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Shadow Milk hated many things about the Vanilla Kingdom, but one of the most annoying ones was how bright everything was. It wasn’t enough that the whole place had to be located above the clouds, no passing shadows to darken things, no. They had to cover everything in obnoxious pale yellows and wafflecone patterns. All cheery and sunny, like the inane outfit its founder had worn for so long. His new robes weren’t much better in that regard, nothing like the lovely navy color he’d worn in Shadow Milk’s spire, but at least he’d gotten rid of the stupid wafflecone hat.
Now if only the fool’s kingdom would get the memo.
Everything was light and airy, like freshly poured cream, with hardly any darker spots. At least the place was still run down in parts; there were plenty of crevices for shadows to worm their way into, even if he’d really rather prefer a nice long corridor to stretch himself out along. But no, even those which stood empty, only barely cleared of rubble, were still lined with windows casting sunbeams across the tiled floors.
The idiot was lucky that all his oven-damned light couldn’t exist without patches of darkness, or else Shadow Milk would’ve had to put his spying on hold to do a bit of redecorating around here! Of course, he still itched to sink his claws into the crevices of this place, to shape it into something a little more entertaining… but the script didn’t call for that quite yet.
He was still in the drafting stages, after all! It wouldn’t do to spoil things so quickly.
Still, the brightness irked him, forcing him to crawl along the edges of the stage rather than strut front and center. At least the stupid gardens provided plenty of shade for him to spy from, and with how much time the ancient cookie spent among the flowers, Shadow Milk was often able to get a good vantage point for the performance of the day.
Case in point, this little get together.
Tucked underneath a cluster of milkcrowns — sentimental fool — Shadow Milk watched as Pure Vanilla led his little posse of friends through his garden, the group chattering aimlessly as they went. There was nothing particularly interesting about the gathering other than the cookies making it up, but Shadow Milk had gotten into a habit of watching his other half on the off chance something entertaining would happen, something worth his time.
And if there was one thing Shadow Milk had learned over his eons of life, it was that patience would always be rewarded.
Across the garden, a sudden burst of noise rang out, startling Shadow Milk from his musing. Normally, he would’ve rolled his eyes at the sound and ignored it, but this time his attention was captured. This wasn't the obnoxious laughter of the shield-bearer or the pompous crowing of the gluttonous birdbrain, no.
He would recognize that voice anywhere.
Blinking curiously, Shadow Milk cast his eyes over towards the group. Pure Vanilla was still surrounded by his entourage, but the shield-bearer seemed to have crowded much closer than before. Which… wouldn’t be noteworthy on its own, of course — she was by far the most touchy-feely of their little company, even more so than Pure Vanilla himself — if it wasn’t for the way Pure Vanilla was… giggling?
He was giggling.
It wasn’t the usual, restrained, tittering Shadow Milk had grown used to hearing out of his other half, gentle and demure and utterly devoid of presence, no. This was breathy, high-pitched, audibly joyous. Bright.
Pupils blown wide, Shadow Milk crept closer to the scene, captivated. What was going on? Pure Vanilla was clutching his staff to his chest with both hands, curled in on himself, and with the shield-bearer in the way Shadow Milk couldn’t get a clear view of what was going on. Still, by the way Pure Vanilla was laughing… he was starting to get an idea.
“Holly — Hohohollyberryheeheehee—”
“You’re still so flat, Pure Vanilla! When’s the last time you ate something, huh?” the berry cookie tilted her head, shifting her arm slightly, and Pure Vanilla let out an incriminating squeal, leaning forward into his friend with the movement.
“Ha! Don’t crumble him, now!” crooned the cheese cookie, hovering above the scene. The lack of concern and the continued giggling from Pure Vanilla all but confirmed Shadow Milk’s suspicions; the shield-bearer was tickling him.
“Hollybeheherryheehee I — I have been eheheating, reheheally!!”
Pure Vanilla Cookie was ticklish.
Tamping down on his burgeoning interest, Shadow Milk forced himself away from the scene in front of him, slipping back through the shadows before his excitement could give him away. He kept a few eyes nearby, of course—there was no way he could just turn away from something like that —but he couldn’t risk his darkening, bubbling shadows showing his hand too early. Not when he’d just been handed the cure to his ever-present boredom on a gilded platter, after all.
Something this enticing called for a… delicate touch, so to speak. He couldn’t spoil the fun before the show had even begun, after all!
“Ah— I — Hollyheehee!!”
As much as he was crumbling to pounce on Pure Vanilla the second he could find him alone and take advantage of his new discovery, Shadow Milk refrained. He was a professional. He wasn’t going to jump the gun just because the silly giggling of his silly ‘nilly was bouncing around in his head like a persistent encore!
No no no, Shadow Milk Cookie had a plan. A script to follow, to make sure that this performance would be a complete and unquestionable masterpiece.
He’d start off small, of course. Discreet. Something to test the temperature, get a feel for things. Confirm his hypothesis, so to speak.
Besides, what was the harm in having a little bit of fun along the way?
For his first trick — in a manner of speaking, that is — he opted to stick to the shadows. Playing it slow, being careful. He waited a few days, of course, letting the “hero” squad scatter to their respective corners of Earthbread before making a move; couldn’t have any of those understudies interrupting his fun, after all!
So, he followed Pure Vanilla around, creeping from shadow to shadow as the other cookie went about his near- painfully dull daily routine. Tending to his garden, visiting the boring villagers he’d brought with him to his kingdom, teaching magic to the fresh dough; Shadow Milk had to hide away in the hallway rafters for that one, lest he lose his mind over the fool’s saccharinely inefficient teaching methods. Sure, white magic wasn’t Shadow Milk’s specialty, but he was still very aware of its functions and patterns, and he knew it didn’t require that much mushy-feely thinking to cast. Though, of course that was how Pure Vanilla approached it, the sappy idiot he was.
