Chapter Text
After the fall of the Spire of Deceit, Pure Vanilla brings the plush of Shadow Milk—that the jester himself had put in the king's room in the spire—home to the Vanilla Kingdom. Vanilla had spoken to the plush every day, bringing it around with him everywhere as he did his daily work. Even at night, he'd fall asleep with it held in his arms, like how the king had held the jester during the nights in the Spire. When Shadow Milk would sneak into his room, silently craving comfort and touch. Silently demanding it, in fact.
Not like he had complained.
One day, the jester had appeared in the plush's place, curled close to the king's chest just like he had always been. Vanilla froze when he saw the jester laying in his arms, completely asleep, fully trusting of him—or maybe he had expected to wake before the king. Without freaking out—nor trying to wake the jester like one would expect—he instead settled back down, deciding to lay with the jester curled into his chest. Cherishing the moment, and the peaceful silence it brought with it. The warmth.
When Shadow Milk awoke, he panicked, quickly trying to escape, but the king caught him by the wrist gently. After a few minutes of soothing him, Vanilla offered again to be friends, offered for him to stay in a room in the castle. After all, it definiely seemed they had missed each other. Even after everything that had happened in the spire.
So, Shadow Milk tried. He started living part-time in the Vanilla Kingdom, but he still went back to Beast-Yeast to check on his (kids) minions and (his siblings) the other Beasts, making sure everything was running smoothly. Slowly but surely, the jester settled, and started being friendly. Actually friendly. He was still mischievous, but where there had once been malice, was now replaced by playfulness. Eventually, Black Sapphire and Candy Apple also chose to move from Beast-Yeast. They lived in the Cookie Kingdom instead of in the Vanilla Kingdom, though Shadow Milk had actually encouraged such. That way, they'd have more cookies their age to interact with, rather than being trapped with only adults. Of course, this also meant Shadow Milk visited the Cookie Kingdom often, which, in turn, meant he ended up dragging Vanilla to come with.
As months turned to a year, the jester and the king slowly got closer, and despite all their denial of being a couple, they eventually came out about it. After being together for three years, telling the kingdom, and finally telling the full extent of what had been happening to the other Ancients, that Shadow Milk had been redeemed, and in fact was now Vanilla's significant other.
It… could have gone better, in all honesty.
The news caused an uproar, and several mixed reactions. After all, how could Vanilla have hid this from the Ancients for three years? Was the Beast forcing him to do this? Was it true? Why would Shadow Milk willingly let himself be redeemed?!
But, as Vanilla came around and explained everything to each of the Ancients, they noticed how much happier he seemed; especially when he talked about Shadow Milk Cookie himself. Soon enough, it seemed that each Ancient had settled into the idea that, maybe, the jester truly had been redeemed.
Dark Cacao had needed the most convincing. But when he saw Shadow Milk interacting with the younger cookies when he thought no one was watching, putting on a puppet show for them, letting them interrupt without so much as a bicker, and even add their own hand-made puppets and storylines into his show… the old emperor realized that it was true.
Vanilla truly had tamed the Beast.
This, however, didn't stop him from giving the jester the shovel talk. Vanilla was like his little brother, and he wanted to make sure that the jester knew better than to try and pull a fast one.
There was only one Ancient that wasn't so easily convinced. Maybe it was because she now stood as the head of the Faerie Kingdom, and it was her newly-appointed duty to seal the Beasts.
Maybe it was because Shadow Milk had killed Elder Faerie, or maybe it was something else. Maybe jealousy, maybe heartbreak. But White Lily couldn't believe it. So, she made a plan.
One to save Pure Vanilla and seal the wicked Beast away.
By any means necessary.