Work Text:
Dark Cacao picks up the teapot beside him by its handle, carefully pouring the slightest amount of water into his inkstone. The water curves on itself, wobbling side to side before settling in the center. Dark Cacao places the teapot to the side, taking the silver-lined inkstick into his other hand and circling the drop of water, now gradually turning pitch black and the scent of nature enveloping the room. The liquid thickens as he presses down harder against the stone. He tilts the bigger bowl it was cased into the side, letting some of the liquid spill into that bigger bowl as he continues to grind. He lifts the ink stick with a small shake and places it onto a stone plate so as to not damage his desk. Finally, he pours the substance into a small cup. He repeats this process until the cup is filled with ink. It took a lot of preparation to write in the Dark Cacao Kingdom, only those who have patience and passion can write without giving up out of boredom.
He was thinking about his friends all day, worry growing in his heart until sunset, when he had ordered to be undisturbed in his chambers until morning, needing to be alone. It started in the left corner, writing in Common Cookie language, brush gliding against paper in gentle strokes. “Dear Pure Vanilla Cookie” he went to dab the brush in the cup again before continuing.
It had been 28 days since the war, I can only imagine what you must be feeling right now. It was rough on all of us,-
Dab dab dab
that I am sure of. I would like to informally invite you to the Dark Cacao Kingdom. It is not a good idea to-
Dab dab dab
suffer through this alone. I am working on being more open to the cookies I care about. Like a butterfly finally breaking free of the-
Dab dab dab
sugar cocoon it once buried itself inside. I would be happy to spread my wings with you over a cup of tea. Of course, if you-
Dab dab dab-
The cup hits the table with a soft clink, spilling ink all over the creamy paper. Words merging with the flowing liquid, now meaning nothing and addressed to nobody. Dark Cacao’s eye twitches, clasping his hands together and taking a deep breath. The ink is making you frustrated. You spilled the ink and that was frustrating. Everything's okay. He breathes out, finding a new wave of calm within. He carefully lifts up the ruined letter, he attempts to pour the still wet remains back into its container. When ink ends up down the sides and onto the wooden desk, he pauses, eye twitching even more. He crumpled the ruined letter in his grasp before tossing it in the small bin on the ground. He reaches into the drawer under the desk and pulls out another sheet of paper, starting all over again with what little ink he had left in the cup.
Dear, Pure Vanilla Cookie-
Bang
A servant rushes into his chambers, immediately bowing to him. “King Dark Cacao cookie..!” her chest heaves in her bent position, harsh breaths whistling through her teeth. Dark Cacao had stood abruptly from his chair and turned as soon as his door swung open, almost ready to attack until the sight of his tired servant sank into him. Taking a few steps toward the servant, who was still bowing to him, not meeting his gaze. “I thought I requested to be in my chambers undisturbed?” he retorts, hands interlocking behind his back as he glared down at her.
“I’m deeply sorry your Majesty” she heaves out between gasps. She must have run all the way from the other side of the castle if she’s acting like this. Dark Cacao thought. “Stand up and state your purpose.”
“It’s-” She takes another gasp of air, standing straight and looking the king in the eyes. “Him- Her- Them-!” she almost collapses to her knees before Dark Cacao moves his hands under her arms, supporting her. “Please, stable yourself, Caramel Swirl Cookie” she grabs onto his cloak, digging her trembling hands into his sleeves.
“Who is here? What has happened that made you act in such a way?”
“It’s Dark Choco!” He almost drops her when that name pierces his ears, quickly setting her down on an extra chair beside his door.
“What?”
“Pr- Pri- Dark Choco Cookie has returned!” She stammers out. “He’s in the infirmary" she points around where the room should be, hand collapsing beside her like it took all her energy to make that gesture.
Dark Cacao steps back, eyes wide as they dart around the room, landing on his cape hung on the wall. He quickly dismounts it, wrapping it around his shoulders in an attempt to look decent in his nighttime gown as he runs down the castle halls, passing large paintings with drapes over them, too painful to look at. Making a sharp turn around a corner that wrinkled the lavish rug beneath him, slamming the doors to the infirmary open. There, healers were rushing all over the room and crowding around the former prince, making it hard for Dark Cacao to see him.