Ovens below, Shadow Milk needed to dig his claws into the former king so badly—
Finally, an opportunity arose. A quiet moment in the late afternoon, the time Pure Vanilla set aside to sneak away and spend rolling around in the grass and dirt.
That is to say, tending to his cream sheep.
The silly little animals would be more than alright on their own, but Pure Vanilla insisted on getting to see the flock at least multiple times a week when he could manage it, preferring to keep watch over them himself as much as possible. Personally, Shadow Milk found it a bit inane, with all the things Pure Vanilla could be doing rather than continuing to play at shepherd, but the other cookie would not be swayed. He was adamant that the sheep would get lonely if he didn’t visit them often enough, although it was fairly obvious to Shadow Milk that the sheep weren’t the ones that got lonely.
Pure Vanilla looked like a kicked cakepup whenever he had to stay away from the flock for too long, all bereft expressions and soft sighs. It was pathetic.
“Yes, yes, little ones, I am happy to see you too!”
And here he was now, cooing over the animals with a stupid grin on his face. Disgusting.
This was the perfect time to test his discovery.
Slinking through the shadows cast by the obnoxious fluff of the livestock, Shadow Milk approached Pure Vanilla where he was sitting contentedly with his flock beneath a tree, the needier of the animals swarming him for attention. Shadow Milk cloaked himself beneath the shadows of a particularly determined yearling, wrapping himself in the darker parts of its wool and using its cover to hide himself from his annoyingly perceptive other half. As the cream sheep butted its head against Pure Vanilla’s arm, bleating insistently, Shadow Milk reached out with sheathed claws and cloaked darkness and prodded its shepherd’s side alongside it.
Pure Vanilla jumped in place, making a delightful yelping noise, his arm jolting to cover his side in a little jittery motion as he turned to face the mulish cream sheep.
“Eas-easy there, Chiffon!” Resting his palm on its nose, he reached over to scratch at the neck of the cream sheep, his fingers digging into its wool. It bleated again, happily this time, leaning into the petting with all the exuberance of an adolescent still learning its growing strength.
Shadow Milk watched as the lamb half splayed in the shepherd’s lap perked up as its pillow of a caretaker turned away from it, and quickly darted over to rest in the folds of Pure Vanilla’s robes, a grin spreading across his face. When the lamb cried out its displeasure, it kicked out with one of its hooves, flailing uncoordinatedly. Shadow Milk took advantage of the movement to jab at Pure Vanilla’s other side, earning a wonderful little squeak from the shepherd, alongside another jolt.
“A-Ah! Hohold on, just a mohohoment!” Thanks to the shadows cast by the tree, Shadow Milk had a lovely view of the shaky smile adorning Pure Vanilla’s face, even tucked away in his cloak as he was. He couldn’t quite stop himself from poking a few times at his stomach — doing so along with an impressively loud and sustained bleat from such a small cream lamb — and drawing out a stream of surprised giggles from his other half.
“Puff, Puff plehehease, I only have sohoho many hahands!” Despite his protesting, Pure Vanilla removed his hand from the yearling’s neck and returned it to the lamb, patting its side. The older sheep huffed at the reduced attention, butting against his shoulder once again, and its exuberance led to an already wobbly Pure Vanilla toppling over with the movement. Landing on his back with a quiet ‘oof,’ he continued giggling softly as the sheep settled around and on top of him, seemingly content to have brought their shepherd down with them.
“My, yohou’re — you’re all quite affectionate today, aren’t you?” Pure Vanilla also seemed content with the arrangement, making no move to get up or push the crowding flock away from him, even shifting slightly as if making himself comfortable, his hair splayed out messily in the grass.
Unfortunately, his position left Shadow Milk well and truly stuck in the spaces in between the mass of bodies; at least, from his vantage point tucked next to Pure Vanilla’s side. There was no way the fool would be getting up any time soon, so Shadow Milk resigned himself to waiting the saccharine nonsense out, huffing as he curled into the warm darkness. Patience may supposedly be a virtue, but it was something he’d developed in spades in his time as a Beast.
Besides, his experiment was a clear success, and Pure Vanilla still wore a stupid, silly grin on his face, so wasting some time keeping an eye or ten on him wouldn’t really be that much of a loss.
His next opportunity to play with his new discovery came to him by surprise. Shadow Milk had been regaling Pure Vanilla with one of his newest tales, floating around as the other sat at his desk, composing the world’s most meandering, boring letter that Shadow Milk had ever had the displeasure to exist in the same space as.
Seriously, Shadow Milk had no clue how his stupid friends put up with it; he was going insane just listening to the babbling drivel! At least he was using the mechanical ‘typewriter’ he’d shown Shadow Milk rather than writing it out by hand. Shadow Milk hadn’t seen the point in the contraption until he’d first borne witness to one of Pure Vanilla’s meeting records. Then he’d understood. He’d seen plenty of choco chicken scratch handwriting in his day, and even then he was certain that Pure Vanilla had easily managed to break the top three worst ever.
“Vanillaaaaaa,” Shadow Milk complained, flipping onto his back and rolling his eyes.
Pure Vanilla paused mid-keystroke, his distracted expression softening into a soppy smile. Ugh.
For a while, Shadow Milk had hoped that dropping the formality from Pure Vanilla’s name, referring to him as casually as possible, would inspire some sort of annoyance in the other. He’d seemed old-fashioned enough to be the type. Unfortunately, the idiot had received the overly familiar address with a giddy sort of happiness, returning the gesture in kind. Additional forcing of nicknames had done nothing to help the issue. Pure Vanilla still predominantly referred to him politely, but decidedly casually, and, well, Shadow Milk wasn’t going to back down from something like that. He felt completely normal about the familiar way the other referred to him. He was annoyed, if anything.
Anyways.
“You’re ignoring me again!” he continued, rolling back around upwards and crossing his arms behind his head. “How rude of you! I thought I was your guest!”
