to Studio Ghibli movies. "I'm ok, don't worry about me anymore!" He smiled, trying to wave the others away so he could go to his room.

And it worked- they backed off (Only after showering him with attention of course) which let him go to his room. Dandy followed him with a smile, his own little bodyguard. "Um, Dandy, can you leave me alone for a bit? I wanna shower then nap."

Dandy nodded, stopping at Cosmo's doorway and watching as he entered his room. "Course. I'll see you at dinner?"

He nodded. "Love you Danny."

Dandy smiled softly. "Love you too Cossie."

Chapter Text

BEEP! BEEP! BE-

"ARgh, shut UP!" Shrimpo yelled, punching his alarm clock with a semi-closed fist. Its plastic frame cracked, splitting into two chunks one it crashed to the floor. The beeps emitting from it slowed and warped before dying with a buzz. God, he hated waking up! And he hated his now broken alarm clock! 

With a grunt, he got out of his breaking bed. He never changed his sheets or mattress willingly, Tisha being the one to change it and just deal with a yelling shrimp afterwards. Nothing of his was cleaned actually, he never needed to- since he barely wore anything different. A Slipknot t-shirt and some black joggers- clothes he could tolerate against his skin. He slapped them on himself in a sloppy fashion, before looking around his room. 

Holes punched into the wall, poorly hidden by posters Shrimpo tore down weeks ago; clothes scattered around in dirty dark coloured piles in corners of his room; sports equipment littered atop of previously discussed piles like camouflage. A mess- is what his room could be called as at a minimum. He just growled, leaving his pig pen room and venturing to the kitchen. 

Cosmo hummed to himself, flipping a pancake. He'd been up since 4:30am, planning out his day. You see, he had a free day today and wanted to spend it right- by making an itinerary of course! 

4:45am. Get dressed (Done!)

5:00am. Make pancakes. (Started!)

6:00-6:30am. Start baking lessons (Not yet!)

12:30pm. Make BLTs for the others (Not yet!)

13:30pm. Have lunch (Not yet!)

14:00pm. Do chores. (Not yet!)

17:15pm. Make Chilli nachos for dinner (Not yet!)

18:00pm. Eat dinner. (Not yet!)

18:30pm. Do dishes/clean up. (Not yet!)

19:00pm. Make cookies and brownies. (Not yet!)

20:00pm. Give to others/self. (Not yet!)

20:15pm. Relax! (Not yet!) 

A long list, he knew that, but nothing like an accomplished day like a full day! He hummed to himself as he pushed plate No.27 towards the rest. He was ambitus for wanting to make 3 pancakes for each toon, but his friends deserved it!

"COSMO!"

He jumped, nearly flipping the cooking pancake onto his apron. Who on Arthur's green garden center was yelling at him so early-

Shrimpo. Of course it was Shrimpo.

"G-Good morning Shrimpo, how are you doing this fine-" He tried to greet the shrimp but was instead shut up by a yell and a rough grab of one of the plates. He just kept his mouth shut, watching the other. 

Shrimpo slammed the plate down on the dining table, nearly cracking the pottery of the plate, before aggressively biting into a pancake. Normally, he hated the taste of the cooking. But, maybe since that stupid roll had cooked it, it tasted...Good. Sweet, fluffy and delicious- a taste Shrimpo wanted more of. But he couldn't just say that! No, he HATES everything- that's what Shrimpo does! 

"I HATE YOUR COOKING COSMO! YOUR FOOD SUCKS, IT TASTES LIKE DIRT!" He yelled at the Swiss roll, throwing his fork towards the wall. This made Cosmo flinch and put on a stern expression. "I-If you don't like it, don't waste it please..." He tried to be strict, but it just wasn't in his nature to be. That... made Shrimpo pause, and sigh. "Sorry." He whispered. Now THAT made Cosmo pause. He didn't get to question it though, for Shrimpo stormed off not long after.

Of COURSE that stupid TISSUE BOX had to clean HIS room! And now all of his precious stuff was out of place and GOD KNOWS WHERE! Great, just what he needed. He searched around the newly cleaned room, scattering his freshly cleaned clothes back all over the floor, where they belonged to him, in search for his punching gloves. They. were. NO WHERE.

In his collapsing wardrobe? No.

Under his bed? No.

On previously mentioned wardrobe? No.

THERE WERE NOWHERE!

How was he meant to let his anger out when he had no gloves for his punching bag?! I mean, he would punch it raw but God forbid he sees Cosmo again for a heal after such an embarrassing deal. And at this rate, Sprout and Ginger probably knew due to their closeness to the Swiss roll. 

Might as well yell at Tisha over this- it was HER fault after all!

"Shrimpo, I do NOT have the energy nor TIME for your bull right now. Go bother someone else." She spat, folding up laundry. Shrimpo spat back, with no words though, before walking away. What crap, she was not busy! 

Cosmo hummed softly as he set the last folded t-shirt into the basket. All done! Despite it being a little disturbance in his schedule, he wasn't opposed to helping a friend. "Tisha, I'm done with this load!" He called out as he went over to her. She looked up from his basket, as did someone else. Shrimpo...? "Oh, hey Shrimpo..." He smiled, setting his basket down.

"There ya go- Cosmo, help Shrimpo find his gloves. Then come back here, I need help with cleaning the washing machine wheels." She huffed, picking up both baskets with one arm and carrying them away to give to the respective toons. The two toons blinked before looking at each other.

Shrimpo swallowed, looking away. "You don't need to help, I-I can FIND THEM ON-" 

"No, i wanna help." He smiled, interrupting the shrimp. Barely anyone did that to him, not even Dandy! Shrimpo tensed before sucking through his teeth. "If you're soo keen on it."

And so, the two looked around Shrimpo's room for these boxing gloves. All the spots Shrimpo checked beforehand and some spots that Shrimpo had doubted would be in- and was right about. "Maybe she took them to put to wash?" He suggested to the silent shrimp, who just stared at the ground. "Or maybe-"

"How do you do it?"

Cosmo paused. "...Do what?" He asked cautiously. He did not want an angry Shrimpo on his hands, especially if said too was in a punching mood. 

"The being kind thing... the making everything horrible, good... How?" Shrimpo's eyes sparkled with brewing tears, looking up at Cosmo. The vulnerability was unusual from such a closeted, hatful toon. But Cosmo kind of enjoyed how he opened up to him. 

"I... I'm not sure how, but if it makes you feel something other then hate... then I'd like to give more of that."

If you had asked Cosmo, "Hey, in the future you'd be cuddling with Shrimpo, the most hatful toon in the center.", he'd tell you to respectfully shove a piping nozzle up your ass. But here he was, hugging a clingy shrimp as he whimpered into his shoulder. The movie 'My Neighbour Totoro' played in the background as they did so. Hands rubbed one another and faces were close.

"..." Cosmo wanted to say something SO badly- ask a question or comment on the movie- but he was scared that if he made ONE wrong move or mistake, he'd punch the other and kick him out. "...You ok?" He whispered. 

"mmmgh"

He nodded slowly, rubbing Shrimpo's shoulder and back. "...I made brownies a few hours ago, want one?" He mumbled.

"mmmgh" 

He nodded with a hum of his own before he tried to get up, only to be tugged back down by the shrimp. "Shrimpy, if you want a brownie I gotta get up." 

He whined. "T-Then no brownie." He mumbled, anything to keep him latched onto the sweet roll. He felt fuzzy inside, all soft and squishy- and he didn't wanna lose that over a brownie. "A-Actually, can I have one after?" He whimpered, nuzzling. Cosmo hummed, rubbing the little tail of his head. Shrimpo purred, before blushing. He. Purred. 

Cosmo whimpered in awe, nuzzling Shrimpo's cheek with a giddy smile. "That was so cute!! Do it again?" He asked, rubbing Shrimpo's tail again. He purred, closing his eyes and leaning his head back. 

After about an hour of snuggles, Shrimpo and Cosmo now sat in the kitchen eating the brownies Cosmo made. Cosmo's schedule may of been messed up, but this?

This was much better.

Chapter Text

If you could get hurt from glares, Cosmo would be dead by now by how deeply he was being judged by Vee. Having daggers dug into his back as he stood close to Astro. That's what he did for most of the floors, staying next to Astro as they walked around. 

"Why don't you try this machine babe? Oh, and use this." He smiled as he handed Cosmo a stopwatch. The Swiss roll smiled, grabbing the wheel and activating the stopwatch. In a matter of 2 minutes, he finished the machine with no mistakes! It dinged once done and Astro patted his shoulder. "Good job baby! You did great." He pecked his cheek, leading him to the elevator. Cosmo blushed a little, leaning into the other. He wasn't used to such PDA, or PDA as a concept in the first place- so being kissed, even if on the cheek, was something he'd need to adjust to. When they all arrived, Vee eyed Cosmo up and down. "Did you do a machine?

Cosmo nodded, holding his hands together. He did one and a half actually, finishing the machine Astro had started previously before giving it to Cosmo. The TV hummed sarcastically, walking over to Dandy's shop and paying for a jumper cable. Astro did the same thing, pocketing it. "How many tapes do you have Cossie?" 

Tapes?

"Yeah, the little black rectangles on the floor." Sprout smiled, smudging the icing on his best friend's head.

Shoot. He was meant to collect those?

"Not really, Seedly needs them to heal people since he can make them into cupcakes. Don't ask how." Vee rolled her eyes whilst spinning her mic. "You get some from machines though. You seriously forgot how they work?"

Cosmo checked his pouch, he only had 20 of those things on him- not enough for one of the jumpers. He couldn't believe he forgot the concept of tapes. "M-Maybe? I don't have enough." Just as he said that Astro bought another (or more like he shoved the needed tapes to buy on Dandy's counter and yoinked one) before handing it to Cosmo. "Now you've got one." He smiled as he watched the other take it with a gentle hand and put in into his pocket.

Floor 2.

Cosmo yelped as he was spotted by a twisted clone of himself, running to loop him around some boxes. He always felt a weird sense of paranoia when he saw his friends as clones, but himself? He felt wrong- like he wasn't supposed to be there. Eventually, he got the thing off of him, hunting for a machine. Little did he know, something else was hunting him.

Astro smirked as he followed his sweet little roll around the floor from a distance. He had run off to regenerate Glisten and Vee's stamina, leaving Cosmo alone, and now he could watch from a distance how he worked. In the past, he's done it before- just watching.

The Swiss roll scanned around for a machine; he was still new to the concept of these runs that Vee wanted to do after the elevators started running again. He used to just spend time in the kitchen with Sprout, baking, but since supplies were dwindling, they needed to go find more.

He turned the corner, eyes brightening when he spotted one. Bingo!

With a newly found pep in his step, he swayed towards it before grabbing the wheel with a hand and turning it. His eyes followed the new stream of ichor that gurgled down into the basin of the machine, filling it with a sticky wet sound. He grimaced at the noise, which covered for his failed check. 

"SORRY!" He yelped to pebble nearby, who barked a 'no worries' to him. With a sigh, he tried again.

Astro sighed to himself, wandering around the floor with nothing to do. No free machines and no toons low on stamina, meaning he was on scavenging duty with Sprout- who was looking for tapes rather than food. "Say Seedly, is Cosmo single?" He asked to both break the ice and get some much-needed info on his crush. The strawberry picked up a tape before looking over. "Um, I think so? He never mentioned a boyfriend or girlfriend, so I guess so. Why?" He tilted his head at the moon main who was fiddling with the edges of a protein bar he found opened a few rooms back. Astro picked at the visible corner, humming. "Just curious- he's a cute toon so I thought someone would've made a move by now. Has anyone done that?"

"I think so. Looey's done some flirting before when we've been doing lessons in the kitchen- light pinning to the counter and some pick-up lines. Connie's kind of, only if you count hugging his waist from behind to scare him as flirting. Oo, Goob's snuggled him-!"

Astro huffed in annoyance. "I get the point; he's been flirted with before. No need to go into detail." He crushed the protein bar in his blanketed hands, his hidden hands balling up into fists in frustration. He knew that Cosmo was a cute and likable but still, the number of toons hitting on him annoyed him. 

That's when he saw him.

Cosmo.

On a machine.

His tongue was peaking out as he focused on the skill checks; his feet an even distance apart to ensure he was secure; his head tipped to one side due to its weight. Everything about him was perfect.

"Astro, you're staring."  Sprout nudged him, but it was useless.

Astro Novalite was in love.

Ding! Cosmo sighed, wiping some runny icing off his forehead as he stepped away from the machine. Finally, dooOONE!

He squeaked as hands, four, wrapped around his waist and lifted him up into the air. "Astro!" He squirmed weakly, having his tummy nuzzled into. A squeal came out of him, squeezing his eyes closed out of embarrassment at the other. Astro chuckled, kissing his lower stomach, he was so cute like this. "Having fun?" He smiled, bouncing him. Cosmo just nodded, gripping their blanket. He was about to speak before he was kissed softly. "Ashy-mmgh" He moaned weakly into it, closing his eyes. 

Astro let his blanket drap down, gripping the Swiss roll passionately as he slipped his tongue in his mouth. He felt warm and his mouth was the same- he was so sweet and delicious. If he could devour Cosmo, he would in one bite.

"A-Astro, shoot..." He whimpered as the elevator opened. "W-We gotta go."

Astro smiled. "When we get back?" He smriked, wrapping his blanket around himself again.

Cosmo thought about it before nodding.

"At home."

Chapter Text

"Cossie, are you sure?"

Vee eyed her boyfriend up and down, skeptical. It's not like she doubted him- despite his size and strength he could carry himself pretty well. However, he was still weak compared to the other toons, hell even Shrmpo was stronger than the pastry! (Though that might be because he did box, whilst the pastry's heaviest object lifted on a daily basis was a full bowl of batter.) The Swiss roll nodded at her question, determined to be useful.

You see, Cosmo spent most of his days in the kitchen- baking endlessly for hours until his girlfriends came back from their runs. And he was sick of waiting for them to return and just listen to them ramble about events that happened on runs- he felt left out. Left out from the fun they have on these runs without him, fun that they'd talk about for hours as he sat in between them- laid flat like pebble on a bad day across their laps, falling asleep from boredom of not understanding or relating to a single word coming out of their mouths. Even when he was in his save haven of the kitchen, he wasn't safe from the run rambles in the form of Sprout, who'd make inside jokes that both brushed off awkwardly to not make the mood tense. 

"I'm super sugar sure babe. I wanna help, I can heal you guys alongside Sprout." He offered, jumping up from his seat on Shelly's lap. The ammonite shell dragged the roll back down, burying her face into his neck and pressing a soft kiss onto his skin. "CosCos, it's not safe. We get hurt often, but we also know how to doge the clones. You on the other hand, no offense baby, can't doge them. What if you get hit after healing so much you can't go on? And what if we can't carry you to the elevator? We... We can't lose you." She snuggled him more. Shelly was on the clingier side, doing it to Cosmo more since he didn't mind the physical touch as much as Vee did due to sensory issues caused by her tech. This also brought on a sense of protectiveness, one she shared with Sprout during runs. 

The roll whined, squirming away. "C'mon, don't baby me! I can handle myself just fine without the need to be cared for. just one chance- i won't leave your guys' side!"

The female mains exchanged glances before sighing. "Fine..." They groaned in unison.

That promise didn't help.

It meant nothing. 

Floor 1- everything started fine, Cosmo healed pebble who got hit from running into some boxes, no biggie. He did a machine with Vee behind him and guiding him around.

Floor 2- boring, he just wandered around with Shelly for items. He found an in-date chocolate bar though.

Floor 3-Down to one heart already, an action he was scolded for by his lovers and his best friends (Being close to three mains is not fun when they're all overprotective.). He was forced to wait by the elevator.

Floor 4-Bought a bandage from Dandy- only after he was held at mic point- and was now able to complete a machine. He also found a box of chocolates, which he gave to Vee.

Floor 5 and 6- the same old, do a machine and follow shelly around.

The other floors were more or less the same- were runs always this boring?

"Not usually, but these are only the single digit floors. We tend to go to like floor 50 or higher until one of us 'dies' to heal them. But besides that, we also tend to get main twisteds past floor 5. Weird we aren't getting any today. Soon though, i promise." She smiled, kissing his cheek before running off to boost Astro who was on a machine. He smiled and resumed wondering around for items. He didn't know why they were so scared; everything was going so well!

Until floor 13. 

He knew it was a superstitious number, but he never thought of it as such.  Guess today was the day that changed.

When the elevator door opened, Vee's check showed three twisteds. Poppy, slow and hunching; Tisha, stuck cleaning her own mess half the time; Vee, towering tall over others and crunching around. Wait- VEE?! 

She chuckled. "Looks like I'm first today. OH, yeah- meet Twisted me, Cossie." The tv hugged her boyfriend round the shoulders. He was tense, staring straight ahead. She looked... gorgeous, but in a disfigured way. No, NO- focus Cosmo!

