Chapter Text
The candlelight reflected off of the highly polished table, the light reflected in the eyes of the figures gathered around it. The figure at the head of the table looked at the others once each before speaking, “Thank you all for joining me today. I called you all here on account of our friend Pure Vanilla.”
“Yeah, where is the guy?” asked Hollyberry, looking around, as if she somehow missed him coming in.
“Most likely Beast-Yeast,” said the person who spoke first, Dark Cacao, “I started to get worried when White Lily came back, for he was gone longer than all of the rest of us.”
“You don’t think…” White Lily said, “that Shadow Milk-?”
“That’s exactly what I think,” Dark Cacao said.
“What should we do?” Golden Cheese said, flapping her wings agitatedly, “If Shadow Milk has the soul jam, then he’d be very powerful,”
“Assuming Pure Vanilla is still alive,” Hollyberry said.
“Don’t say that!” White Lily cried out, sinking her hands into her hair, “he can’t be dead!”
It was true, Shadow Milk wouldn’t kill Pure Vanilla, that wasn’t his “style” so to speak. He would bide his time and try to make Pure Vanilla succumb to deceit. At least that was what GingerBrave and his friends said when they made it back to the Faerie Kingdom without Pure Vanilla.
“White Lily, you know where the Spire of Deceit is, don’t you,” Dark Cacao asked.
“Y-yeah” White Lily said, clutching her staff closer to her chest, “we should prepare to go,
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“Master Shadow Milk,” Black Sapphire said, “the Ancients have been spotted on the grounds.”
Shadow Milk grinned, flashing his sharp teeth, “took them long enough,” he turned to a slight figure perched on the counter, “you hear that, Vanilly? Your friends are here.”
Truthless Recluse looked up from his toast that he was taking small bites from, “I thought you told me that they weren't going to come.” he said quietly.
“Change of plans, I'll invite them for dinner and we’ll put on a show for them. How’s that?” Shadow Milk said, walking over to stand in front of Truthless’s knees, just visible from under his robe.
Truthless smiled, “I did want to see them, they must be worried about me.”
Shadow Milk placed his hands on either side of Truthless’s hips on the counter and fluttered his eyelashes, “You still like me best, right?”
“Of course,” Truthless said, leaning in to rub his nose against Shadow Milk’s.
“Oh good,” Shadow Milk said, leaning in to press his lips to the side of Truthless’s mouth, “I was worried for a second.”
Truthless turned his head in to meet Shadow Milk’s, his arms coming up to rest on Shadow Milk’s shoulders.
“Ewwww, I'm tryna eat over here,” Candy Apple said from across the kitchen island, her spoonful of fruit loops halfway to her mouth.
“Does this bother you?” Shadow Milk said, kissing Truthless again.
“I’m eating in my room,” Candy Apple said, standing up with her cereal and skittering up the stairs.
“Yeah, whatever,” Shadow Milk said, grabbing the pot of coffee and gulping it down in one, then under his breath, “kids these days.”
Truthless smiled and took another small bite of his toast,