“I’m sorry, Shadow Milk.” Tilting his head in Shadow Milk’s general direction, he scrunched up his eyebrows in that stupid apologetic way he did. “I need to send this letter out as soon as possible. We can play a game of some sort once I’ve finished?”
“I’m bored now, though,” Shadow Milk insisted, playing up his frustration and leaning further back, letting his head fall backwards. Pure Vanilla just smiled apologetically, shrugging slightly, before turning back to his typewriter. Boo.
“Ughh, fiiine.” Floating over, Shadow Milk peered over Pure Vanilla’s shoulder, looking at the paper sticking out of the contraption on the desk. “Lemme see.”
“Oh! Thank you—”
“Uhbuhbup, no, shush. Just so you get this done sooner. Besides,” he grinned, baring his teeth in the direction of where Pure Vanilla’s staff sat leaning against the desk, “I’ve seen your drafts; you need my help.” With that, he grabbed the paper in a quick, fluid motion, tugging it out of the machine and floating up out of Pure Vanilla’s reach before he could react. The soft, slightly exasperated sigh was music to his ears.
“Oh, don’t be so dramatic, you can put it back when I’m done,” he teased, settling himself just above where he knew Pure Vanilla could reach. The first time he’d pulled that little stunt, he’d tried to take the entire typewriter, not having realized how damn heavy the thing was. Why Pure Vanilla bothered with taking it out and putting it away every time, he'd never know.
“Now, let’s see what we have here.” Clearing his throat, he put on an exaggerated mimicry of Pure Vanilla’s voice, reading off what was typed out.
“‘Dear Clotted Cream Cookie,’ — is that how you’re starting it, really? — ‘I’d like to thank you for the Crème Republic’s consideration, and for your interest in assisting with the Vanilla Kingdom’s continued rebuilding and re-emerging political presence.’” Scrunching up his nose, Shadow Milk flipped himself upside down, already irritated with the overly polite tone. Just because it was appropriate for stupid political letters didn’t mean it wasn’t boring . He’d spent enough time in the past dealing with this nonsense; he was above it now.
“‘However, and I apologize for the inconvenience,’ — no you don’t, don’t apologize — ‘I would like to remind the Convocation that I do not hold the title of King any longer, and now only act as the Vanilla Kingdom’s stand-in representative until a proper election can be conducted.’ Nevermind, you should apologize. I still can’t believe you did that.”
“I want the Vanilla Kingdom to be a home for all, with no king nor subjects,” Pure Vanilla retorted, words calm and practiced. “There is no more need for a king, here, and I do not wish to claim a role that my people do not need.”
“Yeah, yeah, so I’ve heard, who cares.” Turning back to the letter, Shadow Milk skimmed the rest of the draft, kicking his legs in the air as he rushed through it. “Blah blah blah, more pointless apologizing, blah blah blah — oh for sweetness’ sake. ‘While your offer to provide military support to better bolster the kingdom’s defenses is much appreciated, I must raise the concern that having foreign soldiers patrolling the streets of the kingdom might serve to create more unrest than it assuages. Is there potentially another avenue the republic would be willing to pursue?’ You’ve got to be kidding me.”
Shadow Milk floated over to hover just above Pure Vanilla’s head, glaring down at him. Pure Vanilla frowned thoughtfully, tilting his head like a confused cakepup.
“I do not think Black Raisin would appreciate having Crème Republican forces in her streets,” he began to explain, “and I don’t want to startle the younger cookies—”
“You,” Shadow Milk interrupted, hanging just behind Pure Vanilla on his side, “are being a doormat.” He accentuated his point with a rough poke to Pure Vanilla’s back, making him jump despite his usual lack of reaction to Shadow Milk’s idle orbiting behavior.
Hm.
“Seriously, how did you get away with being king for centuries?” he drawled, flipping back upside down. “‘Oh pretty please can you maybe do something for me if that’s alright’ — it's pathetic, ‘nilla. It’s your kingdom. You. Give. Orders!” With each word he placed emphasis on, he poked at the same area in the center of Pure Vanilla’s upper back, before flitting up and around so he could get a good look at the other’s face — only to make his point, of course.
And what a point it was! Pure Vanilla had placed his hands on the surface of his desk, opening and closing his fists as if grasping for something. With each poke he squirmed away slightly, back and forth, yet away from the back of his seat and instead forwards towards his desk. How silly of him! He really was a silly ‘nilly.
His face was, of course, the pièce de résistance; a twitching, wide smile, complete with more noticeable wrinkles around his closed eyes. Shadow Milk stared at him openly for a moment, watching Pure Vanilla’s breathing go from briefly shaky to more measured, biting down the urge to wrap around him and squeeze him until he pops. Ovens below, he needed to destroy this cookie—
“I don’t — I do not see the value in ordering other cookies around, Shadow Milk,” Pure Vanilla finally replied, breath hitching even as he settled his hands into open palms against his desk. “Throughout my life, I have found that a gentler hand yields greater results.” Despite his calm, certain tone of voice, he still bore a visible, slightly giddy smile.
“This is the cookie that tried to take my soul jam from you,” Shadow Milk flatly retorted, hanging in front of him now.
“He did not.” Shadow Milk scoffed at the blank response, the stupid smile now annoying him even further.
“He got you to give it to his kingdom — whatever, whatever, just—” shaking his head, Shadow Milk dropped the half-written letter at the desk, floating back with a scoff, “tell this half-baked, inferior milk-based cookie to keep his army out of your pitiful kingdom or else they’ll be my toys to play with. This place is awfully high up,” he added, twisting his head around and casting his shadows a bit further across the room, orbiting around Pure Vanilla, “it’d be a shame if some of them tried to see just how high up it is.”