One of the healers walked up to Dark Cacao, trying to politely rush him out. “My King! Please, you cannot see them at the moment. You must wait outside” Dark Cacao took a step back, hesitation filled his body with the urge to get to his son, his child, but also knowing he might interfere with the medics trying to help him. “Unresponcive! Get more life powder, quickly!” one medic yells, making Dark Cacao’s eyes instantly widen. “He what-!?” The door gets shut in his face, a loud apology coming from the medic he was just speaking to.
He stays in place for a few seconds, his breathing stopped, and his hands trembling beside him.
He takes a deep breath, and breaths out, and breaths in, getting faster by the second. He clutches his chest as he practically collapses against the wall behind him and slides down, knees curling up to his chest. The tears welling up in his eyes stung worse than the first failed assasination attempt against him, worse than falling down all those stairs in Beast Yeast, worse than anything he could ever imagine.
His son, his baby, his own child, injured and unresponsive. Facing atrocities in the hands of Dark Enchantress, and the rest of the world. Who knows what could’ve happened to him out there without him to shield his son. He wasn’t there for him, he wasn’t there for him ever.
But then, he stops. His eyes drifting away from each other ever so slightly, as if his spirit was not a part of this reality anymore. His vision blurs, unable to look away from the door for even a blinking moment.
Minutes passed, then hours. All he did was stare. Eyes never leaving the door stopping him from seeing his kid, struggling to stay alive. He wasn’t sure if he felt anything anymore, he wasn’t even sure if he was thinking at all, like a switch had flipped in his mind that separated it from his body, from his very being.
Caramel Arrow sprints down the hall, slowing her pace down once she sees Dark Cacao on the floor, motionless in front of the infirmary. “King Dark Cacao Cookie!?” She picks up her pace again, sliding down on her knees in front of him. She did not wish to touch him, as that was one of the unspoken rules of royalty, but when she examined Dark Cacao he looked either unconscious or dead. She waves her hand in front of his face, examining his pupils to see if anything changed. When his eyes never followed her hand, still staring into the distance, she felt panic rise in her chest and up to her throat. She quickly took off her glove and pressed two of her fingers under his jaw in an attempt to feel a pulse.
Dark Cacao flinched at the sudden contact, grabbing her wrist and pulling it away from him, running purely on instinct. Caramel Arrow yelped as her face hit the floor, body yanked over Dark Cacao’s lap from the sudden pull he made. The king quickly realised his action against his top watcher, and let go of her wrist. His hands moved to lift her up by her shoulders and off the floor “I deeply apologize, Caramel Arrow Cookie. I did not see you” his voice carries a hint of guilt but that detachment still vibrates within him, still not fully present but slowly coming back.
Caramel Arrow rubs her nose that was a little red from the fall, but sits up straight for her king. “I should be the one apologising, your majesty. I should not have touched you so suddenly.”
“You were only trying to help… I cannot hold anything against you for that”
With one, deep breath, his shoulders slump to his sides and he presses his forehead against his knees as if he was trying to hide himself from the watcher staring down at him. “My liege…” he hears her a lot clearer now. Her voice is soft like the caramel in her dough. She cares about you. That weirdly familiar voice echoes in his mind, reminding him to show his emotions more often. It was his promise after all.
With that, he gently lifts his head and opens his eyes, the familiar blurs coming together to form the watcher that Dark Choco himself trained. Perhaps that familiarity is why he liked Caramel Arrow more than any other watcher. “Carramel Arrow Cookie…”
“Yes, it’s me, my king”
“I apologize.. I did not wish for you to see me like this”
“There is no need for apologies” dismissing him, she goes to slip her glove back on.
“Why are you not at your post?” Dark Cacao questions, his eyes still never leaving the door in front of them.
