Chapter Text
Pure Vanilla Cookie was jolted awake by a sudden wave of coldness that hit his skin, making him shudder. After a short while of gaining his senses from his slightly dazed and sleepy state, he found himself on the dark side of the moon... Shadow Milk Cookie's "home". Sitting up, he spotted his staff, grabbing it immediately before taking in his surroundings. How did... When did...? Why back here again? Surely it's not Shadow Milk Cookie's power doing this, right? He's still in the silver tree, the same tree White Lily is still guardian for. Surely he hadn't gotten a body made for him this soon?
Nevertheless, it's... Quiet, maybe Shadow Milk Cookie isn't here after all? And yet—that doesn't answer what called and dragged him here again whilst he was sleeping, no less. The healer began to look around, maybe for an exit, somewhere, somehow. He wasn't an expert in terms of the other realm; he's rarely ever been here, not to mention all the times he had been here were against his own control. Pure Vanilla Cookie probably looked like an utter fool for physically looking for an exit; however, that is currently safer than attempting to create a portal through realms for the first time, uh, on purpose, since... He had only made realm portals before by accident.
Out of the blue, he heard a snicker and some laughter somewhere deeper in the void; however, its actual origin is hard to pick up on..."Shadow Milk Cookie! If that is you, show yourself!" he demanded in a commanding tone, bracing and expecting a snarky or teasing response, but instead was met with silence.
How strange. The silence was unnerving; he had expected the jester to do something more drastic, violent and chaotic. After spending a short while standing and waiting, he was eventually chosen to continue forth, looking for a way out. After all, this all could still be a plan Shadow Milk had made; maybe he knew that Pure Vanilla expected something chaotic and loud and chose to be dead quiet to try and throw him off? Pure Vanilla was just guessing at this point; he was utterly clueless on what to do, and if it comes down to it, he would definitely attempt to use his magic to get out of here... Even if he's incredibly inexperienced in terms of making realm portals. He didn't know how long he spent searching, with his feet dragging his nightly robes across the void. There was no indication of time in this place, just a numbing feeling matching the vast nothingness of the void.
Eventually, however, an eerie hum began; it was distant and faint, with its origin unknown, but it wasn't hard to guess who it was." Shadow Milk Cookie. "Quit fooling around and face me or let me leave," he spoke out, keeping his tone stern, only to be ignored, and the humming tune only seemed to get closer, each note climbing up his spine, making him shiver. Each ticking second that tune only seemed to become louder and more mind-consuming, almost ringing into his ears; it felt like it was millimetres away from him till it suddenly stopped, and his mind cleared. He immediately looked around, self-conscious now that he is being messed around with or even being played like a toy. He felt a sliver of touch go down his back; looking back, he found nothing. And then a tug on his robes, and then a touch in his hair, even a pull on his staff! "Shadow Milk! Quit it." For a moment, it actually stopped; he sighed and stepped back, processing everything. He didn't like this, being messed with like a doll. But before he could cram in another thought, he got jumpscared by Shadow Milk appearing a breath away from his face.
"BOO~!" The jester laughed freely and mischievously with a sharp-toothed smirk on his face.
"OH WITCHES—!" Pure Vanilla gasped out, stepping back, almost falling back, hand tightly gripping his chest, catching his breath, and then sternly looking at Shadow Milk. Shadow Milk continued to laugh, floating a little back and kicking his feet in joy. "HAH! You should've seen your STUPID face!" he cackled as he levitated down beside Vanilla and shapeshifted into him, exact in shape, size, everything really, but the eyes. Still remaining in those two cruel and cold shades of blue. "Oh, WiTcHeS!" Shadow Milk mocked over dramatically, acting like a damsel in distress, "PFT – as if they can or will help you! "HEHEH," he smirked proudly.