Reaching out, Shadow Milk dragged a claw up the middle of Pure Vanilla’s back this time, slow and light, but quick enough that he was back out of range before Pure Vanilla could properly react. For his part, the other jolted in place, his back straightening, and a small, poorly strangled sound was trapped behind his closed mouth, one that Shadow Milk only caught because he was listening for it. Pure Vanilla then shivered slightly, wiggling a little bit in his chair before reaching out to grasp the returned paper and feed it back into his typewriter, as if he wasn’t sporting a wobbly grin, as if Shadow Milk couldn’t hear the way he tapped his feet softly against the floor.
“I’ll be sure to take that into account,” he replied simply, smothering a small waver in his voice. Poorly smothering it, that is. Shadow Milk huffed, recognizing the attempt at a dismissal, but where he would have normally pushed back, he chose to acquiesce this time. Out of the goodness of his heart.
Besides, Pure Vanilla would have to pay attention to him once he was finished with his incompetent letter, and something about the irregular, light tapping Pure Vanilla was still doing with his feet made Shadow Milk feel a bit more patient. For some reason.
It was just proper timing, really. No use rushing when Pure Vanilla would be much more pliable if he snatched him up after his silly little letter was sent. In the meantime, he had the shepherd’s giddy reactions to sustain him. For now.
And if he ended up ‘proofreading’ the final letter a few more times, that was only because he couldn’t stand the idea of such a travesty being sent out into the world, of course.
No other possible reason.
Fittingly, his little game came to a head in the very place it had all started; Pure Vanilla’s garden. The playwright in him delighted in the fortune of it all, coming together in a wonderful third act finale.
All good art came in threes, after all. It was beautifully serendipitous.
He had been watching Pure Vanilla again, curled up in his usual hidden spot among the milkcrowns, watching him wander around aimlessly on one of his daily walks. He was humming to himself, some silly old tune Shadow Milk had heard him sing from time to time, when he paused, stilling in place. Drawing a bit closer, Shadow Milk saw what had caught Pure Vanilla’s attention; a blueberry bird had landed on some nearby foliage.
“Hello there, little friend,” Pure Vanilla cooed, holding a hand out to the bird. It hopped closer, tilting its head, before whistling a few notes in response, its wings spread. Pure Vanilla laughed softly, nodding along as if it had said something he agreed with. “Yes, it is such a lovely day, isn’t it?”
Shadow Milk rolled his eyes at the inane chatter. The bird chirped along with Pure Vanilla’s laughter, fluttering over to land on his hand and continuing to chirp to him. Pure Vanilla nodded and hummed along, and brought the bird closer to his face with a soft smile.
“Mhm, I am very glad to see you as well! It’s always lovely to get to talk with you.” Grumbling quietly, Shadow Milk was a few moments away from turning away, or perhaps turning into a snake to snap the tiny thing up, annoyance sparking at the stupid, pointless kindness being granted to an ovens-damned bird. But, before he could, Pure Vanilla brought the blueberry bird closer to his face, tapping them against his cheek affectionately. The bird twittered happily, ruffling its wings and nuzzling against the cookie holding it, its feathers brushing gently against the dough of his face and neck right above where Pure Vanilla’s gown’s turtleneck ended.
And, to Shadow Milk’s watching delight, Pure Vanilla twitched at the sensation, a few soft chuckles spilling from his mouth as he gently pulled his bird friend away from the point of contact.
“Ah, n-nono, careful there, little one. I’m a bit ticklish.” Shadow Milk could feel his pupils dilate, his attention immediately captured.
Ovens below, how was he supposed to ignore something like that?
Slinking through the clustered flowerbeds was practically second nature for Shadow Milk now, easily slipping into the shadows cast by the ladyfingered hollyhocks Pure Vanilla was standing nearby. Emerging from his cover, Shadow Milk crept closer, looming over his target from behind with a wide grin.
The blueberry bird twittered another little song before it seemed to notice Shadow Milk approaching, freezing. Shadow Milk bared his teeth, pupils narrowing like a predator about to pounce. The bird puffed up, feathers splaying, and turned to quickly fly off, leaving Pure Vanilla to watch it go with a small, thoughtful frown.
“Hm. I suppose they must have somewhere to — ah–!!”
“He- llo there, Vanilly,” Shadow Milk called, leaning heavily on Pure Vanilla from behind, tilting his head over the other’s shoulder, “what’cha up to, hmm?” Pure Vanilla jumped briefly before settling, surprise fading into a soft familiarity. Ugh.
“Hello, Shadow Milk,” he replied, placing a hand over one of Shadow Milk’s own where they were slung over his shoulders. “Have you come to enjoy the sunlight as well?”
“Mmm mmm, something like that.” Of course he didn’t, the clear path of the sun was one of the worst parts of this place. Pure Vanilla was more than bright enough to compensate anyways, and much nicer to look at. Leaning further into him, Shadow Milk rested his chin over the shoulder opposite where his own arm rested, floating himself upward for better leverage. “But! You didn’t answer my ques-tion~!”
“Ah, my mistake,” he chuckled. “I was just going for a walk; care to join — um, johoin me?” His shoulders hiked up slightly, his breath hitching mid-word as Shadow Milk let his hair settle around the two of them, waving in an unseen breeze and grazing against Pure Vanilla’s cheek.
Humming, Shadow Milk made a show of tapping his lip while ‘thinking the question over.’ He delighted in the small back-and-forth shuffling motion Pure Vanilla was doing on his feet as the hair brushed gently against his face. Aw, the poor thing thought he was being subtle, didn’t he?
“Well, if you insist, I guess I can stick around,” he hedged, tilting his head towards Pure Vanilla’s while pressing further into his space. “You’ll have to keep me entertained, though~” He nuzzled even closer, part of his hair slipping beneath the edge of his collar. Pure Vanilla made a brief hiccuping noise, finally stumbling forward and away from him in a move that wasn’t nearly as casual as he’d clearly intended it to be. Shadow Milk let him go, watching him with as smug of a smile as he could muster as the other tried to discreetly bury his chin in his robes, angling his staff towards Shadow Milk.