And he tried, hard. He completed two machines and healed twice! Though, he was now on one... That's fine, he could manage. So, with slow movements, he went to another machine. The last one. "GET TO ELEVATOR!" He yelled, starting the machine. A few minutes passed before he finished it, grabbing a speed candy from the floor. He was, like, on the other side of the map and so planned on sprinting to the elevator.

What he didn't plan for was a loose twisted.

"Where's Cossie? He's only got 15 seconds to get in..." Shelly fidgeted, peeking out. Pebble was still out distracting, before returning at the 10 second mark. On his tail were Poppy and Tisha... What about-

"COSMO!"

There was Cosmo, slowed by a clone of Vee, and so close yet so far from safety.

3...

Pebble barked, trying to get Vee off him. It failed, him being too far away.

2...

Shelly reached out for something to pull him with- a hoodie string, an arm or some fabric.

1...

SLAM!

CRUNCH!

...

Cosmo...

"NO!" Vee and Shelly sobbed, running to the elevator and banging against the metal until it dented. "LET US OUT NOW!" Vee demanded as she punched a hole into it, revealing the machinery of the lifting mechanism and a sneak peak of floor 14.

Fuck.

Fuck!

FUCK!

2 weeks

Both were devastated but not mourning. Cosmo wasn't dead, toons can't die- only corrupt. But they are (mostly) fixable. They just needed to rescue him. Trouble was, he wouldn't be on that same floor. You see, once mimic twisted the toon can travel to other maps through the elevator system- since they still are conscious and stuff. That meant that they'd have to search as many floors/maps as they could. 

"Are you sure about this?" Astro asked softly as he followed the two female mains down the hall- he knew they cared about their third partner, but this was a bit much. Going on a hunt for him so soon? Usually, they wandered back on their own or were found on normal runs by mistake-- it's not like the others didn't care; they just weren't top priority. 

Shelly nodded; Vee hummed. 

"Y-You can't wait even a week?"

Shelly shook her head; Vee huffed.

"Not even-"

A mic whacked his face, or more specific- his mouth. "Shut. Up."

The moon toon just stared as the other two entered the elevator- death glaring him as he watched them descent.

Cosmo sniffled, wiping his stuffed ichor eye with his cleaner hand. He's been here for weeks, and everything hurts. His eyes stung, both when open and closed; his bones felt weak and brittle, as if they'd snap if he hit them too hard; vision was blurry and cloudy, a mix of blood and ichor. He was in agony.

He was wandering around on the diner floor, a floor that brought him some comfort despite his poor situation. Accompanying him was Looey, Toodles and Pebble, one toon who was decent company when he needed it, another was jus an annoying running nuisance who stole his stuff, and the other... terrifying. He'd growl so loud he could barely sleep, curling up in a booth as far from the dog clone as possible. Sometimes he'd pretend to bake, filling a bowl with ichor and stirring it with his ichor-coated hand to form some sense of normalcy.

growl...BARK!

Cosmo tossed on his booth bed, whimpering with a growly undertone. Again? This was like the seventh time he's growled this night! With a sigh, he sat up and rubbed his good eye with his clean hand, before looking around. The lights were out, it being night-time and all- and he could barely see to inches in front of himself. The faint hum of dying fluorescents paired with the sound of Pebble thick and heavy footsteps hitting the oak floors.

With some deep breaths, he explored around. A faint glow emitted from the elevator... was someone here?

Vee huffed, watching the elevator door open to floor 34. They'd been looking for ages! Each floor, they thought they found him but would frown when they saw his clone- a half-assed attempt of him minds you (To their standards) and it drove them crazy. "I swear t-"

BUZZ!

Off shut the lights, plunging the floor into inky black. Great. Her tv face shone out, providing the two some light. "Let's hunt for Cossie and the machines." Shelly smiled, patting her shoulder. And so, the two began to- wait, was that Cosmo?

They couldn't be certain, what if it was his clone again?

"s-sssheeEeelly?"

Holy ichor it was Cosmo!

"Cosmo!" They smiled, engulfing him in a death-crushing hug. "We found you, finally! Are you ok, what happened, how bad is the corruption?" 

Cosmo giggled hoarsely, squirming from how tightly he was being squeezed. They found him, they came looking for him! Oh how happy he was to see them; he missed them oh so much.

Thud

Thud

THUD

BARK!

"Shihhiit, RUuUN!" He yelled, pushing them away as the clone of the once cute dog now turned ravenous began to chase them. Together, they ran away as fast as they could, but the mains could only run so long. Luckily, they lost him after hiding in a small corner, making them all sigh in relief. But their relief wasn't over yet. They still had like 10, 12 machines to complete before they could bring Cosmo back. "we...We can do this. I-I believe in us." Shelly whispered, hugging them both with a sheepish smile. Could they?

Machine one. Vee used her remote on it, watching it fill with inky ichor in a few seconds. Machine two. Shelly did it, being as careful as she could. Vee did machine three alongside her; Cosmo kept an eye for pebble, since the dog didn't get aggressive (As in attacking aggressive) towards him. Also, his spiky hand meant he couldn't extract since it was his dominant hand. Machines four and five took a bit longer, as they had to wait for Pebble to leave those areas. 

"Vee, hon, you know where the others are?" She whispered, doing a skill check before turning to face the tv a few feet away. The tv stayed silent, humming. "On the-"

BUZZ!

Fuck, she failed the skill check. All three ran to hide by a table, hearing the thundering steps of the growling dog charging towards the buzzing machine. He bit at the glass, scratching it, before huffing and retreating back into the darkness. Vee turned to go back, recoiling as Toodles bit his ankle. "Fiiiiizzzz!" She short-circuited, kicking her off and running back to the other two. The wound was leaking fresh blood, exposed wires sparking from being bitten open; metalic silver blood dripped onto the floor in a glistening puddle on the floor beneath her attacked foot. Shelly contained a yelp, taking the bandage from Vee's blazer pocket and wrapping it around the wound. "C-C'mon, cmon!" She whimpered. Cosmo could only watch, unable to heal. He felt useless- that was what he was known for! And now he couldn't even do that...

"C-Cossie, can you finish that machine whilst i carry Vee to the elevator? I don't think she can walk..." The ammonite murmured, lifting her girlfriend with ease as the other main snuggled her neck seeking affection. The rotting Swiss roll growled in fear- him? On a machine, looking like this? God, he'd take forever-

But he couldn't rebut, for she was off already- looping around a table to avoid a wandering Looey. Great, he's stuck doing a machine. He can do this; he's done them before... But that was when he was normal, having two small hands and clear vision. N-No bother. No bother.

So, gripping the chipping wheel, he began turning it. It groaned, but ichor began to flow into the small puddle at the base of the machine. It gurgled for a minute or so- smooth sailing so far. The pipe then groaned- a skill check. He gulped, closing his eyes as he turned it on what he hoped was time. And it was- surprisingly! He giggled, a liquidy one, as he continued to extract the machine.

Ding!

Machine five was done, one done by Shelly somewhere in the dark. Ok, if his math was correct, they were halfway done- since he was on the sixth one. They could do this, he just needed to have hope! A ding snapped him out of his daydream, seeing the ruby circular light fade into an emerald one. Six done, half way done with this floor,

BUZZ!

Another failed check? Cosmo spun his head around, seeing shelly flee as Looey ran to her machine. She charged to Cosmo, hugging him round the corner to avoid a running pebble's gaze. "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry. I-I wasn't paying attention, Vee's alone by t-the elevator and-"

Cosmo covered her mouth as Toodles surveyed the surrounding, getting on all fours and crawling around. She giggled, the once innocent sound echoing in an eerie manner off the diner walls. Neither moved- neither breathed out of fear of being heard. Just silently staring at the clone snarling in front of them whilst sitting on her knees. Was she not gonna move? 

"I know someone's there" She giggled kicking her feet as she laid on her stomach. 

They tensed. She talks?! 

"Just come out so we can play! My dog loves to play tag, but I'm always stuck as it..." She...It pouted, sitting up. Her sharp eyes snapped onto the cowering toons, grinning a razor smile. 

"Your turn!"

With a dash, she charged at them, sending the two splitting off to run. She chose Shelly, crawling after her on crunching legs and twisting arms, bent like broken toothpicks. They grinded together as it chased the fossil main, who tried looping her around a set of boxes. Cosmo just ran to the machine across, getting on it and trying to speed-run that machine. In a few moments it dinged, all done.

Seven done, five to go.

Vee whinced as she mic-checked the floor. Pebble was by the booths; Looey was by the broken elevator; Toodles was running. Wait, why was she running? Taking a peek, her TV glow allowed her to see Shelly sprinting away from a gaining Toodles. With worry and fury, she ran over, seizing the cracked 8 ball despite the burning sting in her ankle. Her top priority was making sure her partners were safe. Her night vision allowed her to see the remaining machines, spotting a few clumped nearby. 

"RUN RIGHT THEN LEFT, TWO MACHINES THERE!" She yelled, looping the twisted around some shelfs. Shelly nodded, following the order with determination. On her way, she caught Cosmo avoiding Looey. She took his hand and dragged him with her to the machines. 

Two left, and they'd be free.

Vee was still by the elevator, checking where the twisteds were every once and a while and locating machines. However, she couldn't see the last two- the two to get them home. She growled, leaning against the wall. Stupid ability and stupid walls.

Ding! One done.

Ding! Another!

They were home! She entered the elevator, waiting for her lovers to return,

And return they did, eyes watering. 

The elevator door shut as the elevator began ascending up to the lobby. 

And the two mains cuddled the Swiss roll.

"Cossie!'

"We missed you!"

"I told you the runs were dangerous."

"I'm so glad you're safe."

Brighteny tightened the bandages around his arm, smiling. "All done. That took a little longer, so be careful with what you do with that arm. Keep them tight for about 2 weeks and then dap it with alcohol before putting a gaze on it." She explained, finishing up some last scratches he had on his cheeks and palms. He just nodded, staring at the floor. All that felt like a fever dream- something out of a true crack addict's deepest imagination. But he was safe now. Safe and sound.

"You look much better. Do you feel better?" Shelly asked, taking his hands in hers and kissing the back of his hands. He giggled softly, his voice soft, before nodding. "M-Mhm..."

His throat was dry, now empty of ichor that snuck in from his days in the diner- so he could barely talk. But, he;d recover- a week or so he was told.

The tv smiled, picking him up effortlessly. "V-Vee!" He squeaked, voice cracking. Her ankle was better but still needed to rest, her carrying him wouldn't help it heal! But she didn't care, just walking to her room whilst holding him in her arms.

The rest of the night was spent with the three snuggling until they fell asleep. Well, Cosmo fell asleep first- the other tow just watched him until he fell asleep.

He was so fragile.

Their little malewife <3

Chapter Text

A scent of comfort and vanilla filled the kitchen as Cosmo pulled the freshly made cinnamon rolls out the oven. They were stuffed with love and care, made specifically for healing. But what use did he have to make them, you ask?

For Shrimpo of course!

You see, the little angry shrimp had disappeared a few days back- being absent from the run of 8 that left that morning. And despite the fact a toon had gone missing, no one went looking for him! Not one soul. 

Cosmo wasn't gonna tolerate that, not for his boyfriend.

Oh yeah, the two were dating- in secret due to Shrimpo's insistence.

Anywho, his plan was simple enough. Make heals for when he finds him, which he finished baking, then go on a run to and him! Easy enough, even for someone like Cosmo. There was only just one teeny wheeny itsy bitsy problem... 

He had no clue where to start. 

No leads, no clues- no nothing,

So, he had to investigate!

"Tips on how to interview people, huh?" Rodger looked up from his newspaper, staring his half-lidded eye at the fidgety Swiss roll. Cosmo nodded weakly, watching the magnifying glass sigh and fold his paper into his lap. "Ok, when you first attempt to start your investigation, you must have a list of questions prepared based around your topic. What do you wish to inquire knowledge on?"

Should he be honest? Wait, what if Rodger asked questions about his questions and then he accidently reveals the relationship the two were in and then-

No, Cosmo, calm down. You're a healer, it's your job to care for others, including Shrimpo! Problem solved :D 

"Shrimpo's been missing for a few days now, and I'm worried about his whereabouts. Thing is, no one's talked about it- so i wanna ask around for information on what happened. Can you help me with that?"

He hummed, mimicking a thoughtful gesture. "I believe that I can help with that, I've helped locate many wandering toons. Follow me." He led Cosmo to his room, or what he called his study. The two reached its dark oak door, Rodger unlocking it with a silver key and ushering the roll in. The place was both clean and dirty, cobwebs in the corners but standing empty and dust coated on ancient books sitting upon spruce shelfs. Cozy in one way and unsettling in another. 

"Sit, my patisserie pal, and let us start." 

Great, he now had his questions set and ready for the others, time to ask around.

Question 1- What was Shrimpo doing when you guys first left the elevator?

"He just yelled around like usual, darling. Nothing new." Glisten.

"Shrimpo was with us? Never noticed, just looped those ugly clones." Goob.

"Stomped around, very fishy to me." Finn.

"Bitched around a few floors, camped the ele for most of the time." Vee.

"Too sleepy to notice." Astro.

"He kept getting hit, poor thing. I told him to stay by ele so I'm assuming he did." Ginger.

"We saw him just wandering around. (yeah, he looked a little down...)" Razzledazzle.

Question 2- When was the last time you saw him?

"He was stomping about, ranting about how ugly my bow is... Is my bow ok- is it straight, clean?" Glisten.

"I dunno, i told ya i didn't see him." Goob

"Standin' by the diner counter, sushi-pisious if you ask me." Finn

"Staring like a creep at the posters of you and Seedly. Weird in my opinion, mind explaining that?" Vee.

"Standing around, i think? Sorry, can I go nap now?" Astro

"I think he was staring at a poster of you, oo are you two finally together?" Ginger

"He looked deep in thought, weird for him. (yeah, he seemed so focused....) Razzzledazzle

Question 3- Was he in the elevator on the very last floor?

"Might've been dear, but I didn't hear any yelling so he might not of been. Is something going on?" Glisten

"I didn't hear anything shrimpy in the ele." Goob

"Heard nothin' fishhy on our way up." Finn

"Didn't care enough to notice. Also, you didn't answer my question." Vee

"Was napping, didn't notice anything whilst napping. Astro

"I didn't see anyone, but I may of been distracted trying to not let Goob bite my head... " Ginger

"No, we didn't hear him. (or see him for that matter... )" Razzledazzle

Question 4- Would you help me find him?

"Sorry hun but I have no interest in finding him. I'll help you with support though." Glisten

"No, sorry, Scraps wouldn't let me" Goob

"I've got fishing to do, saw-rry!" Finn

"Fuck no." Vee

"I've got a pillow fort to make, so no. But, make sure to come join me in it when you return." Astro

"I need to heal the others, sorry cousin. But I'll help you prepare." Ginger

"Sorry Cossie, we're too tired to help out. (yeah, that took a lot out of us... )" Razzledazzle 

Ok, a few leads and no helpers. That's ok, he'd work around it. after all, he had all his heals baked in his satchel and some of the others planned to help him prep, which would be beneficial to him. But aside from that, he was alone.

Alone. He HATED being alone. He hated being covered in that stupid icky ichor and being doomed to wander until he was found. If he ever would be found, that is. It wasn't like he was the best toon, or one that people enjoyed being around. He was spiteful, hateful and a useless toon compared to everyone else; why waste precious time looking for a pointless toon when it could be spent doing anything else?

His clone was here too, a disgusting reflection of who, or what, he had become now. A twisted, gruesome monster. How laughable. If any of the others saw him, he'd become the center of a circus performance. Payback for all the times he's stuck thumbtacks on Looey's bed.

Some other clones might of been there too but he wasn't paying attention. He missed his old self, and his boxing- but he missed his boyfriend most of all. He wanted to see Cosmo's sweet smile and feel his soft chubby body against his. That chocolaty smell of fresh goods that enveloped him in a sense of comfort. 

"H-Hello? Shrimpy?"

That voice, it made him sit up. No, it can't be, it couldn't be. But he hoped it was, deep down in his weak heart. Was he here, was he? To tell, he peeked slowly over to the elevator, and sure enough- there was Cosmo, standing there trembling in his oh so cute glory. His fingers gripped his pin decorated bag's strap, eyeing the area. He's finally saved!

"ccOoossmmmOooo"

Cosmo jumped at the noise, looking around rapidly. In the corner of his eye, he saw... Shrimpo?

Was it him, or his clone?

"...Shrimpy?" He whispered, watching the other nod and weakly limp over. His eyes clouded with tears as he hugged the shrimp. Finally, he found him. Only took about 15 floors :)

The two embraced long and hard, the Swiss roll peppering some kisses on blank areas free of ichor. "I-I'm so glad you're...Mostly ok. I missed you." He whimpered, crying onto the shrimp's shoulder. Shrimpo rubbed his cheeks, crying a mixture of inky ichor and salty tears. They both just cried onto one another before his clone saw Cosmo and broke the two up, both running away from it. 