"STOP doing that! Stop being... me!" The healer frowned, stepping back in nervousness, hands moving to tighten his grip on his staff. "Yeah, sure, being you is boring anyway—!" The jester scoffed, shifting back to himself, and then smirked. "Besides, I have the real thing right in front of me~! "My dearest puppet had arrived!" he boasted, and before Pure Vanilla could even respond, he was tangled around a bunch of string, tightening around his limbs and hoisting him up, and hanging him upside down."Awh~! Look at you, so helpless and pathetic! Almost makes me feel bad," Shadow Milk cooed to him like a baby, and then let out a small chuckle seeing Pure Vanilla Cookie try to struggle out.
His eyes were sharply overjoyed; like an animal playing with its prey, he circled round Pure Vanilla, levitating round, his hair swaying with the movement. Pure Vanilla tried to use his light magic to loosen the string, only for it to be tightened, making his poor body ache. The other's voice eerily lowered. "I wouldn't even think about it; quit squirming." His head tilted in quiet curiosity, as his smile ever so subtly dropped in favour of curiosity. The healer's chest felt tight and achy. Okay, he knew it was dangerous, but his only way out currently is to get out of this realm via magic. The least he could do is attempt. The healer's hands tightened around his staff, focusing all his strength and power into his magic spell and focusing on making a portal home.Shadow Milk scoffed at this attempt. Did Pure Vanilla think he was blind? Doing this right in front of him? Stupid silly Vanilly, his stupidity entertained the blue jester more than he'd admit. "God, you are so pathetic, Nilly! Ah, it brings me joy seeing you be so weak," he laughed, stepping over to snatch the staff out of Pure Vanilla's hands. Pure Vanilla had panicked, feeling it slip out of his hands, and all that conjured energy and strength suddenly, and uncontrollably, was released with a BIG BOOM of light.
Shadow Milk saw it in the corner of his eye; he covered his head with his arm and tried to turn away. The blast still got him; it was too quick for either of them to react quickly enough against the burn. Pure Vanilla had dropped from the opposite side from Shadow Milk; the strings were burnt off... But the blast had left him drained of energy and a little bit burnt from his own magic, whilst his staff was with Shadow Milk, who seemed in a much worse state. He was on the ground, hissing, gripping his arm and his side, like a growling wounded animal."WHAT ON EARTHBREAD WAS THAT!?" the blue jester snapped at Pure Vanilla, his voice growling in held-back anger. "WHAT IS WRONG WITH YOU??? IF I WERE ANY CLOSER, THAT COULD'VE CRUMBLED ME!" he continued to yell as he shakily tried to stand but only resulted in a hiss and scream of pain and him falling down. Oh no no no no. Be CAN stand right? He MUST stand. HE MUST! He tried again; this time he could barely keep himself balanced on his knees and couldn't lift himself up, as if his body was actively protesting and fighting against his own will. "NO!" he yelled, half in panic and frustration. There is NO WAY that he was this injured from one blast of magic; there was no way someone like Pure Vanilla UNINTENTIONALLY caused this much damage. His legs were shaking and weak; he couldn't do it, and he collapsed down into a sagged sitting position. Pure Vanilla watched this in horror. Shadow Milk, what truly happened? How did this happen? The healer had never seen the other in such a weak and damaged state, and naturally, due to being a bleeding heart and a caring person, he felt his heart ache and stomach turn unpleasantly at the sight. Pure Vanilla, despite his weakness, hurried to his feet and stepped closer, trying to get a better view of the injured cookie; he had to see! Surely he didn't hurt him that bad, right?
"DON'T YOU DARE GET CLOSE TO ME AFTER WHAT YOU JUST DID!!" Shadow Milk growled at him, his hair going wild out of pure uncontrollable dread and anger. "NO! Wait! Please, it was an accident! I didn't mean to—!" the healer cried out in a desperate kind of worry, as if trying to convince himself too. And despite his protest, he didn't step closer, despite his instinct urging him to move and help, even towards such a person like Shadow Milk.