“When I heard of Prince Dark Choco's return, I left my post as quickly as I could” she gently clasps her hands together and bows her body towards the king with her eyes shut tight. “I apologise for leaving my post, my-” She gasps a little as Dark Cacao takes her hands apart, gazing at her face and observing how it contorts into surprise. His words remain soft, overflowing with compassion for his dear soldier. “Please, Caramel Arrow Cookie.. I do not want you to apologize for showing care. Just now, you attempted to aid me when I was having a… moment…” he places her hands in her lap, removing his own to retreat to his own lap as well. “I am eternally grateful for your devotion to me and my kingdom. Please, address me formally no longer and remember to stand at ease in times like these.”
Caramel Arrow didn’t know how to respond, having never been so intimate with the king before, or anybody really. She offered him a smile, her eyes becoming half closed as ordered by her commander. “Yes, Dark Cacao Cookie.. Thank you for your gratitude” he smiled back at her, leaning back to his original position on the wall, eyes landing on the door again. A harsh light peaked through the cracks of the door, interfering with the soft torches along the hall. “Dark Choco Cookie…” He feels the cramp in his chest return once again, but this time he knows someone is right by his side to help, easing the pulsing in his dough. “He’s in there?” Caramel Arrow asks, a bit of shock rising in her voice. Dark Cacao nods his head silently, letting out a sigh. “I was informed by Caramel Swirl Cookie that he was wounded… Apparently it’s critical. I was not even able to see him.” His voice cracks a little, taking a deep breath. Hitting his knee with a bawled up fist was enough for the urge to cry to retreat back into him. “They said he wasn’t responding… if something terrible happens to him-”
“My ki-” She quickly corrects herself. “Dark Cacao Cookie! Do not speak such words.” Caramel Arrow takes a short pause. “Dark Choco Cookie won’t… Die…” she hesitates, not sure if her words are completely truthful. After all, she wasn’t exactly sure what Dark Choco’s condition was-
… No…
“Dark Choco Cookie is strong. He was taught how to handle his battles by the very king who founded and protected this land. And then he trained me to be one of the best Dark Cacao watchers on the very same land!” her voice carried confidence, shining down on Dark Cacao in hopes of lifting his spirits. “Not only that, but the best healers in the kingdom are at his aid, he will not crumble”
Dark Cacao’s eyes made contact with Caramel Arrow’s, glistening with hope. “Are you certain?” He knew that she wouldn’t have a completely true answer, as she knew next to nothing about what happened before, and the situation inside the room right now. But, even if it was foolish, he needed to hear somebody, anybody, say that his child will be okay.
She offered a confident grin. “Affirmitive” she nodded, short and firm. Dark Cacao let himself relax once again, closing his eyes and leaning his head back on the wall. “Thank you, Caramel Arrow Cookie…” An easy silence fell over them, both of their gazes now fixated on the door which Dark Choco is being kept in. Occasionally, a cookie inside will walk past the door, every time, they would block some of the light from inside, Dark Cacao and Caramel Arrow hoped that the door would creek open, and a healer would tell them that Dark Choco was okay, and that he was ready to be seen.
“What are you going to say to him?” Dark Cacao questions, eyes staying on the light glazing the floor, almost taunting him with its unbearable shine.
Caramel Arrow paused, looking over to her king before seeing he was still looking at the door, moving her gaze back to it. “I’m…” she hesitates. “I want to tell him how much I missed his lessons. How much I missed his visits to the citadel… How much I missed him” her smile turns somber, reminiscing about old memories with the prince all those years ago. So many years had passed, yet, she feels like he just left yesterday.
Dark Cacao lets out a small, light laugh. “So, that's where he went.”
“Pardon me?”
“Dark Choco used to.. sneak off. I could only imagine what was so important,” he turns his head towards her, giving her a teasing glare. “Or who was so important.” A small blush creeps up to Caramel Arrows cheeks, embarrassed. “My king! I’m sorry, I didn’t know it was without your knowledge he was visiting-” Dark Cacao lets out an amused chuckle that was forming in his throat, placing his free hand on his chest. “No need to apologise, Caramel Arrow Cookie. It is but a distant memory now.” His laugh quickly dies down, expression returning back to his usual resting stoic glare.