They spent half of that floor clinging to one another, until Cosmo finished the machines. Despite that, the elevator didn't rise once they both entered. Maybe a malfunction? Anyways, it didn't matter since Cosmo had more pressing matters. Checking up on the Shrimp. "Are you ok?" He asked, laying him down on his chest. Wow, such a great question to ask him Cosmo, sooo helpful when his mouth is coated in ichor. No response apart from another whine of his name- that looked painful to do in it of itself. "Ok, stay silent. I'll just hold you."

This is how they stayed for the next hour, basking in each other's warmth and love. Shrimpo wished he could talk and praise his lover for rescuing him- but he couldn't, so just showed it. His hands crept to rub his boyfriend's rolls on the side of his body, nuzzling his neck. Cosmo giggled, kissing his tail. "Love you Shrimpy." He whispered, getting a hum back. Shrimpo loved him too. 

So much.

Chapter Text

6 hours. The flower had been at his shop for 6 h o u r s.

Is that even legal?

It shouldn't be, anywhere. Because it was driving him nuts.

Why did he need to be here, no one was even buying from him!

Cosmo couldn't even join him this time, being bound to the kitchen by Vee like a housewife.

Well, he was Dandy's malewife, but he'd never subject him to a fate of food labor.

His shop rose up from the floor, a forced smile plastered on his face. in front of him were some gumballs, a stopwatch and a band. Come on, they had to buy from him now- he had a bandage for sale for ichor's sake! So, he watched and waited, seeing their faces light up. "No darlings, remember." Glisten crossed his arms, stepping away from the shop. What. The. Fu-

No, no. Calm.

"Those tapes were never yours." He hissed, descending down as his hands twitched.

Cosmo sighed as he rested his head on the counter. How much longer did he have to do this for? Just baking over and over until his hands were numb and legs ached- it was torture. Sprout was off on a run, one he would've joined if that stupid TV didn't put him on post-heal duty, destined to bake cookies and muffins that would disappear in a matter of moments once they returned. He never got to try one, unless he'd sneak a few into his pocket, which he was definitely doing today. Think of it as revenge. With a sift hand, head still on the counter, he plucked a fresh on off the cooling tray.

Lifting his head, he bit into one of the triple chunk chocolate cookies he made, infused with vanilla and cinnamon for extra flavor, and moaned as the chewy and rich texture coated his taste buds. Who was the best baker toon, he thought to himself, I am! It was like a brownie, but cookie shaped- oh, oh he should make brownies next! Look, despite all the shit he gave earlier he still enjoyed the process of baking, just not the 'reward' he got in the end. With the cookie held between his lips, he grabbed a bowl and began going through the ingredients list internally.

"Umm... Cosmo?"

A hum escaped his lips, looking up from his mixing bowl. The cookie was still wedged in between his slightly wet lips, preventing him from talking, so he set the whisk down and took it out. "Yes Boxten?" He smiled, walking over to the anxious music box. His lullaby was soft and gentle, but it began distorting as he spoke. "I-I think something's going on, i-i haven't heard anything from Poppy in a while... H-Has Dandy said a-anything to you?" 

Cosmo shook his head, tensing at the music fading in and out from the toon in front of him. "No, not a word... I might go check up on him though. Mind keeping watch on the heals for me?" He asked as he put the bowl of brownie batter in the fridge to resume later. Boxten nodded weakly as he walked over to the sweet treats, staring them down as Cosmo went to the elevator- specifically the staff door.

That was how Dandy got into his shop under the elevator- slinking into the staff room and entering the underneath of the elevator and setting up his shop. It was like a little hang-out space where the two would chill after dinner, watching movies or playing games until they were exhausted. But now, he'd use it to see how his boyfriend was holding up. With a creak, he opened the door after he'd turn the key in its lock. Darkness.

His hand felt around for a light switch, finding it and flicking it on with a finger. Nothing. Maybe the bulb was dead? No worries, Cosmo could see enough. So, he wandered in, locking the door behind him before walking to the shop box. Empty. Odd, Dandy was normally here.   He looked around, pulling the lever to bring the shop up. It revealed an empty elevator, devoid of any life aside from a music box similar to the glitching melody from Boxten moments earlier. Weird, he never knew they had music box access, let alone one with such a sweet melody.

Crunch!

Crunch!

Crunch!

Oh, how fun to smush the toons one by one, serves them right for not buying his items! Calm down, they aren't dead- just injured! He'll take them back and patch them up, this is just some tough love. As he hunted the others down, he heard the screeching of metal being forcefully lifted up. What the? Who on earth was-

Cosmo.

That's who it was.

His eyes softened at the sight of his sugary Swiss roll, slowly padding over. The height difference was very clear, he was in his twisted form and far taller than his partner. However, even though he was a huge ichor heavy monster, he still loved his boyfriend with all of his cold heart. He stuck his little tongue out and licked Cosmo's icing off his head. Yummy.

Cosmo giggled, both scared and intrigued by the new form Dandy took on. He was huge, and a little wet on the surface from the ichor coating his new body; he had large, pointed teeth that lined his dark gums; thick, sharp claws scratched at the oak wood beneath him. He was... 

"gorgeous... " Cosmo cooed, cupping his face with careful hands. He then pressed a soft kiss to his lips; the area he believed them to be. That surprised Dandy, but then again, he had such a caring toon for a partner- this was the least he could expect. A purr escaped him, leaning into the additional affection of pets and kisses. "What happened Danny, talk to me" Cossie said sternly as he examined the other. The corrupt flower just purred again, curling up at the pastry's feet as if he were a cat. He would get no where like this/ "Where's everyone else?"

As if on cue, some of the others groaned weakly as they crawled towards the elevator. Damn, they shouldn't have pissed him off, even if it was just for a dare. Wait, is that Cosmo, next to DANDY?!  Look, they knew the two were together, but not even Dandy's best bud Astro was safe from his paw. Yet Cosmo was an exception? Another benefit for dating the star of the show they guessed. 

"Cosmo, be a dear and help us into the elevator." Glisten groaned as he attempted to lift himself up, looking towards the pair. Cosmo nodded as, one by one, he lifted them into the elevator, before helping finish off machines.

Chapter Text

March 14. The day she'd be introduced to the rest of the toons, and she was super nervous. Whilst yes, she had a friend to confined in, that didn't mean she could not be nervous. Her little party poppers twitched from nerves as she took a deep breath. C'mon Yatta, you can do this. Just do what Looey taught you- be yourself!

She made her way to the lobby, sitting down on a bench and waiting... 

That's all she could do.

She saw Looey running up to her, a few toons lagging behind him. "Yatta!" He hugged her tightly, his arms squeaking as they rubbed against her papery exterior "I'm so glad you're here! Where's Blot?"

"Not here yet, they'll arrive later. Who're your friends?" She asked with a grin, glancing behind him. There were five toons, all of different... object class? That was the only combination of words she could think of that fit what she wished to think.

One toon appeared to be themed around a vanity mirror, dolled up and radiating perfection and ego.

Another looked like a capsule, one of those gacha ones you'd get for putting a pound coin in to get some crappy keychains or a badly painted squishy.

A third took inspiration from a butterfly or moth, she couldn't fully tell, but she knew it was some sort of flying bug.

The fourth had a craft aesthetic going for themselves, being made to look like an origami cat with red crayon streaks on her cheeks.

And the last toon... He looked sweet in every way, being based off a chocolaty Swiss roll filled with creamy vanilla icing inside his pastry head. 

"These are a handful of my friends, we've got-"

"Glisten, darling, a pleasure to meet you."

"Gigi."

"That's Flutter" Looey smiled as Flutter flapped her wings and twirled in hello.

"The name's Scraps, nice to meet cha!"

"C-Cosmo... It's nice to meet you."

Her blue and pink eyes scanned the five toons and nodded. "I'm Yatta, and i'M SO EXCITED TO MEET YOU ALL!" Effortlessly, she scooped them all up into a hug, releasing some candies around them. Gigi eyed them like gold. "Sooo, ya release candies?" She smiled, suddenly interested in the new toon.

Looey sighed as they entered the kitchen. "And this is where the food is made! We don't gotta eat like properly, but it makes us feel at home and cozier to do so. Plus, we can eat anything so it's great for trying new object recipes!" He elbowed the pinata with a cheesy smirk as the two looked around. It was empty of toons but not work, a bowl full of batter left unattended with its whisk sunk in its goopy depths and some nuggets cooking in the oven from the counter beside the batter bowl. It smelt sweet, like sugary dough and sweet summer fruits. "Cosmo and Sprout are usually in here, dunno where they are-"

As if on que, Cosmo and a strawberry toon rushed in, screaming. "I told you to take them out before we went to get more stuff!" Cosmo shriekd as he yanked the tray out the oven barehanded and slamming it on the stove. "You're lucky we came back in it... Oh, hi Looey, hey Yatta. What brings you both here?" He asked, clapping his hands together before whincing in pain from his now burnt hand. 

"Just giving Yatta a tour. Is your hand ok?" 

Cosmo nodded, running it under cold tap. "F-Fine... only stings a little. Enjoying your time here so far Yatta?"

The pinata smiled at the question, humming. "I'm having a lotta fun fuN FUN!" She spun, releasing some candy onto the ground. Sprout picked one up, unwrapping it and popping it into his mouth.  "Mmm, these are good! Mind us using a few for our brownies?"  He smiled as he picked the other ones on the floor. She chuckled and released a few more. "Go for it, if you need any more CANDY, come ta me!" She winked at the two. Both giggled, and Cosmo grabbed the whisk, thrusting towards her in a joking manner. "And if you need any PASTRYS, come ta me" He copied, winking back.

Dinner soon came, a meal of pesto linguini with a side of greek salad, and nuggets for Toodles and any other picky eater who disliked the main dish. Everyone thanked the cooks before they dug in. Yatta did the same, eating a forkful of pasta. Flavors of garlic and pesto enveloped her tastebuds, dancing around like a symphony of delight atop her tongue. It was heavenly- better than anything she's ever tasted before. "This is great you too." She praised Cosmo and Sprout, before taking another forkful of pasta. They both gave closed smiles full of food, before Cosmo swallowed to speak. "Aww, thanks! I made the sauce and Sprout made the salad." He giggled with a tilt of his head. Yatta smiled, finding it cute how he responded to compliments. It happened before hand too, when they were setting the table, and he was complimented for how he folded the napkins- tilting his head with a soft smile. "Well, both are SPECTACULARLY great!" She laughed, resuming to eat.

Yatta scrubbed the plate she had with a smile; she was enjoying spending some time with the pastry who involved her. She'd known him for about a day, but he was the sweetest out of all the toons outside of Looey. During dinner, he talked to her as often as he could without forgetting to eat; after the tour, he offered to explain the toons to her as he cooked dinner; even when they first met, he asked her tons of questions about herself and her interests. He was so caring, who wouldn't love him? (Ok, enough Cosmo glazing :3)

"Thanks for helping me, Yatta. Usually Sprout helps me but he had a Main meeting today." He chuckled, drying the dishes and putting them away. Was that true? No, not at all. Sprout never helped with the dishes, he just wanted to make her feel included.  It was nice though, the comfortable silence floating through the kitchen except for the running water and the clinking of dishes touching one another as they were stacked. "So, how'd you find your first day here?" He asked with a smile as he picked up the last wet dish from the drying rack. Yatta hummed at his question, turning the tap off as she had finished washing the plates. "It's been fun, but I'm kinda tired now." She yawned softly; her party popper ears flopping from her exhaustion. "Mind leading me to my room, my little cream puff pastry?" She joked, elbowing him. He blushed from embarrassment, squeaking as if he was the balloon toon instead of her best friend. Cute of him, in her opinion. "F-Fine..."

"I'm not sure if Looey explained the rooming system, but how it works is that it's based off the type of toon you are. So it goes in the order of Commons, Uncommons, Rares then Mains. You and I are commons, so we are on the first few floors. On top of that, it's in alphabetically order- so my room is nearby and yours would be the last room. Sorry, was that too much?" Cosmo fidgeted as they ascended to the toon room floors, shifting from one foot to the other. The pinata shook her head, confetti swaying from her ears. "Not at all, VERY informative!" She laughed, running out the elevator. "SEE YA TOMORROW MORNING CREAMPUFF!" She yelled with a wave of a hand and the sprinkle of some candies before charging to the end of the hall towards her room. 

"See you Yatta! Good night!" Cosmo yelled back, walking to his room. With a creak, he opened the door and locked it behind him. What an interesting day! He hoped, as he flopped onto the bed, that he'd have a day as great as today again.

Chapter Text

Cosmo's head rang as he stirred, vision fuzzy and swaying side to side. He shouldn't of drunk as much as he did, he now had a killer hangover that would take ages to go away. What did he even do last night?

"Cmon Cossie, just a sip!" Dandy smirked, hiccupping as he held the bottle of fizzing gold liquid up to the pastry's chin. "I-I made i j-HIC- juz for you." A drunk chuckle escaped him as he swayed, the liquid splashing a little and nearly touching Cosmo's cheeks. Dandy was hella drunk, as were many others, but Cosmo? He stayed sober, mostly because he was on breakfast duty and didn't wanna have a hangover whilst cooking some bacon and eggs. He wasn't sure how much longer that'd last though, with Dandy and co waltzing around with drinks held up in the air on display for anyone sober enough to care. "Dandy' I said no, and what the hell even is that?"

He hiccupped, flopping backwards onto a sofa. "Somfing i fooOund behind ma shop, iz free of charge for da night!" He giggled, closing his eyes whilst his petals flopped inwards. Astro, dodging through dancing toons or drinking toons, came up behind Cosmo. "I apologize for his behavior. Dandy, up." He tugged the flower up with his lower arms. Cosmoo shook the apology off, watching as the weird gold drink was dropped. "It's fine, it happenes. You two off for the night then?"

Astro nodded, carrying Dandy in a princess lift. "Dandy's too drunk, so I'll put him to bed before returning to supervise. I shall see you shortly Cossie." He smiled as Dandy whined in protest, the moon main walking away. Cosmo sighed, free from the peer-pressuring from the star of the show, but he was intrigued by the mystery liquid previously introduced to him. It shimmered in the disco lights, little specs of glitter floating within shining golden ink- and it didn't look alcoholic. A sip wouldn't hurt, right?

And so, a sip turned into a gulp and then a chug. He couldn't help it, it tasted so rich and creamy- like a milkshake. He wiped his lips after, smiling to himself as a fuzzy feeling enveloped his heart. Maybe he should have a beer, just a can... 

Oh yeah, that. What even was that gold thing he drank? He threw the covers off himself, and looked in the mirror, seeing his disheveled self. Icing was smudged against his roll head, dripping down his forehead as it was now warm and runny; his eyes looked heavy and dull, lifeless from how numb he felt; his clothes were wrinkly and hanging off of him, showing his rolls to the mirror as well as his thighs from his pajama shorts rolling up and clinging to his doughy skin. A mess, he dubbed himself, before going to change his attire. He swapped out his pajamas for a white t-shirt with a funky little cat on it holding a cupcake, paired with some grey denim jeans (baggy) and some converses. A stylish outfit in his opinion!

"You look half-put together."

That was rude.

"But true."

Ok, let's not talk to ourselfs, let's talk to others!

He left his room and took the elevator down to the kitchen, where Sprout was whisking up some eggs. "Morning bud! You're up late, how come?"

He wanted to say he slept in, and that his alarm didn't go off.

"Sssss-Hangover, could barely get up." 

Woah, ok he did NOT wanna say that.

Sprout chuckled, setting the whisk down into the bowl. "Woah, you- hungover? That's new, you sure you ain't lying?"

Yes-

"No."

Fuck. What was with him?

He laughed at his best friend. "Damn, ok Mr. Naughty! Never took you for that kind of guy." He smirked, elbowing him before resuming his whisking. "Mind helping me make breakfast? After all, you were the one on duty- I offered to take your place until you came."

He tried to nod, but his head shook instead.

"Oh, ok- I see how it is. Too hungover to cook. Bet it was on purpose huh?" He teased, smirking. Cosmo tried to shake his head, but he gave a so-so gesture. Why couldn't he control his body, his mouth?! This was bad, super bad. "I'm only teasing Cossie, go rest your head."

And that's what he went to do or tried to- not without pissing some toons off first.

"Hey Cosmo, how do you feel? You were drinking a little hard last night?" Tisha asked softly, only for Cosmo to snap at her. "Do I look ok? That's your answer." He didn't mean to, it was just what he was thinking- he wanted to say he felt ok and thank her, but now she was annoyed at him. Fairly so, though.  He then pissed off Shrimpo, more than usual, by yelling back- that felt good, but he didn't enjoy being screamed back at and nearly hit. To make matters worse, he angered the one and only Vee Version one!

She'd been walking past, rolling her eyes at the pastry. "Bitch..." He murmured, meaning to say a whispered hi instead. Vee stopped in her tracks and spun on her heel to face him. "Excuse me, what did you just call me?!"

N-Nothing!

"Bitch."

Oh Cosmo, you stupid little pastry.