"Urgh-! Doesn't matter! You think your foolish words and apologies change something!? "Because let me tell you, they are NOT working on me...!" he roughly scowled, whilst in an attempt to sit up straight, the jester's body was shaking and shivering slightly out of pain, struggling to keep itself up, with dark blue jam spilling out of the cracks and burns in his dough.Pure Vanilla watched in worry and guilt as Shadow Milk reached out to heal himself, assuming he'd be able to, but... There was no magic, only a faint spark of light that flickered like a broken light bulb. "My—my magic? "Oh no no no, I still—" he tried again; the blue light from his hands flickered brighter this time, and yet, like a spark, it faded once more. He stubbornly tried again and again and again; the results didn't change.Pure Vanilla had to speak up to stop this; at this rate, neither of them will be able to leave. "Shadow Milk Cookie! Stop, you're wasting your energy! At this rate you'll—"
"OH SHUT IT! This, all of this, is YOUR FAULT!! I don't want to hear a single hush of words from you! NOT ONE! You hear me???" Shadow Milk defensively yelled at the healer. Despite the pain and suffering his newly made body is already going through, he still manages to be the same old snappy and stubborn Shadow Milk.
"Shadow, if you pass out, neither of us will be able to leave here... I don't even know the spell to get out of this realm." The blonde cookie softly spoke as he slightly crouched down in worry.
"Well, too bad." Shadow Milk growled under his breath, briefly glancing at Pure Vanilla's staff that lay beside him. "I can't MOVE; I can't FEEL MY DAMN BODY because of you!! And worse? YOU TOOK MY MAGIC to top it off!"
"And for that? You can sit and starve here alongside me," he spat out, his voice venomous, and yet—beneath—Shadow Milk felt tired, a little stressed and shaky even, but he refused to show such pathetic signs of weakness, especially in front of a certain blinded and naive fool. Pure Vanilla hadn't meant for this to happen. Even as enemies, he doesn't wish for anything like this to ever happen, especially on such a violent scale. "Shadow Milk... Please. I can fix this, I promise I didn't mean to put all this pain onto you..." He paused, thinking about his next words. "I owe you for the trouble I caused, and I'll do one thing for you, whatever you want, but you must let me help..." He nervously spoke, his voice slightly hushed. What other way is there? There is no exit as far as Pure Vanilla is aware, and the only person here who does know is currently heavily injured and crumbling.
"Owe me? And you'll do whatever I want?" Shadow Milk questioned, his sharp eyes squinting in doubt and curiosity. "Even if said thing takes you days to complete?" He tested the boundaries, frowning as he judged the blonde, trying to see how far he can go with this.
Pure Vanilla paused... He knew how dangerous this was; Shadow Milk could make him do ANYTHING. And yet... His hands clutched into his night robes; shaky, he has made his decision. "Yes. Even if it would take days." He reluctantly agreed, his own voice unsure and hushed. He was sure he'd regret this hasty and in-the-moment choice sooner or later. However, now, all his mind is worried about is fixing up the cookie in front of himself.
Shadow smirked. "Fine then! Go ahead!" he scoffed with some laughter slipping out. "Heal me then, chop chop!" he hummed, letting Pure Vanilla approach. As the other slowly shuffled over, with his non-injured arm, he grabbed and tossed Pure Vanilla's staff right at him, without warning. Shadow Milk did not care if it got caught or smacked right in Pure Vanilla's face. The healer panicked and caught the staff luckily. With a deep sigh and a moment of getting himself together, he shuffled closer in the crouching position, to investigate the wounds. Shadow Milk watched closely as he leaned back and followed Pure Vanilla's gaze occasionally. Gentle and careful not to disturb or make the cracks worse, Pure Vanilla traced his hands over Shadow Milk's arm; he could feel every crack, sharp edge, and the warmth and wetness of fresh sticky jam seeping through the dough, tinting the clothes. The healer frowned as he continued to look and feel, and his hold on the staff tightened more as he came to a realisation, a cruel and difficult one. "Shadow Milk, these could take months to heal properly; this won't be a quick fix..." he murmured in worry and slight panic, keeping his eyes on the wounds, not looking up at the jester.