“Of — of course, y-yes,” Pure Vanilla replied, clearly working to steady his voice. He rubbed at the side of his neck in an action he probably thought looked casual. “A few of my flowers have begun blooming since I last showed you around; would you like to see?” His smile teetered between flustered and content, turning himself to face Shadow Milk along with his staff.
“Okay, fiiiine,” Shadow Milk replied, rolling his eyes. He floated up to hover above Pure Vanilla, rolling around so he was ‘laying’ on his front and following the other as he directed him over to the hollyhocks he’d previously hidden beneath.
Usually he’d make a show of performatively ignoring Pure Vanilla’s ceaseless rambling, but this time around Shadow Milk had a more interesting game to play. He listened as Pure Vanilla proudly showed off his beloved garden, humming at appropriate moments, all the while watching closely for his opening.
“These are a newer flower, one that Gingerbrave and his friends brought with them from an adventure they went on recently. I’ve finally managed to figure out how to help them; the soil content wasn’t right for them, it turns out. They’d been surviving just fine before, but with a little help they’ve produced such lovely blooms…” Leaning over, Pure Vanilla gently cradled one of the oversized flowers, a fond and contemplative look on his face. He paused there for a moment before perking up, his smile widening.
“Oh! And over here, I’ve been tending to a new area, lately!” Hurrying off to another section of the gardens, Pure Vanilla led Shadow Milk off the path to an area with young, carefully arranged flowers, his staff repeatedly glancing behind him to make sure he was followed.
“This section used to mainly house my orchids,” Pure Vanilla explained, “but… well, without the need for their memory-altering properties, I thought it was a waste to have them be the only thing growing here. They felt lonely.” Stroking the petals of a nearby vanilla orchid that had awoken upon their arrival, Pure Vanilla’s smile softened. “So, I’ve tried to give them some company.”
Sure enough, the vanilla orchids were no longer the only flower present in the clearing, splashes of color breaking up the dozing blooms. Smaller pink and blue orchids dotted the clusters, lacking the watching eyes of their cousins which they were tucked between. Surrounding each collection were a, frankly, completely anticipated gathering of flowers. Carefully placed rose bushes, cornflowers, magnolia bushes, and lilies framed the pairings of flowers, and beneath the taller-growing plants grew smaller patches of milkcrowns and poppies, hiding in the shadows. It was predictable, but Pure Vanilla looked immeasurably pleased with himself, smiling gently as he brushed his hand over the blooms, fond and careful.
Idly floating closer, Shadow Milk cocked his head, peering at the flowers openly and flashing his teeth whenever they stared back. While, of course, looking much closer at his real target of interest. His hair, as planned, responded in kind, weaving its way towards Pure Vanilla in its usual open, curious exploration. Something that, for once, Shadow Milk made no effort to stop.
“You’re being awfully attentive today,” Pure Vanilla commented as Shadow Milk settled just over his shoulder again, turning his attention away from the plants and back where it belonged.
“Whaaaat, I can’t pay attention to something now, is that it? Is that what you think of me?” he wailed, placing a hand on his chest in shock and spinning mid-air so he was on his back again, hair draping down behind him and over Pure Vanilla’s shoulder, attentive and probing.
“No-o, of co-course nohot,” replied Pure Vanilla, with just a touch more of a chuckle than was usual. He reached to grip his staff in both hands, twisting it slightly, but he notably didn’t move away yet. He did, however, bite his lip and squeeze his eyes shut a bit more, just enough to create those little wrinkles in the dough by his eyes. Did he forget that just because Shadow Milk wasn’t facing him didn’t mean he wasn’t watching? As if he’d look away from a game like this!
“I can’t believe you think so little of me, ‘nilly! Next you’ll say you don’t want me around anymore!”
“Shadow Milk, Ihi—” A small stream of giggles cut Pure Vanilla off as a tendril of Shadow Milk’s dangling hair swept behind an ear, finally making the other take another shaky step away.
Perfect. Exactly as planned.
Righting himself and facing Pure Vanilla, Shadow Milk gasped theatrically, the perfect picture of dramatized offense. While Pure Vanilla was slightly hunched over, hands tugging his hat lower on his head and brushing his own long hair away, the gaze of his staff was still focused on Shadow Milk from where it balanced in the crook of his arm. Just as it was meant to be.
“I can’t believe you!” he continued, equally as dramatic. “And here I thought you ‘wanted to be friends’ and all that. I’m hurt, really, I am!” As he spoke, Shadow Milk floated closer to Pure Vanilla, cocking his head with a wolfish grin as the shepherd straightened up, staff glancing behind himself before darting back to the approaching Beast.
“Shahadow—”
“Really, am I that repulsive that you can’t even stand to be around me?”
“Shadow Milk—”
“I go out of my way to keep you company, and you try to leave!” Pressing a hand to his forehead, he mimed a fainting motion, grin ever-present on his face. “Who is it, what have you found to replace me with, what has tickled you so~?”
The garden immediately fell silent, realization dawning on Pure Vanilla’s face. To be honest, Shadow Milk hadn’t quite intended to spill the jellybeans this early on, but with no one else around he just couldn’t resist! Besides, the way Pure Vanilla’s eyes shot open, both hands returning to grip his staff, was more than worth anything that might have come from dragging the game out longer. And regardless, this just opened up more opportunities.
Even more entertaining ones.
“When… did you—”
“Oh, you know how it is,” Shadow Milk retorted, floating backwards a little to give Pure Vanilla a bit more breathing room. Drawing out the chase. “There’s a looooot of eyes in this kingdom; you never know who could be watching!”
“Ah…” Pure Vanilla’s eyes reflexively widened slightly, and the makings of a lovely little flush began to spread across his dough. No doubt the silly shepherd was thinking over which moment Shadow Milk was referring to, what he could have seen; one of the best parts about dropping little empty hints like that was getting to see his target process allllllll of the delightful implications.