He limped into his room, sore from being whacked over and over by Vee's microphone. This day could not get any worse, he thought as he flopped onto his bed and curled up like a little woodlouse. Why couldn't he control himself today? It was like his truths were bursting out of him like hatchlings breaking free from their eggs, and he hated it. At least he didn't have anything major to do, it was only the breakfast on his duty list, and he denied doing it- not willingly- so he was free to wallow in his self-pity. A sigh escaped his lips, rolling onto his back to stare at the ceiling. He'd decorated his ceiling a few months prior, sticking plastic stars from Astro on the blank areas uncovered from tapestries he attached. He had three; one was of a tarot card, the Cat one to be exact; another was of the painting 'Starry Night', or at least that was what Astro told him; the last was of a lady surrounded by flowers, a peaceful expression on her face as her golden hair was splayed around her head like a carved wooden frame. All mentioned were from Astro- despite being a sleepy toon, he had great interior taste. There were many great things about him, like the advice he gave to any toon who seeked it-

A knock on his door snapped him out of his spiraling daydream, and he slowly turned his head over. Even the inside of his door was decorated with little paper pixel decorations of him and his friends he found on the internet- the pixel designs, he coloured them in himself. He draped his legs over the side and pushed himself off to go open the door. When he does, he saw... Boxten?

"Umm, hi Cosmo, sorry to bother you but d-did you forget about our baking lesson?" He stuttered, looking at the pastry behind the door. Cosmo gulped; ok he knew what he wanted to say so just say it-

"I did, sorry."

For cupcake's sake, Cosmo- you can't do one thing right!

Boxten nodded in understanding, fidgeting with his hands. "Ok, um, do you think we can do it now then?" He asked, anxiety laced in his voice as he looked off to the side.

"Sure, let's go."

Cosmo flicked through the pages of the cookbook Boxten had selected, yawning weakly. "What do you wish to bake today, Boxy?" He asked softly, rubbing an eye. The music box hummed, his key twitching on the back of his head as he tried to decide. "Maybe a cheesecake?"

Sounds nice, but-

"It's too complicated for your current level, no offense." He smiled, flipping past the cheesecake section. 

Boxten nodded, staring into the empty bowl on the countertop in front of him. "Maybe cookies?"

He'd love that-!

"Already made those last week." He sighed heavily. Ok, that wasn't necessary.

The music box didn't have many options left. "Ummm... Brownies?"

Actually...-

"That doesn't sound too bad, let's do it!" He smiled proudly as he selected a brownie page. He then listed out the ingredients, grabbing the ones nearest to him as he did so. Boxten followed suit, grabbing whatever was left that Cosmo hadn't grabbed himself. The two then began to bake in comfortable silence, the only sound being the scraping of mixing tools on metal bowls and shuffling as one or the other getting another ingredient. Boxten kept gazing over to Cosmo, seeing his tongue sticking out as he focused on mixing. He liked Cosmo, and he knew something was up with him- as well as why. 

Boxten sipped his lemonade slowly as his eyes gazed at the others around. Drunk, that's what his friends currently were- stone cold drunk and waddling around like newborn penguins. It was laughable, how it took only a few cups of alcoholic juice to turn an intelligent, behaved toon to an animal. That's why he didn't drink, he'd rather be hung then be inappropriate due to some human drug. Plus, it allowed him to people watch, which was far more enjoyable than the taste of bitterness running down your throat.

He watched Dandy stumble around, a bottle of something gold in his clutch alongside a can of beer. What was he holding? More beer? Boxten didn't know, but he certainly wanted to find out- and so he began stalking the flower star toon through the crowd of dancing drunkies. "C'mon Cossie, just a sip!"

You know the rest from there, so we'll jump to after.

The music box watched the pastry chug the drink, before wiping his lips and walking off. Why on earth would Cosmo drink that mysterious shit, it might have been poisoned! But he couldn't stop it, being too anxious and slightly lovestruck to move or do anything. However, he could supervise-- from a distance, of course. So he did just that. He followed Cosmo around, making sure he wasn't getting into too much trouble. Of coruse, the pastry drank (expected, but he wasn't gonna shame him for it) and also did some fsr more daring things.

Cosmo giggled as he kissed Sprout. "I've always wanted to kiss a guy... but not yoooou... you're my tester." He whispered into the strawberry's ear. Now, Sprout knew of his best friend's crush on a certain purple music box- but him openly coming out as gay? That was new. Maybe the liquid courage was working its wonders on his mind, who knew. He was kissed again, before being shoved away. "Yooou're not Boxy... gimmie Boxy." He whined, eyes watering as he looked around. Little did he know who was listening.

"Umm... Cosmo?"

The pastry looked up from the bowl he was mixing to look at the toon grabbing his attention. "Yeah?" He asked as Boxten fidgeted with his apron ties. C'mon dude, just ask him about it. It's not that hard, after all it's just one question. "I have...um" He stuttered, trembling a little. Pull yourself together, it's a question on what he said last night- not his entire life story! "L-Last night, you said-"

"I like Boxy, i want Boxy!"

"And i just wanted t-to know if you actually did." He finished, a faint blush on his cheels. 

Cosmo blushed too. He said that?! Out loud?! By BOXTEN?! 

He messed up big time, see this is why he doesn't drink! Don't drink kids, unless you wanna feel like shit and do shitty things. "I-I did..." He confirmed instead of questioning. "Umm..." What could he possibly say to make this better?

"I like you, like a lot."

WRONG MOVE, REVERSE, REVESRE!!!

"Do you like me too?"

THAT IS THE OPPOSITE OF WHAT HE WANTED! COSMO YOU LITTLE-

"...I do."

...Wait, what?

Cosmo blinked, blushing heavily as he looked over. Was this box for real right now? Be better be, or else this batter was gonna go somewhere other than the pan. "...Really?" He waited for something, anything from the other- a reaction or a word of something. A something he didn't get in any of those forms, instead he heard a lullaby. It was soft, gentle and calming to his ears- was this a form of additional confession? Cause if it was, it was hella cute of him to do so. "Uh, Boxten?" He tapped the music box's cheek, and the music sped up before changing to the instrument of 'careless whisper'. Huh?

"I-I like you a lot, Cosmo. And I'm so glad you feel the same, so... Wanna be my boyfriend?"

"YES!" He yelled, hugging the other toon tightly. The two kept hugging, the brownie batter left forgotten on the counter beside them It was a sweet moment really, a scene of the two hugging and exchanging anxious cheek kisses like closeted toons. I mean, they were, but the closet is glass, so it didn't matter. Only the knocking on the kitchen door frame snapped them out of it. Looking over, they saw sprout who had a smug smirk on his face. "Nice job Cossie, I knew you had it in ya." He gave a thumbs up before walking away. "LOOEY, YOU OWE ME 10 RUNS OF DISTRACTING!" He yelled down the corridor. 

"FIDDLE STICKS!" The balloon yelled back, making the two giggle.

Chapter Text

Thank you all so much for 140 kudos!

I'm relatively new to AO3 writing wise, and to see my work be so popular makes me so happy!

Expect more oneshots to come, and maybe some separate books both related to Dandy's world and not to come too!! 

Bai!! 

(This chapter would of come with some art but I'm not sure how to add images and have them show, so if any of you know how to add images on a laptop plz tell me!)

Chapter Text

3:04am

Why on earth was Cosmo up so early. He wasn't even being productive, just staring at his ceiling like a school kid anxious for a test the next day. He had to be up in about two hours to make waffles with Sprout, so his sanity couldn't afford to be tested today because past Cossie chose to stare at the tapestries decorating his ceiling rather than get some shut eye. So why couldn't he just close his eyes? It's not that hard, even a useless toon like himself could do an action so simple. But he wasn't able to. He was stuck staring at whatever his gaze wandered to. 

He was a stupid toon. A sleepy, silly, stupid toon who could never do anything right. Sleep was his haven, where he was given dreams that comforted him curtesy of Sprout and Astro (Sprout asked Astro to give Cosmo good dreams), but now that he couldn't? He was stuck in a growing sinkhole of self-hate, unable to claw his way out and doomed to a fate of comparing himself to everyone and everything even better than him. He had no use; every toon in Gardenview had a skill he had but 10x better. Sprout and Ginger were both splendid cooks and healers, also far more useful on a run- being able to help with either distracting or filling machines; Astro and Connie were far stealthier than him, and other toons with similar stealth to him were able to use it well, sneaking past distracters whilst he'd accidently steal those twisted clones off the distracter. Nothing he did was original or good on its own-

Ding! Ding! Ding!

He groaned, turning his head. 5:00am. He'd been up for two hours?! It didn't feel like it, to the Swiss roll it only seemed like half an hour had pasted. Self-hate does that to you. With a sigh, he threw himself out of bed to go change into something more appropriate for the day. If you can't fit in with how one acts, fit in with how one dresses! He chose a beabadobee band t-shirt Sprout bought for his birthday, some black overalls and combat boots from his old toon handler. Now in clothes that didn't make him feel like a slob, he went out towards the kitchen.

"Morning CosmooOOO...Woahzrs, what happened to you?" Sprout joked, elbowing his chocolaty best friend. To sugar coat things, he looked sleepy. To be honest?

He looked like hell crawled out the back of a drug house.

Eye bags heavier than bags of rocks weighed down his usually soft and light face that radiated youth and enthusiasm; sunken hazelnut eyes stared blankly at the moving objects and slithering shadows that phased past their blurry gaze; a once straight back now hunched like a lazy bear, unfocused and sleepy. Everything about Cosmo's attitude screamed exhausted toon who didn't wish to be bothered. "Didn't get enough sleep. What are we making?" He lazily asked as he moved sloppily towards the strawberry a few steps ahead. However, he couldn't locate the actual location of his best friend and so crashed into the counter with a groan. "Holy shit, Cosmo are you ok?!" Sprout asked with a concerned tone, gently picking his best friend up with a soft hand. He's seen his friend exhausted before, but not to this degree- a degree where he couldn't walk or function. "Go rest Bud, I can handle breakfast just fine!" The strawberry smiled, leading the brownie out the door and watching as he waddled away.

Great, Cosmo thought, you not only made a fool of yourself but also nearly hurt yourself. What a way to start the day- embarrassing yourself, as if you weren't already an embarrassment. That's what he gets for being stupid and not going to sleep when he should've. He stumbled the halls, colliding into the wall causing a thump before falling asleep slumped against a wall with a thud. Finally, peace.

Glisten rose, tossing his head back and forth as he lifted his lilac silk sleeping mask to rest atop his metal ball thingy. Ahh, 7:25am. What an early start for the mirror- he tended to wake up between 8-9am on a weekday so it was surprising for him to be awake so early. With a flick of a switch, his lamp lit up, revealing the perfection of his room. Clean, tidy piles of clothes organized by colour and fabric; posters of his beauty displayed upon pale pink painted walls; a soft fur rug sat on his wooded floor, concealing the oak boards beneath. His room reflected him: an image of beauty. 

Stretching his limbs, he flinched at the echoed thump and thud near his door. Who was causing such an unnecessary commotion at these early hours?! This toon is grateful he wasn't in the middle of his beauty sleep, or else they'd be dead meat. "Let's see who the culprit is." He muttered to himself, slipping out of bed with grace before walking to his door draped with a soft silk curtain, swooshing it out the way and turning the doorknob. "Alright, who-... Cosmo?"

Sleeping like an odd beauty was the Swiss roll of Cosmo. His mouth was open and drooling against the wall, his arms were pushed up against his chest from being pressed up against the wall, his cheek was squished up and making him look rounder in the cheeks and cuter in the face. Glisten blushed a little... Perhaps the little disturbance wasn't that disrupting. It was just a little road bump in his routine. With a soft smile, he picked up the pastry and carried him into his little haven.

Glisten has liked this little pastry for a few weeks now, starting off with him denying his feelings and being rude to Cosmo as a wat to show himself that he did NOT like such an imperfect toon. Then, he talked to Astro. 

"Cosmo, huh?" Astro sipped his tea, crossing a leg over the other from his seat on the cushioned chair of Glisten's desk. It was their scheduled gossip session, but Glisten decided to take it down the romantic route. Whilst Astro wasn't in the dating scene, he did know a toon or two's (More like 8) crushes and therefore was of assistance when it came to romantic advice. Which is why Glisten was releasing all his emotions out to the crescent main. "I mean, I can see why you'd like him- he's sweet, smart and insecure." Glisten tensed at Astro's vague description. Insecure? Astro nodded, sipping his mug once more. "Looks like you both have common interests." He joked, shaking his head with a sparkle. Glisten hissed, sipping his smoothie from a champagne glass. Ha ha, let's laugh about something that makes him wanna curl up and never show his face to the others. Hilarious.

Astro coughed, going back to the topic at hand. "Regardless, it's normal to have feeling for people, even if it's someone you wouldn't think you'd like. Before I stopped wanting to date, I had crushes for people like Shrimpo and Finn, and if I thought deeper about it I kinda saw where the feelings came from. Shrimpo hated people, which I did at times, and Finn... just had a charm that I used to find fun. Let's try. What's one thing about Cosmo you relate to?" He started, staring at the mirror sat upon his air-tight made bed. Aside from their shared insecurity over themselves, there was only one thing that came to mind.

Cosmo stirred weakly, hugging the object beside him. Cold yet warm and soft yet firm; a perfect blend for him to snuggle against. What even was he hugging? He didn't own a body pillow, they weren't going to waste fabric on an oversized cuddle buddy, so what on earth was he holding? Blinking his eyes open softly, he saw a glisten of glass and a shimmer of metal. Wait, Glisten?! He jumped up, immediately letting go of what he now registered as the other's arm. When he did sit up, blushing intensely, he was that Glisten was smirking! "Welcome Sleeping Beauty, you fell asleep outside my room. You should be glad I found you first, I mean if that Seedly boy saw you he'd blow off your ear." He chuckled, tilting his head at the pastry sat trembling and breathing shakily in front of him. "Woah, hey, calm down-- I'm not going to put you in ribbons or make-up... though the ribbons don't sound too bad-" 

Cosmo squeaked, whacking Glisten on the arm, heavily flustered and groggy. "S-Shut up! I'm just... very tired." He weakly said, rubbing his arms. Whilst he was telling the truth, for he could not fall asleep and was therefore tired, he was also lying to both Glisten and himself. He just hoped Glisten couldn't tell- he was NOT in the mood for an interrogation in his current state. All he wanted to do was just sleep and not think about himself. Glisten hummed, hugging Cosmo's side and softly squeezing the soft rolls of flesh that hugged his sides. "G-Glisten!" He squealed, squirming away.

"Our bodies." He whispered. "We both hate our bodies." 

"Your body is beautiful." Glisten kissed Cosmo's cheek once, twice. "It's like a temple."

"But I don't want him to go to the lengths I did to get to where I am... I want him to love himself for who he is."

Glisten kissed Cosmo softly. "I love you, and I love your beautiful body. Don't change it." He nuzzled his neck, whispering. Would his words make an impact? He wasn't sure, but he could try.

"...Ok" Cosmo smiled, eyes watering.

Chapter Text

Teagan groaned as she threw her purse upon her shoulder to hold her supplies, trying to keep the child crying at her feet under control. "My dear, your father and I will only be gone a short while. If you have fun whilst we're away, the time will fly right by, and we'll be back!" She attempted to sooth Toodles, rubbing her head gently. The little one at her feet sniffled, pausing her tantrum to give their mother a teary stare of despair. "B-But I don't want you to goooooo!" She sobbed, the action racking through her body and causing her to shake with sorrow. Poor baby, Teagan thought as she watched her husband exit the bathroom, all smart in his shirt and tie paired with navy blue suit pants and some pointed leather shoes. She'd eat him up if A) Toodles wasn't present and B) they didn't have a run to host. "Is she still crying her eyes out?" Rodger sighed, cleaning the last few smudges around his magnifying rim. He watched as his wife struggled to keep their darling kid under control, chuckling softly before walking over and gently lifting the girl up. "Now, now Toddles- don't sob onto your mother's stockings. I understand this is upsetting for you but unfortunately there is not much either of us can do regarding it." He kissed her forehead before carrying her to the bed, handing her the spotted dog she abandoned upon her covers whilst clinging to her mother. She calmed down a little, closing her eyes as she was held by Rodger. "How about we get Cossie and Sprout to babysit you, hm? Maybe bake some yummy treats?" He attempted to cheer her up, seeing her eyes shoot open and a smile spread across her face. "YES, YES!"

Cosmo nuzzled his boyfriend, yawning weakly. The two were cuddled against one another lazily in bed, as it was a calm Sunday morning. Strawberries and chocolate scents drifted through the room, creating a warm aroma that enveloped the two as they held one another close. "Morning..." Sprout pressed a kiss against the other's forehead, smiling down at the Swiss roll who hummed. "Morning to you too... You smell like sleep." He joked, slapping up to hit Sprout's cheek weakly, more like a caress if anything else, which made the other laugh and roll over- that dragged Cosmo over the other, and squeeze a squeal out of his sleepy soft body. He chuckled, hitting face-first into the mattress on the right of Sprout's body with an 'oof' and hum. it was soft and warm from Sprout's previous body warmth, and he sunk into the plush place he had landed on. With a huff, he rolled onto his back, using a hand to stop himself from rolling off the bed completely, for he was too close to the end for his own comfort. So he moved a little closer to Sprout. "Rude." Cosmo joked, pecking the strawberry's cheek before rolling on top of him as punishment. "I could've fallen off and onto the poor, hard floor. That wouldn't be nice now, would it?" He asked rhetorically with a tilt of his head. Sprout shook his head, pulling Cosmo closer. "Aww, poor you-"

"UNCLE COSMO, UNCLE SPROUT!"