Months... What is he going to do about that? Keeping Shadow in his own kingdom? Risky, and yet, out of everything, it's the only solution he can come up with in the moment.
"MONTHS? I'd be stuck with you for months???" Shadow Milk screeched, bringing back Pure Vanilla from his thoughts to the present. "I AM NOT staying with someone like you for months! Who do you think I am??? Not under any circumstance!" He snapped, shifting away from Pure Vanilla, who was already beginning to heal him. "I'll do multiple tasks for you, even if it takes months, 5 things, whatever you want, I'll do it. Just stay still, please," he quickly suggested to stop Shadow Milk from moving so much. Hands tightly holding him, careful of the wounds, but keeping him still. He didn't even know why he uttered that out; he didn't even think about it, and thinking about it now made him feel incredibly stupid and naive.
And yet Shadow Milk paused and then burst out laughing through the pain and smirked, surprised at the suggestion. "5 things? FOR MONTHS? Hah! That's more my speed! Go on then, healer boy! "Do what you have to," he hummed, tilting his head ever so slightly. Ohhh, how he would abuse this power! How many torturing things can he think of for pure Vanilla to do for him! His smile sharpened like a knife at the mere thought of this much power over the other. However... With his current lack of magic, he can't make this deal official or something Pure Vanilla cannot back out of, and Pure Vanilla can always still refuse most of the extreme things he could ask for... However, that also goes the other way; whatever Shadow Milk would've asked for, it all would have to go back to normal after it was completed, and Shadow Milk WOULD have to end it if they made it official via magic.
Shadow Milk's cocky smirk slightly dropped into mild annoyance; no, he won't trust the other's word to keep up the deal. He MUST make it official as soon as his powers are back; even if it would result in him not being able to manipulate how long the task should be, it would force Pure Vanilla into ANY situation he wanted, and that he valued over how long it lasts. This thought process didn't last long till Pure Vanilla pressed a little too hard on one of his wounds; you could hear the slight click and crack of his dough.
"URGH, WATCH IT!" he groaned at Pure Vanilla. Who immediately immensely apologised and carried on healing. In fact, Shadow Milk didn't even notice when Pure Vanilla lifted his sleeve to heal his arm. Seeing the damage with his own two eyes made him realise how truly close to crumbling he had gotten... His wounds are deep and sharp; each opening crack had burn marks all around it, and his jam on its own was seeping out quite vastly and quickly, which stained all over Pure Vanilla's hands. To believe that if he hadn't blocked his head with this arm, that COULD'VE been his head – quite a threatening thought that is.
Once Pure Vanilla stabilised his arm, he gently traced his hand on Shadow Milk's side; he was wounded there too... "Shadow Milk, may I see the wounds underneath?" he politely asked, thinking nothing of the ask either; he didn't expect Shadow Milk to get flustered and embarrassed about the ask."WHAT? NO! Can't you heal it without looking???" he snapped back; Pure Vanilla seemed taken aback for a moment.
"I suppose, but it'd be much more difficult—"
"DON'T CARE! It's possible, so do it that way!" Shadow Milk agressively cut him off whislt scoffing, glaring at the other, daring him to argue or say another word.
Pure Vanilla sighed and stayed quiet, using his hands to feel the damage and heal it. However, due to how deep and severe the wounds are, magic alone isn't enough. Shadow Milk needs rest and the body to restore itself on its own...
Pure Vanilla could only stabilise the bleeding and wounds, not fix them and heal them permanently, this being much more difficult with not being able to see the rest of the wounds, so even the stabilisation might be weaker than usual.