Caramel Arrow, still a bit flushed, looks back at the medical room. “Yeah.. Of course, Dark Cacao Cookie." She lifts her knees to her chest as silence overcomes them once again, this time with Caramel Arrow about to stutter something out.
“We-We did not do anything other than engage in conversation, if I may make it clear, Dark Cacao Cookie!” Dark Cacao smirks, finding this conversation amusing.“Is that a watcher's promise?”
A watcher’s promise… That phrase made it seem like she was betting her whole career, her whole life on the premise that she was not anything more than a friend to the prince. It was like Dark Cacao was trying to get her to crack, to admit something about her and Dark Choco’s past relationship that he did not know about.
“Yes… That is a watcher’s promise” She replies, nothing but honesty leaving her lips. “Hm.. Alright then” he abandons the question, knowing that Caramel Arrow was too devoted to her job to lie directly to his face, especially about his son.
“What would you say to him?” Caramel Arrow bounces the question back at Dark Cacao, whose expression remains still, eyes glistening with an unknown feeling stirring within. “I-”
He was cut off with the door suddenly sliding open, a medic stepping out in their usual white robe, only this time it was incredibly wrinkled and covered with various staining substances. They bow to Dark Cacao. “My king, Prince Dark Choco Cookie is now stable and in recovery. We have moved them to the private room on the far right for you, sir” they explain with a tired expression on their face, strands of hair falling over the wrinkles on their dough.
Dark Cacao pushes himself up with haste, quickly making his way inside the room, but stops in front of the healer looking up at him. “I am eternally grateful… Thank you” he ever so slightly bows to the medic with a hand over his chest, surprising them a little but quickly reciprocating the bow with the same hand to heart gesture. “Please, it is without trouble, my liege”
Dark Cacao takes his next steps with caution, Caramel Arrow following close behind him. They both were not sure what to expect once they took those final steps into the room where Dark Choco rested. How different would he look? Would he even want to talk to them? They could not be certain until the final push on the sliding hanji door.
Dark Cacao stared in awe as the face of his son, exactly how he remembered him, laid on the pristine white bed in the center of the room. But, he could not deny he noticed something different. His child’s hair had grown since they last met, a binyeo pin placed on the small table by his head, a circle symbol embedded with a short wave across its center opposite to the pointy end a fashionable woman would stick in her hair to keep it from moving.
Dark Choco laid unmoving under soft blankets, chest rising and falling at a steady pace. Dark Cacao moved closer to his side, looking down at his child, sleeping peacefully against the soft pillow beneath his head. Dark Cacao silently noticed that his eye had changed slightly, charcoal applied in one messy stroke accompanied with some type of peach powder above it. He placed a hand on Dark Choco’s cheek, gently caressing the scar peaking out of the eyepatch with his thumb.
Caramel Arrow gazes down at her former mentor, she never thought she would see Dark Choco in such a vulnerable position, but was infinitely times better than seeing their crumbs scrambled all across the ground. Her eyes caught a glimpse of clothing hung on the wall, grabbing her attention when her eyes landed on it for a second time. Hung up on a hook was an obviously hand crafted jeogori around an old shirt, and a long, dirty chima around the waist that flowed down to the ankles, attached with clips to the rest of the outfit. This causes her to recollect her experiences with Dark Choco.
“I have never seen him wear something so… outwardly stylish before” She mentions to Dark Cacao, who looks up to examine the dress himself. He hums in thought, a deep rumble vibrating in his throat. “I see…” all of the days he’s lived with Dark Choco, he knew he did not like showing himself. Bathhouses after training were always met with a harsh no. On any formal occasion where they needed to wear their hanbok, their hands were always fiddling with the cloth on their broad shoulders.
Dark Cacao sighs, face scrunching up as a small head ache flared up around his crown. His eye switched ever so slightly as he took his hand off of Dark Choco’s cheek, and rubbed his own temples to try and ease the pounding.
Dark Choco’s eyebrows furrowed in their sleep, letting out a grunt as their hand reaches up from under the covers to touch the scar across their eye. “Owwh…” upon realising that it was covered with a bandage, they groan in confusion and open their one good eye, finding that his father was sitting right beside him with his head down, hands on his face. “What…?” Their eye widened.