Both jumped, pushing away from one another at the intrusion. Cosmo hit the end of the bed, nearly falling backwards and off the bed; Sprout collided with the headboard, hitting his spine and whining at the fresh sting it caused. Turning their heads, they saw a little 8 ball child dressed in a dusty cream dress that reached past scraped knees, allowing her electric blue and lightening yellow kicks replacing her black doll-like Lelly-Kelly shoes she wore normally. What was Toodles doing here? As if to answer their unison-thought question, Rodger stood firm and tall behind her, a protective hand on her shoulder as his gazed flickered between the two food toons. 

"Ngh, yes?" Cosmo whined, sitting up to face the intruders properly. Rodger held back the girl who was scrambling to get into the room and get her hands on the two via a hug. "Teagan and I have some runs to host on the behave of Vee having a sick bug, but we have no one to babysit Toodles. Would you two be so kind and take care of her until we are free? Think of it as payback for when we covered up your kitchen disaster a few days back." He smiled, petting Toodles on the head to calm her down and stop her from making a mess in the two's room. If he wanted them to agree, he needed to make sure Toodles didn't break anything, then they'd want her distanced away from their room. Sprout groaned, getting out of bed to stand in front of the magnifying glass at his door. Of course, he remembers that stupid cock-up the two of them cooked up in the kitchen previously.  It's just like Rodger to blackmail them into babysitting. "Fine, but only since you swore to keep that mess a secret." He elbowed the detective who moved away and brushed the friendly joke away. Ouch.

"Ok baby, behave for Mother and Father whilst we're away, be good to Uncle Cossie and Sprout or else no helping father on cases for a week. Am I clear?" Teagan dotted over Toodles as she went over a list of questions, fixing her hoodie and kissing her cheeks softly with care. She was worried, rightfully so- this was the first time the pair were both away from their child in years. The only other time was when they were first-time parents and decided to go on a date for once alone. 

Teagan added the finishing touches to her make-up, with a brush of glittery gold and a flick of mascara to complete the look. Beautiful, she'd call herself. But Rodger would call her-

"Gorgeous. Absolutely gorgeous you are, my dear. Like a goddess I say." He purred, arms wrapped around her waist in a soft manner, like feathers around fine China. Teagan smiled and gently rested her hands atop of her husband's, bringing them up to her lips and pressing soft kisses to each knuckle, her tinted rosy lipstick sticking to the skin like little imprints of love. How romantic. They commonly exchanged physical affections like kisses or simply basking in the other's presence. It was sappy and sweet, but it was for them and not others. Pardon their French but fuck the ones who judged them. 

Rodger kissed her cheek. "Are you ready? I put Toodles down for a nap, and Astro's giving her some sweet dreams to keep her asleep until our return, so we have an estimated amount of 3 and a half hours to ourselves." He smiled, leading her out the bathroom and to the main bedroom. In one corner sat a lush king bed, built to accommodate both the old-fashioned toons comfortably during the dead of night: the other corner held a toddler's bed, fit for a sleeping 8 ball of a princess. A loud one, but a princess nonetheless. Teagan hummed softly, walking over to her vanity and picking up her purse off her plush chair. "A full 3 and a half hours of just us time? Sounds heavenly." She giggled, wrapping her arms around him. It was sweet, the thought of being alone for what felt like a while.

Didn't last long though, for halfway through their starters and a heated kiss they were interrupted by a panicked Astro on the phone with faint crying in the background. "Please come back, she's been crying for 15 minutes now. I'm sorry, I just d-don't know what to do to calm her." He exclaimed, stumbling over his words as he tried to shush her in the background. Both parents sighed, chuckling to themselves. At least they had some time without a child shrieking their ears off.

Still, they trusted Cosmo and Sprout. Plus, Toodles loved their pastries and loved watching them bake them even more, so she wasn't at risk of getting bored and wandering off. With a final forehead kiss, she moved away and into the elevator beside Rodger. The two waved Toodles goodbye as they and the rest of their run team descended down. Toodles watched the elevator go down, before looking up at the food couple behind her. "Can we make brownies?" She asked with child curiosity, swaying her arms side to side. Cosmo chuckled, picking her up with a soft nod. "Course Toodles, we just gotta change first. Can't bake in our pajamas, can we?" 

Sprout set the bowl down on the counter, wiping his forehead with the back of his gloved hand. Beside him worked Toodles and Cosmo, who were weighing out the ingredients required for it. It was cute to see them both struggling to get near the exact amount, removing and adding the specific ingredient in a cycle until it was 'close enough' for them. "you guys having fun over there?" He teased, resting his chin on the pastry's shoulder with a soft sigh and giving him a cheek kiss. Or he tried to, but Cosmo moved his head to look down at a struggling Toodles. Cosmo then huffed and swatted at his boyfriend's face in annoyance, a pissed expression on his soft face. It was always funny to see Cosmo angry, and his lips flipping into a pout that made Sprout fold. But now that it was directed at him, he wasn't enjoying it as much as usual. "Having the time of my life." He groaned in monotone, before swapping it out for a cheek attitude to joke with Toodles who yawned in boredom. Sprout felt the same, nothing was going on. They'd spent 5 minutes on half the ingredients, and he was stuck on the sidelines to watch the other two. It wasn't fair how Toodles was hogging Cosmo by being so purposefully slow with pouring and measuring. Was Toodles doing this on purpose? Because it sure felt like it with how slow she was moving. "Done! What's next? What's next!" She bounced up and down in Cosmo's arms, flaying her arms up and down.

"Next is to mix together the dry and wet ingredients in separate bowls. Sprout and you will do the dry and I'll do the wet." Cosmo smiled, pushing the measured dry ingredients towards them with a gentle nudge. Toodles accepted the bowl with a toothy smile and giggle before turning to Sprout with the fresh whisk from the cutlery drawer. Just as he reached to grab a fork for himself, she closed it on Sprout's finger with a smile that he swore had further intent then to be apologetic. If the strawberry could boot her, he would. Don't get him wrong, he liked all the toons (aside from Cosmo) equally, and only disliked Shrimpo for his own reasons. But damn was Toodles testing his patience by giving him a childish smug smirk whenever Cosmo was paying attention to her and not him.

"Uncle Sprout?"

He blinked out of his daydream, seeing a bowl of half-hazily thrown in dry ingredients, weakly mixed in with one another. "Can you help me mix please; the whisk is too heavy..." She gave a sad pout, upset at herself for not being useful. "Hey, don't worry. Course I'll help ya, that's my job. Grab the handle with one hand and I'll grab it with mine too." He instructed, ensuring she was holding the whisk before starting to mix. It was a tough job, with how dense the powdery ingredients were, but they got it well mixed in the end. Just in time, for Cosmo had finished mixing the wet ones and prepping a baking dish for later. "All done you two?" He smiled, getting two nods. "Great, then let's continue!" 

Toodles' eyes watched the brownies slowly rise as they baked in the oven, hypnotized by the sweet view of her creation baking before her very eyes. A few meters behind were Sprout and Cosmo, cuddled up in a nearby booth. "You couldn't wait till the heals were in the oven for affection?" He whispered, ruffling the strawberry's leaves with a smile that reflected his past annoyance but current contentment. The Swiss roll was aware of how impatient his boyfriend could be at times but today was different. Clingier than usual, at least to Cosmo. Was this normal? Who cared, Sprout wasn't directly hurting anyone, so it was fine. "Uncle Cossie, when are they gonna be done?" The child asked, facing the oven door. Cosmo rested his head on Sprout's shoulder, sighing softly in replica to Sprout an hour ago. "In about half an hour Tots, we just put them in. But when they're done, you can only have one since they're meant for the run team when they return."

"No promises!" She stuck her tongue out, kicking her legs before resuming her watching of the brownies rise in the tray.

Chapter Text

Flower shaped fairy lights twinkled around the two snoozing toons; a faint light source compared to the overhead light above them illuminating the space around them. It was cozy to them to just bask in each other's presence on days like this- days where no runs took place. No chores, no duties, no nothing- just relaxing and not worrying about anything. A sweet moment, really. "Cossie?" Dandy asked softly as he stirred awake, kissing the pastry's forehead as he looked down at his boyfriend sleeping in his lap. Cosmo just whined, shifting to be comfier. "What?" He whimpered, opening an eye to meet his gaze. Once hazelnut chocolate met leaf stem green, both parties smiled and shared a soft kiss, giggling after they separated. "I love you." The flower whispered, getting a whispered 'I love you too' back as they snuggled once again. How sw-

BUZZ

And off shut the power, plunging the room into darkness. "Ah great..." Dandy sighed, moving Cosmo closer to his chest. He knew of the pastry's fear of the dark caused by his first 'death' since the disappearance of the toon handlers, caused by a twisted clone of himself getting a sneak hit when he was searching for a machine during a blackout. He was already shaking in fear, clinging to Dandy despite being safe in his secret shop area. "Hey, it's ok. No twisteds here, just me and you." He kept whispering reassurances to his boyfriend, kissing his face over and over to try and calm him. It was working slightly, but he was still close to a panic attack. "Hey, Cosmo, hey look at me." He ordered, lifting Cosmo's chin to look up at him. Perhaps he could talk to Cosmo until he could up the brightness of his decorative fairy lights. Cosmo did as he was told, eyes clouded with tears that rolled down his chubby cheeks that Dandy loved to decorate with kisses and pecks. "Look into my eyes, just keep staring at them."

It worked for a bit, with Cosmo just looking him dead in the eyes. The flower wiped the tears off the other's cheeks and eyes, kissing them after. "Good job, you're doing great." He smiled, watching Cosmo's movements carefully. It was working, for his shoulders relaxed and he began to straighten. That was until his fairy lights flickered before turning off. What a great time for the batteries to die. This meant that all the progress Cosmo had made disappeared in an instant, making Cosmo panic and cling to Dandy once again. He just sighed, rubbing the other's back. Great, the two could barely see each other, so how was he supposed to calm him down?

⚠️SMUT STARTS HERE⚠️ 

That's when Dandy got an idea. One that didn't necessarily require the ability to see one another. "Cosmo." He said softly, leaning down to what his fingers felt to be Cosmo's ear. Cosmo traced Dandy's body to find his jaw, cradling it softly as he hiccupped.  "Do I have your consent?" He said in the same tone, directly into his ear so he could hear his question and not blatantly agree to something he didn't correctly hear. "y-yes..." He whispered back, trembling more than previously. He just wanted a distraction, something that drew his attention away from the black engulfing them.

Cosmo's breath hitched as something brushed his legs open, being turned to have his back pressed against Dandy's chest. He wanted to turn and face him again, scared to see the darkness face-first. But when his socks were slowly slide down to scrunch by his ankles and a hand slipped past the band of his shorts, he knew what Dandy had planned. He'd give Cosmo a distraction alright. "D-Dandy..." He whimpered breathlessly, closing his eyes and soaking in the soft thigh strokes, sliding his shorts down to join his socks. "Good boy... already so wet?" Dandy teased, kissing his lower jaw. "I've not even touched that high yet." Cosmo just whined again, jerking his hips up. When they landed back down, he felt Dandy's hard on press against his ass. "And you're already hard..." He teased back, giggling after. He was silenced by a hand brushing past his clothed pussy. "Brat, speaking out of turn." Dandy smirked, sliding his panties down and off onto the floor that his previous clothes had been discarded to. 

"J-Just touch me... it's your fault I'm riled up like this." He looked up at him, with half lidded eyes. His next sentence was cut off by a moan, caused by a finger rubbing his pussy lips. "Dandy, ngh..." He moaned before yelping at a sudden intrusion. The singular finger pumped in and out of him, sliding past glistening lips and being swallowed whole. Fuck, it felt so good. Another entered, and Cosmo nearly folded, twitching up into a semi-ball with his legs closing up. "No, no. Keep those beautiful legs open for me, I can't work if I have no access to it." With his free hand, he gently spread Cosmo's legs once more, continuing his fingering. Cosmo kept whining and whimpering, moaning on occasion when a particular spot was poked and prodded at as Dandy's careful fingers explored inside him. "D-Dandy... fuck...ah..g-gonna...nGH!" He began to squirm, a sinking tight feeling in the pit of his stomach as he was drawn closer to the edge. It was all too good, too pleasurable to resist-

Then it stopped.

Cosmo whined at the loss of stimulation, thrusting his hips up to chase the fingers slipping out of his core. "Back... please!" He begged, shaking his head back and forth. This drew a chuckle from Dandy, who turned Cosmo around to face him. "You want more?" He teased, rubbing Cosmo's clit with a smug smirk on his face. The Swiss roll swatted his hand away, clear of annoyance on his face. "Dandy, if you do not fuck me Im gonna-"

"AH!"

Something girthy pushed into him, causing his eyes to water and legs to squeeze close. "Fuck, Dandy!" He slapped the other, twitching softly. Dandy rubbed his cheek, pulling out. "Sorry, sorry... c-could you hit me again?" He whispered, face flushing. Excuse me, Cosmo though as he blinked at his boyfriend. Hit him? "Are you... into that?" He whispered, almost like it was a secret. In all fairness, they had never discussed anything close to this, only their boundaries. Perhaps it was time they did discuss their kinks. 

"Um...yeah, I guess. Is that a bad thing?" Dandy asked weakly, fidgeting and moving away from Cosmo in embarrassment. He'd never done anything like this before, so it was new to both of them. The pastry shook his head. "I wouldn't say so, it's just different than usual. But that doesn't mean you're not normal for having certain things that turn you on." He rubbed Dandy's cheek with a gentle touch. He then slapped it, waiting for the reaction. 

A groan.

"A-Again Cossie, please." Dandy begged, squealing at the sensation of being slapped again. The pain would change forms, now being harsh jerks of his cock by Cosmo's hand or nibbles at the tip. "Cossie, oh fuck... k-keep gOing!' The flower kicked a leg at the stimulation, a bead of pre-cum twitching onto Cosmo's lips. He groaned when the pastry licked it off before biting his tip, squeezing the rest of his length with an iron grip. It all felt amazing, burning hot and passionate. And it proceeded for five more minutes before Cosmo withdrew, dragging the pleasure he'd made with it. "Noooo..." Dandy whined, copying Cosmo's past actions of thrusting his hips up to present his aching cock to his boyfriend. Cosmo chuckled, shaking his head. "I wanna have my own fun too." And with that, he positioned his pussy above his lover's member, lowering himself onto it with slow practiced movements.

⚠️SMUT ENDS HERE⚠️ 

Cosmo nuzzled Dandy as his clothes were tugged back on, all clean and relaxed. The lights flickered on weakly, illuminating the shop are once more. "Thank god." Dandy sighed, rubbing the other's back. "I was outta distractions." Cosmo laughed at the joke, whacking his chest softly. "Hilarious. Now take us up, I wanna have a shower then nap."

Chapter Text

Goob whined as the brush bristles tugged through his tangled fur. "Scraps!! That hurts :(" He pouted, trying to move away from the pain, but was tugged back by the pull of a tail. "No. You're the one who asked for my help so you're gonna be grateful. I was having a lovely time with Yatta until you interrupted me for your 'date' prep." She complained, brushing all the knots she could find in her dear brother's fuzz. Her time was being wasted on some toon that probably would reject him again, and as much as she loved him, she was NOT going to deal with a sobbing Goob for the millionth time in God knows what. "Who's it with this time?" Scraps huffed. A few came to mind, like Shrimpo or Finn--

"Cosmo."

She paused, giving Goob enough time to escape the trap he set himself. Cosmo? He was a first-- usually the toon was the previously mentioned Finn trying to practice fishy pick-up lines or that stupid shrimp teasing the ever-living daylights out the poor craft. But the bakery of a Swiss roll? The pure embodiment of sugar wrapped up in chocolate; a walking representation of kindness and anxiety baked into a pastry. HIM? "Yeah! Actually, I think he asked me out..." Goob tapped a coloured claw against his fluffy chin, now distracted from the soft grooming of his fur that had resumed. How did it go down again, cause all he remember were cookies. Oo, and hugs.

Cosmo giggled with a hint of rosy on his star-decorated cheeks, holding out the tin of chocolate chip cookies with peanut butter that he baked fresh that morning for this occasion. "I-I was wondering if you'd, um I-I dunno, join me tonight for... dinner?" He smiled weakly, trembling ever so slightly as he waited for a response. Why should he be nervous? I mean, Goob was such a sweet guy, so even if he were to be rejected, he'd at least get a hug in exchange. And a hug was better than a laugh to the face and a bitter dismissal with a wave of a hand.

