Work Text:
The clouds in the sky began to part, a deep red fading into sapphire blue. Were they really alive? It felt so unreal. Mere minutes ago, it seemed as if all hope was lost. But now…? Pure Vanilla Cookie stilled as his ears rang, knuckles tightening on his staff until they were dyed pale. His mind raced, trying to piece together all that had happened up until now. Dark Enchantrress… she had turned herself into a Witch with the power of the Soul Jams. He used his free hand to feel the blue gem affixed to his chest. Said object gently throbbed and glowed under his warm touch, glimmering with the power returned to him.
Distantly, he could hear the voices of the other Ancients, Hollyberry Cookie’s booming voice punching through the miasma clouding his mind. Yet, her words didn’t reach him. It was as if he was submerged in the yogurt river, unable to reach the surface no matter how he stretched or kicked his feet. It took a moment for him to realize he was hyperventilating. Quickly, he forced himself to breathe more thoughtfully before he worried his friends.
‘Focus back on the task at hand,’ he told himself. What was he doing before? Right, recollection. And all at once, his jam ran cold. He remembered what he had learned up until this point. Dark Enchantress and White Lily Cookie were one and the same, for better or for worse. And with the former gone…
Pure Vanilla Cookie’s head cleared as he whipped around. In a burst of light, his awakened form faded, leaving him in simpler white robes. He couldn’t help the tears that formed at the corners of his eyecings. The scent of lilies pierced his senses all at once as it hung thick in the air. And he suddenly felt his legs moving without his input. Face to face with his best friend, he had to get to her, no matter the cost. He felt her body jolt under his presence as he threw her arms around her. The Cookie of Truth trembled as he held her, her dough feeling so soft and fragile. White Lily Cookie blinked, her own eyecings glimmering with confusion.
“Pure Vanilla Cookie…?” she breathed, voice quiet, gentle, and laced with concern.
In response, the cookie in question only squeezed her crumbling dough tighter. “Please… Lily.” He wasn’t sure exactly what he was even asking her. Just anything but what he knew was going to happen. He finally landed on: “You can’t go.”
White Lily Cookie smiled, just holding her friend in her arms. She thought back… to their time studying together at the Blueberry Yogurt Academy. Then those long years of fighting together as allies, with the other Ancient Heroes by their side. The two friends’ lives were so tightly woven together. One having to move on without the other just felt wrong. Her arms squeezed him tighter in return, then a wave of grief suddenly crashed over her.
At the same time, both dropped their respective flowered staffs and sank to the dirt. White Lily Cookie’s flag of Freedom curled around the both of them as they just held each other. Until it disappeared in a glimmer of soft light. Just like her companion, she was left in a toned-down green dress of leaves and her translucent cloak. She felt a burning sensation etch into the cracks creeping into her dough. She tried using everything she had left to keep herself together. Such an effort caused her Soul Jam to shine brightly with a collection of her magic. For a long moment, Earthbread seemed to stand still. They were vaguely aware of their friends approaching them. But for the most part, they gave the two their space. While all the Ancients were friends, Pure Vanilla Cookie and White Lily Cookie were always the closest to one another. It was a natural consequence of them being essentially childhood friends.
Dark Cacao Cookie suddenly felt a tap on his shoulder. The level-headed king looked down to see Golden Cheese Cookie. “What is it, my friend?” He kept his voice low so as not to further provoke the two crying cookies in front of him. Furthermore, he was trying not to cry himself. He felt he had to be there for the others in this time of great emotion. While Pure Vanilla Cookie might be effectively their leader, he prided himself on being a sort of emotional rock for the others.
Golden Cheese Cookie pointed towards their crumbling friend. Or, previously crumbling friend would be the proper way to put it, because her disappearance had begun to cease with the shining light coming from the gem in her staff. As the queen of greed had silently pointed out, that same magic seemed to be weaving itself within the cracks in her dough, keeping their friend from breaking. But the question now was: why? Without Dark Enchantress, she shouldn’t be able to exist. They knew this going in, but tried not to think too hard about it. Dark Cacao Cookie and Golden Cheese Cookie both quietly exchanged glances before the latter gazed to her other side.
Hollyberry Cookie wasn’t in a much better shape than the two allies in front of them. Thick tears rolled down her face, which she fervently attempted to wipe away with her arm, only for more to quickly replace them. Golden Cheese Cookie gently nudged at her armor to get her attention, pointing out the same thing she did to Dark Cacao Cookie. Hollyberry Cookie sniffled and gazed on, awe replacing her grief.
“What do you think is happening?” she whispered.
“I don’t know,” the goddess of gold responded, “but it seems some type of magic is holding her together.”