"Don't move too much; anything can cause them to reopen." The healer spoke in soft, gentle caution, looking over Shadow Milk's body, looking for any more damage... He took a mental note of Shadow Milk's hair being dead where the light burnt them... Most likely having to cut it later once they are somewhere safer than the other realm. Shadow Milk let out a small gagging noise at Pure Vanilla's softness and care. "Urgh, I'm aware of that, Vanilly. I'm not a moron. Do you forget I was once the fount of great knowledge? Pathetic." He mumured under his breath, his eyes remaining looking at Pure Vanilla coldly, not showing any signs of care for the other. In fact, this reckless care for an enemy just makes him feel disgust in the depths of his stomach.
Pure Vanilla spoke up, "No, not of the sort." He gently sat down on his knees. "I was simply informing you," he murmured and then sighed. "Nevertheless, we have to leave this place, and... I'm assuming your magic doesn't work."
"PFT! It works PERFECTLY fine!" the jester boasted with mocking laughter. "I could use it whenever! But it's not smart for me to use much more of my magic, especially in this state," he huffed out.
"Well? "Mind teaching me then so I can leave—so we can leave?" Pure Vanilla ever so politely asked, voice as smooth and gentle as a petal. Shadow found it repulsive, and yet, to make him stop speaking, he agreed with a simple nod."Fine, fine, yes, whatever," he grumbled. "Stand up; this might take a while since I doubt you'll get it first try." The jester dramatically sighed, slightly in disbelief over himself. Never has he ever thought in ages that HE, the fount of knowledge, would once more be teaching someone. And yet, here he is, teaching the guy that stole his half of the souljam how to make realm portals. Pathetic, really, especially since now, he is dependent on that guy to leave this place.
Thankfully, due to his experience teaching, Pure Vanilla didn't take long to get it. Maybe around 3-4 attempts; he got it on his 5th, surprisingly so. Oh, and Shadow Milk DEFINITELY laughed at every bad attempt; NOTHING is funnier than seeing an ancient hero fail at some simple spells! Hehe... but of course once he managed it, Shadow Milk felt blinded by the pure light and brightness of the other end of the portal Pure Vanilla had conjured."URGH, NILLA, why does your kingdom always have to be overly bright! How do you consistently live in THAT! URGH... my eyes," he whined and complained, leaning away from the portal, gosh and to think that's how it looked like DURING NIGHT TIME!
Pure Vanilla frowned and sighed, exhausted due to multiple attempts at casting a portal that transcends realms... His eyebrow twitched at hearing the jester's complaints, but he just let it go. "Apologies, but it worked. Once we cross through there, I can finally get you to proper care," he explained as he shuffled over to Shadow Milk, still in the same spot on the "ground" as he was before.
"May I help you up?" Pure Vanilla asked, standing beside Shadow Milk with an outstretched hand. "Oh, shut up and help me up." He growled as he allowed pure vanilla to lift him; his legs were shaky, and as he got pulled up with his uninjured hand, he wobbled as he tried to force himself to keep standing. But that was futile since he only fell over and into Pure Vanilla, who caught him."Careful! You'll—" and got immediately cut off by Shadow Milj groaning and tilting away from Pure Vanilla, not liking being this close to him, hating his touch around him. "Urgh, shut it and just go through the portal," he spat at him, voice filled with disgust and discomfort.
Pure Vanilla noticed and stayed silent, only nodding in response as he helped, step by step, for them to get back to the real world. As they stepped through the portal, the shift in the atmosphere was clear; the warmth of the vanilla kingdom immediately surrounded them. All the sensations here contrasted the lack of it in the other realm: the warm light, the comforting smell of lilies and vanilla orchids, the soft touch of a gentle breeze that floated through the windows...Oh, how much the healer loved this place, his sweet kingdom. Shadow Milk, however, seemed to almost become overwhelmed with each sensation; used to living in numbness for so long, actually being able to feel, taste and smell everything is making him... Overstimulated. The light? blinding! The warmth? Burning! The breeze? Sending a shiver through his dough. Oh, he despises feeling these sensations all at once; it's almost too much, even if they're small, minute details. Pure Vanilla's hold on him is NOT helping in any way, only making him more overwhelmed and uncomfortable in the moment."Ugh, let go of me already!" he muffled out in a resentful tone of voice, looking over at the other, who already was looking down at him."Oh, yes, of course..." Pure vanilla buzzed out, gently letting shadow milk sit on his bed.