Goob tilted his head at the offering. Cookies, for him? And his favorite, nonetheless? He'd only been offered food when someone... no way. "Are you asking me out on a date?" He asked with shock in his tone and surprise in his widened eyes, eyeing the fidgeting pastry up and down for any hints or traces of sarcasm. Afterall, he was no stranger to this. "Um... y-yeah, i am...: He whispered, cheeks flushing further as he looked down into the tin- all of a sudden embarrassed to make eye-contact. His leg shook back and forth on the tip of his black pump flats against the kitchen floor, and he bit his bottom lip, tugging at some lip skin with his top teeth. None. He was being genuine. "Oh... OH! Yeah, I'd love to!" Goob threw his arms up into the air, swinging around in a few speedy circles before tugging Cosmo into a bone-crushing hug which made the old biscuit tin Cosmo had used as a container to crash to the floor with a clank. The sweet pastry chuckled, settling his face into the matted fur of the other's chest to hide further flushness in his face that began to creep down his neck. "Tonight." He started, looking up into heterochromia eyes of brown and blue. "Tonight, meet me at my room-- 5:30pm. Don't be late."

"No WAY!" Scraps tugged the brush down harshly, not paying attention and accidently pulling out a few tufts of blonde fur out her brother's shoulder. "Ow! Careful. And yeah, he did. That's why I wanna look good." Goob pouted once more, mumbling as he slunk down in his desk chair. "And I can't look good if I have bald patches from you pulling out my fur!" He complained, turning to face his siter who gave him a shrug. "I'm almost done anyways, then you'll be free." She stated, finishing off the last few detangling of his fuzz before stepping back to admire her handy work. She also positioned him to look into his mirror. "It looks great!" She smiled. "It looks static!" Goob frowned, trying to flatten his hair down. All that did was make his fuzz stand up straight. Great, just what he needed. "I'm gonna straighten it, don't worry." 

But once she did it, his fur was slightly crisp at the edges due to the heat of the straightener. "I look ridiculous!" He yelled, eyes watering. "Cosmo's gonna c-change his mind, and it's all y--" Scraps covered his mouth. "No, it's not my fault cause I'm gonna fix this. Just wait."

He waited alright. Two hours to be exact. And what he got was some brushed out flat fur that smelt of brownies. Fitting for Cosmo. "Duh, that's why I picked it. Now you look nice and cleaned up. You're welcome!" Scraps dusted her hands together as she watched her brother soak in her accomplishment of styling his fur. It looked great now, all smooth and fluffy without all the knots or shedding. "Thank you!" Goob hugged his sister tight, nuzzling his head into her chest. "You're gonna miss up your fur! But thanks." She chuckled, petting him softly. Sweetly, she kissed the top of his head. She loved her brother, and she wished him the best on his first authentic date. Speaking of which, when was it again? "Um, 5:30? I think that's when he said." Goob thought, pulling away to look at the clock. The digital clock on his wall read '5:24' in blazing indigo numbers. Shoot, he was going to be ate if he didn't leave now. "I gotta go sis, thank you!" He waved, rushing out his room to catch the elevator down to Cosmo's room. Scraps just sighed. "Bye... Good luck."

Cosmo tapped his foot against the birch floor of his bedroom floor, the only exposed part from under his like three-foot-long kitchenette inspired rug he got at Christmas. He wore something casual yet presentable-- a back band t-shirt slightly concealed by his normal white hoodie; his usual shorts but decorated with pearl chains attached to his belt loops; black thigh highs with white stars and sparkles littered on the fabric; worn out converses with funky mismatched neon coloured laces he re-laced months ago. Stylish in his opinion, but he could only hope Goob liked it. Not that he sought out his approval, he just wanted him to get a good first impression of him! What if he didn't, and he just made a fool of himself for dressing too normal? Now he had a bunch of anxious questions running through his head as he paced up and down past his bed. Maybe he could cancel and reschedule for a day he was more prepared? Or say he was sick, that worked for Sprout whenever he didn't want to bake after dinner. No, he couldn't do that to the poor toon, it was his choice to ask him out and he couldn't let him down. "C'mon Cosmo, be brave." He whispered over and over again like a mantra. 

He paused when he heard his door creak open, looking over to see a mass of well-tamed mane poking through the created crack. "I hope I'm not late..." The visitor pouted, fully entering the maximalist bedroom with awe in his wide eyes. Cosmo's room looked wonderful- jam packed full of items all of value to the baker that gave his room that special edge against other rooms Goob had seen. "I like your room." He said quickly, almost tripping over his words as if they were his untied shoelaces. The pastry nodded, sitting down on his bed. "Um, thanks. So, I had a dinner reservation at 6pm, is it ok if we, like, chill here until then?" Cosmo suggested with a murmur, embarrassed that he forgot to mention that when he initially asked the other out. 

"It's fine, I don't mind hanging out." Goob smiled, hugging Cosmo by the shoulders in assurance as he sat them down on the edge of the Swiss roll's plush bed. "SO... what's your favorite kinda pastry?" He asked, trying to make conversation. There weren't that many topics to talk about-- the two weren't the closest of friends prior to this date Cosmo set up. However, it was only a few seconds after that Goob realized what question he just asked-- you stupid craft, Cosmo's a pastry, why would he have a favorite?! "sorry, you don't have to-"

"I enjoy croissants... and shortbread biscuits, but those aren't really pastries." Cosmo smiled softly, tilting his head at his date. "What about you, Goob?"

If he could say chocolate Swiss roll, he would. But that'd be creepy, and he didn't wanna creep Cosmo out-- no, not when the date was going so well (despite it only being a few minutes long at the moment). "I-I like pain au Chicolas...croissants too." He gulped, looking away. The other just smiled, oblivious to the dirty thoughts running through his date's head. 

"Welcome to The Diner, I will be your server." A fashionably dressed up toon smiled, his luscious forest green hair tied up and out of his rosy soft face-

"Sprout, we know it's you." The two said in unison, giggling as they realized this. Sprout, on the other hand, just huffed and rolled his eyes. "Whatever, just tell me what you want." That joyful attitude gone and replaced with a bored tone. "I'll have the... this is a kid's menu." Cosmo complained to his best friend/waiter with an annoyed expression. An expression that was mimicked by the one being talked to. "Just order before I cancel your table." The strawberry warned with squinted eyes. Cossie held his hands up defensively. "Ok, ok! I'll have the dinosaur nuggets with a side of peas and mac & cheese... please."

Sprout jotted that down before turning to the far politer toon currently seated at the booth. "And for you, mousier?" He poshly asked with a twirl of the ends of his leaves which made Goob chuckle. "The mini cheeseburger with lettuce and onions please, and BBQ sauce with the fries." He ordered softly, watching the waiter write that down before trudging off to the kitchen. 

"Sorry about him... I-I didn't expect him to show up." The nervous pastry apologized with a soft smile, offering his hand to the other. Goob took the hand and scratched his palm affectionally: an attempt to comfort and remove any embarrassment from earlier. "It's fine, it was kinda funny to be honest." A laugh escaped the craft, kissing Cosmo's hand. "Now, tell me a little more about yourself."

The date was fantastic! 

Both parties had a splendid time, and all that needed to be done now was the goodbye. Cosmo and Goob both exited the diner floor, riding the elevator together until the rare room floor. "I had a great time with you tonight, Cosmo. Could we set up another one for this Saturday? 6:00pm, at my place for movie night." He offered with a smile and an outstretched claw. The pastry gave a gentle one back, taking the hand with a nod and yelping at the tug into a kiss.

"Sounds like a date then." Goob smirked, pulling away before leaving to go to his room. Cosmo could only watch as the elevator doors closed and began to descend again towards his floor. Oh, how glad he was he shot his shot with Goob.

Chapter Text

A soft breeze blew into Glisten's room through the open window, brushing against his bare skin as he finished cleaning his glass. Perfect, as he was meant to be. The weather outside reflected how he felt: sunshine and clear skies with no trace of clouds for miles on end. "Glisten!" A voice called with a few knocks on his door, and he sighed as he was pulled out of the immersion of his beauty treatment. "What?" He spat with venom lacing the word, hoping that the unwanted visitor took a clue and fucked off. Which he thought they did-- given the silence that now greeted him-- but no, instead this asshole poked their head in. A sweet yet nervous gaze met his, as he now faced the door. Soft hazelnut gems stared into him before stammering out a question. "I just wanted to know if you wanted to join me in baking... cause Sprout's busy and I don't wanna do it alone."

Such simple words, so simple that if they were asked of him by another toon, he'd have laughed right in their face before dismissing them with a mere wave of his hand. But Cosmo? He was special, on his level-- which was unusual for Glisten to say but Cosmo didn't pry on him or snoop or make stupid jokes and shit at him. No, he respected him and treated him like a normal toon, not like some god like the others did. "Oh no dear, I didn't realize it was you! Come, sit sit." He rushed to his bed and patted the spot beside him, any poisonous intent from before replaced with softness. And Cosmo sat after he entered and shut the door carefully behind him, mindful of the silk curtain Glisten used as a shield between him and the poor. 

"I'd love to bake with you, but I'm not sure how to without ruin to my glass or outfit. Afterall, batter can get quite messy, or so I've heard... and seen," Glisten blinked at the memory of witnessing the two covered in the brownie batter and giggling to themselves as if they weren't. It was cute, but far too messy to be excused. Although, maybe seeing Cosmo covered in icing would be interesting-

He was unfortunately broken out of the daydream by Cosmo, who was giving some solutions to preventing a mess from occurring. A few solutions that Glisten could pick out were for him to wear a full body suit or a large apron. Which would work in h=theory, but he didn't want to hide his perfection from the pastry. "I know you don't want to hide it, Glisten, but we can't have our cake and eat it too." Cosmo joked, eyes closing as he laughed. He always did it unconsciously, and it was adorable when the edges of his eyes would crease to show his happiness. "I suppose so... oh well then, I'll be extra careful to not stain my clothes." The mirror compromised-- better to show off his beauty then hide it. And that was all the Swiss roll needed to lead them both to the kitchen, all prepped with ingredients and tools for what they needed. 

Last time he attempted to bake was back before his crush on Cosmo, and he did it with Sprout. Alone.

"Crack the eggs, but DON'T put it straight in, we gotta separate the egg yolk and whites." Sprout ordered, sternly staring Glisten down to ensure he would follow his instruction this time. He'd been doing his best, but apparently looking and acting perfect isn't enough for this stupid strawberry. "Yes, yes Sprout. I know what I'm doing." He rolled his eyes as he cracked the egg and balanced the yolk into one half. Perfectly split. Then, with a smug smirk, put in the yolk into the mixture. "You were supposed to put in the egg WHITES in not the YOLK!" Sprout pulled his leaves in frustration, hitting the counter with a fist. Sheesh, no need to be so aggressive. 

The bowl was seized from him and dumped into the trash harshly with a frown and annoyed muttering. "Now we gotta restart, and that's a perfect waste of products. Cosmo's gonna kill me too, and then--"

"Relax, Darling." Glisten sighed himself, tired of this down mood Sprout was in currently. "I can talk to Cosmo later, now let's just restart. He'd be madder if we take forever to make these goodies then using two loads of ingredients."

Cosmo tied his apron on tight, ensuring the knot was tight before turning to Glisten who was struggling to tie his on properly. "Would you like some help?" He offered; hands held out in double offer. On one hand, Glisten didn't want to accept help-- he was perfect and therefore needed no help with something so mundane; on the other hand, he could have some fun with this. "Alright but be careful. It's on you if I crack." He joked, elbowing Cosmo before he went behind him and tied the spare apron around the mirror until it stayed on securely. "All done. Now, let's begin!"

"First, we need to mix in the dry and wet ingredients. I'll do the wet, and you the dry- since it's less likely to get you all stained." Cosmo smiled, pushing the bowls of dry produce one by one to Glisten, who stopped them from going any further than him. This shouldn't be too hard; it's just dry stuff he had to mix. "Thank you, Hun." He grabbed Cosmo by the hand and kissed the back of it before staring down the ingredients. With a graceful hand, he poured each measured one into the larger bowl in front of him, before stirring them into one powdery concoction.

Looking over, he saw Cosmo carefully separating the egg yolk from some egg whites. His little rosy tongue stuck out in concentration was absolutely adorable, and Glisten couldn't help but poke it with a finger. "Glisten, can you not?" Cosmo paused to glance at the other out the corner of his eye. The mirror kept poking, despite it no longer being stuck out. So, Cosmo ignored it and finished the wet mixing, dragging over the dry bowl and pouring it in to mix together.

"All done!" Cosmo wiped his forehead with the back of his gloved right hand as the brookies they spent so hard making began to bake in the oven. His helper rested against the counter, checking his nails out of boredom. Baking was fun, but now waiting was a game he didn't wish to play. "How long will they take?" The mirror asked, resting his head on the pastry's shoulder and hands on the pudge of his stomach. 

With a head pat, he assured the other that it won't be longer than half an hour. That was still far too long. So, Glisten decided to mess with Cosmo-- just a little, not too much. "Oh Cossie." He purred, pressing quick, peppered kisses on his jaw up to the corner of his eye. "I'm bored, darling, and you've got to deal with it." Instead of shoving him away, like Glisten was expecting, the Swiss roll leaned into the kisses with soft giggles leaving him. "That tickles!" He laughed, swatting in fake attempt to brush Glisten off of him, but in reality, he didn't mind one bit. Taking advantage of this just a little, he kissed the other's lips. Plump and soft against his own, it felt like heaven-- no level of perfection could replace this euphoric feeling. 

"Hey, have you guys seen Cosmo?" Sprout asked as he fiddled with the strings at the end of his scarf. The toons he questioned shook their heads but offered a few possible locations the Swiss roll might be at. Too bad he already checked those areas and was met with no traces of his best friend. Damn what's a strawberry gotta do to find his baking buddy-- sell a kidney or something?! And as if his luck couldn't get any worse, he smelt something burning. Wait, burning? That might be Cosmo-- God, why didn't he check there in the first place? With newfound vigour, he sprinted to the elevator and spammed the kitchen floor until his finger ached. When it reached his desired floor, he ran as fast as his spindly legs could carry him to the kitchen, where a thick string of smoke pummeled out from the cracks of the closed door.

"COSMO-"

It was certainly a sight in the kitchen, to say the least.

Disheveled toons, one Cosmo and the other Glisten, with their limbs intertwined. Mouths sloppily on one another, exchanging kisses, and hands held different parts of the opposite's body: a golden hand on the pastry's waist; dark chocolate hands crossed at the wrists behind the mirror's neck. The shorter toon was sat up against the counter, socks slid down to bunch at his ankles and shorts close to sliding off to join the thigh highs below; the taller had his bow strings loose around his waist, his bow at an angle due to it, and his leg warmers had slipped to cover his shoes. In short, they were a mess.

"WHAT THE-"

"Please, I-It wasn't what it looked like!" The flushed pastry tried to reason, now that he was able to. They'd diffused the fire by now, the culprit being their over-baked and burnt goodies that caught alight within the oven. But since there was no danger now, Sprout took this as an opportunity to interrogate the two on what he witnessed prior. Whilst Cosmo tried to deny it all, Glisten just added fuel to the fire by licking the other's frosting or kissing the star freckles he adorned.

Safe to say, Sprout knew what he saw. And planned to spread it around-- once he got Cosmo to confess of course.

Chapter Text

"Gigi, this isn't funny. Give me my charger!" Vee demanded, an electric hand held out towards a smirking gacha capsule who hid within a locked bedroom surrounded by other 'treasures' she found. "Finder's keepers, loser's weepers!" She teased through the wood, pocketing the charger she had found in the Gardenview lobby when returning from a run. No matter what she found, she kept it-- even if it was life depending to someone. Not the best of her, but her need to steal overpowered any rationality she should have. "I swear to god... Look, I don't have enough power for this, I'll give you a shit ton of stuff if you give me my charger back." The tv tried to bargain, but who was she kidding- Gigi would rather keep her charger then have whatever promised items she didn't even have to offer. 

Silence before the door opened and the thick black charging cord was stuck through it. Vee sighed, taking a hold of it and tugging, expecting an easy release. But no, instead she began playing tug-of-war with her lifeline. "Let. Go." She hissed, tugging harshly in an attempt to get it back. It was let go, snapping into her face and whacking her screen. "OW! You little-" Vee was ready to square up, but a soft hand stopped her. Cosmo, who had a concerned expression on his face, held her back to question her. He was told the previous events and could only let out a sigh. If his counting was correct, this was the seventh time today that Gigi had stolen something from another toon. It was getting out of hand, even for her.

Cosmo searched drawer and drawer for his bracelet, sweat dripping down his forehead. He can NOT have lost it, cause if he did, Sprout was gonna serve him as tonight's dessert. They had shared them for years- like since they first met. So, you could see how important it was to him to have it. "C'mon... How's it not here?!" He hissed to himself, slamming it shut and falling onto his bed in a huff. Great, he thought, I have no bracelet for tonight and will most likely have no head either. What was a pastry to do?