And alas, they were right. At least partially. As the remainder of Dark Enchantress’s magic dissipated into the air, it seemed to be funneled back into White Lily Cookie to once again complete her partial form. The warm light stitched her dough back together before she could disappear from this world. At the same time as the other Ancients, she seemed to notice it too. She gazed down at herself quizzically, quickly picking up on what was happening. The warmth that pieced her form back together also filled her heart. She looked down at her blind friend, and a soft smile graced her face.
She reached out and gingerly cupped Pure Vanilla Cookie’s face. “Hey, look at me.” He quickly obeyed, though it didn’t make the most difference from his point of view. Once he did, she continued. “I’m going to be okay.” She watched as his face scrunched up in confusion, and she moved her thumbs to wipe the tears from his eyecings. “You heard me, it’s going to be alright.” White Lily Cookie removed one of her hands from his face and took one of his. And she used it to trace his hand across her pale dough. It wasn’t crumbling to the touch anymore. And it was then that Pure Vanilla Cookie realized he wasn’t going to lose his dearest friend. Not now. And if he could help it, not ever. He opened his mouth to speak, but no words came. All he could do was tighten his hold. The other three heroes exchanged glances before joining in on the hug.
Hollyberry Cookie was the first to speak in her usually booming, commanding tone. “Don’t scare us like that, White Lily Cookie!” She ruffled said cookie’s braided hair through her slowly drying tears.
“I cannot help but agree,” Golden Cheese Cookie responded. “Losing my friends is a trend I would rather not continue if I can help it.” Pure Vanilla Cookie playfully cringed as she chuckled at her (admittedly rather dark) joke.
“I’m glad this is not our goodbye,” added Dark Cacao Cookie with a thoughtful smile and White Lily Cookie couldn’t help but beam. Surrounded by all of her friends…with the knowledge that there would be many more good times to come.
“I believe this is cause for celebration.” Pure Vanilla Cookie piped up. Now with the despair ebbing away, he could gear his thoughts towards the future. And while there was much work to be done, they should stop and celebrate their achievements. They had just done something that they had previously thought impossible. He couldn’t think of a better reason to kick back and relax for a time. The world was safe, in no small part of the sacrifices and bravery of all their allies.
Suddenly, all five of them turned in response to a familiar voice shouting through the rubble. “Hey! Room for three more!?”
Pure Vanilla Cookie’s face lit up as instant recognition graced his ears. “GingerBrave!” He made an attempt to stand to greet the three kids who had carried so much weight, but was pulled down by the strong hand of Hollyberry Cookie tugging on his robes. She nodded to Golden Cheese Cookie who immediately got the hint and swept the small cookies up in her wings to join what had essentially become an impromptu group hug.
The three looked around, confused why everyone seemed to be crying. Strawberry Cookie timidly opened her mouth to question the situation, but White Lily Cookie waved a hand with a small chuckle. “We’ll fill you in later.” She quietly nodded, the answer seemingly satisfying her for now.
“Well,” Wizard Cookie Huffed “if it’s all the same to you guys, I would much prefer to get out of here sooner rather than later.” He stepped back and wiped some crumbs and dirt from his robe while his blue eyecings flicked across the war-torn landscape. “We don’t know what else might be lurking around here… and I don’t know about you, but I’d rather not get into another fight for a while.”
Strawberry Cookie nodded with a chuckle. “Me neither!” She hid her face in her hood, flushing with the terror of all that had transpired before and clutched her lollipop close to her chest. “That all was super scary! But it looks like you guys made it out okay too…?” There was a smattering of nods of confirmation in response.
“I like Wizard Cookie’s idea!” GingerBrave beamed as he also stepped back from the group. With newfound enthusiasm from this battle’s revaluations, he spoke more confidently than ever before. “Resting my feet sounds pretty nice.”
Pure Vanilla Cookie nodded. He was also on board with getting out of this awful place. If given the choice, he’d never step foot on the continent of Beast-Yeast ever again. He turned his attention back to White Lily Cookie as he located his staff next to him. The others slowly parted, giving the original duo room to breathe. “How do you feel? Can you stand?” He listened as she attempted to stand, but quickly collapsed before she could get too far off the ground. He took that as his cue to help her stand up and rest her weight against his body. He may not be the strongest cookie alive. He was merely a simple healer. But his strength was thankfully more than enough to support his friend when she needed it most.
“Thank you, Pure Vanilla Cookie,” she whispered. She watched as GingerBrave picked up her staff and held it gently. She tilted her head in confusion before he clarified his intentions. “It’s probably best if you don’t have anything extra to carry for the time being! Don’t worry, I’ll he careful with it!” She nodded with a cheerful laugh and thanked him.
With a deep breath, she looked ahead. Against all odds, she was actually facing the future. And she wouldn’t rather do it with anyone else. White Lily Cookie gently rested her head against her friend’s shoulder. With the other her fading away in the light, she felt so much lighter. For the first time in a long time, creeping dread didn’t loom over her shoulder.
At last, her pennitance was complete.