“Not like that’s a problem, though, right?” Listing to his side, Shadow Milk examined his claws idly, trying to project boredom with his main eyes despite the toothy grin he didn’t bother to bite down. “Were you trying to hide something from me?”
“No,” Pure Vanilla huffed, “of course not.” His face was still flushed, if not a bit more than before, but now he was sporting another one of those soft smiles. He rubbed a hand against his cheek. Shadow Milk had the strong urge to bite the blushing dough. Floating a bit closer, he did a considering circle around Pure Vanilla, thinking.
“Sounds a lit-tle bit like a lie to me~!” he sing-songed after a few moments, twisting upside down in front of Pure Vanilla. He opened his mouth to continue, but Pure Vanilla shook his head before he could.
“It isn’t.” Looking at Shadow Milk, he lowered his hand to clutch at his staff again, smiling and looking both embarrassed and sincere. “I don’t mind, Shadow Milk. I enjoy playing with you. I didn’t tell you, but not because I don’t want you to know.” Closing his eyes, he brought a hand over his mouth, covering a soft, amused exhale. “Truth be told, I’ve never quite minded that much when my friends tickle me, like you saw. It’s rather fun; makes me feel like I’m a young cookie again!”
Shadow Milk froze, his idle floating motions stilling entirely.
There was no way on all of Earthbread that Pure Vanilla just did that.
How dare. How dare! How dare Pure Vanilla look at him like that, say something like that to him?! Couldn’t he hear himself? The absolute audacity of this ovens-damned fool!
“…Shadow Milk?”
All of Shadow Milk’s eyes snapped to Pure Vanilla from where he’d drifted off, pupils blown wide enough to near-fully blot out the irises. Silently, he rotated himself right-side-up, movements slow and deliberate, like a predator stalking its prey. Pure Vanilla tilted his head, expression falling into worry. Idiot. Idiot!
“Shadow Milk? Are you alright? Did I—”
Pure Vanilla cut himself off with a yelp as Shadow Milk lunged at him, knocking him to the ground, his hat and staff falling to the side. The jester loomed over him with a blank expression, a low growl coming from him as his hair flared and spread around the two of them. Pure Vanilla stared up at him, eyes wide, and Shadow Milk bared his teeth at the stupid, dough-eyed look on his face, before letting it morph into a sharp grin.
Fine. He was going to be like that? Shadow Milk could play along.
“Now, now, ‘nilly, you can’t just say something like that! No sense of discretion, tsk tsk!” Drawing a bit closer, he dropped his voice into a playful purr. “Don’t you know words like that can be dangerous~?”
Pure Vanilla’s shock easily faded into a soft, confused pout, seemingly entirely in spite of the blush still present on his face, and Shadow Milk fully ignored the surge of aggressive fondness that rose in him at the sight. Focus! Play the part! Don’t just bite him, Shadow Milk Cookie, you’re a professional!
“It isn’t dangerous, Shadow Milk, I trust that you won’t hurt me here. You’re not — nohohot — ah—!!”
“NO, no no no, none of that sickeningly naive nonsense now,” Shadow Milk cut in, poking Pure Vanilla’s stomach in the same way that had made him so jumpy before, to the same fruitful results. “You’ve said more than enough; it’s my turn.” He didn’t want to hear any of the saccharine sincere garbage that made heat flood his dough in what could only be sheer annoyance, no. He was after something much sweeter.
“And now, I think it’s time for some giggles~”
Finally, finally, Shadow Milk let himself dig his claws into Pure Vanilla’s belly, poking and kneading through the robe thinly covering it. Pure Vanilla immediately burst into soft, breathy giggles, his eyes squeezing shut again as he tried to curl in on himself, seemingly out of pure reflex.
“Theeeeere we go! That’s much better, don’tcha think?” Prodding up and down his torso, Shadow Milk was delighted to find that the dough of Pure Vanilla’s stomach had a softness to it, like a freshly baked muffin. He grinned, clicking his sharp teeth together as he repeatedly squished at the dough, drawing a stream of increasingly squeaky giggles from his ‘nilla.
“Shahahadow Mihihihi— Shahahahahadow-!!!” Pure Vanilla reached towards Shadow Milk’s hands, not really grabbing, instead just generally batting at him, but Shadow Milk wasn’t about to let his game be interrupted. Snapping his fingers, he summoned a pair of puppet strings to wrap around Pure Vanilla’s wrists, loosely pulling his hands out of the way and leaving them up near his head.
“Uh-uh, excuse me, none of that,” Shadow Milk tutted, returning his claws to Pure Vanilla’s belly and vibrating them into the dough, causing Pure Vanilla to make a startled yelp and fall back into frantic giggling. “Where’d all that sanctimonious nonsense about trust and whatever go, hm? Hm?”
“I-I dohoho truhuhust — truhust you—” Nope! Shadow Milk cut Pure Vanilla off with his own startled bark of laughter, squeezing at his sides a few times. He was starting to enjoy that, being able to stop Pure Vanilla’s sappy yammering in its tracks and replace it with something much more entertaining.
“Great, then there’s no problem, right?” More half-stifled laughter, along with a funny shimmying motion as Pure Vanilla tried to wriggle away from a particular spot on his upper side that Shadow Milk was now scratching incessantly at. “Riiiiight, exactly. Sooo, I’m gonna keep tickling you, and you’re gonna keep laughing for me. Sound good? Good!”
Pure Vanilla only turned his head in response, burying his face in his sleeve as he giggled away. Aside from the consistent shuffling and his apparent determination to do his best impression of a pillsbury bug, he didn’t seem to be making any true attempts to get away, laying there for Shadow Milk like the perfect plaything.
How polite of him, to follow the stage directions like a good little puppet!