That's when an idea hit him- maybe someone else had it. But who, though? Sprout-- no, he'd have come storming in with it, blabbing on about how he was careless and not paying attention to something on his person. Astro-- no, he always returned his items after their astrology lessons, like when forgot his hoodie in Astro's room during a summer session. No one else came to mind, for he didn't do anything with anyone else today. Though, now that he thought about, he did do a run this morning with some other toons.

And Gigi.

Great.

Huffing to himself, he made his way to the elevator, taking the grueling ride up to the required floor. God, he did not feel like talking to her right now, but he had no choice, unless he wanted to be served on a silver platter in a few hours. But what if she didn't have it, and he did truly lose it during the run-- then he'd just be wasting his time. 

When the doors dinged open, he exited and proceeded to search for the specific room he required. This wasn't difficult to find, for her door was decorated with random objects like wrappers and crushed boxes that were attached on the cherry red painted wood. Ok Cosmo, you can do this. Just knock on the door, not even twice, once is enough, and ask. So, once he gained enough courage in the moment, he gave the door five speedy knocks before withdrawing his hand quickly, as if the wood burnt his skin. 

"Yeah?" A tired gacha capsule peeked out the room, her capsule popped open a little to reveal a pillow lazily stuffed into it. "Oh, hey Cosmo. Thought you were someone else. What'cha need?"

The pastry hummed softly, trying to peek around her for any traces of his bracelet. "I think I lost my bracelet when we went on the morning supply run, and I was wandering if you might have found it?" He tried to explain clearly what he wanted without being too obvious, since if he wanted it back, he needed to be smart about this. Instead of teasing him for it, she just shrugged and went back in, before returning with his friendship bracelet spinning on her index finger. "Ya mean this?" She asked to double check, slipping it to him once she got the nod she was looking for.

Then she slinked back to her room, just like that. It was easy, too easy, he thought. Maybe she was going to use it against him the future for a favour. Or as blackmail against Sprout.

"Cossie... Coooosmo."

He blinked a few times, a strawberry freckled face almost against his in proxemics which made him jump backwards and bump into a counter edge. "Jesus Sprout, you scared me." Hand to his heart, he sighed and turned to face the object he collided with. The counter had a bowl of half-mixed cookie dough with a spatula stuck in it, trying to mix some milk chocolate chips and birthday cake sprinkles into it. "Sorry, but you ok?" The strawberry asked with concern lacing his words, a hand rubbing the other's arm softly. Cosmo nodded, grabbing a hold on the spatula he left unattended during his daydreaming session. He didn't wanna tell his best friend about how he'd been thinking about another toon-- no, that's far too embarrassing for him to admit. "Just a bit tired..." He lied, rubbing an eye to try and prove his point of exhaustion.

And it worked, for Sprout left him alone after that. Phew, he avoided that without much trouble.

Gigi wiped her eyes harshly, to the point where her eyes stung from more than just the flow of tears escaping her currently. God, she was so stupid for taking more then she could store, and getting caught as a result. She laughed at herself, how selfish of her to care more about being caught then losing her best friend. What did she do, you wonder?

"Gigi, what the fuck?!"  Connie shrieked as she flew off her bed, where a thieving Gigi was digging under the mattress for something, anything, that she could find. She quickly moved out of her compressed hidey hole, frowning as she knelt on the carpet of the ghost's room. "I-I'm sorry Cons, but Shrimpo said-" Connie interrupted her, yelling about how she'd believe- "That stupid shrimp over your own best friend! I told you I didn't have anything to hide, but nooo, apparently, we don't trust each other anymore!" Connie's eyes watered in betrayal, turning to face away from the guilty capsule sat close to sulking on her floor. "Get out. Get the FUCK out!" She yelled, tears flying off her face in anger and hurt.

She shouldn't have trusted him, and now she was truly alone. Everyone who used to associate with her had left, afraid of being robbed/pick-pocketed when they hung out. Her gambling habit was also out of order, I mean she'd do it every time her cooldown reached zero. The thrill of a new item being fetched from her head was just too good to lose. So in exchange, she lost her friends... 

A knock broke her out her sobbing, only slightly as she kept crying whilst going to open the door. Drying her eyes quickly, she peeked out the door to see a soft pastry face holding a tray of lunch, which consisted of a jacket potato smothered in tuna mayo with a side of peas. "Lunch is served Gigi... woah, are you ok, you look like you're crying." Cosmo acknowledged gently, lowering the plate to see her better. It was true, she looked a wreck with tears still dripping down her reddening face. 

"I'm fine... cheers-" She took the plate and quickly went to close the door but was stopped by a boot. Looking back at the pastry, the capsule blinked weakly. All she wanted to do was hide away and rethink everything she's done up until now. And currently, this little baker was in her way. "Gigi, I can tell something's up with you. How about I come in, I'm worried..." He smiled softly, trying to reflect the true concern he felt for her. "F-Fine." With a soft sigh, she accepted his offer, holding her door open more for him.

Inside, her room was a disorganized mess. Every surface that could hold something had at least 20 different objects balanced on it, a few spilling over and onto the covered ground. Clothes were sprinkled everywhere, like when Cosmo decorates his cupcakes, and draped over every piece of furniture she owned. "Sit wherever you want, I don't care..." The capsule waved a hand dismissively, sitting on her bed and setting the plate onto her lap. It smelt lovely and warm, something she craved at a time like this. "Thanks for the lunch, by the way."

Cosmo nodded, eyeing up the room. He was seated upon what he suspected was a bean bag, but it was so covered in stolen blankets and clothes that he couldn't tell anymore. "No worries... you, um, got a lot of stuff in here, don't you?" He tried to make small talk, fidgeting with his hoodie strings as he did so. He got no verbal response, just a nod for she was eating a forkful of potato and tuna. Tisha must have a meltdown every time she comes to clean, huh? Either that or she just doesn't clean it, to avoid the agony it'd bring her.

"Soo... How have things been?" Cosmo asked with anxiety in his words-- if he wanted to get to the bottom of her tears, he had to ask questions. Only trouble was, if she wasn't going to answer them then it would be futile to do so. Luckily for him, Gigi answered with a weak 'ok' and brief glance at him. Better than nothing, he thought triumphantly before thinking of some more questions that would get him answers but not pressure the capsule too much. "Anything interesting happen recently?"

That struck a nerve, since her eyes began to water again and drip onto her food and plate. Cosmo began to panic, rushing over to wipe her eyes without a second thought. "H-Hey, I'm sorry, i didn't mean to make you cry!" He yelped, moving her dish away to give her a hug; a hug that she melted into, sobbing into his shoulder more. Sobs racked her trembling body, her hands clung to every part of Cosmo they could grip. "I'm a terrible friend!" She cried out, the sound pure and agonizing to the ears, whilst her eyes glanced up at her shoulder she was crying on. She'd expected to be pushed away or laughed at, but instead she was hugged tightly and had her back rubbed. 

"Could you, um, tell me what's wrong?" 

If Cosmo had issues, Gigi overshone him like Glisten does on show day. I mean, it was kind of her fault that she had so many but now was not the time to shame her. On a brighter side, she was calm enough to talk properly, so he took it as a chance to ask her what happened. A chance that Gigi used to vent all her problems and their causes once more to him. When she was done, Cosmo just blinked back into focus. "It seems like most of those spawn from your, uh, gambling and stealing. Maybe we could... try to tone it down?" He suggested whilst still rubbing her back, and now shoulder, gently to calm her more.

Somehow, simply telling the capsule to 'tone it down' seemed to work. Over the next few days, people started finding their stolen stuff resting at their room doors or sitting on their bed. No one knew what prompted this, but the return of their possessions was too good to think deeper as to why. One toon knew, tough, and he didn't plan on spilling that secret to anyone. He wanted to keep his new friend after all, and gossiping about her wasn't a good way to do that.

Chapter Text

Connie rubbed her hands as she watched her next victim in silence, ready to scare the unsuspecting toon below. She loved to prank and scare her fellow 'friends', to see their frightened faces when she jumps on them and how they flinch away on fear of an attack. Such bliss, to her anyways. To the pranky, though-- oh they HATE when she does it, but that wasn't gonna deter her, now was it? Nothing can stop Connie's scares! (Ok, bit cringy, but moving on).

"BOO!" She screamed, leaping down upon Tisha's shoulders and slightly shoving her forward. The tissue box screamed back, flicking her feather duster backwards to whack the intruder to her cleaning, hitting the ghost square in the face. "Ouch. Damn tistis', you got good aim." The prankster tried to joke, but only received another whack, this time to the head. Tisha began to scold her, spouting on about how she shouldn't scare anyone like that or else they could cause her harm, or worse harm themselves, and how lucky she was that nothing too bad happened as a result of her actions. It took all herself control to not roll her eyes at the scolding, God was this tissue box annoying sometimes. "Hey, are you even listening?!" Tisha scolded once more, pinching Connie's tail end to emphasize her point. She yelped before going invisible, zipping away to flee from the annoyed cleaner. That was not worth it to get yelled at and now her tail ached. 

Maybe she could scare someone else, like Toodles or... Cosmo! Yeah, he'd be perfect-- anxious like Astro but not as powerful to retaliate physically, and shy like Boxten but not too shy to freeze up. With newfound determination, she flew to the kitchen, spying in to see the perfect time to strike on her new scare victim.

Cosmo stirred the dough happily, humming a soft tune he couldn't put his finger on but knew from somewhere. Today had been amazing, starting off with him waking up at an early time and being productive since! First, he got at least two loads of laundry done; he cleaned his room entirely, to the point where it looked like Tisha had done it instead of him; a good number of dishes were prepared for the day runs and currently, he was in the process of making any addition heals for the evening runs. Sprout was cooking lunch consisting of cheddar mac & cheese with garlic bread in the other kitchen, so he was left to make all the sweets alone. No problem, he loved baking more than cooking anyways.

A snarky giggle came from above him, so he looked towards to find- nothing. Weird, he swore he heard something. Must've been his imagination, I mean he has been baking in silence after all, so he was bound to hallucinate noises sooner or later. But, when he heard it again, his mind couldn't chalk it up to auditory hallucinations no more. Someone was here and hiding from him- to mess with him most likely. All he had to do now was identify who it was. Connie came to mind quickly-- she was stealthy and loved pranking others when bored, so she fit like a glove in this case. 

Just as she went to pounce on him, the pastry turned around and smiled both softly and cheekily at the stunted ghost. "Morning Connie! Or maybe afternoon. I don't know what time it is, but hello regardless!" He greeted with glee and a toothy smile that threw Connie off her track. This was certainly not what she was expecting something so... nice in response to her trying to jumpscare him. "Oh, fuck. Um, hi Cosmo. What'cha, uh, doing?" Just try to play it cool, Cons, and maybe he'll think you just wanted a chat. She couldn't tell if it worked immediately (Cosmo wasn't that stupid after all) but she had hope that he'd give her a second chance. "Well, Sprout's on lunch duty so I'm stuck on baking heals alone. It's a bit of a struggle-- Wait, I just got a great idea!" He clapped his gloved hands in excitement. "Why don't you help me? You could grab the ingredients in the high cupboards."

And that she did. It was easy enough, flying up to the needed shelf and fetching whatever the pastry required and waiting until she was wanted, but it was so boring she was considering vanishing just to escape this fate. So what was stopping her? This stupid, burning gut feeling every time Cosmo would flash her a smile in thanks and slightly graze her fingertips when exchanging the item, she'd grabbed just for him. Stupid, she knew, but sometimes you couldn't help it. "Connie, could you pass me some honey-- that nice brand, from the top shelf." He asked politely, clasping his hands together for an additional effect on the ghost. Cosmo was aware of his looks, and he used that to his advantage whenever he could. 

Huffing, she flew up to the required shelf before grabbing the jar Cosmo wanted with an aggressive hand. Unfortunately, because of how aggressive she'd been snatching it, it slipped out her hands and down below, where it proceeded to shatter on Cosmo's head. He let out a yelp of pain, shards of glass sticking into both his frosting and head, and honey dripped onto his forehead and face alongside a mix of runny icing and blood that covered his drooping starry freckles. "Oh shit-- Cosmo, I'm so sorry!" She apologized over and over as she hurried down and attempted to help him by slowly pulling a few bloodied shards out. 

All that did was cause the pastry more pain, whimpering and pleading for the ghost to stop-- which she did with an apologetic frown. God, she was such an idiot, now look at what she'd done-

"C-Could you get me a medkit?" He whined through the pain, trying to catch the blood that dripped down his cheeks to prevent it from getting on the kitchen tiles. It only took a minute before Connie returned with a medkit as well as some cloth. "Let me tend to it, k?" She stated, leaving little to no room for argument- Cosmo chose not to and just hope the pain would go away soon enough.

"Done. Feeling better?" Connie gently wiped the last remaining blood off Cosmo's face using a wet tea towel, cringing at the dried stains on the other's face. He looked a mess. The once perfectly piped icing was a distant memory, now only a thin melted line upon his head; star freckles were messy on his cheeks, a few even missing and residing in the towel Connie had used to clean him up; blood stained his apron like a syrup, galaxy dark on the cream; little slices were sprinkled on the top of his head, poorly stitched closed before covered in gauze. 

A soft hiss came from her at the sight, but she didn't say anything about it. "I'm sorry Cosmo, I did-" She began, but a hand stopped her from talking further. "It's ok, y-you were just trying to help and d-do as I asked you to. Could you, um, take me to m-my room though?" He smiled weakly, still in pain but not as much as he was before. All the pastry wanted to do now was sit in bed and sleep-- he'd deal with Sprout after a nap. Connie nodded and carefully led him to his room. "I'm still really sorry, it's all my fault you're hurt." She frowned, eyes watering. Shit, she's gonna cry now-

Cosmo hugged her, ignoring the tingle of pain he felt in his head from it. "I told you, it's fine. Plus, you've made it up to me by patching me up-- if you didn't feel bad then you'd have just let me do it myself or even left me there." He smiled, wiping her tears with shaking hands. His touch was like silk on her skin, soft and comforting. Cosmo was so sweet, despite all the shit she'd done to him. Maybe that's why he was a neutral toon-- no grudges or enemies, just a caring toon. Caring to everyone.  Even her. 

"Rest well, ok? And, um, call me if you need." She set a torn lined piece of notebook paper with her room and floor number scribbled out on it onto his bedside before drifting slowly towards the door whilst she watched the pastry and his reaction to what she said. All he did was hum in acknowledgement and settle into his mattress and pillow. "G-Get better soon... Cossie."

Chapter Text

Knocking stirred the sleepy pastry out of his nap, lifting his head up and weakly muttering a 'come in' to the visitor. The door creaked open, allowing a beam of light to shine in and reveal a flower standing in his own pajamas in his doorway. "Cossie... you awake?" He whispered as he leaned into the room, the light from outside still shining in and disturbing the pastry's beauty sleep. "I am now. What do you want?" He whispered back, rolling onto his side to face his boyfriend at his bedroom door. When he said Dandy could come to his room whenever, the dead of night was not a suggested time. Still, he couldn't kick his partner out, so held open the blanket for the other to crawl under- which he did once the door was closed and locked. A few snuggles were exchanged until their limbs were tangled within one another's, and kisses were passed back and forth as if they were love notes.  "Why'd you come?" The sleepy pastry asked, mouth resuming its weak kisses after the question as spoken to the equally exhausted other. Truth be told, Dandy didn't know why he came to his boyfriend's room-- he hadn't had a nightmare or difficulty sleeping, so really he had no reason to have done what he did. But he wasn't going to pass up the opportunity to be with his beloved. 

"Mgh, dandy..." Cosmo whined, using a leg to push the other away as he unconsciously grinded against the other during his daydream. "Stop." The flower didn't listen, not fully anyways, and slowly kept grinding against the pastry's leg with a soft sigh. He didn't mean too, but he couldn't help the need to try and calm his growing erection caused by the adorable baker that laid in a pair of loose strawberry pajamas that announced his curves to whoever laid their eyes on him. God was he gorgeous. Dandy was a lucky toon indeed. 

The flower pecked at his lover, increasing his grinding. "Baby, please..." He whined, turning the other's face towards his own, eyeing him with a lustful gaze. How could he not get horny around Cosmo- he was just so sexy...

Cringy, he knew, but he wasn't saying this out loud, was he? No, it was his own thoughts that he kept to himself. Now, stop thinking about you thinking, Dandy scolded himself before kissing Cosmo's jaw. "Please? It's ok if you say no, but..." He pressed his grown erection into the other's bare thigh through his pajama trousers to heighten his arousal. Cosmo sighed, sliding his shorts down a little alongside his panties. "Ok dear." He chuckled before moaning softly as a knee making contact with his core.