"Hold on a moment, I have an aid kit around here! I could nicely bandage your wounds and clean them," he assured with an eversweet bright look on his face. Shadow Milk always found his can-do attitude irritating. And yet he sat quietly watching Pure Vanilla close, seeing him shuffle and go through his shelves and cupboards before looking away and looking around Pure Vanilla's room. He hasn't seen it properly, or in person, since he has only ever seen it before through Pure Vanilla's memories. It looks bigger than expected... And being here? You can consistently feel and sense the warmth and comfort from every corner of this kingdom, filled with the smell of fresh flowers and pleasantries such as the smell of a fresh page of a book. The jester despises it; with his entire being, he hates being here. The skies were filled with beautiful shades and clouds, bluebirds, and occasional other creatures that can travel through the sky... Such a kingdom floating in the skies is doomed to have beautiful scenery and low chances of bad weather, especially when it is above most clouds... It's too... Perfect. As Shadow Milk turned back to look at the healer, he already had found the medkit; it was quite decently sized. He expected a mini one, but then again, Pure Vanilla's kingdom is a "land" of healing.
Can you even consider it land when it's in the sky and the castle itself is consistently moving? But never mind that.
Pure Vanilla gently placed the medkit on the bed beside Shadow Milk, and then he hummed, looking over at the jester, who seemed to almost be death-glaring him."You know, Shadow Milk, in order for me to clean and bandage your wounds, I do need to see them." Pure Vanilla reminded Shadow of Milk. He paused and frowned, with a hint of embarrassment again appearing on his face. "And what if I don't want you to see?" he grunted under his breath, but loud enough on purpose so Vanilla heard."Well, I'm going to have to in order to apply the bandages and to clean the remainder of jam on your dough—" Pure Vanilla began explaining."Then—I'll do it myself. UNDER NO CIRCUMSTANCE are you allowed to see the dough under my clothes! Understand!?" the jester hissed, his face getting a little red out of embarrassment at the mere thought of allowing such a thing! Though cookies have nothing to hide below, shadow milk still found it incredibly personal and embarrassing. And for many cookies, this embarrassing feeling about being "naked" is seen as unusual and odd, especially since many cookies out there wear little to no clothing over their doughs.
"Are you sure you'll be alright to—" and once more Pure Vanilla got cut off by a very moody jester, who seems too tired to deal with such nonsense with Pure Vanilla."YES! I know how to take care of myself; I am the Fount of Knowledge. I am fine to do it myself," he huffed as he looked over the medkit, opening it and finding all the necessities."If you're sure... Whilst you do that, I'll have a look through my wardrobe for anything for you to wear for tonight that isn't covered in jam." The healer murmured, worried yet trusting Shadow Milk not to do anything foolish that would harm himself... And so, he went through his wardrobe, finding something the jester wouldn't mind wearing that isn't... Too much in his style.
Shadow Milk, on the other hand, watched him for a little while longer from the distance, just making sure the other wasn't going to turn around any time soon. Shortly after, he began to undress, and looking down over his own cracked and broken-down body as his suit slid down his dough. He was in really rough shape, and seeing himself in such a way almost felt... Unreal. He just had gotten a real-life body back, not some phantom of his form, but a real body, and already, his freedom of a body was handicapped as soon as he got it. Stuck in a weak, crumbling body. He let out an annoyed sigh before delicately bandaging himself, careful of his own body he isn't used to. Even his own touch felt weird, needless to say. So used to a numb feeling that remains in the other realm and the silver tree, all of this caused these sensations to become alienated. In fact, being under the custody of Pure Vanilla himself, being taken care of by his inferior other half is... humiliating, beyond humiliation, in fact; it just feels like a bad nightmare, a weird one, but ultimately a bad one.