Dark Cacao quickly looked up at his child when he spoke, eyes locking together. This was the first time in years they had met without swords clashing against each other, it was almost unbelievable, words bubbling at the tip of their tongues but never letting them spill. Caramel Arrow’s gaze traveled up and down their form before slowly wrapping her hand around Dark Choco’s, causing them to flinch slightly at the unexpected touch, turning his head to the watcher on the opposite side of the bed. “I’m glad to finally see you again,” She hesitates, her thoughts landing back on the dress and the possible hidden implication behind it. “... How may I address you?”
Dark Choco’s breath gets caught in their throat, their single eye squinting at their old student. “... How do you think you may address me?” they challenge, already preparing for the answer that will make their heart twist in utter agony. They felt a bit loopy from all of the magic being used on them earlier, trying to prepare themselves to keep up their hardened outer shell if such emotions were to crash down on them.
She thought for a second, looking towards Dark Cacao to see if he had any silent words of wisdom for her. He didn’t seem to have any, busy finding his own words. Looking back down at Dark Choco, she offers a small smile. “Princess, Dark Choco Cookie” she feels a squeeze on her hand, her smile fading for a moment. But then she sees it. Dark Choco’s eyes dilated and an uncontrollable smile formed on her face, like she didn’t want to show such an emotion that forced its way to the surface. “... Affirmative, soldier” Caramel Arrow returns the smile, her gaze dripping with an unfamiliar sense of affection.
Dark Cacao places his palm atop of Dark Choco’s free hand, bringing both of the others attention to the king whose expression was full of understanding despite the guilt swirling in his chest. “Dark Choco Cookie…” She looked into her fathers eyes, trying to find a hint of anger or disappointment hidden beneath them. “I’m sorry”
“You have already apologised before, father”
“No… About never noticing” His eyes shut, eyebrows furrowed in an attempt to keep his impassive front afloat.
“I barely knew anything about you.. I didn’t know your hobbies, I didn’t know your favorite food.. I didn’t know you were uncomfortable in those clothes, I didn’t know what you wished to be called, and I didn’t know you were my daughter…”
Dark Choco’s eyes widen once again, emotion overflowing her body, engulfing her magic-drunk mind. She springs up and quickly wraps her arms around Dark Cacao’s shoulders, burying her face in his chest. “Father…” Dark Cacao pauses at the unexpected display of affection, his stoic front slowly crumbling down as he reciprocates the action, embracing his child fully. “My little girl…” His hand glazes across her back in comforting strokes, his other hand on her head, fingers intertwined with her hair.
Caramel Arrow bows to them both, even though they are not looking at her taking her leave to let the family have their moment with each other, after all such displays of emotion are reserved for the cookies closest to you, especially in such conditions.
“Do you not even feel the tiniest bit of sorrow towards me, father?”
“The only sorrow I feel is how I allowed you to leave so easily all those years ago…”
Dark Choco takes a deep, shaking breath, sounding like tears were about to burst from her eyes in waterfall amounts.
“I am so proud that you were able to find yourself all on your own…” A single tear pricks Dark Cacao’s eye, stinging with a burning sensation.
“I have learned that the strength of a soldier is not determined by how many foes they crumble, or how many they take on at once, but is determined by taking on the battle against oneself… A battle with no physical opponent, only your own existence…”
He pulls back from the hug to gently cup Dark Choco’s face in his hands, making sure she hears him. “I couldn’t be more proud to say that you, my own daughter, are the strongest warrior in the land”
Dark Choco takes in those words fully, letting go of her emotions as a trembling hand reaches up to cover her fathers as tears silently streamed down her face, seeming to flow without end. “Appa…” Her tears are wiped away with the soft caresses of Dark Cacao’s rough hands. She felt a part of herself deep within her very being heal, the part that longed for this very affection from her father. She quickly embraced him again, tears staining Dark Cacao’s robe. They both stay there, embarrassing each other like they never have before.