“Shad—Shahahadow — Shadohow Mihilk!” Pure Vanilla managed, opening and closing his hands and lightly drumming his feet against the ground as Shadow Milk began experimenting further, pinching sporadically at his hips. His giggling was quickly becoming broken up by hiccups, and Shadow Milk snickered at the way he pressed his cheek into his arm, like he was trying — and failing entirely — to hide. Much like how every inhale was accompanied by a burst of giggles that spilled from his mouth uncontrollably.
It was nigh intoxicating, the way Pure Vanilla twitched and squirmed under his hands, the way each squeak and sound of mirth was caused by his actions. It satisfied some deeper part of him, to be able to claw and poke at Pure Vanilla’s dough and draw out not sugar-scented jam, but instead bright and bubbly laughter.
That same part of him was becoming certain that the laughter was an even sweeter reward.
“What,” Shadow Milk crooned, tilting his head as he sing-songed, “you got something you wanna say, hm?” Pure Vanilla didn’t reply, giggling and gasping and tossing his head back and forth. “You don’t? No?”
“Shahaha-!! Shahadohohow!!!”
“See, you keep calling my name like that, but then you just keep on laughing!” Shadow Milk pressed even closer to Pure Vanilla, skimming his claws back up his torso. “Do you want to talk to me or not, huh? Make up your mind!” The whine Pure Vanilla let out was almost as endearing as the jam-warmed flush that darkened across his cheeks alongside it.
Lightly brushing up and down the loose fabric of Pure Vanilla’s robe, Shadow Milk allowed his hair to mantle around the two of them, blocking out the distracting sunlight and granting him a better view of the other from as many angles as he could manage. Pure Vanilla’s smile shone even brighter than the stupid sky could anyways, drawing a rolling growl from Shadow Milk, his grin widening.
“Silly, silly Vanilly,” he sang, skittering up and down and back up Pure Vanilla’s body, “all giggly and wiggly from a little tickly-tickly-tickly—”
A sudden squeal cut him off, Pure Vanilla jolting in place.
Both cookies froze, Shadow Milk’s eyes blinking sequentially as they all stared down at Pure Vanilla. He’d just barely grazed the other cookie’s underarms, his claws still hovering over the area. Pure Vanilla just lay there, soft giggles petering out as he caught his breath, shifting restlessly.
“…You wanna explain that one, ‘nilla?” Pure Vanilla tilted his head further into his sleeve, as if he could hide from the sheer glee evident in Shadow Milk’s voice. “Did I find a bad spot? I didn’t think you could be more ticklish.”
As he spoke, Shadow Milk tapped lightly at Pure Vanilla’s underarms, prompting another soft whine and a gentle tug at the strings keeping his arms out of the way. Shadow Milk snickered, his hair curling around them further, and, much to his delight, Pure Vanilla shook his head, although it didn’t seem to be in response to his question, more just out of flustered overwhelm.
“No? I didn’t? It’s noooot?” Snickering at the quietly embarrassed puddle of cookie beneath him, Shadow Milk couldn’t stop himself from nipping at the air beside Pure Vanilla’s head just to see the other jump. “Y’know, I’m honored, truly! That you’d lie to me like this! Maybe I should do this more often, get you to see the beauty in deceit, hm~?”
Pure Vanilla opened his eyes, blearily looking in Shadow Milk’s direction. His giddy smile persisted, his arms tucked inwards towards his face as best as he could manage, even as he peeked out behind them.
“Shahadow Milk Cookie—”
“Ooo, full name! Am I in trouble now?”
“No— no, I juhust…”
“You juuuuust?”
With Shadow Milk practically laying on him like he was, there wasn’t any room for Pure Vanilla to curl up. That didn’t stop him from trying, albeit weakly, along with another soft, flustered noise as he turned away again.
“Aww, how pathetic,” Shadow Milk cooed, snapping his teeth again and tapping Pure Vanilla’s cheek. The resulting jump and small squeak was downright addictive. “Poor little lamb, can’t make up its mind. What was it you said before… it ‘makes you feel young?’”
“It… I… uhuhm…”
“Worry not!” Grabbing Pure Vanilla’s face, Shadow Milk patted his cheek patronizingly, grinning down at the embarrassed expression below him. “Lucky for you, I am a professional entertainer.”
“…?”
“So I’ll make sure that this is fun — just. Like. You. Wanted~”
Dropping his last words into a teasing purr, Shadow Milk took a moment to admire the slight shudder that ran through Pure Vanilla, certain that his hair was giving away his fixation but being far beyond caring. Then, winking down at him, he dropped himself down to lay on Pure Vanilla and quickly scribbled his claws underneath his arms.
The reaction was beautiful. Pure Vanilla arched his back into Shadow Milk, his feet drumming behind him as he let out a high-pitched squeal before falling into loud, hiccupy laughter.
“Whoahohoa! I gotta admit, I didn’t expect that much of a reaction,” Shadow Milk teased, poking and skittering and tickling away at the sweet spot he’d found. “You’re really ticklish here, huh? Sucks to be you.”
Pure Vanilla didn’t even appear to bother trying to speak through the laughter pouring from his mouth, much to Shadow Milk’s delight. As wonderful as hearing his own name broken up by helpless giggling was, the sight of Pure Vanilla completely lost to his own laughter was its own kind of special. Especially with how happy his little puppet sounded.
“Mmm, you’re right,” he continued, responding to a reply that hadn’t managed to come, “it’s not such a bad thing, is it? You’re having fun, wasn’t that what you said?” Pure Vanilla squealed again, followed by a little stream of squeaks as Shadow Milk repeated the small jittering motion that had elicited it. “It sure sounds like you are.”
In fact, beyond the small squirmy not-quite-kicking that seemed to be out of an attempt to vent the ticklish feelings, Pure Vanilla’s reflexive wiggling had all but ceased, leaving him laying back with Shadow Milk pinning him down, giving no more resistance than soft jumps in reaction to anything that tickled particularly badly. Shadow Milk had a perfect view of it all, his head thrown back with his hair haloed around him in a glorious mess, warm dough soft where Shadow Milk laid on him. His face was still flushed oh-so-beautifully, making him look all the more tempting to bite into.