Losing his powers, being taken care of by stupid Vanilly, being stuck in the vanilla kingdom, his newly made body already damaged almost beyond repair, BUT—! He did manage to get Pure Vanilla to agree to 5 different terms, whatever he would want. And that? It will be more than worth it once he plays his cards right.
─ ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─ small time skip ─ ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─
Pure Vanilla stood outside his own room, since, shadow milk asked, or more like, yelled, and was persistant over getting his own privacy when changing into the clothes pure vanilla lended him. It was just some nice warm blue hoodie and some shorts, nothing too special, since... All of pure vanilla's other clothing is TOO much in his own style, and he doubted someone like Shadow Milk wouldn't have anything to say if he gave him any of the other stuff.
He kept close to the door, listening in, making sure the jester isn't doing anything inside his room that he isn't meant to. However, being out here, Pure Vanilla has a chance to think and realise what has jsut happened over the past hour. How he has made a ton of horrific decisions, with no back up plan— or any plan in general. And the more Pure Vanilla thinks about it, the more stupidly naive he feels.
I mean, HE IS KEEPING one of his biggest threats and enemies in his kingdom, and healing him, for what? For the other to just bounce back and destroy all he ever loves? What would be stopping Shadow Milk from destroying anything when he gets enough strength back? His friends, and allies, what will they think of this? Nothing pleasant for sure... Especially since he already told them all about the Beasts, or more specifically, Shadow Milk, the past few days he has been back.
Pure vanilla has to think of something, anything to try and make this whole thing secure and not a half-awake mess he had created. And yet, currently, nothing is coming to mind. Pure Vanilla weakly sighed and leaned back against the door, his body weak and aching from all this magic he had wasted tonight, his energy levels are low and his head is slowly begining to develop a headache, making it difficult enough as it is to process this entire situation.
Worst part of this, has to be when he foolishly uttered out and promised Shadow Milk that'd he'd do 5 tasks for him, no matter what— what if the jester tries to do something in order to drive himself apart from his friends, allies and hurt the ones he holds most close to himself? There isn't a single reason Shadow Milk wouldn't do such a thing, no matter how much Pure Vanilla hoped that Shadow Milk would repay his kindness, he knew better than that. Especially since Shadow Milk knows pure vanilla owes him for the trouble he caused.
Wait a moment, the deal they made... He didn't make an official magic bound deal with Shadow Milk yet! Oh! Idea! If pure vanilla makes the deal, he can set down boundaries as of what he won't do, and what Shadow Milk CAN'T do to his kingdom, friends and allies in return for the 5 tasks. Pure Vanilla let out a relieved smile as he leaned back more against the door. Right— make the deal official, put down the boundaries, and then shadow milk will be forced not to break them.
However the other issue, are his friends and allies... How can he possibly explain to them that shadow milk is under his care? And why? Because he felt bad? Because he hurt someone evil and almost crumbled them? Oh, pure vanilla what have you gotten yourself into? How do you fix this, why are you doing this to yourself? There is no valid reason for you to be doing this! You should just get the bare minimum done and kick him out before he causes any chaos.
And yet he has a gut feeling, something deep within himself is calling and yelling at him to help, to not leave him behind. He doesn't know why or where it is coming from. But something is telling him to keep going, to pursue. He doesn't know whenever to trust this feeling... However for now? He'll keep it low and try to figure out why, why does he feel sympathy towards someone so engulfed and blinded by hatred, chaos and deciet...
Before he knew it he got bought back from his thoughts hearing shuffling in the other room. "Shadow Milk? Are you done in there?" he quietly called out, not wanting to awake anyone, since it is, late, in the night.
"i have been for a long while, gramps" the jester weakly retorted with a smirk being heard by his tone of voice. Pure vanilla sighed and entered back in, not noticing the slight glow of his souljam of truth being brighter after collecting his own thoughts.