Cosmo sunk into the bath, suppressing a gag that tried to creep up his sore throat. He's been feeling so sick for days now and nothing they knew of fit the bill. The cold- no, he didn't have a fever high enough to be a strain of it... that was about as many illnesses his baker mind could think of. Brightney told him to come for a check-up once in a while or if he feels worse, but even she hasn't deduced what he's caught. For now, he wasn't going to dwell on it and instead focus on taking a nice, warm bath full of bubbles and a bath bomb Sprout got him for Secret Santa. Was it Christmas? No, far from it, and this bath bomb was most likely out of date, but Cosmo didn't care. All he wanted to do was just enjoy the bath bomb his best friend got him. Nothing. Else. He was mostly telling his jumpy stomach that, for he didn't want to puke into his perfectly curated bath. 

Blech. 

No, no hold that shit in. It was creeping up the back of his throat like a burning slug, hot and scorching on the sore skin. He wanted to puke so bad, but he was determined not to. Be strong and swallow it down. Bitter acid is what it tasted like the most, alongside thick and clunky. He couldn't decide which was grosser-- puking as a whole or how it felt on its travels back to his emptying stomach. "God..." He shuddered, sinking into the rippling water with a sigh. "What is wrong with me...?"

Towel wrapped around his plump frame, he made his way to his bed to lay nude in, sinking almost immediately into the mattress. His bath got ruined by his nausea, it was NOT about to ruin his power nap. Ever since he got 'diagnosed', he was prescribed a daily dose of sleep for 4 hours without interruption before taking some bullshit pills he can't pronounce the name of to help calm his tummy. Did it work- no, not really, but laying down on his front settled his stomach a little. A knock at his door disrupted him, letting out a soft whine towards the door. "Who?"

"Just me, baby..." 

Looking up, Cosmo saw some bright petals poke through the small crack of the opened door and smiled weakly. "Dandy...hii." He lazily purred, rolling onto his side and whimpering at the pain it caused to shoot through his body. "Hey Cossie. Feeling any better?" He asked, sitting beside the lounging pastry roll and petting the dry top of his head which now lacked the classic strip of whipped cream his partner decorated the top of his head with daily. All he got was a shake of the head and a hum. "Feel worse, if that's possible." Cosmo giggled before letting out a whine and weak gag. 

Dandy frowned at that and rubbed the other's back with a gentle hand meant to sooth the sick sweet on the bed. "So the pills ain't working, huh?" He had a hunch they wouldn't be any help, they were just general prescription drugs Brighteny shoved out of her ass and promised improvement to a desperate toon. After all, it's all they had in terms of drugs, so it wasn't fully her fault.

Cosmo hummed weakly, rolling closer to his boyfriend and nuzzling him for warmth and comfort. "They work as well as they can. Numbs it a little but--" Those were as many words as Cosmo could let out before gagging so loudly it made that flower flinch in surprise. As fast as the shorter toon's legs could carry him, he sprinted for a bucket and shoved it into Cosmo's face, who proceeded to puke up the rest of his depressing lunch hours earlier into the bottom of the metal container. "ugh..." 

"This can't be normal..." Cosmo rubbed his stomach, which was now too round to be normal. Maybe he'd been eating too much again- but then he'd puke it up before it could digest properly. He'd tried asking Brightney about it but even she was stumped to what this was. He'd even asked Sprout for advice, but all he said was that it could be a food baby. So helpful, Cosmo thought as he tugged his shirt down and went back into the main bedroom where Dandy waited for him on the bed in his plain green and white pj's. "What took you so long?" 

The pastry shrugged, sitting beside the other with a sigh. "Just... staring. It's too round to be weight gain, I've done it before and it's been pudge, not firm." He rubbed his face, free of the star freckles as he had washed his face. Dandy reached out a hand and rubbed Cossie's tummy softly. "It is firm. You don't think it's... y'know."

"It's what?"

Dandy shrugged weakly. "A food baby...w-without the food?"

Cosmo tensed, turning his head slowly to make eye contact with the anxious flower. "...What?"

Yep, Dandy was right. After digging around the pharmacy area, they found an old and unused pregnancy test with a layer of dust on the cardboard packaging. Neither knew where it was from, but Cosmo used it and...

"Two lines. Ok, ok..." This was fine, they could handle a kid. Who was he kidding, he didn't even know toons could have kids in the first place! He could barely handle looking after shit in the oven, now he had to look after one in his own?!

A firm hand was placed on his shoulder, snapping him out of the thought frenzy he was in. "Hey. We got this." Dandy smiled, moving the hand to rub the stressed toon's back. 

"...I-I hope so." Cosmo smiled weakly. 

"That's all we can do."

Chapter Text

Streams of moonlight filtered through the half-closed blinds of Astro's window and directly into his blank slate of a face. What a way to wake up, huh? It wasn't even the next day, the time only being 11:23pm. He only fell asleep, if you could call it that, an hour or so ago with a heavy mind, so it was no wonder he was up so soon. Still, it frustrated him severely-- He was the sleep toon, the one others sought out for dream aid-- yet he couldn't put himself to sleep. Sad. "Ugh, screw it." Astro hissed under his breath, sitting up before pushing himself out his bed.. As it was the summer, he wore no shirt, and some pajama shorts he had from a random matching set Cosmo bought that he dug out his drawer before his shower that night. He did that often with his clothes, mismatching them regularly for his own comfort. Stood up, he made his way out the room and to the kitchen for a midnight drink- of water, not milk this time- staring around the hall as he walked. Its walls were crowded with posters of all the mains alongside a few of the other toons like Rodger & Toodles or Scraps.

Cosmo didn't have any posters of himself, only a few with Sprout that got discontinued after the closure, and that pissed Astro off. It pissed him off that not all the toons didn't have at least one poster. Sprout was the overprotective toon of the main group, but Astro felt a sense of protectiveness over everyone due to how close he was with their most vulnerable state-- their state of sleep-- so to him it was natural to worry about them. Even if it was over some silly laminated pieces of paper meant to hang on a wall for decor. It wasn't even just that, the thought of not having some promotion for all the toons within the Gardenview sounds stupid-- less merch to get money for, and he remembers how much Delilah loved money. Heck, she used to---... Let's not dwell on that further, the current focus is getting water.

The kitchen was empty, as he had half expected, and felt cold. Everywhere was cold in the night, but the kitchen was one of the few warmer places-- tonight, it seemed to not be true, for it felt empty and soulless. No clutter, no prepared equipment for the morning breakfast rush. Astro shrugged at the sight (or lack of) and used his upper arms to grab a glass from a cabinet, the cleanest on the shelf aside a smudge or two. He filled it with cold tap water that dripped into the glass at a sluggish pace that made the moon toon mentally groan-- the stupid pipes again, they did this all the time without warning. The ichor probably stuck in the pipes, he guessed. Not like it was the first time that happened, it was a daily nuisance nowadays.

Astro sat mindlessly in the filling tub with his eye closed, warm water slowly rising over his blue tinted skin that shone weakly in the florescent bathroom bulb light. This was what he needed after such a long day full of worrisome runs and not seeing his friends as often as he wanted to. Hopefully Dandy didn't intrude to summon him for a main meeting, and that Cosmo did intrude so he has a reason to relax properly- warm with his lover. That sounds lovely, he thought with a smile as he sunk lower into the thick water. Wait, thick? Opening his eye, he saw a cold inky liquid mixed in with the bath water, a symphony that could challenge water and oil in its consistency. It slowly engulfed his legs as if it was eating them, savoring them. He shirked, trying to get out the tub but his legs could not breach the surface of the sludge, neither could his lower set of arms which had previously been resting in his lap. Breathing became more difficult, tight around his chest and enclosed. Shit, is he gonna die? What a way to go if so, to drown in some weird black stuff far too similar to the stuff he sees on the twisteds during runs-

"Astro!"

Cosmo, in his dressing robe, stood at the door with a small towel in his hand and frozen panic in his cocoa coloured eyes. That seemed to snap Astro out of his panic enough to launch himself out of the water and onto the floor where he panted, body soaked in ichor and water. "Are you ok dear?" The concerned pastry asked, leaning down and wrapping the towel he planned to use on himself around his boyfriend to help dry him and rub off any sticking ichor. "I-I think so..." Astro coughed to clear his throat... hopefully this doesn't continue.

Maybe if he keeps this mentality, it will manifest. But until then, he's gotta live with it.

A creak interrupted his waiting and turning around he saw Cosmo at the door in his cute 'Hello Kitty' pajamas that Astro could see from the crack of the door. Cute. "Hey babe." Astro whispered, holding a hand out towards Cosmo as he moved into the kitchen. Taking it and lacing their fingers with one another, both chuckled and exchanged cheek kisses. "What'cha doing up so late?" Cosmo curiously asked, Swiss roll head tilted to his right shoulder and nearly nudging it. The crescent faced main thought the same thing, but duplicating the other's question wasn't his style-- "thirsty, so I'm getting some water. How about you, some midnight baking?"

"You read my mind." Cosmo softly rested his head on Astro's shoulder, feeling a hand brush over his icing free head. Yes, he sleeps without frosting-- if he didn't it'd get all over his pillow which was an issue he did not want to deal with when he wakes up every morning. "Oh, you can help!"

Help? I mean, Astro would love to but--

"I don't know how to bake baby..." He rubbed the upper arms in nervousness alongside an awkward smile. Last the two baked, Astro:

-doused himself in flour

-dumped the cake batter all over Cosmo

-burnt chocolate chips left in the batter stuck to the cake tin (he forgot to butter the pan)

And set the fire alarm off. Great baking session hm?

"I'll actually teach you and not laugh my ass off, promise!" A pinkie was held out to the other and wrapped

Baking supplies? Check, lined up against the wall space between cabinets above and counter space.

Bowl and utensils? Check, set up in front of the two toons.

Recipe? Check, open on the page.

Three strikes let's bake!

"Now we chop up our strawberries." Cosmo squinted at the recipe, eyesight obscured by the dim lights of the kitchen on their lowest setting to make sure no one was woken up by the blind fluorescent. Too dim, since Astro cut his finger on the knife, mistaking it for a strawberry stem. "Ok, plaster." The pastry murmured to himself, balancing on a stool to obtain a plaster. Lack of visibility causes more issues, such as Cosmo not stepping on the stool properly and slipping, banging his chin on the counter. Not only did it hurt like shit, but it was very, very loud. Safe to say it ended their cheesecake creation quickly. "What is going on?" Sprout charged in, shirtless and half wearing a dirty pair of sweatpants-- how professional. His question as answered by Cosmo's bleeding mouth and Astro's bleeding finger: blood. A lot of it too.

Was this a success? No. The furthest thing from one in fact.

"You're a liar." Softly murmured by a half-asleep main moon toon. "A half-truther. It was going well until we got hurt." Muffled and poorly pronounced due to cotton in the mouth of the speaker, a pastry common toon. A soft laugh was shared between the two amongst whines of pain before stopping from too much pain, choosing to hold hands instead. Romantic but not painful. "Next time you two wish to bake, please do it in the light. Or at least more." Brighteny scolded, pinching the bridge of her nose just above her glasses as she examined Cosmo's chin and the blood-soaked cotton in his mouth.

Since then, the two have stuck to baking during daylight hours...Or-

Chapter Text

Thunder sounded and lightening struck outside the abandoned Gardenview education centre, scaring some toons and making others laugh...well, only one but whatever. The storms were particularly bad, especially in the winter, but they made the nights more cozy if you worked with it instead of cowering in fear. Which is what Astro and Cosmo did. When Astro first saw the ran start, he enlisted Cosmo with the role of baking snacks for the evening-- just simple sweets like brownies and cookies, and a few blondies for Astro since he requested them specifically-- whilst he went on a search for the best blankets and pillows. This took most of the morning, especially since they had to sneak around the working toons to not be called 'slackers' once more. 

"The baked goods are just cooling, and I ordered some popcorn from Looey's circus group for the evening." Cosmo reported to Astro, peeking into his boyfriend's room. He was dressed leisurely, blanket loose around his slim tall form. Underneath Cosmo could see a random band shirt Astro had buried in his wardrobe and ordinary grey sweatpants. His posture was a bit hunched, as he was contracting a fort for the two to snuggle in when having their movie night. "Bet they'll be delicious babe. All we need is a good selection of films." The moon smiled softly, setting the last blanket down on the fort he constructed and moving towards the other. A set of arms emerged from the lavender cotton blanket and wrapped around the chubby body of the pastry for comfort. "You smell like cinnamon..." He groaned weakly, nose buried in Cosmo's neck. He inhaled deeply and sighed. A second set rested around the other's waist, hands trailing down to his ass. "Behave." Cosmo whispered with a smirk, using his two to slide the baby blue hands up to his hips.

Astro whined but complied and gripped the flesh in the relocated area. "Fine."

Cosmo smiled gently, whispering a praise and removing himself from the embrace. "I say we have one horror film, one romance and two action." He suggested, and received a skeptical glare in response. "Two horror and two romance." Cosmo inhaled through his teeth at the rework. He wasn't a huge fan of horror or thriller like Astro was, but he did increase the romance films he could pick. "Deal, but nothing gory. I gotta wake up early tomorrow for a heal bake." 

The two shook and kissed on it.

Cosmo's eyes scanned the movie section of the rainy day cupboard. Don't let the name deceive you, it's rarely used during those rainy days unless they physically can not do any runs and need entertainment. Which happens maybe once in a blue moon. Despite this, it was well organised in sections from small portable card games to large board games for game night in ranking groups when it was especially heavy in rain. And, if people were in the mood, they had movies for a movie night, also in toon rankings. Old habits die hard, ok?

"May I help you?"

Cosmo jolted at the question, turning around to see Rodger holding a pen and pad of paper. "R-Rodger, fancy seeing you here." He chuckled awkwardly, flashing a dodgy smile. Rodger squinted at the other with his one eye, before glancing down at his paper and back up. "Why might you be in the rainy day cupboard...during the day?" Cosmo gulped weakly at the interrogation, or start of one, and looked around the cupboard. He couldn't say he was here on accident, it took a good amount of walking to enter here during the day either a lot of walking and a passcode. No new imports to say he was stocking in here, not for a few weeks now. Um...oh, he knew! 

"Why are you here?" He redirected, leaning against a slightly empty boardgames shelf. 

Rodger blinked. "Toodles requested entertainment whilst I do inventory. I came to fetch a pack of cards." He stated plainly with no hint of lies on his tongue. "And yourself?"

Burnt Biscuits, he had comeback to that!

"He came to do inventory alongside me." A voice from behind the detective stated. Astro, stoic and smiling, entered the cupboard with a clipboard being held by his star magic. "See requested we do it due to the storms starting to make the elevators malfunction, and we might rely on these as entertainment if we can't do runs anymore." With a swift hand, he reached into a woven basket labeled 'card games' and tossed a simple slightly loved deck of packaged cards towards Rodger. Clumsily, he caught them before they dropped to the floor and could only blink in confusion. "There you are, my friend. Now, may you leave so we can start? It'd be a shame if we couldn't do as we were told and Toodles remained bored out of her mind now hm?" 

A few stutters came out of him before he sighed and left the cupboard. "Finally. Now, what shall we choose?" 

Movies? "Check."

Snacks? "Check."

Drinks? "Check."

"Great, we have everything we need." Cosmo smiled, flopping down into the fort and burying himself in the pillows. "Aww this is heaven. Thanks ashy for this." A soft giggle left him sinking further into bliss. The main's lips grew into a smile, nesting beside his partner and holding him close. "No worries. Shall we start with horror or romance?" The question was asked in time with him holding up the movies-- all four. The romance movies were in his upper arms; the horror held in his lower arms. The four selected movies were:

• 'Titanic'
• 'The Notebook.'
• 'It Follows.'
• 'Get Out.'

Some overused choices on Cosmo's part but he just loved them too much, not his fault he loved to rewatch. Plus, Astro has never seen them before, which to Cosmo was outrageous. "Let's start with horror, then chase it with romance. And repeat. For the sake of my heart and your arm." The pastry joked, chuckling at his own joke that the other laughed at. "Smart choice." Astro lifted himself out of the fort, approaching the projected and dvd player plugged into it to insert the movie-- 'It Follows.' A nice movie, and not too heavy on the mind like 'Get Out.' would be on the sensitive cake roll burrito-ed in the blanket fort.

In a matter of moments, the screen booted up and showed the dvd's display menu, the options varying fro playing the film to seeing behind the scenes content. He loved dvd's so freaking much it was unreal. "C'mon Ashy, put it on already! I can only wait so long." complained the growing pissed pastry, hands wriggling out the blanket wrap to reach for Astro. "Coming, jeez." He chuckled, resuming his position beside Cosmo just in time for the movie's opening credits...

The evening went smoothly, the two drifting off to sleep mid way through the second movie, tangled together in a loving embrace as a result of the first movie... until there was a loud strike of thunder that woke both toons up. "C-Crumbling cookies..." Cosmo whimpered, sitting up to glance at the covered window. two hands tugged him back down into the embrace. "Shush, and rest." mumbled a half asleep Astro, unfazed by the weather. Lucky thing, Cosmo thought with a pout on his face. "Fine..." he admitted and nuzzled back, falling asleep.

Neither woke up again until the morning.