“I know I certainly am,” Shadow Milk continued, switching to lightly tracing his claws around the edges of Pure Vanilla’s underarms in order to draw out the lighter giggling from before. “What a perfect little puppet my silly Vanilly is, letting me tickle alllll the giggles out of you~”
“Sha—HA— Shaha— Mi-Mihihi—”
“Juuuust like that.” Grinning, Shadow Milk pressed closer, tucking his face into Pure Vanilla’s neck. Even with the turtleneck in the way, Shadow Milk was still able to elicit a giddy shiver from the other by nuzzling into the woven wool. He allowed his hair to wrap around Pure Vanilla wherever it could reach, caressing gently, and Pure Vanilla’s laughter went squeaky again in response.
“My giggly Vanilly,” he growled into Pure Vanilla’s neck, idly clicking his teeth and basking in the resulting shudder. “All for me~”
Distantly, Shadow Milk was aware that his commentary was growing repetitive — not quite the script quality he preferred — but it was hard for him to muster the urge to care. It was warm where he was plastered against Pure Vanilla, comforting in a way he would rather crumble than admit, and his shadows had darkened the area around them significantly, leaving just the two of them in their own little world beneath the orchids. His darkness blanketed Pure Vanilla’s warm light, tucking the other cookie away from the world in a possessive manner that made the beast in him sing.
And all of that was compounded by Pure Vanilla’s own song of sorts, a symphony of laughter conducted by Shadow Milk’s own claws and actions. With the wide smile decorating his face and the bright glow adorning his cheeks, Shadow Milk couldn’t help himself, basking in the warmth like a serpent in the sun. His silly ‘nilly, his giggly puppet, his favorite little plaything.
His, and his alone.
Shadow Milk was content to huddle close to Pure Vanilla and enjoy the softer, more idle giggles tumbling from his mouth, but was startled out of his thoughts when he felt Pure Vanilla place his chin atop his head. Refocusing, he found that the other had curled into him in turn, resting his head on Shadow Milk. His giggling was nearly pleased sounding, only really spurred on by the presence of Shadow Milk’s still hands resting near his oh-so ticklish spots and the tendrils of hair still brushing against him.
His stupid smile was downright fond, and all of a sudden Shadow Milk’s face felt just as warm as the dough he was pressed against.
In a flurry of motion, Shadow Milk pulled back entirely, floating off of Pure Vanilla and turning his back as he waved his hand to dismiss the puppet strings holding the other’s wrists, his shadows recollecting beneath his hair. He stayed facing away, hovering with his arms crossed and legs pulled up to his chest, but he was still able to clearly see the way Pure Vanilla finally was able to fully curl up, residual giggles bubbling out of him as he rubbed his hands over his face. Shadow Milk huffed, unable to turn his attention away.
A few moments passed before Pure Vanilla got up, wobbling to his feet with the help of his staff. His hair was still mussed, so Shadow Milk snatched his stupid hat off the ground and tossed it at him, landing it easily over his face with how oversized it was. The sight was amusing, but Pure Vanilla giggled again at the action, and the sight of him pushing the hat up and peering out from under it made another growl build in Shadow Milk’s chest.
The warmth flooding his face refused to fade.
Soft footsteps were the only warning he got before Pure Vanilla was stepping up beside him, reaching out to gently take both of Shadow Milk’s hands into his own. His hair, probably emboldened from the allowances he’d given it before, reached out before he could stop it, wrapping around Pure Vanilla’s wrist. Shadow Milk glared at the traitorous tendrils, ignoring the soft smile staring him down from his counterpart. It was nothing. It was nothing. It was—
“That was fun,” Pure Vanilla said, as if affirming the taunting from before. “Thank you, Shadow Milk. I enjoy spending time with you, whatever the form.”
Eyes wide, Shadow Milk couldn’t deny the blush dominating his face any longer, his hair fully giving him away as it reached out towards Pure Vanilla. Pulling his hands back, Shadow Milk batted his hair away, floating upwards so he was out of range. He opened his mouth to respond, but closed it after a moment, for once finding himself at a loss for words.
It was Pure Vanilla’s amused chuckle that snapped him out of his stupor, embarrassment prompting him to glare down at the other.
“Well, of course you do,” Shadow Milk shot back, “I’m fantastic company!” Waving a hand dismissively, he plastered on a toothy grin, slipping back into the comfortable mask of confidence. “I don’t need your thanks , ‘nilly, but it’s good to know that you’re even sillier than I could’ve ever imagined.” Pure Vanilla just laughed again in response, and Shadow Milk pointedly looked away, even as his eyes remained fixated on the other.
“Could I convince you to join me for some tea? I’d like to spend some more time with you.” Pure Vanilla’s tone was hopeful, his smile soft, and Shadow Milk rolled his eyes, ignoring how he was already drifting down closer to him.
“Ugh, whatever, fine,” he groaned, leaning on Pure Vanilla’s back again. “If you want me to stick around so badly.” Pure Vanilla’s smile in response was just as bright as before; Shadow Milk had always thought sugarmoths to be stupid for fluttering into the nearest flame, but part of him was starting to see the appeal.
Pure Vanilla led them inside towards his quarters, tugging Shadow Milk along by the hand like a balloon, and Shadow Milk idly listened to the meandering chatter from the other, his laughter from before still ringing in his ears. The place where their hands met was just as warm as it had been where Shadow Milk had laid atop the other, and as he yawned like a cream cat in the sun, Shadow Milk couldn’t help but look forward to the next chance he’d get to play with his eager little puppet like this, already drafting his next script in his mind.
This would keep them both entertained for a long, long time, that was for certain.